Energy-Water Nexus: A Better and Coordinated Understanding of Water Resources Could Help Mitigate the Impacts of Potential Oil Shale Development
GAO-11-35
Published: Oct 29, 2010. Publicly Released: Nov 29, 2010.
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Highlights
Oil shale deposits in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming are estimated to contain up to 3 trillion barrels of oil--or an amount equal to the world's proven oil reserves. About 72 percent of this oil shale is located beneath federal lands, making the federal government a key player in its potential development. Extracting this oil is expected to require substantial amounts of water and could impact groundwater and surface water. GAO was asked to report on (1) what is known about the potential impacts of oil shale development on surface water and groundwater, (2) what is known about the amount of water that may be needed for commercial oil shale development, (3) the extent to which water will likely be available for commercial oil shale development and its source, and (4) federal research efforts to address impacts to water resources from commercial oil shale development. GAO examined environmental impacts and water needs studies and talked to Department of Energy (DOE), Department of the Interior (Interior), and industry officials.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of the Interior | To prepare for possible impacts from the future development of oil shale, the Secretary of the Interior should direct the appropriate managers in the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Geological Survey to establish comprehensive baseline conditions for groundwater and surface water quality, including their chemistry, and quantity in the Piceance and Uintah Basins to aid in the future monitoring of impacts from oil shale development in the Green River Formation. | On August 13, 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) established a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) as a step towards establishing responsibilities and a coordinated understanding of water resources in the Piceance Basin where oil shale technologies are being tested and developed. The MOA remains in effect for 10 years, until 2022, in order to address the long-term nature of these efforts. In 2013, USGS issued two reports to help establish baseline conditions for ground and surface waters and identified gaps that needed to be filled in order to fully reflect the water conditions. According to Department officials, a regional water-monitoring strategy... to fill these gaps was discussed but not drafted due to the lack of oil shale development activity in the Basin. During 2013-2014, USGS, the Colorado School of Mines, and DOE worked together to begin developing a GIS based infrastructure of water resources in the Piceance Basin that could potentially support oil shale development if it were to occur in the future. On balance, BLM and USGS, in cooperation with other stakeholders, have taken steps over several years and plan to continue the development of the comprehensive baseline, as funding allows, to address GAO's recommendation. We are closing this recommendation as implemented because actions to date and continued efforts address the basic intent of this long-term recommendation.
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| Department of the Interior | To prepare for possible impacts from the future development of oil shale, the Secretary of the Interior should direct the appropriate managers in the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Geological Survey to model regional groundwater movement and the interaction between groundwater and surface water, in light of aquifer properties and the age of groundwater, so as to help in understanding the transport of possible contaminants derived from the development of oil shale. | In 2013, USGS issued several reports that DOI officials and scientists note are key to the development of a model to better understand the hydrologic system in Colorado. According to USGS geo-scientists involved, these reports form an architecture or basic structure for analyzing the chemistry, age, and water movement in the Piceance Basin. The focus of this work has been the Piceance Basin since this area of Colorado has been significantly impacted by energy development and has been a key area of interest for oil shale demonstration, development, and potential production. These reports form the basis of a conceptual model that provide a starting point for a numerical model once...
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| Department of the Interior | To prepare for possible impacts from the future development of oil shale, the Secretary of the Interior should direct the appropriate managers in the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Geological Survey to coordinate with the Department of Energy and state agencies with regulatory authority over water resources in implementing these recommendations, and to provide a mechanism for water-related research collaboration and sharing of results. | To coordinate water-related research, on August 13, 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) created a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to establish responsibilities and a coordinated understanding of water resources in the Piceance Basin. Since this time, according to officials, USGS and BLM offices continue to meet on a regular basis to coordinate efforts in the Basin. With regard to coordination specifically with the Department of Energy (DOE), Interior officials said that coordination was initiated after the issuance of our report with the Office of Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves, but DOE's reorganization eliminated this office and related...
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AquifersContaminationEarth sciences researchElectric energyElectric power generationEnvironmental assessmentEnvironmental monitoringEnvironmental protectionEnvironmental researchExtractive industryGroundwaterGroundwater contaminationNatural resource managementOil resourcesPublic landsShale oil resourcesSurface mining land reclamationWater energyWater pollutionWater qualityWater supplyBituminous coalImpacted areas