Maximum Likelihood Estimation of Seismic Hazard for Sweden

The maximum magnitude, the activity rate, and the Gutenberg-Richterb parameter as earthquake hazard parameters, have been evaluated for Sweden. The maximum likelihood method permits the combination of historical and instrumental data. The catalog used consists of 1100 earthquakes in the time interval 1375–1989. The extreme part of the catalog contains only the strongest historical earthquakes, whereas the complete part is divided into several subcatalogs, each assumed complete above a specified threshold magnitude. The uncertainty in magnitude determination was taken into account. For southern Sweden, the calculations giveb-values of 1.04 (0.05) for the whole area south of 60° N and 0.98 (0.06) for a subregion of enhanced seismicity in the Lake Vänern area. For the whole area north of 60° N, theb-value is 1.35 (0.06) and for the seismicity zone along the Gulf of Bothnia 1.26 (0.06). The number of annually expected earthquakes with magnitude equal to or larger than 2.4 [M_L(UPP) or M_M(UPP)] is 1.8 for the whole southern Sweden, 1.3 for the Lake Vänern region, 3.7 for northern Sweden, and 2.4 for the region along the Gulf of Bothnia. The maximum expected regional magnitude is calculated to 4.9 (0.5) for a time span of 615 years for southern Sweden and the Lake Vänern subregion, and 4.3 (0.5) for a time span of 331 years for northern Sweden and the Gulf of Bothnia subregion. However, several historical earthquakes with magnitude above 5 in nearby areas of Norway indicate that the seismic potential may be higher.     

Characterization of the ecological quality of the coastal Gulf of Lions (NW Mediterranean). A comparative approach based on three biotic indices

The ecological quality of the Gulf of Lions coast was assessed using three biotic indices (H', AMBI and BQI). The three indices correlated positively. The positive correlation between AMBI and BQI was surprising and was mostly due to the fact that the dominant species Ditrupa arietina featured a low ES50(0.05) but was classified in GI by AMBI. Both H' and BQI were efficient in distinguishing impacted from un-impacted sites but AMBI was not. Differences between H' and BQI were mainly due to the scale used to translate indices in terms of EcoQ. The three indices were able to detect the major changes in macrofauna composition, which occurred in the Bay of Banyuls-sur-Mer during the last 40years. However, the interpretations of such changes in terms of EcoQ differed between indices. These results are discussed relative to the characteristics of the tested indices.     

Near-surface earthquakes in the Baltic shield, notably Sweden

A recent series of Swedish earthquakes at a focal depth not exceeding 2–3 km, the largest with I_O = V + (MSK scale) andM_L = 3.2 shows that relatively strong seismic activity can occur in the uppermost part of the Baltic Shield. During the last 15 years several near-surface earthquakes have occurred in this region, as indicated by recorded Rg-waves and/or macroseismic data. Many events are located along the coast of central Sweden, suggesting a seismic belt of minor, near-surface activity, which should be considered in connection with the radioactive waste storage in the Swedish bedrock. The appearance of Rg, common in seismic records of explosions and rockbursts, is not a sufficient discriminator between artificial events and earthquakes.