Backgrounds and Baselines Completed
This project developed a geochemical information base through studies ranging in scale from site-specific to regional and national.
Overview
A geochemical base of information is required to define the natural abundance and spatial distribution of chemical elements in the Earth's surface and subsurface environment to which changes caused by human activities (for example, urbanization, agriculture, mining, waste disposal and industrial pollution) or natural processes (for example, volcanic eruptions, floods, hurricanes, and dust storms) can be compared. This project developed this information base through studies ranging in scale from site-specific to regional and national. The resulting databases and interpretive products (including geochemical maps) are available for use by Federal, State, and local land management and environmental protection agencies to determine predevelopment geochemical backgrounds and current geochemical baselines for various sample media both at the surface (soils, stream sediment, and water) and in the subsurface (water and rocks). The information is available for use to detect and measure the magnitude of change in the chemistry of these materials caused by anthropogenic or natural processes. The preparation of these multi-element, multi-media geochemical baselines and their representation as geochemical maps was an essential first step for assessing and monitoring the state of the Earth's land surface.
Project Tasks
- Baseline Characterization and Monitoring of Minerals-Related Mitigation Sites and Undeveloped Mineral Deposits
- Leadership in IUGS/IAGC Working Group on Global Geochemical Baselines
- Three Dimensional Backgrounds and Baselines
- Environmental Behavior of Mineral Deposits in Alaska's National Parks
- Regional Geoscience Baseline Studies of the Fortymile and Goodpasture River Watershed, Alaska
- Sources and Cycling of Hg in Lakes and Reservoirs in the Central Region, USA
- Environmental Geochemistry in Joshua Tree National Park (JTNP), California
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Below are publications associated with this project.
Regional geochemical results from the analyses of rock, water, soil, stream sediment, and vegetation samples : Fortymile River Watershed, east-central, Alaska, 1998 sampling
Regional baseline geochemistry and environmental effects of gold placer mining operations on the Fortymile River, eastern Alaska: A section in Geologic studies in Alaska by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1998
Environmental geochemistry at the global scale
U. S. Geological Survey Middle Rio Grande basin study: Proceedings of the Fourth annual workshop, Albuquerque, New Mexico, February 15-16, 2000
Analytical results and sample locality map for rock, stream-sediment, and soil samples, Northern and Eastern Colorado Desert BLM Resource Area, Imperial, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties, California
Analytical results and sample locality maps for rock, stream-sediment, and soil samples, Joshua Tree National Park, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, California
Analytical results and conceptual model of mine drainage at the Holden Mine, Chelan County, Washington
U.S. Geological Survey middle Rio Grande basin study; proceedings of the third annual workshop, Albuquerque, New Mexico, February 24-25, 1999
Regional geochemical results from the analyses of rock, water, soil, stream sediment and vegetation samples; Fortymile River watershed, East-Central Alaska
A Study of Roman mining and metallurgy and their environmental consequences at Plasenzuela, Extremadura, Spain
Mechanical and thermal control of cleating and shearing in coal: examples from the Alabama coalbed methane field, USA
Abstracts of the 11th Annual U.S. Geological Survey, Central Region, 1999 Poster Review; Collected Abstracts of Selected Poster Papers Presented at Scientific Meetings
- Overview
This project developed a geochemical information base through studies ranging in scale from site-specific to regional and national.
Overview
A geochemical base of information is required to define the natural abundance and spatial distribution of chemical elements in the Earth's surface and subsurface environment to which changes caused by human activities (for example, urbanization, agriculture, mining, waste disposal and industrial pollution) or natural processes (for example, volcanic eruptions, floods, hurricanes, and dust storms) can be compared. This project developed this information base through studies ranging in scale from site-specific to regional and national. The resulting databases and interpretive products (including geochemical maps) are available for use by Federal, State, and local land management and environmental protection agencies to determine predevelopment geochemical backgrounds and current geochemical baselines for various sample media both at the surface (soils, stream sediment, and water) and in the subsurface (water and rocks). The information is available for use to detect and measure the magnitude of change in the chemistry of these materials caused by anthropogenic or natural processes. The preparation of these multi-element, multi-media geochemical baselines and their representation as geochemical maps was an essential first step for assessing and monitoring the state of the Earth's land surface.
Project Tasks
- Baseline Characterization and Monitoring of Minerals-Related Mitigation Sites and Undeveloped Mineral Deposits
- Leadership in IUGS/IAGC Working Group on Global Geochemical Baselines
- Three Dimensional Backgrounds and Baselines
- Environmental Behavior of Mineral Deposits in Alaska's National Parks
- Regional Geoscience Baseline Studies of the Fortymile and Goodpasture River Watershed, Alaska
- Sources and Cycling of Hg in Lakes and Reservoirs in the Central Region, USA
- Environmental Geochemistry in Joshua Tree National Park (JTNP), California
- Science
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
- Publications
Below are publications associated with this project.
Filter Total Items: 31Regional geochemical results from the analyses of rock, water, soil, stream sediment, and vegetation samples : Fortymile River Watershed, east-central, Alaska, 1998 sampling
No abstract available.AuthorsJ. G. Crock, L. P. Gough, R. B. Wanty, W. C. Day, B. Wang, B. M. Gamble, M. Henning, Z. A. Brown, A. L. MeierRegional baseline geochemistry and environmental effects of gold placer mining operations on the Fortymile River, eastern Alaska: A section in Geologic studies in Alaska by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1998
A systematic water-quality study of the Fortymile River and many of its major tributaries in eastern Alaska was conducted in June of 1997 and 1998. Surface-water samples were collected for chemical analyses to establish regional baseline geochemistry values and to evaluate the possible environmental effects of suction-dredge placer gold mining and bulldozer-operated placer gold mining (commonly reAuthorsRichard B. Wanty, Bronwen Wang, Jim Vohden, Paul H. Briggs, Allen L. MeierEnvironmental geochemistry at the global scale
Land degradation and pollution caused by population pressure and economic development pose a threat to the sustainability of the Earth's surface, especially in tropical regions where a long history of chemical weathering has made the surface environment particularly fragile. Systematic baseline geochemical data provide a means of monitoring the state of the environment and identifying problem areaAuthorsJ. Plant, D. Smith, B. Smith, L. WilliamsU. S. Geological Survey Middle Rio Grande basin study: Proceedings of the Fourth annual workshop, Albuquerque, New Mexico, February 15-16, 2000
This volume contains a collection of short papers that document some of the conclusions and results of on-going investigations related to ground-water resources of the Middle Rio Grande Basin, New Mexico. These results, and additional project reports, were presented at the Fourth Annual Middle Rio Grande Basin workshop convened in Albuquerque during February 2000. The workshop was jointly sponsoreAuthorsJ. C. ColeAnalytical results and sample locality map for rock, stream-sediment, and soil samples, Northern and Eastern Colorado Desert BLM Resource Area, Imperial, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties, California
In 1996-1998 the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted a geochemical study of the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) 5.5 million-acre Northern and Eastern Colorado Desert Resource Area (usually referred to as the NECD in this report), Imperial, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties, southeastern California (figure 1). This study was done in support of the BLM’s Coordinated Management Plan for thAuthorsHarley D. King, Maurice A. ChaffeeAnalytical results and sample locality maps for rock, stream-sediment, and soil samples, Joshua Tree National Park, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, California
No abstract available.AuthorsH. D. King, M. A. ChaffeeAnalytical results and conceptual model of mine drainage at the Holden Mine, Chelan County, Washington
No abstract available.AuthorsJ. E. Kilburn, D. B. Smith, S. J. SutleyU.S. Geological Survey middle Rio Grande basin study; proceedings of the third annual workshop, Albuquerque, New Mexico, February 24-25, 1999
Approximately 40 percent (about 600,000 people) of the total population of New Mexico lives within the Middle Rio Grande Basin, which includes the City of Albuquerque. Ongoing analyses of the central portion of the Middle Rio Grande Basin by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the City of Albuquerque and other agencies have shown that ground water in the basin is not asAuthorsJames R. BartolinoRegional geochemical results from the analyses of rock, water, soil, stream sediment and vegetation samples; Fortymile River watershed, East-Central Alaska
No abstract available.AuthorsJ. G. Crock, L. P. Gough, R. B. Wanty, W. C. Day, Bronwen Wang, B. M. Gamble, M. Henning, Z. A. Brown, A. L. MeierA Study of Roman mining and metallurgy and their environmental consequences at Plasenzuela, Extremadura, Spain
No abstract available.AuthorsRobert G. Schmidt, Cathy M. Ager, Juan Gil MontesMechanical and thermal control of cleating and shearing in coal: examples from the Alabama coalbed methane field, USA
Natural fractures provide most of the interconnected macroporosity in coal. Therefore, understanding the characteristics of these fractures and the associated mechanisms of formation is essential for effective coalbed methane exploration and field management. Natural fractures in coal can be divided into two general types: cleat and shear structures. Cleat has been studied for more than a century,AuthorsJack Pashin, R.E. Carroll, Joseph R. Hatch, Martin B. GoldhaberAbstracts of the 11th Annual U.S. Geological Survey, Central Region, 1999 Poster Review; Collected Abstracts of Selected Poster Papers Presented at Scientific Meetings
In 1999, the U.S. Geological Survey Central Region had a poster review where USGS scientists showcased posters that had been presented at scientific meetings. This report contains abstracts for selected posters that were presented at this review. Science topics were from several USGS teams with a broad range of topics.