Simmons on Water in the Energy Industry

Hydrogeology, Geology, & Environmental Issues

John Simmons reports in The Geoscientist Online of the Geological Society of London that geologists in the energy industry can improve their company financial performance, environmental impact and engagement by reviewing their involvement with water, writes John Simmons. In the increasingly vibrant debate about the effect of energy production on the environment, the focus has been largely on anthropogenic CO2 and the need to leave hydrocarbons in the ground. While that debate rages in forums at national and international level, another aspect of energy production, with a significant effect locally and regionally, attracts far less attention.

Water is critical in the extraction of coal, gas, oil, uranium and geothermal energy. That involvement is widely misunderstood, seldom measured or reported correctly, and rarely optimized. As the competition for limited water resources and the need to protect catchment areas increase, along with growing pressure from the public and media, these factors pose a growing risk the continued sustainability of extractive operations. Sustainability of an industry depends on recognizing risk and, in order to do that, facts are essential - gathered from research, set in a logical context, and tested for their veracity and relevance to real-world settings.

Gathering such data lay at the heart of a BP initiative begun in 2010 and still continuing today, known as the Energy Sustainability Challenge (ESC). The initiative was driven by Professor Ellen Williams, then BP Chief Scientist.

Original URL offline: https://www.geolsoc.org.uk/Page-Not-Found?item=%2fgeoscientist%2fnovember-2015%2fwater-in-the-energy-industry&user=extranet%5cAnonymous&site=GSL