House damage in central Oklahoma from the magnitude 5.6 earthquake on Nov. 6, 2011. Wikimedia Commons
By Lorraine Chow | EcoWatch
The research was conduced by researchers at the University of Bristol and involved the University of Southampton, Delft University of Technology and Resources for the Future.
After analyzing the state’s 10,000-plus wastewater injection wells, the researchers concluded that the amount of wastewater injected and the depth are key to understanding the state’s unusual seismic activity, the Associated Press reported from the study.
Oklahoma regulators could reduce the number of quakes by half by restricting deep injections in the ground, lead author Thea Hincks, an earth scientist at the University of Bristol, told the AP.
Wastewater should not be injected within 600 to 1,500 feet of the geologic basement, where earthquake faults can generally be found.
The AP reported:
“Lab experiments show basement rocks are more susceptible to earthquakes because ‘having fluids in a rock is going to weaken the rock,’ said co-author Thomas Gernon, a geologist at the University of Southampton.
“Previous studies had pinpointed the amount of fluids injected into wells as an issue. Gernon said volume does trigger earthquakes, but when volume levels were reduced the number of quakes didn’t drop as much as had been expected. That’s because where the stuff is put matters slightly more, he said.”
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Tags: featured, fracking wastewater, injection wells and earthquakes, Oklahoma quakes and fracking wastewater into injection wells, Oklahoma quakes increased, Oklahoma quakes possibly induced by fracking
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