TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2015//
TI  - Induced seismicity. High-rate injection is associated with the increase in U.S. mid-continent seismicity
JO  - Science
A1  - Weingarten, M.
A1  - Ge, S.
A1  - Godt, J. W.
A1  - Bekins, B. A.
A1  - Rubinstein, J. L.
SP  - 1336
EP  - 1340
VL  - 348
IS  - 6241
N2  - An unprecedented increase in earthquakes in the U.S. mid-continent began in 2009. Many of these earthquakes have been documented as induced by wastewater injection. We examine the relationship between wastewater injection and U.S. mid-continent seismicity using a newly assembled injection well database for the central and eastern United States. We find that the entire increase in earthquake rate is associated with fluid injection wells. High-rate injection wells (>300,000 barrels per month) are much more likely to be associated with earthquakes than lower-rate wells. At the scale of our study, a well's cumulative injected volume, monthly wellhead pressure, depth, and proximity to crystalline basement do not strongly correlate with earthquake association. Managing injection rates may be a useful tool to minimize the likelihood of induced earthquakes.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0036-8075
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.aab1345
ID  - ref1
ER  -