Cuadrilla Implements "Traffic Light" System
Cuadrilla Resources has announced that it will adopt the early detection technology set out in a report on seismic activity that the company experienced at the Bowland Shale Basin in Lancashire, England last year.
Cuadrilla has recently been tentatively given the green light to resume fracking operations on its Lancashire prospect following an investigation by the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) into seismic activity caused by the company's activities there. In May last year, the British Geological Survey (BGS) reported two small quakes close-by to the Lancashire site, the first measuring 1.5 on the Richter scale and the second measuring 2.3. The tremors were subsequently linked to Cuadrilla's hydraulic fracturing activity at the site.
The company said yesterday that it would be adopting a "traffic light" system which has already been successfully implemented by other companies in Germany and the Netherlands. This traffic light system will see Cuadrilla will use a seismometer network around every one of its well sites. This network involves the use of "passive technology", the company says, which uses sound sources deep underground to map the rock, feeding back information in real-time.
The traffic light system will allow Cuadrilla to consistently and regularly monitor seismic activity within the rock helping to prevent any activity which could lead to significant tremors in the future.
Additionally, the company will also implement a second monitoring system at its Banks site in West Lancashire. This system will aim to demonstrate that fracturing does not lead to water contamination.
Cuadrilla says that it has gone above and beyond the recommendations set out by the DECC, with the the technology used offering "unparalleled levels of information" and "greater transparency for the community." All fracture monitoring results will be available to the public through the company's website.
Mark Miller, former CEO and current Director of Bowland Operations for Cuadrilla, said that the monitoring will help to prove that fracking was safe for water.
"With this system in place at the Banks site, we can demonstrate that fractures are thousands of feet away from the aquifer – and that they stay there long after the fracturing process has been carried out. Should hydraulic fracturing be allowed to resume, we think that this will be an effective way of demonstrating to the public that the process is indeed safe."