Dalton Utilities CEO Don Cope said the water company’s potential use of hydraulic fracturing is a “different animal” from a similar technique the Environmental Protection Agency is investigating.
In March, EPA announced it was conducting a study into how hydraulic fracturing could contaminate groundwater supplies. Dalton Utilities has tried the technique once and is looking at increased usage under a complex water storage plan being explored by the water company, according to Mr. Cope.
The EPA’s $1.9 million study is investigating the impact of the technique, also called hydrofracking and primarily associated with gas and oil drilling, on groundwater.
In such applications, water, sand and chemicals called “fracturing fluids” are injected into the ground under great pressure. The pressure widens cracks and fractures in the underlying rock, making extraction of fossil fuels easier and more efficient.
WHAT IS HYDRAULIC FRACTURING?In hydraulic fracturing, also called hydrofracking, water or chemicals called “fracturing fluids” are injected into the ground under great pressure. The pressure widens the cracks and fractures in the underlying rock to make extraction of fossil fuels or water easier and more efficient.