Crustal response to water loads and expansion of triggered seismicity around the Xiluodu Reservoir, Southwest China

Xuhua Shi; Yuanhai Shu; Roland Bürgmann; Lei Xie; Libo Han; Zhongcheng Cao; Wenbin Xu; Teng Wang; Hanlin Chen; Austin Madson; Eric Kirby; Guojie Meng; Renqi Lu; Qi Yao; Xiaogan Cheng; Shufeng Yang

doi:10.59717/j.xinn-geo.2024.100047

The Innovation Geoscience > 2024 Vol. 2 > No. 1 > 100047

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Crustal response to water loads and expansion of triggered seismicity around the Xiluodu Reservoir, Southwest China

1.
Key Laboratory of Geoscience Big Data and Deep Resource of Zhejiang Province, School of Earth Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
2.
Berkeley Seismological Laboratory and Department of Earth and Planetary Science, University of California, Berkeley 94720, USA
3.
School of Geosciences and Info-Physics, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China
4.
Institute of Geophysics, China Earthquake Administration, Beijing 100081, China
5.
School of Earth and Space Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100080, China
6.
Wyoming Geographic Information Science Center, University of Wyoming, Laramie 82071, USA
7.
Department of Earth, Marine, and Environmental Sciences, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill 27514, USA
8.
Institute of Earthquake Forecasting, China Earthquake Administration, Beijing 100036, China
9.
Institute of Geology, China Earthquake Administration, Beijing 100029, China
10.
These authors contributed equally

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Corresponding authors: shixuhua@zju.edu.cn(X. S.); hlchen@zju.edu.cn (H. C.)
Received Date: July 03, 2023

Accepted Date: December 30, 2023

Published Online: January 19, 2024

The Innovation Geoscience 2(1), https://doi.org/10.59717/j.xinn-geo.2024.100047 | Cite this article

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1. The impoundment of the Xiluodu and Xiangjiaba Reservoirs results in crustal subsidence.
  
  About 81% of triggered seismicity is located within 15 km of the subsidence center of rapid crustal response.
  
  Triggered seismicity temporally relates to rapid hydrologic loading/unloading.
  
  Viscous relaxation effect leads to the spatiotemporal migration of triggered earthquakes.
  
  Enhanced geohazard monitoring efforts are urgently needed around subsidence centers.

ABSTRACT

ABSTRACT

The transition to low-carbon energy generation requires a diverse portfolio of energy sources. Large hydropower stations play a crucial role in providing eco-friendly energy but can lead to crustal deformation and seismic activity due to reservoir impoundment and discharge. The mechanism behind how impoundment-induced deformation influences reservoir-triggered seismicity remains unclear. We investigate this at the world’s 4^th largest hydropower station in Xiluodu, China, using interdisciplinary analyses of relocated earthquakes, geodetic data, and numerical simulations. Geodetic observations confirm both a linear elastic response to hydrologic loading and the transition towards a relaxed and flexural response. Notably, approximately 81% of the earthquakes since impoundment occurred within ~15 km of the subsidence center. These events temporally relate to rapid hydrologic loading/unloading periods, with their spatiotemporal outward migration potentially caused by viscous relaxation of load stresses in the lower crust and upper mantle. The reservoir-induced flexural deformation and subsequent viscous relaxation may control the distribution and expansion of triggered seismicity. This research highlights the urgent need to enhance geohazard monitoring efforts around the subsidence center and emphasizes the vital importance of carefully considering this factor during the construction of large reservoirs to mitigate potential seismic risks.

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REFERENCES

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Shi X., Shu Y., Bürgmann R., et al., (2024). Crustal response to water loads and expansion of triggered seismicity around the Xiluodu Reservoir, Southwest China. The Innovation Geoscience 2(1): 100047. https://doi.org/10.59717/j.xinn-geo.2024.100047

Shi X., Shu Y., Bürgmann R., et al., (2024). Crustal response to water loads and expansion of triggered seismicity around the Xiluodu Reservoir, Southwest China. The Innovation Geoscience 2(1): 100047. https://doi.org/10.59717/j.xinn-geo.2024.100047

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Crustal response to water loads and expansion of triggered seismicity around the Xiluodu Reservoir, Southwest China

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