Texas is the nation’s leader in oil, natural gas, and wind production. But what parts of the state are doing the heavy lifting when it comes to energy? Last week, StateImpact Texas used data from the Railroad Commission of Texas and thewindpower.net to answer that question. We created maps that showed how much oil, natural […]

A new study shows yet another link between oil and gas drilling and manmade earthquakes in Texas. The report, by scientists at the University of Texas at Austin, says that a recent string of quakes in the Eagle Ford Shale formation of South Texas are mostly a result of oil and gas drilling. “The question […]

Texas holds about 23 percent of the country’s natural gas reserves. And thanks in large part to the advent of drilling techniques like horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” Texas is producing more of it than any other state. This map shows how much natural gas each county produced from wells between June 2012 and June […]

But Are They Being Penalized Enough? The state’s regulator for oil & gas drilling, the Railroad Commission of Texas, said it’s charged over $2.1 million in penalties called “severance fees” to drilling violators so far this fiscal year that ends August 31. That’s almost double the amount in 2010. “The severance fee charges are up, […]

The drilling processes of hydraulic fracturing — or “fracking” — and horizontal drilling have made it possible to access previously unreachable deposits of fossil fuels, creating a surge in domestic oil and natural gas production. So why are prices at the gas pump still relatively high? (Last week, the average national gas price was $3.68 per gallon.) We […]

Texas is a funny place when it comes to property rights. State Supreme Court rulings have said pipeline companies are not doing enough to prove they can take private land. Meanwhile, an unprecedented boom in oil and gas drilling means those same companies are scrambling to put more pipeline in the ground. The result has […]

The Department of Energy released a report recently looking at how climate change and extreme weather could make our power supplies more vulnerable. Given that it’s the nation’s leader in energy production, Texas was prominently featured. The report looks at both current and future threats to the energy sector from climate change. There are three […]

Colorado now has what the drilling industry there calls “the most rigorous statewide mandatory groundwater sampling and monitoring rules in the United States.” Wyoming is considering similar regulations to make oil and gas well drillers test the groundwater on nearby property before they begin to drill. Texas has over 800 rigs at work, far more […]

While a rush is on to build up infrastructure to transport the vast reserves of oil and gas

But for Those Outside the Boom, It’s Business as Usual It’s been over four years since a drilling company first drilled for (and hit) oil and gas in the Eagle Ford Shale. Since then, the region has become an economic engine for Texas, and to some degree, the country. While the region has seen several downsides to the […]