Monitoring Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) in real-time on oil and natural gas production sites

Oil and Natural Gas (O&NG) development, production, infrastructure, and associated processing activities can be a substantial source of air pollution, yet relevant data and real-time quantification methods are lacking. In the current study, O&NG fugitive emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) were quantified in real-time and used to determine the spatial and temporal windows of exposure for proximate flora and fauna. Eleven O&NG sites on the Pawnee National Grassland in Northeastern Colorado were randomly selected and grouped according to production along with 13 control sites from three geographical locations. At each site, samples were collected 25 m from the wellhead in NE, SE, and W directions. In each direction, two samples were collected with a Gasmet DX4040 gas analyzer every hour from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm (6 hours total), July to October, 2016 (N=864). VOC concentrations generally increased during the 6 hr. day with the exception of N2O and were predominately the result of O&NG production and not vehicle exhaust. Thirteen of 24 VOCs had significantly different levels between production groups, frequently above reference standards and at biologically relevant levels for flora and fauna. The most biologically relevant VOCs, found at concentrations exceeding time weighted average permissible exposure limits (TWA PELs), were benzene and acrolein. Generalized Estimating Equations (GEEs) measured the relative quality of statistical models predicting benzene concentrations on sites. The data not only confirms that O&NG emissions are impacting the region, but also that this influence is present at all sites, including controls. Increased real-time VOC monitoring on O&NG sites is required to identify and contain fugitive emissions and to protect human and environmental health.