Impressions of Oklahoma Weirdness

John in Oklahoma City speculates about some of the latest theories regarding the Kingfisher County mystery:

(T)he mysterious gas bubbling out of the ground in central Oklahoma continues and nobody can seem to figure out where it is coming from. Chesapeake Energy is taking responsibility though the evidence that the gas is coming from their well is open to question. They recently drilled a well about 12 miles from the location of the first surface gas leak and attention speculation turned to that well since it is the first well in that area in quite some time that has significant subsurface pressure. The area has been drilled extensively since the 1920's but all of those earlier wells have long since lost pressure.

Tying the gas leaks to the Chesapeake well has numerous problems. First, when a well is drilled and the casing is set the borehole is pretty well sealed from leakage. Chesapeake claims they fractured the producing zone but that is probably several thousand feet deep (they don't want to give specifics about that producing zone because they stand to make a bundle off of offset wells). It is highly unlikely that there would be a zone that deep which would allow migration on gases. There is the possibility that the frac procedure contacted an older, forgotten borehole which was not sealed properly when abandoned and the gas is migrating through that.

Near the surface in that area is the Blaine Formation, a gypsum unit which has extensive karst through western Oklahoma. In fact the largest gypsum caves in North America are found in that formation. That might explain how that gas could migrate along a zone which appears to be in the range of 17 miles long on a SW-NE trending line. But again, how does the gas get into that formation?

Most people are baffled about the whole situation--nothing of the sort has ever before occurred previously here or anywhere else that I've been able to find. The director of the Oklahoma Geological Survey allegedly speculated that it's coming from west Texas (blame Texas.. a proud Oklahoma tradition!) which is 150 MILES AWAY! Somehow that doesn't seem likely to me. But all is well since according to the local sheriff the gas poses no risk of explosion "because it's bubbling up through water." Well, I'm not going to light up any cigars out there!!! Nothing like a good mystery to produce bizarre statements to the media... I'll keep you posted!