The Rise of Earthquakes in Oklahoma Essay

Paragraph 1: Fracking, also known as hydraulic fracturing, is a method designed to extract oil and gas from shale rock. According to Susan L. Brantley and Anna Meyendorff from the article, The Facts on Fracking, “The word fracking comes from the fracturing that occurs when the high-pressure water is injected into the rock. The process of fracking is accomplished by drilling into the earth where a mixture of high-pressure water is drilled into the rock causing the gas to be released.” The high-pressure water can have a mixture of materials such as water, sand, and different chemicals. The pressure of the water being injected is so high that it allows gas to burst out of the head of the well. The process can be achieved through two different ways, one being more common than another. One of the processes can be done vertically but the more common method is done horizontally. According to the New York Times, when the drilling is carried by horizontally, “New pathways can be used in the rock layer. Due to new pathways being created, more gas can be released,” (Marshall, 2015). Drillers can create mini-explosions in the wells to boost flow. How do mini-explosions not increase the probabilities of earthquakes? The horizontal drilling can allow millions of gallons of high-pressure water into the fractures of shale. Chemicals can be added to the high-pressure water for the purpose of dissolving minerals as well as inserting sand to open fractures made by the drillers and kill the

Earthquakes in North Texas have been popular in the past couple of years. Texas has never been a state to host earthquakes like the ones being experienced. There has been many theories from locals about the causes of minor earthquakes. What are their theories about the increasing in earthquakes in North Texas? One, is the Hydraulic “fracking”, the drilling that effects the underground soil to crack. It only gives airways for gas or oil to work its way up to the surface. The theory of hydraulic fracturing does not add up for some but that the wastewater disposals theory is a better conclusion. Wastewater disposals or water injections are related to “fracking” institutions. Wastewater disposals are water tunnels filled from underground that can

Energy sources in today’s world are becoming scarcer by the day, as energy is one of our most needed and essential commodities. Who supplies the energy and how much energy they are supplying typically determines the amount of influence one country might have over another regarding our global economy. This is where hydraulic fracturing becomes a controversial and important topic to those of us in the United States. Lately, environmental campaigners have voiced concerns over the large amounts of water that is needed to carry out the fracking process and the possibility of tremors it could cause. For example, in 2011, the Black pool area in England experienced two relatively small quakes. One reading 1.5 and the other reading 2.2 on the magnitude scale. Collin Richardson, vice president of operations for Mineral Resources Inc., feels that the issue is perplexed when he states, "People go to a light switch and expect energy to be there, but they don't think about where it comes from. I don't think most people understand that without hydraulic fracturing, we wouldn't have natural gas to provide electricity to our homes or gas in our cars” (Rydbom). It seems as though there is a misconception about fracking that arises from the environmentalist groups as to what fracking really is. These misconceptions cause an emotional upset with citizens due to the twisting of facts and fake news.

Paragraph 1: Hydraulic fracking is a hot topic across the state of Texas. There are debates whether fracking is the actual cause of the sudden earthquakes in Texas. Fracking is an intense process where natural gas is extracted deep from within the earth. Drillers from oil and gas companies use a horizontal drilling technique that is initiated as a vertical casing and then makes a 90 degree turn. This allows the well to follow the natural fractures of shale rock. A fracking fluid mixed of water, sand, and chemicals is injected with high-pressure down the well. The fluid produces several small cracks in the shale, creating a pathway for the gas to enter and flow out of the well casing. Each well can

In reality, a quick look at a global map indicates that seismic activity in the U.S. is fairly lower than other countries, where there is virtually no fracking (Matthews). Scientific studies have not been able to connect fracking to earthquakes (Matthews). After a well is fracked there is an excess amount of water left over that the company either has to reuse or get rid of. Wastewater injection wells are a way of putting this water back into shale formations that have already been fracked (To help the Economy…).People believe that these wells cause earthquakes. There is no evidence to support that wastewater injection wells cause earthquakes. Another argument that fracking is dangerous is that it harms the water supply.(To help the Economy…) Any gas well, fracked or not, can harm the water supply(To help the Economy…) None of these things will happen if fracking is done correctly and it is well maintained (To help the Economy…). “A quake in 2012 originated 16,000 feet below the surface. Injection wells don’t go any deeper than 10,000 feet”(Matthews). “The Obama administration has ignored its own experts”(Flores). This is nothing new as far as the Obama administration

If you think that by living in the areas of Oklahoma, Kentucky, Colorado, New Mexico, Arkansas, and Texas that you are safe from the threat of earthquakes, you are sadly mistaken. The threat in these areas aren’t as high as if you were to live in or near the Ring of Fire, but these earthquakes are made by humans. According to the United States Geological Survey, “Human activities, such as wastewater disposal from drilling oil and gas can cause earthquakes.” From 1973 to 2008, they have seen 20 earthquakes that range from a magnitude 3.0 and larger on the richter scale. These numbers grew enormously from 2009 to 2015 and rose to 318 earthquakes in one year. A process called “Fracking” has become popular in these states. Fracking blasts millions

Oklahoma is the fifth largest source of oil and gas in the United States; which brings billions of dollars to the state economy each year [1]. However, there have been a lot of earthquakes ; which is considered not normal geologically. The reason to blame is the hydraulic fracking. With the increasing numbers of earthquake; due to hydraulic fracking, a lot of citizens decided to sue several oil and gas companies. One of these cases is brought by Sandra Ladra, a Prague resident, Oklahoma. One of the strongest earthquake was recorded; with a 5.7 magnitude, struck Prague on November 5th, 2011[2]. It was felt in at least 17 states and caused severe damages.  Huge pieces of rocks fell onto Sandra’s legs and lap; leaving her with a fierce pain in

Earthquakes are not just a roar from mother nature anymore. Mineral exploration companies could be the reason that earthquakes are becoming more common in uncommon areas. When these companies are drilling for oil or gas they are putting the earths surface in jeopardy of experiencing “man-made” earthquakes.

Although it may seem that the process of hydraulic fracturing causes earthquakes because it drills into the bedrock underground for access to natural oil and gases, it’s actually the byproduct of hydraulic fracturing, the injection of fracking fluid or wastewater, which factors into higher-magnitude earthquakes in the United States. Most earthquakes that occur due to the process of hydraulic fracturing are micro, meaning they have a magnitude of 3 or less, while earthquakes of higher magnitudes near fracturing sites are mostly caused by the high intensity pressure of fracking fluid in waste-water injection wells. According to United States Geological Survey (USGS), anywhere from “1.5 million gallons in North Dakota, to 5.7 million gallons in

Hydraulic Fracturing is a process of forcing high levels of pressurized water underground in order to crack the layer of the earth to release the shale from the gas reservoir. This method artificially induces underground cracking which was known in 1947 as hydrafacing (Sica, 2013, p. 25) and over the years this method has adapted with technological advances and is currently known as fracking. Figure 1, above,

Hydraulic fracturing is highly controversial in many countries. Its proponents advocate the economic benefits of more extensively accessible hydrocarbons. However, opponents argue that these are out-weighed by the potential environmental impacts, which include risks of ground and surface water contamination, air and noise pollution, and potentially triggering earthquakes, along with the consequential

Hydraulic fracturing is the process where you inject liquid into rocks to open fissures so that you can receive the gas or oil. Fracking has been commonly used in oklahoma along with other countries. Many people argue that fracking causes earthquakes but this is wrong because it is proven that the wastewater actually causes them. The wastewater can in cases raise pressure levels. The injection rate and total volume of the injection of wastewater can affect the stress of these faults.

This paper will address how hydraulic fracturing, fracking, is likely to directly or indirectly cause earthquakes in nearby areas surrounding the injection wells. DISCUSSION The theory behind hydraulic fracturing induced earthquakes is reasonable and deserves to be respected because it is developed under very sound principles. In fracking, where large amounts of fluids are injected into the Earth, the injected fluid creates a high-pressure gradient and facilitates a smoother movement for nearby faults to cause seismic activity. (Guest, 2015) With that being said, the amount of earthquakes with a magnitude of greater than three on the Richter scale in the U.S. midcontinent has been on a fairly consistent, linear increase since 1967. However, this trend experienced a noticeable change around 2001, in which the levels of seismic activity veered off course and showed to have a exponential increase compared to previous statistics. (Ellsworth, 2013) From this increase in activity, there is a lot of speculation and research that humans have induced the extra seismic activity. One of the activities in particular that is believed to have led to the induced activity, is the process described above known as hydraulic fracturing. Although the fracking process has been used for a very long time, it is currently being related to seismicity around well location as the number of earthquakes in these areas increases. For most

Oklahoma is home to some of the most interesting geological and meteorological phenomenon in the world. From savage tornados that have notoriously ripped through small towns destroying everything in their path, to devastating earthquakes that can be felt miles away - Oklahoma is very unique in its geological make up and is also positioned right in the middle of a meteorological hotspot for severe weather. Having just moved here, I am going to examine the causes and science behind an increasingly large amount of powerful earthquakes. In order to do this I will examine

Earthquakes around the world are bound to bring mass destruction. In today 's society, the increase of earthquakes has become popular throughout the map. While these earthquakes lead us to destruction and helplessness, the cause of them and the history behind them all can leave everyone without further questions. These earthquakes have been around many years as witnessed and there seems to be no stop to them.