is described that requires fewer steps than the sum of each treatment procedure practiced separately the control of water production simultaneously further reduces the amount of scale formed conventional water control chemicals and scale inhibitors of a wide variety of types can still be employed to advantage and the same equipment may be used as employed for the treatments implemented separately application_number US 35990403 A description it has been discovered that water control treatments and scale inhibitor treatments can be combined to simultaneously control scale and inhibit water production in a subterranean formation using fewer total steps than the sum of steps used in those treatments conventionally practiced separately these combined treatments provide savings of cost time and resources in improving the production of hydrocarbons from a subterranean formation chemical applications have been described whereby a material usually but not exclusively a polymer or a cross linked polymer is injected into a reservoir formation 10 typically 5 15 ft 1 5 4 5 m radial penetration with the purpose of reducing water production see fig1 such materials 20 may operate through the following mechanisms i the first mechanism involves blocking all of the flow in a completely water producing zone or stratum 12 of the reservoir 10 such a water shut off material 20 would normally be a strong cross linked polymer gel and these are often referred to as u201c blocking gels u201d schematic illustrations of how such gels operate are shown in fig1 a.