Oil prices are much in the news, especially in Texas. As oil prices continue to decline, the effect on Texas’ economy is settling in. And with all the talk of oil prices, OPEC is again the focus of much news coverage. What will OPEC do? How much does OPEC really…
Beginning in 2013, the town of Azle, in the heart of the Barnett Shale, experienced a “swarm” of earthquakes. Its citizens complained to the Texas Railroad Commission, blaming injection wells for the quakes. When the RRC held a meeting in Azle, refusing to link the quakes to the injection wells, the…
Last month I wrote about the Texas legislature’s efforts to limit cities’ authority to regulate drilling within their jurisdictions, after the City of Denton passed a ban on hydraulic fracturing. The bill that has emerged is House Bill 40, sponsored by Drew Darby, chairman of the House Energy Resources Committee.…
A recent “swarm” of small quakes in Irving has caused a stir and ignited a series of articles about the relation between oil and gas activity and seismic events. The quakes in Irving were strong enough to knock some books off of shelves. After residents of the town of Azle…
Ever heard of the Groningen gas field? Neither had I, until I read a recent article in the New York Times. It is in the Netherlands, and was discovered in 1959. The field is operated by a joint venture of Royal Dutch Shell and Exxon Mobil. Today, the field produces about…
The Ohio Department of Natural Resources has imposed rules on exploration companies requiring seismic monitoring around new well sites near fault lines and quake epicenters in the Utica Shale. According to the Columbus Dispatch, the rules require monitors at new drill sites located within 3 miles of known fault lines…
The San Antonio Business Journal has a good website aggregating news about the Eagle Ford Shale: http://www.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/blog/eagle-ford-shale-insight/
As drilling activity in the onshore US continues to grow, more and more attention is being paid to the environmental effects of exploration and production. Media stories abound about groundwater contamination, the demand for fresh water from hydraulic fracturing, increased air emissions from exploration and production, controversy over pipeline condemnation…
Recent news relating to oil and gas exploration and development in Texas: Dune Sagebrush Lizard — Good article on efforts of industry and State regulators to avoid problems raised by possible listing of the Dune Sagebrush Lizard under the Endangered Species Act. Here is a map of the lizard’s habitat…
StateImpact Texas has published a series of good articles about the growing evidence that the huge quantities of wastewater being injected in the Barnett Shale field are causing earthquakes — some of sufficient intensity to cause significant damages. Lawsuits have been filed in Johnson County to recover for the damage. StateImpact’s…