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Search indexed USGS publications on groundwater, aquifers, geologic maps, mineral resources and earthquakes. Explore source records by subject and place.
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The Laramie flora of the Denver Basin, with a review of the Laramie problem
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Wilderness mineral potential: Assessment of mineral-resource potential in U.S. Forest Service lands studied in 1964-1984: Volume 2
The summaries in these volumes, which have been organized alphabetically by state, include a description of the character and geologic setting, a discussion of the resource potential, and a reference list of selected material published as part of the wilderness program. Many of the summaries include suggestions for further study. Our hope is that these summaries, designed to provide a quick overview of a 20-year program, will be of use to concerned individuals as well as to those legislators and administrators who must make difficult and critical land-use decision that will affect our nation now and in the future.
Basic concepts of kinematic-wave models
The kinematic-wave model is one of a number of approximations of the dynamic-wave model. The dynamic-wave model describes onedimensional shallow-water waves (unsteady, gradually varied, openchannel flow). This report provides a basic reference on the theory and applications of the kinematic-wave model and describes the limitations of the model in relation to the other approximations of the dynamic-wave model. In the kinematic-wave approximation, a number of the terms in the equation of motion are assumed to be insignificant. The equation of motion is replaced by an equation describing uniform flow. Thus, the kinematic-wave model is described by the continuity equation and a uniform-flow equation such as the wellknown Chezy or Manning formulas. Kinematic-wave models are applicable to overland flow where lateral inflow is continuously added and is a large part of the total flow. For channel-routing applications, the kinematic-wave model always predicts a steeper wave with less dispersion and attenuation than actually occurs. The effect of the accumulation of errors in the kinematic-wave model shows that the approximations made in the development of the kinematic-wave equations are not generally justified for most channel-routing applications. Modified flow-routing models can be used which help to stop the accumulation of errors that occur when the kinematic-wave model is applied.
Cretaceous actaeonellid gastropods from the Western Hemisphere
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The ground-water flow system in northern Missouri with emphasis on the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer
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Kaolin, refractory clay, ball clay, and halloysite in North America, Hawaii, and the Caribbean region
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Water resources and potential hydrologic effects of oil-shale development in the southeastern Uinta Basin, Utah and Colorado
Proposed oil-shale mining in northeastern Utah is expected to impact the water resources of a 3,000-square-mile area. This report summarizes a comprehensive hydrologic investigation of the area which resulted in 13 published reports. Hydrologic information obtained during 1974-80 was used to evaluate the availability of water and to evaluate potential impacts of an oil-shale industry on the water resources. The study area is the southeastern part of the Uinta Basin, Utah and Colorado, where the hydrology is extremely variable. The normal annual precipitation averages 11 inches and varies with altitude. It ranges from less than 8 inches at altitudes below 5,000 feet along the White and Green Rivers to more than 20 inches where altitudes exceed 9,000 feet on the Roan Plateau. The White and Green Rivers are large streams that flow through the area. They convey an average flow of 4.3 million acre-feet per year from outside drainage areas of about 34,000 square miles, which is more than 150 times as much flow as that originating within the area. Streams originating in areas where precipitation is less than 10 inches are ephemeral. Mean annual runoff from the study area is about 28,000 acre-feet and ranges from less than 0.1 to 1.6 inches, depending on the location. At any given site, runoff varies greatly-from year to year and season to season. Potential evapotranspiration is large, exceeding precipitation in all years. Three major aquifers occur in the area. They are alluvial deposits of small areal extent along the major stream valleys; the bird's-nest aquifer of the Parachute Creek Member of the Green River Formation, which is limited to the central part of the study area; and the Douglas Creek aquifer of the Douglas Creek Member of the Green River Formation, which underlies most of the area. Total recoverable water in storage in the three aquifers is about 18 million acre-feet. Yields of individual wells and interference between wells limit the maximum practical withdrawal to about 20,000 acre-feet per year. An oil-shale industry in the southeastern Uinta Basin with a peak production of 400,000 barrels of oil per day would require a water supply of about 70,000 acre-feet per year. Sources of water supply considered for such an industry were: diversion from the natural flow of the White River, a proposed reservoir on the White River, diversion from the White River combined with proposed off-stream storage in Hells Hole Canyon, diversion from the Green River, and conjunctive use of ground and surface water. The proposed reservoir on the White River would trap about 90 percent of the sediment moving in the river and in turn would release almost sediment-free water. Possible impacts are changes in channel gradient in the downstream 18 miles of the White River and changes in bank stability. In some parts of the area, annual sheet-erosion rates are as great as 2.2 acre-feet per square mile but sediment yield to the White River is less than might be expected because the runoff is small. If process water from retort operations or water used in the construction of surface facilities is discharged into a normally dry streambed, increased channel erosion and sediment in tributary streams could result in increased sediment loads in the White River. In addition, sediment yields from retorted-shale piles with minimum slopes could exceed 0.1 acrefoot per square mile during a common storm. Thus, without safeguards, the useful life of any proposed reservoir or holding pond could be decreased considerably. Leachate water from retorted-shale piles has large concentrations of sodium and sulfate, and the chemical composition of retort waters differs considerably from that of the natural waters of the area. The retort waters contain a greater concentration of dissolved solids and more organic carbon and nutrients. Without proper disposal or impoundment of retort and leachate waters, the salinity of downstream waters in the Colorado River Basin would be increased.
Stratigraphic, paleoclimatic, and paleobiogeographic significance of Tertiary sporomorphs from Massachusetts
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Upper Proterozoic and Cambrian rocks in the Caborca region, Sonora, Mexico; physical stratigraphy, biostratigraphy, paleocurrent studies, and regional relations
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Shorter contributions to general geology, 1922
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Oil shale, water resources, and valuable minerals of the Piceance Basin, Colorado; the challenge and choices of development
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The Manti, Utah, landslide
PART A: The Manti landslide is in Manti Canyon on the west side of the Wasatch Plateau in central Utah. In early June 1974, coincident with the melting of a snowpack, a rock slump/debris flow occurred on the south rim of Manti Canyon. Part of the slumped material mixed with meltwater and mobilized into a series of debris flows that traveled down the slope a distance of as much as 1.2 km. Most of the flows were deposited either at the base of the steep rocks of the canyon rim or at the site of an old, silted reservoir. A small part of the debris flow deposit stopped on the head of the very large, relatively inactive Manti landslide. The upper part of the landslide began moving as cracks propagated downslope. A little more than a year later, August 1975, movement extended the full length of the old landslide, and about 19 million m 3 of debris about 3 km long and as much as 800 m wide threatened to block the canyon. The upper part of the landslide apparently had moved small amounts between 1939 and 1974. This part of the landslide, identifiable on pre-1974 aerial photographs, consisted of well-defined linears on the landslide flanks and two large internal toe bulges about 2 km downslope from the head. The abrupt reactivation in 1974 proceeded quickly after the debris flows had provided a surcharge in the head and crown area. Movement propagated downslope at 4-5 m/h for the first few days following reactivation. During 1974, the reactivation probably encompassed all the parts of the landslide that had moved small amounts between 1939 and 1974. Movement nearly or completely stopped during the winter of 1974-75, but began again in the spring of 1975. The landslide enlarged from the flanks of the internal toe bulges to Manti Creek at a rate of 2-3 m/h. Movement stopped again during the winter of 1975-76 and began again in the spring of 1976. Thereafter, the displacements have been small compared to earlier. The displacement rates for the landslide were variable depending on where and when they were measured. At the waterline crossing, about 500 m downslope from the head, the maximum rate was about 1 mid, and the peak rate occurred within the first 30 days following reactivation. Almost a year later, during the spring of 1975, the rates there were 0.1-0.3 mid. By the time movement had propagated 2.5 km downslope to Manti Creek, more than 40 m of displacement had occurred at the waterline. Cracks were first noted at Manti Creek on June 21,1975, but movement was initially very slow there. The maximum rate of sliding of about 3.1 mid occurred during the period September 1-19,1975, and the movement decreased and stopped during the winter of 1975-76. At the time the lower part of the landslide was moving rapidly, the rate farther upslope was small. The result was that the landslide changed from being in compression, which was caused by loading from above, to being in extension, which was caused by the lower part moving faster than the upper part. One of the results of the extension was that the landslide pulled apart on a steeper segment of the slope and exposed the failure surface. Since the fall of 1975, the landslide has been separated into two independent parts. There has been no movement in the lower part, whereas movements in the upper part have continued at a rate of a few meters per year. Although the landslide is 6.5 km from the nearest permanent dwelling, it cost nearly $2 million in actual damages and in preparation for a major disaster that did not occur. The waterline for the city of Manti was replaced and a well was drilled to provide an emergency water supply. PART B: The Manti landslide abuts, at its toe, another large landslide called the North slide. In 1975, public officials were concerned that continued movement of the Manti landslide would trigger reactivation of the North slide. In response to this threat, four borings were placed in the North slide to obtain samples for testing and information
Studies related to the Charleston, South Carolina, earthquake of 1886 — Tectonics and seismicity
Since 1973, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), with support from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, has conducted extensive investigations of the tectonic and seismic history of the Charleston, S.C., earthquake zone and surrounding areas. The goal of these investigations has been to discover the cause of the large intraplate Charleston earthquake of 1886, which dominates the record of seismicity in the Southeastern United States, through an understanding of the historic and modern seismicity at Charleston and of the tectonic setting of the seismicity. This goal is being pursued to evaluate the potential for additional large earthquakes in the Charleston area and surrounding regions and to determine whether the Charleston area differs tectonically in any significant fashion from other parts of the Southeastern United States. An understanding of the specific cause for the 1886 event and of the regional distribution of any structures that are generically related to or geometrically and mechanically similar to the source structure is essential for evaluation of seismic hazards throughout the Southeast. The results given herein represent significant progress toward understanding the tectonic setting of the Charleston-area seismicity. Several chapters in the volume address the distribution and origin of pre-Cretaceous rocks and structures beneath Coastal Plain sediments in the Charleston area and regionally beneath the southern Atlantic Coastal Plain and adjacent Continental Shelf. The modern seismicity at Charleston is occurring at depths equal to or greater than the known extent of these older structures, and rejuvenation of an older fault in the modern stress field is a possible cause of the seismicity. Accordingly, several chapters discuss the possible relationships of the various pre-Cretaceous structures to faults identified near Charleston that have a known Cretaceous and Cenozoic movement history and to the historic and instrumentally recorded seismicity. However, at the present time, none of the young structures can be related unequivocally to the seismicity because earthquake fault-plane solutions and hypocenter distributions do not agree with the locations and orientations of these structures. Therefore, a major emphasis of continuing USGS investigations near Charleston will be to identify additional faults, if any exist, to delineate fault movement histories, and to further refine earthquake locations, focal mechanisms, and related seismological interpretations.