Blocked wells and reduced injection reduce rates of induced seismicity in Oklahoma

Injection of wastewater from oil and gas production into Oklahoma caused a spike in seismic activity in the state between 2009 and 2015. But regulatory efforts to backfill some injection wells with cement and reduce injection volumes have been effective in reducing the rate of induced seismicity in the state. According to a new study in the seismic record.

The study by Robert Skomal of the USGS and colleagues provides further support for the idea that reducing the depth of wastewater injection can reduce seismic activity — a finding that may have implications for controlling the rise in induced seismic activity in western Texas and eastern New Mexico. .

“Every basin is different, but we have seen time and time again the relationship between injection depth and seismic potential across the country,” Skomal said.

In 2015, the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) mandated that wells that inject water into the lower part of a sedimentary formation called the Arbuckle Group — which lies above basement rocks in the area — must be backfilled with cement to limit injection to shallower levels.

The researchers concluded that if these “sealers” were applied to only half the volume injected into the lower part of the Arbuckle, the 2024 earthquake rate in Oklahoma would be about 2.5 times greater than under the current sealing scenario.

If there were no plugs, the seismicity rate would be about 4.4 times greater.

“It's the first time we've had the opportunity to look at the effect of reducing injection depths on induced seismicity across such a large regional scale,” Skomal said.

“The science said proximity to the basement was important, and the OCC underestimated the proximity of those wells,” he added. “This study is confirmation that these reconnection efforts have succeeded in reducing seismic rates.”

Hydrocarbon production in Oklahoma is associated with high rates of earthquakes starting around 2009 and peaking in 2015, when there were earthquakes of magnitude 888 or greater in the state. There have been five earthquakes of magnitude 5 or greater, including the 2011 Prague earthquake and the 2016 Pawnee earthquake that caused notable damage.

Several studies, including some by the TSR authors, show that this rise in seismic activity was primarily related to the disposal of wastewater into the Arbuckle River in central Oklahoma. From an industry standpoint, the formation was ideal for disposal, Skomal said.

“It has a very high permeability, which means fluids will quickly flow away from the well, making room for more fluids,” he noted. “It has low pressure, which means water can be ‘poured’ into the well without using pumps, and it can be easily accessed in All over the region. “For every gallon of oil they brought, 10 gallons of water came with it. “There was a huge amount of fluid that had to be moved somewhere, and Arbuckle was an economical place to dispose of it.”

Seismic rates in the state have declined since their peak in 2015, partly due to economic factors that have led to decreased oil production in the region, thus reducing wastewater injection. To discover whether plugging and volume reductions resulted in less induced seismicity, Skomal and his colleagues created several earthquake models that use data on plugging, total wastewater injection volumes, and observed seismic rates.

They found that a model that took into account only the volumes of wastewater injected into the bottom of the Arbuckle, and had seals that were quite effective at reducing seismic rates, provided the best explanation for the observed seismic rate patterns.

While rates of induced seismicity have declined in Oklahoma, they are on the rise in the Permian Basin in western Texas and southeastern New Mexico, which has seen six earthquakes of magnitude 5 and larger since 2020. “It's effective in Oklahoma, and it could be an effective strategy in “other places.”

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