A SandRidge Energy injection well has been ordered shut down because of numerous earthquakes near the well in north-central Oklahoma.
The Oklahoma Corporation Commission issued the order Tuesday after a 4.1 magnitude earthquake was recorded in the area on Friday. The well is the second to be shut down since the commission began a new monitoring system in 2013.
Injection wells are used to dispose of wastewater produced from oil and gas wells. Several studies have linked injection wells and earthquakes.
Corporation Commission spokesman Matt Skinner told the Tulsa WorldSandRidge was operating with a permit that said the well would be shut down if there was any seismic activity.
“They were operating under a ‘yellow light’ permit with language that said shut in if there’s any seismic activity,” Skinner said. . . . Due to a huge increase in earthquakes in recent years, the Corporation Commission began using a “traffic light” system in December 2013. Under the system, wells within a six-mile radius of a magnitude-4.0 earthquake are placed under operating restrictions. If additional earthquakes occur within six miles of an active well in that area, the commission can order the operator to halt injection while more information is gathered.
SandRidge Vice President Jeff Wilson said the company is cooperating with the commission as it reviews the well.
The commission held a hearing Nov. 26 on SandRidge’s permit application due to staff concerns about earthquakes in the area, records show. SandRidge asked to dispose of up to 80,000 barrels of wastewater per day, or 29 million barrels per year. During the hearing, commission staff testified that the well was one mile from recent earthquakes. SandRidge had agreed to submit additional data to the commission on the amount of wastewater it was disposing and the amount of pressure used in the process. “The UIC (Underground Injection Control) Department had numerous meetings with applicant (SandRidge) and found that applicant was cooperative in working toward attempting to operate in a manner so as to reduce the risk of injection acting as a trigger for induced seismicity in the area,” records of the hearing state. -------------------------------------------
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