Pre Gas Drilling Water Tests
New York State
Marcellus Shale Water Testing
- A baseline water test before gas drilling starts is your best protection.
- Legally defensible baseline water testing
- Local Independent third party – we will standby you in court
- We use a NY State Certified lab
- Proper Chain of custody
- Readable reports, which we will go over with you.
We only do testing for well water OWNERS and do not test for the gas companies.
We do not want any conflicts of interest and our first priority lies with well owners.
Call the Pump Doctors for pre-gas drilling water tests, we analyze the condition of a water supply prior to gas well drilling and establish a baseline of water quality.
| Tier 1 | Tier 2 | Tier 3 |
|---|---|---|
| _ | + Tier 1 | + Tier 1 & 2 |
| Total Dissolved Solids | Total Coliform Bacteria | Volatiles Organics by EPA 524 |
| Barium | Arsenic, Iron, Manganese, Sodium, Lead, Strontium | Gross Alpha/Beta |
| Chloride | Total Hardness, Total Organic Carbon | Radium 226 |
| pH | Total Suspended Solids | Radium 228 |
| Methane/Ethane | Turbidity | Radon in water |
| Sulfate | ||
| Nitrate | ||
| Alkalinity | ||
| Oil & Grease | ||
| MBAS (Detergents) |
Our well water is at risk
- Gas Drilling using Hydrofracking is coming to New York.
- 2000 wells drilled in Pa in the last few years.
- Toxic fracking water going down the wells and coming back up.
- .05% is toxic chemicals the rest is sand & water.
That doesn’t sound too bad but that .05% is 25,000 gallons of toxic fracking chemicals, which is 10,000X more contamination then is allowed by the EPA drinking water standards. - 1435 violations in PA in 2 ½ yrs.
Do the gas companies test my water?
At this time the norm is that they test within 1000 feet from the drilling pad. So allow them to test, but they may not test for all contaminates and you may still want your own independent test.
Are the gas companies liable for contaminating my water?
Only if you can prove what your water had in it before they drilled and then after. It is up to You, no one is going to help you.
You should have a baseline test before the drilling starts and within 6 months after the drilling stops.
Will I taste or smell the contaminants?
| CONTAMINANT | SEE | SMELL | TASTE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coliform Bacteria | None | None | None |
| Methane | None | None | None |
| Barium | None | None | Bitter |
| Chloride | None | None | Salty |
| TDS | Colored, Cloudy | None | Salty |
| Lead | None | None | None |
| Arsenic | None | None | None |
| Iron | Rusty | None | Metallic |
| Manganese | Black to Brown | None | Bitter, Metallic |
| Strontium | None | None | Bitter, Salty |
| Magnesium | None | None | Bitter, Sour |
| Calcium | None | None | Bitter, Sour |
| Sodium | None | None | Salty |
| Sulfate | None | None | Bitter, Astringent |
| Nitrate | None | None | None |
| Oil & Grease | None | Oily | Oily |
| Detergents / Surfactants | Frothy, Cloudy | Odorous | Bitter |
BTEX Compounds
| CONTAMINANT | SEE | SMELL | TASTE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Benzene | None | Sweet-smelling | None |
| Toluene | None | Paint Thinner | None |
| Ethylbenzene | None | Gasoline | None |
| Xylene | None | Sweet-smelling | None |
| Radium | None | None | None |
| Radon | None | None | None |
| Gross Alpha | None | None | None |
Helpful links
- EPA Drinking water standards
- PA list of fracking fluids (PDF)
- NY TIMES article on tainted water from gas wells (2/27/11)
- We will add more links and information, when New York finalizes their regulations.