The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has requested oil producers stop injecting wastewater in seven well sites in northeast Oklahoma to halt saltwater contamination in the area.
The EPA's request comes nearly a year after the Bird Creek saltwater contamination first was reported.
EPA Region Six Administrator Sam Coleman says the agency's goal "is to make sure that anything injected stays in the formation in which it's injected." Coleman says brine contamination in the drainage is a long-standing problem.
Coleman says at least seven wells near the creek have been identified as problem wells after chemical and water monitoring in the creek began in May. He says the wells likely will need to be capped permanently.
Coleman says capping the wells should return pressures and geology to normal.