The waste of natural gas

solarvic
solarvic Solar Expert Posts: 1,071 ✭✭✭✭
in Energy Use & Conservation #1
While browsing the utica gas shale which is important in western, Pa and Eastern Ohio, I found this story. http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=4030# Sure is a waste of energy. Maybe my next gas well might be a utica shale well. :Dsolarvic:D
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  • Cariboocoot
    Cariboocoot Banned Posts: 17,615 ✭✭✭
    #2
    Re: The waste of natural gas

    Not just ND; gas flaring of oil wells has been a standard procedure around the world since drilling began. Although it is not always done, the reasons mentioned in the article (lack of infrastructure to capture and distribute the NG) are more prevalent than not. As such it is more "economic" to burn off the gas to quickly get to the more valuable (and easily handled) oil.

    Once again waste of energy is shown to be the biggest problem, not its source or the pollution it produces (whatever type).
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  • niel
    niel Solar Expert Posts: 10,300 ✭✭✭✭
    #3
    Re: The waste of natural gas

    it is kind of stupid that they don't consider the natural gas as valuable.

    hey vic, what's up with the little quakes around your general vicinity? i know there have been quite a few small ones over the years centered in your general area. the strongest was 5.2 around greenville a few years back. (i have a niece there) i remember 79 rippled for about a mile or so in mercer county years back until they recently fixed it. have the quakes influenced the gas production in any way or even the pressure coming from the wells?
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  • solarvic
    solarvic Solar Expert Posts: 1,071 ✭✭✭✭
    #4
    Re: The waste of natural gas

    Niel, So far the little earth quakes havn,t been felt in my area. There is a water injection well near youngstown area where they are injecting millions of gallons of water they used in the fracturing of gas wells. The locals there think that is what is causing the earthquakes. There was announced last week that one of the drilling companys want to put in another injection well right off I-80 just into ohio. They are getting lots of people trying to stop it. I guess a lot of that water is coming from The marcelles shale well drilling in Pa. I live at the edge of the marcellis shale so probably might not get one of those wells but I am in the hot zone where the utica shale drilling is suposed to occur. There is suposed to be lots of oil in the utica shale area. And the Marithon oil co already has a depot in wellsville ohio and a refinery in west virginia to refine the oil. I keep getting letters from lawyers wanting to buy my land for recreation and hunting purposes. Got about 10 or so since Sept. Wonder if they think I am crazy. Some of those farms are getting $8.000.00 per acre leasing fees and 20% royalitys. :Dsolarvic:D
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  • niel
    niel Solar Expert Posts: 10,300 ✭✭✭✭
    #5
    Re: The waste of natural gas

    hmm, there is a fault up in that area so do you think the fracturing is,
    not a factor in creating the quakes?
    aggravating the fault and prematurely causing the quakes?
    or is creating its own little quakes aside from the fault line?

    are you enjoying your first big snow and bitter cold temps this season? i know i'm not because i know there's more to come.:roll:
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  • Cariboocoot
    Cariboocoot Banned Posts: 17,615 ✭✭✭
    #6
    Re: The waste of natural gas

    Technically an Earthquake is cause by tectonic plate action. But there's lots of other stuff can go on underground that gives much the same result. One I'm familiar with firsthand: http://ny.water.usgs.gov/pubs/fs/fs01798/FS017-98.pdf

    Off hand I'd say there's definite cause for concern with the fracking technique used for resource recovery, including reports of volatile chemicals being forced into groundwater in areas where this practice is used.

    But interesting as this may be, it is pretty far off the solar power theme of the forum.
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  • niel
    niel Solar Expert Posts: 10,300 ✭✭✭✭
    #7
    Re: The waste of natural gas

    i'm semi-familiar with mine subsidence as this area was heavily mined in the 1800s. i guess with fracturing if pressures build in a spot without relief it may pop part of the ground upward. even though it is mining of a sort by taking the desired gasses or oils out, fracturing is putting something there in its place under high pressure rather than leaving a void.

    as far as the thread goes it is in the area of energy use and conservation and does not necessarily have to address solar or wind power at all.
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  • solarvic
    solarvic Solar Expert Posts: 1,071 ✭✭✭✭
    #8
    Re: The waste of natural gas

    It is big news on youngstown tv. It will be a boom for manufacturing and all the jobs that it is suposed to create. They put a tube mill to make pipe and there is another co. going to build a plant there to make the pipe that makes the horizontal turns in drilling. Another plant that makes generators that the drilling companys use and many other suporting industry ect. Some geologist in the area think that the water they are injecting in the ground is lubricating the faults in the rock formations. Most of the earthquakes started within a half mile from the well so I kind of think the well is causing it. Think there were 8 or 9 quakes in 4 months. I did think this part of the forum was ok to post this stuff as I plan on using my ng to run a generator for my offgrid battery. :Dsolarvic:D
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  • niel
    niel Solar Expert Posts: 10,300 ✭✭✭✭
    #9
    Re: The waste of natural gas

    the lubricating aspect never occurred to me and it's hard to say exactly what is going on for sure, but it would seem there is no coincidence going on here with that number of quakes. i heard from my local news that it was like 11 quakes in the past year and that last one was fairly deep as it was about 3 miles down as reported by the usgs. there has been fracturing going on around this part of the state too, but so far we have not experienced any quakes here that i am aware of. i'm surprised that you did not feel it as local news reported that it was felt in and around the area up there, but who knows, you may be like me in not feeling them. the one that hit in virginia was credited with some minor building damage down here, but what do i know as i would've never guessed a quake ever happened being i didn't feel it.:confused: hmmm. i looked up the mag 5.2 that hit greenville in '98 and it was the same exact depth.
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  • solarvic
    solarvic Solar Expert Posts: 1,071 ✭✭✭✭
    #10
    Re: The waste of natural gas

    I am guessing I am some where between 40 to 50 miles northeast of the of the injection well earthquakesand didn,t feel any of the quakes. I live about 10 miles east of Greenville and definately felt the earthquake we had in 1998. Out in the country where I live it mostly caused damage to peoples water wells. The water well drillers were busy for awhile. My stepbrothers spring stopped and a neighbors spring flow increased. Solarvic
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