Gas Boom History
The Barnett Shale Boom Brought Gas Drilling Into Tarrant County Neighborhoods
Between 2002 and 2009, an urban natural gas drilling boom changed Tarrant County as companies drilled wells in neighborhoods, parks, and near schools.
The Barnett Shale sits under Tarrant County and much of the DFW area. When horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing (fracking) proved profitable here in the early 2000s, it triggered rapid development across the county. Tarrant was described as the most urbanized drilling area in the country at the time.
The boom brought royalty income to some residents but also noise, traffic, and air quality concerns to others. It shaped local politics and land-use debates for years. The Railroad Commission of Texas tracks all well activity at rrc.texas.gov.
Source to confirm: Railroad Commission of Texas – Barnett Shale