Tuesday, March 11, 2014YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- The Ohio Department of Natural Resources has halted drilling at Hilcorp's well pad at the Carbon Limestone Landfill in Poland Township. The action, taken Monday afternoon, follows a series of earthquakes Monday morning all of which had epicenters close to the well pad.
The National Earthquake Information Center of the U.S. Geological Survey places the epicenter of a 3.0-magnitude earthquake that took place early at 2:26 a.m. near where Hilcorp Energy Co. is drilling 12 Utica wells in Poland Township, according to the agency's website.
In a statement released late Monday, Hilcorp said it was working with ODNR "to investigate multiple seismic events overnight," acknowledging one of the epicenters was near Hilcorp's Carbon Limestone wells. "It is far too early in the process to know exactly what happened, and we are not aware of any evidence to connect our operations to these events," the company said.
Hilcorp emphasized that the many Utica wells drilled in eastern Ohio in recent years were done so without incident. "Nevertheless, we do acknowledge that public safety is of paramount importance to our company. Accordingly, Hilcorp agrees with the ODNR that all activity at the site will be suspended immediately until we determine it is safe to continue our operations."
Earlier, the USGS reported the first quake measured 2.8 in magnitude. That has since been revised to 3.0 magnitude, according to the agency, which also reported that a second quake measuring 2.4 followed at 2:42 a.m. A third small quake measuring 2.2 in magnitude occurred at 11:03 a.m, followed by a fourth at 11:44 a.m. that measured 2.6 in magnitude.
According to the USGS, the first earthquake occurred one mile south of Lowellville. The agency pinpoints the epicenter at 41.017 N, 80.537 W, or roughly 2,000 feet northeast of Poland Township Park on land owned by Republic Services' Carbon Limestone Landfill, where Hilcorp is developing 12 oil and gas wells in the Utica shale formation.
The 2.6-magnitude earthquake's epicenter was traced to roughly 4,000 feet east of Poland Township Park and west of State Line Road, according to a USGS map.
The first earthquake registered at a depth of 1.2 miles, USGS reports. The second quake occurred at a depth of three miles.
According to the ODNR, Hilcorp has drilled seven wells at the site. One of those wells is in production, another one is being drilled and four other wells are permitted at the site.
ODNR released a statement saying the agency is "in the process of analyzing the [seismic activity] data. All available information indicates the events are not connected to Class II injection activities. Out of an abundance of caution we notified the only oil and gas operator in the area, and ordered them to halt all operations until further assessment can take place," the statement continued. "ODNR is using all available resources to determine the exact circumstances surrounding this event and will take the appropriate actions necessary to protect public health and safety."
Valerie Dearing, a resident of Poland Village and a member of the FrackFree Mahoning opposition group, drove to the closest public vantage point of the Hilcorp well pads -- near the township park -- Monday afternoon. Dearing frequently visits the site, keeping tabs on the drilling. Gas flares, compession and storage tanks can be seen closest to the park road; the completion rigs believed to be used in the latest round of fracking visible but obscured by distance.
"I'm concerned about the earthquakes. I've been reading all about the so-called frack quakes in Texas and that area and I figured it would just be a matter of time before Ohio experienced frack quakes," Dearing said. "I don't know if there will be anymore frack quakes but I'm very concerned."
Dearing said the early morning earthquake woke her "from a deep sleep and shook the paintings on my walls."
A resident of an upscale development off Struthers Road said she and her husband slept through the first earthquake. "But my girls were freaking out," she said. Her youngest, an elementary school student, "was really scared."
"We had about four calls about it around 2:30 a.m., and that's about it," reports Brian Goodin, Poland Township police chief, after he spoke with midnight crew employees this morning. "There was no report of damage, just some noise."
The calls about the first quake came from residents living in an area along North Lima, Kennedy and Robinson roads in the township, the chief reported.
A dispatcher at the Boardman Township Police Department also confirmed similar phone calls to their offices. No one was dispatched from the Boardman office and there was no report of damage.
"The people working here didn't feel anything," reports Mike Heher, division manager at the Poland landfill. "Other people have called in here and said they felt it."
In 2011, the Mahoning Valley was rocked by a series of earthquakes including a New Year's Eve quake with a magnitude of 4.0. The ODNR later tied the quakes to an injection well operated by now-defunct D&L Energy Corp.
John Williams, an activist who is part of a group that opposes the use of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling, emailed a statement noting that the region has experienced its "first earthquake caused by fracking, not just injection wells," and petitioned residents to appeal to local government to assist homeowners with earthquake insurance.
After the 2011 quakes, the state of Ohio placed a moratorium on injection wells within five miles of the D&L site on Ohio Works Drive in Youngstown.
"To be clear, Hilcorp has no disposal wells in the area," the company said in its statement. "Hilcorp always strives to be a good neighbor and repsonsible corporate citizen in the communities that we operate in. We welcome the inquiry into exactly what happened in Poland and encourage state inspectors to provide the community with as much information as possible."
The Ohio Oil and Gas Association also issued a statement late Monday, affirming its support for ODNR's decision "to suspend oil and gas activity near an area in Mahoning County that recently experienced seismic activity. It was the right thing to do to ensure the safety and peace of mind for area residents," said the industry group. "ODNR has the scientific resources and expertise to properly investigate this situation."
Copyright 2014 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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