Texas Complaints Allege Groundwater Contamination from Shale Gas Drilling

DALLAS - Recent filings by Texas landowners add to complaints that the "fracking" method of natural gas extraction has contaminated groundwater and wells of nearby residents.

In a complaint filed on Dec. 15 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Grace Mitchell alleges that her well water became contaminated by drilling that occurred in the geographic formation known as the "Newark East Field," or "Barnett Shale." Mitchell v. Encana Oil & Gas (USA) Inc., et al., No. 3:10-cv-02555-L (N.D. Texas).

The Barnett Shale formation lies beneath her property in Johnson County, Texas, according to Mitchell.

She …