Earth Sciences Commons^™

Slides: Overview Of Ground-Water Quality And Related Management Issues, Mike Wireman

Groundwater in the West (Summer Conference, June 16-18)

Presenter: Mike Wireman, Regional Groundwater Expert, EPA Region 8.

32 slides.

Karst Of Western Cuba: Observations, Geomorphology, And Diagenesis, Larry D. Seale, Limaris R. Soto, Lee J. Florea, Beth Fratesi

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

In Cuba, we observed many karst features in a variety of hydrogeologic settings. These hy-drogeologic settings occur in close proximity only because of the complex tectonic history of the is-land. We observed caves within rocks ranging from Pleistocene to Jurassic, and representing a range of diagenetic ages from eogenetic to teloge-netic. Our observations are from the western one-third of the island of Cuba; however, we believe they are representative of hydrogeologic settings found throughout the island.

A 700 Year Record Of Southern Hemisphere Extratropical Climate Variability, Paul A. Mayewski, Kirk A. Maasch, James W.C. White, Eric J. Steig, E A. Meyerson, Ian D. Goodwin, Vin Morgan, Tas D. Van Ommen, Mark Aj Curran, Joseph M. Souney Jr, K Kreutz

All Materials

Annually dated ice cores from West and East Antarctica provide proxies for past changes in atmospheric circulation over Antarctica and portions of the Southern Ocean, temperature in coastal West and East Antarctica, and the frequency of South Polar penetration of El Niño events. During the period AD 1700–1850, atmospheric circulation over the Antarctic and at least portions of the Southern Hemisphere underwent a mode switch departing from the out-of-phase alternation of multi-decadal long phases of EOF1 and EOF2 modes of the 850 hPa field over the Southern Hemisphere (as defined in the recent record by Thompson and Wallace, 2000; Thompson …

The Impact Of Urbanization On Macroinvertebrate Communities Of Creeks Within Western Georgia, Jeniffer Susan Lang

Theses and Dissertations

Urbanization is a major cause of stream impairment in the United States, altering stream ecological integrity in a variety of ways. While control of point source pollution has largely improved over the last twenty years, the control of non-point source pollution has proved to be more of a challenge. Urbanization in the area surrounding streams has been linked with elevated levels of sediment, heavy metals, organic matter, and nutrients within streams, as well as with other negative effects. Examining the macroinvertebrate communities within streams has proven to be an effective indicator of the effects of urbanization on water quality. This …

Point Load Strength Testing Of Irregular Rock Fragments Of Welded Tuff, Jaak J.K. Daemen, George Danko, Amy J. Smiecinski

Publications (YM)

Yucca Mountain is composed of a thick sequence of variably welded and nonwelded ashflow tuffs (Rautman and Engstrom, 1996). The understanding of the rock mechanical properties is useful for characterizing the mechanical stability of the potential repository and for estimating the amount of ground support needed in underground construction (Sweetkind et al, 2003). According to Brook (1993), knowledge of lump point load strength is helpful because it can help in estimating the compressive strength. Lump point load testing is one basic mechanical characterization test to support the study of long term drift stability at the potential High Level Waste repository …

What's Shakin': Earthquake Research At Bridgewater, Robert C. Cicerone

Bridgewater Review

No abstract provided.

Groundwater Trends In The North Stirling Pallinup Sub-Region, Ruhi Ferdowsian, Lisa Crossing

Natural resources published reports

The South Coast Regional Initiative Planning Team (SCRIPT) has divided the South Coast region of Western Australia into six sub-regions. This publication describes the groundwater trends, risk of shallow watertables, and technical feasibility of salinity management in the agricultural district of the North Stirling Pallinup sub-region.

This sub-region encompasses the Stirling Range National Park, the North Stirling Basin to the north-east of the Park, and the middle and upper catchments of the Pallinup River. Almost 90% (500,000 ha) of the sub-region's alienated land has been cleared for agriculture, and salinity has been identified as an important issue.

Soil-landscape zones are …

Groundwater Trends In The Fitzgerald Biosphere Sub-Region, Adam Lillicrap

Natural resources published reports

The South Coast Regional Initiative Planning Team (SCRIPT) has divided the South Coast region into six sub-regions. The Fitzgerald Biosphere sub-region is located in the centre of the South Coast region of Western Australia (Figure 1). It is bounded by the Pallinup River to the east, Jerdacuttup River to the west, and includes the catchments of the Gairdner, Fitzgerald and Phillips Rivers. The sub-region encompasses the Fitzgerald Biosphere Reserve and just over half (730,000 ha) has been cleared for agriculture.

This publication describes the groundwater trends, risk of shallow watertables, and technical feasibility of salinity management in the soil landscape …

Marine Anthropogenic Debris Surveys On Hanna Bay And East Beaches, San Salvador Island, Bahamas, 1998–2004, Virginia White, H. Allen Curran

Geosciences: Faculty Publications

Reprinted from: R.L. Davis & D. Gamble, eds., Proceedings of the 12th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, San Salvador, Gerace Research Center

Effects Of Microbial Processes On Electrolytic And Interfacial Electrical Properties Of Unconsolidated Sediments, Gamal Z. Abdal Aal, Estella A. Atekwana, Lee D. Slater, Eliot A. Atekwana

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The effect of microbial processes on electrical properties of unconsolidated sediments was investigated in a laboratory experiment consisting of biotic and abiotic sand columns. The biotic column (nutrient, diesel and bacteria) showed (a) temporal increase in the real, imaginary, and surface conductivity, and (b) temporal decrease in the formation factor. The abiotic columns (nutrient; and nutrient and diesel) showed no significant changes. Increase in microbial population numbers, decrease in organic carbon source, nitrate, and sulfate and increase in dissolved inorganic carbon and fluid conductivity were indicative of microbial activity in the biotic column. We also measure relative increase in the …

Enhanced Marine Productivity Off Western North America During Warm Climate Intervals Of The Past 52 K.Y., J.D. Ortiz, S.B. O’Connell, J. Delviscio, W. Dean, J.D. Carriquiry, T. Marchitto, Y. Zheng, A. Van Geen

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Studies of the Santa Barbara Basin off the coast of California have linked changes in its bottom-water oxygen content to millennial-scale climate changes as recorded by the oxygen isotope composition of Greenland ice. Through the use of detailed records from a sediment core collected off the Magdalena Margin of Baja California, Mexico, we demonstrate that this teleconnection predominantly arose from changes in marine productivity, rather than changes in ventilation of the North Pacific, as was originally proposed. One possible interpretation is that the modern balance of El Nino–La Nina conditions that favors a shallow nutricline and high productivity today and …

A Concept Of Maximum Stream Depletion Rate For Leaky Aquifers In Alluvial Valleys, Vitaly A. Zlotnik

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

Existing analytical models for evaluating stream depletion by wells in alluvial aquifers are based on the assumption that stream depletion supplies 100% of groundwater withdrawals. Analysis of specific hydrostratigraphic conditions in leaky aquifers indicates that stream depletion may range from 0 to 100%. A new concept of maximum stream depletion rate (MSDR) is introduced and defined as a maximum fraction of the pumping rate contributed by the stream depletion. Several new analytical solutions indicate that the MSDR is determined by aquifer hydrostratigraphic conditions, geometry of recharge and discharge zones, and locations of pumping wells.

Potential Of Modis Ocean Bands For Estimating Co2 Flux From Terrestrial Vegetation: A Novel Approach, Abdullah Rahman, Vicente D. Cordova, John A. Gamon, Hans Peter Schmid, Daniel A. Sims

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

A physiologically-driven spectral index using two ocean-color bands of MODIS satellite sensor showed great potential to track seasonally changing photosynthetic light use efficiency (LUE) and stress-induced reduction in net primary productivity (NPP) of terrestrial vegetation. Based on these findings, we developed a simple ‘‘continuous field’’ model solely based on remotely sensed spectral data that could explain 88% of variability in flux-tower based daily NPP. For the first time, such a procedure is successfully tested at landscape level using satellite imagery. These findings highlight the unexplored potential of narrow-band satellite sensors to improve estimates of spatial and temporal distribution in terrestrial …

Twentieth Century Water Quality Trends In Minnesota Lakes Compared With Presettlement Variability, Joy M. Ramstack, Sherilyn C. Fritz, Daniel R. Engstrom

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

Abstract: A diatom-based transfer function was used to reconstruct water chemistry before European settlement in 55 Minnesota lakes. The lakes span three natural ecoregions, which differ in their history of land use, as well as in surficial geology, climate, and vegetation. Postsettlement trends were compared with water chemistry change reconstructed from two presettlement core sections (circa 1750 and 1800) as a measure of natural variability. Presettlement water quality changes were generally small and nondirectional in all three ecoregions. In contrast, half of the urban lakes showed a statistically significant increase in chloride, whereas 30% of urban and 30% of agricultural …

Particles In The Great Pinatubo Volcanic Cloud Of June 1991:The Role Of Ice, Song Guo, William I. Rose, Gregg J. S. Bluth, M. I. Watson

Department of Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences Publications

Pinatubo's 15 June 1991 eruption was Earth's largest of the last 25 years, and it formed a substantial volcanic cloud. We present results of analysis of satellite-based infrared remote sensing using Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) and TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder/High Resolution Infrared Radiation Sounder/2 (TOVS/HIRS/2) sensors, during the first few days of atmospheric residence of the Pinatubo volcanic cloud, as it drifted from the Philippines toward Africa. An SO₂-rich upper (25 km) portion drifted westward slightly faster than an ash-rich lower (22 km) part, though uncertainty exists due to difficulty in precisely locating the ash cloud. …

A Long Baseline Laser Strainmeter For The Exploratory Studies Facility At Yucca Mountain, Frank K. Wyatt, James N. Brune, Drew Coleman, Don Baepler, Amy J. Smiecinski

Publications (YM)

This Scientific Investigation Plan (SIP), for work under the second Department of Energy/University and Community College System of Nevada (DOE/UCCSN) Cooperative Agreement (10/01/03), DEFC28- 04RW12232, is intended to cover the laser strainmeter operation and monitoring task being conducted by the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), under the oversight of the Nevada Seismological Laboratory of the University of Nevada-Reno (NSL/UNR). UCSD has carried out the design, engineering, and installation of the east-west laser strainmeter (LSM) currently in place in the Exploratory Studies Facility (ESF) at Yucca Mountain.

Chemical Analyses For Alcove 8/Niche 3 Tracer Studies, Jeanette Daniels, Klaus J. Stetzenbach, Drew Coleman, Don Baepler, Amy J. Smiecinski

Publications (YM)

The objective of this task “Analytical Support For Tracer Studies in Alcove 8 / Niche 3” is to provide chemical analyses for the tracer studies at Alcove 8 / Niche 3 in the Exploratory Studies Facilities (ESF). This analytical support includes developing procedures for measuring tracer concentrations and then performing the tracer (and other background constituent) analyses for the water samples generated from each Alcove 8 / Niche 3 tracer test. These tracer tests are part of the Flow and Seepage Testing in Alcove 8/Niche 3 (TWP-NBS-HS-000004 REV 00). The overall goal of this study is to quantify large scale …

Geomorphic Analysis Of Tidal Creek Networks, Karyn Inez Novakowski, Raymond Torres, L Robert Gardner, George Voulgaris

Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study is to determine if concepts in terrestrial channel network analysis provide insight on intertidal creek network development and to present new metrics for their analysis. We delineated creek network geometry using high-resolution digital images of intertidal marsh near Georgetown, South Carolina. Analyses reveal that intertidal creek networks may be topologically random. Length-area relationships suggest that salt marsh and terrestrial networks have similar scaling properties, although the marsh networks are more elongate than terrestrial networks. To account for recurrent water exchange between creek basins at high tide, we propose that the landscape unit of geomorphic analyses …

What Does It Take To Get Tenure?, Annabelle Foos, Mary Anne Holmes, Suzanne O'Connell

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

Data from the National Science Foundation and the American Geological Institute indicate that women geoscientists remain underrepresented at all levels in academia. In addition, the proportion of women geoscience faculty declines with increasing rank, from around 20 percent as assistant professors to 5 percent as full professors.

In 2001, we began a project to collect information that can help mentor women faculty early in their geoscience careers and improve their chances of obtaining tenure. We also wanted to provide institutions with information on retention, tenure and promotion procedures and criteria as they are practiced across the country.

Atrazine Contamination In A Rural Source-Water Supply: Spa Lake, Lewisburg, Kentucky, Kathryn Seadler

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

In 1998, Western Kentucky University (WKU) worked in collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Drinking Water Protection Division, to investigate methods to improve source-water quality for rural-water supply systems (RWSS). Through partial funding from the EPA, WKU developed a Technical Assistance Center for Water Quality (TACWQ), which focused resources and expertise toward assisting RWSS in achieving and maintaining capacity development goals and protecting public health. The TACWQ established the Source Water Protection Initiative (SWPI) to assist RWSS in acquiring and monitoring the technical, financial and managerial capacity needed to provide safe drinking water and achieve the public health protection …

Defining Archaeological Stratigraphy: Evaluating Microartifact Sampling, David N. Holycross

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A variety of subsurface methods have been used to discover and evaluate buried archaeological occupations. Researchers such as Stafford (1993,1995) have proposed that micro artifacts are an effective means of defining the archaeological stratigraphy of deposits, but only limited evaluation of this approach has been undertaken. This study tested the utility of microartifacts within a range of sample size and site density characteristics at three Ohio Valley archaeological sites buried within early and late Holocene age landforms. Occupations were typically detected in unit-to-core comparisons, within acceptable margins of error, and microartifacts often revealed a more complex stratigraphy than reflected by …

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 …

Terrestrial Movements And Habitat Use Of Gopher Frogs (Rana Capito) At Fort Benning, Georgia, Jonathan H. Neufeldt

Theses and Dissertations

Gopher frogs (Rana capito) were radio-tracked between the 2000 and 2001 breeding seasons to study their terrestrial movements and habitat use in a longleaf pine- sandhill area on the Fort Benning Military Reservation, Georgia. The telemetry research was conducted in response to the need for biological data concerning gopher frog terrestrial habits. Ultimately the data could aid biologists and land managers in describing critical habitat and the development of a management or recovery plan. Twelve gopher frogs were caught at a herpetofaunal array surrounding two neighboring breeding ponds during a post breeding migration, implanted with miniature transmitters, released and radio-tracked …

Sulfide Sulfur Concentration And Sulfur Isotopic Composition Of Methane Seep Sediments, V. Lynn Means, Walter S. Borowski

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Quantitative Analysis Of Movement Along An Earthquake Thrust Scarp: A Case Study Of A Vertical Exposure Of The 1999 Surface Rupture Of The Chelungpu Fault At Wufeng, Western Taiwan, Jian-Cheng Lee, Charles Rubin, Karl Mueller, Yue-Gau Chen, Yu-Chang Chan, Kerry Sieh, Hao-Tsu Chu, Wen-Shan Chen

All Faculty Scholarship for the College of the Sciences

A vertical exposure across the principal thrust scarp of the 1999 Mw 7.6 earthquake allows quantification of fault slip. The exposure is located on the active Chelungpu fault near Wufeng, along the range front of the fold-and-thrust belt in western Taiwan. The 1999 surface ruptures at the Wufeng site are characterized by a west-facing 2 to 3 m high principal thrust scarp and an east-facing lesser backthrust scarp. We mapped a 15 m-long, 5 m-deep exposure across the principal thrust scarp and characterized complex deformation structures, which include a main basal thrust fault, a wedge thrust, and a pop-up anticlinal …

Waldo Lake Research In 2003, Mark D. Sytsma, John Rueter, Richard Petersen, Roy Koch, Scott A. Wells, Rich Miller, Laura Johnson, Robert Leslie Annear

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

This report summarizes the first year of an effort to develop a more complete understanding of the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics that drive the ecological processes of Waldo Lake. Modern limnology recognizes the importance of watershed processes as well as in- lake processes in lake ecosystem functioning. Therefore, the approach included consideration of watershed hydrology and forcing functions that determine hydrodynamics of the system as well physical and chemical factors that may be important in regulating primary production in the lake. Data collected since 1998 was summarized and bathymetry of the basin was mapped using state-of-the-art digital depth sounding …

Structural Geology And Aquifer Characterization Of Glassy Mountain, South Carolina Piedmont, Cameron M. Warlick

All Dissertations

Lithologies and structures of the Inner Piedmont geological province were mapped in detail in the vicinity of a major, new residential development on Glassy Mountain, which is located north of Greenville, South Carolina, within the Saluda 7.5-minute quadrangle. Three principal lithostratigraphic units are recognized within the study area: the Henderson Gneiss, Upper Mill Spring unit, and Poor Mountain Formation. The contact between the Henderson Gneiss and the overlying Upper Mill Spring-Poor Mountain sequence is the Seneca Thrust. The contact between the Upper Mill Spring unit and the overlying Poor Mountain Formation is also a thrust fault. Fold vergence and thrust …

“Coupling” Semantics And Science In Earthquake Research, Kelin Wang, Timothy H. Dixon

School of Geosciences Faculty and Staff Publications

Coupling is a convenient word that describes a wide variety of interactions or feedback processes, including those that we do not fully understand. Examples in Earth science include ocean-atmosphere coupling, climate-tectonics coupling, and core-mantle coupling. The word is also very popular in discussions of plate boundary earthquake processes.

As a vague expression, fault coupling is a perfectly adequate term, describing some kind of mechanical interaction between rocks of each side of a fault. For those of us who try to infer fault processes from geodetic measurements, coupling usually indicates a state of no or low current slip. If a fault …

Hydraulic Testing Of The Big Hole Fault, Northern San Rafael Swell, Utah, William M. Schieb

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Six cross-hole packer tests were conducted at the Big Hole fault, a dip-slip normal fault in the northern San Rafael Swell of east-central Utah. Three tests were conducted at each of two locations along the fault, each location having a different total displacement. Water was injected in the footwall, hanging wall, and fault core and pressure changes were monitored in isolated intervals in the adjoining wells. Response curves were analyzed using the type curves developed by Hsieh and Neuman, and Theis, in order to evaluate the hydraulic properties of the fault and its associated damage zone.

The tests were not …

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 …