Earthquake Fear Ends Dutch Gas Boom

The Dutch are proud of the way they have created a country by fighting back the ocean but when they started making their own earthquakes it proved a step too far.

ZEERIJP, Netherlands, Sept 26 (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Sep, 2018 ) :The Dutch are proud of the way they have created a country by fighting back the ocean but when they started making their own earthquakes it proved a step too far.

The tiny village of Zeerijp in the northern Netherlands looks ordinary on the surface, yet closer inspection reveals cracks in homes, schools and historic buildings.

A series of quakes caused by extractions at Europe's biggest gas field in Groningen province culminated in a 3.4-magnitude tremor in January, the biggest for six years.

"Suddenly, I heard two huge noises, one after the other. Then it all began to shake," said farmer Bert-Jan Huizing, 50, describing how he was working with his forklift truck when the tremor struck.

Facing a wave of public anger over the threat to life and limb, the Dutch government announced that all gas extraction from Groningen will end by 2030.

It was a major blow to a project that has benefitted from billions of Euros in state funding thanks to gas export contracts, particularly with France and Germany.