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Can People Cause Earthquakes? |
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Answer» Yes! Minor earthquakes have been triggered by human activities such as mining (rockbursts and cavity collapse), the filling of reservoirs behind large dams, and the injection of fluids into wells for oil RECOVERY or waste disposal. Large dams hold back enormous quantities of water. Some of this water may PENETRATE into cracks in the underlying rock, and sometimes this may trigger small earthquakes under or very near the RESERVOIR. Following an underground nuclear explosion, small earthquakes have often been recorded near the test site. These are due to the collapse of the cavity CREATED by the explosion. Man-made earthquakes always occur close to the site of the activity. There is no link between human activities LIKE these and earthquakes occurring hundreds or thousands of kilometres away. Yes! Minor earthquakes have been triggered by human activities such as mining (rockbursts and cavity collapse), the filling of reservoirs behind large dams, and the injection of fluids into wells for oil recovery or waste disposal. Large dams hold back enormous quantities of water. Some of this water may penetrate into cracks in the underlying rock, and sometimes this may trigger small earthquakes under or very near the reservoir. Following an underground nuclear explosion, small earthquakes have often been recorded near the test site. These are due to the collapse of the cavity created by the explosion. Man-made earthquakes always occur close to the site of the activity. There is no link between human activities like these and earthquakes occurring hundreds or thousands of kilometres away. |
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