Deadline Ends—-Energy Firms Likely to be Sued Over Earthquakes

Four major oil and gas production companies in Oklahoma could possibly learn this week whether they will be sued by the Sierra Club and Public Justice over their injection wells and the surge in earthquakes in the state.

A spokesman for Public Justice, the Washington, D.C. based law group that has a mission to combat social and economic injustice and to protect the earth’s sustainability, told OK Energy Today,

“We are moving forward with plans.”

Communications Director Steve Ralls would not comment publicly further on whether SandRidge Exploration and Production, New Dominion, LLC, Devon Energy Production Company LP and Chesapeake Operating LLC would be sued.

But it’s believed an announcement might be coming sometime this week on the Sierra Club’s threat made Oct. 29, 2015 to file suit “for ongoing violations of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act resulting from the injection and disposal of waste fluids from the oil and fracking industries into the ground via wells in Oklahoma.”

The letter at the time gave the companies 90 days to “remedy the violations detailed” or else a lawsuit would be filed in federal district court. And that 90-day warning time has ended.

The letter cited individual violations of federal law against each of the companies, blaming them and their injection wells for causing earthquakes. It also claimed there was the risk that the earthquakes will also continue to be more severe.

Public Justice said it will be entitled under the RCRA federal law to bring suit against “any person…who has contributed or who is contributing to the past or present handling, storage, treatment, transportation, or disposal of any solid or hazardous waste which may present an imminent and substantial endangerment to health or the environment.”

The letter cited New Dominion for its operation of injection wells and said, “New Dominion’s disposal of Production Wastes is causing or contributing to the earthquake risks.” SandRidge Energy was accused of causing earthquakes through its injection wells in northern Oklahoma.

“It is almost certain that Sandridge’s (sic) handling and disposal of Production Wastes has contributed and is contributing to the northern swarm of earthquakes.”

Chesapeake was named too as Public Justice noted the company doubled its disposal volume in 2012, tripled it in 2013 and then reduced it slightly from 2013 levels in 2014.

“It is probably that Chesapeake is contributing to the earthquake risk in the Cushing area,” stated the letter.

Devon was also accused of contributing to the earthquake risk in the Cushing area because of its injection wells in the same region.

“Unless these violations are corrected, Citizens inend to file suit to enjoin and abate the violations described above, ensure future compliance with federal law, recovery attorneys’ fees and costs of litigation, and obtain other appropriate relief.”