The extraction of petroleum hydrocarbons, particularly from impermeable strata like shale, is a thirsty process. It requires millions (and sometimes tens of millions) of gallons of water to stimulate a single production well. Couple this need with the feverish pace at which oil and gas production is expanding across the epicenter of shale energy extraction (far West Texas and eastern New Mexico), and it is easy to see the concerns about water resource management.

Unconventional oil and natural gas extraction processes yield an incredible amount of wastewater. In the Permian Basin, as many as two to six barrels of wastewater are collected for every barrel of oil. This is where the story of shale energy extraction and the quest for domestic energy security becomes a tale of tremendous responsibility and opportunity.

The bad news is that the systematic use of underground injection wells, known in the industry as saltwater disposal wells, has been linked to induced seismicity in several shale basins in the U.S. These induced earthquakes can damage property, thus potentially triggering a wave of litigation for energy companies.

Equally problematic is the simple fact that pumping these large volumes of wastewater into the subsurface strata essentially removes that water from the water cycle. This may not be an emergency issue today in the U.S., but water management could become a pertinent topic in the very near future as the U.S. rig count rises.

Now for the good news. Despite being laden with chemicals, additives, metal contaminants, high levels of salt, troublesome bacterial communities and sometimes naturally occurring radioactive materials, the wastewater from shale energy extraction can be treated and recycled for reuse in the industry.

Our research group, the Collaborative Laboratories for Environmental Analysis and Remediation at the University of Texas at Arlington, has studied this extensively under some of the most complex and diverse field conditions. We found that multiple treatment technologies are required to remove the contaminants that generally preclude oilfield waste from reuse.

(FILES) In this April 13, 2012 file photo, a Consol Energy Horizontal Gas Drilling Rig is seen outside the town of Waynesburg, Pennsylvania. (Mladen Antonov / Getty Images)

We have also discovered that this multifaceted treatment process can be performed at a cost that is economically favorable for oil and gas operators, while also reducing the amount of trucking that is required to move large amounts of fresh water and wastewater to and from a production site.

Furthermore, according to the Natural Resource Code of Texas, when oilfield waste is transferred from an operator to a recycling or treatment company, that waste becomes the property of the recycler and so, too, is the liability. Upon transferring produced water to a recycler, the oil and gas operator is no longer liable for any surface spills or the mismanagement of the waste.

Collectively, recycling oilfield waste can reduce the reliance on fresh water, reduce the occurrence of injection well-induced earthquakes, reduce the stress imparted on our roadways, all while saving operators money and reducing their liability. However, is this enough of an impetus for an old dog to want to learn new tricks? This is where the opportunity gets very interesting.

Recycled fracking water shown in the various stages from finished to beginning on land owned by Fasken Oil and Ranch near Midland, Texas on Wednesday, July 23, 2014. Water Rescue Services treats the water to recycle it for reuse for Fasken Oil and Ranch. (Vernon Bryant/The Dallas Morning News) (Vernon Bryant / Staff Photographer)

Rather serendipitously, the natural richness of oilfield wastewater offers opportunities to extract precious elements during the recycling process. For example, in many shale energy basins, the wastewater that is generated during production (known as produced water) can exhibit extremely high levels of lithium, iron and cobalt. These metals are of critical importance to the production of lithium-ion batteries, among other things.

Recycling produced water could provide a source of revenue as the extracted metals could be sold to battery manufacturers. There are also niche companies that can transform highly saline produced waters into hydrochloric acid, magnesium hydroxide, caustic agents and other useful industrial chemicals.

Collectively, the benefits of recycling produced oilfield waste are growing, as are the incentives. This relatively new paradigm represents a significant opportunity within the oil and gas industry to champion environmental stewardship, all while reducing overhead costs associated with water management and potential liability.

To learn more about produced water recycling, we invite you to join us in Arlington on Oct. 12-13 for the Responsible Shale Energy Extraction Conference (www.shalescience.org).

Zacariah Hildenbrand is a researcher with the Collaborative Laboratories for Environmental Analysis and Remediation group at the University of Texas at Arlington.

Kevin Schug is a professor of analytical chemistry at UT-Arlington.

They wrote this column for The Dallas Morning News.

What's your view?

Got an opinion about this issue? Send a letter to the editor, and you just might get published.