©2015 8872147 Canada Inc. or its licensors CMAJ, February 17, 2015, 187(3) E99 Unconventional gas development, including high-volume hydrofracturing (fracking), has enabled a dramatic increase in North American shale gas drilling. In Canada, drilling is taking place in British Columbia and Alberta and is under active consideration in more populated areas of Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia...

Due to greater demands for hydrocarbons and improvements in drilling technology, development of oil and natural gas in some regions of the United States has increased dramatically. A 1.4 ha natural gas well pad was constructed in an intermittent stream channel at the Alto Experimental Watersheds in East Texas, USA (F1), while another 1.1 ha well pad was offset about 15 m from a nearby intermitt...

An important question with respect to the Deepwater Horizon accident is whether the accident is a symptom of systemic safety problems in the deepwater drilling industry. An answer to such a question is hard to obtain unless the risk level related to major accident prevention, preparedness, and responses of the oil and gas industry is measured and evaluated over time. In this paper, we present i...

The aqueous mixtures of light gas molecules under low-temperature and high-pressure conditions are candidates to form gas hydrate clathrates. The formation of gas hydrate may lead to various problems and extra charges in natural gas production and processing. The presence of hydrate crystals forming a stable solid phase can potentially block the wells, pipes, and process facilities. To avoid su...

In the past 10–15 years, innovations in hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling have fueled a boom in the production of natural gas from geological formations that were previously unprofitable. The rapid deployment of fracking has been accompanied by concerns about negative externalities. In response, a regulatory regime has emerged that requires disclosure of chemical additives, but prese...