"EPA: North Texas Earthquakes Likely Linked to Oil and Gas Drilling"

"Federal regulators believe “there is a significant possibility” that recent earthquakes in North Texas are linked to oil and gas activity, even if state regulators won’t say so.

That’s according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s annual evaluation of how the Texas Railroad Commission oversees thousands of injection and disposal wells that dot state oilfields — underground resting places for millions of gallons of toxic waste from fracking and other drilling activities.

'In light of findings from several researchers, its own analysis of some cases and the fact that earthquakes diminished in some areas following shut-in or reduced injection volume of targeted wells,' the Aug. 15 report states, 'EPA believes there is a significant possibility that North Texas earthquake activity is associated with disposal wells.'"

Jim Malewitz reports for the Texas Tribune August 22, 2016.