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A Precipitation-Runoff Model for the Blackstone River Basin, Massachusetts and Rhode Island

A Hydrological Simulation Program-FORTRAN (HSPF) precipitation-runoff model of the Blackstone River Basin was developed and calibrated to study the effects of changing land- and water-use patterns on water resources. The 474.5 mi2 Blackstone River Basin in southeastern Massachusetts and northern Rhode Island is experiencing rapid population and commercial growth throughout much of its area. This growth and the corresponding changes in land-use patterns are increasing stress on water resources and raising concerns about the future availability of water to meet residential and commercial needs. Increased withdrawals and wastewater-return flows also could adversely affect aquatic habitat, water quality, and the recreational value of the streams in the basin. The Blackstone River Basin was represented by 19 hydrologic response units (HRUs): 17 types of pervious areas (PERLNDs) established from combinations of surficial geology, land-use categories, and the distribution of public water and public sewer systems, and two types of impervious areas (IMPLNDs). Wetlands were combined with open water and simulated as stream reaches that receive runoff from surrounding pervious and impervious areas. This approach was taken to achieve greater flexibility in calibrating evapotranspiration losses from wetlands during the growing season. The basin was segmented into 50 reaches (RCHRES) to represent junctions at tributaries, major lakes and reservoirs, and drainage areas to streamflow-gaging stations. Climatological, streamflow, water-withdrawal, and wastewater-return data were collected during the study to develop the HSPF model. Climatological data collected at Worcester Regional Airport in Worcester, Massachusetts and T.F. Green Airport in Warwick, Rhode Island, were used for model calibration. A total of 15 streamflow-gaging stations were used in the calibration. Streamflow was measured at eight continuous-record streamflow-gaging stations that are part of the U.S. Geological Survey cooperative streamflow-gaging network, and at seven partial-record stations installed in 2004 for this study. Because the model-calibration period preceded data collection at the partial-record stations, a continuous streamflow record was estimated at these stations by correlation with flows at nearby continuous-record stations to provide additional streamflow data for model calibration. Water-use information was compiled for 1996-2001 and included municipal and commercial/industrial withdrawals, private residential withdrawals, golf-course withdrawals, municipal wastewater-return flows, and on-site septic effluent return flows. Streamflow depletion was computed for all time-varying ground-water withdrawals prior to simulation. Water-use data were included in the model to represent the net effect of water use on simulated hydrographs. Consequently, the calibrated values of the hydrologic parameters better represent the hydrologic response of the basin to precipitation. The model was calibrated for 1997-2001 to coincide with the land-use and water-use data compiled for the study. Four long-term stations (Nipmuc River near Harrisville, Rhode Island; Quinsigamond River at North Grafton, Massachusetts; Branch River at Forestdale, Rhode Island; and Blackstone River at Woonsocket, Rhode Island) that monitor flow at 3.3, 5.4, 19, and 88 percent of the total basin area, respectively, provided the primary model-calibration points. Hydrographs, scatter plots, and flow-duration curves of observed and simulated discharges, along with various model-fit statistics, indicated that the model performed well over a range of hydrologic conditions. For example, the total runoff volume for the calibration period simulated at the Nipmuc River near Harrisville, Rhode Island; Quinsigamond River at North Grafton, Massachusetts; Branch River at Forestdale, Rhode Island; and Blackstone River at Woonsocket, Rhode Island streamflow-gaging stations differed from the observed runoff v

Scientific Investigations Report↗

Geohydrology, water quality, and nitrogen geochemistry in the saturated and unsaturated zones beneath various land uses, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, California, 1991-93

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Eastern Municipal Water District, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, and the Orange County Water District, has completed a detailed study of the Hemet groundwater basin. The quantity of ground water stored in the basin in August 1992 is estimated to be 327,000 acre-feet. Dissolved-solids concentration ranged from 380 to 700 mg/L (milligrams per liter), except in small areas where the concentration exceeded 1,000 mg/L. Nitrate concentrations exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) of 10 mg/L nitrate (as nitrogen) in the southeastern part of the basin, in the Domenigoni Valley area, and beneath a dairy in the Diamond Valley area. Seven sites representing selected land uses-- residential, turf grass irrigated with reclaimed water, citrus grove, irrigated farm, poultry farm, and dairy (two sites)--were selected for detailed study of nitrogen geochemistry in the unsaturated zone. For all land uses, nitrate was the dominant nitrogen species in the unsaturated zone. Although nitrate was seasonally present in the shallow unsaturated zone beneath the residential site, it was absent at moderate depths, suggesting negligible migration of nitrate from the surface at this time. Microbial denitrification probably is occurring in the shallow unsaturated zone. High nitrate concentrations in the deep unsaturated zone (greater than 100 ft) suggest either significantly higher nitrate loading at some time in the past, or lateral movement of nitrate at depth. Nitrate also is seasonally present in the shallow unsaturated zone beneath the reclaimed-water site, and (in contrast with the residential site), nitrate is perennially present in the deeper unsaturated zone. Microbial denitrification in the unsaturated zone and in the capillary fringe above the water table decreases the concentrations of nitrate in pore water to below the MCL before reaching the water table. Pore water in the unsaturated zone beneath the citrus grove site contains very high concentrations of nitrate. Even though there are zones of microbial denitrification, nitrate seems to be migrating downward to the water table. The presence of a shallow perched-water zone beneath the irrigated-farm site prevents the vertical movement of nitrate from the surface to the regional water table. Above the perched zone, nitrate concentrations in the unsaturated zone are variable, ranging from below the MCL to four times the MCL. Periodically, nitrate is flushed from the shallow unsaturated zone to the perched-water zone. The unsaturated zone pore-moisture quality could not be adequately addressed because of the very dry conditions in the unsaturated zone beneath the poultry-farm site. Surficial clay deposits prevent water from percolating downward. At the two dairy sites, nitrate loading in pore water at the surface was very high, as great as 7,000 mg/L. Microbial denitrification in the unsaturated zone causes such concentrations to decrease rapidly with depth. At a depth of 20 ft, nitrate concentration was less than 100 mg/L. In areas where the depth to water is less than 20 ft, nitrate loading to ground water can be very high, whereas in areas where depth to water is greater than 100 ft, most of the nitrate is microbially removed before reaching the water table.

California↗

Hydrogeologic and agricultural-chemical data for the South Skunk River alluvial aquifer at a site in Story County, Iowa, 1992-93

A reconnaissance study was conducted during 1992-93 to collect background hydrogeologic and agricultural-chemical data for the South Skunk River alluvial aquifer near Ames, Iowa. Observation wells were drilled to characterize the surficial geologic materials of a field-scale study site and to provide locations for collecting waterlevel and agricultural-chemical data. Walnut Creek, a tributary to the South Skunk River, forms a lateral boundary on the northern edge of the field site. Water-level measurements showed a hydraulic-head gradient towards the South Skunk River under both wet and dry conditions at the study site. Walnut Creek appears to be losing water to the aquifer during most hydrologic conditions. More than 20 milligrams per liter of nitrate as nitrogen were present consistently in water from the southeastern part of the study site. Nitrate-as-nitrogen concentrations in water samples from other locations routinely did not exceed 10 milligrams per liter. The herbicide atrazine was detected most often, 36 of 38 times, in water samples collected from observation wells adjacent to Walnut Creek. Atrazine was not used on the study site during 1992-93 but was found frequently in water samples from Walnut Creek. Therefore, Walnut Creek appears to be a source of herbicide contamination to the alluvial aquifer.

Iowa↗

Estimating flood magnitude and frequency for urban and small, rural streams in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, 2011

Reliable estimates of the magnitude and frequency of floods are essential for the design of transportation and water-conveyance structures, flood insurance studies, and flood-plain management. Flood-frequency estimates are particularly important in densely populated urban areas. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) used a multistate approach to update methods for determining the magnitude and frequency of floods in urban and small, rural streams that are not substantially affected by regulation or tidal fluctuations in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina (Feaster and others, 2014). The multistate approach has the advantage over a single state approach of increasing the number of streamflow-gaging station (streamgages) available for analysis, expanding the geographical coverage that would allow for application of regional regression equations across state boundaries, and building on a previous flood-frequency investigation of rural streamgages in the Southeastern United States. This investigation was funded as part of a cooperative program of water-resources investigations between the USGS, the South Carolina Department of Transportation, and the North Carolina Department of Transportation. In addition, much of the data and information for the Georgia streamgages was funded through a similar cooperative program with the Georgia Department of Transportation.

Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina↗

Preliminary report on the gypsum deposits near Iyoukeen Cove, Chicagof Island, southeastern Alaska

The only known gypsum deposits in Alaska are on northeastern Chichagof Island, southeastern Alaska, at Iyoukeen Cove (fig. 1). The area first developed and for a time worked by the Pacific Coast Gypsum Co. is approximately 1 mile upstream from the mouth of Gypsum Creek at an elevation of about 70 feet (fig. 2). The second deposit, known as the Gypsum-Camel property, is on tidewater 12 miles northeast of the mouth of Gypsum Creek (fig. 2). Iyoukeen Cove is about 35 air miles southwest of Juneau and is on both the mail-boat and the airline routes between Juneau and Sitka. The two deposits were examined by a Geological Survey party during the summer of 1946. Topographic and geologic maps were made of the vicinity of both deposits (figs. 2 and 3). Accessible underground workings at the Gypsum-Camel property also were mapped,

Alaska↗

Assessments of aquifer sensitivity on Navajo Nation and adjacent lands and ground-water vulnerability to pesticide contamination on the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project, Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requested that the Navajo Nation conduct an assessment of aquifer sensitivity on Navajo Nation lands and an assessment of ground-water vulnerability to pesticide contamination on the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project. Navajo Nation lands include about 17,000 square miles in northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, and southeastern Utah. The Navajo Indian Irrigation Project in northwestern New Mexico is the largest area of agriculture on the Navajo Nation. The Navajo Indian Irrigation Project began operation in 1976; presently (2001) about 62,000 acres are available for irrigated agriculture. Numerous pesticides have been used on the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project during its operation. Aquifer sensitivity is defined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as 'The relative ease with which a contaminant [pesticide] applied on or near a land surface can migrate to the aquifer of interest. Aquifer sensitivity is a function of the intrinsic characteristics of the geologic material in question, any underlying saturated materials, and the overlying unsaturated zone. Sensitivity is not dependent on agronomic practices or pesticide characteristics.' Ground-water vulnerability is defined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as 'The relative ease with which a contaminant [pesticide] applied on or near a land surface can migrate to the aquifer of interest under a given set of agronomic management practices, pesticide characteristics, and aquifer sensitivity conditions.' The results of the aquifer sensitivity assessment on Navajo Nation and adjacent lands indicated relative sensitivity within the boundaries of the study area. About 22 percent of the study area was not an area of recharge to bedrock aquifers or an area of unconsolidated deposits and was thus assessed to have an insignificant potential for contamination. About 72 percent of the Navajo Nation study area was assessed to be in the categories of most potential or intermediate potential for contamination. About 6 percent of the study area was assessed to have the least potential for contamination, mostly in areas where the slope of the land surface is more than 12 percent. Nearly all fields on the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project were assessed to have the most potential for contamination. The assessment of ground-water vulnerability to pesticide contamination on the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project was based on pesticide application to various crops on part of the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project during 1997-99. The assessment indicated that ground water underlying fields of beans, wheat, barley, and alfalfa was most vulnerable to pesticide contamination; ground water underlying fields of corn and potatoes was intermediately vulnerable to pesticide contamination; and ground water underlying fields of hay was least vulnerable to pesticide contamination.

Arizona, New Mexico, Utah↗

Geologic map of the Casius Quadrangle of Mars

Geologic units of the martian surface are subdivided on the basis of surface morphology, albedo, and crater distribution and are placed in a stratigraphic sequence following principles of superposition, crosscutting relations, and, to a degree, crater density. The Casius quadrangle (30˚ N to 65˚ N lat; 240˚ W to 300˚ W long) is one of the northern tier of Lambert conformal sheets of the Mars Atlas. It consists of four distinctive physiographic regions: 1) part of the northern cratered plains which forms an incomplete annulus around the north polar region, 2) smooth lowland plains of Utopia Planitia across the central and southeastern part of the map, 3) mountainous terrain, in the Nilosyrtis Mensae region south of the lowland plains, consisting of distinct mountains with hummocky surfaces, and 4) cratered plateau in the southwest part of the map, forming the northern part of the large complex cratered region in the mid-latitudes of Mars. In the Casius quadrangle, the cratered plateau is broken by a set of linear to curved parallel-sided canyons on its northern margin.

IMAP↗

Ground-water levels and flow directions in the glacial sediments and the Lockport Dolomite in southeastern Darke and northeastern Preble counties, Ohio, July 1998

During the summer of 1997, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) began an emergency removal action at the Lewisburg Drum Site in northern Preble County, Ohio. The site is about 3 miles west-northwest of the village of Lewisburg. The USEPA removed about 1,200 drums of waste ink from the site, as well as 2,500 cubic yards of contaminated soil and 100,000 gallons of ground water. Because of the potential for off-site migration of ground-water contamination, USEPA sampled residential wells in the area; results from the samples collected by USEPA indicated that the quality of water in some privately owned wells may have been affected by contaminants from the site. However, the directions of ground-water flow in the area were not known. In 1998, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the USEPA, measure water levels in the vicinity of the site. This map will aid in the interpretation of the water-quality data collected by USEPA.

Ohio↗

Natural background concentrations of nutrients in streams and rivers of the conterminous United States

Determining natural background concentrations of nutrients in watersheds in the developed world has been hampered by a lack of pristine sampling sites covering a range of climatic conditions and basin sizes. Using data from 63 minimally impacted U.S. Geological Survey reference basins, we developed empirical models of the background yield of total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) from small watersheds as functions of annual runoff, basin size, atmospheric nitrogen deposition rate, and region-specific factors. We applied previously estimated in-stream loss rates to yields from the small watershed models to obtain estimates of background TN and TP yield and concentration throughout the stream/river network in 14 ecoregions of the conterminous United States. Background TN concentration varies from less than 0.02 mg L-1 in the xeric west to more than 0.5 mg L-1 along the southeastern coastal plain. Background TP concentration varies from less than 0.006 mg L-1 in the xeric west to more than 0.08 mg L-1 in the great plains. TN concentrations in U.S. streams and rivers currently exceed natural background levels by a much larger factor (6.4) than do TP concentrations (2.0). Because of local variation in runoff and other factors, the range of background nutrient concentrations is very large within some nutrient ecoregions. It is likely that background concentrations in some streams in these regions exceed proposed nutrient criteria.

Environmental Science & Technology↗

Water resources of Bannock Creek basin, southeastern Idaho

The potential for development of water resources in the Bannock Creek Basin is limited by water supply. Bannock Creek Basin covers 475 square miles in southeastern Idaho. Shoshone-Bannock tribal lands on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation occupy the northern part of the basin; the remainder of the basin is privately owned. Only a small amount of information on the hydrologic and water-quality characteristics of Bannock Creek Basin is available, and two previous estimates of water yield from the basin ranged widely from 45,000 to 132,500 acre-feet per year. The Shoshone-Bannock Tribes need an accurate determination of water yield and baseline water-quality characteristics to plan and implement a sustainable level of water use in the basin. Geologic setting, quantities of precipitation, evapotranspiration, surface-water runoff, recharge, and ground-water underflow were used to determine water yield in the basin. Water yield is the annual amount of surface and ground water available in excess of evapotranspiration by crops and native vegetation. Water yield from Bannock Creek Basin was affected by completion of irrigation projects in 1964. Average 1965-89 water yield from five subbasins in Bannock Creek Basin determined from water budgets was 60,600 acre-feet per year. Water yield from the Fort Hall Indian Reservation part of Bannock Creek Basin was estimated to be 37,700 acre-feet per year. Water from wells, springs, and streams is a calcium bicarbonate type. Concentrations of dissolved nitrite plus nitrate as nitrogen and fluoride were less than Maximum Contaminant Levels for public drinking-water supplies established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Large concentrations of chloride and nitrogen in water from several wells, springs, and streams likely are due to waste from septic tanks or stock animals. Estimated suspended-sediment load near the mouth of Bannock Creek was 13,300 tons from December 1988 through July 1989. Suspended-sediment discharge was greatest during periods of high streamflow.

Idaho↗

Geohydrology of the lower Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River basin, southwestern Georgia, northwestern Florida, and southeastern Alabama

The lower Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint (ACF) River Basin contains about 4,600 square miles of karstic and fluvial plains and nearly 100,000 cubic miles of predominantly karst limestone connected hydraulically to the principal rivers and lakes in the Coastal Plain of southwestern Georgia, northwestern Florida, and southwestern Alabama. Sediments of late-middle Eocene to Holocene in hydraulic connection with lakes, streams, and land surface comprise the surficial aquifer system, upper semiconfining unit, Upper Floridan aquifer, and lower semiconfining unit and contribute to the exchange of ground water and surface water in the stream-lake-aquifer flow system. Karst processes, hydraulic properties, and stratigraphic relations limit ground-water and surface-water interaction to the following hydrologic units of the stream-lake-aquifer flow system: the surficial aquifer system, upper semiconfining unit, Upper Floridan aquifer, and lower confining unit. Geologic units corresponding to these hydrologic units are, in ascending order: Lisbon Formation; Clinchfield Sand; Ocala, Marianna, Suwannee, and Tampa Limestones; Hawthorn Group; undifferentiated overburden (residuum); and terrace and undifferentiated (surficial) deposits. Similarities in hydraulic properties and direct or indirect interaction with surface water allow grouping sediments within these geologic units into the aforementioned hydrologic units, which transcend time-stratigraphic classifications and define the geohydrologic framework for the lower ACF River Basin. The low water-transmitting properties of the lower confining unit, principally the Lisbon Formation, allow it to act as a nearly impermeable base to the stream-lake-aquifer flow system. Hydraulic connection of the surficial aquifer system with surface water and the Upper Floridan aquifer is direct where sandy deposits overlie the limestone, or indirect where fluvial deposits overlie clayey limestone residuum. The water level in perched zones within the surficial aquifer system fluctuates independently of water-level changes in the underlying aquifer, adjacent streams, or lakes. Where the surficial aquifer system is connected with surface water and the Upper Floridan aquifer, water-table fluctuations parallel those in adjacent streams or the underlying aquifer. More...

Alabama, Florida, Georgia↗

Acoustic stratigraphy and hydrothermal activity within Epi Submarine Caldera, Vanuatu, New Hebrides Arc

Geological and geophysical surveys of active submarine volcanoes offshore and southeast of Epi Island, Vanuatu, New Hebrides Arc, have delineated details of the structure and acoustic stratigraphy of three volcanic cones. These submarine cones, named Epia, Epib, and Epic, are aligned east-west and spaced 3.5 km apart on the rim of a submerged caldera. At least three acoustic sequences, of presumed Quaternary age, can be identified on single-channel seismic-reflection profiles. Rocks dredged from these cones include basalt, dacite, and cognate gabbroic inclusions with magmatic affinities similar to those of the Karua (an active submarine volcano off the southeastern tip of Epi) lavas. ?? 1988 Springer-Verlag New York Inc.

Geo-Marine Letters↗

Geology and geochemistry of epithermal precious metal vein systems in the intra-oceanic arcs of Palau and Yap, western Pacific

The Palau and Yap arcs are part of an intra-oceanic island-arc-trench system which separates the Pacific and Philippine plates in the western Pacific Ocean. The 350-km-long Palau arc consists of over 200 islands while the 400-km-long Yap arc located to the north has only four major islands exposed. Four of the largest islands in Palau are composed primarily of early Eocene to mid-Miocene volcanic rocks and the four islands comprising Yap contain only Miocene volcanic rocks. Basalt and basaltic andesites of the Babelthuap Formation are the oldest volcanic rocks in Palau and are characterized by high MgO, Ni and Cr and low TiO 2 and have a boninitic affinity. They form the central and southeastern parts of Babelthuap Island. Oligocene arc tholeiite flows having an age of 34–35.5 Ma comprise most of the three smaller volcanic islands in Palau and the western part of Babelthuap. The youngest volcanic rocks are dacitic intrusions having an age of 22.7–23.2 Ma. The Yap arc is unusual in that metamorphic rocks up to amphibolite grade form most of the islands. These are underlain by a melange composed of igneous and volcanic clasts as well as clasts from a dismembered copper-gold skarn deposit. Miocene volcanic rocks consisting of flows and volcaniclastic deposits overlie the melange and metamorphic complex.

Journal of Geochemical Exploration↗

Water availability of Choctaw County, Alabama

Large quantities of ground water and surface water are available in Choctaw County. Major sources of ground water are the Nanafalia Formation, Tuscahoma Sand, Hatchetigbee Formation, and Gosport Sand and Lisbon Formation. The Nanafalia Formation is the most productive source of ground water, and individual wells will yield as much as 1.0 mgd (million gallons per day). The depths to aquifers and the quality of ground water in the south half of the county are governed in part by geologic structures. The average flow of the Tombigbee River at the southeast corner of the county is 16,500 mgd and the 7-day Q2 exceeds 1,000 mgd. Kinterbish, Tuckabum, and Okatuppa Creeks have average flows that range from 115 to 265 mgd at their confluences with the Tombigbee River and 7-day Q2's that exceed 10 mgd in their downstream reaches. Average runoff originating in the county is about 786 mgd or 0.8 mgd per square mile. Water in aquifers tapped by wells generally contains less than 500 mg/1 (milligrams per liter) dissolved solids and is soft to moderately hard. In southeastern parts of the county, in the vicinity of the Hatchetigbee anticline, wells have been abandoned because of the poor quality of water. Water in streams, with the exception of that in Okatuppa Creek and some of its tributaries near Gilbertown and Barrytown, is generally soft and contains less than 140 mg/1 dissolved solids. The quality of water in Okatuppa Creek and some of its tributaries reflects contamination by oil-field brines. Biweekly samples collected from Okatuppa Creek from September 1965 to May 1967 show an average chloride content of 312 mg/1 and specific conductances indicate an average dissolved solids content of 630 mg/ 1.

Alabama↗

Chemical and biological quality of selected lakes in Ohio, 1978 and 1979

Twenty-eight Ohio lakes were sampled by the U.S. Geological Survey and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency for water-quality characteristics during the spring and summer of 1978 and 1979. This report is the third in a series covering a lake-sampling program that began in 1975. Data include water-column profiles of temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, and specific conductance. Chemical, physical, and biological properties were measured at specific points in the water column, and selected physical and chemical properties also were measured in the principal inflows. The lakes were predominatly hard (120 180 milligrams per liter) to very hard water, although several soft-water lakes were found in southeastern Ohio. Calcium, bicarbonate, and sulfate were the principal dissolved constituents. Specific conductance ranged from 103 micromhos per centimeter (at 25 degrees Celsius) at Tycoon Lake, 1978, to 2,550 micromhos per centimeter at West Fork Mill Creek Lake, 1978. Thirteen lakes had trace-element concentrations that were above the limits for exceptional warm-water habitat recammended by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. Seasonal thermal gradients developed in most lakes deeper than 17 feet. Oxygen concentrations were zero or near zero during the summer sampling of the bottom water of all lakes having definite thermal gradients. Most anaerobic zones contained hydrogen sulfide and high concentrations of ammonia. All lakes were evaluated and classified by Carlson's trophic state index. Most of the lakes were classified as eutrophic. Blue-green algae (CyanophytaJ) dominated the summer algal communities. Fecal colifrom counts were within Ohio standards, although high (more than 1,000 colonies per 100 milliliters) fecal colifrom and fecal streptococcus counts were observed in West Fork Mill Creek Lake after significant runoff.

Open-File Report↗

Origin of narrow terranes and adjacent major terranes occurring along the Denali fault in the Eastern and Central Alaska Range, Alaska

Several narrow terranes occur along the Denali fault in the Eastern and Central Alaska Range in Southern Alaska. These terranes are the Aurora Peak, Cottonwood Creek, Maclaren, Pingston, and Windy terranes, and a terrane of ultramafic and associated rocks. Exterior to the narrow terranes to the south is the major Wrangellia island arc composite terrane, and to the north is the major Yukon-Tanana metamorphosed continental margin terrane. Overlying mainly the northern margin of the Wrangellia composite terrane are the Kahiltna overlap assemblage to the west, and the Gravina-Nutzotin-Gambier volcanic-plutonic-sedimentary belt to the east and southeast. The various narrow terranes are interpreted as the result of translation of fragments of larger terranes during two major tectonic events: (1) Late Jurassic to mid-Cretaceous accretion of the Wrangellia island arc composite terrane (or superterrane composed of the Wrangellia, Peninsular, and Alexander terranes) and associated subduction zone complexes; and (2) starting in about the Late Cretaceous, dextral transport of the Wrangellia composite terrane along the Denali fault. These two major tectonic events caused: (1) entrapment of a lens of oceanic lithosphere along the suture belt between the Wrangellia composite terrane and the North American Craton Margin and outboard accreted terranes to form the ultramafic and mafic part of the terrane of ultra-mafic and associated rocks, (2) subsequent dextral translation along the Denali fault of the terrane of ultramafic and associated rocks, (3) dextral translation along the Denali fault of the Aurora Peak, Cottonwood Creek, and Maclaren and continental margin arc terranes from part of the Coast plutonic-metamorphic complex (Coast-North Cascade plutonic belt) in the southwest Yukon Territory or Southeastern Alaska, (4) dextral translation along the Denali fault of the Pingston passive continental margin from a locus along the North American Continental Margin, and (5) formation and dextral transport along the Denali fault of the mélange of the Windy terrane from fragments of the Gravina-Nutzotin-Gambier volcanic-plutonic-sedimentary belt and from the North American Continental Margin.

Special Paper of the Geological Society of America↗

Deep-water antipatharians: Proxies of environmental change

Deep-water (307-697 m) antipatharian (black coral) specimens were collected from the southeastern continental slope of the United States and the north-central Gulf of Mexico. The sclerochronology of the specimens indicates that skeletal growth takes place by formation of concentric coeval layers. We used 210Pb to estimate radial growth rate of two specimens, and to establish that they were several centuries old. Bands were delaminated in KOH and analyzed for carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes. Carbon values ranged from -16.4??? to -15.7???; oldest specimen displayed the largest range in values. Nitrogen values ranged from 7.7??? to 8.6???. Two specimens from the same location and depth had similar 15N signatures, indicating good reproducibility between specimens. ?? 2006 Geological Society of America.

Geology↗

Roles of regional structures and country-rock facies in defining mineral belts in central Idaho mineral province with detail for Yellow Pine and Thunder Mountain mining districts

The central Idaho metallogenic province hosts numerous mineral deposit types. These include Late Cretaceous precious-polymetallic vein deposits, amagmatic Paleocene–Eocene breccia-hosted gold-tungsten-antimony deposits, and Eocene mercury deposits in metasedimentary roof pendants and in Late Cretaceous granitoids. Hot-springs gold deposits in Eocene volcanic rocks are also included in the central Idaho province. New sensitive high mass-resolution ion microprobe (SHRIMP) uranium-lead (U-Pb) ages for igneous rocks and for detrital zircon analyses of metasedimentary rocks along with geologic mapping clarify the geologic framework of the mineral deposits. This framework includes (1) structural controls for regional distribution of mining districts, (2) progressive structural development of individual districts, (3) regional sedimentary facies and their control of metals associations resulting in regional belts, and (4) influences of the several regional magmatic events. In central Idaho, 15 mining districts form two clusters that are grouped about a 200-kilometer (km) long system of normal faults. The northwestern cluster is in the regional hanging wall west of large, west-side-down faults, and the mineral deposits are located along smaller faults and fractures that cut the regional hanging wall. The southeastern cluster is in the regional hanging wall east of a linked large east-side-down fault and along and controlled by related hanging wall faults. At the southern extent of the regional fault system, the Yellow Pine-Thunder Mountain districts span a nearly 24-km-wide, east-tilted crustal block of normal-fault dominoes, exposing original crustal depths from 5 to 10 km deep on the west in the Late Cretaceous to shallow-surface depths on the east in the Eocene. Ore deposition in the northwestern district cluster was primarily Late Cretaceous and related to Idaho batholith plutons with only a single deposit related to a small Eocene intrusion; in the southeastern cluster, most deposits were initiated in the Late Cretaceous but with varying manifestations of overprinted Eocene mineralization activity. In the Yellow Pine-Thunder Mountain districts at the southern extent of the southern cluster, several mineralizing pulses occurred during hanging-wall collapse, such that (1) early deposits were multiply overprinted and (2) deposit depths, ages, and structural characteristics change progressively eastward. Originally deep-seated western Yellow Pine district deposits are Late Cretaceous viscoplastic mesothermal veins overprinted by Paleocene and Eocene breccia-hosted epithermal deposits. Central Yellow Pine district deposits contain early deeper vein systems but are primarily Paleocene and Eocene breccia-hosted epithermal deposits in Late Cretaceous plutonic rocks and Proterozoic–Paleozoic roof pendant rocks. Eastern district deposits are Eocene hot-springs-related deposits in the roof pendant. Thunder Mountain deposits farthest east are near-surface hot-springs deposits in Eocene volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks that overlie buried Cretaceous igneous and older roof pendant rocks. The mining district clusters are sited across several northwest-striking paleostratigraphic belts that are exposed in roof pendants and are offset by the regional normal fault system. A northeastern belt is Mesoproterozoic strata associated with gold-silver-copper±cobalt deposits. A central belt of Neoproterozoic rocks is not associated with mineral deposits in the central Idaho mineral province. A southwestern belt composed of probable Paleozoic deep-water miogeoclinal slope rocks and late Paleozoic epicratonic basinal rocks is thin and narrowly exposed but associated with gold-silver-antimony-tungsten±mercury deposits. These metasedimentary rocks (and their metal associations) are parts of regional mineral belts in which metal endowments are related to particular sedimentary facies belts and their Cretaceous thrust-fault juxtaposition and where these features have proximity to Late Cretaceous or Eocene igneous rocks. Offset and preservation or erosional stripping of these facies belts, thrust plates, igneous settings, and the associated regional mineral belts were controlled by the sense and magnitude of displacements across the regional normal-fault system.

Idaho↗