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The Cottage Grove fault system (Illinois Basin): Late Paleozoic transpression along a Precambrian crustal boundary

The Cottage Grove fault system in southern Illinois has long been interpreted as an intracratonic dextral strike-slip fault system. We investigated its structural geometry and kinematics in detail using (1) outcrop data, (2) extensive exposures in underground coal mines, (3) abundant borehole data, and (4) a network of industry seismic reflection profiles, including data reprocessed by us. Structural contour mapping delineates distinct monoclines, broad anticlines, and synclines that express Paleozoic-age deformation associated with strike slip along the fault system. As shown on seismic reflection profiles, prominent near-vertical faults that cut the entire Paleozoic section and basement-cover contact branch upward into outward-splaying, high-angle reverse faults. The master fault, sinuous along strike, is characterized along its length by an elongate anticline, ???3 km wide, that parallels the southern side of the master fault. These features signify that the overall kinematic regime was transpressional. Due to the absence of suitable piercing points, the amount of slip cannot be measured, but is constrained at less than 300 m near the ground surface. The Cottage Grove fault system apparently follows a Precambrian terrane boundary, as suggested by magnetic intensity data, the distribution of ultramafic igneous intrusions, and patterns of earthquake activity. The fault system was primarily active during the Alleghanian orogeny of Late Pennsylvanian and Early Permian time, when ultramatic igneous magma intruded along en echelon tensional fractures. ?? 2004 Geological Society of America.

Geological Society of America Bulletin↗

Flood of May 26-27, 1984 in Tulsa, Oklahoma

The greatest flood disaster in the history of Tulsa, Oklahoma occurred during 8 hours from 2030 hours May 26 to 0430 hours May 27, 1984, as a result of intense rainfall centered over the metropolitan area. Storms of the magnitude that caused this flood are not uncommon to the southern great plains. Such storms are seldom documented in large urban areas. Total rainfall depth and rainfall distribution in the Tulsa metropolitan area during the May 26-27 storm were recorded by 16 recording rain gages. This report presents location of recording rain gages with corresponding rainfall histograms and mass curves, lines of equal rainfall depth (map A), and flood magnitudes and inundated areas of selected streams within the city (map B). The limits of the study areas (fig. 1) are the corporate boundaries of Tulsa, an area of about 185 square miles. Streams draining the city are: Dirty Butter, Coal, and Mingo Creeks which drain northward into Bird Creek along the northern boundary of the city; and Cherry, Crow, Harlow, Joe Haikey, Fry, Vensel, Fred, and Mooser Creeks which flow into the Arkansas River along the southern part of the city. Flooding along Haikey, Fry, Fred, Vensel, and Mooser Creeks was not documented for this report. The Arkansas River is regulated by Keystone Dam upstream from Tulsa (fig. 1). The Arkansas River remained below flood stage during the storm. Flooded areas in Tulsa (map B) were delineated on the topographic maps using flood profiles based on surveys of high-water marks identified immediately after the flood. The flood boundaries show the limits of stream flooding. Additional areas flooded because of overfilled storm drains or by sheet runoff are not shown in this report. Data presented in this report, including rainfall duration and frequency, and flood discharges and elevations, provide city officials and consultants a technical basis for making flood-plain management decisions.

Hydrologic Atlas↗

Structural control of coalbed methane production in Alabama

Thin-skinned structures are distributed throughout the Alabama coalbed methane fields, and these structures affect the production of gas and water from coal-bearing strata. Extensional structures in Deerlick Creek and Cedar Cove fields include normal faults and hanging-wall rollovers, and area balancing indicates that these structures are detached in the Pottsville Formation. Compressional folds in Gurnee and Oak Grove fields, by comparison, are interpreted to be detachment folds formed above decollements at different stratigraphic levels. Patterns of gas and water production reflect the structural style of each field and further indicate that folding and faulting have affected the distribution of permeability and the overall success of coalbed methane operations. Area balancing can be an effective way to characterize coalbed methane reservoirs in structurally complex regions because it constrains structural geometry and can be used to determine the distribution of layer-parallel strain. Comparison of calculated requisite strain and borehole expansion data from calliper logs suggests that strain in coalbed methane reservoirs is predictable and can be expressed as fracturing and small-scale faulting. However, refined methodology is needed to analyze heterogeneous strain distributions in discrete bed segments. Understanding temporal variation of production patterns in areas where gas and water production are influenced by map-scale structure will further facilitate effective management of coalbed methane fields.Thin-skinned structures are distributed throughout the Alabama coalbed methane fields, and these structures affect the production of gas and water from coal-bearing strata. Extensional structures in Deerlick Creek and Cedar Cove fields include normal faults and hanging-wall rollovers, and area balancing indicates that these structures are detached in the Pottsville Formation. Compressional folds in Gurnee and Oak Grove fields, by comparison, are interpreted to be detachment folds formed above decollements at different stratigraphic levels. Patterns of gas and water production reflect the structural style of each field and further indicate that folding and faulting have affected the distribution of permeability and the overall success of coalbed methane operations. Area balancing can be an effective way to characterize coalbed methane reservoirs in structurally complex regions because it constrains structural geometry and can be used to determine the distribution of layer-parallel strain. Comparison of calculated requisite strain and borehole expansion data from calliper logs suggests that strain in coalbed methane reservoirs is predictable and can be expressed as fracturing and small-scale faulting. However, refined methodology is needed to analyze heterogeneous strain distributions in discrete bed segments. Understanding temporal variation of production patterns in areas where gas and water production are influenced by map-scale structure will further facilitate effective management of coalbed methane fields.

International Journal of Coal Geology↗

EMMMA: A web-based system for environmental mercury mapping, modeling, and analysis

Mercury in our environment - in our air, water, soil, and especially our food - poses significant hazards to human health, particularly for developing fetuses and young children. Because of the importance of this issue and the length of time it has been studied, large and complex data sets of mercury concentrations in various media and associated ancillary data have been generated by many Federal, State, Tribal, and local agencies. To facilitate efficient and effective use of these data in managing and mitigating human and wildlife exposure to mercury, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences have developed a website for visualizing and studying the distribution of mercury in our environment. The Environmental Mercury Mapping, Modeling, and Analysis (EMMMA) website (http://emmma.usgs.gov) provides health and environmental researchers, managers, and other decision-makers the ability to: 1) Interactively view and access a nationwide collection of environmental mercury data (fish tissue, atmospheric emissions and deposition, stream sediments, soils, and coal) and mercuryrelated data (mine locations); 2) Interactively view and access predictions of the National Descriptive Model of Mercury in Fish (NDMMF) at 4,976 sites and 6,829 sampling events (events are unique combinations of site and sampling date) across the United States; and 3) Use interactive mapping and graphing capabilities to visualize spatial and temporal trends and study relationships between mercury and other variables.

Open-File Report↗

Geologic map of the Silt quadrangle, Garfield County, Colorado

New 1:24,000-scale geologic mapping in the Silt 7.5' quadrangle, in support of the USGS Western Colorado I-70 Corridor Cooperative Geologic Mapping Project, provides new interpretations of the stratigraphy, structure, and geologic hazards in the area of the southwest flank of the White River uplift, the Grand Hogback, and the eastern Piceance Basin. The Wasatch Formation was subdivided into three formal members, the Shire, Molina, and Atwell Gulch Members. Also a sandstone unit within the Shire Member was broken out. The Mesaverde Group consists of the upper Williams Fork Formation and the lower Iles Formation. Members for the Iles Formation consist of the Rollins Sandstone, the Cozzette Sandstone, and the Corcoran Sandstone Members. The Cozzette and Corcoran Sandstone Members were mapped as a combined unit. Only the upper part of the Upper Member of the Mancos Shale is exposed in the quadrangle. From the southwestern corner of the map area toward the northwest, the unfaulted early Eocene to Paleocene Wasatch Formation and underlying Mesaverde Group gradually increase in dip to form the Grand Hogback monocline that reaches 45-75 degree dips to the southwest (section A-A'). The shallow west-northwest-trending Rifle syncline separates the northern part of the quadrangle from the southern part along the Colorado River. Geologic hazards in the map area include erosion, expansive soils, and flooding. Erosion includes mass wasting, gullying, and piping. Mass wasting involves any rock or surficial material that moves downslope under the influence of gravity, such as landslides, debris flows, or rock falls, and is generally more prevalent on steeper slopes. Locally, where the Grand Hogback is dipping greater than 60 degrees and the Wasatch Formation has been eroded, leaving sandstone slabs of the Mesa Verde Group unsupported over vertical distances as great as 500 m, the upper part of the unit has collapsed in landslides, probably by a process of beam-buckle failure. In the source area of these landslides strata are overturned and dip shallowly to the northeast. Landslide deposits now armor Pleistocene pediment surfaces and extend at least 1 km into Cactus Valley. Gullying and piping generally occur on more gentle slopes. Expansive soils and expansive bedrock are those unconsolidated materials or rocks that swell when wet and shrink when dry. Most floods are restricted to low-lying areas. Several gas-producing wells extract methane from coals from the upper part of the Iles Formation.

Colorado↗

Space platform albedo measurements as indicators of change in arid lands

The change in albedo of arid lands is an indicator of changes in their condition and quality, including density of vegetative cover, erosion, deposition, surficial soil moisture, and man-made change. In general, darkening of an arid land surface indicates an increase in land quality while brightening indicates a decrease in quality, primarily owing to changes in vegetation. Landsat multiband images taken on different dates can be converted to black-and-white albedo images. Subtraction of one image from another, pixel by pixel, results in an albedo change map that can be density sliced to show areas that have brightened or darkened by selected percentages. These maps are then checked in the field to determine the reasons for the changes and to evaluate the changes in land condition and quality. The albedo change mapping technique has been successfully used in the arid lands of western Utah and northern Arizona and has recently been used for detection of coal strip mining activities in northern Alabama. ?? 1983.

Advances in Space Research↗

Geologic map of the east half of the Bellevue South 7.5' x 15' quadrangle, Issaquah area, King County, Washington

The Issaquah area includes several of the most outstanding geologic features of the eastern Puget Lowland region. Folds have warped thousands of meters of Tertiary sedimentary and volcanic rocks. Several hundred meters of both glacial and postglacial sediment have accumulated in a deep glacial trough, which is now partly occupied by Lake Sammamish but which was previously the conduit for massive volumes of meltwater during ice-sheet occupation and retreat. The eastern projection of an east-west-oriented crustal structure, which reflects Tertiary through Holocene fault displacement, extends across the eastern part of the map area. In addition to these geologic features, some of the most rapid human alteration of the landscape in the entire Puget Lowland has occurred here. Since the 19th century, coal was extensively mined and, since the early 1980s, the region has been overtaken by urbanization. In places, this alteration has dramatically accelerated the rate of geomorphic processes. For example, the hillsides have been regraded as a result of mining and quarries throughout the southern one-third of the quadrangle; stream channels have recently incised above the eastern shores of Lake Sammamish; and sediments have deposited on the lakeshore and into the lake itself.

Washington↗

Maps showing mines, quarries, oil and gas activity, and sample localities in and near the Sipsey Wilderness and additions, Lawrence and Winston counties, Alabama

The U.S. Bureau of Mines conducted a field reconnaissance of Sipsey Wilderness in the fall of 1978 and of the roadless areas in the spring and summer of 1979. Mines, quarries, prospects, exposures, and drill sites in and near the study area were examined. Fifty-three samples were collected during the field work; sample localities are shown in figure 3. Analyses and preliminary test results for all limestone, clay and shale, sandstone, and coal samples were reported by Mory and others (1981). Mineral resource potential of the Sipsey Wilderness and additions is reported by Schweinfurth and others (1982). No mining activities are being conducted in the study area at present. Previous mining has been limited to small-scale production of limestone and coal. Two oil and gas test holes have been drilled inside the study area.

Alabama↗

The Conterminous United States Mineral-Resource Assessment Program; background information to accompany folios of geologic and mineral-resource maps of the Harrison 1 degree x 2 degrees quadrangle, Missouri and Arkansas, and the Joplin 1 degree x 2 degrees quadrangle Kansas and Missouri

The Harrison 1 deg X 2 deg quadrangle in southwestern Missouri and northwestern Arkansas and the Joplin 1 deg X 2 deg quadrangle in southeastern Kansas and southwestern Missouri were studied under the Conterminous United States Mineral-Resource Assessment Program (CUSMAP). Map publications in the CUSMAP folios included bedrock geology, subsurface geochemistry, geophysics, subsurface stratigraphy and lithofacies, and potential resources of metallic and industrial minerals and coal. This report summarizes the contents of those publications and related studies.

Circular↗

Mineral facilities of Africa and the Middle East

This map displays over 1,500 mineral facilities in Africa and the Middle East. The mineral facilities include mines, plants, mills, or refineries of aluminum, cement, coal, copper, diamond, gold, iron and steel, nickel, platinum-group metals, salt, and silver, among others. The data used in this poster were compiled from multiple sources, including the 2004 USGS Minerals Yearbook (Africa and Middle East volume), Minerals Statistics and Information from the USGS Web site (http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/), and data collected by USGS minerals information country specialists. Data reflect the most recent published table of industry structure for each country. Other sources include statistical publications of individual countries, annual reports and press releases of operating companies, and trade journals. Due to the sensitivity of some energy commodity data, the quality of these data should be evaluated on a country-by-country basis. Additional information and explanation is available from the country specialists. See Table 1 for general information about each mineral facility site including country, location and facility name, facility type, latitude, longitude, mineral commodity, mining method, main operating company, status, capacity, and units.

Open-File Report↗

USGS compilation of geographic information system (GIS) data of coal mines and coal-bearing areas in Mongolia

Geographic information system (GIS) information may facilitate energy studies, which in turn provide input for energy policy decisions. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has compiled GIS data representing coal mines, deposits (including those with and without coal mines), occurrences, areas, basins, and provinces of Mongolia as of 2009. These data are now available for download, and may be used in a GIS for a variety of energy resource and environmental studies of Mongolia. Chemical data for 37 coal samples from a previous USGS study of Mongolia (Tewalt and others, 2010) are included in a downloadable GIS point shapefile and shown on the map of Mongolia. A brief report summarizes the methodology used for creation of the shapefiles and the chemical analyses run on the samples.

Open-File Report↗

Mineral resource potential map of the Blanco Mountain and Black Canyon Roadless Areas, Inyo and Mono Counties, California

On the basis of geologic, geochemical, and geophysical investigations and a survey of mines and prospects, the mineral resource potential for gold, silver, lead, zinc, tungsten, and barite of the Blanco Mountain and Black Canyon Roadless Areas is judged to be low to moderate, except for one local area that has high potential for gold and tungsten resources. A geochemical survey detected moderately anomalous amounts of lead, copper, and zinc and less anomalous concentrations of tungsten, gold, and silver. Elements in anomalous samples were grouped as suites known to form in various ore deposits. Four element suites that may be indicative of mineralization are recognized in the White Mountains: (1) lead, zinc, and silver in carbonate rocks; (2) copper, barite, and lead in veins and replacement bodies; (3) tungsten, molybdenum, and bismuth in skarns; and (4) gold and arsenic in mineralized quartz veins. The assessment of the areas of resource potential was made in part by the application of ore deposit models to the geochemical results. A mineral deposit survey by the U.S. Bureau of Mines indicates that there are no properties with identified mineral resources in the Blanco Mountain Roadless Area. There is one active placer claim. In the Black Canyon Roadless Area, two properties have 40,000 tons of indicated and inferred low-grade gold, silver, or lead-bearing rock. Five properties near this roadless area have 150,000 tons of indicated and inferred low-grade gold, silver, lead, zinc, or tungsten-bearing rock. About 90 percent of this tonnage is estimated to occur at the Mirage-Mariposa and the Hope mines. The roadless areas have no known resource potential for geothermal energy, coal, oil, or gas.

California↗

Mineral facilities of Europe

This map displays over 1,700 records of mineral facilities within the countries of Europe and western Eurasia. Each record represents one commodity and one facility type at a single geographic location. Facility types include mines, oil and gas fields, and plants, such as refineries, smelters, and mills. Common commodities of interest include aluminum, cement, coal, copper, gold, iron and steel, lead, nickel, petroleum, salt, silver, and zinc. Records include attributes, such as commodity, country, location, company name, facility type and capacity (if applicable), and latitude and longitude geographical coordinates (in both degrees-minutes-seconds and decimal degrees). The data shown on this map and in table 1 were compiled from multiple sources, including (1) the most recently available data from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Minerals Yearbook (Europe and Central Eurasia volume), (2) mineral statistics and information from the USGS Minerals Information Web site (http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/country/europe.html), and (3) data collected by the USGS minerals information country specialists from sources, such as statistical publications of individual countries, annual reports and press releases of operating companies, and trade journals. Data reflect the most recently published table of industry structure for each country at the time of this publication. Additional information is available from the country specialists listed in table 2.

Open-File Report↗

Hydrologic assessment of the Upper Dorr Run Watershed, Hocking County, Ohio, 1998

The Upper Dorr Run Watershed in Hocking County, Ohio, has been mined several times for coal and clay since 1913 and is a significant source of acid mine drainage to the Hocking River. To assess the surface-water hydrology of the site, a topographic map showing the location of springs and other hydrologic features of interest was prepared using aerial photography and field surveying and mapping techniques. Discharge and water-quality measurements at six springs and one stream site were made during field investigations in June 1998. Discharge and water quality observed at a downstream weir on Upper Dorr Run represents the combined discharge from springs plus ground-water inflow. Discharges from springs to surface water were generally small (less than 0.3 cubic foot per second), but one spring constituted 56 percent of the total discharge measured at the downstream weir. The total flow at an intermediate measurement site was less than the combined discharge of the upgradient springs because of evaporation, transpiration, and ground-water flow beneath the stream channel. The total flow at the weir was greater than the combined discharge of all springs, primarily because two potential sources of water were not included in field measurements. The water quality in Upper Dorr Run is strongly affected by acid mine drainage as indicated by pH less than 4, elevated acidity, and elevated concentrations of dissolved sulfate and dissolved iron. Concentrations of chemical constituents in the water were lower at the downstream weir than at the source springs because of residence times in ponds and chemical interactions between the water and the atmosphere. Acidity loads during the sampling period were significantly higher from the Lower Kittanning (No. 5) coal (272 kilograms per day) than from the Upper Kittanning (No. 6) coal (17.7 kilograms per day). Comparison of data obtained in 1998 to data obtained in 1982 showed that quality of water of selected sampling sites had not changed appreciably in 16 years.

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗

Hydrology of area 18, Eastern Coal Province, Tennessee

The Eastern Coal Province is divided into 24 hydrologic reporting areas. This report describes the hydrology of area 18 which is located in the Cumberland River basin in central Tennessee near the southern end of the Province. Hydrologic information and sources are presented as text, tables, maps, and other illustrations designed to be useful to mine owners, operators, and consulting engineers in implementing permit applications that comply with the environmental requirements of the ' Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977. ' Area 18 encompasses parts of three physiographic regions; from east to west the Cumberland Plateau, Highland Rim, and Central Basin. The Plateau is underlain by sandstones and shales, with thin interbedded coal beds, of Pennsylvanian age. The Highland Rim and Central Basin are underlain by limestone and dolomite of Mississippian age. Field and laboratory analyses of chemical and physical water-quality parameters of streamflow samples show no widespread water quality problems. Some streams, however, in the heavily mined areas have concentrations of sulfate, iron, manganese, and sediment above natural levels, and pH values below natural levels. Mine seepage and direct mine drainage were not sampled. Ground water occurs in and moves through fractures in the sandstones and shales and solution openings in the limestones and dolomites. Depth to water is variable, ranging from about 5 to 70 feet below land-surface in the limestones and dolomites, and 15 to 40 feet in the coal-bearing rocks. The quality of ground water is generally good. Locally, in coal-bearing rocks, acidic water and high concentrations of manganese, chloride, and iron have been detected. (USGS)

Open-File Report↗

Mineral facilities of Asia and the Pacific

This map displays over 1,500 records of mineral facilities throughout the continent of Asia and the countries of the Pacific Ocean. Each record represents one commodity and one facility type at a single geographic location. Facility types include mines, oil and gas fields, and plants, such as refineries, smelters, and mills. Common commodities of interest include aluminum, cement, coal, copper, gold, iron and steel, lead, nickel, petroleum, salt, silver, and zinc. Records include attributes, such as commodity, country, location, company name, facility type and capacity (if applicable), and latitude and longitude geographical coordinates (in both degrees-minutes-seconds and decimal degrees). The data shown on this map and in table 1 were compiled from multiple sources, including (1) the 2008 U.S. Geological Survey Minerals Yearbook (Asia and the Pacific volume), (2) minerals statistics and information from the U.S. Geological Survey Minerals Information Web site (http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/), and (3) data collected by U.S. Geological Survey minerals information country specialists. Other sources include statistical publications of individual countries, annual reports and press releases of operating companies, and trade journals. Due to the sensitivity of some energy commodity data, the quality of these data should be evaluated on a country-by-country basis. Additional information is available from the country specialists listed in table 2.

Open-File Report↗