Earthquakes: Risk, Detection, Warning, and
Research

Peter Folger
Specialist in Energy and Natural Resources Policy
April 19, 2010
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
RL33861
CRS Report for Congress
P
repared for Members and Committees of Congress

Earthquakes: Risk, Detection, Warning, and Research

Summary
The 1994 Northridge (CA) earthquake caused as much as $26 billion (in 2005 dollars) in damage
and was one of the costliest natural disasters to strike the United States. The Federal Emergency
Management Agency has estimated that earthquakes cost the United States over $5 billion per
year. A hypothetical scenario for a magnitude 7.8 earthquake in southern California estimated a
possibility of 1,800 fatalities and over $200 billion in economic losses. The January 12, 2010,
magnitude 7.0 earthquake that struck Haiti only 15 miles from Port-au-Prince, the capital city, has
caused an estimated 230,000 fatalities and 300,000 injuries. On February 27, 2010, a magnitude
8.8 earthquake occurred offshore of Chile and has caused massive damage, although far fewer
fatalities than the Haiti earthquake. The Cascadia Subduction Zone megathrust fault, which
stretches from southern British Columbia to northern California, has the potential to generate a
massive earthquake and tsunami, similar to the Chilean earthquake, that could threaten Oregon,
Washington, and northern California.
The United States faces the possibility of large economic losses from earthquake-damaged
buildings and infrastructure. California alone accounts for most of the estimated annualized
earthquake losses for the nation, and with Oregon and Washington the three states account for
nearly $4.1 billion (77%) of the U.S. total estimated annualized loss. A single large earthquake,
however, can cause far more damage than the average annual estimate.
An ongoing issue for Congress is whether the federally supported programs aimed at reducing
U.S. vulnerability to earthquakes are an adequate response to the earthquake hazard. Under the
National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP), four federal agencies have
responsibility for long-term earthquake risk reduction: the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the
National Science Foundation (NSF), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and
the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). They variously assess U.S.
earthquake hazards, send notifications of seismic events, develop measures to reduce earthquake
hazards, and conduct research to help reduce overall U.S. vulnerability to earthquakes.
Congress reauthorized NEHRP in 2004 (P.L. 108-360) through FY2009. Appropriations for
NEHRP from FY2005 to FY2009 did not meet authorized levels; the total funding enacted was
$613.2 million, approximately 68% of the total amount of $902.4 million authorized by P.L. 108-
360. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA; P.L. 111-5) provided some
additional funding for earthquake activities under NEHRP through FY2010. In the 111th
Congress, H.R. 3820 would reauthorize NEHRP through FY2014, authorizing total
appropriations of $906 million over five years for the program, with 90% of the funding
designated for the USGS and NSF, and the remainder for FEMA and NIST. The total authorized
amounts are slightly greater than what was authorized by P.L. 108-360 over five years. If future
appropriations match the funding levels authorized under H.R. 3820, these funds would exceed
the total cumulative amounts actually appropriated between FY2005 and FY2009.
What effect funding at the levels enacted through FY2009 under NEHRP has had on the U.S.
capability to detect earthquakes and minimize losses after an earthquake occurs is not clear. It is
also difficult to predict precisely how NEHRP reauthorized under H.R. 3820 would achieve a
major goal of the bill: to reduce the loss of life and damage to communities and infrastructure
through increasing the adoption of hazard mitigation measures. A perennial issue for Congress is
whether activities under NEHRP can reduce the potential for catastrophic loss in the next giant
earthquake to strike the United States.
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Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1
National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) ....................................................... 1
A Shift in Program Emphasis to Hazard Reduction................................................................ 2
NEHRP Reauthorization in the 111th Congress ...................................................................... 4
Authorization of Appropriations in H.R. 3820 ................................................................. 5
Other Changes Proposed in H.R. 3820 ............................................................................ 6
Earthquake Hazards and Risk...................................................................................................... 6
Potential Losses from Earthquakes ...................................................................................... 12
A Decrease in Estimated Loss?...................................................................................... 15
The New Madrid Seismic Zone ........................................................................................... 16
Monitoring................................................................................................................................ 17
Advanced National Seismic System (ANSS) ....................................................................... 17
ANSS Funding.............................................................................................................. 17
Dense Urban Networks ................................................................................................. 18
Regional Networks........................................................................................................ 18
Backbone Stations......................................................................................................... 18
National Strong-Motion Project (NSMP)....................................................................... 18
Global Seismic Network (GSN) .......................................................................................... 19
Detection, Notification, and Warning......................................................................................... 19
National Earthquake Information Center (NEIC)................................................................. 20
ShakeMap........................................................................................................................... 20
Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) ..................................... 22
Pre-disaster Planning: HAZUS-MH .................................................................................... 24
Research—Understanding Earthquakes ..................................................................................... 24
U.S. Geological Survey....................................................................................................... 24
National Science Foundation............................................................................................... 25
Conclusion................................................................................................................................ 26

Figures
Figure 1. NEHRP Agency Responsibilities and End Users of NEHRP Outcomes ......................... 3
Figure 2. Earthquake Hazard in the United States ........................................................................ 7
Figure 3. Histogram of the Number of U.S. Earthquakes from 2000 to 2008 by
Magnitude (1.0 to 6.9).............................................................................................................. 9
Figure 4. Example of a ShakeMap............................................................................................. 21
Figure 5. Example of PAGER Output for the January 12, 2010,
Magnitude 7.0 Haiti Earthquake ............................................................................................. 23

Tables
Table 1. Authorized and Enacted Funding for NEHRP................................................................. 4
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Table 2. NEHRP Authorization for Appropriations Under H.R. 3820 ........................................... 5
Table 3. Urban Areas Facing Significant Seismic Risk................................................................. 9
Table 4. Earthquakes Responsible for Most U.S. Fatalities Since 1970....................................... 10
Table 5. The 10 Most Damaging Earthquakes in the United States............................................. 11
Table 6. U.S. Metropolitan Areas with Estimated Annualized Earthquake Losses of More
Than $10 Million ................................................................................................................... 13

Contacts
Author Contact Information ...................................................................................................... 27

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Introduction
Close to 75 million people in 39 states face some risk from earthquakes. Earthquake hazards are
greatest in the western United States, particularly California, but also Alaska, Washington,
Oregon, and Hawaii. Earthquake hazards are also prominent in the Rocky Mountain region and
the New Madrid Seismic Zone (a portion of the central United States), as well as portions of the
eastern seaboard, particularly South Carolina. Given the potentially huge costs associated with a
large, damaging earthquake in the United States, an ongoing issue for Congress is whether the
federally supported earthquake programs are appropriate for the earthquake risk.
Under the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP), the federal government
supports efforts to assess and monitor earthquake hazards and risk in the United States. Four
federal agencies, responsible for long-term earthquake risk reduction, coordinate their activities
under NEHRP: the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Science Foundation (NSF), the
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the National Institute of Standards and
Technology (NIST). Congress reauthorized NEHRP in 2004 (P.L. 108-360), and authorized
appropriations through FY2009 for a total of $902.4 million over five years. In the 111th
Congress, H.R. 3820 (Title I) would reauthorize NEHRP through FY2014.
This report discusses:
• NEHRP—the multi-agency federal program to reduce the nation’s risk from
earthquakes;
• earthquake hazards and risk in the United States;
• federal programs that support earthquake monitoring;
• the U.S. capability to detect earthquakes and issue notifications and warnings;
and
• federally supported research to improve the fundamental scientific understanding
of earthquakes with a goal of reducing U.S. vulnerability.
National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program
(NEHRP)

In 1977 Congress passed the Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act (P.L. 95-124) establishing
NEHRP as a long-term earthquake risk reduction program for the United States. The program
initially focused on research, led by USGS and NSF, toward understanding and ultimately
predicting earthquakes. Earthquake prediction has proved intractable thus far, and the NEHRP
program shifted its focus to minimizing losses from earthquakes after they occur. FEMA was
created in 1979 and President Carter designated it as the lead agency for NEHRP. In 1980,
Congress reauthorized the Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act (P.L. 96-472), defining FEMA as
the lead agency and authorizing additional funding for earthquake hazard preparedness and
mitigation to FEMA and the National Bureau of Standards (now NIST).
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A Shift in Program Emphasis to Hazard Reduction
In 1990, Congress reauthorized NEHRP (P.L. 101-614) and made substantive changes, to
decrease the emphasis on earthquake prediction, clarify the role of FEMA, clarify and expand the
program objectives, and require federal agencies to adopt seismic safety standards for new and
existing federal buildings. In 2004, Congress reauthorized NEHRP through FY2009 (P.L. 108-
360) and shifted primary responsibility for planning and coordinating NEHRP from FEMA to
NIST. It also established a new interagency coordinating committee and a new advisory
committee, both focused on earthquake hazards reduction.
The current program activities are focused on four broad areas:
• developing effective measures to reduce earthquake hazards;
• promoting the adoption of earthquake hazards reduction measures by federal,
state, and local governments, national building standards and model building
code organizations, engineers, architects, building owners, and others who play a
role in planning and constructing buildings, bridges, structures, and critical
infrastructure or lifelines;
• improving the basic understanding of earthquakes and their effects on people and
infrastructure, through interdisciplinary research involving engineering, natural
sciences, and social, economic, and decision sciences; and
• developing and maintaining the Advanced National Seismic System (ANSS), the
George E. Brown Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES),
and the Global Seismic Network (GSN).1
The House Science Committee report in the 108th Congress on H.R. 2608 (P.L. 108-360) noted
that NEHRP has produced a wealth of useful information since 1977, but it also stated that the
program’s potential has been limited by the inability of the NEHRP agencies to coordinate their
efforts.2 The committee asserted that restructuring the program with NIST as the lead agency,
directing funding towards appropriate priorities, and implementing it as a true interagency
program would lead to improvement.
The 2004 reauthorization directed the Director of NIST to chair the Interagency Coordinating
Committee. Other members of the committee include the directors of FEMA, USGS, NSF, the
Office of Science and Technology Policy, and the Office of Management and Budget. The
Interagency Coordinating Committee is charged with overseeing the planning, management, and
coordination of the program. Primary responsibilities for the NEHRP agencies break down as
follows (see also Figure 1):
• NIST supports the development of performance-based seismic engineering tools
and works with other groups to promote the commercial application of the tools
through building codes, standards, and construction practices.

1 ANSS is a nationwide network of seismographic stations operated by the USGS. GSN is a global network of stations
coordinated by the Incorporated Institutions for Seismology. NEES is an NSF-funded project that consists of 15
experimental facilities and an IT infrastructure with a goal of mitigating earthquake damage by the use of improved
materials, designs, construction techniques, and monitoring tools.
2 U.S. House, Committee on Science, National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program Reauthorization Act of 2003,
H.Rept. 108-246 (Aug. 14, 2003), p. 13.
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• FEMA assists other agencies and private-sector groups to prepare and
disseminate building codes and practices for structures and “lifelines”,3 and aids
development of performance-based codes for buildings and other structures.
• USGS conducts research and other activities to characterize and assess
earthquake risks, and (1) operates a forum, using the National Earthquake
Information Center (NEIC), for the international exchange of earthquake
information, (2) works with other NEHRP agencies to coordinate activities with
earthquake reduction efforts in other countries, and (3) maintains seismic hazard
maps in support of building codes for structures and lifelines, and other maps
needed for performance-based design approaches.
• NSF supports research to improve safety and performance of buildings,
structures, and lifelines using the large-scale experimental and computational
facilities of NEES and other institutions engaged in research and implementation
of NEHRP.
Figure 1. NEHRP Agency Responsibilities and End Users of NEHRP Outcomes

Source: NEHRP program office at http://www.nehrp.gov/pdf/ppt_sdr.pdf (modified by CRS).
Table 1 shows the authorized and enacted appropriations for NEHRP from FY2005 through
FY2010. The total enacted amount for FY2005-FY2009 was $613.2 million, or 68% of the
$902.4 million total amount authorized in P.L. 108-360 over the five-year span. President Obama
requested a total of $129.3 million for NEHRP in FY2011, even though authorization for the
program under P.L. 108-360 expired at the end of FY2009.

3 Lifelines are essential utility and transportation systems.
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Table 1. Authorized and Enacted Funding for NEHRP
($ millions)

USGS
NSF
FEMA
NIST
Total
FY2005
Authorized
77.0 58.0 21.0 10.0 166.0
Enacted 58.4 53.1 14.7 0.9 127.1
FY2006
Authorized
84.4 59.5 21.6 11.0 176.5
Enacted 54.5
53.8
9.5
0.9
118.7
FY2007
Authorized
85.9 61.2 22.3 12.1 181.5
Enacted 55.4
54.2
7.2
1.7
118.5
FY2008
Authorized
87.4 62.9 23.0 13.3 186.6
Enacted 58.1
53.6
6.1
1.7
119.5
FY2009
Authorized
88.9 64.7 23.6 14.6 191.8
Enacted 61.2
55.0
9.1
4.1
129.4
FY2010 Enacted
62.8
55.3
8.9
4.1
131.1
FY2011 Requested
62.3
53.8
9.1
4.1
129.3
Source: NEHRP program office, at http://www.nehrp.gov/pdf/ppt_budget_fy11.pdf.
Notes: According to the NEHRP program office, ARRA funds are not included; and the FY2011 requested
budget is the estimated portion of the President’s budget request that would be al ocated for NEHRP activities.
Also, the FY2010 enacted amounts are estimates.
NEHRP Reauthorization in the 111th Congress
Title I of H.R. 3820, the Natural Hazards Risk Reduction Act of 2009, would reauthorize NEHRP
through FY2014, retain NIST as the lead NEHRP agency, and authorize total appropriations of
about $906 million over five years. Title II of H.R. 3820 would reauthorize the National
Windstorm Impact Reduction Act (first enacted in 2004 as Title II of P.L. 108-360 and modeled
after NEHRP), and Title III would create an interagency coordinating committee, chaired by the
Director of NIST, that would oversee the planning and coordination of both the earthquake and
wind hazards programs. The single interagency coordinating committee would replace the two
separate interagency committees overseeing the current earthquake and wind hazards programs.
The bill was reported by the House Science and Technology Committee on February 26, 2010,
and was passed by the House on March 2, 2010. No action on the bill has been taken in the
Senate.
The interagency coordinating committee also would be given authority to “make proposals for
planning and coordination of any other federal research for natural hazards mitigation that the
Committee considers appropriate.” The potentially broader mandate for the interagency
coordinating committee—to embrace all natural hazards in its deliberations—could reflect an
emphasis on natural hazard mitigation presented in the bill’s “Findings” section. The bill finds
that research is needed to better understand institutional, social, behavioral, and economic factors
that influence how risk mitigation is implemented, and that a major goal of federally supported
natural hazards-related research should be to increase the adoption of hazard mitigation measures.
This theme is an aspect of an “all-hazards” approach to reducing risk, and could reflect
observations presented during a June 11, 2009, hearing of the House Science and Technology
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Committee at which a witness noted that “there appear to be significant similarities in societal
responses to different hazards.”4 In that testimony, the witness observed that there are limited
opportunities to study earthquake emergency response and recovery because damaging
earthquakes are relatively infrequent; however, there are important lessons to be learned from
studying other, more frequent, hazards, such as tornadoes.5
Authorization of Appropriations in H.R. 3820
H.R. 3820 would authorize total appropriations for NEHRP of approximately $906 million for a
five-year period ending in FY2014, with 90% of the funding authorized for the USGS and NSF,
and the remainder for FEMA and NIST. (See Table 2.) The total authorized amounts would be
slightly greater than what was authorized by P.L. 108-360 over five years. Also, funding under
H.R. 3820 would exceed the amounts actually appropriated between FY2005 and FY2009 by
over 60% for NEHRP if Congress enacted appropriations over five years that matched the
authorized amounts. Compared to the previously enacted authorized funding, total authorized
amounts would be greater for USGS and NSF under H.R. 3820 and less for NIST and FEMA.
Table 2. NEHRP Authorization for Appropriations Under H.R. 3820
($ millions)
Total
Total
Total
FY2010-FY2014 FY2005-FY2009 FY2005-FY2009

FY2010 FY2011 FY2012 FY2013 FY2014
auth.
auth.
enact.
USGS 90.0 92.1 94.3 96.5 98.8 471.7 423.6 287.6
NSF 64.1 66.1 68.0 70.1 72.2 340.5 306.3 272.0
FEMA 10.2 10.6 10.9 11.2 11.5
54.4 111.5 46.6
NIST 7.0 7.7 7.9 8.2 8.4 39.2 61.0 9.3
Total

171.3 176.5 181.1 186 190.9
905.8
902.4
615.5
Source: U.S. House of Representatives, H.R. 3820; and NEHRP program office, at http://www.nehrp.gov/pdf/
ppt_sdr.pdf.
Note: Totals may not sum due to rounding.
The USGS would receive the largest share—about 52%—of total authorized appropriations under
H.R. 3820, as under the previous reauthorization of NEHRP, and the total amount would be
approximately $48 million more than the amount authorized for FY2005 through FY2009. As
with the previous reauthorization, H.R. 3820 singles out the Advanced National Seismic System
(ANSS) to receive a subset of authorized appropriations within the total USGS-authorized
amount. Specifically, ANSS would be authorized to receive $36 million in FY2010, $37 million
in FY2011, $38 million in FY2012, $39 million in FY2013, and $40 million in FY2014. That
would total $190 million over five years, compared to a total of $174 million over five years in
the previous reauthorization.

4 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Science and Technology, Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation,
Reauthorization of the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program: R&D for Resilient Communities, testimony
of Dr. Michael Lindell, 111th Cong., 1st sess., June 11, 2009.
5 Ibid. Tornadoes could be considered similar to earthquakes as “rapid onset disasters” that provide little or no warning,
but which elicit similar societal responses, according to Dr. Lindell.
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Other Changes Proposed in H.R. 3820
Section 105 of H.R. 3820 would shift a post-earthquake investigations program from the USGS to
be led instead by NIST, in consultation with the other NEHRP agencies, and the program would
be organized to study the implications of earthquakes in the areas of responsibility of each
NEHRP agency.
The interagency coordinating committee that would be created under Title III of H.R. 3820 would
be largely similar to the current interagency committee except that it would also include the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the committee would have the
discretion to include the head of any other federal agency it considers appropriate. In addition to
acting as a single coordinating committee for both the earthquake and wind hazards program, the
committee is charged with developing a strategic plan for both programs,6 providing progress
reports to Congress, and developing coordinated budgets for each program. Also, the Director of
NIST is required to establish advisory committees for both programs, similar to the current
advisory committees established under P.L. 108-360.
Title III of H.R. 3820 also requires the Subcommittee on Disaster Reduction of the Committee on
Environment and Natural Resources of the National Science and Technology Council to submit a
report, within two years of enactment, identifying federal research, development, and technology
transfer activities for natural disasters, common areas of research among the natural hazards, and
opportunities to “create synergies between the research activities for the hazards.”
Earthquake Hazards and Risk
Figure 2 indicates that detailed information exists on where earthquakes are likely to occur in the
United States and how severe the earthquake magnitude and resulting ground shaking are likely
to be. The map in Figure 2 depicts the potential shaking hazard from future earthquakes. It is
based on the frequency at which earthquakes occur in different areas and how far the strong
shaking extends from the source of the earthquake. In Figure 2, the hazard levels indicate the
potential ground motion—expressed as a percentage of the acceleration due to gravity (g). In a
sense, the map shows the likelihood of where earthquakes could occur, and where the strongest
shaking could take place.
All 50 states and the District of Columbia are vulnerable to earthquake hazards, although risks
vary greatly across the country. Seismic hazards are greatest in the western United States,
particularly California, Washington, Oregon, and Alaska and Hawaii. Alaska is the most
earthquake-prone state, experiencing a magnitude 7 earthquake almost every year and a
magnitude 8 earthquake every 14 years on average. (See box below for a description of
earthquake magnitude.) Because of its low population and infrastructure density, Alaska has a
relatively low risk for large economic losses from an earthquake. In contrast, California has more
citizens and infrastructure at risk than any other state because of the state’s frequent seismic
activity combined with its high population.

6 The current interagency coordinating committee for NEHRP submitted a strategic plan to Congress in October 2008.
It is available at http://www.nehrp.gov/pdf/strategic_plan_2008.pdf.
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Figure 2. Earthquake Hazard in the United States

Source: USGS Fact Sheet 2008-3018 (April 2008), at http://earthquake.usgs.gov/research/hazmaps/
products_data/images/nshm_us02.gif. Modified by CRS.
Note: The bar in the upper right shows the potential ground motion—expressed as a percentage of the
acceleration due to gravity (g)—with up to a 1 in 10 chance of being exceeded over a 50-year period.
Figure 2 also shows relatively high earthquake hazard in the Rocky Mountain region, portions of
the eastern seaboard—particularly South Carolina—and a part of the central United States known
as the New Madrid Seismic Zone (see “The New Madrid Seismic Zone,” below). Other portions
of the eastern and northeastern United States are also vulnerable to moderate seismic hazard.
According to the USGS, 75 million people in 39 states are subject to “significant risk.”7

Earthquake Magnitude and Intensity
Earthquake magnitude is a number that characterizes the relative size of an earthquake. It is often reported using the
Richter scale (magnitudes in this report are general y consistent with the Richter scale). Richter magnitude is calculated
from the strongest seismic wave recorded from the earthquake, and is based on a logarithmic (base 10) scale: for
each whole number increase in the Richter scale, the ground motion increases by 10 times. The amount of energy
released per whole number increase, however, goes up by a factor of 32. The moment magnitude scale is another
expression of earthquake size, or energy released during an earthquake, that roughly corresponds to the Richter
magnitude and is used by most seismologists because it more accurately describes the size of very large earthquakes.
Intensity is a measure of how much shaking occurred at a site based on observations and amount of damage. Intensity
is usually reported on the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale as a Roman numeral ranging from I (not felt) to XII (total
destruction).

7 U.S. Geological Survey, Dept. of the Interior, Earthquake Hazards—A National Threat, Fact Sheet 2006-3016,
March 2006, http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2006/3016/2006-3016.pdf. During the period 1975-1995, only four states did not
experience detectable earthquakes: Florida, Iowa, North Dakota, and Wisconsin. See USGS Earthquake Hazards
Program, Earthquake Facts, at http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learn/facts.php.
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Shaking hazards maps, such as the one in Figure 2, are often combined with other data, such as
the strength of existing buildings, to estimate possible damage in an area due to an earthquake.
The combination of seismic risk, population, and vulnerable infrastructure can help improve the
understanding of which urban areas across the United States face risks from earthquake hazards
that may not be immediately obvious from the probability maps of shaking hazards alone. The
USGS has identified 26 urban areas that face a significant seismic risk from the combination of
population and severity of shaking. Table 3 lists those areas at greatest risk.
The USGS estimates that several million earthquakes occur worldwide each year, but the majority
are of small magnitude or occur in remote areas, and are not detectable. More earthquakes are
detected each year as more seismometers8 are installed in the world, but the number of large
earthquakes (magnitude greater than 6.0)9 has remained relatively constant. Between 2000 and
2008 there were between 2,261 and 3,876 earthquakes per year in the United States, according to
the National Earthquake Information Center (NEIC). (See Figure 3.)

National Seismic Hazards Maps and Earthquake Forecast for California
On April 21, 2008, the USGS released National Seismic Hazards Maps that updated the version published in 2002.
Compared to the 2002 version, the new maps indicate lower ground motions (by 10% to 25%) for the central and
eastern United States, based on modifications to the ground-motion models used for earthquakes. The new maps
indicate that estimates of ground motion for the western United States are as much as 30% lower for certain types of
ground motion, called long-period seismic waves, which affect taller, multi-story buildings. Ground motion that affects
shorter buildings of a few stories, cal ed short-period seismic waves, is roughly similar to the 2002 maps. The new
maps show higher estimates for ground motion for western Oregon and Washington compared to the 2002 maps,
due to new ground motion models for the offshore Cascadia subduction zone. In formulating the 2008 maps, the
USGS gave more weight to the probability of a catastrophic magnitude 9 earthquake occurring along the Cascadia
subduction zone. The Cascadia subduction zone fault ruptures, on average, every 500 years, and has the potential to
generate destructive earthquakes and tsunamis along the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and northern California.
According to a report released on April 14, 2008, California has a 99% chance of experiencing a magnitude 6.7 or
larger earthquake in the next 30 years. The likelihood of an even larger earthquake, magnitude 7.5 or greater, is 46%
and will likely occur in the southern part of the state. The fault with the highest probability of generating at least one
earthquake of magnitude 6.7 or greater over the next 30 years is the San Andreas in southern California (59%
probability); for northern California it is the Hayward-Rodgers Creek fault (31%). The earthquake forecasts are not
predictions (i.e., they do not give a specific date or time), but represent probabilities over a given time period. In
addition, the probabilities have variability associated with them. The earthquake forecasts are known as the “Uniform
California Earthquake Rupture Forecast (UCERF)” and are produced by a working group composed of the USGS, the
California Geological Survey, and the Southern California Earthquake Center.
Sources: USGS Fact Sheet 2008-3018, “2008 United States National Seismic Hazard Maps” (April 2008), at
http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2008/3018/pdf/FS08-3018_508.pdf; USGS Fact Sheet 2008-3027, “Forecasting California’s
Earthquakes—What Can We Expect in the Next 30 Years?” (2008), at http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2008/3027/fs2008-
3027.pdf.


8 Seismometers are instruments that measure and record the size and force of seismic waves, essentially sound waves
radiated from the earthquake as it ruptures. Seismometers generally consist of a mass attached to a fixed base. During
an earthquake, the base moves and the mass does not, and the relative motion is commonly transformed into an
electrical voltage that is recorded. A seismograph usually refers to the seismometer and the recording device, but the
two terms are often used interchangeably.
9 See USGS “Earthquakes Facts and Statistics” at http://neic.usgs.gov/neis/eqlists/eqstats.html#table_2.
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Table 3. Urban Areas Facing Significant Seismic Risk
(alphabetically by state for cities with at least 300,000 people)
State City State City
Alaska Anchorage Nevada Las
Vegas
California Fresno Nevada Reno
California Los
Angeles New
Mexico Albuquerque
California
Sacramento
New York
New York
California Salinas Oregon
Eugene-Springfield
California San
Diego Oregon Portland
California
San Francisco-Oakland
Puerto Rico
San Juan
California
Santa Barbara
South Carolina
Charleston
California Stockton-Lodi Tennessee
Chattanooga-Knoxville
Idaho Boise
Tennessee
Memphis
Indiana Evansville Utah Provo-Orem
Massachusetts
Boston
Utah
Salt Lake City
Missouri St.
Louis Washington Seattle
Sources: USGS Fact Sheet 2006-3016 (March 2006); USGS Circular 1188, Table 3.
Note: These areas are identified using a population-based risk factor based on 1999 population data. (William
Leith, ANSS Coordinator, USGS, Reston, VA, telephone conversation, Nov. 15, 2006).
Figure 3. Histogram of the Number of U.S. Earthquakes
from 2000 to 2008 by Magnitude (1.0 to 6.9)
2000
1800
s
e
k 1600
a
u 1400
q
h
rt 1200
a 1000
E
800
er of
b
600
m
400
Nu
200
0
1.0 to 1.9 2.0 to 2.9 3.0 to 3.9 4.0 to 4.9 5.0 to 5.9 6.0 to 6.9
Magnitude
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008

Source: USGS, “Earthquake Facts and Statistics,” at http://neic.usgs.gov/neis/eqlists/eqstats.html; data as of
December 7, 2009.
Note: Earthquakes greater than magnitude 7.0 and less than 1.0 are not shown. According to the USGS, 6
earthquakes of magnitude 7.0 or greater occurred in the United States between 2001 and 2007.
Congressional Research Service
9

Earthquakes: Risk, Detection, Warning, and Research

As Figure 3 shows, about 98% of earthquakes detected each year by the NEIC are smaller than
magnitude 5.0; only 59 earthquakes exceeded magnitude 6.0 for the nine-year period (less than
0.3% of the total earthquakes detected) for an average of less than seven earthquakes per year of
at least 6.0 magnitude. Large earthquakes, although infrequent, cause the most damage and are
responsible for most earthquake-related deaths. The great San Francisco earthquake of 1906
claimed an estimated 3,000 lives, as a result of both the earthquake and subsequent fires. Over the
past 100 years, relatively few Americans have died as a result of earthquakes, compared to
citizens in some other countries.10 Since 1970, three major earthquakes in the United States were
responsible for 188 of the 212 total earthquake-related fatalities (see Table 4).
Table 4. Earthquakes Responsible for Most U.S. Fatalities Since 1970
Date Location
Magnitude
Deaths
February 9, 1971
San Fernando Val ey, CA
6.6
65
October 18, 1989
Loma Prieta, CA
6.9
63
January 17, 1994
Northridge, CA
6.7
60
Source: USGS, http://earthquake.usgs.gov/regional/states/us_deaths.php.
Note: Other sources report different numbers of fatalities associated with the Northridge earthquake.
Since 2000, only two deaths directly caused by earthquakes have occurred in the United States,
both associated with falling debris in Paso Robles (CA) during the December 22, 2003, San
Simeon earthquake of magnitude 6.5. In contrast, earthquakes have been directly or indirectly
responsible for more than 685,000 fatalities in other countries since 2000.11 Approximately 65%
of those estimated deaths resulted from the December 2004 Indonesian earthquake (and resulting
tsunami) of magnitude 9.1, and the January 2010 magnitude 7.0 earthquake in Haiti. Since the
devastating Indonesian earthquake occurred, an October 2005 magnitude 7.6 earthquake in
Pakistan killed approximately 86,000 people, and a May 2008 magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck
Eastern Sichuan, China, causing as many as 87,000 fatalities (see box).
The 1994 Northridge earthquake was the nation’s most damaging earthquake in the past 100
years, preceded five years earlier by the second most costly earthquake—Loma Prieta. Table 5
shows the 10 costliest U.S. earthquakes in terms of insured and uninsured losses. Comparing
losses between different earthquakes, and between earthquakes and other disasters such as
hurricanes, can be difficult because of the different ways losses are calculated. Calculations may
include a combination of insured losses, uninsured losses, and estimates of lost economic activity.
For example, insured losses from Hurricane Katrina in 2005—mainly property—may be $41
billion, according to one estimate.12 Total property damage would rise if uninsured property were
included; and including interrupted economic activity in the calculation could bring the total loss
for Hurricane Katrina to $100 billion, according to one estimate.13

10 Estimates of earthquake-related fatalities vary, and an exact tally of deaths and injuries is rare. For more information
on the difficulties of counting earthquake-related deaths and injuries, see http://earthquake.usgs.gov/regional/world/
casualty_totals.php.
11 U.S. Geological Survey, Earthquakes with 1,000 or More Deaths Since 1900, at http://earthquake.usgs.gov/
earthquakes/world/world_deaths.php. This estimate does not include fatalities from the February 27, 2010, magnitude
8.8 Chilean earthquake, which has resulted in widespread destruction but few fatalities compared to the Indonesian,
Pakistan, and Haiti earthquakes.
12 Insurance Information Institute, http://www.iii.org/media/facts/statsbyissue/hurricanes/. Loss estimates are in 2005
dollars.
13 Risk Management Solutions (RMS), Newark, CA, press release (Sept. 2, 2005), at http://www.rms.com/NewsPress/
PR_090205_HUKatrina.asp.
Congressional Research Service
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Earthquakes: Risk, Detection, Warning, and Research

The May 12, 2008, Sichuan Earthquake in China and
Implications for the United States
On May 12, 2008, a catastrophic earthquake of magnitude 7.9 struck Eastern Sichuan, China. The epicenter was
located approximately 960 miles southwest of Beijing, and the earthquake was triggered approximately 12 miles
below the earth’s surface. Approximately 87,000 fatalities have been reported. The earthquake was felt in parts of
eastern, southern, and central China, and as far away as Bangladesh, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. Several large
aftershocks occurred after the main seismic event.
The May 12 earthquake resulted from movement along a northeast-trending reverse or thrust fault, reflecting stresses
from the convergence of rocks of the Tibetan Plateau, to the west, against the crust underlying the Sichuan Basin and
southeastern China. The region has experienced large earthquakes in the past; on August 25, 1933, a magnitude 7.5
earthquake struck the northwestern margin of the Sichuan Basin, resulting in approximately 9,300 fatalities.
Some concerns have been raised about the possibility of an earthquake of similar magnitude occurring in a seismically
active region of the United States, such as southern California, where fault movement similar to the Eastern Sichuan
earthquake may occur. On May 22, 2008, the USGS released a hypothetical scenario for a magnitude 7.8 southern
California earthquake, cal ed the ShakeOut Scenario. In the scenario, scientists hypothetical y simulated the ground
shaking and fault rupture associated with a magnitude 7.8 earthquake, and estimated the resulting damage to buildings
and infrastructure. The scenario estimated approximately 1,800 fatalities and $213 billion in economic losses as a
result of the earthquake. The report points to aggressive retrofitting programs that have increased the seismic
resistance of buildings, highways, and other critical infrastructure in southern California as one reason why the
number of possible fatalities is relatively low.
Some scientists have raised the possibility that earthquakes, such as the May 12, 2008, Sichuan event, may sometimes
exhibit cascading behavior, where bursts of seismic energy are released along different places in a single fault, or jump
between connected faults. Earthquakes that occur along the Sierra Madre fault in southern California, for example,
could trigger a series of cascading seismic events along other faults, such as the San Andreas. Seismic hazard estimates
may not ful y account for the damage that could be caused by cascading earthquakes along a connected fault system.
Scientists are hoping to examine the Sichuan earthquake in more detail to better understand the nature of cascading
seismic events and how they affect the U.S. seismic hazard estimates.
Sources: Ken Hudnut, geophysicist, USGS, Pasadena, CA, phone conversation, June 11, 2008; USGS Earthquake
Hazards Program, at http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/eqinthenews/2008/us2008ryan/#summary; USGS
Newsroom, Earthquake Fatalities High in 2008, at http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=2101; and USGS, The
ShakeOut Scenario, Open-File Report 2008-1150 (2008), at http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2008/1150/.

Table 5. The 10 Most Damaging Earthquakes in the United States
Year Location
Magnitude
$2005
(billions)
1994 Northridge,
CAa 6.7
$26.0
1989
Loma Prieta, CA
6.9
$11.0
1964 Anchorage,
AK
9.2
$3.1
1971
San Fernando, CA
6.5
$2.7
2001 Nisqual y,
WA
6.8
$2.5

1987
Whittier Narrows, CA
5.9
$0.62
1933
Long Beach, CA
6.3
$0.60
1953
Kern County, CA
7.5
$0.44
1992 Landers,
CA
7.6
$0.13
1992
Cape Mendocino, CA
7.1
$0.092
Source: Insurance Information Institute, at http://www.iii.org/media/facts/statsbyissue/earthquakes/.
Note: Includes insured and uninsured losses.
a. Estimates for total losses resulting from the Northridge earthquake vary; the Congressional Budget Office
estimated $43 billion in total losses ($50 million in 2005 dollars). See Federal Reinsurance for Disasters,
Congressional Budget Office (September 2002), p. 19.
Congressional Research Service
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Earthquakes: Risk, Detection, Warning, and Research

January 12, 2010, Magnitude 7.0 Earthquake Strikes Haiti
On Tuesday, January 12, 2010, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck Haiti at 4:53 p.m. The epicenter was located
approximately 15 miles southwest of Port-au-Prince, and the earthquake occurred at a depth of about 8 miles,
according to initial USGS reports. The relatively shal ow earthquake, and its close proximity to the capital city,
exposed millions of Haitians to severe to violent ground shaking. The earthquake occurred along the Enriquillo-
Plantain Garden fault system, a major east-west trending strike-slip fault system that lies between the Caribbean
tectonic plate and the North American tectonic plate; the Caribbean plate actively moves against the North American
plate and shear stresses are created at the boundary. At a strike-slip fault, the rocks move past each other
horizontal y along the fault line (in contrast to a thrust fault, where rocks on one side of the fault move on top of the
rocks on the other side). Earthquakes comparable to or stronger than the January 12 event have struck Haiti at least
four times over the past three centuries. Earthquakes in 1751 and 1770—which probably occurred along the same
fault system—destroyed Port-au-Prince. Other examples of strike-slip faults are the San Andreas fault in California
and the Red River fault in China.
The January 12 earthquake caused widespread damage in the Port-au-Prince area, causing approximately 230,000
deaths and 300,000 injuries. Also, a series of aftershocks fol owed the main earthquake. There were 14 aftershocks
greater than magnitude 5 and 36 greater than magnitude 4 within the first day fol owing the magnitude 7.0 event.
Aftershocks have the potential to cause further damage, especially to structures weakened by the initial large
earthquake. In a February 23, 2010, statement, the USGS indicated that the frequency of aftershocks should diminish
with time, but the threat of additional damaging earthquakes remains. The USGS noted that buildings in the Port-au-
Prince area will continue to be at risk from strong earthquake shaking, and that the fault responsible for the January
12 earthquake still stores sufficient strain to be released as a large, damaging earthquake during the lifetime of
structures built during the reconstruction effort.
The USGS based its probability estimates on techniques developed to assess earthquake hazards in the United States.
Using these techniques, the USGS estimated that the probability of a magnitude 7 or greater earthquake occurring
within the next 50 years along the Enriquillo fault near Port-au-Prince is between 5% and 15%. The range of
probabilities reflects the current understanding of the seismicity and tectonics of the Haiti region. By comparison, the
USGS has estimated that that the probability of a magnitude 7 or greater earthquake occurring within the next 50
years along the Hayward-Rodgers Creek fault east of San Francisco is about 15%.
Sources: USGS Earthquake Hazards Program, Significant Earthquakes: Magnitude 7.0—Haiti Region, at
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqinthenews/2010/us2010rja6/; Michael Blanpied, Associate Coordinator for
the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program, podcast, Jan. 13, 2010, at http://www.usgs.gov/corecast/details.asp?ep=117;
email from David Applegate, Senior Science Advisor for Earthquake and Geologic Hazards, Jan. 13, 2010; USGS
statement, “USGS Updates Assessment of Earthquake Hazard and Safety in Haiti and the Caribbean,” February 23,
2010, at http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=2413&from=rss_home. See also CRS Report R41023, Haiti
Earthquake: Crisis and Response, by Rhoda Margesson and Maureen Taft-Morales.
Potential Losses from Earthquakes
The United States faces potentially large total losses due to earthquake-caused damage to
buildings and infrastructure and lost economic activity. As urban development continues in
earthquake-prone regions in the United States, concerns are increasing about the exposure of the
built environment, including utilities and transportation systems, to potential earthquake
damage.14 One estimate of loss from a severe earthquake in the Los Angeles area is over $500
billion. An even higher estimate—approximately $900 billion—includes damage to the heavily
populated central New Jersey-Philadelphia corridor if a 6.5 magnitude earthquake occurred along
a fault lying between New York City and Philadelphia.15

14 FEMA Publication 366, HAZUS MH Estimated Annualized Earthquake Losses for the United States (April 2008), at
http://www.fema.gov/library/viewRecord.do?id=3265. Hereafter referred to as FEMA 366.
15 A. M. Best Company Inc., 2006 Annual Earthquake Study: $100 Billion of Insured Loss in 40 Seconds (Oldwick, NJ:
A.M. Best Company, 2006), p. 12. The A. M. Best report includes estimates from catastrophe-modeling companies of
predicted damage from hypothetical earthquakes in Los Angeles, the Midwest, the Northeast, and Japan. The report
(continued...)
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Earthquakes: Risk, Detection, Warning, and Research

Some studies and techniques combine seismic risk with the value of the building inventory16 and
income losses (e.g., business interruption, wage, and rental income losses) in cities, counties, or
regions across the country to provide estimations of economic losses from earthquakes. An April
2008 report from FEMA calculated that the annualized loss from earthquakes nationwide is $5.3
billion, with California, Oregon, and Washington accounting for nearly $4.1 billion (77%) of the
U.S. total estimated annualized loss.17 Table 6 shows metropolitan areas with estimated
annualized U.S. earthquake losses over $10 million.
Table 6. U.S. Metropolitan Areas with Estimated Annualized
Earthquake Losses of More Than $10 Million
(in $ millions)
Rank Metro
area
AEL Rank Metro
area
AEL
1
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA
$1,312
23
Reno-Sparks, NV
$29
2
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA
$781
24
Charleston-North Charleston, SC
$22
3
Riverside-San Bernadino-Ontario, CA
$397
25
Columbia, SC
$22
4
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA
$277
26
Stockton, CA
$21
5
Seattle-Tacoma, WA
$244
27
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA
$19
6
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA
$155
28
Bremerton-Silverdale, WA
$18
7 Portland-Vancouver-Carlsbad,
OR
$137 29 Ogden-Clearfield,
UT
$18
8
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA
$111
30
Salem, OR
$17
9
Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA
$69
31
Eugene-Springfield, OR
$17
10
St. Louis, MO-IL
$59
32
Napa, CA
$16
11
Salt Lake City, UT
$52
33
San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA
$16
12 Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville,
CA $52 34 Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro,
TN
$15
13 Val ejo-Fairfield,
CA
$40 35 Albuquerque,
NM
$15
14 Memphis,
TN
$38 36 Olympia,
WA
$14
15
Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA
$36
37
Modesto, CA
$13
16 Anchorage,
AK
$35 38 Fresno,
CA
$13
17
Santa Barbara-Santa Maria-Goleta, CA
$34
39
Evansville, IN-KY
$12
18 Las
Vegas-Paradise,
NV
$33 40 Birmingham-Hoover,
AL
$11
19 Honolulu,
HI
$32 41 El
Centro,
CA
$11
20
Bakersfield, CA
$30
42
Little Rock-North Little Rock, AR
$11
21
New York-Northern New Jersey-
$30 43 Provo-Orem,
UT
$10
Long Island, NY
22 Salinas,
CA
$29

Source FEMA Publication 366, HAZUS MH Estimated Annualized Earthquake Losses for the United States (April
2008). Annualized earthquake losses (AEL) calculated in 2005 dol ars.

(...continued)
cites an estimate by one such company, Risk Management Solutions (RMS), that a hypothetical 7.4 magnitude event
along the Newport-Inglewood Fault near Los Angeles would cause $549 billion in total property damage. A
hypothetical 6.5 magnitude earthquake along a fault between Philadelphia and New York City would produce $901
billion in total loss, according to an RMS estimate.
16 Building inventory refers to four main inventory groups: (1) general building stock, (2) essential and high potential
loss facilities, (3) transportation systems, and (4) utility systems (FEMA 366).
17 FEMA 366, p. 37.
Congressional Research Service
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Earthquakes: Risk, Detection, Warning, and Research

February 27, 2010, Magnitude 8.8 Earthquake in Chile:
Is There a Similar Risk to the United States?
A massive magnitude 8.8 earthquake struck Chile on February 27, 2010, along a subduction zone plate boundary fault
70 miles north-northeast of the city of Concepcion and offshore of the Chilean coast. The earthquake occurred at a
depth of approximately 22 miles below the seafloor, much deeper than the earthquake that struck Haiti near Port-au-
Prince on January 12. Several cities, including Concepcion, experienced intensity VIII shaking on the Modified Mercalli
Intensity Index, corresponding to severe perceived shaking. The capital city of Santiago, located 200 miles northeast
of the epicenter, experienced intensity VII shaking corresponding to very strong perceived shaking. The earthquake
has caused widespread damage that may amount to $3-$8 billion in insured losses, and probably more in total
economic losses. Over 700 deaths have been reported, many from the tsunami generated by the subsea earthquake,
and possibly 2 million people have been affected. Far fewer fatalities are expected in Chile compared to the Haiti
earthquake, even though the Chilean earthquake was much more powerful, in part because the epicenter was farther
from major population centers and the earthquake occurred 14 miles deeper than the Haitian event. In addition,
details are beginning to emerge about the effectiveness of earthquake-resistant design and building construction in
Chile as compared to Haiti.
Because the earthquake occurred offshore, it generated a tsunami, which struck parts of the Chilean coastline and
offshore islands, causing damage and fatalities. Tsunami warnings were issued by the National Weather Service Pacific
Tsunami Warning Center for Hawaii, Japan, and other regions bordering the Pacific Ocean that may have been
vulnerable to a damaging tsunami wave, although most regions far from the epicenter did not experience any serious
damage. A tsunami caused significant damage to the city of Hilo, Hawaii, following the May 1960 magnitude 9.5
earthquake that also occurred along the subduction zone fault about 143 miles south of the February 27, 2010,
earthquake. Why the 1960 earthquake generated a tsunami that caused damage and fatalities in Hawaii, Japan, and the
Philippines while the 2010 earthquake did not is not yet wel understood and is being actively studied.
The magnitude 8.8 earthquake occurred along the boundary between the Nazca tectonic plate and the South
American tectonic plate, which converge at a rate of about 3 inches per year. The Nazca plate is subducting under the
South American plate, which rides over the top of the Nazca plate. In geologic terms, this is known as a thrust fault
or megathrust, in contrast to a strike-slip fault, where the rocks on either side of the fault slide past each other. The
San Andreas fault and the Enriquillo fault that caused the January 2010 Haiti earthquake are strike-slip faults. The
Sumatran-Andaman megathrust fault, which triggered the December 2004 Indonesian earthquake and tsunami, is a
subduction zone fault or megathrust geological y similar to the Nazca-South American tectonic plate subduction zone.
Subduction zone megathrust faults generate the largest earthquakes in the world. The Cascadia Subduction Zone
megathrust that stretches from mid-Vancouver Island in southern British Columbia southward to Cape Mendocino in
northern California has the potential to generate a very large earthquake, similar in magnitude to the February 2010
Chilean earthquake. The fault’s proximity to the northwestern U.S. coastline—approximately 50-100 miles offshore—
also poses a significant tsunami hazard; destructive waves from a large earthquake along the fault could reach the
coast of Oregon and Washington in less than an hour, possibly in tens of minutes. The Cascadia Subduction Zone
fault forms the boundary between the subducting Juan de Fuca tectonic plate and the overriding North American
plate, very similar to the relationship between the Nazca Plate and the South American Plate off the Chilean coast. If
the Cascadia Subduction Zone megathrust were to “unzip” or rupture along a large section of its entire length, it
would likely generate a megathrust earthquake near magnitude 9 or more, similar to the 1964 Alaskan earthquake,
the 1960 and 2010 Chilean earthquakes, and the 2004 Indonesian earthquake. Scientists have documented that the
last time this occurred along the Cascadia Subduction Zone fault was in 1700. The 1700 earthquake spawned a
tsunami that traveled across the Pacific Ocean and struck Japan. Because of the tectonic similarities between the
Cascadia Subduction Zone megathrust and the Nazca-South American plate megathrust, scientists hope to learn a
great deal about the seismic hazard in the Pacific Northwest by studying the unique strong ground motion recordings
from the 2010 Chilean magnitude 8.8 earthquake.
Sources: USGS Earthquake Hazards Program, Magnitude 8.8–Offshore Maule, Chile, at http://earthquake.usgs.gov/
earthquakes/eqinthenews/2010/us2010tfan/; Eqecat, “M8.8 Earthquake Offshore Maule, Chile,” CatWatch, February
27, 2010, at http://www.eqecat.com/catWatchREV/secureSite/report.cfm?id=220 (Eqecat provides loss estimates for
insurance and financial institutions); Business Week, “Chile Asks for International Aid as Looting Spreads,” March 2,
2010, at http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-03-02/chile-asks-for-international-aid-as-looting-spreads-correct-
.html; Brian F. Atwater et al., The Orphan Tsunami of 1700—Japanese Clues to a Parent Earthquake in North America,
USGS, Professional Paper 1707, 2005, http://pubs.usgs.gov/pp/pp1707/; e-mail from Richard Aster, Professor of
Geophysics, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, March 2, 2010.

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Earthquakes: Risk, Detection, Warning, and Research

Annualized earthquake loss (AEL) addresses two components of seismic risk: the probability of
ground motion and the consequences of ground motion. It enables comparison between different
regions with different seismic hazards and different building construction types and quality. For
example, earthquake hazard is higher in the Los Angeles area than in Memphis, but the general
building stock in Los Angeles is more resistant to the effects of earthquakes. The AEL annualizes
the expected losses by averaging them by year.
A Decrease in Estimated Loss?
In its most recent publication estimating earthquake losses, FEMA noted that the $5.3 billion in
annualized earthquake loss nationwide was 21% higher than the $4.4 billion calculated in
FEMA’s previous report, published in February 2001.18 However, the 2001 report calculated
losses using 1994 dollars, and when adjusted to reflect 2005 dollars the earlier estimate increased
to $5.6 billion, indicating a small decrease in nationwide annualized earthquake loss potential
since the 2001 report was published. According to FEMA, this loss occurred even though the
national building inventory increased by 50% over this same period.
What factors led to a decreased estimate in potential loss despite growth in building inventory?
According to FEMA, two primary factors were responsible: (1) a slight decrease in estimated
earthquake hazard in the western United States (namely California) except for some parts of
Washington and Utah, and (2) a change in the distribution of building inventory in California,
with an increase in wood frame buildings of 17% and a reduction in the amount of masonry
(-6%), steel (-5.8%), and concrete (-3%) buildings in the state.19 Wood frame buildings are less
vulnerable to earthquake damage, generally, compared to other construction types. Because
California accounts for 66% of the overall nationwide annualized earthquake loss, a 17% increase
in wood frame buildings had a proportionally large effect. In fact, FEMA attributed 78% of the
loss reduction between 2001 and 2008 to the change in building inventory distribution, and 22%
to the decrease in earthquake hazard for California.20
A single large earthquake can cause far more damage than the average annual estimate.
Annualized estimates, however, help provide comparisons of infrequent, high impact events like
damaging earthquakes, with more frequently occurring hazards like floods, hurricanes, or other
types of severe weather. The annualized earthquake loss values shown in Table 6 represent future
estimates, and are calculated by multiplying losses from potential future ground motions by their
respective frequencies of occurrence, and then summing these values.21
Table 6 also shows that annualized earthquake losses in the New York-Northern New Jersey-
Long Island metropolitan area are $30 million (ranked 21 out of 43 metropolitan areas with losses
greater than $1 million per year), even though no destructive earthquakes have struck that area for
generations.22 This area has a relatively low seismic hazard, but also has an extensive

18 Ibid., p. 32.
19 FEMA 366, p. 32 and p. 36.
20 Ibid., p. 36.
21 Ibid., p. 10.
22 The largest earthquakes in New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts were, respectively: 1944, Massena, NY,
magnitude 5.8, felt from Canada south to Maryland; 1783, New Jersey, magnitude 5.3, felt from New Hampshire to
Pennsylvania; and 1755, Cape Ann and Boston, MA, intensity of VIII on the Modified Mercalli Scale, felt from Nova
Scotia to Chesapeake Bay (USGS Earthquake Hazards Program).
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Earthquakes: Risk, Detection, Warning, and Research

infrastructure and is densely populated. That combination of seismic risk, extensive
infrastructure, and dense population produces a significant risk to people and structures,
according to some estimates.23 In the absence of any significant or damaging earthquakes for that
region in recent memory, however, the actual risk may be difficult to grasp intuitively.
The New Madrid Seismic Zone
The New Madrid Seismic Zone in the central United States is vulnerable to large but infrequent
earthquakes. A series of large (magnitude greater than 7.0) earthquakes struck the Mississippi
Valley over the winter of 1811-1812, centered close to the town of New Madrid, MO. Some of
the tremors were felt as far away as Charleston, SC, and Washington, DC. The mechanism for the
earthquakes in the New Madrid zone is poorly understood,24 and no earthquakes of comparable
magnitude have occurred in the area since these events.
Estimating earthquake damage is not an exact science and depends on many factors. As described
above, these are primarily the probability of ground motion occurring in a particular area (see
Figure 2), and the consequences of that ground motion, which are largely a function of building
construction type and quality, and of the level of ground motion and shaking during the actual
event. Such factors contribute to the difficulty of making a reasonable damage estimate for a low-
frequency, high-impact event in the New Madrid region based on the probability of an earthquake
of similar magnitude occurring. This uncertainty has implications for policy decisions to
ameliorate risk, such as setting building codes, and for designing and building structures to
withstand a level of shaking commensurate with the risk. Developers of building codes tend to err
on the side of caution; presumably the same seismic hazard should lead to similar building codes
in urban areas (e.g., compare the seismic hazard for the New Madrid area with parts of California
shown in Figure 2).
Some researchers have questioned whether erring on the side of caution in the New Madrid
Seismic Zone is justified.25 These researchers question whether the benefits of building structures
to conform with the earthquake probability estimates merit the costs, in light of the uncertainty in
making those probability estimates.26 These analyses may call into question whether the
probability of ground motion estimates for the New Madrid Seismic Zone (the bulls-eye-shaped
area shown in Figure 2 that includes parts of Arkansas, Illinois, Tennessee, and Missouri), and
other regions of the country that experience infrequent earthquakes, are too high.27 An uncertainty
analysis of the seismic hazard in the New Madrid Seismic Zone is beyond the scope of this report.

23 USGS Circular 1188, Table 3.
24 In contrast to California, where earthquakes occur on the active margin of the North American tectonic plate, the
New Madrid seismic zone is not on a plate boundary but may be related to old faults in the interior of the plate,
marking a zone of tectonic weakness.
25 Andrew Newman et al., “Slow Deformation and Lower Seismic Hazard in the New Madrid Seismic Zone,” Science,
v. 284 (April 23, 1999), pp. 619-621.
26 Seth Stein, Joseph Tomasello, and Andrew Newman, “Should Memphis Build for California’s Earthquakes?” Eos, v.
84, no. 19, (May 13, 2003), pp. 177, 184-185.
27 Seth Stein, “Code Red: Earthquake Imminent?” Earth, vol. 54, no. 1 (January 2009), pp. 52-59.
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Earthquakes: Risk, Detection, Warning, and Research

Monitoring
Congress authorized the USGS to monitor seismic activity in the United States in the 1990
reauthorization of the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act (P.L. 101-614). The USGS
operates a nationwide network of seismographic stations called the Advanced National Seismic
System (ANSS), which includes the National Strong-Motion Project (NSMP). Globally, the
USGS and the Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (IRIS) operate 140 seismic
stations of the Global Seismic Network (GSN) in more than 80 countries. The GSN provides
worldwide coverage of earthquakes, including reporting and research.28
Advanced National Seismic System (ANSS)
According to the USGS, “the mission of ANSS is to provide accurate and timely data and
information products for seismic events, including their effects on buildings and structures,
employing modern monitoring methods and technologies.”29 If fully implemented, ANSS would
encompass more than 7,000 earthquake sensor systems covering parts of the nation vulnerable to
earthquake hazards. As envisioned, the system would consist of dense urban networks, regional
networks, and backbone stations.
ANSS Funding
Congress first authorized the ANSS program in P.L. 106-503 at a level of $38 million for FY2002
and $44 million for FY2003. The 2004 reauthorization of NEHRP (P.L. 108-360) authorized $30
million for ANSS in FY2005 and then $36 million per year through FY2009. The USGS spent
$1.6 million in FY2000 and $3.6 million in FY2001 on ANSS-directed funding, but expenditures
have never reached authorized levels since Congress first authorized appropriations for ANSS.
From FY2005 through FY2009, the USGS spent a total of approximately $42.5 million within its
Earthquake Hazards Program on ANSS, or approximately 24% of the total authorized levels over
the five-year period since NEHRP was last reauthorized.30
The FY2010 budget request stated that the USGS plans to install a cumulative total of 822 ANSS
monitoring stations by the end of 2009. That would represent approximately 12% of the 7,000
seismic stations originally envisioned for the program. According to its budget justification, the
USGS plans to devote its ANSS-directed resources to operating and maintaining the installed
system.31 Of the approximately $8.8 million for ANSS-directed funding in FY2009, about $1.5
million was devoted to the development, modernization, and expansion of the system; the
remainder of FY2009 funding was used to operate the existing system.32 However, the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA, P.L. 111-5) provided approximately $19 million in
ANSS-directed funding to be spent over FY2009-FY2011.33 All of the ARRA funding would be

28 The GSN also monitors nuclear explosions.
29 USGS Earthquake Hazards Program, at http://earthquake.usgs.gov/research/monitoring/anss/.
30 USGS FY2010 Budget Justification, at http://www.usgs.gov/budget/2010/greenbook/
FY2010_USGS_Greenbook.pdf, p. I-10.
31 Ibid., p. I-11.
32 Email from William Leith, Advanced National Seismic System Coordinator, USGS, December 22, 2009.
33 USGS FY2010 Budget Justification, pp. T-32 and T-33.
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provided for modernization and expansion of the current system, and when supplemented by base
program funds over the three-year period, would double the number of ANSS stations.34 A
doubling of the number of current stations would total approximately 23% of the 7,000 stations
originally planned for ANSS.
Dense Urban Networks
In the original conception for ANSS, approximately 6,000 of the planned stations would be
installed in 26 high-risk urban areas to monitor strong ground shaking and how buildings and
other structures respond. Currently, five high-risk urban areas have instruments deployed in
sufficient density to generate the data to produce near real-time maps, called ShakeMaps, which
can be used in emergency response during and after an earthquake.35 (See “ShakeMap,” below.)
Regional Networks
Approximately 1,000 new instruments would replace aging and obsolete stations in the networks
that now monitor the nation’s most seismically active regions. The current regional networks
contain a mix of modern, digital, broadband, and high-resolution instruments that can provide
real-time data; they are supplemented by older instruments that may require manual downloading
of data. Universities in the region typically operate the regional networks and will likely continue
to do so as ANSS is implemented.
Backbone Stations
Approximately 100 instruments comprise the existing “backbone” of ANSS, with a roughly
uniform distribution across the United States, including Alaska and Hawaii. These instruments
provide a broad and uniform minimum threshold of coverage across the country. The backbone
network consists of USGS-deployed instruments and other instruments that serve both ANSS and
the EarthScope project (described below, under “National Science Foundation”).
National Strong-Motion Project (NSMP)
Under ANSS, the USGS operates the NSMP to record seismic data from damaging earthquakes in
the United States on the ground and in buildings and other structures in densely urbanized areas.
The program currently has 900 strong-motion36 instruments in 701 permanent stations across the
United States and in the Caribbean. The NSMP has three components: data acquisition, data
management, and research. The near real-time measurements collected by the NSMP are used by
other government agencies for emergency response and real-time warnings. If fully implemented,
the ANSS program would deploy about 3,000 strong-motion instruments. Many of the current
NSMP instruments are older designs and are being upgraded with modern seismometers.

34 USGS FY2010 Budget Justification, pp. T-32 and T-33.
35 The number of stations necessary to generate a data-based ShakeMap depends on the urban area and geology, but
roughly correspond to about half the number of planned stations per urban area, at a spacing of about 20 kilometers
between stations. Personal communication, William Leith, Advanced National Seismic System Coordinator, USGS,
January 11, 2010.
36 Strong motion seismometers, or accelerometers, are special sensors that measure the acceleration of the ground
during large (>6.0 magnitude) earthquakes.
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Global Seismic Network (GSN)
The GSN is a system of broadband digital seismographs arrayed around the globe and designed to
collect high-quality data that are readily accessible to users worldwide, typically via computer.
Currently, 140 stations have been installed in 80 countries and the system is nearly complete,
although in some regions the spacing and location of stations has not fully met the original goal
of uniform spacing of approximately 2,000 kilometers. The system is currently providing data to
the United States and other countries and institutions for earthquake reporting and research, as
well as for monitoring nuclear explosions to assess compliance with the Comprehensive Test Ban
Treaty. Funding for the GSN totaled approximately $9 million in FY2009.37
The Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (IRIS)38 coordinates the GSN and
manages and makes available the large amounts of data that are generated from the network. The
actual network of seismographs is organized into two main components, each managed
separately. The USGS operates two-thirds of the stations from its Albuquerque Seismological
Laboratory, and the University of California-San Diego manages the other third via its Project
IDA (International Deployment of Accelerometers). Other universities and affiliated agencies and
institutions operate a small number of additional stations. IRIS, with funding from the NSF,
supports all of the stations not funded through the USGS appropriations.
Detection, Notification, and Warning
Unlike other natural hazards, such as hurricanes, where predicting the location and timing of
landfall is becoming increasingly accurate, the scientific understanding of earthquakes does not
yet allow for precise earthquake prediction. Instead, notification and warning typically involves
communicating the location and magnitude of an earthquake as soon as possible after the event to
emergency response providers and others who need the information.
Some probabilistic earthquake forecasts are now available that give, for example, a 24-hour
probability of earthquake aftershocks for a particular region, such as California. These forecasts
are not predictions, and are currently intended to increase public awareness of the seismic hazard,
improve emergency response, and increase scientific understanding of the short-term hazard.39 In
the California example, a time-dependent map is created and updated every hour by a system that
considers all earthquakes, large and small, detected by the California Integrated Seismic
Network,40 and calculates a probability that each earthquake will be followed by an aftershock41
that can cause strong shaking. The probabilities are calculated from known behavior of
aftershocks and the possible shaking pattern based on historical data.

37 $9 million reflects the combined appropriations for USGS and NSF for FY2009. ARRA (P.L. 111-5) enabled
approximately $10 million to be made available via the USGS and NSF for the GSN through FY2010. Email from
William Leith, Advanced National Seismic System Coordinator, USGS, Dec. 21, 2009.
38 IRIS is a university research consortium, primarily funded by NSF, that collects and distributes seismographic data.
39 USGS Open-File Report 2004-1390, and California 24-hour Aftershock Forecast Map, at
http://pasadena.wr.usgs.gov/step/.
40 The California Integrated Seismic Network is the California region of ANSS; see http://www.cisn.org/.
41 Earthquakes typically occur in clusters, in which the earthquake with the largest magnitude is called the main shock,
events before the main shock are called foreshocks, and those after are called aftershocks. See also
http://pasadena.wr.usgs.gov/step/aftershocks.html.
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When a destructive earthquake occurs in the United States or in other countries, the first reports
of its location, or epicenter,42 and magnitude originate either from the National Earthquake
Information Center (NEIC), or from one of the regional seismic networks that are part of ANSS.
Other organizations, such as universities, consortia, and individual seismologists may also
contribute information about the earthquake after the event. Products such as ShakeMap are
assembled as rapidly as possible to assist in emergency response and damage estimation
following a destructive earthquake.
National Earthquake Information Center (NEIC)
The NEIC, part of the USGS, is located in Golden, CO. Originally established as part of the
National Ocean Survey (U.S. Department of Commerce) in 1966, the NEIC was made part of the
USGS in 1973. With data gathered from the networks described above and from other sources,
the NEIC determines the location and size of all destructive earthquakes that occur worldwide
and disseminates the information to the appropriate national or international agencies,
government public information channels, news media, scientists and scientific groups, and the
general public.
With the advent of the USGS Earthquake Notification Service (ENS), notifications of earthquakes
detected by the ANSS/NEIC are provided free to interested parties. Users of the service can
specify the regions of interest, establish notification thresholds of earthquake magnitude,
designate whether they wish to receive notification of aftershocks, and even set different
magnitude thresholds for daytime or nighttime to trigger a notification.
The NEIC has long-standing agreements with key emergency response groups, federal, state, and
local authorities, and other key organizations in earthquake-prone regions who receive automated
alerts—typically location and magnitude of an earthquake—within a few minutes of an event in
the United States. The NEIC sends these preliminary alerts by email and pager immediately after
an earthquake’s magnitude and epicenter are automatically determined by computer.43 This initial
determination is then checked by around-the-clock staff who confirm and update the magnitude
and location data.44 After the confirmation, a second set of notifications and confirmations are
triggered to key recipients by email, pager, fax, and telephone.
For earthquakes outside the United States, the NEIC notifies the State Department Operations
Center, and often sends alerts directly to staff at American embassies and consulates in the
affected countries, to the International Red Cross, the U.N. Department of Humanitarian Affairs,
and other recipients who have made arrangements to receive alerts.
ShakeMap
Traditionally, the information commonly available following a destructive earthquake has been
epicenter and magnitude, as in the data provided by the NEIC described above. Those two

42 The epicenter of an earthquake is the point on the earth’s surface directly above the hypocenter. The hypocenter is
the location beneath the earth’s surface where the fault rupture begins.
43 Stuart Simkin, NEIC, Golden, CO, telephone conversation, Nov. 4, 2006.
44 In early 2006, the NEIC implemented an around-the-clock operation center and seismic event processing center in
response to the Indonesian earthquake and resulting tsunami of December 2004. Funding to implement 24/7 operations
was provided by P.L. 109-13.
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parameters by themselves, however, do not always indicate the intensity of shaking and extent of
damage following a major earthquake. Recently, the USGS developed a product called ShakeMap
that provides a nearly real-time map of ground motion and shaking intensity following an
earthquake in areas of the United States where the ShakeMap system is in place. Figure 4 shows
an example of a ShakeMap.
Figure 4. Example of a ShakeMap

Source: USGS, http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/shakemap/nc/shake/71338066/.
Note: Earthquake occurred 23.1 miles west-northwest of Ferndale, CA, at 4:27 p.m. on January 9, 2010, with a
magnitude of 6.5. The star indicates the epicenter of the earthquake. Viewed on January 12, 2010. According to
preliminary news reports, some damage estimates are nearly $30 million for the town of Eureka itself from the
earthquake. (See http://www.times-standard.com/news/ci_14171082.)
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The maps produced portray the extent of damaging shaking and can be used by emergency
response and for estimating loss following a major earthquake. Currently, ShakeMaps are
available for northern California, southern California, the Pacific Northwest, Nevada, Utah,
Hawaii, and Alaska.45
With improvements to the regional seismographic networks in the areas where ShakeMap is
available, new real-time telemetry from the region, and advances in digital communication and
computation, ShakeMaps are now triggered automatically and made available within minutes of
the event via the Web. In addition, better maps are now available because of recent improvements
in understanding the relationship between the ground motions recorded during the earthquake and
the intensity of resulting damage. If databases containing inventories of buildings and lifelines are
available, they can be combined with shaking intensity data to produce maps of estimated
damage. The ShakeMaps have limitations, especially during the first few minutes following an
earthquake before more data arrive from distributed sources. Because they are generated
automatically, the initial maps are preliminary, and may not have been reviewed by experts when
first made available. They are considered a work in progress, but are deemed to be very
promising, especially as more modern seismic instruments are added to the regional networks
under ANSS and computational and telecommunication abilities improve.
Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER)
Another USGS product that is designed to provide nearly real-time earthquake information to
emergency responders, government agencies, and the media is the Prompt Assessment of Global
Earthquakes for Response, or PAGER, system.46 This automated system rapidly assesses the
number of people, cities, and regions exposed to severe shaking by an earthquake, and generally
makes results available within 30 minutes. Following the determination of earthquake location
and magnitude, the PAGER system calculates the degree of ground shaking using the
methodology developed for ShakeMap, estimates the number of people exposed to various levels
of shaking, and produces a description of the vulnerability of the exposed population and
infrastructure. The vulnerability includes potential for earthquake-triggered landslides, which
could be devastating, as was the case for the huge May 12, 2008, earthquake in Sichuan, China.
The automated and rapid reports produced by the PAGER system provide an advantage compared
to the traditional accounts from eye-witnesses on the ground or media reports, because
communications networks may have been disabled from the earthquake. Emergency responders,
relief organizations, and government agencies could make plans based on PAGER system reports
even before getting “ground-truth” information from eye-witnesses and the media.47
Figure 5 shows an example of PAGER output for the January 12, 2010, magnitude 7.0
earthquake in Haiti.


45 ShakeMaps for some areas outside the United States are also available. See http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/
shakemap/.
46 See the USGS Earthquakes Hazards Program for more information, at http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/pager/.
47 See also USGS Fact Sheet 2007-3101 at http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2007/3101/.
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Figure 5. Example of PAGER Output for the January 12, 2010,
Magnitude 7.0 Haiti Earthquake

Source: USGS, http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/pager/events/us/2010rja6/onepager.pdf.
Note: This is version 7 of the PAGER output, accessed on January 14, 2010.
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Pre-disaster Planning: HAZUS-MH
FEMA developed a methodology and software program called the Hazards U.S. Multi-Hazard
(HAZUS-MH).48 The program allows a user to estimate losses from damaging earthquakes,
hurricane winds, and floods before a disaster occurs. The pre-disaster estimates could provide a
basis for developing mitigation plans and policies, preparing for emergencies, and planning
response and recovery. HAZUS-MH combines existing scientific knowledge about earthquakes
(for example, ShakeMaps, described above), engineering information that includes data on how
structures respond to shaking, and geographic information system (GIS) software to produce
maps and display hazards data including economic loss estimates. The loss estimates produced by
HAZUS-MH include
• physical damage to residential and commercial buildings, schools, critical
facilities, and infrastructure;
• economic loss, including lost jobs, business interruptions, repair and
reconstruction costs; and
• social impacts, including estimates of shelter requirements, displaced households,
and number of people exposed to the disaster.
In addition to furnishing information as part of earthquake mitigation efforts, HAZUS-MH can
also be used to support real-time emergency response activities by state and federal agencies after
a disaster. Twenty-seven HAZUS-MH user groups—cooperative ventures among private, public,
and academic organizations that use the HAZUS-MH software—have formed across the United
States to help foster better-informed risk management for earthquakes and other natural hazards.49
HAZUS-MH software was first released to the public in 1997 and the first user group, the Bay
Area HAZUS-MH User Group, was formed the same year.
Research—Understanding Earthquakes
U.S. Geological Survey
Under NEHRP, the USGS has responsibility for conducting targeted research into improving the
basic scientific understanding of earthquake processes. The current earthquake research program
at the USGS covers six broad categories:50
Borehole geophysics and rock mechanics: studies to understand heat flow, stress,
fluid pressure, and the mechanical behavior of fault-zone materials at
seismogenic51 depths to yield improved models of the earthquake cycle;
Crustal deformation: studies of the distortion or deformation of the earth’s
surface near active faults as a result of the motion of tectonic plates;

48 See http://www.fema.gov/plan/prevent/hazus/hz_overview.shtm.
49 See http://www.hazus.org/.
50 See http://earthquake.usgs.gov/research/.
51 Seismogenic means capable of generating earthquakes.
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Earthquake geology and paleoseismology: studies of the history, effects, and
mechanics of earthquakes;
Earthquake hazards: studies of where, why, when, and how earthquakes occur;
Regional and whole-earth structure: studies using seismic waves from
earthquakes and man-made sources to determine the structure of the planet
ranging from the local scale, to the whole crust, mantle, and even the earth’s
core; and
Strong-motion seismology, site response, and ground motion: studies of large-
amplitude ground motions and the response of engineered structures to those
motions using accelerometers.
National Science Foundation
NSF supports fundamental research into understanding the earth’s dynamic crust. Through its
Earth Sciences Division (part of the Geosciences Directorate), NSF distributes research grants
and coordinates programs investigating the crustal processes that lead to earthquakes around the
globe.52 In 2003, NSF initiated a Major Research Equipment and Facilities Construction
(MREFC) project called EarthScope that deploys instruments across the United States to study
the structure and evolution of the North American Continent, and to investigate the physical
processes that cause earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.53 EarthScope is a multi-year project
begun in 2003 that is funded by NSF and conducted in partnership with the USGS and NASA.
EarthScope instruments are intended to form a framework for broad, integrated studies of the
four-dimensional (three spatial dimensions, plus time) structure of North America. The project is
divided into three main programs:
The San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD), a deep borehole
observatory drilled through the San Andreas fault zone close to the hypocenter of
the 1966 Parkfield, CA, magnitude 6 earthquake;
The Plate Boundary Observatory (PBO), a system of GPS arrays and
strainmeters54 that measure the active boundary zone between the Pacific and
North American tectonic plates in the western United States; and
USArray, 400 transportable seismometers that will be deployed systematically
across the United States on a uniform grid to provide a complete image of North
America from continuous seismic measurements.
Through its Engineering Directorate, NSF funds the George E. Brown Jr. Network for Earthquake
Engineering Simulation (NEES), a project intended to operate until 2014, aimed at understanding
the effects of earthquakes on structures and materials.55 To achieve the program’s goal, the NEES

52 See http://www.nsf.gov/div/index.jsp?div=EAR.
53 See http://www.earthscope.org/.
54 A strainmeter is a tool used by seismologists to measure the motion of one point relative to another.
55 A non-profit NEES consortium (NEESinc.) has operated the facilities for the 10-year operating lifespan at the
following institutions: Cornell University; Lehigh University; Oregon State University; Rensselaer Polytechnical
Institute; University of Buffalo-State University of New York; University of California-Berkeley; University of
California-Davis; University of California-Los Angeles; University of California-San Diego; University of California-
(continued...)
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facilities conduct experiments and computer simulations of how buildings, bridges, utilities,
coastal regions, and materials behave during an earthquake.
Conclusion
At present earthquakes can be neither accurately predicted nor prevented, and in its 1990
reauthorization NEHRP shifted its program emphasis from prediction to hazard reduction. The
program’s focus has been on understanding the earthquake hazard and its risk to populations and
infrastructure in the United States, developing effective measures to reduce earthquake hazards,
and promoting the adoption of earthquake hazards reduction measures in vulnerable areas. In the
111th Congress, legislation introduced to reauthorize NEHRP, H.R. 3820, reemphasizes that
approach but casts it in terms of hazard mitigation by stating that a major goal for the program
should be “to reduce the loss of life and damage to communities and infrastructure through
increasing the adoption of hazard mitigation measures.” The bill further emphasizes the social
aspects of mitigating earthquake hazards, calling for research to better understand institutional,
social, behavioral, and economic factors that influence how risk mitigation is implemented, in
addition to the traditional research into understanding how, why, and where earthquakes occur.
The emphasis on mitigation presented by H.R. 3820 reflects at least two fundamental challenges
to increasing the nation’s resiliency to earthquakes, and to most other major natural hazards such
as hurricanes and major floods. The first is to assess whether social, behavioral, and economic
factors can be understood in sufficient degree to devise strategies that influence behavior to
mitigate risk posed by the hazard. Put simply, what motivates people and communities to adopt
risk mitigation measures that address the potential hazard? A second challenge, which is more
squarely an issue for Congress, is how to measure the effectiveness of NEHRP more
quantitatively. It is inherently difficult to capture precisely, in terms of dollars saved or fatalities
prevented, the effectiveness of mitigation measures taken before an earthquake occurs. A major
earthquake in a populated urban area within the United States would cause damage, and a
question becomes how much damage would be prevented by mitigation strategies underpinned by
the NEHRP program.
A precise relationship between earthquake mitigation measures, NEHRP and other federal
earthquake-related activities, and reduced losses from an actual earthquake may never be
possible. However, as more accurate seismic hazard maps evolve, as understanding of the
relationship between ground motion and building safety improves, and as new tools for issuing
warnings and alerts such as ShakeMap and PAGER are devised, trends denoting the effectiveness
of mitigation strategies and NEHRP activities may emerge more clearly. Without an ability to
precisely predict earthquakes, Congress is likely to face an ongoing challenge in determining the
most effective federal approach to increasing the nation’s resilience to low-probability but high-
impact natural hazards, such as major earthquakes.


(...continued)
Santa Barbara; University of Colorado-Boulder; University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; University of Minnesota;
University of Nevada-Reno; and University of Texas at Austin. See http://www.nees.org/.
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Author Contact Information

Peter Folger

Specialist in Energy and Natural Resources Policy
pfolger@crs.loc.gov, 7-1517


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