While Oklahoma has had a handful of notable earthquakes over the past
century, it was essentially never an earthquake state.
And rightfully so, given that the USGS and other officials, up until quite
recently, ranked Oklahoma’s earthquake hazard level at the second lowest
level, with a patch of slightly elevated, but still moderately low areas:
According to the statistics that have been released, Oklahoma, in fact,
had very few earthquakes (over a magnitude o 3.0) during the past half
century – until the year 2009.
That date marks the expansion of fracking in the oil industry, as the
Obama Administration signaled an attack on coal and fossil fuels, and the
petroleum industry sought to flood market supply to manipulate the political
power of oil in certain key regimes around the world:
Now, the low key heartland state of Oklahoma is suddenly rivaling San
Frascisco as the most earthquake-prone place in the United States.
According to the Daily Mail:
Oklahoma is the most at risk place in America for man made
earthquakes caused by oil and gas drilling, a new USGS quake risk map has
revealed.
In its annual national earthquake outlook , the U.S. Geological Survey
reported Wednesday that a large portion of Oklahoma and parts of central
California have the highest risk for a damaging quakes this year: between 5
and 12 percent.
Natural elevated quake risks exist through much of California, Seattle and
the area where Missouri, Tennessee, Arkansas, Kentucky and Illinois come
together, known as New Madrid.
Seismologists say Oklahoma’s problem is triggered by underground
injections of huge volumes of wastewater from oil and gas drilling.
[…]
From 1980 to 2000, Oklahoma averaged only two earthquakes a year
of magnitude 2.7 or higher.
That number jumped to about 2,500 in 2014 then to 4,000 in 2015
as the use of an oil and gas production technique that uses millions of
gallons of water boomed.
That’s an insane change in the pattern of earth-shaking seismic activity –
and the blame has been cast squarely on man-made drilling and wastewater
injection – i.e. fracking for natural oil supplies.
Despite the fact that Oklahoma has a very low risk for naturally occurring
earthquakes, the state is experiencing more than just about anywhere else.
This chart, from a single day in 2015, shows how on a day where California
sees several significant earthquakes, Oklahoma has dozens, perhaps hundreds
of minor earthquakes.
With enough persistence, this is multiplying the region’s chances for
these artificially-induced tremors to trigger a massive response from nature.
As pressure points are set off, larger eruptions sometimes take place.
In the absolute worst case scenario, what would happen if a large enough
earthquake – set off by fracking activities – where to set off a the fuse on
the New Madrid fault, where a state over, one of the most critical danger
spots for a large scale, mega-disaster to take place.
As this map released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration shows,
there are three major shale gas deposits in Oklahoma, and thus there has been
feverish underground activity in the region. 
Why exactly this is creating major earthquake disruptions in Oklahoma and
other key fracking areas – like North Dakota’s Bakken shale play – is not
immediately clear, but extensive study of Oklahoma and debate inside the
state government have led to the controversial, but certain link to fracking.
Oklahoma’s Corporation Commission set up regulatory restrictions on the
industry requiring a 40% reduction of wastewater well injection activities,
which has corresponded in a proportional reduction of earthquakes there –
from a peak of about 4,000 per year in 2015, to something closer to 2,500 in
2016, still a huge problem.
So far, artificial earthquakes have not exceeded 5.6 in magnitude, meaning that
the chances for a truly catastrophic emergency from fracking activities
remains very low for the moment. However, the fact that an earthquake this
large was recorded and attributed to non-natural causes raised eyebrows,
making us all wonder how far things will go.
To be sure, there is technology already in existence and in the hands of
scientists, that can induced man-made earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic
eruptions and the like on a grand scale. Conspiracy-minded observers have
already pinpointed several major world events attributed to stealth-state
attacks.
What is truly worrying about these artificial earthquakes is that they are
becoming more unpredictable, more frequent and more likely to cause actual
chaos.
But for now, the property damage is low, and the concerns are environment.
In time, however, the concern may be significant loss of life and widespread
destruction.
Read more:
Are You Ready Series: Earthquake Preparedness
FEMA Preps For the Big One: “Involves A Magnitude 9.0
Earthquake Along Cascadia Subduction Zone”
Simulation: New Madrid Quake Would Kill 100,000 Instantly;
Displace 7 Million
Report: LA Quake Would Cause “Significant Disruption of
Inter-Dependent Infrastructure…Transportation, Gas and Electricity Supplies,
Sewage Systems, Water…”
Is Someone “Trying To Start A MegaTsunami”? Strange
Earthquakes Go Off In Precise Grid Pattern
