How common is seismic activity in central Utahs coalfields?
Hundreds to thousands of seismic events induced by underground coal mining in the Wasatch Plateau and Book Cliffs coalfields of east-central Utah are large enough to be located each year by the University of Utah’s regional seismic network (click here for a seismicity map and overview). Most are smaller than magnitude 3; the majority, smaller than magnitude 2.5. During 2006, more than 2200 such events were recorded and located.
