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Arthur P. Schultz

Publications and source records attributed to Arthur P. Schultz.

9 recordsLinked to original sources
USGS2021

Synthesis of geochronologic research on Late Pliocene to Holocene emergent shorelines in the lower Savannah River area of southeastern Georgia, USA

Emergent late Pliocene and Pleistocene shoreline deposits, morphologically identifiable Pleistocene shoreline units, and seaward-facing scarps characterize the easternmost Atlantic Coastal Plain (ACP) of the United States of America. In some areas of the ACP, these deposits, units, and scarps have been studied in detail. Within these areas, temporal and spatial data are sufficient for time-depositional frameworks for shoreline-evolution to have been developed and published. For other areas, such as the southeastern Atlantic Coastal Plain (SEACP), available data are conflicting and (or) insufficient to develop such a framework, or to make shoreline correlations. Differential epeirogenic uplift and shoreline deformation, resulting from mantle-flow and climate-induced isostatic adjustments, complicate regional shoreline correlations. In the SEACP, the topographically prominent Orangeburg Scarp (hereafter, the Scarp) rises tens of meters in elevation from southeastern Georgia to southeastern North Carolina. The degree to which the Scarp and shoreline units seaward of the Scarp are deformed continues to be debated, but there is general agreement that the lower Savannah River area (LSRA) of Georgia and South Carolina is the least deformed area of the SEACP. This paper synthesizes published and previously unpublished numerical age and stratigraphic data for emergent Pliocene and younger shoreline deposits in the LSRA in Georgia. Age data are applied to these shoreline deposits as they are delineated (map units) on the 1976 geologic map of Georgia by Lawton and others. Age assignments are based on stratigraphic position, fossil content, soil and weathering diagnostic properties, and numerical ages as determined by meteoric Beryllium‑10 paleosol residence time ( 10 BePRT), optically stimulated luminescence (OSL), uranium disequilibrium series (U-series), amino acid racemization (AAR), and radiocarbon ( 14 C) analyses. These data provide a preliminary Pliocene-Pleistocene geochronology for the Orangeburg Scarp and shoreline deposits seaward of the Scarp in the LSRA of Georgia. Minimum ages and age ranges indicate the following: the Orangeburg Scarp formed sometime in the late Pliocene and early Pleistocene, between 3 Ma and 1 Ma; three, and possibly four, shoreline complexes were deposited in the middle Pleistocene; two shoreline complexes were deposited in the late middle and the late Pleistocene; deposition of the youngest shoreline complex began in the late Pleistocene and continues to the present; each shoreline complex was modified by multiple sea level highstands over time periods that lasted tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of years; and Pleistocene shoreline chronology differs in part from modeled global sea level highstands.

Georgia, South Carolina↗
USGS2019

Geology of the Hardeeville NW Quadrangle and parts of the Brighton and Pineland Quadrangles, Jasper County, South Carolina

Introduction This publication portrays the geology of the Hardeeville NW quadrangle and parts of the Brighton and Pineland quadrangles that are within Jasper County, South Carolina. The study area is located in the Atlantic Coastal Plain province, approximately 50 to 70 kilometers (km) inland from the coast. The data are compiled from geological field mapping, light detection and ranging (lidar) elevation data, cores, optically stimulated luminescence ages, radiocarbon ages, and biostratigraphic interpretations. Most of the study area is occupied by the valley of the Savannah River, and exposures of geologic units are very limited. Traditional geologic mapping in this area is difficult because of limited access, subdued topography, extensive swamps, and abundant vegetation. The Savannah River flows predominantly southeast, and forms most of the border between the States of South Carolina and Georgia. The river is approximately 483 km long and has a total drainage area of approximately 15,850 square km. Although upstream tributaries drain the southeastern side of the Appalachian Blue Ridge province, the Savannah River begins in the Piedmont province and then flows across the Atlantic Coastal Plain province to the Atlantic Ocean. For much of its extent, the modern channel of the Savannah River is located on the southwestern side of the river valley, and the southwestern bank of the valley is the active cut bank. Within the study area, the valley of the Savannah River trends southeast and is relatively straight. The valley has relatively low relief, although the southwestern valley wall is steeper and has greater relief than the northeastern valley wall. Elevations within the valley mostly range from 3 to 15 meters (m) above sea level, whereas elevations on the high terrace that forms the eastern margin of the Savannah River valley are 15 to 20 m above sea level. The width of the valley is 6 to 7 km in the northern part of the study area and expands to 10 to 12 km farther south. The modern river channel occupies the southwestern side of the valley, and some modern (active) creeks enter the river from the west. Sand hills and low-relief terraces are present to the east of the modern river channel, and the eastern side of the valley is characterized by abandoned meandering and linear channels. Fan-shaped deposits of sand and mud are present where relict (inactive) channels enter the eastern side of the valley. Abandoned meandering channels of low relief (<3 m) are also present to the east on the high terrace (>15 m elevation) that forms the eastern margin of the Savannah River valley. Within the study area, most of the Savannah River valley is covered by alluvial wetland community vegetation dominated by cypress and tupelo trees, although sand hills within the valley are covered by xeric sand community vegetation dominated by pine trees.

South Carolina↗
USGS2019

Geology and biostratigraphy of the Upper Floridan aquifer in the greater Savannah region, Georgia and South Carolina

The Upper Floridan aquifer (UFA) of South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida has been considered a regionally continuous stratigraphic sequence of Eocene to Miocene carbonate strata, with documented unconformities based on lithology and biostratigraphy. As part of an investigation of the regional subsurface geologic framework in the Atlantic Coastal Plain Province, three deep cores were drilled by the U.S. Geological Survey at Pineora, Effingham County, Georgia; Cockspur Island, Chatham County, Georgia; and Palm Dunes, Beaufort County, South Carolina. The age of the UFAbased on calcareous nannofossil biostratigraphy ranges from early Oligocene to early Miocene in Pineora, late Eocene to late Oligocene in Cockspur Island, and late Eocene to questionably Miocene in Palm Dunes. Thin section analyses identified eleven unique microfacies across the study area and suggests that the sediments were most likely transported by oceanic currents at the time of deposition. Disconformities are identified from the Pineora and Palm Dunes cores and channel incision is documented at the top of the UFA in the Palm Dunes core. This study 1) documents how existing formation and time stratigraphic boundaries cross hydrogeologic units, 2) shows the complex geologic nature of the Upper Floridan aquifer across a relatively limited area, 3) sets forth a better understanding of how lateral and vertical changes in the lithologic units of the UFA affect permeability and porosity, and thus subsurface hydrologic flow, across the region, and 4) highlights the problems faced by legislators when implementing groundwater use regulations intended to slow salt water intrusion and drawdown.

Georgia, South Carolina↗
USGS2015

Comparison of three preservation techniques for slowing dissolution of calcareous nannofossils in organic rich sediments

In an attempt to halt or reduce dissolution of calcareous nannofossils in organic and/or pyrite-rich sediments, three different methods of short-term storage preservation were tested for efficacy: vacuum packing, argon gas replacement, and buffered water. Abundance counts of calcareous nannofossil assemblages over a six month period showed that none of the three preservation methods were consistently effective in reducing assemblage loss due to dissolution. In most cases, the control slides made at the drill site had more abundant calcareous nannofossil assemblages than those slides made from sediments stored via vacuum packing, argon gas replacement, or buffered water. Thin section and XRD analyses showed that in most cases, <1% pyrite was needed to drive the oxidation-reduction reaction that resulted in dissolution, even in carbonate-rich sediments.

Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina↗
USGS2011

Drilling a deep geologic test well at Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC), is drilling a deep geologic test well at Hilton Head Island, S.C. The test well is scheduled to run between mid-March and early May 2011. When completed, the well will be about 1,000 feet deep. The purpose of this test well is to gain knowledge about the regional-scale Floridan aquifer, an important source of groundwater in the Hilton Head area. Also, cores obtained during drilling will enable geologists to study the last 60 million years of Earth history in this area.

Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, South Caro↗
USGS2010

Drilling a Deep Geologic Test Well at Fort Pulaski National Monument, Georgia

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the National Park Service, is drilling a deep geologic test well at Fort Pulaski National Monument, Georgia. The operation is scheduled to run between mid-February and mid-April 2010. When completed, the well will be about 1,500 feet deep. The purpose of this test well is to gain knowledge about the regional-scale Floridan aquifer, an important source of groundwater in the Savannah area. Also, cores obtained during drilling will enable geologists to study the last 60 million years of Earth history in this area.

Fact Sheet↗