Since approximately 2009, the Eagle Ford Shale has been one of the fastest growing oil and gas plays in the United States with thousands of wells drilled and many thousands more planned over the life of the play.  Each well uses, on average, approximately 4M gallons of water during installation.  Nearly all of the water utilized is supplied through groundwater production wells, many of these completed in fresh groundwater resources (&lt;1,000 ppm total dissolved solids).   Groundwater monitoring data in the Eagle Ford play was assembled and evaluated to assess the potential response of the water levels to this increase in groundwater usage.  Additionally, alternative water resources and correlating rig counts to water usage were also analyzed. The data indicate that water levels in different parts of the Eagle Ford play are responding differently to the advent of hydraulic fracturing, depending on other groundwater uses, aquifer characteristics and precipitation.  The large volume of brackish water in the Eagle Ford play represents a significant source of water that can be utilized by the hydraulic fracturing industry.

Groundwater resources and hydraulic fracturing in the Eagle Ford Shale

251st National Meeting (2016)

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