{"id":23999,"date":"2015-05-28T11:23:49","date_gmt":"2015-05-28T16:23:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/?p=23999"},"modified":"2015-05-31T14:21:06","modified_gmt":"2015-05-31T19:21:06","slug":"plug-back-or-prove-it-oklahomas-anti-earthquake-orders-in-action","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2015\/05\/28\/plug-back-or-prove-it-oklahomas-anti-earthquake-orders-in-action\/","title":{"rendered":"Plug-Back or Prove It: Oklahoma\u2019s Anti-Earthquake Orders in Action"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_24001\"  class=\"wp-caption module image right\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24001\" alt=\"Oil-field workers use sledgehammers to unstick a pipe at the George saltwater disposal well near Wakita in northwestern Oklahoma.\" src=\"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back067_WEB.jpg\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back067_WEB.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back067_WEB-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back067_WEB-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back067_WEB-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Joe Wertz \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Oil-field workers use sledgehammers to unstick a pipe at the George saltwater disposal well near Wakita in northwestern Oklahoma.<\/p>\n<\/div><p>Two burly men armed with sledgehammers take turns bashing a khaki-colored steel flange fastened to a pipe in the middle of a soggy, gravely lot near Wakita in northwestern Oklahoma.<\/p><p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/207664583&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=false\" height=\"150\" width=\"100%\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p><p><!--more--><\/p><p>The tangle of valves and fittings, called the Christmas tree, has to come off before Jay Storm\u2019s crew can start their work in earnest.<\/p><p>\u201cEverything is a little seized up this morning, so we\u2019re having to manually try to get a couple different components separated by hand,\u201d says Storm, completions supervisor for Tulsa-based Eagle Energy Exploration.<\/p><p>Storm and a half-dozen oilfield workers are opening up the George No. 1 saltwater disposal well, which is connected via pipeline to a pair of nearby production wells.<\/p><p>Those two wells produce oil and gas. And, like a lot of wells in Oklahoma, a lot of water comes to the surface with that oil and gas. The wastewater is salty and laced with petroleum products, chemicals and metals. That\u2019s what George No. 1 is used for.<\/p><p>All the toxic wastewater from the two production wells is piped over and pumped nearly a mile and a half underground. Disposal wells are an economic and government-approved method of keeping toxic wastewater from contaminating public water sources, which are usually close to the surface.<\/p><p>But there\u2019s a problem. George No. 1 is too deep.<\/p><p>\u201cAbout two hundred feet,\u201d Storm says. \u201cTwo hundred feet below the Arbuckle.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_24003\"  class=\"wp-caption module image right\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24003\" alt=\"Jay Storm, left, the completions superintendent for Eagle Energy Exploration, and a service company worker oversee the plug-back of the George No. 1 saltwater disposal well.\" src=\"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back017_WEB.jpg\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back017_WEB.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back017_WEB-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back017_WEB-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back017_WEB-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Joe Wertz \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jay Storm, left, the completions superintendent for Eagle Energy Exploration, and a service company worker oversee the plug-back of the George No. 1 saltwater disposal well.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h3>Fluid dynamics<\/h3><p>Scientists say <a href=\"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2015\/05\/05\/stateimpacts-earthquake-research-reading-list\/\">disposal wells<\/a> are likely behind the increased and atypical <a href=\"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/tag\/earthquakes\/\">seismic activity recorded recently in Oklahoma<\/a> and several other states.<\/p><p>For decades, the Arbuckle formation has been considered Oklahoma\u2019s ideal place for disposal wells to pump full of drilling wastewater. The Arbuckle underlies most parts of the state, so it\u2019s easy to find. Fluid goes in easy, and it\u2019s nicely sealed off from aquifers and other sources of drinking water.<\/p><p>But the Arbuckle is situated above crystalline granite rock. Scientists say disposal wells that are too deep and allow fluid to contact the granite pose a risk for triggering earthquakes.<\/p><p>Fluid injection into granite rock is one of two well-known risk factors for manmade earthquakes. The second is fluid injection into faults \u2014 especially active faults known to produce earthquakes.<\/p><p>Researchers and regulators are focusing on disposal wells that might be too deep or too close to risky faults.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_24002\"  class=\"wp-caption module image right\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24002\" alt=\"Oil-field workers lining up a section of pipe.\" src=\"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back076_WEB.jpg\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back076_WEB.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back076_WEB-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back076_WEB-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2015\/05\/20150519-eagle-plug-back076_WEB-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Joe Wertz \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Oil-field workers lining up a section of pipe at the George No. 1 saltwater disposal well.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h3>Plug-back or Prove it<\/h3><p>In March, Oklahoma\u2019s oil and gas regulator ordered Eagle Energy Exploration and about 90 companies operating roughly 350 disposal wells in quake-prone parts of the state to provide measurements proving they aren\u2019t injecting into granite basement rock.<\/p><p>If the wells are found to be injecting into the granite \u2014 through measurements called well logs or\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=5&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CDsQFjAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.slb.com%2Fservices%2Fcharacterization%2Fpetrophysics%2Fwireline%2Flegacy_services%2Fgamma_ray.aspx&ei=jTpnVYTKEorCsAWokYPQAQ&usg=AFQjCNGmYQ34lK1en3t2IgHuezkdDXSoyA&bvm=bv.93990622,d.b2w\">gamma ray tests<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 companies face three options: Shut down the well, cut disposal volumes by half, or \u201cplug-back\u201d \u2014 pump cement into the well so it\u2019s shallower and away from the granite.<\/p><p>As of May 11, 2015, Eagle Energy and the owners of more than 50 other disposal wells opted to plug-back.<\/p><p>\u201cTo be in compliance with the Corporation Commission, we\u2019re going to pull the casing out of it and the packer, and run in and cement the zone below the Arbuckle that we\u2019re disposing in,\u201d Storm says.<\/p><p>The Corporation Commission in 2014 enacted new rules requiring <a href=\"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2014\/09\/10\/regulator-stepping-up-monitoring-and-inspections-of-disposal-wells-in-quake-country\/\">more detailed data<\/a> and logs from disposal well operators. The agency has also been <a href=\"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2014\/04\/17\/oklahoma-oil-and-gas-regulator-uses-red-tape-not-rules-to-manage-disposal-wells-in-earthquake-country\/\">scrutinizing disposal well permits<\/a>. But the disposal well orders \u2014 <a href=\"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2015\/03\/25\/regulators-issue-tougher-disposal-well-directives-as-oklahomas-quake-risk-rises\/\">called \u201cdirectives\u201d<\/a> \u2014 are its most aggressive to date. Officials at Eagle Energy Exploration estimate it will cost them $50,000 to $60,000 dollars to plug-back the George No. 1 saltwater disposal well.<\/p><p>StateImpact contacted scores of companies that received the disposal well directives, but Eagle Energy Exploration was the only operator who would speak on-record about its response or allow a reporter to observe the plug-back process firsthand.<\/p>\n<div class=\"related-content alignright\">\n<h4 class=\"related-header\">Related<\/h4>\n<div class=\"links\">\n<h5>Posts<\/h5>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"link\"><a href=\"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2015\/05\/22\/legislature-sends-anti-frack-ban-bill-to-the-governor\/\">Legislature Sends Anti-Frack Ban Bill to the Governor<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"link\"><a href=\"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2015\/05\/18\/oil-executive-told-university-dean-he-wanted-earthquake-scientists-fired\/\">Oil Executive Told University Dean He Wanted Earthquake Scientists Fired<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"topics\">\n<h5>Topics<\/h5>\n<p class=\"topic\"><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2013\/01\/disposalTN.jpg\" height=\"60\" width=\"60\" \/><a href=\"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/topic\/earthquakes-2\/\">Exploring the Link Between Earthquakes and Oil and Gas Disposal Wells<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><p>\u201cOnce we get a good cement job on it, we\u2019ll verify and double-check everything, and we\u2019ll run the casing and packer back in and put it back to work,\u201d Storm says.<\/p><p>Oklahoma had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.revealnews.org\/article\/hey-california-oklahoma-had-3-times-as-many-earthquakes-in-2014\/\">more earthquakes than California<\/a> last year, but it\u2019s too early to tell if the state\u2019s regulatory actions will reduce the shaking. The rate of shaking doesn\u2019t appear to be slowing. More than 5,400 earthquakes were recorded in Oklahoma last year; as of May 2015, more than 2,400 quakes have been recorded, data from the Oklahoma Geological Survey show.<\/p><p>Storm says he hasn\u2019t really noticed all the earthquakes.<\/p><p>&#8220;To be honest, I&#8217;ve never felt one up here,&#8221; he says, and the quakes aren&#8217;t a big topic of conversation on the rig sites he&#8217;s been on.\u00a0&#8220;There&#8217;s really no chatter about it whatsoever.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>To explain how the state\u2019s orders work and how the energy industry is responding, StateImpact reporter Joe Wertz visited a well site in northwest Oklahoma.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":24001,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[490],"tags":[390,489,500,238,419],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23999"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/36"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23999"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23999\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24016,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23999\/revisions\/24016"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24001"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23999"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23999"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23999"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}