Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Hydrofracking Probable Cause Of Ohio's <i>Eleven</i> Earthquakes
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Jan 3, 2012
Modified Jan 3, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Jan 3, 2012
Modified Jan 3, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
New Yorkers have until January 11 to tell the Department of Environmental Conservation how they feel about hydrofracking, and the results of the practice in Ohio should light up their switchboards. Usually Ohio's most dangerous faults are Drew Carey-related, but it has experienced eleven earthquakes since March. Although all of them were minor, the most recent on Saturday was a 4.0 magnitude, and according to the Times the state has ordered gas companies to stop injecting "millions of gallons of brine and other waste liquids" into the ground near Youngstown until scientists can pinpoint what was going on.
Of course, there is a little theory they've been kicking around: injecting millions of gallons of noxious chemicals and "brine" deep into the earth is a bad idea. Ohio state officials John Armbruster, a scientist at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory suspects that the fluid—pumped 9,200 feet into the ground—has migrated into ancient rock formations further down into the earth. "Having that many earthquakes fairly close to a well in Ohio, where there aren't a lot of earthquakes, was suspicious."
And just because the pumping has stopped, doesn't mean the tremors will. "The earthquakes will trickle on as a kind of a cascading process once you've caused them to occur," Armbruster tells the AP. "This one year of pumping is a pulse that has been pushed into the ground, and it's going to be spreading out for at least a year." And the news that Saturday's earthquake occurred at the same location of one a week before it is sure to bring New Year's bonuses to the PR firms of gas companies everywhere.
So tell Governor Cuomo how fun this August's earthquake was, and that you're tired of drinking that boring, odorless New York City tap water.
Tagged
Albany
andrew cuomo
energy independence
fracking
gas companies
governor cuomo
hydrofracking
natural gas
pure evil
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Driver found with apparent gunshot wound on George Washington Bridge, officials say
The westbound upper level was closed Tuesday night as Port Authority police investigated the incident.
By
Charles Lane
Published Oct 20, 2026 at 8:54 p.m. ET
Modified Oct 20, 2026 at 9:15 p.m. ET
16 arrested in New York auto insurance fraud crackdown involving nearly $500K
State officials say the cases include staged crashes and fraudulent medical claims, with seven arrests in the Bronx alone.
By
Giulia Heyward
News
16 arrested in New York auto insurance fraud crackdown involving nearly $500K
State officials say the cases include staged crashes and fraudulent medical claims, with seven arrests in the Bronx alone.
By
Giulia Heyward
Coney Island's small, 1890s lighthouse may be landmarked by the city
By
Catalina Gonella
New renderings are out for Queens' Metropolitan Park casino
By
Willow Higgins
Inside Luigi Mangione's legal strategy before his federal guilty plea
By
Samantha Max
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .