The Netherlands halted extraction from Europe's biggest gas field on Sunday, which was resulting in earthquakes that have shaken local residents for decades and threaten to persist.
wells open at the Groningen gas field for another year, however, in case of a severe winter, before shutting its gates for good against a backdrop of geopolitical tensions.
People living near the site, which opened in the early 1960s, have complained for more than 20 years of being terrorized by quakes directly attributed to drilling operations.had been experiencing low-magnitude, near-surface quakes caused by vacuum pockets formed during gas extraction, which caused widespread damage to homes and other buildings.
Residents welcomed the news in 2018 that the field would be closed, but have been warned by experts that the earthquakes could continue for years.from the field has been almost cut to zero over the last few years, the government kept the site operational due to the global energy uncertainties prompted largely by Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.due to the extraction of gas," Jan Wigboldus, president of an association representing local people, told AFP.