Over a 28-hour span last week, Oklahoma was shaken by seven unique earthquakes. According to the US Geological Survey, the events started, when five quakes struck the central part of the state. Then, two more earthquakes were measured during the early hours of next morning.
All of the earthquakes were between magnitude 2 and 5, with no significant damage reported. The events were attributed to the disposal of wastewater used during hydraulic fracturing, or fracking processes, for the harvesting of oil. The recent surge in fracking activities has coincided with an increase in earthquakes in the Sooner state.
In 2010, the year fracking activities increased in Oklahoma, it experienced 41 registered earthquakes. According to the USGS, this number grew to 857 in 2016. During this same stretch, oil production in the state expanded by nearly 230 percent.
Scientists are linking the rise in earthquakes to the injection of large quantities of wastewater into wells deep below the state’s land surface. According to the USGS, most of the underground wastewater comes from oil and gas operations, which is created when clean water mixes with dirt, metals, and other toxins below the Earth's surface during extraction operations.
Over a 28-hour span last week, Oklahoma was shaken by seven unique earthquakes. According to the US Geological Survey, the events started, when five quakes struck the central part of the state. Then, two more earthquakes were measured during the early hours of next morning.
All of the earthquakes were between magnitude 2 and 5, with no significant damage reported. The events were attributed to the disposal of wastewater used during hydraulic fracturing, or fracking processes, for the harvesting of oil. The recent surge in fracking activities has coincided with an increase in earthquakes in the Sooner state.
In 2010, the year fracking activities increased in Oklahoma, it experienced 41 registered earthquakes. According to the USGS, this number grew to 857 in 2016. During this same stretch, oil production in the state expanded by nearly 230 percent.
Scientists are linking the rise in earthquakes to the injection of large quantities of wastewater into wells deep below the state’s land surface. According to the USGS, most of the underground wastewater comes from oil and gas operations, which is created when clean water mixes with dirt, metals, and other toxins below the Earth's surface during extraction operations.
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