USGS Science⌕ Search

Geology topics

J.R. Matzko

Publications and source records attributed to J.R. Matzko.

6 recordsLinked to original sources
USGS2013

ICBMs and the environment: Assessments at a base in Kazakhstan

A paper by two U.S. scientists explores the environmental/health hazard posed by abandoned missile launch sites and control facilities (dismantled by 1998 as part of the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction Program) at an ICBM base in north-central Kazakhstan. It summarizes the findings of Environmental Site Assessment Reports based on a program of water and soil sampling at the sites, with a particular focus on testing for the presence of polychlorinated biphenyls, various toxic metals, and radiation. The study is important in that it documents levels of contamination (and describes abatement measures) at a former Soviet missile base.

Post-Soviet Geography and Economics↗
USGS2010

Observations on the geology and geohydrology of the Chernobyl' nuclear accident site, Ukraine

The most higly contaminated surface areas from cesium-137 fallout from the April 1986 accident at the Chernobyl' nuclear power station in Ukraine occur within the 30-km radius evacuation zone set up around the station, and an 80-km lobe extending to the west-southwest. Lower levels of contamination extend 300 km to the west of the power station. The deposition of this radioactive dust on the surface and the subsequent entombment of the damaged reactor effectively result in the de facto establishment of an above-ground nuclear waste storage site. This site is located on a thick sedimentary sequence of loose, mostly clastic deposits, with a shallow (generally 3-5 m) water table. The geology, the presence of surface water, a shallow water table, and leaky aquifers at depth make this an unfavorable environment for the long-term containment and storage of the radioactive debris. An understanding of the general geology and hydrology of the area is important to assess the environmental impact of this unintended waste storage site, and to evaluate the potential for radionuclide migration through the soil and rock and into subsurface aquifers and nearby rivers.

International Geology Review↗
USGS2010

Undiscovered petroleum of the Brazilian interior sag basins

This paper, the second in a series dealing with undiscovered petroleum in South American basins (exclusive of Venezuela and Colombia), focuses on the four large intracratonic (or interior) sag basins of Brazil: the Solimoes, Amazonas, Parnaiba, and Parana. The smaller Chaco basin also is discussed, although in less detail. Preliminary estimates of undiscovered hydrocarbons in the five basins are 0.228 billion barrels of oil (BBO) and 11.870 trillion cubic feet of gas (TCFG). Because the mean values originally estimated by the World Energy Resources Program at the U.S. Geological Survey appear to be low when viewed in light of the recent (1983-1993) history of petroleum reserves in South America, the mean values were revised upward based on the original identified reserves. The recalculated mean values are 10.18 BBO and 20.52 TCFG. In general, exploration in these basins is in an immature stage. The Solimoes basin has the greatest initial estimated undiscovered reserves of oil (0.04 BBO), and the Parana basin has the greatest initial estimated undiscovered reserves of gas (5.08 TCFG). The most important plays in the Solimoes and structurally similar Amazonas basins are the fold and fault closures associated with the wrench systems found in the basins. The plays in the Parana basin are limited to possible structural traps linked to faultassociated closures, and possibly to some wrench-related features.

International Geology Review↗
USGS1994

Geology of the Chinese nuclear test site near Lop Nor, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China

The Chinese underground nuclear test site in the Kuruktag and Kyzyltag mountains of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of northwest China, is the location of sixteen underground tests that occurred between 1969 and 1992. The largest test to date, conducted on 21 May 1992, had a reported yield of about one megaton. Geophysical properties of the rocks and a large-scale geologic map of part of the test area were published by the Chinese in 1986 and 1987 and are the first site-specific data available for this test site. In areas of low relief, underground nuclear testing has occurred below the water table, in shafts drilled vertically into dense, low porosity Paleozoic granitic and metasedimentary rocks. Additional testing in areas of more rugged terrain has occurred in horizontal tunnels, probably above the water table. At least one of these tunnels was driven into granite. The upper 50 m of the rock in the area of the vertical tests is weathered and fractured; these conditions have been shown to influence the magnitude of the disturbance of the land surface after a nuclear explosion. These descriptions suggest hard rock coupling at depth and a closer resemblance to the former Soviet test site in eastern Kazakhstan than to the U.S. test site in Nevada.

Engineering Geology↗