Evaluation of Reservoir Information in Relation to Earthquakes in Ashtabula, Ohio

Gerrish, H.; Nieto, Antonio

doi:10.1016/s0167-5648(05)52027-6

Cited by 4 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…There were four earthquakes in Lake County and one earthquake in Ashtabula County during our 2010–2014 study time frame, which was interesting since these counties hosted seismic sequences that are thought to have been induced by deep wastewater disposal as far back as 1986 [ Nicholson et al , ; Seeber and Armbruster , ; Seeber et al , ; Gerrish and Nieto , ] (Figure ). We found that all five recent earthquake templates produced matching events, but the number of matches was small (2–4), and they appear to resemble more traditional foreshock/main shock/aftershock patterns.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 10.1002/2015JB012265 Seeber et al, 2004;Gerrish and Nieto, 2005] (Figure 7). We found that all five recent earthquake templates produced matching events, but the number of matches was small (2-4), and they appear to resemble more traditional foreshock/main shock/aftershock patterns.…”

Section: Lake and Ashtabula Countiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Distinguishing induced seismicity from natural seismicity in Ohio: Demonstrating the utility of waveform template matching

2015

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This study investigated the utility of multistation waveform cross correlation to help discern induced seismicity. Template matching was applied to all Ohio earthquakes cataloged since the arrival of nearby EarthScope TA stations in late 2010. Earthquakes that were within 5 km of fluid injection activities in regions that lacked previously documented seismicity were found to be swarmy. Moreover, the larger number of events produced by template matching for these swarmy sequences made it easier to establish more detailed temporal and spatial relationships between the seismicity and fluid injection activities, which is typically required for an earthquake to be considered induced. Study results detected three previously documented induced sequences (Youngstown, Poland Township, and Harrison County) and provided evidence that suggests two additional cases of induced seismicity (Belmont/Guernsey County and Washington County). Evidence for these cases suggested that unusual swarm‐like behaviors in regions that lack previously documented seismicity can be used to help distinguish induced seismicity, complementing the traditional identification of an anthropogenic source spatially and temporally correlated with the seismicity. In support of this finding, we identified 17 additional cataloged earthquakes in regions of previously documented seismicity and away from disposal wells or hydraulic fracturing that returned very few template matches. The lack of swarminess helps to indicate that these events are most likely naturally occurring.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Lake and Ashtabula Countiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distinguishing induced seismicity from natural seismicity in Ohio: Demonstrating the utility of waveform template matching

2015

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“…Previous studies have identified three earthquake sequences in the Appalachian Basin prior to 2010 as potentially induced: 1986 in Lake County, 1987in Ashtabula County, and 2000-2003 in Ashtabula County, all in northeast Ohio (Fig. 1) (Nicholson et al 1988;Seeber and Armbruster 1993;Seeber et al 2004;Gerrish and Nieto 2005). The potential relationship of these events to injection activities has reached mixed conclusions, so we will reexamine the available evidence in this section.…”

Section: Potentially Induced Seismicity In 1986-2006mentioning

confidence: 91%

Seismicity induced by hydraulic fracturing and wastewater disposal in the Appalachian Basin, USA: a review

Brudzinski

Kozłowska

2019

Acta Geophys.

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Eastern Ohio is an area of North America where a significant increase in seismicity rate was noted in the early 2010s. This increase has been associated with intensification of unconventional gas extraction performed in the Appalachian Basin and has been directly linked to two processes: hydraulic fracturing and disposal of the associated wastewater. In this paper, we review the recent seismicity in the Appalachian Basin including various episodes of induced seismicity that were temporally and spatially linked to operational activity, and we have performed some comparable analyses on the most recent sequences. The activities have not been as pervasive as other areas of North America, such that the cases are typically isolated and provide opportunities to study the seismogenic process in detail. The observed seismicity is concentrated in a narrow corridor that extends north-south in eastern Ohio and into central West Virginia, perhaps due to differences in operational targets and geologic variations. Ohio appears to have a higher prevalence of seismicity induced by wastewater disposal than surrounding states, but this is based on limited number of cases. Ohio also has an order of magnitude higher prevalence of seismicity induced by hydraulic fracturing than surrounding states, and prior work has suggested this is due to the targeting of the deeper Utica-Point Pleasant formation in Ohio that is closer to basement rocks than the Marcellus formation in West Virginia or Pennsylvania. In areas where hydraulic fracturing has induced seismicity, the percentage of stimulated wells that produce detectable seismicity is approximately 10-33%. Detailed studies of induced seismicity via double-difference relocation and focal mechanism analysis have revealed a series of linear fault segments, none of which correspond to previously mapped faults. Yet, the remarkable coherence in their orientation suggests these were preexisting, optimally oriented, and critically stressed. These fault orientations reveal a consistent regional stress field that only varies over a narrow azimuthal range from ~ 50° to 74°. The strongest observed seismic events in Ohio appear to occur in the Precambrian basement and indicate that these rocks have the maturity needed to produce M > 2 earthquakes and hence the greater potential hazard.

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“…Potentially Induced Seismicity in 1986-2006 Previous studies have identified 3 earthquake sequences in the Appalachian Basin prior to 2010 as potentially induced: 1986 in Lake County, 1987in Ashtabula County, and 2000-2003 Ashtabula County, all in northeast Ohio (Figure 1) (Nicholson et al 1988;Seeber and Armbruster 1993;Seeber et al 2004;Gerrish and Nieto 2005). The potential relationship of these events to injection activities have reached mixed conclusions, so we will reexamine the available evidence in this section.…”

mentioning

confidence: 93%

“…The initial 1987 earthquake sequence was labeled as induced given the close proximity in space and time to the injection well operations (Seeber and Armbruster 1993), and a later study attributed the 2000-2003 seismicity to the migration of high pore-fluid pressures from the WD well (Seeber et al, 2004). However, porepressure modeling for the full Ashtabula seismic sequence by Gerrish and Nieto (2005) found no correlation between injection rates or pressures and the timing of the earthquakes. Instead, the seismicity follows a traditional mainshock-aftershock pattern common to natural earthquakes with the largest magnitude occurring first and the seismicity rate decreasing with time after the initial event.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Seismicity induced by hydraulic fracturing and wastewater disposal in the Appalachian Basin, USA - a review

Brudzinski¹,

Kozłowska²

2018

Preprint

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Eastern Ohio is an area of North America where a significant increase in seismicity rate was noted in the early 2010s. This increase has been associated with intensification of unconventional gas extraction performed in the Appalachian Basin and has been directly linked to two processes: hydraulic fracturing and disposal of the associated wastewater. In this paper we review the recent seismicity in the Appalachian Basin including various episodes of induced seismicity that were temporally and spatially linked to operational activity, but the activities have not been as pervasive as other areas of North America, such that the cases are typically isolated and provide opportunities to study the seismogenic process in detail. The observed seismicity is concentrated in a narrow corridor that extends north-south in eastern Ohio and into central West Virginia, perhaps due to differences in operational targets and geologic variations. Ohio appears to have a higher prevalence of seismicity induced by wastewater disposal than surrounding states, but this is based on limited number of cases. Ohio also has an order of magnitude higher prevalence of seismicity induced by hydraulic fracturing than surrounding states, and prior work has suggested this is due to the targeting of the deeper Utica-Point Pleasant formation in Ohio that is closer to basement rocks than the Marcellus formation in West Virginia or Pennsylvania. In areas where hydraulic fracturing has induced seismicity, the percentage of stimulated wells that produce detectable seismicity is approximately 10-33%. Detailed studies of induced seismicity via double difference relocation and focal mechanism analysis have revealed a series of linear fault segments, none of which correspond to previously mapped faults. Yet the remarkable coherence in their orientation suggests these were pre-existing, optimally-oriented, and critically-stressed. These fault orientations reveal a consistent regional stress field that only varies over a narrow azimuthal range from ~50°-74°. The strongest observed seismic events in Ohio appear to occur in the Precambrian basement and indicate that these rocks have the maturity needed to produce M > 2 earthquakes and hence the greater potential hazard.

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Evaluation of Reservoir Information in Relation to Earthquakes in Ashtabula, Ohio

Cited by 4 publications

References 31 publications

Distinguishing induced seismicity from natural seismicity in Ohio: Demonstrating the utility of waveform template matching

Distinguishing induced seismicity from natural seismicity in Ohio: Demonstrating the utility of waveform template matching

Seismicity induced by hydraulic fracturing and wastewater disposal in the Appalachian Basin, USA: a review

Seismicity induced by hydraulic fracturing and wastewater disposal in the Appalachian Basin, USA - a review

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