Office of Kansas Governor

Today, Governor Sam Brownback in conjunction with members of the Induced Seismicity Task Force, announced the procurement and funding for the acquisition of a six station portable seismic network to monitor increased seismic activity in Harper, Sumner, and Barber counties.

“Public safety is my top priority,” said Governor Brownback. “We must balance the safety of all Kansans, and consider the impacts to industry. This deployment will give our state geologists the data they need to better understand the increased seismic activity being experienced in south-central Kansas and to formulate a plan going forward.”

The funding for the seismic network represents the continued cooperation between state agencies and will allow the Kansas Geological Survey (KGS) to deploy monitoring stations in areas with significant seismic activity. The KGS anticipates the monitoring stations will cost about $85,000 and will be operational in early 2015.

Governor Brownback established the Induced Seismicity Task Force with representation from the KGS, Kansas Corporation Commission, and Kansas Department of Health and Environment. The Task Force developed a draft plan with input from experts and the public that was presented and adopted by Governor Brownback. The plan calls for a portable seismic network. The KGS continues to develop a permanent statewide seismic network in addition to the portable network that was partially funded during the last legislative session.

Thus far in 2014, the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Earthquake Information Center has recorded 93 earthquakes in Kansas, ranging from a magnitude 1.3 to 4.3, nearly all in Sumner, Harper, and Barber counties. This is an increase over 2013 and prior years.