Sand Mining in Western Wisconsin
Introduction-
Wisconsin sits on a hot bed for natural resources that are in demand, and Frac sand is the resource that is in high demand currently. Frac sand is used by oil and gas companies to extract the natural resources that they are after. Frac sand is quartz sand of a specific grain size and shape. This sand is pumped into the ground cracks that hold the natural resources allowing for the oil companies to extract the oil. The sand mostly holds open these cracks allowing for the extraction. Wisconsin holds some of the best Frac sand due to the geological formations found here. Frac sand comes from sandstone formations, which western Wisconsin is known for. (Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey, 2012).
Figure 1. Shows current Frac mines in Wisconsin, alone with sandstone geological formations, (Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey, 2012).
Frac sand mining isn't a new entity, but has recently gained attention from the demand for oil and gas. In fact, Wisconsin's sands have been used for the past 40 years in the petroleum industry. Currently, Wisconsin has approximately 60 mining operations along with 20 more new Frac mines already proposed. With the current mines in operation and processing plants, Wisconsin reaches about 12 million tons per year of Frac sand (WDNR, 2012, p.3).
Figure 2. Shows were the best Frac Sand is in the midwest, clearly Wisconsin (WDNR, 2012, p.4).
Troubling Issues-
Although Frac sand mining seems to be a great resource for the state, it's not free and comes with a cost. There are many environmental issues that these mines produce. Two major issues are air quality, and road quality. These mines produce lots of emissions from the equipment that is needed to extract the sand, and also produces lots of dust into the air. Although these mines would have regulations on the emissions and dust they produce, the pollutants would still be in the air. For example, the WDNR holds a 10% opacity level on the air in the minds. Opacity is defined by the degree to which these omissions reduce transmission of light. 10% may not seem like a lot, but imaging having one of these mines in your communities. Long term health risks would come into play. The second major issue is road quality. These mines tend to dwell in smaller communities where they don't always have the funds to maintain the roads to high standards. With dump trucks filled with sand driving constantly over the same strips of roads, you will be bound to have cracks and pot holes throughout the community roads. (WDNR, 2012, p. 14/15)
Frac Mining and GIS-
There are many pros and cons to Frac sand mining, and it all depends on who you talk to it about what their view point is. Frac mining does produce jobs for small Wisconsin towns, but also has negative impacts on the environment surrounding these communities. GIS can be used to show some of these impacts that the mining operations can have on these towns, and can also help to find better ways to reach the Frac sands through use of the GIS technologies.
Sources-
Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey, 2012, Frac sand in Wisconsin. http://wcwrpc.org/frac-sand-factsheet.pdf
WDNR. 2012. Silica sand mining in Wisconsin. http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/Mines/documents/SilicaSandMiningFinal.pdf
Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, WI. Wisconsin's Frac sand industry booms, Thomas Content. http://www.jsonline.com/business/wisconsins-frac-sand-industry-booms-b99509220z1-305394131.html
