This Scientific American article describes a plan to inject treated wastewater into the earth below the Geysers geothermal field in California. Due to the removal of steam to generate electric power, the productivity of the field has decreased since the late 1980s. Injecting wastewater deep into the rock will help create more steam for electricity production. However, this may have a side effect of producing earthquakes. This article provides a basic overview of this interesting geologic issue.
