HOUSTON (AP) _ A University of Texas study has found more seismic activity in areas near Dallas where natural gas drillers have built high-volume injection wells to handle drilling wastewater.
The study done by Cliff Frohlich at the Institute for Geophysics was released Monday. It is being published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that Frohlich’s report highlights a possible connection between seismic activity and the pumping of wastewater into underground wells. It doesn’t link hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, to earthquakes.
Frohlich found 67 earthquakes within 1.9 miles of a well, more than eight times as had been reported by the National Earthquake Information Center.
In June, the National Research Council report also documented more earthquake risks near injection wells.