Hydrocarbon and Carbon Dioxide Fluxes from Natural Gas Well Pad Soils and Surrounding Soils in Eastern Utah
Document Type
Article
Journal/Book Title
Environmental Science & Technology
Publication Date
9-7-2017
Publisher
American Chemical Society
Award Number
US Dept. of Interior, Bureau of Land Management L13AC00292; US Dept. of Energy 12122-15
Funder
US Dept. of Interior, Bureau of Land Management; US Dept. of Energy
Volume
51
Issue
20
First Page
11625
Last Page
11633
Abstract
We measured fluxes of methane, nonmethane hydrocarbons, and carbon dioxide from natural gas well pad soils and from nearby undisturbed soils in eastern Utah. Methane fluxes varied from less than zero to more than 38 g m–2 h–1. Fluxes from well pad soils were almost always greater than from undisturbed soils. Fluxes were greater from locations with higher concentrations of total combustible gas in soil and were inversely correlated with distance from well heads. Several lines of evidence show that the majority of emission fluxes (about 70%) were primarily due to subsurface sources of raw gas that migrated to the atmosphere, with the remainder likely caused primarily by re-emission of spilled liquid hydrocarbons. Total hydrocarbon fluxes during summer were only 39 (16, 97)% as high as during winter, likely because soil bacteria consumed the majority of hydrocarbons during summer months. We estimate that natural gas well pad soils account for 4.6 × 10–4 (1.6 × 10–4, 1.6 × 10–3)% of total emissions of hydrocarbons from the oil and gas industry in Utah’s Uinta Basin. Our undisturbed soil flux measurements were not adequate to quantify rates of natural hydrocarbon seepage in the Uinta Basin.
Recommended Citation
Lyman, Seth N., et al. “Hydrocarbon and Carbon Dioxide Fluxes from Natural Gas Well Pad Soils and Surrounding Soils in Eastern Utah.” Environmental Science & Technology, vol. 51, no. 20, Oct. 2017, pp. 11625–33. DOI.org (Crossref), doi:10.1021/acs.est.7b03408.
