PAWNEE — The Oklahoma Corporation Commission announced Saturday that they were notifying disposal well operators to shut down their wells following a 5.6 magnitude earthquake Saturday morning.

Spokesman Matt Skinner outlined the mandatory shut down in a new release sent out Saturday afternoon.

“The Oklahoma Corporation Commission's Oil and Gas Division (OGCD) is in the process of implementing a mandatory directive to shut down all Arbuckle disposal wells within a 725 square mile area, based on the location of the earthquake that occurred shortly after 7 a.m. on September 3, 2016 near Pawnee. The area includes 211 square miles of Osage County, which is outside of OGCD jurisdiction. OGCD is working with the Environmental Protection Agency, which has sole jurisdiction over disposal wells in Osage County. The EPA will determine what action to take in that area,” Skinner wrote.

“The action in the area will involve a total of 37 wells. The schedule for shut down will vary according to the well, but all wells will be shut down within 10 days. The schedule is necessary because of warnings from seismologists that a large scale, sudden shutdown could cause an earthquake.”