Environment & Energy
Related: About this forumGee, I Wonder How An OK Creek Could Become Contaminated With Hot Saltwater?
Yep, it's a real mystery.
The fish and the turtles died in a small northern tributary of Bird Creek, just a few miles west of the headquarters of the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve in Osage County when saltwater levels spiked off the charts and the water temperature at the bottom of the creek hit 100 degrees. That was Aug. 14, 2016, and eight months later there still are no answers as to exactly where the saltwater came from, apparently oil well injection well water heated deep in the earth that found its way back to the surface.
Indications are there may be no answers for some time. The North Bird Creek Fork leak popped up in the middle of the Chapman Ranch, where ranch manager R.D. Farr moved his horses and cattle away from the poisoned water. I always thought if there was saltwater in a creek and a fish kill and the turtles are dead and all that, then everybody would be on it, but its been a long time since August, he said.
Just downstream, Andrea Glebas lands remain empty as well. Her tenant had to sell off 400 head of cattle last fall. He still pays on the 5-year lease, but he cant use the land because the water may be contaminated.
The Osage landowner said she is not happy with the responses from her tribe or the BIA. Ive been trying to get updates and they wont tell me anything, she said. They need to get this fixed before the land is totally destroyed.
EDIT
http://www.tulsaworld.com/homepagelatest/bird-creek-contamination-in-osage-county-remains-a-mystery/article_c57da58f-43b7-5654-bf6f-a9a2968c989c.html
HAB911
(8,811 posts)and Trumpworld will only make it worse
GeorgeGist
(25,294 posts)PdxSean
(574 posts)It scares me. No one seems to know whats going on, how to fix it, how to find out what happened or what the long-term damage might be, Gleba said. The (Bureau of Indian Affairs) says the EPA should know, the EPA says the Osage Tribe should know, its just passing the buck.
. . .
The bottom line is the situation on Bird Creek may persist for some time, he said. It may something that its going to take a bit to figure it out and fix it, he said.
Multiple jaw dropping moments in that article.