Canadian Natural Gas

Natural Gas and Water

Natural Gas and Water
n Water is used in the production, processing and transmission of natural gas, and in natural gas
power generation. Water use, recovery, recycling and disposal is regulated by government and
Canadian natural gas companies meet or exceed all regulations. Regulations are in place to
address both water use and water quality, with particular attention to ensuring that drinking water
is protected.
n The Canadian natural gas industry is committed to providing the best available information about
all aspects of natural gas production and use, to identifying potential areas of concern, and to
continuing to adopt new technology and best practices to improve performance.
n Over its full lifecycle, natural gas uses less water per unit of energy produced than many other
sources of energy.

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 “ The use of natural gas as a key energy
source offers Canadians opportunities for
reduced water intensity as compared to

”
other forms of thermal power.

Summary
To some extent, water is impacted by all components of the natural gas value chain. In terms of
water use, the greatest quantities of water are used in natural gas production – particularly during the
initial drilling of unconventional natural gas wells - and in electrical power generation. According to the
Natural Resources Canada report Water Use by the Natural Resources Sectors: Facts (March 2009),
1 per cent of all industrial water use in Canada can be attributed to oil, natural gas and coal production
combined.

In Alberta, which currently leads other Canadian provinces in oil and natural gas production, 8.5%
of the province’s water resources are licensed for use by the oil and natural gas industry. The oil
and natural gas production industry does not currently use its full license entitlement in Alberta,
although increases in natural gas production will require additional water resources. Meanwhile, the
natural gas production industry continues to seek ways to reduce water consumption through water
recycling, new technology, and the use of non-drinkable water.
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Canadian regulators and
the natural gas industry are
focused on the protection
of surface and groundwater
and the mitigation of risk.
Environmental assessments
and permits issued for
natural gas exploration and
production govern how the
industry conducts its work.
All Canadian jurisdictions
regulate the interface between
water and the natural gas
industry. These regulations
are set and administered by a
number of Ministries, including
environment, natural resources,
sustainable development,
energy, and others. In addition,
major producing jurisdictions
have oil and gas regulatory
entities – either provincial
boards or the federal National
Energy Board.
International cooperation
by industry and regulators
also protects water,
through the development of
international standards and risk
assessments, for example, and
international research initiatives.
The natural gas industry
recognizes the importance
of water to its work and is
engaged in ongoing research
and the adoption of new
processes and technologies to
reduce water use and prevent
any releases of impure water.
On a full cycle, production-to-
combustion basis, the use of
natural gas as a key energy
source offers Canadians
opportunities for reduced water
intensity as compared to other
forms of thermal power. The
natural gas industry is focused
on continuing to seek ways to
reduce water use throughout
the natural gas value chain and
to ensuring that water quality is
maintained so as to protect the
environment and human health.
A Water Glossary
Potable or drinking water is
suitable for drinking, which in
Canada means that the quality
of the water falls within the
standards set in Guidelines
for Canadian Drinking Water
Quality. Drinking water in
Canada typically comes from
a municipal water system or a
private well.
Raw water is fresh water in
its natural state. It may require
treatment before it is suitable
for use as drinking water.
An aquifer is an underground
geological formation in
permeable rock that feeds
fresh groundwater to springs
and wells. The water table is
the area located near the top
of an aquifer.
Groundwater is located in
underground aquifers.
Surface water is open to the
air, as in a lake, pond or river.
A watershed is an area
where various bodies of water
naturally flow into a main body
of water.
Brackish water is naturally
occurring salty groundwater,
with total dissolved salts (TDS)
occurring between 1,000 mg/L
and 35,000 mg/L (the salinity
of seawater). Brackish water is
too salty to drink or to use for
irrigation.
Saline water can occur deep
underground, well below
drinking water aquifers. It
contains TDS between 35,000
and 100,000 mg/L. Brine is
even more salty, with TDS of
more than 100,000 mg/L.
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 Water and Natural Gas Production
Water is relevant to natural
gas production in the following
respects, each of which is
addressed in this section:
n it is used in drilling and well
stimulation activities;
n it forms part of the fluids
which are recovered from
drilling and fracturing
activities; and,
n it may be produced from
the natural gas-bearing
formation along with natural
gas.
Developing natural gas
resources requires water for
drilling, and can also require
the use of water for hydraulic
fracturing before the well can
produce natural gas. Fracturing
is the most water-intense
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activity associated with naturalto reduce impacts on surface
gas production. A typical water and aquifers. The
fracturing operation in a deep water used for oil and gas
horizontal well might use production is consumed water,
between 3500 m3 to 15000 since it comes into contact
m3 of water to enhance the with hydrocarbons and other
recovery of the gas. However, contaminants and cannot be
this operation typically takes returned to the environment
place only once per fractured without additional treatment.
well, at the beginning of the Increasingly, companies are
well operation. Most wells treating the fluids used for
then produce for 20 to 30 years fracturing and recycling them.
without requiring any further If the fluid is not recycled, it is
fracturing and related water recovered and disposed of as
use. required by regulations. When
drilling and fracturing take
Not all the water used in place offshore, rules based
drilling or fracturing activity on international standards
is withdrawn from fresh are applied to prevent the
water sources. Natural gas use of any chemicals that are
producers use methods such considered to be toxic or to
as water recycling techniques, bioaccumulate (meaning the
or fracturing with non-potable chemicals concentrate in living
brackish water, to offset organisms in greater quantities
increased demand for water and as one moves up the food
chain).
Regulations governing the
disposal of drilling fluids vary
between jurisdictions. However,
all regions require actions to
mitigate any environmental
risks associated with disposal of
drilling fluid. These actions vary,
depending on the composition
of the fluid. In some parts of
western Canada, for example,
nitrates are the main additive
in the water used for drilling.
Since this is effectively a low
grade fertilizer, regulators,
operators and landowners
all prefer disposal of this
drilling fluid by spraying it on
the land surface (as long as
other additives meet specified
chemical constraints). The water
is therefore completely recycled
back into the environment.
Natural gas wells can also
produce water. This produced
water exists naturally, deep
below ground, within raw
(unprocessed) natural gas. Due
to the salinity and the presence
of various other components in
this water, it has no other use.
According to regulation, after
the produced water is separated
from the methane it must be
placed into disposal wells at
depths considerably below
the water table or otherwise
disposed of according to local
regulations. Some Canadian
coalbed methane operations
Surface gas-well lease
Private water well
Municipal water well
Shallow groundwater aquifer
Deep groundwater aquifer
Protective steel casing:
Steel casing and
cement provide well
control and isolate
groundwater zones
Lim
esto
HYDRAULIC
FRACTURING
Induced
shale
fractures
San
dsto
Gas
sha -rich
le
Hor
izon
also result in non-potable
water production. The water is
produced so as to reduce the
pressure in the coal seam to
allow natural gas to be released
and flow to the well. The same
produced-water regulations
apply, as described above.
In fact, in western Canada,
all fluids which do not meet
specified criteria are transported
to disposal wells and injected
deep underground. Water
disposal wells have been used
for decades, and are well
Sur
face
1,00
0m
ne
1,50
0m
2,00
0m
ne 2,30
0m
Note: Buildings and
tal b
ore well depth not to scale
understood and stringently
regulated. In provinces
without deep disposal well
capability, drilling fluids are
disposed according to the
environmental regulations in
those jurisdictions, ensuring
integrity of existing land use
and protection of surface and
groundwater resources.
Drinking water – referred to as
potable water – is an abundant
resource in Canada, but not
an infinite one. Protection of
drinking water is a key priority
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 for both regulators and the
natural gas industry. Canadian
natural gas production takes
place in a way that isolates the
natural gas production area
from drinking water resources,
including wells, groundwater
and waterways. All drilling and
well construction operations
adhere to rigorous regulations
to isolate and protect potable
groundwater from natural
gas operations through
installing, and cementing in
place, steel surface casing
before proceeding to drill
to greater depths. In some
areas, mandatory pre-drill
testing of local water wells
provides additional assurance
of drinking water protection.
Pre-testing of water wells has
the added benefit of discovering
contamination that predates
any oil and gas industry activity,
which might have not been
previously known to exist.
Natural gas wells
Fact: can also produce
water.
Shale gas resources typically
occur several thousand feet
below potable aquifers. Rock
mechanics characteristics and
the extremely low permeability
of shale make contamination
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of drinking water supplies by
hydraulic fracturing processes
very improbable (U.S.
Department of Energy, Office of
Fossil Energy, National Energy
Technology Laboratory, Modern
Shale Gas Development in
the United States: A Primer,
April 2009). In response to
continuing public interest,
more study is underway by the
U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, the U.S. Congress
and some state regulators to
better understand hydraulic
fracturing operations. Industry
welcomes the opportunity to
participate in scientific and
engineering studies on hydraulic
fracturing and groundwater.
The Canadian natural gas
industry has a very lengthy
and successful track record in
applying hydraulic fracturing
techniques. Notwithstanding
these results, the Canadian
industry continues to seek
improvements in technology
and operating practices and will
also consider any findings and
recommendations arising from
studies in the U.S..
There have been reports
from some areas of shale gas
operations in the United States
that water wells have been
contaminated by chemicals
related to hydraulic fracturing.
However, investigations by
governments and regulatory
bodies of these incidents
have consistently found that
hydraulic fracturing for shale gas
production was not the cause,
although in some cases the
determination has been made
that the incident was caused by
failures in the natural gas well
construction or by accidental
leaks that occurred during the
transportation or storage of
materials.
As is the case with any
industrial operation, the
storage, use and disposal of all
chemicals and wastes needs
to be managed responsibly
and in accordance with
appropriate lease construction
and environmental protocols
to ensure that contamination
does not occur through run-
off, seepage, or breach of
containment. The upstream
industry is very cognizant of
its responsibility to protect
both groundwater and the
environment for the use of
landowners, members of the
public, and future generations.
Research and development
efforts today continue to focus
on developing new and better
fracturing fluids that reduce or
eliminate chemicals that could
impact the environment or
human health.
Water and Natural
Gas Processing
Water is used for industrial
processes in natural gas
processing plants (such
as emissions controls or
chemical production), as well
as for regular maintenance
and cleaning. This water
comes into contact with
various substances, including
hydrocarbons, heavy metals,
biocides and other chemicals.
Like other industrial water
users, the natural gas
processing industry carefully
applies best practices, and
adheres to all regulations, to
prevent environmental damage
from any contaminants.
Natural gas processing plants
incorporate water treatment
facilities to enable water re-
circulation or purification before
any discharges are made to the
environment. Water that cannot
be treated is properly contained.
Storm water barriers provide
further protection in the event
of accidental spills.

Water and Natural

Gas Transmission
The main use of water in the
pipeline system is for pressure-
testing the pipelines, typically
when they are first built.
Hydrostatic pressure testing
uses a quantity of filtered water,
which often contains anti-

7

corrosives or other additives
appropriate for the protection,
testing, and maintenance
of the pipeline, such as dye.
Best practices for the water
recovered from hydrostatic
pressure testing include re-use
of the water, the prevention of
environmental harm through
use of benign or reduced
concentrations of additives,
and treatment of the recovered
water to ensure it is safe before
being discharged.
Water and Natural
Gas Uses
In comparison with other
major water uses, all forms
of thermal power generation
combined (nuclear, coal, oil
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and natural gas) comprise
the largest portion of gross
surface and groundwater use.
However, almost all of the
water used by thermal power
generation is for cooling and
it is either returned to source
(the only difference being that
it is usually a slightly higher
temperature) or it is cooled and
re-circulated through the power
system. Of the fresh water
that is consumed, or considered
used, in Canada by major
water using sectors, Natural
Resources Canada reports
that 15 per cent of all surface
and groundwater consumption
goes to thermal-electric power
generation, while 0.7 per cent is
taken for producing oil, gas and
coal products. Municipalities
consume 9 per cent of water,
while 58% is consumed by
agriculture (Water Use by the
Natural Resource Sectors –
Facts, March 2009)
Using natural gas in combined
cycle generation plants to
produce electricity reduces the
amount of water required for
thermal generation by one-half
as compared to other forms
of thermal generation. In a
comparison of full-lifecycle
water withdrawal impacts
by various energy sources
conducted by the U.S.
Department of Energy, natural
gas power generation using gas
from both from conventional
and unconventional sources
was found to use a smaller
quantity of water overall than
most other forms of generation
(Energy Demands on Water
Resources, December 2006).
A 2008 EPRI study estimated
a 50% improvement in water
use (over other forms of
thermal generation) when
combined-cycle natural gas
electricity generation is used.
Smaller, distributed generation
applications can be operated
with natural gas using no water.
For more information:
Paula Dunlop,
Director, Communications,
Canadian Gas Association
613-748-0057, ext 341
pdunlop@cga.ca
Canadian Natural Gas is a made-in-Canada advocacy project sponsored by the following associations:

Canadian Energy Pipeline Association

Association canadienne de pipelines d’énergie

Please recycle.

© 2010 Canadian Natural Gas.