Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-1-2019
Department
Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract
Biocides used in unconventional oil and gas (UOG) practices, such as hydraulic fracturing, control microbial growth. Unwanted microbial growth can cause gas souring, pipeline clogging, and microbial-induced corrosion of equipment and transportation pipes. However, optimizing biocide use has not been a priority. Moreover, biocide efficacy has been questioned because microbial surveys show an active microbial community in hydraulic fracturing produced and flowback water. Hydraulic fracturing produced and flowback water increases risks to surface aquifers and rivers/lakes near the UOG operations compared with conventional oil and gas operations. While some biocides and biocide degradation products have been highlighted as chemicals of concern because of their toxicity to humans and the environment, the selective antimicrobial pressure they cause has not been considered seriously. This perspective article aims to promote research to determine if antimicrobial pressure in these systems is cause for concern. UOG practices could potentially create antimicrobial resistance hotspots under-appreciated in the literature, practice, and regulation arena, hotspots that should not be ignored. The article is distinctive in discussing antimicrobial resistance risks associated with UOG biocides from a
Publication Title
Front Microbiol
Recommended Citation
Campa, M.,
Wolfe, A.,
Techtmann, S.,
Harik, A.,
&
Hazen, T.
(2019).
Unconventional oil and gas energy systems: An unidentified hotspot of antimicrobial resistance?.
Front Microbiol,
10, 2392-2392.
http://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2019.02392
Retrieved from: https://digitalcommons.mtu.edu/michigantech-p/1058
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Version
Publisher's PDF
Publisher's Statement
© 2019 Campa, Wolfe, Techtmann, Harik and Hazen. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). Publisher’s version of record: https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2019.02392