The California Geological Survey, previously known as the California Division of Mines and Geology, is the California state geologic agency.
The California Geological Survey, previously known as the California Division of Mines and Geology, is the California state geologic agency.
Although it was not until 1880 that the California State Mining Bureau, predecessor to the California Geological Survey, was established, the "roots" of California's state geological survey date to an earlier time. As might be expected for a state that owed its existence to the gold rush of 1849, the California State Legislature recognized that geologists could provide valuable information. In 1851, one year after California was admitted to the United States, the Legislature named John B. Trask, a medical practitioner and active member of the California Academy of Sciences, as Honorary State Geologist. In 1853 the Legislature passed a joint resolution asking him for geological information about the state. He submitted a report On the Geology of the Sierra Nevada, or California Range. About two months later, the Legislature created the first California Geological Survey headed by Trask, who retained the title of State Geologist.
Within a few years the mining of placer gold began to decline and mining of quartz lodes began. These changes, coupled with publication of reports by Trask, created a public clamor for a state geological survey. In 1860 the Legislature passed an act creating the Office of State Geologist and defining the duties thereof. The act named Josiah D. Whitney (for whom Mount Whitney is named) to fill the office. A Yale graduate, Whitney had worked on several surveys in the east. The act directed Whitney to make an accurate and complete geological survey of the state.
Whitney chose William Henry Brewer as chief botanist to lead the original field party. Brewer then added Clarence King, James Gardiner, topographer Charles F. Hoffmann and packer Dick Cotter. It was one of the most ambitious geological surveys ever attempted and yielded a vast amount of information about California that was hitherto unknown and unpublished. Among the natural features of California they were the first to describe Kings Canyon, which they discovered in 1864. The original California Geological Survey influenced the future of surveying and spurred the creation of the United States Geological Survey. Funding for the field work was limited and the last field work was done in 1870 by Hoffmann and W. A. Goodyear. In 1874 the Survey was officially ended due to hostility between then Governor of California Newton Booth and Whitney.
In 1880 the State Mining Bureau was established by the Legislature. The establishment of the Bureau was a direct action in response to the need for information on the occurrence, mining, and processing of gold in the state. Its focus was on California's mining industry and the Governor appointed the State Mineralogist. In 1891, the Bureau published the first geologic map of the state showing eight stratigraphic units in color, along with numerous blank areas where information was lacking. The second colored geologic map of the state, published in 1916, showed 21 stratigraphic units and was accompanied by an explanatory volume (Bulletin 72, Geologic Formations of California).
In 1927 the Bureau became the Division of Mines within the Department of Natural Resources. In 1928, with the hiring of the first geologist, the focus of the Division began to shift towards the gathering of basic geologic information. In 1938 a new 1:500,000-scale geologic map was published.
During the 1940s and 1950s, the Division developed as a state geological survey and two well-defined branches were established: the Mining Engineering Branch and the Geology Branch. The Division began processing numerous geological quadrangle maps and reports for publication. In 1952 the Division conducted its first public-safety related effort by documenting the impacts of the 1952 Kern County earthquake and its aftershocks.
The 1960s were years of development of new programs and modernization of long-standing programs. In 1962, eighty-one years after its creation, the Division of Mines was renamed the Division of Mines and Geology (DMG). Its focus had shifted from an organization that was primarily mine-oriented to one responsible for a broader range of practical applications of geology, especially geologic hazards and seismic hazards. A highlight of the decade was the completion in 1966 of the geologic mapping program.
From the early 1970s to the present, Division programs have expanded often due to the passage of legislation. Following earthquakes and landslide damage during the 1970s and 1980s, legislation passed which clearly focused DMG's authority on several fronts, including:
Language was also added which outlined DMG's responsibilities as encompassing:
The California Geological Survey has had many names over its history. The original Geological Survey of California was replaced in April 1880 by the new California State Mining Bureau. This was renamed the Division of Mines in 1927. In 1962 the division's name was expanded to be California Division of Mines and Geology, a name that lasted until August 2006, when the state legislature renamed the division the California Geological Survey. [1]
The 1971 San Fernando earthquake occurred in the early morning of February 9 in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains in southern California. The unanticipated thrust earthquake had a magnitude of 6.5 on the Ms scale and 6.6 on the Mw scale, and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme). The event was one in a series that affected Los Angeles county in the late 20th century. Damage was locally severe in the northern San Fernando Valley and surface faulting was extensive to the south of the epicenter in the mountains, as well as urban settings along city streets and neighborhoods. Uplift and other effects affected private homes and businesses.
Josiah Dwight Whitney was an American geologist, professor of geology at Harvard University, and chief of the California Geological Survey (1860–1874). Through his travels and studies in the principal mining regions of the United States, Whitney became the foremost authority of his day on the economic geology of the U.S. Mount Whitney, the highest point in the contiguous 48 United States, and the Whitney Glacier, the first confirmed glacier in the United States, on Mount Shasta, were both named after him by members of the Survey.
Engineering geology is the application of geology to engineering study for the purpose of assuring that the geological factors regarding the location, design, construction, operation and maintenance of engineering works are recognized and accounted for. Engineering geologists provide geological and geotechnical recommendations, analysis, and design associated with human development and various types of structures. The realm of the engineering geologist is essentially in the area of earth-structure interactions, or investigation of how the earth or earth processes impact human made structures and human activities.
The Alquist-Priolo Earthquake Fault Zoning Act was signed into California law on December 22, 1972, to mitigate the hazard of surface faulting to structures for human occupancy.
Geoscience Australia is an agency of the Australian Government. It carries out geoscientific research. The agency is the government's technical adviser on all aspects of geoscience, and custodian of the geographic and geological data and knowledge of the nation.
The Seismic Hazard Mapping Act was enacted by the California legislature in 1990 following the Loma Prieta earthquake of 1989. The Act requires the California State Geologist to create maps delineating zones where data suggest amplified ground shaking, liquefaction, or earthquake-induced landsliding may occur.
The Utah Geological Survey is based in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It also has an office in Cedar City, Utah.
The California Department of Conservation is a department within the government of California, belonging to the California Natural Resources Agency. With a team of scientists, engineers, environmental experts, and other specialists, the Department of Conservation administers a variety of programs vital to California's public safety, environment and economy. The department's mission is to manage California's working lands. It regulates oil, natural gas and geothermal wells; studies and maps earthquakes and other geologic phenomena; maps and classifies areas containing mineral deposits; ensures reclamation of land used for mining; and administers agricultural and open-space land conservation programs. A division within the department dedicated to encouraging beverage container recycling has been moved into the newly created Department of Resources Recovery and Recycling (CalRecycle). Despite the similar name, the Department of Conservation should not be confused with the California Conservation Corps, another department within the Natural Resources Agency, which provides work experience for young adults. The Department of Conservation often collaborates with its federal equivalents, such as the U.S. Geological Survey.
The Arizona Geological Survey (AZGS) was established by the Arizona Legislature to investigate and describe Arizona's geology and to educate and inform the public regarding its geologic setting. Each year since 1915, AZGS has released geologic maps, formal reports, and other geology-related publications. In Tucson, the Survey maintains a geological library comprising more than 15,000 volumes and approximately 100 linear feet of mine files that include newspaper clippings, maps, mine schematics and mine reports; it also maintains a small core repository of donated rock core. In addition, AZGS archives well cuttings of more than 1,000 oil and gas wells on behalf of the Arizona Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. The AZGS Phoenix branch maintains tens-of-thousands of mine maps and reports acquired in 2011 when the Arizona Department of Mines and Mineral Resources merged with AZGS. The Survey main office is located in the State Office complex in downtown Tucson).
The Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI) is the agency of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon responsible for collecting, maintaining and disseminating geologic information, and regulation of industries which commercially develop the state's geological resources, including Natural gas, Crude oil, and other Mineral exploration and Mining.
The geology of Alabama is marked by abundant geologic resources and a variety of geologic structures from folded mountains in the north to sandy beaches along the Gulf of Mexico coast. Alabama spans three continental geologic provinces as defined by the United States Geological Survey, the Atlantic Plain, Appalachian Highlands, and Interior Plains. The Geological Survey of Alabama breaks these provinces down into more specific physiographic provinces.
California is a unique place that has not always been well understood. For hundreds of years there persisted a European misconception that California was an island and many maps were made depicting it as such. Eventually, by the 18th century, enough information about California reached the outside world to dispel that myth. As California became increasingly populated, comprehensive surveying and mapping of its territory seemingly expanded slowly. When gold was discovered in 1848 and it joined the United States as the thirty first state in 1851 and interest in plotting California's landscapes boomed.
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, although backgrounds in physics, chemistry, biology, and other sciences are also useful. Field research is an important component of geology, although many subdisciplines incorporate laboratory and digitalized work.
The National Mine Map Repository (NMMR) is part of the United States Department of the Interior (DOI), Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement. The NMMR resides in the Pittsburgh suburb of Green Tree, Pennsylvania, and collects and maintains mine map information and images for the entire country, including data and maps of coal mines in the anthracite coal region of northeastern Pennsylvania. The Green Tree facility provides and stores, digitally and in microfilm, over 182,000 maps of abandoned mines. This repository contains maps of mine workings from the 1790s to the present day. It serves as a point of reference for mine maps and other information for both surface and underground mines throughout the United States. It also serves as a location to retrieve mine maps in an emergency. The NMMR provides services ranging from retrieving mine related data for economic analysis to assessing the potential risk associated with underground mining. Through analysis of mine maps and related information, the repository assists private and public sectors in industrial and commercial development, highway construction, and the preservation of public health, safety, and welfare. In addition, they collect, reproduce, and maintain a national inventory of mine maps and supporting documentation for private and public interests.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization's work spans the disciplines of biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The USGS is a fact-finding research organization with no regulatory responsibility. The agency was founded on March 3, 1879.
Landslides in California occur mainly due to intense rainfall but occasionally are triggered by earthquakes. Landslides are common in Southern California, the San Francisco Bay Area and other parts of Northern California, and the Sierra Nevada. Although they most often are reported when they impact residential developments, landslides also damage roads, railroads, pipelines, electrical lines, and other infrastructure throughout the state, and occur in unoccupied parts of the state.
The Delaware Geological Survey (DGS) is a scientific agency for the State of Delaware, located at the University of Delaware (UD), conducting geologic and hydrologic research, service, and exploration. The mission of the DGS is to provide objective earth science information, advice, and service to citizens, policymakers, industries, and educational institutions of Delaware. The DGS became formally affiliated with the university's College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment (CEOE) in July 2008. Most DGS scientists have secondary faculty appointments in the College's Department of Geological Sciences.
The Utah Seismic Safety Commission (USSC) is a legislatively created independent advisory board that tends to seismic-hazard issues in Utah, United States. The Utah legislature created the 15-member commission in 1994 to supersede the Utah Earthquake Advisory Board and to act as a medium “for state and local governments, the private sector, and the public to advance earthquake-related issues by developing, researching, and recommending seismic policies and approaches aimed at reducing Utah's earthquake hazards and managing Utah's earthquake risk.”
The Arkansas Geological Survey (AGS), formerly the Arkansas Geological Commission (AGC), is a government agency of the State of Arkansas. It is responsible for the investigation of the geology, geologic processes, and geologic resources within the state. It encourages the considered management and utilization of the state's mineral, fossil-fuel, and water resources with attention to the potential environmental issues of that activity.
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