INTEGRATED SCIENCE STUDIES OF EFFECTS OF OIL AND GAS DEVELOPMENT ON ECOSYSTEMS IN THE WILLISTON BASIN

USGS integrated science projects are collecting data on the cumulative effects of energy development in the Williston Basin on terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Specifically, these projects address data compilation and access needs, land use change, produced water toxicity, and potential contamination of aquatic resources. These studies not only provide datasets that are useful to stakeholders, but are also useful in designing new studies and assigning priority areas for collection of new data. For studies examining energy development in the Williston Basin, researchers need to have access to ancillary datasets that include oil and gas infrastructure, aquatic and terrestrial resources, and ecosystem layers. As a step in this direction, we are creating a one-stop location where internal and external partners can obtain consistent datasets. We will then demonstrate the use of these databases in a series of assessments targeting landscape change and biological resources. We are currently quantifying the amount of agricultural land and native habitat that has been converted within the Williston Basin due to well pad construction. Likewise, we are developing spatial statistical models to investigate the cumulative effects of oil and gas development on population trends in breeding birds. These data can be used to extrapolate the land use and bird modeling results across a range of future development scenarios that will help inform land and wildlife managers. Results from the preliminary studies suggest the importance of improving our understanding of the possible effects of salts from produced water on aquatic resources. The databases can also be used to identify and prioritize areas where subsurface information on hydrology and water quality is needed. This information can be obtained from ground and airborne geophysics and hydrogeologic framework studies. The project databases and their interpretation can be used in landscape scale assessments of the vulnerability of wetlands to possible contamination from oil and gas development.