XTO Energy Cleared By Texas Administrative Law Judge as Purported Cause of Barnett Shale Earthquakes

A Texas Railroad Commission administrative law judge has rejected allegations based on a study from Southern Methodist University that XTO Energy, Inc., had contributed to small earthquakes atop the Barnett Shale.  After a highly technical proceeding, the hearing examiner determined that the SMU study presented data that indicated only a weak connection between injection and seismic activities that was “too small to imply a causal relationship.”  XTO Energy pointed to natural tectonic forces deep in the Fort Worth Basin as the likely culprit of seismic events near Azle, Texas, in late 2013 and early 2014.   

For a copy of the Proposal for Decision, click here.