Anthropogenic subsidence in the Mexicali Valley,Baja California,Mexico, and slip on the Saltillo fault |
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| Authors: | Ewa Glowacka Olga Sarychikhina Francisco Suárez F Alejandro Nava Robert Mellors |
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| Institution: | (1) Department of Seismology, CICESE, Ensenada, Mexico;(2) Department of Geology, CICESE, Ensenada, Mexico;(3) Department of Geology, SDSU, San Diego, USA |
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| Abstract: | Deep fluid extraction in the Cerro Prieto geothermal field (CPGF) has caused subsidence and induced slip on tectonic faults
in the Mexicali Valley (Baja California, Mexico). The Mexicali Valley is located in the southern part of the Salton Trough,
at the boundary between the Pacific and North American plates. The Valley is characterized by being a zone of continuous tectonic
deformation, geothermal activity, and seismicity. Within the Cerro Prieto pull-apart basin, seismicity is concentrated mainly
in swarms, while strong earthquakes have occurred in the Imperial and Cerro Prieto transform faults, that are the eastern
and western bound of the basin. Since 1973, fluid extraction at the CPGF has influenced deformation in the area, accelerating
the subsidence and causing rupture (frequently as vertical slip or creep) on the surface traces of tectonic faults. Both subsidence
and fault slip are causing damage to infrastructure like roads, railroad tracks, irrigation channels, and agricultural fields.
Currently, accelerated extraction in the eastern part of CPGF has shifted eastwards the area of most pronounced subsidence
rate; this accelerated subsidence can be observed at the Saltillo fault, a southern branch of the Imperial fault in the Mexicali
Valley. Published leveling data, together with field data from geological surveys, geotechnical instruments, and new InSAR
images were used to model the observed deformation in the area in terms of fluid extraction. Since the electricity production
in the CPGF is an indispensable part of Baja California economy, extraction is sure to continue and may probably increase,
so that the problem of damages caused by subsidence will likely increase in the future. |
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