I'm not sold on fracking causing earthquakes. Not that I have taken that much interests in it but some pretty smart fellows have said there is proven connection.

Now I don't deal with fracking but I do deal with drilling for both exploration and production. It is very common practice to use drilling fluids pumped into the hole to equalize out pressures. Without this method you would be looking at a blow out.

Drilling 10 miles into a pressurized pocket is like taking a power drill to an atomic bomb. Errors are not easily forgiven.

I'm not sold on fracking causing earthquakes. Not that I have taken that much interests in it but some pretty smart fellows have said there is proven connection.

Both of the geologists I'm friends with are scared out of their field boots by the prospect, and the evidence is pretty good* that while earthquakes resulting directly from fracking are unusual and relatively mild, disposal wells for fracking fluid are far more dangerous.

I'm not an anti-fracking zealot, but I think it has two strikes against it: it's being done by oil companies, who aren't exactly known for their careful and conscientious approach to environmental impact, and the regulatory frameworks for oil and gas exploration clearly haven't caught up with developments in technology.

(*That is, the scholarly discussion of it passes my relatively ignorant sniff test, and it appears to have fairly widespread agreement in the academic community.)

Happy to say I am pretty safe here on the easy coast. Apart from a few errant hurricanes and the random snow storm. Though about a year back we did have a very small touch of earth shaking, but is so rare your more likely to feel it is a problem with you then the earth quaking.

i was woken up by some kid yelling "My first earthquake" in the parking lot at 330 this AM.

I was not enthused.

Up in Rohnert Park.

I just moved down to SoCal after a lifetime in the better half of the country*, and the first time I felt an earthquake down here I felt a sense of peace. I can make this place home.

*My "Country" being California.

COOL: Pretending to engage in massive space battles using plastic toy spaceships.

NOT-COOL: Earthquakes and or anything that prevents pretending to engage in said space battles using said plastic toys.

As such, earthquakes are unequivocally not cool..

It's kind of cool seeing where everyone is from.

I am in the Pacific Northwest of the United States, so it was interesting to see the UK folks posting about their rainy weather being different from the US. In my neck of the woods, it rains most of the year as well. In fact, I live in an area that is classified as a rainforest (verdant, not tropical).

We don't have those in the UK...Or tornadoes...Or alot of the crazy weather tanks have, why do you live in a land that literally opens up and swallows you whole?

Also we do get hurricanes, but again generally fairly mild. But one did rip through Mosely (a town on Birmingham) a couple of years ago and did some damage.

But generally the British isles are the most blessed of wondrous of all lands.(IMO of course!)

If only they were slightly warmer, drier and filled with less daily mail reading xenophobes:)

i was woken up by some kid yelling "My first earthquake" in the parking lot at 330 this AM.

I was not enthused.

Up in Rohnert Park.

I used to live in Santa Rosa.. lol.. always felt the small tremors that happened, but I've slept through some.. lol.. Was in Alameda for the big one in 89.. that was a sight. I was on my ship and watched the pier move 30 feet back and forth.. stood by a mooring line with an ax just in case..

I'm not sold on fracking causing earthquakes. Not that I have taken that much interests in it but some pretty smart fellows have said there is proven connection.

Both of the geologists I'm friends with are scared out of their field boots by the prospect, and the evidence is pretty good* that while earthquakes resulting directly from fracking are unusual and relatively mild, disposal wells for fracking fluid are far more dangerous.I'm not an anti-fracking zealot, but I think it has two strikes against it: it's being done by oil companies, who aren't exactly known for their careful and conscientious approach to environmental impact, and the regulatory frameworks for oil and gas exploration clearly haven't caught up with developments in technology.(*That is, the scholarly discussion of it passes my relatively ignorant sniff test, and it appears to have fairly widespread agreement in the academic community.)

Don't sell any of the engineers and other experts in the drilling world lightly. If you want to see some impressive technology come check out the Offshore Technology Convention. I've been too a few and they are a wonder. These guys put Nasa to shame and in fact, many engineers have left aerospace field for oil and gas. I know several and some are my neighbors. Those are the ones I trust on their views concerning fracking. I certainly wouldn't blame anyone who lived in a fracking area for their concern though. We just deal with offshore in these parts.

We had one in Belgium about 20 years ago. Wanna know how big? 2.0. it really was more of a tremor.

I have relatives living near LA tough.

i was woken up by some kid yelling "My first earthquake" in the parking lot at 330 this AM.

I was not enthused.

Up in Rohnert Park.

I used to live in Santa Rosa.. lol.. always felt the small tremors that happened, but I've slept through some.. lol.. Was in Alameda for the big one in 89.. that was a sight. I was on my ship and watched the pier move 30 feet back and forth.. stood by a mooring line with an ax just in case..

we need some more people who play up here! move back! lol

that would be intense.

when i lived in Illinois i played in a f-0 tornado in my friends lawn, that was lots of fun