FrackTrack Establishes New Well Water Registry for Homeowners in PA
In March 2011, MDN wrote a review and recommendation of the then-brand new FrackTrack online mapping service. The service visually shows (on Google Maps) gas well locations throughout Pennsylvania, along with details for each well like the exact name and address of the well, permit information, any known violations, etc. You can read MDN’s original review here.
The same organization is now hard at work on a new project to catalog privately-owned water wells and springs used as water supplies throughout Pennsylvania. FrackTrack uses data available from the state, but has found many holes and gaps in the data, and so they have launched a new project to encourage home owners to register their wells and springs with the service.
From the FrackTrack website:
Landowners that utilize water wells or springs for their water supply are encouraged to sign up and register their water source… We plan on utilizing this data to augment existing data sets to enhance policies designed to protect public and private water supplies. After registering you’ll be able to login and document your water source.
§208 of the Oil and Gas Act (1984, P.L.1140, No.223) governs the protection of water supplies and how the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) handles landowner complaints.
Pursuant to §208(c) well operators are presumed to be liable for the pollution of water supplies within 1,000 feet of an oil or gas well if pollution results within six months of completion or alteration of the well in question.
In order to preserve your rights as a landowner, it is essential for you to get your well water tested PRIOR to gas development activity beginning. For your convenience we’ve aggregated the DEP’s list of certified labs which is easily searchable at our Water Testing Data Portal.
PA residents can register their wells and springs at: www.fracktrack.org/h2olog.php.
.Yeah right… I recommend you have your water Tested by 2 other independent companies first..Then have them test your water and see if the results match… I heard of a guy getting his water tested and it came back clean and pristine then a gas company come in and test the water before drilling and find a completely different result… NOT EVEN CLOSE!!! Don’t be stupid and let the fox in the hen house… Watch your back… Pro drilling BTW….
dmorgan2151, We aren’t testing people’s water for them, we want to get the locations of the wells so we can better model and assess situations if accidents happen, and they eventually will.
If we haven’t the slightest idea of where wells are located, we can’t possibly incorporate that data into any useful analysis.
Case studies by the EPA report results won’t be expected until the end of 2012…long term project reports won’t be published until 2014. These studies will not provide potential impact on air, eco systems, or occupational risks.