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Study: Surge In Okla. Quakes Can Be Traced To Drilling Operations

National Public Radio: 2014 has been a shaky year so far for Oklahomans. The state has had more earthquakes than California. A growing body of research points to oil and gas production as fueling the increase in seismic activity. A paper published today in the journal Science suggests a small number of wastewater wells used in drilling operations could be responsible for many of the small quakes. StateImpact's Joe Wertz reports. JOE WERTZ: Public officials held a town hall north of Oklahoma City last week to answer...

Dust Bowl Worries Swirl Up As Shelterbelt Buckles

National Public Radio: In the 1930s, the Dust Bowl ravaged crops and helped plunge the U.S. into an environmental and economic depression. Farmland in parts of Texas, Kansas, Nebraska and the Dakotas disappeared. After the howling winds passed and the dust settled, federal foresters planted 100 million trees across the Great Plains, forming a giant windbreak - known as a shelterbelt - that stretched from Texas to Canada. Now, those trees are dying from drought, leaving some to worry whether another Dust Bowl might...