Chevron Monitoring Environmental Impact of Shale Gas in Poland

Chevron Polska Energy Resources will monitor noise levels, water, and air quality around its latest drilling site in Zawada, Lubelskie, Poland.

According to Dziennik Wschodni and other local media, Environmental Resources Management (ERM Polska) is measuring particulate matter concentration in the vicinity of the pad as well as noise levels in locations near the rig and in neighboring villages of Zawada and Siedliska – Kolonia.

Chevron is also running a program of water quality monitoring in Zawada. Dziennik Wschodni reports that the first set of samples had been collected before the well was spudded in December and that the multinational will reveal results, probably later this month.

The Polish unit of Chevron has 100% interest in each of its four licenses in the Eastern Poland region of Lubelskie. Frampol, Grabowiec, Krasnik, Zwierzyniec license areas are covering as much as 1.1 million acres or 4.400 sq kms.

Zawada, located in the Zwierzyniec license area is the third site on the Chevron’s map of the exploratory drilling in Poland. The previous two vertical boreholes were drilled by the company in Horodysko (in November 2011) and Andrzejow (in March 2012).

Chevron Polska has faced some protests by residents of Zawada and nearby Siedliska-Kolonia, which have included road blockades. 

In early 2012 the head of Chevron’s oil and gas production, George Kirkland, interviewed by Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal warned that gas production from projects outside United States couold take as long as 10 years to develop.

George Kirkland also remarked that there are numerous questions as to whether the shale reserves in Poland would respond to hydraulic fracturing in the same manner as shale reserves in the U.S.

Speaking to the Polish radio RMF FM in June, the head of Chevron operations in Poland John Claussen underlined that the company was still in the early stage of exploration and much more time and data would be required to properly assess Poland's shale gas resources.