This paper presents an analysis of the environmental aspects of the exploitation of unconventional reservoirs in order to evaluate the risk of the activity. To this end, the existing normative framework, the natural and socioeconomic conditions of the area, and the applicable technologies are considered. The novelty of this work is the analysis of the factors that determine the environmental risk including technologies, environmental conditions at the site, and the legal context in the region.
Methodology
A review and comparative analysis was performed of the general and environmental regulatory framework in Argentina where unconventional exploration or exploitation activities are carried out. This analysis was completed with a review of the effluent-management strategy, comparing it with criteria used by other countries, especially the United States.
In order to perform a preliminary evaluation of the environmental risk, a structured, conceptual, and qualitative analysis was conducted in specific sectors corresponding to each of the areas of exploration and exploitation.
Depending on the information available at the regional level, and based on the analysis of satellite images, each site was characterized according to 20 parameters.
