Frac
Sanding in Wisconsin
By: Joseph Mandelko
For over 60
years a method of oil and natural gas extraction has been used called hydraulic
fracturing, or fracking. The process uses a mixture of pure quartz sand and
water under extreme amounts of pressure to open fissures far below the surface
of the earth allowing for natural gas and oil to be accessed easier than
before. Recently there has been a development in the discipline of fracking
that has resulted in even more resources being able to be extracted. This advancement
is the idea of horizontal drilling. Now, with just one well drilling, the
extraction company can send out frack lines horizontally from the initial drill
point allowing for resources in the vicinity of the drill point to be accessed.
In the state
of Wisconsin, as with many other states with similar geologic formations, the
increase in popularity of frac sanding has begun to be noticeable. Figure 1
below shows the location of frac sand mines and processing plants in Wisconsin
as of 2013. The most important segment of the map however is the sandstone
formations shown, this is a huge indicator of the future of fracking in the
state. The western side of the state shows a huge potential to be mined not
just for oil and natural gas but more importantly for the pure quartz sand
needed in frac mining. The geologic feature of such a stable and constant
sandstone layer has drawn attention by mining companies and the effects are all
across the board.
Because of
the proximity and ease of use of the railroad systems in Wisconsin the state
has easier accessibility and transportation of mined sand than even neighboring
Minnesota. On one hand this has been good for Wisconsin by creating jobs and
pumping money into the state’s economy. On the other hand the heavy use of
mining equipment has begun to have effects on the environment and populations
near mining operations. The proximity of the mines to communities has resulted
in increased lung cancer, and other illness associated with dirty air. There is
also the fact that trucks, in many cases run constantly all day and night in
and out of mines to remove the sand mined from the mine. This has caused
overall quality of life to decline dramatically and communities are facing hard
decisions on allowing or banning frac mining in their townships.
Geographic
information systems can be, and are, used heavily in the area of mining and it
is no different for frac mining. Data from the USGS and local county level data
can be combined to display anything from current mining areas and effected
communities. The issue of sand transportation can also be displayed to show
where heavily traveled roads are and what the effect of the traffic is on local
communities. GIS can also be used to discover where better, less intrusive,
routes are located to help reduce issues with health and the community. In this
class we will use GIS to analyses the department of transportation data on Trempealeau
County to look at the impacts of mining on the roads and communities there.
(Figure 1:
Location of sandstone formations and frac sand mines and processing plants.
Wisconsin Geologic and Natural History Survey)
Sources:
Hart, Maria,
Teresa Adams, and Andrew Schwartz. "Transportation Impacts C Sand Mining
in the MAFC Region." National Center for Freight & Infrastructure
Research & Education (2013): n. pag. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
Parsen,
Mike, and Jay Zambito. "Mining: Frac Sand." Wisconsin Geological
Natural History Survey. Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, n.d.
Web. 27 Feb. 2016.
Younger, By
Sally. "Sand Rush: Fracking Boom Spurs Rush on Wisconsin Silica."
<i>National Geographic</i>. National Geographic Society, n.d. Web.
27 Feb. 2016.
