Study: Gas Activities "Most Likely" Caused Texas Quakes
Gas industry activity “most likely” triggered a series of earthquakes that shook two North Texas towns from late 2013 through early 2014, new peer-reviewed research shows.
More than two-dozen small earthquakes during that period rattled residents near Reno and Azle, towns atop the gas-rich Barnett Shale, and put pressure on Texas oil and gas regulators to address concerns about man-made temblors. A combination of industry activities likely caused the phenomenon, according to a study published Tuesday in the journal Nature Communications.
More specifically, according to the research, operators’ withdrawal of brine – naturally salty water removed during oil and gas drilling – and the high-pressure injection of huge volumes of wastewater from gas wells were to blame.
Mapping two intersecting faults in the area, scientists from Southern Methodist University, the U.S. Geological Survey and the University of Texas at Austin found that the interplay of those gas activities likely altered fluid pressure underground, unleashing the quakes.
Read more: http://www.texastribune.org/2015/04/21/study-gas-activities-most-likely-caused-azle-quake/
