Miller wary of drilling in Dallas

Former Dallas Mayor Laura Miller is not so keen on natural gas drilling coming to her city, even though she was a supporter of drilling at Dallas-Fort Worth Airport.

Miller told the Texas Tribune that she now has questions on the safety of natural gas drilling after reports of earthquakes in the Barnett Shale.

"I was gung-ho as member of the DFW Airport Board [about bringing drilling out there], because it was a great income stream, and both Dallas and Fort Worth got a piece of that. But as soon as I started reading about minor earthquakes in Tarrant County [because of Barnett Shale drilling], I thought, uh oh, this sounds like a problem. They’ve made the connection now between that and fracking. If I were back on the city council, I would be cautious and [would] want to know a lot more from the people doing the investigative work on what is happening in Tarrant County."

Researchers have argued that there may be a connection between recent small earthquakes that have been recorded in the region and natural gas drilling. Earlier this year, a team of researchers said an injection well used to get rid of wastewater from natural gas drilling was a "plausible cause" of a series of small  earthquakes at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport.

-Aman Batheja

Comments

[Jeff Ritchie]

Who has ever said there was a connection between Fracking and the Earthquakes? The only thing I have read is that the earthquakes could be related to one or more disposal wells, which has nothing to do with fracking. If people are going to voice concerns about drilling, at least get the facts correct.

[Anne Furman]

If the disposal wells are pumping fracking flowback into the ground, there is a connection. The flowback from fracking has to be disposed of somehow. Flow back injection puts heavy metals, radioactive materials, and some very, very toxic chemicals into the ground where they can enter the aquifer which provides drinking water. In PA, we are finding water well and ground water contamination the worst problems. Dead vegetation, fish dying, cattle drinking flow back water dead from exposure to radioactive materials, families whose homes are now worthless because of water well contamination.

Please read the news or talk to someone living with problems from fracking, it's shocking.

[Francine]

We are sick of everything being polluted. My neighbor has plenty of money and yet he let them dump drilling mud on a small acreage next to me. I plan to have my soil and water tested periodically. If chemicals are found in my soil or pond water, I am filing a lawsuit.

[Mineral Rights]

Interesting article regarding barnett shale mineral rights. It seems there are those for and against urban drilling. However, I have seen no research to suggest drilling has had any impact on seismic activity.