Summer is coming to an end, ushering in droughts across the US. Many states, such as California, have implemented fines for wasted water, in an attempt to mitigate the growing problem.
The technology to help curb water shortage, however, may lie in a very unexpected industry.
Hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking” is a proven and safe way to extract additional oil and gas from both existing well fields and from the shale oil fields that, until the technology improved, were very difficult and expensive to properly utilize.
Fracking has drawn criticism for its use of water in extraction; yet, it may hold the solution of water conservation.
According to industry figures, California’s 830 fracking wells used 323 acre-feet of water in 2013. While this amount of water may seem excessive, comparatively, it is a minimal portion of the state’s overall usage.
Read the full article at Forbes.