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groundwater quality was not degraded by   and food-based compounds and geosyn-  uncertainty, facilitate fact-based regula-
            the activity onsite;  final results will be   thetics to enhance containment ( Thomas   tions, and improve their social license to
            published in a DOE report.         et al., 2018) . Environmental risks of stan-  operate ( Table S6) .
              The Marcellus Shale Energy and   dard frack fluid chemicals and green   Geoscientists are frequently called upon
            Environment Laboratory ( MSEEL)  is a   alternatives need to be better understood,   to answer questions about fracking. The
            long-term, collaborative field site located   and the oil and gas industry must be con-  issues are neither simple nor static, and
            near Morgantown, West Virginia, to   vinced that green chemicals perform as   keeping up with rapidly evolving technol-
            develop and validate new technology for   well as and cost the same or less than the   ogy and a highly adaptable industry is a
            improving recovery efficiency and reduc-  chemicals they replace.     significant challenge. For example, in
            ing environmental impacts of shale-gas   These issues are also being addressed   2010, the discharge of high TDS wastewa-
            development ( Table S6 [ see footnote 2] ) .   by the Environmentally Friendly Drilling   ter in the effluent from municipal waste-
            The MSEEL developed a geologic and   ( EFD)  program supported by DOE at the   water treatment plants was identified as
            engineering baseline using two older   Houston Advanced Research Center   the greatest environmental risk from UOG
            Marcellus wells at the site, and a vertical   ( HARC) . Field trials of new technologies   development ( Roz ell and Reaven, 2012) .
            drill core of the Marcellus Shale was   for site selection, drilling, completion,   Beneficial use of produced water for road
            obtained from one of the new production   production, and gas compression, along   de-icing and dust suppression ( e.g., Skalak
            wells. A scientific observation well sup-  with public perception studies, help indus-  et al., 2014)  was curtailed. A few years
            plied detailed subsurface information   try develop oil and gas resources in a more   later, water management practices had
            including 150 sidewall cores and provided   environmentally responsible manner.  changed to flowback recycling and dis-
            monitoring access for new hydraulic frac-                             posal of residual waste down UIC wells
            turing technologies tested in the produc-  CHALLENGES AND             ( Rodriguez  and Soeder, 2015) , eliminating
            tion laterals, which also furnish produced   OPPORTUNITIES            worries about discharge from wastewater
            water and gas samples to researchers.   Research on the environmental impacts   plants. These were replaced by new con-
            Q uality of surface water, air, and noise   of UOG development was affected by dra-  cerns over the risk of spills or leaks from
            were monitored by geochemists, health   matic decreases in oil and gas prices   the improper handling of produced water
            professionals, and social scientists.   beginning in 2014 ( Fig. S8 [ see footnote   ( e.g., Patterson et al., 2017) , and high vol-
            Continued research at MSEEL is expected   2] ) . Natural gas prices fell first, leading to   umes of wastewater injection causing
            to improve extraction and management of   a steady decline in the number of active   induced seismicity ( Llenos and Michael,
            subsurface energy resources and advance   drill rigs on the shale gas plays, followed a   2013) . In conclusion, the public is con-
            scientific understanding of the environ-  few months later by a significant drop in   cerned about the uncertainties of human-
            mental and social impacts of shale   oil prices, leading to an even more abrupt   health and possible environmental risks of
            development.                       decline in the number of active rigs drill-  fracking, which geoscientists can address
              These two field sites have been joined   ing the Bakken Shale ( USEIA, 2016) .   through rigorous scientific research and
            more recently by the Eagle Ford Shale   These changes resulted in logistical chal-  responsible public engagement ( Brantley
            Laboratory in Texas, the Tuscaloosa   lenges or cancellations of planned field-  et al., 2018) .
            Marine Shale Laboratory ( TMSL)  in   monitoring projects as drillers shifted to
            Louisiana, and the Field Laboratory for   the more lucrative parts of a play ( e.g.,   ACK NOW  LED GMENTS
            Emerging Stacked Unconventional Plays   Soeder, 2015) . Fewer operating drill rigs   This article grew out of a Pardee Symposium
            ( ESUP)  in the Nora Gas Field in Virginia.   reduced the number of potential access   convened at the 2016 GSA Annual Meeting in
            The Geological Survey of Canada also has   options for investigators.  Denver, Colorado, USA, where researchers from
            been performing field investigations of   Oil and gas production is a cyclical   academia, industry, and government discussed
                                                                                  progress toward understanding the environmen-
            potential hydrocarbon migration from the   business. Unconventional resources feed   tal impacts of UOG development. We gratefully
            Utica Shale at a depth of 2 km to shallow   the same markets as all other components   acknowledge support for the symposium pro-
            aquifers in the St. Lawrence lowlands   of the energy sector. During boom times,   vided by the Pardee Symposium Fund of the
            ( Rivard et al., 2016) . Variable isotopic   industry is in a frenz y to gain lease posi-  Geological Society of America. Funding for the
                                                                                  authors was provided by the U.S. DOE National
            compositions of CH  indicate that biogenic   tions and install wells while prices are   Energy Technology Laboratory, the USGS Toxic
                           4
            and thermogenic methane likely originated   high and competition stiff. Partnering in   Substances Hydrology Program, and the USGS
            from black shales underlying shallow bed-  research on environmental and human-   Water Mission Area. Joe Gardiner ( USGS)  pro-
            rock aquifers. Although upward migration   health impacts is low on their priority list.   duced Figure 1. Comments by Mike Focaz io,
            of deep brine was discovered along a nor-  When prices drop, development slows   Isabelle Coz z arelli, Mark Engle, Christopher
                                                                                  Conaway, Barbara Bekins, Joe Ryan, Gerald
            mal fault, there is no evidence of signifi-  down. There is less drilling and fewer   Dickens, and three anonymous reviewers greatly
            cant gas migration from the Utica Shale.  opportunities for researchers, but the   improved the manuscript. Any use of trade, firm,
                                               downward part of the cycle also provides   or product names is for descriptive purposes only
            ALTERNATIVE MATERIALS AND          an opportunity to discuss potential part-  and does not imply endorsement by the U.S.
            PRACTICES                          nerships in projects investigating environ-  government.
              A study at the University of Arkansas,   mental and human-health impacts.   REFERENCES CITED
            Little Rock, assessed industry adoption of   Industry partners are more willing to lis-  Akob, D.M., Mumford, A.C., Orem, W., Engle,
            hydraulic fracturing technologies that use   ten to researchers’ ideas and interested in   M.A., Klinges, J.G., Kent, D.B., and Coz z arelli,
            “ greener”  chemicals, including low-VOC   data that could increase efficiency, reduce   I.M., 2016, Wastewater disposal from unconven-

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