Earthquakes from geothermal power ?
Posted by Big Gav in earthquakes, geothermal energy, geothermal power, germany
New Scientist has an update on the latest tremor of debate about geothermal energy and earthquakes, with new rumblings coming from Germany - Geothermal power quakes find defenders.
Geothermal energy is in the dock in Germany, but some scientists are pleading for leniency. A government panel is investigating claims by the geological survey for the state of Rhineland-Palatinate that a geothermal plant triggered a magnitude-2.7 earthquake on 15 August in the town of Landau in the state. If the panel finds against the company that built the plant, Geo X of Landau, it could be shut down. ...
Engineers rather than technology must take some of the blame, says Roy Baria, a geophysicist on the panel reviewing the Landau quake, who also works for geothermal energy company EGS Energy, based in Penzance, UK . Past quakes triggered by plants in Basel, Switzerland, were avoidable, he says. "The engineers failed to adhere to best-practice guidelines."
Even the worst geothermal earthquakes have failed to topple a building or kill a human, says Ernest Majer, a seismologist at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California, pointing out that geothermal power isn't the only industry that triggers earthquakes.
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