Earthquakes Are on the Rise in Oklahoma, and Researchers Are Asking Why

Joe Wertz Bio Recent Stories Joe Wertz was a reporter and managing editor for StateImpact Oklahoma from 2011-2019. He reported on energy and environment issues for national NPR audiences and other national outlets. He previously worked as a managing editor, assistant editor and staff reporter at several major Oklahoma newspapers and studied journalism at the University of Central Oklahoma.

Joe Wertz / StateImpact Oklahoma

More than 1,000 earthquakes were recorded in Oklahoma in 2010. The next year, there were more than 1,400 earthquakes, making 2011 the state’s most seismically active year on record.

A 5.6-magnitude quake was recorded that year — Oklahoma’s largest in at least a century — and researchers, regulators and the public are starting to ask questions about the state’s seismic risks.