The
European Cenozoic Rift System (
ECRIS) is an 1100 km long system of
rifts formed in the
foreland of the
Alps as the
lithosphere responded to the effects of the
Alpine and
Pyrenean orogenies. The system began to form during the Late
Eocene and parts, particularly the Upper and Lower
Rhine Grabens, remain seismically active today and are responsible for most of the larger earthquakes in Europe, north of the Alps.