Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Evaluation Of Carbon Isotopic Chemostratigraphy Of The Cedar Mountain Formation Of Utah, Clayton Forster

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Lower Cretaceous rocks of Utah preserve the origin of a multitude of dinosaur taxa, spread of angiosperms on the North American continent, and evolution of marsupial and eutherian mammals. However, the timing of deposition of these rocks is not well understood and must be determined to understand climatic controls on these biological events. Estimates of the age of the Cedar Mountain Formation and its constituent members range from Late Jurassic to early Late Cretaceous. Understanding the timing of deposition of the Cedar Mountain Formation is critical to dinosaurian and associated taxa studies as well as paleoclimate reconstructions from within …

The Kanarra Fold-Thrust System -- The Leading Edge Of The Sevier Fold-Thrust Belt, Southwest Utah, William Joseph Michael Chandonia

Doctoral Dissertations

“The Jurassic to Eocene Sevier fold-thrust belt is the subject of continued scientific curiosity in tectonics, stratigraphy, and industry. Understanding its development in southwest Utah is hindered in part due to the multiple origins proposed for the Kanarra anticline, a major leading edge structure -- a drag fold along the Hurricane fault, Laramide monocline, Sevier fault propagation fold, or a combination of these -- which have confused its tectonic significance and regional context. This confusion results from the structural complexity of its exposed eastern limb, as well as displacement and burial of its crest and western limb beneath Neogene sediments …

Paleoecology Of Bivalves In The Carmel Formation (Middle Jurassic, Bajocian) Of Utah, Evan L. Shadbolt

Senior Independent Study Theses

The Carmel Formation of the Middle Jurassic has many mysteries. One of these enigmas is its bivalves. The formation contains the famous oyster balls called ostreoliths. Despite bivalves making up 80 percent of the fossils found in the Carmel Formation, it is not understood how the bivalves lived in this community. The formation is located in southwestern and central Utah. It was deposited when an epicontinental seaway covered most of Utah. The paleoclimate of Utah was hot and dry, which meant that the environment was evaporite heavy. This also meant that the seawater at the southernmost extent of the seaway …

Nature And Origin Of Fissure Ore At The Porphyry-Epithermal Transition Zone Of The Bingham Canyon Porphyry Cu-Au-Mo Deposit, Utah, David Harris Tomlinson

Theses and Dissertations

Late-stage fissure-filling ore at the world class Bingham Canyon, Utah, porphyry copper deposit has long been recognized, but poorly studied. Physical and chemical characterization of the Pb-Zn-Cu-Ag-Au mineralized fissures in the porphyry-epithermal transition zone provides insight into the origin, timing, and controls of ore deposition. These sheared sulfide-rich fissures are dominated by pyrite and multiple generations of quartz, with lesser amounts of other sulfides and gangue minerals. Au (0.27 to 4.61 ppm) provides the most value to the ore in the transition zone. Host rocks include Eocene monzonite and Paleozoic limestone and quartzite"”all of which can contain economic ore bodies. …

An Analysis Of Fractures Around The Sevier Fault Zone Near Orderville, Utah, Charley H. Hankla

Senior Independent Study Theses

Structural discontinuities—such as opening mode joints, shear fractures, and faults— tend to occur in close geographic proximity to one another; however, the timing relationships between these structures is not always easy to discern in the field. In southwestern Utah, the Jurassic Navajo Sandstone is cut by large-scale normal faults associated with the Sevier Fault Zone, making it perfect for observing several fracture types. The aim of this study is to complete a dynamic and kinematic analyses of the fractures near a major fault and to determine the chronologic relationships between the fractures. Specifically, we observed a previously unnamed segment of …

The Sequence Stratigraphic Context Of Mixed Basin Margin Evaporites In The Harrisburg Member Of The Permian Kaibab Formation, Northern Arizona And Southern Utah, Cole Hendrickson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Kaibab Formation is a mixed carbonate system including evaporites and siliciclastics deposited on a westward dipping epeiric carbonate ramp during the middle Permian in northern Arizona, southern Utah, and eastern Nevada. It consists of the Fossil Mountain Member deposited in open-marine conditions and the overlying Harrisburg Member deposited in restricted conditions. The Harrisburg Member includes facies and depositional environments ranging from open-marine shallow-subtidal wackestone - packstone, restricted subtidal dolomitic mudstone, dolomitic sandstone, peritidal oolitic grainstone as well as gypsum and red siltstones deposited in a sabkha environment.

Fourteen stratigraphic sections were measured across northern Arizona and southern Utah to …

Hydrocarbon And Co2 Emissions From Oil And Gas Production Well Pad Soils Comparative To Background Soil Emissions In Eastern Utah, Cody S. Watkins

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

What effect does the development of oil and gas have on the observed air quality (i.e., increased ozone, carbon dioxide (CO₂), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and/or methane emissions) in northeastern Utah? What percentage of these gases is natural background emissions, and what percentage is due to the recent oil and gas development in the region? Emissions in this text refer to gases released from the earth’s surface to the atmosphere. Methane is the primary compound in natural gas. Natural gas is a naturally occurring hydrocarbon gas mixture. Emissions of methane, non-methane hydrocarbons (NMHC), and CO₂ at 27 …

Redbeds Of The Upper Entrada Sandstone, Central Utah: Facies Analysis And Regional Implications Of Interfingered Sabkha And Fluvial Terminal Splay Sediments, Jeffery Michael Valenza

Theses and Dissertations

First distinguished from other sedimentary successions in 1928, the Entrada Sandstone has been the subject of numerous studies. The western extent of the formation was initially described as laterally continuous "earthy" red beds, and categorized as sub- to supratidal marine-influenced sediments. Recent workers have reexamined the sedimentary facies hosted by the Entrada Sandstone, and findings suggest purely terrestrial depositional environments. Several outcrops of the upper Entrada hosted peculiar sedimentary features, including undulatory and convex-upward, parallel-laminated bedforms, reminiscent of hummocky cross-stratification- unexpected features in a terrestrial environment. The purpose of this study was to collect detailed outcrop measurements of these and …

Sedimentology And Stratigraphy Of The Middle Jurassic Preuss Sandstonein Northern Utah And Eastern Idaho, Preston Scott Cook

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to analyze the sedimentology and stratigraphy of the Middle Jurassic Preuss Sandstone and re-evaluate past sedimentological interpretations. The Preuss is located in northern Utah, western Wyoming and eastern Idaho and is stratigraphically equivalent to the Entrada Sandstone, which is Callovian in age (Dossett et al., 2014). This study is the first attempt at 1) a sequence stratigraphic framework, 2) a petroleum system analysis and 3) an extraterrestrial analog study for the Preuss. This study frames the Preuss within three broad facies groups: marine, coastal and terrestrial. The marine group includes the open marine and …

Spatial Trends And Facies Distribution Of The High-Energy Alluvial Cutler Formation, Southeastern Utah, Isaac John Allred

Theses and Dissertations

The Cutler Formation is composed of thick, arkosic, alluvial conglomerate, sandstone, and mudstone shed southwestward from the Uncompahgre Uplift into the Paradox Basin. More basin-ward the Cutler is recognized as a group consisting of differentiable formations. Discrete formations historically have not been distinguished near the uplift, but this study identified several separate successions in the Richardson Amphitheater. Research at the Richardson Amphitheater, ~12 km southwest of the uplift and ~30 km northeast of Moab, Utah, led to a systematic subdivision of the Permian Cutler Formation proximal to the uplift. Likely driven by channel cutting and migration across the alluvial fan, …

Facies Analysis, Sequence Stratigraphy And Paleogeography Of The Middle Jurassic (Callovian) Entrada Sandstone: Traps, Tectonics, And Analog, George R. Jennings Iii

Theses and Dissertations

The late Middle Jurassic (Callovian) Entrada Sandstone has been divided into two general facies associations consisting primarily of eolian sandstones in eastern Utah and "muddy" redbeds in central Utah. Sedimentary structures within the redbed portion are explained by the interfingering of inland sabkha, alluvial, and eolian depositional systems. A complete succession from the most basinward facies to the most terrestrial facies in the Entrada Sandstone consists of inland sabkha facies overlain by either alluvial or eolian facies. Where both alluvial and eolian facies interfinger, alluvial facies overlain by eolian facies is considered a normal succession. Sequence boundaries, often identified by …

Landscape Evolution Of The Needles Fault Zone, Utah, Investigated Through Chronostratigraphic And Terrain Analyses, Faye L. Geiger

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Arcing eastward from the deep gorge of Cataract Canyon on the Colorado River is a series of aligned valleys (graben) and ridges (horst). This unusual landscape has formed as subsurface salt deforms toward the river and dissolves away, causing the overlying rocks to fault, slide, and subside. Geologists have long been interested in this actively evolving area they call the Needles fault zone, because understanding its mechanics and origin may shed light on how faults work in general and similar, yet inaccessible places like offshore rift zones or even the surface of the Moon. Despite this interest, the timing and …

Digital Outcrop Model And Paleoecology Of The Eight-Foot Rapid Algal Field (Middle Pennsylvanian Lower Ismay Sequence), Paradox Basin, Utah, Colton Lynn Goodrich

Theses and Dissertations

Although phylloid algal mounds have been studied for 50 year, much remains to be determined concerning the ecology and sedimentology of these Late Paleozoic carbonate buildups. Herein we perform a digital outcrop study of the well-known Middle Pennsylvanian Lower Ismay mound interval in the Paradox Basin because outcropping mounds along the San Juan River are cited as outcrop analogs of reservoir carbonates in the Paradox Basin oil province of Utah and adjacent states. The principal field area is the Eight Foot algal field located at river mile 19.2 on the San Juan River, approximately 14 miles SSW of Bluff, Utah. …

A Middle To Late Holocene Record Of Arroyo Cut-Fill Events In Kitchen Corral Wash, Southern Utah, William M. Huff

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Arroyos are steeply entrenched channels that form by incision into weakly consolidated valley-fill alluvium. This study attempts to offers clues into the processes behind their formation by dating arroyo sediments using luminescence and radiocarbon techniques. The importance of understanding arroyo formation is due to a possible linkage with decadal to centennial-scale climate fluctuations. In the 1800s and early 1900s, many of the shallow, perennial streams throughout southern Utah that used for a variety of agricultural and domestic uses were incised up to ~30 m into their alluvium by frequent and high-magnitude flood events. The economical and ecological effects of these …

Dendrochronology In Northern Utah: Modeling Sensitivity And Reconstructing Logan River Flows, Eric B. Allen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The population centers in northern Utah are highly dependent upon snowpack for drinking water, irrigation, and hydropower. When the snowpack melts in the spring and early summer, it feeds streams draining the Wasatch, Bear River, and Uinta Mountains. The rivers are diverted and dammed to deliver water to the greater Salt Lake metropolitan area. In order to properly allocate this water, managers need to know how much water normally flows in the rivers and the frequency and magnitude of wet and dry periods to expect. However, climate patterns in the region are not well understood and records of streamflows are …

An Integrated Geophysical And Geologic Study Of The Paleogene-Age Volcanic Body And Possible Landslide Deposit On The South Slope Of The Traverse Mountains, Utah, John C. Hoopes

Theses and Dissertations

Development of homes, roads, and commercial buildings in northern Utah has grown significantly during the last several decades. Construction has expanded from the valley floor to higher elevations of benches, foothills, and other elevated regions of the Wasatch Mountain Front. Construction in the higher elevation areas are a concern due to potential for landslides, both new and reactivated. Landslides have been identified in this region and are dated as Pleistocene to historical in age. A possible landslide of about 0.5 km2 on the south slope of Traverse Mountain has been mapped by the Utah Geological Survey in 2005. Its surface …

Geology Of The Phil Pico Mountain Quadrangle, Daggett County, Utah, And Sweetwater County, Wyoming, Alvin D. Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

Geologic mapping in the Phil Pico Mountain quadrangle and analysis of the Carter Oil Company Carson Peak Unit 1 well have provided additional constraints on the erosional and uplift history of this section of the north flank of the Uinta Mountains. Phil Pico Mountain is largely composed of the conglomeratic facies of the early Eocene Wasatch and middle to late Eocene Bridger Formations. These formations are separated by the Henrys Fork fault which has thrust Wasatch Formation next to Bridger Formation. The Wasatch Formation is clearly synorogenic and contains an unroofing succession from the adjacent Uinta Mountains. On Phil Pico …

Geologic Map Of The Golden Throne Quadrangle, Wayne And Garfield Counties, Utah, Daniel H. Martin

Theses and Dissertations

The Golden Throne Quadrangle is located within Capitol Reef National Park, south-central Utah. Geologic mapping of this 1:24,000 scale 7.5 minute quadrangle began in 2003 as the National Parks Service desired to have geologic maps at this scale produced within the park. Stratigraphically, ten bedrock formations and ten Quaternary deposits are exposed within the Golden Throne Quadrangle. Geologic formations range in age from Permian to Jurassic. This map contains details not included on previous geologic maps including; the members of the Carmel, Chinle, and Moenkopi Formations. Additionally, the Page Sandstone is herein mapped as an independent unit. Structurally the Golden …

The Quaternary Stratigraphy Of The Henrys Fork And Western Browns Park, Northeastern Uinta Mountains, Utah And Wyoming, Ronald C. Counts

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The landscape evolution of the northeastern Uinta Mountains and the manner in which climatic and tectonic forcing have influenced it are not well constrained. Surficial deposits covering ~325 km² below the glacial termini in the Henrys Fork and ~50 km² along the Green River in western Browns Park were mapped at 1:24,000 scale to develop a Quaternary stratigraphic framework for the northeastern Uinta Mountains.

The Henrys Fork mapping area spans from late Wisconsinan moraines to Flaming Gorge Reservoir. The Henrys Fork stratigraphy contains 10 mainstem gravels, six piedmont gravels, and landslide deposits. Terraces preserved along the Henrys Fork …

Sequence Stratigraphy Of The Bridal Veil Falls Limestone, Carboniferous, Lower Oquirrh Group, On Cascade Mountain, Utah: A Standard Morrowan Cyclostratigraphy For The Oquirrh Basin, David Joseph Shoore

Theses and Dissertations

The Bridal Veil Falls Limestone (lowest 400 meters of the Permo-Carboniferous Oquirrh Group) is well exposed on the flanks of Cascade Mountain (Wasatch Front and adjacent mountain ranges) near Provo, Utah. Because of its excellent exposure and location in the heart of the Oquirrh depocenter, this area was selected to develop a sequence stratigraphic framework for Morrowan rocks that may be applied throughout the Oquirrh basin (NW Utah and southern Idaho) as well as the adjacent Ely and Bird Springs troughs. Eleven partial to complete sections of the Bridal Veil Falls Limestone were measured along the west and north flanks …

A Conceptual Model Of Groundwater Flow At The Midway, Utah Fish Hatchery As Constrained By Geochemical, Physical Hydrogeological, And Geophysical Methods, Camille Durrant

Theses and Dissertations

In addition to a loss of potential revenues from Utah's $393 million sport fishing industry, the state expends millions of dollars every year on costs associated with whirling disease mitigation and prevention. A state fish hatchery at Midway, Utah was closed when the shallow unconfined aquifer being used for fish culture by spring discharge was deemed to be contaminated by whirling disease. An alternative water source may exist in a confined aquifer below this contaminated unconfined aquifer. However, the complex hydrostratigraphy presents a challenge in determining if this source is a viable resource for fish culture. Geological, physical, chemical, geophysical, …

Structural Analysis Of Co2 Leakage Through The Salt Wash And Little Grand Wash Faults From Natural Reservoirs In The Colorado Plateau, Southeastern Utah, Anthony P. Williams

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Little Grand Wash fault and the Salt Wash Graben in the Colorado Plateau of southeastern Utah emit CO₂ gas from abandoned drillholes, springs, and a hydrocarbon seep. Similar CO₂-charged water has also been emitted in the past, as shown by large localized travertine deposits and veins along and near the fault traces. The faults cut natural CO₂ reservoirs and provide an excellent analog for geologic CO₂ sequestration. The faults cut a north-plunging anticline of rocks consisting of siltstones, shales, and sandstones from the Permian Cutler Formation through the Cretaceous Mancos Shale. The Little Grand …

Geochemistry Of Ground Water - Surface Water Interactions And Metals Loading Rates In The North Fork Of The American Fork River, Utah, From An Abandoned Silver/Lead Mine, Neil I. Burk

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The aqueous geochemistry and hydrology of the North Fork of the American Fork River, its tributaries, and the ground water in the vicinity of the Pacific Mine site were investigated in order to determine what impact ground water entering the North Fork has on toxic metal loads in the river. Toxic metal contamination in the North Fork is great enough that brown and cutthroat trout have absorbed lead, cadmium, and arsenic in their tissues at concentrations that are hazardous to human health if consumed. Ground water that flows through the mine site flows directly through the mine tailings before entering …

Delineation Of Mass Movement Prone Areas By Landsat 7 And Digitial Image Processing, Shiloh Marie Howland

Theses and Dissertations

The problem of whether Landsat 7 data could be used to delineate areas prone to mass movement, particularly debris flows and landslides, was examined using three techniques: change detection in NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index), change detection in band 5, and the tasseled cap transformation. These techniques were applied to areas that had recently experienced mass movement: Layton, Davis County and Alpine, Spanish Fork Canyon and Santaquin, Utah County. No distinctive spectral characteristics were found with any of these techniques with two possible explanations: 1. That despite improved spatial resolution in Landat 7 over its predecessors and improved digital image …

From The Rim To The River: The Geomorphology Of Debris Flows In The Green River Canyons Of Dinosaur National Monument, Colorado And Utah, Isaac J. Larsen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Green River canyons of the eastern Uinta Mountains have experienced a 5-year period of high debris flow activity. Catchment factors were studied in watersheds and on debris fans with recent debris flows, leading to the development of a conceptual framework of the hillslope and debris flow processes that deliver sediment to the Green River. Two recent fan deposits were monitored to determine the magnitude and processes of reworking that occur during mainstem floods of varying magnitude.

The dominant debris flow initiation mechanism, termed the firehose effect, occurs when overland flow generated on bedrock slopes cascades down steep cliffs and …

Simulation Of Groundwater Flow In Cache Valley, Utah And Idaho, Barry Myers

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A groundwater model of Cache Valley was created using MODFLOW. Steady-state calibration of the model demonstrated that recharge to the lower confined aquifer may occur along the margin of the valley that borders the Wellsville Mountains and the Bear River Range. Steady-state calibration also showed that discharge from the unconfined aquifer may occur along the eastern and western margins of the valley in both the Utah and the Idaho portions of the valley.

Two simulations were run with increased pumping of 3 5 cubic feet per second (1 cubic meter per second) from the principal aquifer. The first simulation was …

Controls On Channel Organization And Morphology In A Glaciated Basin In The Uinta Mountains, Utah, Betty E. Paepke

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The organization and morphology of Middle Fork Sheep Creek and South Fork Sheep Creek, two mountain streams in the upper Sheep Creek basin, are controlled by the spatial distribution of glacial moraines. Both channels are organized into a reoccurring sequence of steep-gradient reaches changing downstream to low-gradient reaches. Steep-gradient reaches are located where the channels flow through moraine s. Low-gradient reaches are located in meadows downstream of the steep-gradient reaches and immediately upstream of the next moraine. Knickpoints in the longitudinal profiles of both streams coincide with the location of moraines.

Large boulder s, beyond the size transportable by the …

Tertiary Stratigraphy And Structural Geology, Wellsville Mountains To Junction Hills, North-Central Utah, Kathryn M. Goessel

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study integrates detailed mapping of Tertiary deposits along the divide between the lower Bear River basin and the Cache Valley basin with several other techniques to generate a depositional model, define extension-related structures, and compile a geologic history for this part of the northeastern Basin and Range province. The study area is situated along the topographic divide between Box Elder and Cache Counties, Utah, from the Wellsville Mountains north almost to Clarkston Mountain. These ranges are cored by folded and thrusted Paleozoic rocks. They are bound on the west by normal faults of the Wasatch fault zone and on …

A Hydrogeochemical Study Of The Evolution Of The Headwaters Of The Bear River In The Uinta Mountains, Utah, Michael F. Leschin

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The headwaters of the Bear River in the Uinta Mountains of Utah provide a good setting in which to examine the influence of geological materials on stream chemistry. Ionic contributions to the stream-water from soils, vegetation, and the atmosphere generally are sparse enough that they do not mask the geologic contributions. Samples from 37 sites on the four major headwater streams and several minor tributaries were examined geochemically. Data derived from the samples allowed the construction of a hydrogeochemical weathering model specific to the study area. A significant feature of this model is that carbonic acid is the dominant chemical …

Hydrochemical Definition Of Ground Water And Surface Water, With An Emphasis On The Origin Of The Ground-Water Salinity In Southern Juab Valley, Juab County, Utah, Heidi K. Hadley

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

As part of a U.S. Geological Survey study in Juab Valley in central Utah from 1991 to 1994, the chemistry of ground - and surface -water samples was determined. Total dissolved solids in the ground water of southern Juab Valley have historically been higher, in general, than ground water in other areas of Utah. Total dissolved solids for ground-water samples from this study ranged from 623 to 3,980 milligrams/liter. High-sulfate chemical data of previous studies suggested that the major source of ground-water salinity is the dissolution of gypsum (hydrous calcium sulfate ) from the Arapien Shale. Sulfur-34 to sulfur-32 isotopic …