TFA posits that it's actually fracking water creating the pressure that is pushing the old "fill" water out of these wells. That's somehow less reassuring b/c it means the fracking water is creating enough pressure to blow old wells out, doesnt it?

Seems like the difference between fracking water and fill water could be very little under some circumstances

This water is probably worse than fracking water. In addition to being contaminated with oil, etc, according to the article it's 5-8 times saltier than sea water. These wells are literally salting the earth around them.

and also lots of >hazardous compounds such as arsenic, bromide, strontium, mercury, barium, and organic compounds, particularly benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes.

This will likely contaminate the land, rendering it unsuitable for agriculture and, I dare say, potentially transforming it into a barren wasteland incapable of supporting organic life.

Salt will definitely render the land unusable, but most of those other things are the consumer’s problem, not the producer. I find it highly unlikely that governments in Texas will ever successfully prevent a farmer from growing food on poisoned land, for the same reasons that governments in Texas let these wells become seeping messes in the first place.

Watched a video of a guy who owns an oil and gas company and when a nearby company started fracking their well, it produced enough pressure to 10x his own output without any effort on his part.

reservoirs are big sponge-like rocks. The pressure has to go somewhere.