More sinkholes? Permian Basin buckling under stress of oil and gas drilling, study says

Oil and natural gas drilling is causing the West Texas landscape to buckle even more than previously realized, according to researchers from Southern Methodist University.

The same team previously investigated two giant sinkholes — which have become semi-famous —near the town of Wink, about 70 miles west of Midland. The new study in the journal Scientific Reports published by Nature.com, found at least a half-dozen more large swaths of the Permian Basin where land is sinking or rising.

"These hazards represent a danger to residents, roads, railroads, levees, dams, and oil and gas pipelines, as well as potential pollution of groundwater," said SMU geophysicist Zhong Lu, in a written statement. "Proactive, continuous detailed monitoring from space is critical to secure the safety of people and property."

Some of the land they studied moved as much as 40 inches during a 2 1/2-year period, according to researchers.

A 2017 Texas Tribune story reported that an abandoned Pecos County oil well caused officials to spend more than $1 million in road repairs. The story quoted local officials as saying that rerouting the affected Farm-to-Market Road could push the cost to $15 million.


More: https://www.dallasnews.com/business/energy/2018/03/22/sinkholes-permian-basin-bucking-stress-oil-gas-drilling-study-says