source
I have long thought this myself. Removing fluids from the earth can cause earthquakes. So can injecting fluid to replace the oil. I have noticed
that most earthquake activity lately, surprisingly has been around where the current major oil fields are.
Oil wells cause earthquakes
In 1958, a geologist calculated that injecting fluid into the ground increases the chance of earthquakes. Thirty-one years later, another geologist
has shown the reverse: pumping gas or oil out of the ground can also trigger earthquakes.
Pumping out underground crude contracts the rock in oil reservoirs and sets up large pressure changes over short distances, Paul Segall of the U.S.
Geological Survey in Menlo Park, Calif., calculates in the October GEOLOGY. Vertical contraction makes the ground above the reservoir sink, while
horizontal stresses pull surrounding rock inward. If the pull becomes strong enough to shear the rock, an earthquake results.
Lord, help us in our stupidity and greed. We have the brains to develope something safer and more earth friendly. Hopefully before it is too late.
