EPA Issues Landmark Hydraulic Fracturing Study, Finds "No Widespread, Systemic Impacts On Drinking Water"

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has released a draft of its hotly anticipated hydraulic fracturing study, finding that the controversial practice has not led to widespread, systemic impacts on drinking water, as some environmentalists had feared.

Dubbed "Assessment of the Potential Impacts of Hydraulic Fracturing for Oil and Gas on Drinking Water Resources" and undertaken at Congress's urging, the study was over five years in the making, during which time approximately 25,000 to 30,000 wells were drilled and hydraulically fractured annually. While EPA found multiple mechanisms that might lead to adverse impacts on drinking water, "[t]he number of identified cases [with drinking water impacts], however, was small compared to the number of hydraulically fractured wells."