Railroad Commission bans injection of fracking waste in area wracked with earthquakes

The Railroad Commission told oil and gas operators last week it is suspending permits to inject oil and gas underground in an area hit by a record high earthquake last month.

The earthquake was the fourth-largest in the state’s history, a 5.2 magnitude event that started in West Texas on November 8, 2023, and was felt in areas of New Mexico and as far north as Lubbock. 

The earthquake was the second 5.0 magnitude or greater earthquake to occur in the Permian Basin, in West Texas and New Mexico, in just over a year–a 5.4 magnitude earthquake was felt in the area in November of 2022. Though this time there was minimal damage on the surface, the real concern behind these earthquakes is their underlying triggers. A study led by researchers at UT Austin found that seismicity rates in the Delaware basin have been increasing since 2009. The study links the increase in seismic activity to oil and gas activity in the area, specifically through the process of injecting wastewater resulting from the hydraulic fracturing process, or “fracking.”

Fracking is used to extract oil and gas when it is in tightly-trapped pockets between rock formations. Fracking involves injecting water and chemicals at high pressures into cracks in and below the surface, which widens them and allows the oil and gas to be extracted. After the fossil fuels are pumped from production wells, they are separated from the groundwater that comes up with them– but because that groundwater is often toxic, it is typically injected back into the earth through porous rock formations, creating fluid pressure on fault lines. Over time, the pressure on the fault lines builds up until it slips, which causes earthquakes. 

This trend in increased seismic activity led the Texas Railroad Commission, the regulator of the state’s oil and gas industry, to implement a new plan last year that restricts injections in the event of further large seismic activity. The goal of the plan was to reduce high-magnitude seismicity to ensure that there are no more 3.5+ magnitude earthquakes within the area. Under the rule, if the area sees a quake of 4.5 magnitude or higher, the commission would prohibit operators from injecting wastewater into underground formations for up to two years. 

The Texas Railroad Commission should be commended for taking action to prevent more seismic activity that could potentially be more disastrous for West Texas and the communities around the Permian Basin.