In a paper just published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, it’s been reported that an organic compound used in gas-drilling fluids, 2-n-Butoxyethanol (C4H9OC2H4OH), was detected in a domestic well in Pennsylvania. This was a bit of a surprise, because the actually hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, occurs thousands of feet beneath the aquifer. It appears the contamination is the result of poor practices at the surface, either drilling fluid escaping during the initial drilling of the well, or a leaky drilling waste pit.

The study was prompted by the report of natural gas and foam in domestic wells near shale gas wells in the Marcellus Shale. The concentration of 2-n-Butoxyethanol was very low, measured in nanograms per liter, or parts per trillion.

This is another reminder that oil and gas extraction can be a messy business. If proper techniques are not followed or if regulations are inadequate, contamination can and will occur.