The Latest: Dozens of wastewater wells directed to shut down (Oklahoma quake)

[deminks]

Source: AP

The Oklahoma Corporation Commission has directed dozens of wastewater disposal wells within an approximate 500-square-mile radius of the epicenter the Oklahoma earthquake to shut down.

The commission says about 35 wells are included in the directive, which was issued following the 5.6 magnitude earthquake that struck Saturday morning about nine miles northwest of Pawnee in north-central Oklahoma.

(snip)

Pawnee County Emergency Management Director Mark Randell says a man protecting his child suffered a head injury when part of a fireplace fell on him.

Randell says the man was treated at a hospital and released.

(end snip)

Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/urn:publicid:ap.org:5f6fef94c4354ac3a43267858c4bb7c4

[JonathanRackham]

1. Isn't fracking popular in Oklahoma?

[busterbrown]

2. Its all about the money..

If you’re making money off Oklahoma Fracking.. You’ll take your chances.... what this kind of economy does to people

[saidsimplesimon]

3. Jonathan,

There are those in every state who do not support fracking, of both parties, including independents. Sure, the numbers of those who profit or follow a politician's paid view are overwhelming. I refuse to give up the fight because I care about their safety. The Kochs have spent a lot of oil money protecting their cynical take over of states. Fight ALEC and politicians who take dark money.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

4. "500-square-mile radius" Uh, AP, there's been a problem. NT

[deminks]

5. lol, don't confuse them with facts.

The nearby wells have been ordered to shut down, however.

[jberryhill]

8. It's apparently a hypersphere

[FigTree]

6. A few numbers to put things in perspective:

From : http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Oklahoma_and_fracking#Caney_Shale.2C_Oklahoma

"As of 2012, there are an estimated 11,000 private and commercial injection and disposal wells in Oklahoma. Each year those wells are injected with billions of gallons of oil and gas wastewater, according to the Oklahoma Corporation Commission -- 8.8 billion gallons of wastewater in the last two years. The Corporation Commission says they have not tallied the amount of water injected through private wells."

[pbmus]

7. Way toooooo late.....

[benld74]

9. Felt that 5.6 here in STL around 7am today

[Crash2Parties]

10. Ever wonder why its rare to hear about toxic waste dumping these days?

(hint: "fracking" companies are allowed to keep the formulas for the fluids they pump into the groundwater top secret. Apparently those wells make a fine place to dispose of the otherwise expensive-to-process waste from other industries. For some such drilling companies, it would be an annoyance to actually find oil & gas as they are set up for disposal only)

[Scruffy1]

16. There have been no trade secrets since the spectroscope.

That particular call by the judges was the dumbest I ever heard of. No product sold to consumers is a secrete. And I strongly suspect that every company in the oil business knows what the competition is using. You simply can't keep secretes anymore. A simple, low cost gas chromatigraph will give a complete qualitative analysis for a very low fee.Either these judges have zero science knowledge or are paid off. Even without that the way oil company employees move around the "secrete" wouldn't last long. I strongly suspect that the judges who made that call got "financially lucky". Once you know what's in it, finding the amount is sop.

[Old Vet]

11. Remember the saying *Drill baby Drill*

Its Way,Way to late to repair or stop the permanent damage.

[DURHAM D]

12. Just the disposal wells?

Are they letting the injection wells continue to function?

Maybe they mean both.

[Matthew Rose]

13. Come on republicans let's see your outrage over

this big government overreach.

[Vinca]

14. Imagine how wonderful life might be with the government completely out of our lives.

It's the Republican wet dream . . . that turns into a nightmare.

[elmac]

18. Big Guvment

Some states, like Wyoming, even passed laws making it illegal to take pictures of industrial polluters, fines or jail await the do gooder. Now that kind of "Big Guvment" fascists like.

[Thirties Child]

15. Fracking and $$$$

I get a small monthly oil check (courtesy of my grandmother) from an petroleum company based in Tulsa. When I say small, I mean small - usually on the order of $40, sometimes lower. The last four checks doubled, our son suggested probably because of fracking. I'll be very interested in the amount of the next one now that the commission is stepping in, shutting down disposal wells.

BTW, instead of splitting the check four ways so each of our four children will get $10 monthly, I'm going to will my $40 to an animal group. (It shrinks as each generation splits it three ways, four ways, etc.)

[Kennah]

17. This

[keithbvadu2]

19. OK conservatives would halt such activities without proof that it causes earthquakes?

OK conservatives would halt such activities without proof that it causes earthquakes?

This really sets a precedent against their own 'beliefs'.

No scientific proof?