These impacts are possible to predict using some tools, being Modelling and Spatial the most

During the construction phase, there will be a lot happening all over. This may vary from the actual erecting of the building, to the transport of goods, to the extraction of materials needed, etc. There will be a lot of damage done to the o-zone layer, a lot of habitat and biodiversity destroyed, amongst other things.

The flowback water is stored in temporary lagoons or lakes until it is transported to facilities that treat the water or facilities that have permits to inject into deep “Class II wells” or dump into rivers, streams, and lakes along with other wastewater from other sources (OSU). Most of the facilities that are used to treat the flowback water before they are put back into water systems as treated water are not equipped to treat all the contaminants of flowback water. In all the research done, there have been no results that suggest the wastewater inside the wells contaminate or pollute groundwater that people use as drinking water. However surface spills of flowback been mostly unnoticed even though the flowback water that leaks from the storage lagoons into waterways and drinking water has potential to be especially harmful. Recent

There has been contamination found in the groundwater surrounding all four towns. The groundwater is contaminated with VOCs, trichloroethene (TCE), ethylene dibromide (EDB), carbon tetrachloride (CCI4), perchloroethylene (PCE), benzene, vinal chloride, 1,1,2,2-TeCA, 1,4-dichlorobenzene, manganese, thallium, lead, toluene, and RDX. “Ethylene dibromide is especially worry some because it was found upwelling in cranberry bogs located in Falmouth and Mashpee (militarycontamination)”. Where it would was stored in the cranberries skin. “Falmouth being the most affected area losing twenty five percent of its possible drinking water supply (wr.usgs)”. Although the plumes are deep down in the aquifer. “People could be at risk if they accidentally drink the water or come into direct contact with the contaminated groundwater (militarycontamination)”. The way towns keep the residents from coming in contact with the possible risks of

At Nudgee Beach, erosion was found to have occurred on the edges of the mangrove forest and along the mudflat shorelines. Erosion is typically influenced by natural factors and occurs when pieces of weathered rock or soil are moved – typically by wind and water – from one place to another. Shorelines with lots of sediment and sand are more inclined to be effected by erosional progression. Erosion may also be provoked and accelerated by human interference. For example, if the decision to clear trees and plants from an area is made, erosion is likely to occur as the root systems of plants work to hold the soil in place. If these root systems are removed and erosion does occur, environmental conditions – such as; landslides and flooding – are more likely to take place. Erosion may also cause other plants to tip over, have their underground roots exposed and damaged and contribute to the pollution of local waters; as a result of mud and soil runoff [26]. Erosion at Nudgee Beach was likely to have been influenced by natural factors; however, the development and extension of the Kedron Brook golfing course may contribute to the acceleration of erosional processes and further damage the mangrove

My review and analysis focused on the following sources: 1) peer review scientific journal, 2) popular articles including magazine and newspaper commentaries, 3) water right contracts, 4) legal cases including case law, and 5) various environmental assessments. Whenever possible I site source, papers, and evidence.

There are three main mechanisms by which the chemical composition of groundwater, which is our natural source of drinking water, may be changed: by natural processes, by man's waste-disposal practices such as those for sanitary wastes, liquid industrial wastes, solid wastes, and radioactive wastes, and by spills, leaks, and agricultural activities and other sources unrelated to disposal. The degree of risk posed by contaminants varies according to many factors. These include the volume and toxicity of the contaminant, its concentration in the aquifer, its persistence in the environment, and the degree of human and environmental exposure to the contaminant. In addition, the number of persons affected, or likely to be affected, over time and the percentage of available groundwater both locally and regionally should be taken into consideration. If the contaminants in the groundwater exceed the standards set for drinking water by the federal government, for example, then the water is hazardous for the use for which it was designated under the standards. These standards include, however, only a limited number of chemicals, and thus they do not necessarily protect humans or the environment against either the short-term or the long-term effects of every contaminant that might be found in

Due to the large bodies of water in the county, there is a high risk for drowning. Water quality pollutants in the county come from fertilizers, bacteria from animal feces, sediment from land that are being cleared and stream channel erosion. When the rain falls into farms, parking lots, construction sites, and lawns the water collects pollutants and they get carried to the stream and then eventually end up in the Chesapeake Bay. In 2010 10 out of 15 streams sampled were rated far to poor, E-Coli, dissolved oxygen, fecal coliform, Chlorophyll-A and Polychlorinated Biphenyls were noted in the samples (2013 Natural Resource Indicator Report, 2014). C & R Battery Company Inc. and the Defense General Supply Center DLA were found on the national priority list for the most hazardous waste sites identified by the Environment Protection Agency because it is a risk to human and/or the environment (Virginia Superfund Sites, 2013).

The next major environmental issue of the pipeline is the indigenous populations. “Northern Alberta’s, where the tar sands oil comes from, people are coming under attack because of their operation of the tar sands in their livelihoods and cultural traditions.”5 Other people affected by this project are the people who live in communities downstream from the tailing ponds, “they have seen spikes in rates of rare cancers, renal failure, lupus, and hyperthyroidism.” “In the lakeside village of Fort Chipewyan, for example, one hundred of the town’s one thousand-two hundred residents have died from cancer.”5 So not only will this pipeline affect the people living around it but it will also affect the people working on it and living around the tailing ponds, wherever those may be located. With it traversing six U.S. states that means a lot of people could get sick and even die from a project that has so many issues with it before it’s even began to be used for its intended purpose.

The North Dakota Pipeline will be placed under Lake Oahe and if the pipeline spills it could harm Standing Rocks water supply.

The environmental risks that come with such a massive pipeline to transport “tar sands” pose a threat on many levels. As a matter of fact the tar sands they are trying to transport are required to

The likelihood of this pipeline bursting and spilling oil into the land and water it passes through is not completely out of the picture. Although trucks or trains transporting oil have a higher chance of spilling, according to the article, "the International Energy Agency found that pipelines spill much more in term of volume." This could be very bad news in terms of polluting the land and water used everyday. Some of the land this line is set to run through is farmland. Even if a spill never occurred, this farmland would still be damaged during the installment of the pipeline when having to dig it up. Among this land is private property, whose land is unwillingly being used for the implication of the pipeline (Sammon). Not only are farmers' lands at risk of damage, but sacred ground of Native Americans are in the middle of the crossfire as well. "The Standing Rock Sioux tribe says the project threatens its drinking water source and could destroy ancient sacred sites," explains Agence France-Presse. The installment of the pipeline will damage their sacred grounds, and if it would even spill, would pollute their only water source for drinking and irrigation as well as the land they live off

‘So companies drill down, often a mile or more. They drill sideways through a shale layer that might be only a hundred or a couple hundred feet thick. And once they’ve drilled out sideways a mile or two, then they’ll pump water, sand, and chemicals underground at very high pressure to crack the rock and free the gas’ . Fracking fluid is mostly water, and each fracking job takes 2 to 4 million gallons of water per well. Once pumped underground, several million gallons flow back to the surface as wastewater. Massive water withdrawals from rivers and streams occur to achieve this process, thus resulting in a major ecological impact; ‘stream/river stress’. Another ecological hazard is habitat fragmentation stemming from the siting of oil well pads, pipelines and supporting infrastructure. Aside these toxic emissions to air, water and soil also affect the ecological domain. Potent greenhouse gas such as methane and particulate matter from compressors and flaring5 pose potential damage to the quality of air inhaled by the residents and community in

For every spill of oil or gas, it damages that ecosystem sometimes beyond repair or it takes it many many years to recover from it. That being said the North Dakota Pipeline is going to be one of the safest most technologically advanced pipelines in the world. Another controversy is that the Native Americans are claiming that the pipeline runs through some of their sacred lands and can possibly contaminate their water supply. The North Dakota Pipeline can be a very successful oil transporter but there also seems to be some drawbacks like it possibly running through sacred land, contaminating water, and the possibility of leaking or exploding and causing a major disaster for the people and animals that live

The largest source of contamination is runoff from land. Toxic runoff can be sewage, rainwater flowing over exposed topsoil, flooding or agricultural runoff. Rain can cause runoff of chemicals or waste that can seep into creeks, rivers and other waterways that lead to the ocean. Some of the chemicals found could be antibiotics or waste from animals, pesticides from crops or from pollutants, originating in the air, which have settled on land and washed away. Unless a solution to pollution runoff is found, this type of contamination will continue indefinitely and contribute to the deterioration of the ecosystem in the

Executive Summary....................................................................................................................................... 3 Issues with Impact Analysis........................................................................................................................... 4 Environmental and Root Cause Analysis....................................................................................................... 5 Alternatives/Options..................................................................................................................................... 6