Fracking ‘plausible’ trigger for swarm of earthquakes near Gatwick
Fracking ‘plausible’ trigger for swarm of earthquakes near Gatwick
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Hundreds of people reported the tremors that took place over two years in villages in Surrey and Sussex. A swarm of earthquakes that shook houses in Surrey may have been caused by drilling operations in the area, a study has suggested. Around 1,600 people reported the seismic activity, with some suffering cracked walls and others being shaken in their beds as tremors in the village of Newdigate, near Gatwick Airport, reached a peak magnitude of 3.18 in 2019.
![[Monitors installed near fuel drilling sites amid ‘extreme concern’ from locals over the tremors]](https://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/thumbnails/image/2018/07/13/19/bgs-earthquake.jpg)
Suspicions were soon aroused when it was discovered the epicentre of the tremors was near UK Oil & Gas’s drilling operaton at Horse Hil oil field - but research by the British Geological Survey found no link with the oil and gas works. However, for years, environmentalists have blamed the nearby oil extraction for the quakes, and now a new report commissioned by University College London (UCL) appears to have strengthened their argument.
Matthew Fox and Philip Meredith ran computer simulations based on the location and magnitude of oil extraction suggesting that the earthquakes were induced by oil extraction. “Our findings indicate it is plausible that oil extraction triggered the earthquakes,” said Dr Matthew Fox, lead author of the study.
Using the Bayesian mathematical model, the researchers predicted the number of earthquakes that might occur based on how much oil had been extracted, accounting for the two different rock types that oil was extracted from. They also found that there had not been an earthquake in Surrey for decades, suggesting the link between fracking and the tremors.
