Duke University just concluded a three year study of fracking and its effects on groundwater and surface water.  The study concludes that groundwater is not affected by fracking, but that surface water is.

The study included 112 wells in northwestern West Virginia.  Twenty of those wells were sampled before fracking took place in the neighborhood.

The study found methane and salts in the water wells, but they were different isotopes of methane and salt than were found in the gas formations.  The conclusion was that the methane and salts found in the water wells were from naturally occurring sources, not fracked wells.

Surface water was found to get contaminated from surface spills.

The important thing to note here is that ponds and streams on your property are more at risk than your water well.

While the study notes that surface water typically gets contaminated by accidental spills, it’s not unheard of for a trucker to back up to a stream and unload waste into the stream.  There are criminal penalties for this kind of thing, but it happens anyways.

So what should you do?  Make sure to get samples of your water taken before any drilling activity starts on or within a couple miles of your property, both for your water well and for ponds and streams.  Any water that is or could be a source of water should get tested.  It’s expensive, but if something happens to the water having that baseline to work from will be invaluable.