Watch Oklahoma Overtake California in Earthquakes

• Joe Wertz
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  Joe Wertz was a reporter and managing editor for StateImpact Oklahoma from 2011-2019. He reported on energy and environment issues for national NPR audiences and other national outlets. He previously worked as a managing editor, assistant editor and staff reporter at several major Oklahoma newspapers and studied journalism at the University of Central Oklahoma.

Oklahoma experienced more than three times as many earthquakes as California last year, an uptick many geophysicists say is likely linked to wastewater disposal wells used by the oil and gas industry.

The Center for Public Integrity’s Reveal team has produced a compelling animation of the shaking, which covers a timeline from 2000-2014.

From reporter Michael Corey’s related story:

Oklahoma recorded more than three times as many earthquakes as California in 2014 and remains well ahead in 2015. Data from the U.S. Geological Survey shows that Oklahoma had 562 earthquakes of magnitude 3.0 or greater in 2014; California had 180. As of Jan. 31, Oklahoma recorded 76 earthquakes of that magnitude, compared with California’s 10.