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At least 577 records · Page 32Linked to original sources
USGS2008

Two-phase Neogene extension in the northwestern basin and range recorded in a single thermochronology sample

We use a combination of apatite 4He/3He, (U-Th)/ He, and fission-track thermochronology to date slip on the Surprise Valley fault in northeastern California by analyzing a single sample from the Warner Range in the footwall of the fault. This sample, a granitic clast from a conglomerate, yielded a fission-track age of 11.6 ?? 2.8 Ma and a (U-Th)/He age of 3.02 ?? 0.52 Ma. Geologic relationships indicate that this sample was buried to a depth of ???3.3 km prior to exhumation during slip on the Surprise Valley fault. Fission-track age and length data indicate that the sample was fully reset (>120 ??C) prior to exhumation, which began sometime after 14 Ma. A single aliquot of nine apatite grains was step-heated for 4He/3He analysis; modeling of the resulting 4He distribution indicates that cooling from <80 ??C to ???20 ??C occurred between 3 and 1 Ma. Interconsistent time-temperature (t-T) solutions to the combined 4He/3He, (U-Th)/He, and fission-track data require two distinct periods of cooling, consistent with non-continuous slip on the Surprise Valley fault. Early cooling and fault slip took place between 14 and 8 Ma, followed by more recent fault slip ca. 3 Ma. This timing is consistent with both local geologic relationships and with the regional timing of faulting along the western margin of the Basin and Range Province. These data demonstrate the resolving power of combined fission-track, (U-Th)/He, and 4He/3He thermochronometric data to extract low-temperature t-T information from a single sample close to Earth's surface. ?? 2008 The Geological Society of America.

Geology↗
USGS2014

Characterization of potential transport pathways and implications for groundwater management near an anticline in the Central Basin area, Los Angeles County, California

The Central Groundwater Basin (Central Basin) of southern Los Angeles County includes ~280 mi 2 of the Los Angeles Coastal Plain and serves as the primary source of water for more than two million residents. In the Santa Fe Springs–Whittier–Norwalk area, located in the northeastern part of the basin, several sources of volatile organic compounds have been identified. The volatile organic compunds are thought to have contributed to a large, commingled contaminant plume in groundwater that extends south-southwest downgradient from the Omega Chemical Corporation Superfund Site across folded geologic strata, known as the Santa Fe Springs Anticline. A multifaceted study—that incorporated a three-dimensional sequence-stratigraphic geologic model, two-dimensional groundwater particle-tracking simulations, and new groundwater chemistry data—was conducted to gain insight into the geologic and hydrologic controls on contaminant migration in the study area and to assess the potential for this shallow groundwater contamination to migrate into producing aquifer zones. Conceptual flow models were developed along a flow-parallel cross section based on the modeled stratigraphic architecture, observed geochemistry, and numerical model simulations that generally agree with observed water levels and contaminant distributions. These models predict that contaminants introduced into groundwater at shallow depths near the Omega Chemical Corporation Superfund Site and along the study cross section will likely migrate downgradient to depths intercepted by public supply wells. These conclusions, however, are subject to limitations and simplifications inherent in the modeling approaches used, as well as a significant scarcity of available geologic and hydrogeochemical information at depth and in the downgradient parts of the study area.

California↗
USGS2008

Aquifer Tests and Characterization of Transmissivity, Ada-Vamoosa Aquifer on the Osage Reservation, Osage County, Oklahoma, 2006

The Ada-Vamoosa aquifer of northeastern Oklahoma is a sedimentary bedrock aquifer of Pennsylvanian age that crops out over 800 square miles of the Osage Reservation. The Osage Nation needed additional information regarding the production potential of the aquifer to aid them in future development planning. To address this need, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Osage Nation, conducted a study of aquifer properties in the Ada-Vamoosa aquifer. This report presents the results of the aquifer tests from 20 wells in the Ada-Vamoosa aquifer and one well in a minor aquifer east of the Ada-Vamoosa outcrop on the Osage Reservation. Well information for 17 of the 21 wells in this report was obtained from the Indian Health Service. Data collected by the U.S. Geological Survey during this investigation are pumping well data from four domestic wells collected during the summer of 2006. Transmissivity values were calculated from well pumping data or were estimated from specific capacity values depending on the reliability of the data. The estimated transmissivity values are 1.1 to 4.3 times greater than the calculated transmissivity values. The calculated and estimated transmissivity values range from 5 to 1,000 feet squared per day.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2021

Assessment of water-quality constituents monitored for total maximum daily loads in Johnson County, Kansas, January 2015 through December 2018

Stormwater discharges from municipalities are regulated by provisions in the Clean Water Act of 1972 to protect the Nation’s water resources from harmful pollutants. In 2014, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment issued new stormwater discharge permits for 17 municipalities in Johnson County, Kansas, in the northeastern part of the State. The county is largely suburban and has 20 municipalities within 22 watersheds. Municipalities in Johnson County are required to implement stormwater management programs that reduce discharges of pollutants, protect water quality, and satisfy applicable water-quality regulations. In 2015, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Johnson County Stormwater Management Program, began a 4-year monitoring program designed to meet new stormwater monitoring requirements for some municipalities in Johnson County. Additional data were collected to evaluate the usefulness of continuous water-quality monitoring and different sampling methods in assessing changes in water quality. Twelve of the 22 watersheds in the county were within the sampling network for this project. Discrete water-quality samples were collected at 25 stream sites and 2 lake sites using passive, grab, and equal-width increment sampling methods. Samples at all sites were analyzed for nutrients, Escherichia coli bacteria, total suspended solids, and suspended-sediment concentration. Ninety-nine percent of storm-event samples and 98 percent of low-flow samples were less than the Kansas Surface Water Quality Standard for nitrate plus nitrite. Eight percent of storm-event samples and 100 percent of low-flow samples were less than the total suspended solids screening value of 50 milligrams per liter. Passive samples generally had higher concentrations when compared to equal-width increment and grab samples, and grab samples and equal-width increment samples generally had similar concentrations. Continuous water-quality data were collected at one site. Ordinary least squares regression analysis was used to relate continuous (15-minute) water-quality sensor measurements to discretely sampled constituent concentrations at one site. Numerous factors affect water quality in urban runoff. Urban areas have many possible contaminant sources, including municipal and industrial wastewater discharges, stormwater runoff from impervious surfaces, and failing infrastructure. A better understanding of these factors can inform future monitoring efforts, leading to datasets that are representative of storm runoff and can be used to detect differences between sites and over time.

Kansas↗
USGS2013

Geologic map of the Winslow 30’ × 60’ quadrangle, Coconino and Navajo Counties, northern Arizona

The Winslow 30’ × 60’ quadrangle encompasses approximately 5,018 km 2 (1,960 mi 2 ) within Coconino and Navajo Counties of northern Arizona. It is characterized by gently dipping Paleozoic and Mesozoic strata that dip 1° to 2° northeastward in the southwestern part of the quadrangle and become nearly flat-lying in the northeastern part of the quadrangle. In the northeastern part, a shallow Cenozoic erosional basin developed about 20 million years ago, which subsequently was filled with flat-lying Miocene and Pliocene lacustrine sediments of the Bidahochi Formation, as well as associated volcanic rocks of the Hopi Buttes Volcanic Field. The lacustrine sediments and volcanic rocks unconformably overlie Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous strata. Beginning about early Pliocene time, the Little Colorado River and its tributaries began to remove large volumes of Paleozoic and Mesozoic bedrock from the map area. This erosional development has continued through Pleistocene and Holocene time. Fluvial sediments accumulated episodically throughout this erosional cycle, as indicated by isolated Pliocene(?) and Pleistocene Little Colorado River terrace-gravel deposits on Tucker Mesa and Toltec Divide west of Winslow and younger terrace-gravel deposits along the margins of the Little Colorado River Valley. These gravel deposits suggest that the ancestral Little Colorado River and its valley has eroded and migrated northeastward toward its present location and largely parallels the strike of the Chinle Formation. Today, the Little Colorado River meanders within a 5-km (3-mi) wide valley between Winslow and Leupp, where soft strata of the Chinle Formation is mostly covered by an unknown thickness of Holocene flood-plain deposits. In modern times, the Little Colorado River channel has changed its position as much as a 1.5 km (1 mi) during flood events, but for much of the year the channel is a dry river bed. Surficial alluvial and eolian deposits cover extensive parts of the bedrock outcrops over the entire Winslow quadrangle.

Arizona↗
USGS1986

Evidence for a stronger oxygen-minimum zone off central California during late Pleistocene to early Holocene

Of 31 deep-sea cores collected along the central California continental slope, 18 have distinctly laminated sediment at depth, but none have laminations in the top few centimetres. The cores with laminated facies are restricted to water depths between 508 and 1508 m, but not all cores taken from this depth interval have laminated facies. 14 C dates yield an extrapolated age of 4700 B.P. for the top of the uppermost laminated unit. Comparisons of the diatom flora in the laminated couplets with diatom floras in a 13-month sediment-trap record suggest that the laminations are varvelike couplets of seasonal sedimentation. The laminated facies represent a period from the last global deglaciation to early Holocene when the oxygen-minimum zone along the northeastern Pacific Ocean was stronger than at present. A stronger oxygen-minimum zone during this time is inferred to be the result of intensified upwelling.

Geology↗
USGS2024

Geochemical and geochronologic evidence for a contiguous northeastern Wyoming Province

The extent and nature of the Wyoming Province, an Archean craton in southwestern Laurentia, are poorly understood due to limited exposure between spatially isolated basement-cored uplifts. This lack of exposure has led to debate about whether the northeastern Wyoming Province is underlain by contiguous Archean crust or Proterozoic rocks and suture zone associated with the Trans-Hudson orogeny. To assess these models we analyzed samples recovered from drill cores in the buried northeastern Wyoming Province that straddle the proposed Proterozoic suture. Whole-rock geochemical and Nd-Pb-O isotopic data suggest the rocks formed by partial melting of > 3.5 Ga hydrated mafic to tonalitic sources similar to elsewhere in the northern Wyoming Province. Zircon U-Pb dates record Mesoarchean magmatism and metamorphism (3.0–2.8 Ga). Published whole-rock Rb-Sr, hornblende and biotite K-Ar, and apatite fission track dates suggest these rocks have not been heated above 300 °C since 2.5–2.1 Ga. Geophysical potential field data are consistent across northeastern Wyoming contrasting with major discontinuities associated with documented Proterozoic orogens on all other margins of the Wyoming Province. Hence, geochemical, isotopic, and geochronologic data along with geophysical imaging can be most simply interpreted in terms of continuous Archean crust in the northeastern Wyoming Province. A geophysically-imaged reflector east of the Bighorn Mountains may juxtapose Archean terranes with similar ages and sources, similar to the boundary between the Montana metasedimentary terrane and Beartooth-Bighorn magmatic zone in the northwestern Wyoming Province. This work emphasizes the value of integrating geologic and geophysical constraints to constrain Archean provinces and their tectonic evolution.

Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, ↗
USGS2010

Comparison of episodic acidification of Mid-Atlantic Upland and Coastal Plain streams

Episodic acidification was examined in five mid-Atlantic watersheds representing three physiographic provinces: Coastal Plain, Valley and Ridge, and Blue Ridge. Each of the watersheds receives a similar loading of atmospheric pollutants (SO 4 2− and NO 3 − ) and is underlain by different bedrock type. The purpose of this research was to quantify and compare the episodic variability in storm flow chemistry in Reedy Creek, Virginia (Coastal Plain), Mill Run and Shelter Run, Virginia (Valley and Ridge), and Fishing Creek Tributary and Hunting Creek, Maryland (Blue Ridge). Because episodic responses were similar from storm to storm in each of the watersheds, a representative storm from each watershed was discussed. Acidification, defined as the loss of acid-neutralizing capacity (ANC), was observed in all streams except Mill Run. Mill Run chemistry showed little episodic variability. During storms in the other streams, p H decreased while SO 4 2− , NO 3 − , and K + concentrations increased. Concentrations of Mg 2+ and Ca 2+ increased in Reedy Creek and Fishing Creek Tributary, but decreased in Shelter Run and Hunting Creek. Therefore the net effect of episodic changes on the acid-base status differed among the streams. In general, greater losses of ANC were observed during storms at Shelter Run and Hunting Creek, watersheds underlain by reactive bedrock (carbonate, metabasalt); comparatively smaller losses in ANC were observed at Reedy Creek and Fishing Creek Tributary, watersheds underlain by quartzites and unconsolidated quartz sands and cobbles. Increased SO 4 2− concentrations were most important during storms at Reedy Creek and Fishing Creek Tributary, but organic anions (inferred by anion deficit) were also a factor in causing the loss of ANC. Dilution of base cations was the most important factor in the loss of ANC at Shelter Run. Both increased sulfate and dilution of base flow were important in causing the episodic acidification at Hunting Creek. The role of SO 4 2− in contributing to episodic acidification in these watersheds is similar to that documented in studies conducted in other regions of the United States, Scandinavia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. The importance of SO 4 2− in mid-Atlantic United States streams contrasts with northeastern United States streams, in which increased NO 3 - derived from snowpack is more important in causing episodic acidification. Results support the importance of shallow subsurface processes in determining storm flow chemistry, regional climatic characteristics in determining the different sources of acidity during episodes, and the importance of bedrock geology in determining the amount of ANC loss.

Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia↗
USGS1975

Distribution and cost of landslides that have damaged manmade structures during the rainy season of 1972-1973 in the San Francisco Bay region, California

This report presents data on the location and cost of damage related to landslides in the San Francisco Bay region during the rainy season of 1972-73 (figs. 1 and 2). By showing the general location of landslides that caused damage during that season, the report also shows which parts of the region have the most severe problems. These data supplement earlier reports by the U.S . Geological Survey on the damage caused by landsliding throughout the bay region during the rainy season of 1968-69 (Taylor and Brabb, 1972), in Contra Costa County from 1950 to 1971 (Nilsen and Turner, 1975), in Alameda County from 1940 to 1971 (Nilsen and others, 1975), and in the northeastern part of the city of San Jose from 1967 to 1971 (Nilsen and Brabb, 1972). The nine San Francisco Bay region counties are included in this investigation: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San ,Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, and Sonoma. Landslide costs for these counties during the 1972-73 rainy season (table 1) were at least \$9,716,284. Of this total, $3,284,918 was direct loss of or damage to private property, mainly by lowering the property market value, and \$6,431,366 was for public property, chiefly for repair or relocation of roads. The data used to compile these costs are incomplete, thus the total cost could be significantly greater.

California↗
USGS2003

Preliminary geologic map of the San Bernardino 30' x 60' quadrangle, California (includes preliminary GIS database)

The San Bernardino 30'x60' quadrangle, southern California, is diagonally bisected by the San Andreas Fault Zone, separating the San Gabriel and San Bernardino Mountains, major elements of California's east-oriented Transverse Ranges Province. Included in the southern part of the quadrangle is the northern part of the Peninsular Ranges Province and the northeastern part of the oil-producing Los Angeles basin. The northern part of the quadrangle includes the southern part of the Mojave Desert Province. Pre-Quaternary rocks within the San Bernardino quadrangle consist of three extensive, well-defined basement rock assemblages, the San Gabriel Mountains, San Bernardino Mountains, and the Peninsular Ranges assemblages, and a fourth assemblage restricted to a narrow block bounded by the active San Andreas Fault and the Mill Creek Fault. Each of these basement rock assemblages is characterized by a relatively unique suite of rocks that was amalgamated by the end of the Cretaceous and (or) early Cenozoic. Some Tertiary sedimentary and volcanic rocks are unique to specific assemblages, and some overlap adjacent assemblages. A few Miocene and Pliocene units cross the boundaries of adjacent assemblages, but are dominant in only one. Tectonic events directly and indirectly related to the San Andreas Fault system have partly dismembered the basement rocks during the Neogene, forming the modern-day physiographic provinces. Rocks of the four basement rock assemblages are divisible into an older suite of Late Cretaceous and older rocks and a younger suite of post-Late Cretaceous rocks. The age span of the older suite varies considerably from assemblage to assemblage, and the point in time that separates the two suites varies slightly. In the Peninsular Ranges, the older rocks were formed from the Paleozoic to the end of Late Cretaceous plutonism, and in the Transverse Ranges over a longer period of time extending from the Proterozoic to metamorphism at the end of the Cretaceous. Within the Peninsular Ranges a profound diachronous unconformity marks the pre-Late Cretaceous-post-Late Cretaceous subdivision, but within the Transverse Ranges the division appears to be slightly younger, perhaps coinciding with the end of the Cretaceous or extending into the early Cenozoic. Initial docking of Peninsular Ranges rocks with Transverse Ranges rocks appears to have occurred at the terminus of plutonism within the Peninsular Ranges. During the Paleogene there was apparently discontinuous but widespread deposition on the basement rocks and little tectonic disruption of the amalgamated older rocks. Dismemberment of these Paleogene and older rocks by strike-slip, thrust, and reverse faulting began in the Neogene and is ongoing. The Peninsular Ranges basement rock assemblage is made up of the Peninsular Ranges batholith and a variety of metasedimentary rocks. Most of the plutonic rocks of the batholith are granodiorite and tonalite in composition; primary foliation is common, mainly in the eastern part. Tertiary sedimentary rocks of the Los Angeles Basin crop out in the Puente and San Jose Hills along with the spatially associated Glendora Volcanics; both units span the boundary between the Peninsular Ranges and San Gabriel Mountains basement rock assemblages. The San Gabriel Mountains basement rock assemblage includes two discrete areas, the high standing San Gabriel Mountains and the relatively low San Bernardino basin east of the San Jacinto Fault. The basement rock assemblage is characterized by a unique suite of rocks that include anorthosite, Proterozoic and Paleozoic gneiss and schist, the Triassic

California↗
USGS2013

Priority data on marine and estuarine resources within northeastern National Parks: Inventory and acquisition needs

The purpose of this project was to guide development of a strategy for the inventory and mapping of submerged natural resources associated within 10 coastal parks of the National Park Service (NPS) Northeast Region (NER; see Table 1). Priority data needs were identified by the NER Ocean Stewardship Task Force. The majority of the NER priority data needs involve the biotic, chemical, and geological characterization of the seabed. Taken collectively, this demands a consistent and unified approach to habitat classification. The Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard (CMECS) is endorsed by the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC-STD-018) for classifying ecological units in coastal and marine environments, and is recommended as a framework for acquiring and organizing NER data. We prepared an inventory of existing data on priority marine and estuarine natural resources within the ten NER coastal parks. This report describes the data and information sources relevant to each park and identifies gaps in available data. Overwhelmingly and uniformly across all parks, the most pressing needs are consistent, high-resolution bathymetry and seafloor characterization data. Approaches for acquiring these data using an integrated, multi-resolution sampling framework are recommended.

Natural Resource Report↗
USGS2010

Geologic map of the Lakshmi Planum quadrangle (V-7), Venus

The Lakshmi Planum quadrangle is in the northern hemisphere of Venus and extends from lat 50 degrees to 75 degrees N., and from long 300 degrees to 360 degrees E. The elevated volcanic plateau of Lakshmi Planum, which represents a very specific and unique class of highlands on Venus, dominates the northern half of the quadrangle. The surface of the planum stands 3-4 km above mean planetary radius and the plateau is surrounded by the highest Venusian mountain ranges, 7-10 km high. Before the Magellan mission, the geology of the Lakshmi Planum quadrangle was known on the basis of topographic data acquired by the Pioneer-Venus and Venera-15/16 altimeter and radar images received by the Arecibo telescope and Venera-15/16 spacecraft. These data showed unique topographic and morphologic structures of the mountain belts, which have no counterparts elsewhere on Venus, and the interior volcanic plateau with two large and low volcanic centers and large blocks of tessera-like terrain. From the outside, Lakshmi Planum is outlined by a zone of complexly deformed terrains that occur on the regional outer slope of Lakshmi. Vast low-lying plains surround this zone. After acquisition of the Venera-15/16 data, two classes of hypotheses were formulated to explain the unique structure of Lakshmi Planum and its surrounding. The first proposed that the western portion of Ishtar Terra, dominated by Lakshmi Planum, was a site of large-scale upwelling while the alternative hypothesis considered this region as a site of large-scale downwelling and underthrusting. Early Magellan results showed important details of the general geology of this area displayed in the Venera-15/16 images. Swarms of extensional structures and massifs of tesserae populate the southern slope of Lakshmi. The zone of fractures and grabens form a giant arc thousands of kilometers long and hundreds of kilometers wide around the southern flank of Lakshmi Planum. From the north, the deformational zones consist mostly of contractional structures such as ridges. Corona and corona-like structures are not typical features of this zone but occur within separate branches of extensional structures oriented radial to the edge of Lakshmi. The southeastern edge of Lakshmi appears to be the source of large volcanic flows that extend to the south toward the lowland areas of Sedna Planitia. Colette and Sacajawea Paterae in the interior of Lakshmi are low volcanic centers with very deep central depressions. Lava flows sourced by Colette and Sacajawea form distinctive radial patterns around these volcanoes. Magellan gravity data show that the northern and northeastern portions of the quadrangle, which correspond to Lakshmi Planum, represent a significant geoid anomaly with the peak value of about 90 m over Maxwell Montes at the eastern edge of the map area. Maxwell is characterized also by very high vertical gravity acceleration values (as much as 268 mGal). The lowland of Sedna Planitia to the south of Lakshmi has mostly negative geoid values (down to -40 m). The key geological structure of the quadrangle is Lakshmi Planum, the mode of formation of which is still a major unresolved problem. The topographic configuration, gravity signature, and pattern of deformation inside Lakshmi and along its boundaries make this feature unique on Venus. Thus, geological mapping of this region allows addressing several important questions that should help to put some constraints on the existing models of Lakshmi formation. What is the sequence of events in the formation and evolution of such a unique morphologic and topographic feature? What are the characteristics of the marginal areas of Lakshmi: the compact mountain belts and broad zones of deformation in the transition zone between Lakshmi and surrounding lowlands? How do the units in Lakshmi Planum quadrangle compare with the units mapped in neighboring and distant regions of Venus and what information do they provide concerning models for Venus

Scientific Investigations Map↗
USGS2014

Geochemistry of groundwater in the Beaver and Camas Creek drainage basins, eastern Idaho

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, is studying the fate and transport of waste solutes in the eastern Snake River Plain (ESRP) aquifer at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in eastern Idaho. This effort requires an understanding of the natural and anthropogenic geochemistry of groundwater at the INL and of the important physical and chemical processes controlling the geochemistry. In this study, the USGS applied geochemical modeling to investigate the geochemistry of groundwater in the Beaver and Camas Creek drainage basins, which provide groundwater recharge to the ESRP aquifer underlying the northeastern part of the INL. Data used in this study include petrology and mineralogy from 2 sediment and 3 rock samples, and water-quality analyses from 4 surface-water and 18 groundwater samples. The mineralogy of the sediment and rock samples was analyzed with X-ray diffraction, and the mineralogy and petrology of the rock samples were examined in thin sections. The water samples were analyzed for field parameters, major ions, silica, nutrients, dissolved organic carbon, trace elements, tritium, and the stable isotope ratios of hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, sulfur, and nitrogen. Groundwater geochemistry was influenced by reactions with rocks of the geologic terranes—carbonate rocks, rhyolite, basalt, evaporite deposits, and sediment comprised of all of these rocks. Agricultural practices near and south of Dubois and application of road anti-icing liquids on U.S. Interstate Highway 15 were likely sources of nitrate, chloride, calcium, and magnesium to groundwater. Groundwater geochemistry was successfully modeled in the alluvial aquifer in Camas Meadows and the ESRP fractured basalt aquifer using the geochemical modeling code PHREEQC. The primary geochemical processes appear to be precipitation or dissolution of calcite and dissolution of silicate minerals. Dissolution of evaporite minerals, associated with Pleistocene Lake Terreton, is an important contributor of solutes in the Mud Lake-Dubois area. Oxidation-reduction reactions are important influences on the chemistry of groundwater at Camas Meadows and the Camas National Wildlife Refuge. In addition, mixing of different groundwaters or surface water with groundwater appears to be an important physical process influencing groundwater geochemistry in much of the study area, and evaporation may be an important physical process influencing the groundwater geochemistry of the Camas National Wildlife Refuge. The mass-balance modeling results from this study provide an explanation of the natural geochemistry of groundwater in the ESRP aquifer northeast of the INL, and thus provide a starting point for evaluating the natural and anthropogenic geochemistry of groundwater at the INL.

Idaho↗
USGS2000

Climatology, hydrology, and simulation of an emergency outlet, Devils Lake basin, North Dakota

Devils Lake is a natural lake in northeastern North Dakota that is the terminus of a nearly 4,000-square-mile subbasin in the Red River of the North Basin. The lake has not reached its natural spill elevation to the Sheyenne River (a tributary of the Red River of the North) in recorded history. However, geologic evidence indicates a spill occurred sometime within the last 1,800 years. From 1993 to 1999, Devils Lake rose 24.5 feet and, at the present (August 2000), is about 13 feet below the natural spill elevation. The recent lake-level rise has caused flood damages exceeding $300 million and triggered development of future flood-control options to prevent further infrastructure damage and reduce the risk of a potentially catastrophic uncontrolled spill. Construction of an emergency outlet from the west end of Devils Lake to the Sheyenne River is one flood-control option being considered. This report describes the climatologic and hydrologic causes of the recent lake level rise, provides information on the potential for continued lake-level rises during the next 15 years, and describes the potential effectiveness of an emergency outlet in reducing future lake levels and in reducing the risk of an uncontrolled spill. The potential effects of an outlet on downstream water quantity and quality in the upper Sheyenne River also are described.

South Dakota↗
USGS1995

Data on selected herbicides and two triazine metabolites in precipitation of the Midwestern and Northeastern United States, 1990-91

Weekly precipitation (rain and snow) samples were collected from 81 National Atmospheric Deposition Program/National Trends Network sites in the Midwestern and Northeastern United States for the analysis of herbicides. In addition, five high- elevation background sites along the Rocky Mountains and in Alaska were sampled to provide data on herbicides in precipitation at sites far from the study area. The study began in March 1990 and continued through September 1991. The precipitation samples were shipped to the Central Analytical Laboratory operated by the Illinois State Water Survey for analyses of inorganic compounds. Subsamples of the precipitation were shipped to the U.S. Geological Survey laboratory in Lawrence, Kansas, for the analysis of 11 herbicides and 2 triazines metabolites. This report provides descriptions of the study area, sample-collection methods, laboratory methods, and quality assurance. The report also includes a compilation of herbicide concentration data from both enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry methods. Laboratory analyses consisted of 6,230 samples that were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using alachlor and atrazine microtiter plates and 2,341 samples that were confirmed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis. Graphical and statistical comparisons of the two analytical methods are given in this report. Data from this study have been useful in determining the spatial and temporal distribution of herbicide concentrations and deposition in precipitation of over a 26-State area of the Midwestern and Northeastern United States. The data also provide evidence of long-range atmospheric transport of herbicides and triazine metabolites.

Open-File Report↗
USGS1983

Petroleum geology and resources of the Volga-Ural province, U.S.S.R.

The Volga-Ural petroleum province is, in general, coincident with the Volga-Ural regional high, a broad upwarp of the east-central part of the Russian (East European) Platform. The central part of the province is occupied by the Tatar arch, which contains the major share of the oilfields of the province. The Komi-Perm arch forms the northeastern part of the regional high, and the Zhigulevsko-Pugachev and Orenburg arches make up the southern part. These arches are separated from one another by elongate downwarps. The platform cover overlies an Archean crystalline basement and consists of seven main sedimentation cycles. (1) Riphean (lower Bavly) continental sandstone, shale, and conglomerate beds, from 500 to 5,000 m thick, were deposited in aulacogens. (2) Vendian (upper Bavly) continental and marine shale and sandstone are up to 3,000 m thick. (3) Middle Devonian-Tournaisian transgressive deposits, which are sandstone, siltstone, and shale in the lower part and carbonates and abundant reefs in the upper part, range from 300 to 1,000 m in thickness. The upper carbonate part includes the Kamsko-Kinel trough system, which consists of narrow, interconnected, deepwater troughs. (4) The Visean-Namurian-Bashkirian cycle began with deposition of Visean clastic deposits, which draped over reefs of the previous cycle and filled in an erosional relief that had formed in some places on the sediments of the previous cycle. The Visean clastic deposits are overlain by marine carbonate beds. The cycle is from 50 to 800 m thick. (5) The lower Moscovian-Lower Permian cycle consists of 1,000 to 3,000 m of terrigenous clastic deposits and marine carbonate beds. (6) The upper Lower Permian-Upper Permian cycle reflects the maximum growth of the Ural Mountains and the associated Ural foredeep. Evaporite deposits were first laid down, followed by marine limestones and dolomites, which intertongue eastward with clastic sediments from the Ural Mountains. (7) Continental red beds of Triassic age and mixed continental and marine clastic beds of Jurassic and Cretaceous age were deposited on the western, southwestern, and northern margins of the Russian Platform; they are generally absent in the Volga-Ural province, however. Approximately 600 oilfields and gasfields and 2,000 pools have been found in the Volga-Ural province. Nine productive sequences are recognized; these are, in general, the same as the sedimentation cycles, although some subdivisions have been added. The clastic section of Middle and early Late Devonian age contains the major recoverable oil accumulations, including the supergiant Romashkino field. Cumulative production to 1980 is estimated at 30 to 35 billion barrels of oil equivalent, identified reserves at about 10 billion barrels of oil equivalent, and undiscovered resources at about 7 billion barrels of oil equivalent. Identified reserves of natural gas are estimated at 100 trillion cubic feet and undiscovered resources at 63 trillion cubic feet.

Circular↗
USGS1982

Physiographic divisions and differential uplift in the Piedmont and Blue Ridge

The Piedmont and Blue Ridge are dynamic landscapes that have undergone substantial change since the orogenies that ended in late Paleozoic or, as some believe, early Mesozoic time. The southern Blue Ridge region south of Roanoke, Va., lies on the crest of a topographic uplift that corresponds to the eastern continental drainage divide. To the north, this uplift and divide cross the Appalachian Valley and form the crest of the Appalachian Plateaus as far north as central Pennsylvania. The northern Blue Ridge Mountains as well as parts of the Piedmont are on the eastern part of the uplift area. The southeastern margin of the uplift corresponds to a line within the Piedmont physiographic province that extends northeastward from the Tallapoosa River at the Fall Zone and crosses the Rappahannock River at the Fall Zone. The differential elevation on either side of this line is sharp in some places, as, for example, northeast of Atlanta, Ga. In other places, the difference in elevation is difficult to detect, and, in effect, the line becomes a broad monoclinal slope. The region as a whole can be divided into at least six broad subregions that have somewhat different histories in late geologic time. The Piedmont Lowlands subprovince, southeast of the uplifted area, is dominated by a monotonous topography of low rounded ridges and ravines largely underlain by saprolite on crystalline rocks. Isolated ranges of hills of greater relief are scattered across the region; those investigated are directly related to the presence of erosionally resistant rocks. Stream patterns as well as broad topographic forms indicate that although the southern part of the Piedmont Lowlands was probably once covered by younger sediments, this area has been exposed to erosion for a long time. In North Carolina, the inner part of the Piedmont Lowlands has strongly trellised stream patterns, which suggest that subaerial erosion was active for an even longer time period, perhaps since the latest orogeny. North of the Cape Fear River, the outer part of the Piedmont Lowlands was covered by either fluvial or marine sediments or both, probably during Miocene time. Tectonic activity has affected the Piedmont Lowlands in late geologic time. The Fall Zone that forms the southeast border is, at least in places, controlled by faults active in Tertiary time. Late faults have also been found in the Pine Mountain area of Georgia. Minor differences in relief affecting large regions within the Piedmont Lowlands may be related to different rates of uplift in addition to rock resistance, either past or present. The Piedmont northeast of the Potomac River (Northeastern Highlands) rises to more than 300 m in altitude. The major streams have convex profiles that steepen as they near the Coastal Plain. Unusually narrow valleys and broad upland surfaces indicate an increased rate of erosion and show that the relief is now or recently has been increasing because of uplift or tilting. West of the southern end of the Piedmont Lowlands is an area herein called the Southwestern Highlands that in some respects is similar. The area is crossed by two large streams that have convex profiles. The highest mountain ranges in the area rise to altitudes greater than 600 m. Northwest of the Piedmont Lowlands, the topography and relief are higher, and in some places, the rise is gradual, forming a Foothill zone between the Piedmont Lowlands and the high Blue Ridge. This zone is morphologically more complex than the Piedmont Lowlands. North of the Roanoke River, the foothills are commonly chains of isolated hills and ridges generally underlain by resistant rocks. The hills increase in height near the Blue Ridge, an indication that they owe their height to tectonism of late geologic age. South of the Yadkin River, the hills are believed to be residual, the remnants of a larger highland that has been only partially reduced to the lower relief of the general Piedmont surface. The

Professional Paper↗
USGS2013

Geologic map of the Jam Up Cave and Pine Crest quadrangles, Shannon, Texas, and Howell Counties, Missouri

The Jam Up Cave and Pine Crest 7.5-minute quadrangles are located in south-central Missouri within the Salem Plateau region of the Ozark Plateaus physiographic province. About 2,400 to 3,100 feet (ft) of flat-lying to gently dipping Lower Paleozoic sedimentary rocks, mostly dolomite, chert, sandstone, and orthoquartzite, overlie Mesoproterozoic igneous basement rocks. Unconsolidated residuum, colluvium, terrace deposits, and alluvium overlie the sedimentary rocks. Numerous karst features, such as sinkholes, caves, and springs, have formed in the carbonate rocks. Many streams are spring fed. The topography is a dissected karst plain with elevations ranging from about 690 ft where the Jacks Fork River exits the northeastern corner of the Jam Up Cave quadrangle to about 1,350 ft in upland areas along the north-central edge and southwestern corner of the Pine Crest quadrangle. The most prominent physiographic feature is the valley of the Jacks Fork River. This reach of the upper Jacks Fork, with its clean, swiftly-flowing water confined by low cliffs and bluffs, provides one of the most beautiful canoe float trips in the nation. Most of the land in the quadrangles is privately owned and used primarily for grazing cattle and horses and growing timber. A large minority of the land within the quadrangles is publicly owned by the Ozark National Scenic Riverways of the National Park Service. Geologic mapping for this investigation was conducted in 2005 and 2006.

Missouri↗