The ground keeps shaking in Oklahoma, and more violently.
The third most powerful earthquake in Oklahoma’s recorded history, the magnitude 5.1 quake centered near Fairview, was felt in seven states overall. Oklahoma has recently seen a dramatic spike in earthquakes.
This year has already seen 140 quakes 3.0 or larger. That’s an average of 2.5 earthquakes per day. Before 2008, the average was one and a half per year.
The small town of Fairview is quickly gaining a big reputation for large quakes. It was the epicenter of Saturday’s M5.1 and of that of the M4.8 quake just last month.
Geologists are now sure that water disposal wells used after hydraulic fracturing are linked to the quake increase.
They are now generating seismicity due to the injection wells. And these are pretty startling when you feel them. There’s now a lot of people experiencing them on a pretty broad scale.
Oklahoma has most probably mixed up its priorities and there is no plan to stop hydraulic fracturing.
Fracking gives jobs but fracking kills.