Critics of shale drilling have claimed it’s the cause of recent earthquakes in Great Britain and Arkansas.
A drilling company in Great Britian stopped fracking operations in July after two small earthquakes of 1.5 and 2.3 magnitude were registered within 500 meters of the site.
“It is well-established that fluid injection can induce small earthquakes,” the British Geological Survey noted in its report of the incident. “Typically, the earthquakes are too small to be felt, however, there are a number of examples of larger earthquakes occurring.”
The British Geological Survey noted that that fluid injection was ongoing at the drilling site shortly before both earthquakes occurred and concluded, “The timing of the two events in conjunction with the fluid injection at the Preese Hall drill site suggests that they may be related to this.”