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Massive Oil Fields In Texas Are Heaving And Sinking At Alarming Rates

March 28, 2018

Via: Forbes

Two massive sinkholes in Texas foretell a much larger story about the alarming rates of ground movement caused by oil and gas development in West Texas. A team of geophysicists from Southern Methodist University discovered that large portions of west Texas are sinking and uplifting due to decades-long oil and gas extraction, salt water disposal wells, and carbon dioxide injection.

The sinkholes in Wink, Texas first appeared in 1980 and have grown ever since, prompting concern about a much larger problem in one of the world’s largest oil patches. The research team investigated an area comparable to the size of Connecticut in west Texas to determine long-term changes in ground movement and the underlying causes.

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