Converting Fresh Water Regulatory 

Challenges into Opportunities

Nathan Kuhnert - Devon Energy

SPE Workshop on Reducing Environmental Impact of 

Unconventional Resource Development 

Denver, Colorado

April 24-25, 2013
Presentation Agenda

• Reasons for Increased Regulatory 

Challenges

• Context of Oil & Gas Fresh Water Use 

and Water Use Intensity Comparisons

• Mitigation of Risks and Opportunities

• Risk-based Permitting

• Engineering and Technology

• Case Studies

• Cana Woodford Reuse

• New Mexico Frac Ponds – Covers

• West Texas NV Water Plan

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Media and Public Attention

The Expression of Public Concern

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Recent Snapshot of U.S. Drought 

Conditions

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Retrospective - Extreme to Exceptional 

Drought in Southern U.S. Great Plains 

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Water Used for Hydraulic Fracturing in 

Texas is ‘Small Proportion’ of State’s 

Overall Use

Livestock

1.9%

Irrigation

62.0%

Steam Electric

14%

Mining

0.5%

Manufacturing

7.2%

Municipal & 

Industrial 

32%

SOURCE: Texas Water Development Board 2008 Annual Water Use Survey

• The total water demand for the 

Hydraulic Fracturing process still 

represents only about one 

percent of the state’s overall use 

even with water use for HF 

doubling from 2008 to 2011, says 

the TWDB.

• Texas Bureau of Economic 

Geology scientist, Dr. JeanPhilippe Nicot says that it will not 

create a water shortage at a 

statewide level.

• The BEG also says that the 

amount of water used for mining, 

which includes fracking, is too 

small to endanger aquifers.
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Projected Water Demand 

State of Oklahoma - 2010

Irrigation

40.0%

Oil & Gas Activities

2.3%

Livestock

5.1%

Thermoelectric 

Power

14%

Self-Supplied 

Industrial 

4.8%

Self-Supplied Rural 

Residential

1.6%

Municipal & 

Industrial 

32%

SOURCE: Oklahoma Water Resources Board
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Projected Water Demand

Canadian County - 2010

Self-Supplied 

Residential

0.0% Thermoelectric

8.0%

Irrigation

21.7%

Oil & Gas 

Activities

12.2% Municipal & 

Industrial

52.6%

Self-Supplied 

Industrial 

0.4%

Livestock

5.1%

SOURCE: Oklahoma Water Resources Board
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Ways to Mitigate Risks and 

Reduce Environmental Footprint

• Apply industry-accepted Best Management Practices;

• Participate in industry work groups from (i.e., Permian 

Basin Water Management Council, Eagle Ford Task 

Force) to best leverage resources;

• Advocate for risk-based permitting with state agencies 

for conveyance, storage and treatment solutions of 

brackish and produced water;

• Continue to facilitate research and development on 

frac fluids for increased tolerance of high TDS water;

• Build a comprehensive Water Management Plan.
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Applying Industry Best Practices to 

Minimize Impacts Associated with Fresh 

Water Use

• Source selection

• Recycling

• Wastewater collection

• Wastewater storage

• Wastewater transportation

• Wastewater disposal

• http://www.shalegas.energy

.gov/resources/HF2_e1.pdf

• “Operators should engage in 

proactive communication 

with local water planning 

agencies to ensure resources 

are not constrained...”
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Collaborating both Within and 

External to our Industry

Trades and initiatives in no particular order or priority:

• Major Trades – API, AXPC, ANGA, IPAA, etc. 

• State Trades – TxOGA, TIPRO, etc.

• Regional Groups – Permian Basin Water Management Council, Granite Wash Water 

Management Focus Group

• SPE Water Handling Workshop Handling Series Community

• LLC type of groups – comprised of independent and majors that come together with 

antitrust guidelines in mind to drive continuous improvement: 

• Conduct a desktop literature review of existing research studies and other 

publications per water use and quality related to shale oil and natural gas 

production;

• Develop methodologies for a replicable water mapping model and pilot the 

model in several oil and natural gas basin in the U.S;

• Gather and develop potential industry strategies, practices and technologies 

that can be employed to more effectively use and manage water and protect 

water quality;

• Develop a process to identify and implement potential conservation measures 

for within or external to oil and natural gas operations.
Further Development and Standardization 

of Fresh Water Use and Intensity Metrics for 

Hydraulic Fracturing Operations

OperationsProduting

• To be able to compare relative impacts of industries 

competing for limited local and regional water supplies, water 

intensity comparisons are created.

• There has been an historic lack of consistency in tracking and 

reporting water use and energy production data within the oil 

& gas industry.

• AXPC developing a workable definition of water intensity to 

allow for comparison between the different energy sources on 

an equivalent basis:

 Water Intensity = Fresh Water Consumed during Drilling & HF (volume) 

EUR as Energy Value (e.g. MMBtu)

• Existing comparisons in terms of water intensity relative to 

other energy production are favorable.

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Comparison of Water Use for Hydraulic 

Fracturing Operations Compared to 

other Energy Producing Operations

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SOURCE: Department of Energy, 2006. Energy Demands on Water Resources Report.
State and Regional Regulatory 

Developments – Recycled Water Use

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Railroad Commission of Texas

Chapter 3 – Oil and Gas Division

Rule §3.8 – Water Protection

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The RRC of Texas adopted amendments to Chapter 3 and 4 Rules, regarding 

commercial recycling. The effective date was April 15, 2013. The adopted 

amendments authorize certain recycling activities, clarify permitting of other 

recycling activities and update the rule. 

The RRC has reduced impediments to recycling. Industry and 

Trades worked with the RRC to ensure risk-based permitting. 

For instance, can now bring in “off-lease” water and other 

operators water to facility on your lease under PBR (no H-11 

Permit is required). Also, discharging completely treated water 

west of the 98th meridian is an option under different 

regulatory authority. 
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Promoting Additional Reuse 

Opportunities through ongoing R&D

Shale Water Research Center

• Overall Objective: 

– Research water compatibility issues in shale production

• Feasibility of economically reusing produced water

• Feasibility of alternative water sources (e.g. saline 

aquifers and other non-fresh waters)

• How produced water and other saline water affect 

successful fracs

• How to mitigate saline water effects

• Encompass results into software and training for 

companies

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Promoting Additional Reuse 

Opportunities through ongoing R&D

Shale Water Research Center

• Overall Results: 

– Physically sampled dozens of wells in each of 6 basins visited

– Analyzed sampled water for quality characteristics

– Developed cost effective field test kit

• pH, temp, Ca, Fe, Sulfate, Sulfide, TDS, Ba, Alkalinity, 

Oxidation Reduction Potential

– Identified numerous water compatibility issues with reusing 

produced water

– Identified key characteristics to determine fluid viscosity and 

guar hydration 

– Performed studies on viscosity and hydration of guar in various 

water conditions – produced water, saline aquifer, individual 

components, etc. 

– Created beta software to predict certain parameters of mixed 

water sources

– Identify future directions of research on fluid compatibility

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Utilization of Saline Aquifers

17

Depth to saline ground water in the United States (generalized from Feth and others, 1965) 

USGS Fact Sheet 075-03, Oct. 2003
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SWRC Summary and Future Work

Ross Tomson, J.D., M.E.S. – Director

ross.tomson@shalewatercenter.com

– Summary

 Successfully crosslinked guar gum using AlOOH colloids. These 

colloidal particles could be an alternative to boric acid; 

 Synthetic polymers can be crosslinked with AlOOH NPs as well; 

 Synthetic polymers could possibly be added to guar gum and 

reduce the use of guar gum as fracturing fluid.

– Future work

 Further study of guar gum/synthetic polymer blends to 

demonstrate the possibility of reducing the use of guar gum; 

 Full investigation of guar gum/NPs gel systems. Study the effects of 

pH, salinity, temperature, degradation, proppants testing and etc.

 Develop synthetic polymer/NPs gels to improve the property and 

realize potential usage in oil and gas industry.

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Case Studies -

Risk-based Regulatory 

Permitting and Engineering 

and Technology
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Exceptional produced water quality in the Cana Woodford Shale

• Very low total dissolved solids (TDS)

• Early stages of produced water quality is approximately 12,000 

TDS 

• Later stages of produced water quality is approximately 20,000 

TDS

• Potential exists to reuse these fluids, thus reducing the demand 

for fresh water

Current quantities available for re-use:

• 26,000 barrels per day of produced fluid from 196 wells

Opportunities for Water Reuse

Cana Woodford Shale
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Developing a New Pit Rule for 

Produced Water

Cana Woodford Shale

• With the development of the 

Cana-Woodford Shale, Oklahoma 

regulators and Devon recognized 

the use of larger pits to store 

produced waters from the 

flowback process 

• Earlier regulations allowed only 

for temporary storage

• New revised regulations include 

enhanced construction and 

design requirements and 

permitting options
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Cana-Woodford Water Reuse 

Facility Storage Pit now Operating 

• 502,000 BBL Capacity plus 2’ 

Freeboard

• 60 Mil High Density Polyethylene 

Liner

• Leak Detection System

• Automated: Level and Chlorides

• Linked to pipelines handling 

30,000 bpd and connect to 30 

sections

• Reuse water will contribute to 

completion of 270 wells
New Mexico Reuse Pilot – Cross 

Linked Fluid System

Goal – Use produced water as base fluid for hydraulic 

fracturing operations

Drivers

Increasing stakeholder interest

Physical limitations

Drought

Economics

Water cycle considerations

Project is the 2nd of its kind in New Mexico

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NM Pilot Program Specs

 Using high crosslink gel systems that are normally used in SENM 

provided some challenges with recycled water

 Testing two different areas & formations provided a much needed 

data set for future full scale operations

 pH of the water (pre-EC/post-EC) was the biggest factor

 Single well frac – Turquoise 27-5

 Produced water from existing wells

 Stored in batteries

 Trucked to frac tanks

 Treated using Baker Hughes H2prOTM water treatment technology

 Quality control – frac tanks prior to impoundment

 Temporary impoundment – Less than 1 month

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NM Pilot Produced Water Quality

Well Source Concentration (mg/L)

TDS Chloride 

Agate 21-2 187,068 112,389

Agate 21-4 158,405 95,620

Beryl Fed 33-1 168,771 102,210

Diamond 22-3 179,727 108,290

Diamond 22-4 179,518 108,013

Emerald 20-1 215,250 130,663

Emerald 20-2 222,697 135,411

Emerald 20-3 192,415 116,201

Emerald 20-4 188,897 114,294

Jasper 4 197,877 119,391

Onyx 29-1 192,324 116,431

Onyx 29-3 207,256 125,792

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NM Pilot Permitting for Storage

NMAC 19.15.17

 Temporary Pit

 Form C-144

 For temporary pits, closed-loop systems, and below-grade 

tanks

 Siting Criteria

 Depth to groundwater

 Distances to permanent residence, school, hospital, 

institution or church, water wells, wetlands, subsurface 

mines, unstable areas, floodplains

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NM Pilot Treated Source Water 

Passing the Lip Test
Summary

 Meeting Devon’s Water Management Strategic Imperatives

 Reducing fresh water use

 Reducing volumes of wastewater to be injected

 Supporting innovative technologies

 Water Storage

 Water Treatment

 Frac Fluid Technology

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Gemstone Frac Pond Cover

Installed 1-25-2013

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Potential Savings 

Adding Cover to 285K bbl Frac Pond

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Surface Area 4 Acres

Depth 10 feet

Daily loss in bbls 2,700 (3 months = 243K bbls)

Daily Evaporation Cost $4,100

Monthly Evaporation Cost $124,000

Cost of Cover $215,000

Payout

1.7 months ($2.41 cost to truck, $1.50 

cost to pipe)
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Opportunities for West Texas 

Study - Drivers

Traditional water supply approach: 

• Satisfies near-term requirements

• Is operations driven

There are emerging risks:

• Increasing demand

• Increasing stakeholder interests

• Permitting uncertainty

• Increasing competition for supplies

Potential Outcome

• Supply interruption

• Increasing costs

• Schedule delays
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Sustainable Water Resources 

Planning

Step 1 – Estimate demands

Step 2 – Inventory sources

Step 3 – Identify deficits

Step 4 – Identify new strategies

Step 5 – Criteria and ranking

Step 6 – Detailed feasibility

Step 7 – Field Investigations

Step 8 – Implementation
Example Demand Schedule –

Multiple Counties

page 33
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New Strategies - Supply Options

Shallow groundwater

• Occurrence and quality

• Regulatory/lease availability

Brackish Groundwater

• Conveyance and storage

Surface water

• Regulatory/physical availability

Municipal wastewater

• Location and discharge rate

Produced water and flowback

• Availability correlates with well development

• Water quality challenges
Thank You.