Performance Evaluation of the Regional Seismograph Network in Northeast British Columbia, Canada, for Monitoring of Induced Seismicity

Abstract

Research Article| March 02, 2016 Performance Evaluation of the Regional Seismograph Network in Northeast British Columbia, Canada, for Monitoring of Induced Seismicity Alireza Babaie Mahani; Alireza Babaie Mahani aGeoscience BC, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6C [e-mail] Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Honn Kao; Honn Kao bPacific Geoscience Center, Geological Survey of Canada, Sydney, British Columbia, Canada V8L 4B2 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Dan Walker; Dan Walker cBritish Columbia Oil and Gas Commission, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada V9A 3S1 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Jeff Johnson; Jeff Johnson cBritish Columbia Oil and Gas Commission, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada V9A 3S1 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Carlos Salas Carlos Salas aGeoscience BC, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6C [e-mail] Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Alireza Babaie Mahani aGeoscience BC, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6C [e-mail] Honn Kao bPacific Geoscience Center, Geological Survey of Canada, Sydney, British Columbia, Canada V8L 4B2 Dan Walker cBritish Columbia Oil and Gas Commission, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada V9A 3S1 Jeff Johnson cBritish Columbia Oil and Gas Commission, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada V9A 3S1 Carlos Salas aGeoscience BC, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6C [e-mail] Publisher: Seismological Society of America First Online: 14 Jul 2017 Online ISSN: 1938-2057 Print ISSN: 0895-0695 © 2016 by the Seismological Society of America Seismological Research Letters (2016) 87 (3): 648–660. https://doi.org/10.1785/0220150241 Article history First Online: 14 Jul 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Permissions Search Site Citation Alireza Babaie Mahani, Honn Kao, Dan Walker, Jeff Johnson, Carlos Salas; Performance Evaluation of the Regional Seismograph Network in Northeast British Columbia, Canada, for Monitoring of Induced Seismicity. Seismological Research Letters 2016;; 87 (3): 648–660. doi: https://doi.org/10.1785/0220150241 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietySeismological Research Letters Search Advanced Search ABSTRACT An important factor in mitigation of seismic hazard from induced seismicity is properly established seismic networks suitable for consistent identification of small‐to‐moderate events (magnitudes less than four). Here, we evaluate the performance of the newly established regional broadband seismic network in northeast British Columbia, Canada. The seismic network was designed for monitoring of induced seismicity due to oil and gas operations related to hydraulic fracturing and fluid injection in the region. We use regional and local earthquake catalogs for the period 1985–2015 to analyze magnitude of completeness and epicentral uncertainty. We also perform a theoretical assessment of minimum detectable magnitude across the study region based on analysis of ambient noise and simulated ground motions. From the frequency–magnitude distribution of the reported events in the regional earthquake catalog, the magnitude of completeness has decreased ∼1 magnitude unit from ∼3 in the periods 1985–2013 to ∼2 in the period 2013–2015 as a result of the establishment of new stations. The minimum detectable magnitude in the region is 1.6–2.6 based on the signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR) of 10 and higher at four or more stations. By comparing the regional and dense array catalogs, we determine that the error in epicentral location in well‐constrained areas by seismic stations is below 3 km in both east–west and north–south directions. However, location uncertainties can be up to 10 km in the east–west direction in areas where the current regional network is sparse. The magnitude detection threshold in the Montney Play, where most of the current oil and gas activities are taking place, can be further reduced by up to 1 magnitude unit with the addition of four new stations. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.