T190 No Well Left Behind: Quantifying Impacts and Improving Management of Active, Abandoned, and Orphaned Oil and Gas Wells to Safeguard Air, Water, and Land Resources

Tuesday, 17 October 2023
1:30 PM - 5:30 PM
310 / 311

NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF OIL AND GAS PRODUCED WATER DISPOSAL ON SURFACE WATER ECOLOGY: FRESHWATER MUSSEL BIOMONITORING CAPABILITIES AND RADIUM BIOACCUMULATION

Paper number: T190-4
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 2:10 PM – 2:25 PM

Authors

Abstract

Due to their sessile and filter-feeding nature, freshwater mussels are highly vulnerable to oil and gas produced water (OGPW) disposals and accompanying impaired water quality containing elevated total dissolved solids and naturally occurring radioactive materials. Pollution exposures and habitat modifications have compromised mussel abundance and spatial distribution, leading to increased stress and mortality. This research aims to quantify the ecological impact of OGPW disposal by investigating bioaccumulation of harmful contaminants and utilizing unique chemical signatures such as 228Ra/226Ra and 87Sr/86Sr isotopic ratios seldom explored in filter feeding organisms. We find that watersheds impacted by oil and gas activities have demonstrated decreased juvenile mussel growth and increased mortality downstream of direct exposures. Furthermore, field research in areas impacted by disposals demonstrated significant radium-226 and radum-228 bioaccumulation up to 5 km downstream of the outfall location in both hard shell and soft tissue of sampled adult freshwater mussels. Combined evidence from conducted laboratory and field studies supports the use of 228Ra/226Ra and 87Sr/86Sr isotopic ratios, as well as metal/Ca ratios in exposed freshwater mussels to fingerprint OGPW disposals in the Appalachian region broadening previous biomonitoring capabilities and informing aquatic health risks associated with OGPW exposures to freshwater biota.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 55, No. 6

doi: 10.1130/abs/2023AM-392443

© Copyright 2023 The Geological Society of America (GSA), all rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted to the author(s) of this abstract to reproduce and distribute it freely, for noncommercial purposes. Permission is hereby granted to any individual scientist to download a single copy of this electronic file and reproduce up to 20 paper copies for noncommercial purposes advancing science and education, including classroom use, providing all reproductions include the complete content shown here, including the author information. All other forms of reproduction and/or transmittal are prohibited without written permission from GSA Copyright Permissions.