Fracking Explained Opportunity Or Danger

Miremos el siguiente video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uti2niW2BRA

1. Completa con las palabras de la caja y luego corrobora mirando el video

hasta 123

Profittable- fuels- conventional- recovery

What is hydraulic fracturing or fracking?

Since the industrial revolution, our energy consumption has risen unceasingly. The
majority of this energy consumption is supplied by fossil (1)-----------------like coal or
natural gas. Recently, theres been a lot of talk about a controversial method of
extracting natural gas, hydraulic fracturing or fracking, put simply fracking describes the
(2)-----------------of natural gas from deep layers inside the earth. In this method porous
rock is fractured by the use of water, sand, and chemicals, in order to release the
enclosed natural gas.

The technique of fracking has been known since the 1940s. Nonetheless, only in the last
10 years has there been quite a fracking boom, especially in the USA. This is because
most (3)-------------------natural gas sources in America and on the European Continent
have been exhausted. Thus prices for natural gas and other fuels are rising steadily.
Significantly more complicated and expensive methods like fracking have now become
attractive and (4)------------------. In the meantime fracking has already been used more
than a million times in the USA alone. Over 60% of all new oil and gas wells are drilled by
using fracking.

Now, lets take a look at how fracking actually works.

2. Escuche el siguiente fragmento y ponga en orden los prrafos (desde

124hasta 326)

---------No one yet knows how the enclosed water will behave in the future, since they
have not yet been any long-term studies on the subject. The chemicals used in fracking
vary from the hazardous to the extremely toxic and carcinogenic such as benzoyl or
formic acid.

---------The mixture penetrates into the rock layer and produces innumerable tiny cracks,
the sand prevents the cracks from closing again. The chemicals perform various tasks.
Among other things, they compress the water, kill off bacteria, or dissolve minerals.

---------First, a shaft is drilled several hundred meters into the earth. From there, a
horizontal hole is drilled into the gas-bearing layer of rock.

---------Fracking not only consumes large quantities of fresh water, but in addition the
water is subsequently contaminated and is highly toxic. The contamination is so severe
that the water cannot even be cleaned in a treatment plant. Even though the danger is
known and theoretically could be managed, in the USA already sources have been
contaminated due to negligence.

----------Next, the majority of the fracking fluid is pumped out again and now the natural
gas can be recovered.

---------As soon as the gas source is exhausted, the drilled hole is sealed. As a rule, the
fracking fluid is pumped back into deep underground layers, and sealed in there.

----------However, fracking is also associated with several considerable risks, the primary
risk consist in the contamination of drinking water sources.

---------Next, the fracking fluid is pumped into the ground using high-performance pumps.
On average, the fluid consists of 8 million liters of water, which amounts to about the
daily consumption of 65,000 people, plus several thousand tons of sand, and about two
hundred thousand liters of chemicals.

3. Coloque la cifra correspondiente en cada espacio (Desde 326 en adelante)

The companies using fracking say nothing about the precise composition of the chemical
mixture, but it is known that there are about ------- different chemical agents, which can
be used in the process.

Another risk is the release of greenhouse gases. The natural gas recovered by fracking
consists largely of methane, a greenhouse gas which is ------ times more potent than
carbon dioxide. Natural gas is less harmful than coal when burned, but nonetheless the
negative effects of fracking on the climate balance are overall greater.

Firstly, the fracking process requires a very large consumption of energy. Secondly, the
drill holes are quickly exhausted and is necessary to drill fracking holes much more
frequently than four classical natural gas wells. In addition, about ------% of the
recovered gas is lost in the extraction and escapes into the atmosphere.

So, how is fracking, and its expected benefits to be assessed, when the advantages are
balanced against the disadvantages? When properly employed, this technique, offers one
way in the short to medium term to meet our demand for lower cost energy, but the
long-term consequences of fracking are unforeseeable, and the risk to our drinking
water, thus should not be underestimated.

4. Relea la transcripcin, y encuentre el equivalente en ingls para los siguientes

trminos:
Pequeas grietas: Capas de roca que
contienen gas:
Gas natural atrapado:
Gases causantes del
Fuentes de agua potable:
efecto invernadero:
Capas profundas:
Hueco:
5. Responda
a. Qu es el fracking? Cules son sus pasos?
b. Desde cundo se utiliza y por qu se elije est tcnica?
c. Mencione algunas de las funciones que tienen los qumicos.
d. Cules son los riesgos y consecuencias que se corren al utilizar este mtodo?
e. Cul es la conclusin a la que llega el autor? Qu valoracin se hace del fracking
en el video? Para responder, relea el texto, prestando atencin a los fragmentos a
favor y en contra del fracking

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