Which mechanism exacerbates seismic activity when injecting wastewater near an active fault line?

💡 Explanation

When wastewater is injected, increased pore pressure reduces the effective normal stress on the fault, as it counteracts the clamping force, leading to easier slippage and induced seismicity. Therefore reduced effective stress results, rather than decreased friction, crust strengthening, or dampening, all of which mitigate seismic activity or require opposing conditions.

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