Shift in interest to St. Peter formation for frac sand mining west of Miss. R.

From: Ric Zarwell ric.zarwell@mchsi.com
Sent: Thursday, November 21, 2013 5:29 PM.

Dear Colleagues in opposing frac sand mining:
I have learned from a very good source in Wisconsin (who I trust 100%, and who rightly wishes to remain anonymous) the following insights:

These are that WI person's words:

I have learned  that EOG (Enron Oil & Gas) who are thought of as an industry leader in Fracking of tight shale oil deposits, is looking for 100 mesh sand and is starting to mine and process the Tunnel City Formation (which previously everyone thought was worthless) because they have gotten better results using fine sand rather then the coarser grades in their wells.  EOG believes the industry will eventually follow their lead within the next couple of years.  This could change the locations within the Driftless Area that the industry targets to mine Frac sand.  Please include this tidbit of information in your planning, in your newsletters, etc. 

So after receiving the above information, today I discussed grain sizes of silica sand with the Iowa state geologist.  His impression is the same as mine, that our deeper Jordan sandstone formation has larger grain sizes than the higher St. Peter formation.  The Iowa state geologist then followed-up with the email and link shown below that clearly verifies that St. Peter would be targeted more vigorously if finer sand grains were being sought as per the new information from Wisconsin.  All must realize that the higher level St. Peter is much more vulnerable to mining than the deeper Jordan!!!

Ric,

 Here is a guidebook from a frac sand workshop held a year ago, concurrent with a groundwater meeting I was attending.  You might find the whole thing of interest.  Regarding sand sizes from the Upper  Midwest  sandstones, see the section on about pages 13-14 that deals with sand grain characteristics.    http://www.d.umn.edu/prc/workshops/Guidebooks/Silica%20Sand%20Field%20TripC.pdf

I believe the information provided at the above link is from the perspective of state government / academics / industry, and that it is probably aimed at encouraging industry.  The warning signals are right there in our faces!!!  

The upshot is that the maps, graphs and text at this link downplay mining opportunities in Iowa and Minnesota for the fine grained St. Peter - in favor of what was thought to be the targeted: Jordan sandstone.  That appears to be changing, and west of the Mississippi we may be targeted more than ever for FSM.

As our colleagues, I want to provide you with what could very well be a shift in priorities for the frac sand mining industry.  Iowa and Minnesota have a huge amount of St. Peter formation at or near the landscape surface; and this formation will be much EASIER and LESS EXPENSIVE to mine than the Jordan formation that we have been led to believe was the priority sand.  Bottom-line, all of us on the west side of the Mississippi ought to be even more concerned than we already are.

Additional background info. . . . . . There is Pattison's mine in Clayton Co. Iowa, located in the next county south of Allamakee.  This is the only operating FSM in Iowa, due to being grandfathered in because it was in operation decades ago for earlier purposes such as producing sand to manufacture glass.  We know that Pattison is mining St. Peter sandstone for fracking, and it is a large and rapidly expanding operation.  According to their website < http://www.pattisonsand.com/html/products.html >  Pattison offers silica sand in these mesh sizes:  20-40; 30-50; 40-70; and 60-140.  The majority of what they have been offering has grain sizes larger than 100 mesh (20-100).  And they offer less of the smaller particles (100-140).  (The larger the number the smaller the particle size.)  

It would really be helpful to know how much sand is being sold in each of these grain size ranges.  This would allow us to prepare more effectively for any new permits for mining.  Recall that it is the finer sized silica sand particles that are carcinogenic and that cause silicosis (lung cancer). 

Let's stay on top of this apparent shift in mining priorities.  The higher level St. Peter is much more vulnerable to mining than the deeper Jordan.  I am extremely concerned that the apparent shift in priorities for miners will make the west side of the Mississippi River much more vulnerable.

Thank you.

Ric 

Ric Zarwell, President

Allamakee County Protectors - Education Campaign

P.O. Box 299

210 North Third Street

Lansing, Iowa 52151-0299

Email: Ric.Zarwell@mchsi.com

Home/Office: 563-538-4991

Mobile: 563-419-4991 

The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, 

but because of the people who don't do anything about it.   Albert Einstein