Central Oklahoma Residents File Earthquake Lawsuit Against 12 Companies
Nine residents in central Oklahoma have filed a lawsuit against 12 energy companies claiming they were in part to blame for a recent increase in earthquakes in the Edmond, Okla., area. (Morrison1977/iStock/Thinkstock)
The Oklahoman
EDMOND, Okla. — A group of Edmond, Okla., residents filed a lawsuit Monday against a dozen energy companies, claiming their saltwater disposal wells were in part to blame for earthquakes that hit central Oklahoma in recent weeks.
The lawsuit, filed in Oklahoma County District Court, said the companies acted negligently and their use of disposal wells constituted an "ultrahazardous activity." The nine homeowners said disposal wells operated by the companies "caused or contributed" to earthquakes.
Earthquakes of magnitudes 4.3 and 4.2 shook the Edmond area Dec. 29 and Jan. 1. No injuries were reported, although some residents and businesses reported items falling off shelves or walls. The quakes caused an hour-long power outage for several thousand residents when vibrations shook a substation, triggering a breaker.
Among the dozen energy companies named in the lawsuit are affiliates of Devon Energy Corp., New Dominion LLC, Marjo Operating Co. Inc. and Pedestal Oil Co. Inc.
The homeowners said their homes sustained damage from the earthquakes, including cracked and broken interior and exterior walls, bricks and fascia, as well as movement of their foundations.
"The use of disposal wells by defendants created conditions which, among other things, are the proximate cause of unnatural and unprecedented earthquakes that continue unabated, increasing in both frequency and magnitude within Oklahoma County and elsewhere in the state of Oklahoma, which have damaged plaintiffs and others and threaten to do so in the future," the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit seeks a permanent injunction to stop the use of 16 saltwater disposal wells operated by the energy companies.
"Mother Earth has spoken, and Oklahoma is in a dangerous, dangerous position," said attorney Garvin Isaacs, who represents the Edmond-area homeowners along with David Poarch. "We must address this."
A spokesman for Devon said it would be inappropriate to comment on pending litigation. New Dominion didn't return a call for comment.
Other companies named in the lawsuit are Sundance Energy Oklahoma LLC; Grayhorse Operating Inc.; R.C. Taylor Operating Co. LLC; TNT Operating Co.; White Operating Co.; Rainbo Service Co.; Special Energy Corp.; and Northport Production Co.
Earthquake researchers concede that not all the state's earthquakes can be traced to saltwater disposal wells, thousands of which dot the state and have been used by energy producers for decades. But state regulators have amassed enough scientific evidence of induced seismicity to issue a series of voluntary directives to oil and gas companies to curtail injection into disposal wells or shut them in altogether.
Gov. Mary Fallin and other state officials and regulators have said there is a direct correlation between the state's ongoing earthquake swarm and wastewater disposal wells.
In response to the Edmond-area earthquakes, the Oklahoma Corporation Commission last week asked operators of five nearby injection wells to reduce disposal volumes.
The commission said none of the Edmond disposal wells was the type of high-volume wells — injecting more than 25,000 barrels of saltwater per day — targeted in previous regulatory directives in areas of increased earthquake activity.
Two of the five saltwater disposal wells, Devon's Harvey 1-11 and Pedestal Oil's C.J. Judy, agreed to suspend operations, the commission said.
Other Quake Lawsuits
At least two lawsuits have been filed stemming from the state's largest earthquake, a 5.6-magnitude that hit the Prague, Okla., area in 2011.
Prague resident Sandra Ladra filed suit against New Dominion and Spess Oil Co., alleging the earthquake knocked over her fireplace and caused rocks to fall on her. Ladra, whose lawsuit was filed in August 2014, claims the earthquake was triggered by the companies' use of disposal wells.
The Ladra lawsuit was initially dismissed by a Lincoln County, Okla., judge, who said such disputes should be left to the Corporation Commission. Ladra appealed to the Oklahoma Supreme Court, which ruled last summer the lawsuit could proceed in district court.
Another lawsuit seeks class-action status and damages from the 2011 Prague earthquake. It wants to cover residents in Lincoln County and eight surrounding counties whose homes or home values were damaged by the earthquakes.
Meanwhile, the Oklahoma Sierra Club and Washington-based Public Justice sent letters to four Oklahoma energy companies in late October warning them of a possible federal lawsuit under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, a 1976 law which allows citizen lawsuits over hazardous waste. The groups sent the letters to Devon, New Dominion, SandRidge Energy Inc. and Chesapeake Energy Corp.
A spokesman for Public Justice said Monday more than 11,000 people have signed an online petition demanding the four companies take "immediate action" to curb wastewater injection. The group still expects to file a lawsuit.
Rep. Richard Morrissette, D-Oklahoma City, plans a forum from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Friday at the state Capitol to listen to public concerns about the state's sharp rise in earthquakes and the links to saltwater disposal wells. The forum will be in Room 412C.
The Oklahoman. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency.
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