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Groundwater anomalies preceding earthquake occurrence

Some studies report changes in groundwater level, temperature, pressure, flow, or chemistry before nearby earthquakes. However, findings are inconsistent and often site-specific, while rainfall, seasonal variation, groundwater pumping, land use, and instrument effects can produce similar changes. This is therefore a reported temporal association, not evidence that groundwater anomalies reliably predict or cause earthquakes.

Relationship Type: reported association, temporal sequence, non-causal

Concept A: Groundwater anomalies

Concept B: Earthquake occurrence

Evidence Strength: 40/100

Interpretation Confidence: 70%

Review Status: reviewed

Supporting Evidence

A systematic compilation of earthquake precursors

Robert D. Cicerone; John E. Ebel; James Britton

Towards a method for forecasting earthquakes in Iceland using changes in groundwater chemistry

Alasdair Skelton, Erik Sturkell, Carl-Magnus Mörth, Gabrielle Stockmann, Sigurjón Jónsson, Andri Stefansson, Lillemor Liljedahl-Claesson, Niklas Wästeby, Margareta Andrén, Elin Tollefsen, Jóhann Gunnarsson Robin, Nicole Keller, Halldór Geirsson, Hreinn Hjartarson, Ingrid Kockum

Changes in geochemical and isotopic contents in groundwater before seismic events in Ischia Island (Italy)

Elena Del Gaudio, Stefania Stevenazzi, Giuseppe Onorati, Daniela Ducci

Experimental evidence on formation of imminent and short-term hydrochemical precursors for earthquakes

Jianguo Du, Kazuhiro Amita, Shinji Ohsawa, Youlian Zhang, Chunli Kang, Makoto Yamada

Changes in groundwater chemistry before two consecutive earthquakes in Iceland

Alasdair Skelton, Margareta Andrén, Hrefna Kristmannsdóttir, Gabrielle Stockmann, Carl-Magnus Mörth, Árny Sveinbjörnsdóttir, Sigurjón Jónsson, Erik Sturkell, Helga Rakel Guðrúnardóttir, Hreinn Hjartarson, Heike Siegmund, Ingrid Kockum

Water Geochemistry and Stable Isotope Changes Record Groundwater Mixing After a Regional Earthquake in Northeast India

Sourav Kumar, Michael Manga, Archana M. Nair, Abhishek Dixit, Chandan Mahanta

Groundwater oxygen isotope anomaly before the M6.6 Tottori earthquake in Southwest Japan

Satoki Onda, Yuji Sano, Naoto Takahata, Takanori Kagoshima, Toshihiro Miyajima, Tomo Shibata, Daniele L. Pinti, Tefang Lan, Nak Kyu Kim, Minoru Kusakabe, Yoshiro Nishio

In search of earthquake-related hydrologic and chemical changes along Hayward Fault

C.-Y. King, D. Basler, T. S. Presser, W. C. Evans, L. D. White, A. Minissale

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