Human-generated Factors (Artificial causes of earthquakes)
Four human activities or consequences of human activities have been known to induce earthquakes: 1) the filling of large water impoundments; 2) deep well injection; 3) underground explosions of nuclear devices, and 4) the collapse of underground mine-workings. Some have speculated that nuclear detonations along a fault may release strain in a controlled fashion and prevent a major earthquake, but the potential liability of such an experiment gone awry has proved daunting for even the most intrepid seismic investigators (24).