Actions to Reduce Some Earthquakes in Oklahoma Working

While more research is needed, efforts to manage the potential risk of induced earthquakes not associated with wastewater injection wells are showing some positive results, say officials with the Oklahoma Geological Survey (OGS) and the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC).
“While still evolving, the “traffic light” protocol system developed by the OCC and OGS and put in place by directive in December has thus far yielded some good results,” said OCC Oil and Gas Division Director Tim Baker. “The actions taken under the directive have been in response to events that have occurred away from the Arbuckle injection wells that have been linked to most of the earthquake activity in the state. Researchers have linked some of this smaller and relatively rare activity outside the main earthquake area to well completion operations, including hydraulic fracturing.”
OGS Director Dr. Jeremy Boak and OGS State Seismologist Dr. Jacob Walter say preliminary evidence suggests the type of seismicity associated with well completion is stratigraphically shallower than the earthquakes linked to deep injection, and does not appear to reactivate basement faults, unlike the more numerous and often far larger quakes linked to injection.