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For Immediate Release
November, 07 2016, 02:45pm EDT
Contact:
Tel: (520) 623.5252,Email:,center@biologicaldiversity.org
New Fracking-related Earthquakes in Oklahoma Heighten Call for Oil, Gas Lease Withdrawal
Sunday's earthquake that damaged dozens of buildings near an oil and gas pipeline hub in Cushing, Okla., is further proof that fracking and wastewater
CUSHING, Okla.
Sunday's earthquake that damaged dozens of buildings near an oil and gas pipeline hub in Cushing, Okla., is further proof that fracking and wastewater injection are too dangerous to people and property to be allowed to continue, the Center for Biological Diversity said today. The Center in May called on the Bureau of Land Management to withdraw 11 proposed oil and gas leases in Oklahoma because of earthquake risks. The BLM has yet to respond to that request.
The Center on Friday filed a supplemental letter to its April protest highlighting the increase in human-induced earthquake activity in the region and the Bureau's ongoing refusal to analyze those potential impacts in its oil and gas lease approvals.
The 5.0 magnitude quake was the third temblor this year in Oklahoma to register greater than 5.0, according to The Associated Press, including a magnitude 5.8 quake on Sept. 3 in Pawnee. More than two dozen earthquakes have shaken Oklahoma in the past week, the AP said. The increase in quakes has been linked to human activity, such as hydraulic fracturing and wastewater injection, according to a U.S. Geological Survey study.
"We don't need a major earthquake that claims lives and costs millions in damage to tell us the rapid increase in fracking and wastewater injection in Oklahoma and neighboring states is the cause," said Taylor McKinnon with the Center. "The USGS has already linked seismic activity to wastewater disposal associated with fracking and has raised the risk for damaging quakes in Oklahoma and Kansas. We renew our call on Interior Secretary Jewell to cancel public leases recently auctioned in the region before more serious harm occurs."
Sunday's quake occurred in Cushing, the self-proclaimed "Pipeline Crossroads of the World," where a confluence of pipelines and storage facilities is located. No infrastructure damage was reported to the pipelines or a nearby storage facility that recently held more than 58 million barrels of crude, the AP said. Downtown Cushing was evacuated Sunday and schools were closed today, reports said.
"It's only a matter of time until these increasing quakes cause catastrophic damage," McKinnon said. "Alongside the worsening climate crisis, earthquakes are yet another reason that President Obama should end the federal fossil fuel leasing programs now."
Despite overwhelming scientific evidence that these dangerous wastewater-injection practices cause destructive quakes, the BLM, which reviews and auctions public lands for fracking, failed to consider these effects in its evaluation of its latest lease auction in April 2016. A new environmental review released last month for the agency's next lease auction in April 2017 also fails to consider these effects.
Background
On behalf of the American people, the U.S. federal government manages nearly 650 million acres of public land and more than 1.7 billion acres of the Outer Continental Shelf -- and the fossil fuels beneath them. This includes federal public land, which makes up about a third of the U.S. land area, and oceans like Alaska's Chukchi Sea, the Gulf of Mexico and the Eastern Seaboard. These places and the fossil fuels beneath them are held in trust for the public by the federal government; federal fossil fuel leasing is administered by the Department of the Interior.
Over the past decade, the combustion of federal fossil fuels has resulted in nearly a quarter of all U.S. energy-related emissions. A 2015 report by EcoShift Consulting, commissioned by the Center for Biological Diversity and Friends of the Earth, found that remaining federal oil, gas, coal, oil shale and tar sands that have not been leased to industry contain up to 450 billion tons of potential greenhouse gas pollution. As of earlier this year, 67 million acres of federal fossil fuel were already leased to industry, an area more than 55 times larger than Grand Canyon National Park containing up to 43 billion tons of potential greenhouse gas pollution.
Last year Sens. Merkley (D-Ore.), Sanders (I-Vt.) and others introduced the Keep It In the Ground Act (S. 2238) legislation to end new federal fossil fuel leases and cancel non-producing federal fossil fuel leases. Days later President Obama canceled the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline, saying, "Because ultimately, if we're going to prevent large parts of this Earth from becoming not only inhospitable but uninhabitable in our lifetimes, we're going to have to keep some fossil fuels in the ground rather than burn them and release more dangerous pollution into the sky."
Download the September 2015 "Keep It in the Ground" letter to President Obama.
Download Grounded: The President's Power to Fight Climate Change, Protect Public Lands by Keeping Publicly Owned Fossil Fuels in the Ground (this report details the legal authorities with which a president can halt new federal fossil fuel leases).
Download The Potential Greenhouse Gas Emissions of U.S. Federal Fossil Fuels (this report quantifies the volume and potential greenhouse gas emissions of remaining federal fossil fuels) and The Potential Greenhouse Gas Emissions fact sheet.
Download Critical Gulf: The Vital Importance of Ending Fossil Fuel Leasing in the Gulf of Mexico.
Download Public Lands, Private Profits about the corporations profiting from climate-destroying fossil fuel extraction on public lands.
Download the Center for Biological Diversity's legal petition calling on the Obama administration to halt all new offshore fossil fuel leasing.
Download the Center for Biological Diversity's legal petition with 264 other groups calling on the Obama administration to halt all new onshore fossil fuel leasing.
At the Center for Biological Diversity, we believe that the welfare of human beings is deeply linked to nature — to the existence in our world of a vast diversity of wild animals and plants. Because diversity has intrinsic value, and because its loss impoverishes society, we work to secure a future for all species, great and small, hovering on the brink of extinction. We do so through science, law and creative media, with a focus on protecting the lands, waters and climate that species need to survive.
(520) 623-5252LATEST NEWS
Texas Rights Group, Officials Demand Independent Probe After ICE Fatally Shoots Immigrant
"After ICE raids in Minnesota when immigration enforcement officers shot and killed two people, Alex Pretti and Renee Good, DHS repeatedly gave false statements about self-defense in an attempt to justify the murders, eroding community trust."
Jul 07, 2026
The Texas Civil Rights Project demanded an independent investigation after US Immigration and Customs Enforcement fatally shot a Mexican immigrant in Houston on Tuesday morning.
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which includes the agency, said on social media that just before 7:00 am CT, "ICE law enforcement attempted to conduct a vehicle stop as part of a targeted enforcement operation to arrest an illegal alien. The driver of the vehicle, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo—an illegal alien from Mexico—attempted to evade arrest."
"From information we are receiving, he rammed an ICE law enforcement vehicle, refused to follow multiple verbal commands, and weaponized his vehicle in an attempt to run over an ICE law enforcement officer, resulting in our officer firing his weapon in self-defense," DHS said. "The driver was struck, and emergency services were immediately contacted. The driver was transported to the hospital, where he passed away from his injuries," the department added.
The Houston Fire Department said that Araujo suffered a gunshot wound to his stomach area and CPR was performed while he was transported to Ben Taub Hospital, where he was declared dead , according to a local NBC affiliate. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is now leading the probe.
"We condemn this violent use of force and hold deep concern for the victim and his family," Texas Civil Rights Project (TCRP) president Rochelle Garza said in a statement. "Immigration enforcement should never lead to violence in our neighborhoods or harm our community members. This raises urgent questions about how enforcement operations are being conducted, what safeguards exist to prevent harm, and how to ensure accountability when people are killed."
"After ICE raids in Minnesota when immigration enforcement officers shot and killed two people, Alex Pretti and Renee Good, DHS repeatedly gave false statements about self-defense in an attempt to justify the murders, eroding community trust," she highlighted. "And in March 2026, only through a public information request did we learn of Ruben Ray Martinez, a 23-year-old US citizen that was killed by ICE in South Padre Island, Texas."
Garza added that "we demand full transparency, an independent investigation into the shooting and any use of racial profiling that led to it, and accountability for the use of deadly force. Our neighborhoods are not battlegrounds. TCRP will continue seeking justice and standing alongside all of our neighbors across Texas."
The shooting—far from the first by the agency during President Donald Trump's mass detention and deportation campaign—occurred in the district of Democratic Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia, who similarly said that "ICE has released an initial account, but the facts must be independently and thoroughly investigated, including the circumstances that led to the use of deadly force."
"All available footage, communications, and other evidence should be preserved and reviewed as part of a full and impartial investigation," Garcia continued. "The victim's family, my constituents, and the entire community deserve a complete and transparent accounting of what happened."
Alejandra Salinas, a member of the Houston City Council, called the shooting "deeply concerning" and said that "the use of deadly force demands full scrutiny and transparency."
"I am calling for a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances surrounding the shooting, including the prompt release of all available video and investigative findings," Salinas said. "The public deserves a timely account of what happened, clear answers, and accountability. My office has reached out to the appropriate city departments to determine what additional information is available and whether any city personnel or resources were involved in the incident."
Another homicide by Trump's secret police. Keep in mind they are training always to claim that they were struck by another car. So far this claims have proven uniformly false. An ICE agent shot and killed a Mexican citizen in Houston Tuesday morning after he allegedly drove into an ICE vehicle, an
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— Scott Horton (@robertscotthorton.bsky.social) July 7, 2026 at 5:08 PM
Jason Chavez, who represents Minneapolis' 9th Ward on the City Council, said on social media: "Rest in peace, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican resident murdered by ICE in Houston, Texas this morning. Unfortunately, the federal government is using the same talking points they used against Renee Good in this case. It's disgusting."
"Lorenzo deserves answers and justice. Renee still deserves answers and justice. Every family torn apart by this agency deserves justice," Chavez declared. "Abolish ICE!!!"
The deadly ICE encounter in Texas came less than a week after a federal agent fired at a vehicle in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania after unsuccessfully trying to arrest the driver, identified by the agency as Clemente Lara-Hernandez of Mexico.
In Pennsylvania, ICE similarly said the driver had "weaponized his car and rammed an ICE law enforcement vehicle," then "dangerously drove on the wrong direction on a one-way street."
Meahwhile, Justin Douglas, one of the commissioners in Dauphin County, which includes Harrisburg, called for a "thorough, independent, and transparent investigation," noting that ICE actions caught on camera appeared to run afoul of the US Department of Justice's policy for using deadly force.
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US Resumes 'Powerful Strikes' on Iran After Attacks on Strait of Hormuz Shipping
"Listen to the American people. Follow the Constitution," said Just Foreign Policy. "End these illegal and unauthorized hostilities against Iran. NOW."
Jul 07, 2026
Less than two weeks after declaring for the umpteenth time that the illegal US-Israeli war on Iran is over, President Donald Trump on Tuesday approved fresh military strikes on the Mideast country over attacks on three merchant ships off the coast of Oman.
"US Central Command forces have begun launching a series of powerful strikes against Iran to impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent civilians in an international waterway," CENTCOM said on X. "The US strikes are in response to Iranian attacks on three commercial vessels that were transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s demonstrated aggression was unwarranted, dangerous, and a clear violation of the ceasefire."
Iranian officials blamed the US for the renewed hostilities, claiming efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz constitute a violation of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed last month, under which Tehran and the Omani government are in charge of managing shipping in the vital waterway controlled by Iran, through which around a fifth of the world's exported oil passed prior to the war.
“But the US has been trying somehow to open new routes," Iran's Foreign Ministry said.
The new US strikes came hours after the Trump administration canceled the 60-day license issued last month by the Treasury Department that waived sanctions on Iranian petroleum exports.
“Iran will only reap benefits if they exhibit good behavior,” an unnamed US official speaking on condition of anonymity told CNBC on Tuesday. “Iran’s actions in the strait were wholly unacceptable to the United States and will be met with consequences.”
Trump has been saying that the Iran War—which began on February 28 with airstrikes including the massacre of 156 students and staff at an elementary school in Minab—was nearly or completely over since early March.
According to Iranian officials, more than 30,000 people have been killed or wounded by US-Israeli strikes during the war. Iranian counterattacks have killed at least 13 US service members. Scores of people in Israel and US-allied Gulf states have been killed and thousands more wounded by Iranian missile and drone strikes.
On Monday, Trump vowed that the US will win the war "one way or the other."
"We're either going to make a deal, or we're going to finish the job," he said. "It won't be tough to finish the job."
The MOU signed by Trump and Iran—and rejected by Israel—had been fiercely criticized in the United States by Republicans and centrist Democrats for leaving Iran in what experts say is a stronger strategic position than before the war, despite the devastation wrought by US-Israeli airstrikes.
Some critics argued that the MOU demanded less of Iran than the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action—also known as the Iran nuclear deal—signed during the Obama administration but unilaterally abrogated by Trump during his first term, despite verified Iranian compliance.
Talks aimed at a permanent end to the 129-day war—which followed last summer's separate US and Israeli attacks on Iran that killed or wounded more than 5,000 people—were on hold for the multiday funeral of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was slain by US-Israeli bombing on the first day of strikes in February.
Tuesday's renewed US strikes on Iran prompted fresh calls for a lasting ceasefire in the region.
"Listen to the American people. Follow the Constitution," the nonpartisan US advocacy group Just Foreign Policy said on social media. "End these illegal and unauthorized hostilities against Iran. NOW."
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100+ Economists, Scholars Demand End to Sanctions on Venezuela After Catastrophic Earthquakes
The experts laid out various policies they argued are "required to prevent avoidable deaths, stabilize a sanctioned economy, and allow Venezuelans to rebuild with dignity."
Jul 07, 2026
With at least 3,535 people dead, 16,740 injured, and tens of thousands still missing after a pair of major earthquakes hit Venezuela last month, over 100 economists and scholars on Tuesday jointly called for "immediate action to unfetter Venezuela's humanitarian response and reconstruction from ongoing economic and financial sanctions, asset freezes, and onerous debt burdens."
Such demands began to emerge shortly after the 7.2- and 7.5-magnitude quakes, both centered in Yaracuy, on June 24. The new letter, shared with Common Dreams by the Center for Economic and Policy Research, follows a similar message sent to President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week by CEPR, Just Foreign Policy, Latin America Working Group, Venezuelan American Community Action, Peace Action, the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, and a dozen other organizations.
The academics and economists, including several experts at CEPR as well as James Galbraith, Jayati Ghosh, Jason Hickel, Ann Pettifor, Jeffrey Sachs, Robert Wade, and Isabella Weber, highlighted that "Venezuela enters this disaster after years of unilateral coercive measures, financial sanctions, and export controls that have damaged its economy and infrastructure."
That includes decades of US sanctions. On top of those economic moves, Trump earlier this year sent troops into Venezuela to abduct President Nicolás Maduro, then took control of the South American country's nationalized oil industry. The New York Times reported earlier this week that the Trump administration has seized at least $8 billion worth of Venezuela's oil wealth this year.
In a Tuesday piece for Just Security, a pair of experts who signed the new letter—George Lopez, professor emeritus of peace studies at the University of Notre Dame, and Venezuelan economist and CEPR senior Research Fellow Francisco Rodríguez—noted that post-earthquakes, "the United States pledged $300 million to relief agencies, mobilized civilian and military teams to Venezuela that are trained on disaster relief, and issued a limited sanctions waiver for earthquake relief activities.
"But these measures are far from enough," they stressed, explaining that "the United Nations estimates the losses from the quakes stand at $37 billion," or 32% of Venezuela's gross domestic product. They suggested that "the United States should spearhead a major reconstruction effort and lift all remaining sanctions on the Venezuelan economy."
The US was eager to take control in Venezuela earlier this year.Now that the country is facing devastating loss after twin earthquakes, the US should spearhead a major reconstruction effort and lift all remaining sanctions.From Francisco Rodríguez and George A. Lopez:
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— Just Security (@justsecurity.org) July 7, 2026 at 9:06 AM
The broader group argued that "whatever one's position on Venezuela's internal politics, the current set of coercive economic measures directed at the country is an indiscriminate instrument. Sanctions on the central bank, public banking, oil industry, and debt transactions do not land surgically on officials; they incapacitate payment systems, raise import costs, block correspondent banking, freeze reserves, deter suppliers, and produce scarcity across an entire society. This is precisely the moment to remove any economic and financial obstacles to relief and reconstruction."
They called on the Trump administration specifically to lift all economic sanctions, "including any that may impact the Banco Central de Venezuela (BCV), government institutions, Petróleos de Venezuela, SA (PDVSA), public financial institutions, the oil and mining sectors, banking, transportation, shipping, telecommunications, travel, and all related activities," and to immediately issue "the Section 25B certification that is required to enable the BCV to receive, control, use, and transact through its accounts and assets at the Federal Reserve and US banks."
The experts also took aim at the United Kingdom and the Portuguese, calling on the governments to respectively work with "the Bank of England to ensure the immediate unfreezing of the BCV's gold reserves, worth about $5 billion and representing a third of the central bank's reported assets," as well as with Novo Banco, "to return $1.2 billion belonging to Venezuela's development bank, BANDES, and PDVSA affiliates, as set out in a 2023 court decision."
They further pressured the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to "ensure that Venezuela has full access to its approximately $5 billion in special drawing rights (SDRs) for emergency stabilization and imports," and to approve a $4 billion rapid financing instrument (RFI) disbursement immediately, using its emergency and natural disaster rationale, with no conditions."
Beyond those specific recommendations, the economists and scholars urged "a coordinated debt jubilee for Venezuela," writing that "all official bilateral creditors, multilateral creditors to the extent legally possible, and public agencies holding claims should cancel or suspend debt service, interest, penalties, and arrears, and pursue a comprehensive debt reduction consistent with a rights-based recovery and climate-resilient reconstruction."
"A new fund should be established—perhaps financed by the IMF's Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST)—to repurchase distressed debt from the secondary market, with legal protections against holdout litigation and asset seizures," they proposed. "Money owed to creditors cannot at the same time rebuild hospitals, schools, housing, water systems, and the grid. A debt crisis in these conditions is a developmental and humanitarian crisis."
"Venezuela's people must not be made to pay twice: first through disaster, and then through sanctions, frozen reserves, and unsustainable debt servicing," they concluded. "We urge governments, international financial institutions, and creditors to act now, on the principle that lives, public health, and economic recovery take precedence over coercion and collection. Emergency liquidity, full sanctions relief, SDR access, RFI financing, and debt cancellation are not acts of charity. They are the minimum policy response required to prevent avoidable deaths, stabilize a sanctioned economy, and allow Venezuelans to rebuild with dignity."
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