New Frac Sand Resources on FracTracker.org
We’ve added several new frac sand resources for visitors to our website this month, including a map of frac sand mines, as well as geolocated data you can download. Explore these resources using the map and links below:
Updated Frac Sand Mining Map
View map fullscreen | How FracTracker maps work
On the map above you can view silica sands/frac sand mines, drying facilities, and value-added facilities in North America. Click view map fullscreen to see the legend, an address search bar, and other tools available on our maps.
Additional data shown on this map include addresses and facility polygons. Wisconsin provides sand production data for 24 facilities, so that information has been included on this map. The remaining Wisconsin and other state facilities do not have production or acreage data associated with them. (Most states lack disclosure requirements for releasing this kind of data. Additionally the USGS maintains a confidentiality agreement with all firms, preventing us from obtaining production data.)
The sandstone/silica geology polygons (areas on the map) include a breakdown of how much land is currently made up of agriculture, urban/suburban, temperate deciduous forest, and conifer forests. At the present time we only have this information for the primary frac-sand-producing state: Wisconsin. We should have details for Ohio and Minnesota soon.
Data Downloads
Click on the links below to download various geolocated datasets (zipped shape files) related to the frac sand industry:
- SIC and/or NAICS related violations and inspections
- Resin Coating Facilities
- Silica Sand Mine Time Series polygon expansion over time (in Wisconsin, Illinois, Arkansas, Minnesota, and Missouri)
- Existing Silica Sand Mine Points
- Existing Silica Sand Mine Polygon land-use
- St. Peter and Sylvanian Surficial Sandstone Geologies
- Frac Sand Mine Proposals – inventory of frac sand mine proposals in LaSalle County, IL; Monroe County, IL; Arkansas; and Minnesota
- Western Michigan frac sand mines within or adjacent to sensitive dunes
- Mid or downstream frac sand industry participants (PDF) – detailed descriptions of 34 US and 4 Canadian firms
This is a great resource. This pretty clearly shows how the United States has been able to cut CO2 emissions by electric utilities in half by converting or decommissioning coal plants, replacing dirty coal with very inexpensive natural gas from fracking. Who could have anticipated that fracking would so helpful in preventing global warming? The fact that sequestration is much easier with new gas turbines is just icing on the cake.