Surface uplift and time-dependent seismic hazard due to fluid injection in eastern Texas
Observations that unequivocally link seismicity and wastewater injection are scarce. Here we show that wastewater injection in eastern Texas causes uplift, detectable in radar interferometric data up to >8 kilometers from the wells. Using measurements of uplift, reported injection data, and a poroelastic model, we computed the crustal strain and pore pressure. We infer that an increase of >1 megapascal in pore pressure in rocks with low compressibility triggers earthquakes, including the 4.8–moment magnitude event that occurred on 17 May 2012, the largest earthquake recorded in eastern Texas. Seismic activity increased even while injection rates declined, owing to diffusion of pore pressure from earlier periods with higher injection rates. Induced seismicity potential is suppressed where tight confining formations prevent pore pressure from propagating into crystalline basement rocks.
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | artículo biblioteca |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
American Association for the Advancement of Science
2016-09-23
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| Subjects: | Surface uplift, Time-dependent seismic, Fluid injection, Texas, |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10261/214226 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000270 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000038 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000016 |
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