Induced seismicity

There's a good set of reference materials and resources on induced seismicity online at a DOE-supported Lawrence Berkeley Lab site - http://esd.lbl.gov/research/projects/induced_seismicity/ with a focus on Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS), carbon dioxide sequestration, and oil & gas production.

The issue has been around for a long time but a provocative article in the New York Times last year about geothermal drilling in Switzerland causing small earthquakes prompted widespread fears that geothermal develop means potentially dangerous earthquakes and led to cancellation of projects in Europe and the U.S.


[right, stimulated seismicity in the GPK2 well, in Soultz, France. Ref: Induced Seismicity Associated with Enhanced Geothermal Systems, by E. Majer, R. Baria, M. Stark, B. Smith, S. Oates, J. Bommer, and H. Asanuma]