The rapid pace of natural gas development in the northeastern United States (Marcellus Shale) has prompted many scientists and citizens to begin monitoring water resources. Funded by the National Science Foundation, the Shale Network is a collaboration of members from Pennsylvania State University, University of Pittsburgh, Pitt University, and the Consortium for Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Sciences, Inc. (CUAHSI). The Shale Network’s intent is to acts as an “honest broker” and facilitate compilation of these disparate data into a database that enables scientists and citizens alike to investigate surface and ground water quality in areas of shale gas extraction. The Shale Network is compiling data collected by watershed groups, government agencies, industry stakeholders and universities; as well as organizing and uploading the data for online publication. The mission of the Shale Network is to create a sustainable network among these groups and to develop a database that can be used to establish background concentrations and to assess impacts across extraction regions of shale plays.<br/>We are using the database to understand possible impacts from the shale gas industry. Three types of major water quality impacts were noted (issues around brine treatment and disposal; issues around leakage of methane from old and new shale gas wells; issues related to radioactivity in the shale and its associated waters). However, the sampling density that would be needed to properly and completely assess the impact of unconventional gas industry on water quality would be prohibitively high.  In addition, the Shale Network discovered important conclusions about data sharing. The expense and time needed to adequately monitor for shale gas impacts is high, even for just the state of Pennsylvania. Therefore, learning more about data sharing: how to promote it, how to improve it, how to use it, and how to make it work, is perhaps more important than discovering new ways to measure the quality of our waters.  Although current policies and regulations may not be based on solid scientific evidence, there is a clear benefit from having defensible scientific information as backing.<br/>

Lessons learned about using data to understand water issues related to shale gas development in Pennsylvania: From science to sociology

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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