Water usage for natural gas production through hydraulic fracturing in the United States from 2008 to 2014

<p>Production of oil and natural gas in North America is at an all-time high due to the development and use of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing. Methane emissions associated with this industrial activity are a concern because of the contribution to climate radiative forcing. We present new measurements from the space-based TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) launched in 2017 that show methane enhancements over production regions in the United States. Using methane and NO<sub>2</sub> column measurements from the new TROPOMI instrument, we show that emissions from oil and gas production in the Uintah and Permian Basins can be observed in the data from individual overpasses. This is a vast improvement over measurements from previous satellite instruments, which typically needed to be averaged over a year or more to quantify trends and regional enhancements in methane emissions. In the Uintah Basin in Utah, TROPOMI methane columns correlated with in-situ measurements, and the highest columns were observed over the deepest parts of the basin, consistent with the accumulation of emissions underneath inversions. In the Permian Basin in Texas and New Mexico, methane columns showed maxima over regions with the highest natural gas production and were correlated with nitrogen-dioxide columns at a ratio that is consistent with results from in-situ airborne measurements. The improved detail provided by TROPOMI will likely enable the timely monitoring from space of methane and NO2 emissions associated with regular oil and natural gas production.</p>

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Response to Comment on “Methane Emissions from Process Equipment at Natural Gas Production Sites in the United States: Pneumatic Controllers”

Environmental Science & Technology ◽

10.1021/acs.est.5b00941 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 49 (6) ◽

pp. 3983-3984 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

David T. Allen ◽

David W. Sullivan ◽

Matt Harrison

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Natural Gas ◽

The United States ◽

Methane Emissions ◽

Gas Production ◽

Process Equipment ◽

Natural Gas Production

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Two if by Sea

Mechanical Engineering ◽

10.1115/1.2004-jul-1 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 126 (07) ◽

pp. 24-29

Author(s):

Paul Sharke

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Natural Gas ◽

Single Point ◽

The United States ◽

Gas Production ◽

Liquefied Natural Gas ◽

Natural Gas Production ◽

The 1960S ◽

Offshore Oil ◽

Gas Price

This article discusses that ever since the Methane Pioneer sailed a cargo of liquefied natural gas from the United States to England in 1959, LNG trading in the United States has been a business of fits and starts. A chart plotting the growth of seaborne LNG depicts a flat first decade in the 1960s, 10 years’ rise in the 1970s during the first oil crunch and a flurry of Japanese activity, and then a plateau again in the 1980s on the tail of natural gas price deregulation and a bump up in domestic natural gas production. Bluewater’s concepts for offshore LNG terminals are designed to let a tanker weathervane. Moored at a single point, a weather vaning vessel swings freely to present the lowest area it can to wind and sea. The practice is common with offshore oil handling to keep ship movement from straining the floating hose that carries crude off the ship.

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