Spatial and temporal trends in freshwater appropriation for natural gas development in <scp>Pennsylvania's Marcellus Shale Play</scp>

Abstract

Abstract We characterize the appropriation of surface water for the extraction of natural gas from Pennsylvania's Marcellus Shale, and we examine the influences of these diversions on stream flows at 300 sites. Our analysis reveals that permitted withdrawals range from 50 m 3 /d to more than 18,000 m 3 /d and that water is taken from streams of all sizes, from headwater streams to eighth‐order rivers. Flow alteration varies inversely with watershed area and, for larger streams, is compounded by upstream withdrawals. The ratio of daily permitted withdrawal to median stream flow ranges from 0.0001 to unity, although low flows in most, but not all, smaller streams are protected by pass‐by flow requirements. Temporal changes in surface water withdrawals track gas well completion activity, rather than changes in operational strategies, and while reuse of wastewater has increased since 2009, freshwater accounted for 75% of water used in hydraulic fracturing through the peak in gas well completion activity.