It comes after AGL advised the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) that ground and surface water monitoring data from its Gloucester operations during November had detected traces of a chemical used in fracking.

An AGL spokeswoman said the company was undertaking a full review of the sampling and testing process for its November 2014 water monitoring, which detected the presence of extremely low levels of monoethanolamine. 

Monoethanolamine borate is a chemical used in the hydraulic fracturing process to alter the viscosity of the fracture stimulation fluid. This helps the fluid carry sand into the fracture openings and release coal seam gas.

“While it is a constituent of hydraulic fracturing fluid, our baseline sampling found background levels of monoethanolamine in groundwater and surface water in September and October 2014, before hydraulic fracturing operations commenced,” the AGL spokeswoman said.

“Monoethanolamine also is a known constituent of mammal urine and associated with agricultural land and bush areas.”

The EPA’s chief environmental regulator Mark Gifford said the results appear to show an anomaly, which required further investigation.

Commenting in a statement released by Groundswell Gloucester, water resources engineer Jeff Kite said the spike in the levels of monoethanolamine near the fracking site was alarming. 

“A monitoring bore sample, taken from between two fracked wells which are only 800m apart on November 17, showed less than one part per billion of this chemical,” he said.

“After completion of fracking on November 20, the concentration was 60 parts per billion.  

“That is 60 times the pre-fracking reading. AGL’s Environmental Protection Licence (EPL) requires a zero concentration be present at testing sites.

“The delay between the spike occurring and AGL’s awareness of it, is a huge problem.   

“It’s not so much the concentration that’s a worry, it’s the significant increase, across eight different monitoring locations on one day, that suggests fracking chemicals travelled a lot further than AGL expected.”

AGL provided the data to the EPA on January 13 prior to publishing the data on its website.

MidCoast Water said the detection of traces of a chemical used in fracking supported the need for longer background sampling of potential contaminants in local waterways.

The authority said on the day the monoethanolmine was detected there was no river flow and very little groundwater flow. Sampling on two following days returned negative results.

“While MidCoast Water has confirmed the extremely low levels detected and lack of river flow at the time combined to pose no problems for the water supply, longer background sampling of all potential contaminants and not short term sampling would allow for a better understanding of background water quality,” general manager Robert Loadsman said.

AGL was required to undertake a risk assessment of monoethanolamine borate as part of its application to conduct hydraulic fracturing at Waukivory. 

The chemical was approved by the Office of Coal Seam Gas for use in the fracking operations at Waukivory.

Groundswell Gloucester said even more disturbing was the lack of test results for another chemical, Tolcide (THPS; Hydroxymethylnasulfate).

“They’re not in the report at all, even though the EPA requires a zero detection limit for this chemical and requires AGL to test for it,” Groundswell spokesman John Watts said.

“AGL’s report states that the EPA didn’t approve the methodology for testing Tolcide levels until December 19, after all four wells had been fracked.”

THPS is a biocide used to kill bacteria in the well. It is considered by water authorities to be extremely toxic to aquatic organisms found in wastewater plants.

AGL said water samples taken during the fracking process were being analysed for THPS levels.

The company said its fugitive methane emissions monitoring in Gloucester during the Waukivory Pilot found “no significant change” to baseline levels recorded before hydraulic fracturing.

AGL fracked four existing Waukivory pilot wells between October 27 and November 26 last year. 

Methane emissions monitoring was conducted on November 7, during the hydraulic fracturing phase of the pilot.

“The monitoring was undertaken using the highly sensitive Picarro device which was fitted to a vehicle driven from AGL’s Gloucester site office, along Bucketts Way, Jacks Rd and Fairbairns Rd,” a spokeswoman said.

“Pacific Environment’s interim report to AGL showed “no significant change in ambient methane concentrations detected … when comparing data sets pre and post fracture stimulation.”

The EPA said it would review AGL’s monitoring data and determine the next steps once the analysis was complete.

The Greens spokesman on mining Jeremy Buckingham said the “community’s worst fears had been realised” and called for a complete ban on coal seam gas in NSW. 

Story courtesy of the Gloucester Advocate.