Baseline Groundwater Sampling
Program Design Considerations
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Information contained herein is the property of and is proprietary to Weston Solutions, Inc. and shall not be reproduced, disclosed, or used without the prior
written permission of Weston Solutions, Inc
2
States with Baseline Sampling Regs
State
CO
Mandatory
Sources Sampled
No. Samples
Required
Yes
Wells, springs, and
seeps
2 (nearest
sources)
Results to
Landowner
Post-Drill
Sampling
½ mile
Within 3
months of
sampling
Yes
Within 3
months of
sampling
Yes
Radius
Yes
Wells
1
Within
governmental
quarter section
or ½ mile
Maryland
No
Drinking,
agricultural, and
livestock water
sources
All sources in
radius
2500 ft
Yes – no timing
mandated
No
Pennsylvania
No
Wells
All wells in
radius
2500 ft
10 days from
lab report
No
Ohio
Yes
Wells
All wells in
radius
1500 ft rural
None
No
Alaska –
proposed
Yes
Wells
All wells in
radius
¼ mile
None
Yes
CO – Wattenberg
Wyoming –
possible
Colorado regulations expected to be the model
Information contained herein is the property of and is proprietary to Weston Solutions, Inc. and shall not be reproduced, disclosed, or used without the prior
written permission of Weston Solutions, Inc
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WESTON’s Baseline Experience
• Performed Baseline Sampling in:
• Pennsylvania (regulated)
• Ohio (regulated)
• Texas (voluntary)
• Colorado (voluntary when performed, now regulated)
• Designed Baseline Programs for:
• Regulated and Voluntary Regimes
• High and Low Volume Drilling Plans
Information contained herein is the property of and is proprietary to Weston Solutions, Inc. and shall not be reproduced, disclosed, or used without the prior
written permission of Weston Solutions, Inc
4
What is Baseline Sampling?
Baseline Sampling – The process of collecting water samples
from sources surrounding a well pad to document
groundwater conditions prior to drilling.
Information contained herein is the property of and is proprietary to Weston Solutions, Inc. and shall not be reproduced, disclosed, or used without the prior
written permission of Weston Solutions, Inc
5
Baseline Program Design
• Establishing the Program’s Goals
• Geographic Scope
• What to Sample
• Where to Sample
• Obtaining Permission to Sample
• What Analyses to Perform
• Managing Information
Information contained herein is the property of and is proprietary to Weston Solutions, Inc. and shall not be reproduced, disclosed, or used without the prior
written permission of Weston Solutions, Inc
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Establish Program’s Goals
• Risk Management
• Provides documentation of pre-drilling groundwater conditions
• In some States, can satisfy regulatory requirements that also
provide operator with some liability protection
• Regulatory Drivers
• Required to obtain drilling permit in Ohio
• Mandatory in some States
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Shows landowners that the Operator is taking care in how they do
business
Information contained herein is the property of and is proprietary to Weston Solutions, Inc. and shall not be reproduced, disclosed, or used without the prior
written permission of Weston Solutions, Inc
7
Geographic Scope
• Is Program for one operating unit or multiple/all?
• What should be consistent across geographies?
• Consider local logistics
Information contained herein is the property of and is proprietary to Weston Solutions, Inc. and shall not be reproduced, disclosed, or used without the prior
written permission of Weston Solutions, Inc
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What to Sample
• Public and private water wells
• Surface water sources
• Seeps and springs
• Agriculture, livestock and potable sources
Information contained herein is the property of and is proprietary to Weston Solutions, Inc. and shall not be reproduced, disclosed, or used without the prior
written permission of Weston Solutions, Inc
9
Where to Sample
• No consensus among operators or state guidance
• Generally surface hole location used as the starting point
• ½ to 1 mile radius?
• Enough samples to be
representative
Information contained herein is the property of and is proprietary to Weston Solutions, Inc. and shall not be reproduced, disclosed, or used without the prior
written permission of Weston Solutions, Inc
10
Obtaining Permission to Sample
• Initial contacts best done over the phone or in person,
when possible
• Written permission to be on property required
• Be ready to explain why samples are being collected
• Offer to provide analytical results to the landowner
• Be ready for the question:
o
“When are you coming back to sample after drilling?”
Information contained herein is the property of and is proprietary to Weston Solutions, Inc. and shall not be reproduced, disclosed, or used without the prior
written permission of Weston Solutions, Inc
11
Analyses to Perform
• Highly Regional – Driven by Program Goals
o
General Chemistry
o
Anions - Cations
o
Metals
o
Dissolved Gasses
o
BTEX
o
TPH
Information contained herein is the property of and is proprietary to Weston Solutions, Inc. and shall not be reproduced, disclosed, or used without the prior
written permission of Weston Solutions, Inc
12
Managing Information
• High-quality data is critical to the program
• Recommend the use of a database
• Plan to manage the data before you need to manage
the data
o
The amount of information stranded in spreadsheets
can be overwhelming
Information contained herein is the property of and is proprietary to Weston Solutions, Inc. and shall not be reproduced, disclosed, or used without the prior
written permission of Weston Solutions, Inc
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ShaleFast(SM) Viewer - Demo
• Features are highly customizable
• GIS data can be shown on Web-based interface
• Data is linked to well pad, property or other location
• Analytical data query and export features are built-in
• Data can be pulled from multiple sources, if desired
• Data can be verified against quality criteria before being
published
• http://westonitsolutions.net/shalefastdemo/login.aspx
Information contained herein is the property of and is proprietary to Weston Solutions, Inc. and shall not be reproduced, disclosed, or used without the prior
written permission of Weston Solutions, Inc
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Contacts:
Barbara Denson – 713.985.6764
Ryan Leatherbury – 210.248.2456
Rick Farrand – 303.729.6154
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