Sand Mining Suitability GIS Project Overview

Wisconsin’s rich glacial history has provided abundant sandstone deposits upon its geologic landscape.  This glacial history has created an expansive array of Jordan, Wonewoc and Mt. Simon sandstone formations containing high-quality silica frac sand (Figure 1).  Although sand mining has occurred in the state for hundreds of years, the practice of hydrofracking has rapidly increased the demand for sand mining in recent years.  Hydrofracking pumps a combination of water, frac sand and chemicals under high pressure into underground oil or natural gas wells to open natural fractures.  This allows natural gas or crude oil to be more easily extracted from a well.  It is important to note that no oil or gas wells exist in Wisconsin, but the state’s abundant frac sand resources are sought to meet the demands of the oil industry.

Figure 1: Wisconsin bedrock types; data provided by WDNR

Western Wisconsin has become a hotbed for frac sand mining.  According to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, “Wisconsin has approximately 60 mining operation and 30 processing facilities operating or under construction” and as of January, 2012 “20 new mining operation proposals” (WDNR, Silica Sand Mining in Wisconsin, P. 3).  The extraction of frac sand can potentially cause an array of issues.  Mining may cause dust particles and pollutants to be emitted into the air; the extent of emissions is considered minor, but is a concern for air quality purposes.  Frac sand facilities may be located near rivers or streams; it is possible for run-off from these facilities to reach bodies of water and cause contamination.  Contamination can include increased siltation or erosion. (DNR, P. 24)  Water resource impacts can extend into loss of habitat and ecology, especially in regards to Wisconsin’s fisheries.  Transportation infrastructure can also be impacted by the processes of frac sand mining.  The sand must be transported for the extraction site to the processing site.  The amount of weight asserted onto existing roadways coinciding with increased traffic may cause road deterioration.  These factors can cause a decrease of property values in areas near frac sand facilities.  The potential implications of sand mining, while numerous, are highly contested.

Figure 2: Frac sand processing in Wisconsin
Photo provided by BanksPhotos, iStockphoto

Figure 3: Aerial view of a frac sand mining operation in Wisconsin
Photo provided by BanksPhotos, iStockphoto

The use of a geospatial information system (GIS) can be used to assess these possible implications through a suitability/risk model.  A geospatial information system is used to represent real-world features in a spatial manner.  Spatial information can be used to analyze geographic patterns and determine relationships between features.    A suitability/risk model will use geographic data pertaining to frac sand mining to determine spatial frequencies, analyze network associations and consider the relationships between environmental impacts and frac sand mining.  This model will focus on Western Wisconsin, specifically Trempealeau County.

Sources:

Silica Sand Mining in Wisconsin

Wisconsin Department of Resources, 2012