$2.6M Settlement in Oklahoma Earthquake Suit
A $2.6 million class action settlement has been reached in a lawsuit concerning earthquakes in Oklahoma. The suit alleged that certain wastewater disposal wells contributed to seismic activity. Residents who suffered property damage from the quakes between 2019 and now may be eligible for a payment.
The recent settlement is part of a much larger story of seismic upheaval in Oklahoma, where the number of significant earthquakes jumped dramatically over the last fifteen years. Scientific studies have overwhelmingly linked this surge to the underground injection of wastewater, a byproduct of oil and gas production. Before 2009, Oklahoma recorded an average of just two earthquakes of magnitude 3.0 or greater per year; by 2015, that number had skyrocketed to over 900. The wastewater is primarily "produced water," a briny fluid that comes to the surface with oil and gas. Companies inject millions of barrels of this fluid deep underground into porous rock formations, most notably the Arbuckle formation. This process increases fluid pressure on existing fault lines, lubricating them and making them more likely to slip, which results in an earthquake. One of the defendants in the current settlement, New Dominion LLC, has a history with earthquake-related litigation. The company was previously sued over a series of quakes in 2011 that included a 5.7 magnitude tremor near Prague, which destroyed 14 homes. That case eventually led to a separate $5.9 million settlement. In response to the quake epidemic, the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC), which regulates the state's oil and gas industry, began taking action in 2015. The OCC issued directives that included shutting down some disposal wells and forcing others to reduce the volume and depth of their injections, particularly in the Arbuckle formation. These regulatory efforts have been credited with a significant decrease in the rate of induced earthquakes in the state. Studies have confirmed that reducing injection volumes and plugging back wells to prevent injection into the deepest rock layers have been effective strategies. The other defendants named in the $2.6 million settlement are Freedom Energy, Montclair, and drilling services company Helmerich & Payne (H&P). While H&P's primary business is drilling rather than wastewater disposal, the lawsuit alleges their operations contributed to the seismic activity covered in the settlement. In 2023, the OCC ordered Freedom Operating Co. LLC and twelve other operators to shut down disposal wells near Carney following a 4.0 magnitude earthquake.
