Across Oklahoma, as ProPublica has reported, the fluid is spreading uncontrollably belowground, blasting out of old, unplugged wells, polluting land and contaminating drinking water.
But after we met Mitch and Kara Meredith, we realized we’d found a perfect representation of the toll of oil field pollution on everyday Oklahomans. The Merediths told us how, overnight, the dream home they spent 12 years saving for was destroyed when oily black fluid surged up through the foundation. In mid-May, we published a story about how the Merediths were forced to abandon their house. Then, later that month, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed a historic piece of legislation. For the first time, the state will create a fund to compensate homeowners whose properties are damaged by oil and gas pollution. It was spurred by the Merediths’ nightmare experience.
But there’s a catch. Unless state regulators officially confirm that an abandoned oil well is the culprit behind the destruction of the Merediths’ home, they won't benefit from this new law. It’s a bitter irony for a family that has spent the past nine months fighting a system that seems determined to look the other way. The state agency tasked with regulating oil and gas told Bowlin that it is committed to “doing the right thing, holding operators accountable, protecting Oklahoma and its resources, and providing fair and balanced regulation.”
Our new half-hour documentary, “Toxic Ground,” takes you inside the crisis faced by the Meredith family and others throughout the state. You’ll see internal records revealing what regulators knew, hear from a former employee who tried to sound the alarm, and see the human cost of a problem that isn’t unique to Oklahoma — and serves as a cautionary tale for communities living near oil and gas production across the country.
