Okay, enough is enough

[gostangs]

Gas wells are 3,000 to 15,000 feet deep typically. 20,000 would be a deep on-land well.

They are saying this epicenter is 130,000 - 150,000 deep. Likely ten times deeper. Draw your own conclusions about how likely it is that injection wells or fracking (which is non existent in Dallas county) are causing these small quakes.

[couch 'em]

Disrupting the equalibrium of a fault line under tremendous stress? Doesn't sound impossible. It IS a fault line.

The more important question is if this can lead to damaging earthquakes or not

[03Mustang]

Gas wells are 3,000 to 15,000 feet deep typically. 20,000 would be a deep on-land well.

They are saying this epicenter is 130,000 - 150,000 deep. Likely ten times deeper. Draw your own conclusions about how likely it is that injection wells or fracking (which is non existent in Dallas county) are causing these small quakes.

Gas wells, yes. I am not an expert by any means but I understand that it is the deep injection wells, not gas wells (which are much shallower) that cause the small quakes. The waste water is injected at extremely high pressure and goes down much deeper than the wells, and in the end as I understand it no one really knows how deep some of them go. If there is a fault line nearby I don't see how it would be out of the question that this could cause a problem.

I know some of us work in the industry around here (and I know how adamantly all of this is defended), but there seems to be more than just a casual link in this case. When all of this is going on, right on an old fault line, and we're suddenly getting quakes for the first time in recorded history....well, there seems to be something there at least worth looking at and considering any and all possibilities.

http://stateimpact.npr.org/texas/tag/earthquake/

[Stallion]

and in Azle and in West Texas and in Oklahoma and all over the country. I read earthquakes over 3.0M in Oklahoma which traditionally numbered 3 per year now numberedc 258 in the last year

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news ... injection/

[Nacho]

http://balconesfaultzoneactivation.blogspot.com/

[vielsiehorsepower]

I work downtown and didn't feel anything at all yesterday. Have a co-worker who has an apartment out in Las Colinas and she's ready to move. Keeps getting interrupted and woken up (shaken up too I'd imagine) at night due to constant earthquakes in the last 6 months. Do we have any idea what this could be? I've heard things ranging from University of Dallas drilling a well, to drilling and construction at the old Texas Stadium site, to fracking (which doesn't make sense here - too far from fracking, epicenter is too deep as well).

Pun intended with the "shaken up" part?

[Comet]

But what about this quote from the DMN?

Dr. Craig Pearson, a seismologist with the Texas Railroad Commission, says in a statement sent to The Dallas Morning News that “there are no oil and gas disposal wells in Dallas County. And I see no linkage between oil and gas activity and these recent earthquakes in Irving.”

Are waste water injection wells excluded from this? If so, wouldn't that be important to know especially since it seems some of those deep wells might get closer to the epicenter than the shallower gas wells.

[smusportspage]

Not a seismologist myself, but I would say so. The depth of the waste water injection wells would appear to be a correlation. I am not getting paid, so you get what you pay for on tihs.

[couch 'em]

But what about this quote from the DMN?

Dr. Craig Pearson, a seismologist with the Texas Railroad Commission, says in a statement sent to The Dallas Morning News that “there are no oil and gas disposal wells in Dallas County. And I see no linkage between oil and gas activity and these recent earthquakes in Irving.”

Are waste water injection wells excluded from this? If so, wouldn't that be important to know especially since it seems some of those deep wells might get closer to the epicenter than the shallower gas wells.

Having experience with the media reporting on my business, anything I the paper can be assumed to be wildly inaccurate. We have tons of oil & gas alumni on here.....is there a database of permits or something reliable where we can look up what is in irving? I have seen it reported that there is fracking, was fracking, is disposal but no fracking, was disposal and was fracking, and every other combination

[smusportspage]

Wasn't there a well on The University of Dallas that they had to cap because it blew a gaskit? I seem to recall something in that regards. Very vague on the specifics.

[Stallion]

You can find all kinds of maps on the internet that show oil and gas activity in the area. In short, although Dallas County has very little activity-there has been substantial activity just to the west in the DFW airport area and westward. DFW very publicly sold its exploration right to its vast land holdings. Heck they had a very prominent rig set up on the South entrance to DFW not too very long ago.

http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/st ... rt-close-/

[Oldmins]

Wasn't there a well on The University of Dallas that they had to cap because it blew a gaskit? I seem to recall something in that regards. Very vague on the specifics.

Just curious. What is a "gaskit"? Is it a kit that holds gas?

[03Mustang]

Gas wells are 3,000 to 15,000 feet deep typically. 20,000 would be a deep on-land well.

They are saying this epicenter is 130,000 - 150,000 deep. Likely ten times deeper. Draw your own conclusions about how likely it is that injection wells or fracking (which is non existent in Dallas county) are causing these small quakes.

By the way, not sure where you are getting your 130k-150k number, but this says you have an extra zero on each of those: http://earthquaketrack.com/us-tx-dallas/recent

[smusportspage]

Wasn't there a well on The University of Dallas that they had to cap because it blew a gaskit? I seem to recall something in that regards. Very vague on the specifics.

Just curious. What is a "gaskit"? Is it a kit that holds gas?

I think it was a casing pipe, but not sure.

[SMU 86]

Disrupting the equalibrium of a fault line under tremendous stress? Doesn't sound impossible. It IS a fault line.

The more important question is if this can lead to damaging earthquakes or not

Right, you don't have to drill down to the epicenter to disrupt a fault line. In this case you have to take all possibilities into account.