Radioactive Water Streaming Out of Pennsylvania Fracking Waste Site

[unhappycamper]

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2013/10/02-7



Report reveals 'surprising magnitude of radioactivity' in local water sources from fracking waste

Radioactive Water Streaming Out of Pennsylvania Fracking Waste Site
- Jacob Chamberlain, staff writer
Published on Wednesday, October 2, 2013 by Common Dreams

Released into local streams has caused high levels of toxic contamination, including elevated levels of radioactive materials, a report released Wednesday exposes.

"We were surprised by the magnitude of radioactivity" downstream from the plant, said co-author Avner Vengosh, geochemistry professor at Duke's Nicholas School of the Environment. "It's unusual to find this level," he told USA Today, adding that other sites should be investigated.

The Guardian reports:

The Duke University study, published on Wednesday, examined the water discharged from Josephine Brine Treatment Facility into Blacklick Creek, which feeds into a water source for western Pennsylvania cities, including Pittsburgh. Scientists took samples upstream and downstream from the treatment facility over a two-year period, with the last sample taken in June this year.

Elevated levels of chloride and bromide, combined with strontium, radium, oxygen, and hydrogen isotopic compositions, are present in the Marcellus shale waste waters, the study found.