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SEISMICITY INDUCED BY FLUID WITHDRAWAL
Fluid extraction from a reservoir can cause declines in the pore pressure that can reach
hundreds of bars. The declining pore pressure causes large contraction of the reservoir,
which itself induces stress changes in the surrounding rock (Segall, 1989), in particular
increasing horizontal stresses above and below the reservoir that could lead to reverse fault-
ing (Figure 2.2). Grasso (1992) estimates that volume contraction of reservoirs from fluid
withdrawal can cause earthquakes up to M 5.0.
Several examples of induced seismicity associated with fluid withdrawal and associated
pore pressure decrease have been reported, notably at the Lacq gas field in France (Box 2.5).
A study of induced seismicity associated with natural gas extraction in the Netherlands (Van
Eijs et al., 2006) indicates that the three most important factors in producing seismicity are
the pore pressure drop from pumping, the density of existing faults overlying the gas field,
and the contrast in crustal stiffness between the reservoir rock and the surrounding rock.
Another proposed mechanism for initiating slip on preexisting faults is linked to the
reduction of the vertical stress on the layers underlying the reservoir from which a large
mass of hydrocarbons has been extracted (McGarr, 1991). In this mechanism, the buoyancy
force of the Earth's lithosphere will cause an upward movement in the part of the crust that
has been unloaded, thereby inducing slip on preexisting faults at depth.
FIGURE 2.2 Observed faulting suggested to be associated with fluid withdrawal. Open arrows denote
horizontal strain. In this interpretation, normal faults develop on the flanks of a field when the oil reservoir
is located in a region of crustal extension. Reverse faults may develop above and below the reservoir if
the reservoir is located in a region undergoing compression. Adapted after Segall (1989).
 
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