Three studies from UTA's clear lab detect harmful pathogenic bacteria in Texas groundwater near natural gas extraction sites

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Three new research studies from the University of Texas at Arlington have found harmful pathogenic bacteria in Texas groundwater near unconventional natural gas extraction sites.

Three new research studies from the University of Texas at Arlington have found harmful pathogenic bacteria in Texas groundwater near unconventional natural gas extraction sites.

“Our latest published research has revealed that harmful bacteria can be quite prevalent in Texas groundwater, especially waters that contain various chemical contaminants,” said Kevin Schug, Shimadzu Distinguished Professor of Analytical Chemistry and Director of UTA’s Collaborative Laboratories for Environmental Analysis and Remediation, or CLEAR, Lab.

“The next phase is to evaluate novel treatments against these dangerous pathogens and to develop safe strategies for the remediation of biologically-impaired sources of fresh water.”

Two of the studies, published in Science of the Total Environment, focused on characterizing microbial communities in the groundwater overlying the Barnett Shale and Eagle Ford Shale formations.

Read more at University of Texas at Arlington