Articles | Volume 11, issue 3
https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-909-2020
https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-909-2020
Research article
 | 
20 May 2020
Research article |  | 20 May 2020

Potential influence of overpressurized gas on the induced seismicity in the St. Gallen deep geothermal project (Switzerland)

Dominik Zbinden, Antonio Pio Rinaldi, Tobias Diehl, and Stefan Wiemer

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Cited articles

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Short summary
The deep geothermal project in St. Gallen, Switzerland, aimed at generating electricity and heat. The fluid pumped into the underground caused hundreds of small earthquakes and one larger one felt by the local population. Here we use computer simulations to study the physical processes that led to the earthquakes. We find that gas present in the subsurface could have intensified the seismicity, which may have implications for future geothermal projects conducted in similar geological conditions.