Sand Frac Mining has been a mining of the round sand particles in Wisconsin for over 100 years, but now today they have found a different use for these sand particles. Up until a few years ago sand was mined to be used in glass manufacturing, foundry molds, and even used in golf course bunkers. Today, they now use the sand for hydrofracking, or frac for short. Hydrofracking is when sand is pumped into the rocks to extract the natural gas and petroleum from the rock.
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http://wcwrpc.org/frac-sand-factsheet.pdf |
The sand which has had the highest demand due to its good particle size and uniform roundness is located in the sandstone features of Western and Central Wisconsin. Although not as uniform in roundness and size, you can find similar sands in Southern and Eastern Wisconsin, but it is not nearly in as high of a demand as the sands in Western Wisconsin.
The image on the left shows where the sandstone formations can be found, in the brownish color, while the red squares are some of the mine locations and processing plants (as of December 2011).
What are Some Issues Associated with Sand Frac Mining in Western Wisconsin?
A newspaper article was just released from the Lacrosse Tribune on September 27, 2014. In the article it talks about several environmental issues which the population living around the mines have to face. Since 2010, Wisconsin has seen sand mines rise from seven, to one hundred forty-five, in just four years. Several farmers live within half a mile of all these mines, 58,000 people over 33 different counties (including Minnesota). When the range is brought back to one mile, the number nearly doubles to 162,000 people. Some farmers have reported developing Asthma from the harmful silica dust that is now present. Silica is a known carcinogen, and constantly being breathed in could cause harmful effects on your body. Although there have been no reports of Polyacrylamide leaching into the groundwater, it is still a great threat. Polyacrylamide is a neurotoxin, also found in cigarettes. On average a sand mine uses between half-a-million gallons of water to two million gallons of water every day. Aside from the chemical usages and threats, citizens of the local towns have had numerous complaints as well, such as the mining lights being on 24/7, the trains and trucks constantly running throughout the night, and even building foundations beginning to become compromised from the repeated blast waves.
How Will GIS Be Used To Further Explore Some of These Issues as Part of Our Class Project
Since the large boom of Frac Sand Mining, it has been difficult to have a correct map showing where all the mines are located. Using GIS in our Geographical Information Systems II class, we will look to update the mine maps in Trempealeau County. We will also use GIS to monitor the mines for potential threats such as; run off of harmful chemicals into local streams or other bodies of water. One more item which we can explore is the possibility to reroute transportation units to minimize public delay and disturbances.
Sources
http://wcwrpc.org/frac-sand-factsheet.pdf
http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/mines/silica.html
http://lacrossetribune.com/news/local/report-frac-sand-industry-affects-lives-of-thousands-who-live/article_5c6716dc-dc4a-5c4e-93a8-4523712785e0.html
