WorldWide Drilling Resource

Understanding the Earth Beneath our Feet Adapted from Information by the U.S. Geological Survey Last month, we discussed how the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) houses a collection of rock cores from more than 9000 wells, and cuttings from more than 52,000 wells. They are stored at the Core Research Center (CRC) in Denver, Colorado. We also discovered how the gas and oil industry has used reanalysis of the cores to rediscover valuable gas and oil resources. Can these cores and cut- tings be used to help other industries? Water - With groundwater supplying roughly 25% of the freshwater used in the U.S., locating reliable sources of groundwater for consumption, agriculture, and industry is vital. USGS researchers, state water departments, water conservation boards, and water districts, all use cores and cuttings to gather detailed geo- logical, as well as hydrological, data on aquifers. Knowing the porosity and permeability of the rocks in an aquifer helps researchers understand the ability of liquids to flow, and the impact the movement of the water can have. These studies can determine the conditions for aquifer recharge and its vulnerability to contamination. Naturally-occurring trace ele- ments in rocks and sediments can be a source of harmful contaminants impacting water quality. By storing rock materials obtained from the aquifers, the CRC provides important resources to determine water quality and quantity. Infrastructure - Roads, bridges, and buildings use large quantities of concrete and steel, but before they can be constructed, we need to understand the geology of the ground below. Tall buildings must be on solid bedrock, and if roads or other structures are built on unstable conditions, they can suffer failure and expensive damage. Knowing what’s on the surface simply isn’t enough - we need to examine cores and cuttings to get a better idea of the conditions below the project. Education - University professors often bring their earth science classes to the CRC to compare different rock types from various geographic areas. Students also learn about core descrip- tions and research techniques. Industry organizations are able to hold workshops at the CRC, giving both seasoned professionals and students the opportunity to learn with actual cores. Researchers from nonprofit entities, such as universities, government agencies, and museums, gain access to materials which would be too expensive for them to obtain through new drilling. Many useful articles, theses, and dissertations have used the CRC for research. This has lead to new insights into the earth and changes the scientific understanding of depositional systems, tectonic controls on facies variations, and the nature of hydrocarbon reservoir systems. Although drilling and coring operations can be costly, the resulting materials provide a wealth of scientific information worth preserving for future use. The CRC is one of the largest core repositories in the United States. These stored materials can be studied with very little expense, especially compared with the costs of planning, permitting, drilling, and coring a new well. At today’s prices, redrilling the entire collection would cost more than $80 billion. These preserved cores and cuttings are an actual repre- sentation of the substrata, providing vital information used to locate new sources for water, energy, and mineral resources. 49 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® MARCH 2018 Scholarship Award Winners Announced Adapted from Information by the West Virginia Water Well Drillers Association West Virginia Water Well Drillers Association awarded three higher education scholarships. Scholarships of $1000 each were awarded to the following students for the 2017-2018 year: Benton L. Anderson - Anderson Well, Pump, & Septic Jessica Paige Harmon - Harmon & Son Well Drilling Samantha Tuckwiller - Tuckwiller Well Drilling Congratulations from the WWDR Team!