5.5 Magnitude earthquake in Pecos just now

[kevwun 15897]

12 minutes ago, Porterhouse said:

Nothing to do with it. 

You actually have no idea. 

Bingo. 

Yeah, that's why 4 of my neighbors are having well issues also.  Never a problem during the last bad drought that was much worse than this one.

[Guest]

I have no idea, and do not care, about a random 5 water wells. That is not what is causing seismicity. @kevwun

Edited November 17, 2022 by Porterhouse

[NorthLoop 14248]

At 330 my dog went apeshit and a Halloween decoration fell off the wall. But shit like that happens couple times a week anyways. 

[KaiserSoze 998]

3 hours ago, ztejas said:

Sounds like folks that felt it in SA/Austin were upstairs in tallish buildings. 

Sounds correct. April of 1995 in Lubbock the people reporting the earthquake far away were on the 5th floor or higher in their buildings. The epicenter was similar that year- Alpine/Marathon instead of Pecos.

I was on the 10th floor of a building in Lubbock and felt it (250-300 miles from the epicenter)- my clothes were swaying on their hangers and my neighbor's fish tank developed waves that started spilling over. 

My gf and I were on my bed watching a movie and she looked at me and said, "Are you doing that?". At first I didn't know what she meant but then noticed it right after (bed moving, hangers swaying) and that's when my neighbor burst in and yelled "WTF!?!?!?!" and told us about his fish tank. 

Anyway, tldr- when farther away you're more likely to feel it if you're on higher floors of buildings.

[GopherRock 1769]

Obligatory 

 

 

[GringoSalado 1652]

 

[Patricio Swayze 17058]

Thursday’s are usually hectic, but if I get a spare minute I might call up one of our rock nerds and water logistics dudes and see what they this about it. Pretty fascinating listening to the geos talk about faults in Pre spud meetings.

[Archer 474]

23 minutes ago, kevwun said:

Yeah, that's why 4 of my neighbors are having well issues also.  Never a problem during the last bad drought that was much worse than this one.

Which one of your neighbors sold their water and are now upset?

[kevwun 15897]

Ha, the people who own the property where the holding pond is did also have well problems.  They've been selling off family land for years because the husband is a lazy fuck, so of course they jumped at the opportunity.

Edited November 17, 2022 by kevwun

[Guest]

3 minutes ago, kevwun said:

Ha, the people who own the property where the holding pond is did also have well problems.  They've been selling off family land for years because the husband is a lazy fuck, so of course they jumped at the opportunity.

Well there’s your problem. But an oil company sourcing water isn’t causing this. Every oil company fracking, which has occurred since the 40s or 50s, isn’t causing this. What is causing this isn’t the water used for fracs. At least not directly. What is causing this is disposing of massive quantities of water coming back uphole before oil is produced. This is flowback water. Companies must dispose of it in Railroad Commission-approved injection wells. 

[KaiserSoze 998]

I mean, I'm hammered at a bar right now but ultimately it sounds like, based on your description, this wouldn't be happening if the drilling wasn't happening.

[futureman 22545]

4 hours ago, conVINCEd said:

We’re all having fun here, but as an earthquake virgin, I was on the 40th floor of an office building, and peoples drinks started sliding off of the conference table.

I was on the 25th floor of a building for an earthquake a couple months ago.  it was my first experience.  I don’t want to go in tall buildings anymore unless there’s a parachute available next to a balcony. 

[Guest]

17 minutes ago, KaiserSoze said:

I mean, I'm hammered at a bar right now but ultimately it sounds like, based on your description, this wouldn't be happening if the drilling wasn't happening.

Probably not unless the geos are all wrong. But not drilling isn’t a possibility. A solution is more water recycling. 

[TKthunder2 4997]

[HenryJames 66171]

1 hour ago, Patricio Swayze said:

Thursday’s are usually hectic, but if I get a spare minute I might call up one of our rock nerds and water logistics dudes and see what they this about it. Pretty fascinating listening to the geos talk about faults in Pre spud meetings.

Know anyone in hydraulics?

[Patricio Swayze 17058]

Know anyone in hydraulics?

Just South Austin’s mom.

[KaiserSoze 998]

25 minutes ago, Porterhouse said:

Probably not unless the geos are all wrong. But not drilling isn’t a possibility. A solution is more water recycling. 

Denial noted. CSB

[Guest]

33 minutes ago, KaiserSoze said:

Denial noted. CSB

Not sure what I’m denying

[bolverk 29718]

3 hours ago, Scheiss Meister said:

I thought that it was the neighbor's mule scratching its back on the corner of my trailer again.

[po elvis 2076]

Experienced my first earthquake last week in Italy. Walls shook pretty good for about five seconds. A little later I googled ‘earthquake Italy’. It had a warning in red and said there was an earthquake. It also asked if I felt shaking or not. Collects the information by gps. I thought it was pretty cool way to gather the info.

[RPM 26354]

10 hours ago, conVINCEd said:

I was on the 40th floor of an office building,

That's not how humblebrags work.

[BabaYaga 15320]

14 hours ago, deadshank said:

I felt nothing in Houston.

What she said.....

[LonghornJones 837]

15 hours ago, Beau Vine said:

They apparently evacuated my building 

[Nice Guy Eddie 13523]

11 hours ago, Porterhouse said:

Well there’s your problem. But an oil company sourcing water isn’t causing this. Every oil company fracking, which has occurred since the 40s or 50s, isn’t causing this. What is causing this isn’t the water used for fracs. At least not directly. What is causing this is disposing of massive quantities of water coming back uphole before oil is produced. This is flowback water. Companies must dispose of it in Railroad Commission-approved injection wells. 

 

If the Railroad Commission approves an injection well, we know it must be safe.  Is it safe to assume their approval rate is 100%? Or at least once the paperwork is corrected.

[Guest]

16 minutes ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

 

If the Railroad Commission approves an injection well, we know it must be safe.  Is it safe to assume their approval rate is 100%? Or at least once the paperwork is corrected.

We do?  I don’t know that at all.

No, their permit rate isn’t 100% and has slowed considerably since this became a thing about 5 years ago. This isn’t an issue limited to Texas or RRC, either. 

[crash_davis 23115]

Oklahoma had a string of earthquakes. Per the below link, it's not specifically due to fracking. It's just the wastewater that is produced from oil drilling in general that is pumped back into the ground. Not sure if fracking contributes to the quantity of wastewater.

https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/oklahoma-has-had-surge-earthquakes-2009-are-they-due-fracking

 

[Guest]

42 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

Oklahoma had a string of earthquakes. Per the below link, it's not specifically due to fracking. It's just the wastewater that is produced from oil drilling in general that is pumped back into the ground. Not sure if fracking contributes to the quantity of wastewater.

https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/oklahoma-has-had-surge-earthquakes-2009-are-they-due-fracking

 

Oklahoma was exactly what I was thinking when I said this isn’t a Texas-only problem. And have you read any of this thread?  Fracs don’t cause earthquakes. Injecting wastewater is the sole reason. 

[crash_davis 23115]

2 minutes ago, Porterhouse said:

Oklahoma was exactly what I was thinking when I said this isn’t a Texas-only problem. And have you read any of this thread?  Fracs don’t cause earthquakes. Injecting wastewater is the sole reason. 

Nowhere did I say frac causes earthquakes. I just asked if frac contributed to the wastewater which is pumped into the ground causing the earthquakes.

[Guest]

5 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

Nowhere did I say frac causes earthquakes. I just asked if frac contributed to the wastewater which is pumped into the ground causing the earthquakes.

“Per the below link, it's not specifically due to fracking.”

This is common knowledge. I wasn’t trying to be a dick. 

[High Plains Drifter 11052]

36 minutes ago, Porterhouse said:

Oklahoma was exactly what I was thinking when I said this isn’t a Texas-only problem. And have you read any of this thread?  Fracs don’t cause earthquakes. Injecting wastewater is the sole reason. 

 

where does all this wastewater come from?

 

[crash_davis 23115]

3 minutes ago, High Plains Drifter said:

 

where does all this wastewater come from?

 

from waste.

[kevwun 15897]

Well from drilling, but that's not the point.  Smoking doesn't cause cancer either.  It's really exhaling that does it.

Edited November 17, 2022 by kevwun

[Guest]

2 hours ago, High Plains Drifter said:

 

where does all this wastewater come from?

 

Frac jobs

[Guest]

2 hours ago, kevwun said:

Well from drilling, but that's not the point.  Smoking doesn't cause cancer either.  It's really exhaling that does it.

Smoking directly causes cancer. The process of fracking doesn’t have a thing to do with earthquakes. It’s injecting wastewater downhole into another well. Recycling solves the problem. 

[Kennythetiger 9460]

16 hours ago, KaiserSoze said:

My gf and I were on my bed watching a movie and she looked at me and said, "Are you doing that?". At first I didn't know what she meant but then noticed it right after (bed moving, hangers swaying) and that's when my neighbor burst in and yelled "WTF!?!?!?!" and told us about his fish tank. 

Your girlfriend has never been more disappointed. 

[LonghornJones 837]

16 hours ago, KaiserSoze said:

My gf and I were on my bed watching a movie and she looked at me and said, "Are you doing that?". At first I didn't know what she meant but then noticed it right after (bed moving, hangers swaying) and that's when my neighbor burst in and yelled "WTF!?!?!?!" and told us about his fish tank. 

[Captainant 27771]

3 hours ago, Porterhouse said:

Oklahoma was exactly what I was thinking when I said this isn’t a Texas-only problem. And have you read any of this thread?  Fracs don’t cause earthquakes. Injecting wastewater is the sole reason. 

 

6 minutes ago, Porterhouse said:

Frac jobs

 

5 minutes ago, Porterhouse said:

Smoking directly causes cancer. The process of fracking doesn’t have a thing to do with earthquakes. It’s injecting wastewater downhole into another well. Recycling solves the problem. 

Is it economically feasible to recycle frak water? The state of Texas says NO! Why else do you think they're injecting it into the ground lol? Fuck your negative externalities, clean water is for pussies! Papa's got profits to reap!

[Guest]

17 minutes ago, Captainant said:

 

 

Is it economically feasible to recycle frak water? The state of Texas says NO! Why else do you think they're injecting it into the ground lol? Fuck your negative externalities, clean water is for pussies! Papa's got profits to reap!

I’ve never meant someone that combines arrogance and ignorance more than you. Often wrong, never in doubt is a phrase invented for you. 

SWD companies have evolved, for several years, from simple water disposal companies to recycling companies. It fits right into the ESG narrative.  Oil companies rarely inject anything into the ground after they complete a well. It is typically a 3rd party midstream company. Your article is from October 2015. Over 7 years ago. In an entirely different price environment. And this has absolutely zero to do with clean drinking water. Basically, you couldn’t be more wrong in one post than you are, until your next post. 

[Captainant 27771]

27 minutes ago, Porterhouse said:

Oil companies rarely inject anything into the ground after they complete a well. It is typically a 3rd party midstream company.

Lol your logic is amazingly tortured:

It's not the fracking companies injecting foul water into the water table, it's the people they paid to inject the foul water!

It's not fracking that causes earthquakes and drains water wells, it's injecting the wastewater from the fracking process!

You do realize that the world keeps turning and outcomes continue to happen even after you've reaped your profit and sold the contract to downstream right?

[Guest]

56 minutes ago, Captainant said:

Lol your logic is amazingly tortured:

It's not the fracking companies injecting foul water into the water table, it's the people they paid to inject the foul water!

It's not fracking that causes earthquakes and drains water wells, it's injecting the wastewater from the fracking process!

You do realize that the world keeps turning and outcomes continue to happen even after you've reaped your profit and sold the contract to downstream right?

Sigh. Disposal companies are not injecting wastewater into the water table, you half-wit.

Fracking isn’t causing earthquakes. Period. Injecting water in attempt to dispose of it is. I’ve already laid out a solution. You reference an article over 7 years old to explain how that’s not economic. 

Try and focus for a minute. I know it’s hard for you in general, particularly when you think you know everything when you laughably do not. 

[Captainant 27771]

1 hour ago, Porterhouse said:

Fracking isn’t causing earthquakes. Period. Injecting water in attempt to dispose of it is. I’ve already laid out a solution. You reference an article over 7 years old to explain how that’s not economic. 

Your solution doesn't mean much to everyone who's wells are draining thanks to the dumping of wastewater. That's happening right now. Sorry I referenced an article that's too old for you, but I'd rather see examples of your proposed solution IN ACTION in the real world than just what an oil investor's "green" pitch is.

No shit they aren't injecting into the water table - but their injection of water can destabilize, spread into, and contaminate water tables. You wanna drink a glass of water from a nearby water well a few years after a drill? 

1 hour ago, Porterhouse said:

Try and focus for a minute. I know it’s hard for you in general, particularly when you think you know everything when you laughably do not. 

What should I focus on? Your on-paper idea? While your industry continues to not use it because it costs too much?

[Biff Tannen 45741]

6 hours ago, kevwun said:

Well from drilling, but that's not the point.  Smoking doesn't cause cancer either.  It's really exhaling that does it.

[Guest]

48 minutes ago, Captainant said:

Your solution doesn't mean much to everyone who's wells are draining thanks to the dumping of wastewater. That's happening right now. Sorry I referenced an article that's too old for you, but I'd rather see examples of your proposed solution IN ACTION in the real world than just what an oil investor's "green" pitch is.

No shit they aren't injecting into the water table - but their injection of water can destabilize, spread into, and contaminate water tables. You wanna drink a glass of water from a nearby water well a few years after a drill? 

What should I focus on? Your on-paper idea? While your industry continues to not use it because it costs too much?

Ummmmm, water recycling is very much in use. Each post you make makes you look dumber and dumber. 

The bolded parts - 1) how is that even topical?  I’ll give you a hint: it’s not. 2) You say “no shit”; why did you say exactly that?  And no, injection wells are nowhere near water tables. Jesus you’re so out of your element. 

25 minutes ago, Biff Tannen said:

Bad take. 

Edited November 18, 2022 by Porterhouse

[Updawg 2286]

Smoking directly causes cancer. The process of fracking doesn’t have a thing to do with earthquakes. It’s injecting wastewater downhole into another well. Recycling solves the problem. 

Why don’t they do this or how often do they reuse it. Can they just keep using it over and over on frac jobs instead of pushing down some injection well?

[Guest]

Just now, Updawg said:

Why don’t they do this or how often do they reuse it. Can they just keep using it over and over on frac jobs instead of pushing down some injection well?

After it’s treated, yes. It’s on the expensive side, but not if you can’t source your own water. Plenty of companies do it. I suspect it’ll be mandated because seismicity is only going to increase.  

[TwiceHorn 31536]

Injection wells have always been a thing, frac'ing or no frac'ing.  Many wells produce water along with oil and gas, and sometimes it contains some funky stuff like bromine (that can be extracted for value), as well as petroleum fractions that make it unsuitable for normal disposal or reuse.

Fun fact: a lot of the oil wells drilled in the 10's and 20s in the Smackover Basin in southern AR and NE TX started producing water real quick and the drillers were pissed until they figured out that water contained a lot of bromine that had some value of its own.  A sizable fraction of the world's bromine still comes from those wells.

Frac'ing has increased the volume of produced or otherwise contaminated water many times, creating the disposal problem and requiring the injection of larger and larger volumes of water.  

I'm not sure if it's a proliferation of injection wells, possibly with inadequate spacing, or just larger volumes of injection into existing wells that causes the seismicity.  There were several small quakes in the metroplex five or six years ago, but that has subsided with modified injection practices.

Edited November 18, 2022 by TwiceHorn

[Biff Tannen 45741]

1 hour ago, Porterhouse said:

Ummmmm, water recycling is very much in use. Each post you make makes you look dumber and dumber. 

The bolded parts - 1) how is that even topical?  I’ll give you a hint: it’s not. 2) You say “no shit”; why did you say exactly that?  And no, injection wells are nowhere near water tables. Jesus you’re so out of your element. 

Bad take. 

ok cool hookem

[Guest]

13 minutes ago, Biff Tannen said:

ok cool hookem

Lemme rephrase: it was an extremely simplistic, non-analogous analogy attempt. That’s a nice way of putting it, Michelle Herman. 

[Guest]

45 minutes ago, TwiceHorn said:

Injection wells have always been a thing, frac'ing or no frac'ing.  Many wells produce water along with oil and gas, and sometimes it contains some funky stuff like bromine (that can be extracted for value), as well as petroleum fractions that make it unsuitable for normal disposal or reuse.

Fun fact: a lot of the oil wells drilled in the 10's and 20s in the Smackover Basin in southern AR and NE TX started producing water real quick and the drillers were pissed until they figured out that water contained a lot of bromine that had some value of its own.  A sizable fraction of the world's bromine still comes from those wells.

Frac'ing has increased the volume of produced or otherwise contaminated water many times, creating the disposal problem and requiring the injection of larger and larger volumes of water.  

I'm not sure if it's a proliferation of injection wells, possibly with inadequate spacing, or just larger volumes of injection into existing wells that causes the seismicity.  There were several small quakes in the metroplex five or six years ago, but that has subsided with modified injection practices.

It’s both. It subsided in DFW because the Barnett is drilled out. The Delaware is not. It’ll only get worse. I’m fairly convinced we don’t know what’s causing the earthquakes other than we’re injecting a shitload of flowback water (produced water, as you reference, is not the cause).  I’m not sure what we can do in terms of changing disposal well practices, but know that not completing these 3-mile lateral wells in the exact manner we are will have disastrous effects economically. To me, the solution is with midstream companies stepping up recycling efforts that already have been in place for years. 

[Archer 474]

1 hour ago, Updawg said:

Why don’t they do this or how often do they reuse it. Can they just keep using it over and over on frac jobs instead of pushing down some injection well?

All of the major operators have massive water recycling projects in all active drilling areas. Just Google “company sustainability report “. Here are a few:

 

EOG: 90%+ recycled water use

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/eog-resources-publishes-2021-sustainability-report-301643136.html

 

Diamondback 29% recycled water use 

https://www.diamondbackenergy.com/static-files/faf5ab25-5ab5-4404-8c04-c7bd387ae418

 

Chevron 99% recycled water use in Permian 

https://www.chevron.com/-/media/shared-media/documents/chevron-sustainability-report-2021.pdf

 

Devon 53% recycled water use

https://dvnweb.azureedge.net/assets/documents/Sustainability/DVN_2022_SustainabilityReport.pdf 

The problem is you get all of the frac water back in the first few months and then you have 20 years of additional water production and eventually you are done fracing to recycle into and are still producing water that has to go somewhere.