Actually, if you qualify as an educational institution (like Maxwell, maybe) you can get a sensor for free.
And I live in the Midwest, so even less earthquake prone. But even we recorded the effects of the recent earthquake up in Quebec. Having the sensors spread out helps confirm the actual strength and depth of the earthquake. So no matter where you're located, it can help with the science if you run the WU's.
Just need to get lucky like I did and fall into a few old IBM Thinkpad laptops that are actually supported without the sensor.