Spatiotemporal Variations in the Completeness Magnitude of the Composite Alberta Seismicity Catalog (CASC)

Cui, Luqi; Atkinson, Gail M.

doi:10.1785/0220150268

Cited by 11 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…Anne occurs prior (23:06 MST) to the nearly unanimous set of felt report timings (01:30 MST). We note that the low magnitude of these events (ϳ2.0 M L ) is near the detection threshold for the region Cui and Atkinson 2016).…”

Section: Event Recordingsmentioning

confidence: 65%

A New Year’s Day icebreaker: icequakes on lakes in Alberta, Canada

Kavanaugh

Schultz²,

Andriashek³

et al. 2019

Can. J. Earth Sci.

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Any process that causes a sudden brittle failure of material has the potential to cause earthquake-like seismic events. Cryoseisms represent an underreported class of seismic event due to their (often) small magnitudes. In this paper, we document the phenomenon of some of the largest magnitude lake-associated icequakes (ML 2.0) yet reported. These events occurred nearly simultaneously (within ∼2 h) on geographically separate lakes in Alberta, Canada, starting 1 January 2018. We conjecture that these events were caused by the sudden brittle failure of lake ice due to thermal expansion; the effects of the thermal expansion were compounded by the lack of insulating snow cover, high lake water levels, and a rapid onset of atmospheric warming. These factors also contributed to ice-jacking — a repeating process in which thermal contraction produces tensile cracks (leads) in lake ice that are then filled with water that is frozen during the cooling cycle. Thus, any subsequent thermal expansion must be accommodated by new deformation or brittle failure. This ice-jacking process caused creeping ground deformation after the initial brittle failure and again two weeks later following a second warming period. In many cases, the resulting ground deformation was significant enough to cause property damage.

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Section: Event Recordingsmentioning

confidence: 65%

A New Year’s Day icebreaker: icequakes on lakes in Alberta, Canada

Kavanaugh

Schultz²,

Andriashek³

et al. 2019

Can. J. Earth Sci.

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“…Our findings address the first three indicators in the classic criteria for distinguishing induced seismicity [ Davis and Frohlich , ]: (1) is there an apparent change in rate of seismicity, (2) is the rate change correlated with suspect operations, and (3) is there an applicable spatial correspondence? In the case of the CLS near Fox Creek we have demonstrated an obvious change in rate (Figure b) that is not related to improvements to the recording networks [ Schultz et al ., ; Cui and Atkinson , ]. At present the delay between initial Duvernay development and first induced earthquake in the Fox Creek region is of note (Figure b); currently, it is not understood why only certain wells are apparently seismogenic.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A seismological overview of the induced earthquakes in the Duvernay play near Fox Creek, Alberta

Schultz¹,

et al. 2017

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This paper summarizes the current state of understanding regarding the induced seismicity in connection with hydraulic fracturing operations targeting the Duvernay Formation in central Alberta, near the town of Fox Creek. We demonstrate that earthquakes in this region cluster into distinct sequences in time, space, and focal mechanism using (i) cross‐correlation detection methods to delineate transient temporal relationships, (ii) double‐difference relocations to confirm spatial clustering, and (iii) moment tensor solutions to assess fault motion consistency. The spatiotemporal clustering of the earthquake sequences is strongly related to the nearby hydraulic fracturing operations. In addition, we identify a preference for strike‐slip motions on subvertical faults with an approximate 45° P axis orientation, consistent with expectation from the ambient stress field. The hypocentral geometries for two of the largest‐magnitude (M ~4) sequences that are robustly constrained by local array data provide compelling evidence for planar features starting at Duvernay Formation depths and extending into the shallow Precambrian basement. We interpret these lineaments as subvertical faults orientated approximately north‐south, consistent with the regional moment tensor solutions. Finally, we conclude that the sequences were triggered by pore pressure increases in response to hydraulic fracturing stimulations along previously existing faults.

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“…These new technologies have greatly improved the potential for fossil fuel recovery and allowed for previously unrecoverable resources to be exploited. However, the associated rise in induced seismicity appears highly concentrated near some HF operations and cannot be fully accounted for by the deployment of denser seismic monitoring networks and more sensitive instruments (Schultz et al, 2015b;Atkinson et al, 2016;Cui & Atkinson, 2016).…”

Section: List Of Appendicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Many methods exist to estimate completeness, and may be broadly separated into two categories: network-based and catalogue-based methods. Network techniques include analysis of seismic waveforms (Schultz et al, 2015b), amplitude thresholds (Gomberg, 1991), day/night time network sensitivity (Rydelek & Sacks, 1989), signal-to-noise ratios (Sereno & Bratt, 1989;Harvey & Hansen, 1994) and event-to-station distance (Wiemer & Wyss, 2000;Mignan, 2012;Cui & Atkinson, 2016). Some of these techniques can be advantageous for regional studies in areas characterized by infrequent coverage or low seismic activity, such as the WCSB, because they do not depend on bulk seismic data.…”

Section: Magnitude Of Completenessmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Chapter 3 provides the results of the regional study, where the NND model is applied to all seismicity recorded within the Composite Alberta Seismicity Catalogue The catalogue is constructed as a data table, with entries containing the date and time, estimated geographic location, magnitude, magnitude scale, and moment magnitude conversion for each detected event occurrence (for a detailed discussion on the compilation of the CASC, see Cui et al, 2015). The database is estimated to be complete to the = 3 level from 1985-2018 (Adams & Halchuk, 2003;Cui & Atkinson, 2016). As mentioned in Chapter 1.3.3, seismic network coverage is generally spatiotemporally inhomogeneous and so local completeness levels over a given time period may be substantially lower than the regional completeness; this matter is explored in the cluster analyses in Chapter 4.…”

Section: Thesis Structurementioning

confidence: 99%

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Statistical Modeling and Characterization of Induced Seismicity Within the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin

2020

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In western Canada, there has been an increase in seismic activity linked to anthropogenic energy-related operations including conventional hydrocarbon production, wastewater fluid injection and more recently hydraulic fracturing (HF). Statistical modeling and characterization of the space, time and magnitude distributions of the seismicity clusters is vital for a better understanding of induced earthquake processes and development of predictive models. In this work, a statistical analysis of the seismicity in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin was performed across past and present time periods by utilizing a compiled earthquake catalogue for Alberta and eastern British Columbia. Specifically, the frequency-magnitude statistics were analyzed using the Gutenberg-Richter (GR) relation. The clustering of seismicity was studied using the Nearest-Neighbour Distance (NND) method and the Epidemic Type Aftershock Sequence (ETAS) model. The obtained results suggest that recent regional changes in the NND distributions, namely a disproportionate increase in loosely and tightly clustered seismic activity over time, are unnatural and likely due to the rise in HF operations for the development of unconventional resources. It is concluded that both these loosely and tightly clustered earthquake subpopulations differ measurably from what may be the region's tectonic seismic activity. Additionally, HF treatments have a greater probability of triggering swarm-like sequences that sharply spike the seismicity rate and are characterized by steeper frequencymagnitude distributions. Conventional production and wastewater disposal operations largely trigger loosely clustered activity with more typical magnitude-occurrence rates.

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Spatiotemporal Variations in the Completeness Magnitude of the Composite Alberta Seismicity Catalog (CASC)

Cited by 11 publications

References 21 publications

A New Year’s Day icebreaker: icequakes on lakes in Alberta, Canada

A New Year’s Day icebreaker: icequakes on lakes in Alberta, Canada

A seismological overview of the induced earthquakes in the Duvernay play near Fox Creek, Alberta

Statistical Modeling and Characterization of Induced Seismicity Within the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin

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