Experts dismiss rumor that Three Gorges triggers quakes   

湖北请专家辟谣：秭归2次地震与三峡蓄水无关联

近日，“三峡库首第一县”湖北省秭归县接连发生4.3级和4.7级两次地震。两次地震震中距三峡大坝仅23公里。3月31日，湖北省和宜昌市地震局请中国地震局地震研究所水库诱发地震研究室主任王秋良等专家，对地震是否与三峡蓄水有关等问题，进行了解答。 [查看全文]

(ECNS) – Experts at the China Earthquake Administration's Institute of Earthquake Science have dismissed the rumor that the latest quakes in Zigui county, Hubei province, were induced by the Three Gorges reservoir, the Beijing Times reported.

On March 30, a 4.7-magnitude quake hit Zigui, about 23 kilometers from the dam, following a tremor of 4.3 magnitude that jolted the same spot on March 27. The two quakes caused no casualties or property loss.

The tremors were preliminarily determined as tectonic earthquakes that didn't have an impact on the Three Gorge Dam, according to the experts.

The epicenters of the two quakes occurred at the north end of the fault zone of Xiannv mountain. Before construction of the Three Gorges reservoir, experts had deemed this area a potential source of magnitude 5 to 5.5 earthquakes.

As to the question whether the Wenchuan earthquake, the Badong earthquake in late 2013, and the Zigui earthquake were connected, Wang Qiuliang, one of the experts, said the seismogenic structures of all three were different from one another.

"The Wenchuan earthquake occurred on a fault line at Longmen Mountain, Badong happened at the western margin of the Zigui basin, and the Zigui ones occurred at the Xiannv Mountain. Unless the three were located in the same fault zone, they were not connected," Wang added.

Experts also said there's no indication that the area has entered into a period of frequent quakes, but aftershocks may happen, according to a current study.

Four earthquakes of over 4 magnitudes have happened in the dam area since 2003 when its started to impound water.