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Earthquake Spike in Oklahoma Linked to Fracking

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A magnitude 5.0 earthquake that rocked Cushing, Oklahoma, on Nov. 6 damaged part of the city’s downtown district, but left no major damage to bridges or highways.

Early reports indicate the damage is not insignificant. A 16-block area in the hard-hit downtown has been sectioned off because of the danger posed by unstable structures and broken glass. No serious injuries or fatalities have been reported, however.

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Power in Cushing was out for less than an hour following the quake, and several gas leaks were taken care of.

The city, which has a population of 7,900, is noted as the world’s largest oil storage terminal and has experienced 19 earthquakes in just the past week, raising safety concerns. As of last week, the town’s tank farms held 58.5 million barrels of crude oil, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The number of earthquakes in the area has also risen exponentially.

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During the first half of this year, 618 temblors of M2.8 or greater have shaken Oklahoma.

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Swiss Re noted in its September 2016 report The Link Between Hydrofracking, Wastewater Injection and Earthquakes: Key Issues for Re/insurers:

Since 2008 the number of magnitude 3.0 earthquakes per year has grown from roughly 2 per year to an average of nearly 3 per day. This now makes Oklahoma the most seismically active of the lower forty-eight states. It’s highly likely that this dramatic rise in earthquake occurrence is largely a consequence of human actions. Along with the increase in seismicity, Oklahoma has seen a growth in its oil and natural gas operations since 2008, specifically hydraulic fracturing (often referred to as “hydrofracking” or “fracking”) and the disposal of wastewater via deep well injection.

A number of states that have increased wastewater injection activity have seen increases in the number of induced earthquakes, the study said, but the reason for such a large increase in Oklahoma is still unclear. Because of the large amount of crude oil storage in the Cushing area, strong shaking is worrisome and has led some to proclaim that induced earthquakes are a national security threat.

According to AIR-Worldwide, it is not clear whether the occurrences of the small and intermediate size earthquakes being seen, and the stress changes from wastewater disposal could trigger larger and more damaging earthquakes. As a precaution, the Oklahoma Corporation Commission ordered four new Arbuckle disposal wells to be shut and 10 to reduce their volume by 25%. In Osage County, 32 wells will have reduced volume.

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Experts believe limiting injection volumes is helpful because of the link between high-volume injection and earthquakes, but Swiss Re’s report concluded that while, most companies participate in the suggested reductions following a detected earthquake, economic pressure to continue wastewater injection often prevails. “Changing regulations, and how the oil and gas industry respond, remain the biggest contributor to uncertainty of how the risk will change in the future,” Swiss Re said.

Could Hydrofracking Cause Cancer?

Hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking), or the fracturing of rocks far below the earth’s surface for the recovery of oil and natural gas, has become a hot topic of conversation among conservatives, liberals and environmentalists, to name just a few interested parties. And most would agree — fracking is a controversial issue.

Environmentalists denounce the idea because of the risks posed to not only the environment, but also to humans.

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In fact, a recent Democratic report states that millions of gallons of hazardous chemicals and known carcinogens were injected into wells by leading oil and gas service companies.

Between 2005 and 2009, drillers injected 32 million gallons of fluids containing diesel into wells in 19 states, an investigation by Representative Henry A.

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Waxman (D-Calif.) concludes. Just as it recovers its footing from the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the Administration faces a new threat, again involving a risky drilling technology and charges of lax regulation. Obama is “evaluating the need for new safeguards for drilling,” says White House spokesman Clark W. Stevens. “It’s likely that the science is going to say we need to regulate fracking,” says Tyson Slocum, director of the energy program for Public Citizen, a liberal advocacy group.

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“But Obama’s political team is going to say don’t regulate, and I think the political team will win.”

Though the Democratic report may ignite a firestorm, there are some who truly believe in the benefits of fracking. Scientists claim that switching to natural gas, the cleanest of the fossil fuels, could help slow the approach of climate change by cutting carbon dioxide emissions by 17%.

So with growing criticism towards fracking, but staunch supporters of the gas extraction method, we are left to make our own conclusions. Do the risks outweigh the benefits?

Check out the June issue of Risk Management for an in-depth article on the risks fracking presents to the insurance and reinsurance industry.