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The study, published Tuesday in Seismological Research Letters, reports that fracking waste injection wells are now the leading cause of earthquakes in Texas. Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, involves thrusting chemicals and water against shale rock to break it up and release oil or gas. The process produces large amounts of waste fluid, or brine, that is either recycled or disposed of in injection wells.
Earthquakes cause volcanic eruptions. Fact. Earthquakes indicate a geologically active landscape, but they are not the cause of volcanic eruptions. In rare cases, large tectonic earthquakes have triggered eruptions of nearby volcanoes that have been poised to erupt anyway. In the case of Mount St. Helens, a flurry of earthquakes under the volcano suggested potential eruptive activity.