PEOPLE power forced the suspension of fracking in Rongxian county in China’s Sichuan province today following an earthquake that killed two.

Authorities said two tremors hit the county on Sunday, the second of which, measuring 4.9 on the Richter scale, killed the two individuals. Twelve others were injured. 

Thousands of locals marched on the local government offices demanding an end to hydraulic fracturing — a highly polluting process whereby water is pumped under high pressure to shatter rock and release shale gas.

Despite mounting evidence that it causes earth tremors and poisons groundwater, governments from China to Britain have been reluctant to turn their backs on the energy source.

Sichuan’s Earthquake Administration said the region had been seismically active recently for natural reasons and it was not clear what role fracking had played.

The province, which is home to over 80 million people, is prone to earthquakes and saw the devastating Great Wenchuan Earthquake of 2008 that killed nearly 70,000 people.

But Sichuan-based seismologist Fan Xiao said he believed fracking could be the cause. He added that Sichuan’s natural faultlines should not be used as an excuse to let fracking off the hook for quakes but should encourage even greater caution as any disruption would be more dangerous than elsewhere.

In the face of angry crowds, Rongxian officials have agreed to suspend the procedure, as well as all mining and handling dangerous chemicals. The latter two activities would be resumed “gradually,” it said, not commenting on whether this also applied to fracking.