Dr. Kenneth R. Lajoie will be presenting “The Natural and Unnatural History of the San Francisco Bay.”

Wednesday, June 12, 2013 at Spenger’s Fresh Fish Grotto, 1919 Fourth Street, Berkeley.

RSVP Today! 

View our Meeting Announcement!

Read on for a speaker biography and abstract. We hope to see you on June 12th!

The Natural and Unnatural History of the San Francisco Bay

Dr. Kenneth R. Lajoie                                                                               

Kenneth R. Lajoie enjoyed a 30 year-long career as a Geologist at the United States Geological Survey in Menlo Park before retiring in 2000. His areas of expertise included identifying Earthquake Hazards and Coastal Hazards of the San Francisco Bay Area region. Dr. Lajoie also studied the climatic impacts of the El Nino events of 1982-83 and 1997-98 and mapped landslides in San Mateo County resulting from such events. Dr. Lajoie has given numerous public presentations, school lectures, and led field trips on seismic and coastal hazards, the history of Mono Lake, the seismic hazards of Los Angeles basin, and the natural and unnatural history of San Francisco Bay. He has also shared his expertise with local, regional, state and federal agencies on seismic and coastal hazards, and environmental issues. Dr. Lajoie received his BS and PhD in Geology from UC Berkeley.

Abstract

At the height of the last ice age, roughly twenty-thousand years ago, sea level was about 120 m (390 ft) lower than it is today. As a consequence, there was no San Francisco Bay and the beach lay out beyond the Farallon Islands, about 40 km west of San Francisco. At that time giant camels, mammoths, mastodons, ground sloths and bison (the extinct Rancho Labrean fauna) roamed the broad inland valleys now partially flooded by the bay. As the climate warmed at the end of the ice age, the large continental glaciers partially melted, causing sea level to rise rapidly, up to about 1m per century. The rising ocean flooded through the Golden Gate about ten-thousand years ago, giving birth to the bay, which reached its present size only within the last two-thousand years. Deep bridge borings beneath the bay penetrate at least four beds of old bay mud, indicating there were four previous bays, tentatively correlated with four interglacial sea -level highstands dating back to about 430,000 years.

The San Francisco Bay basin consists of several broad, interconnected valleys bounded by linear ridges uplifted along seismically active faults, all parts of the wide, complex boundary between the North American and Pacific tectonic plates referred to as the San Andreas Fault system. Owing to crustal compression across and within this boundary, the Berkeley Hills and the Santa Cruz Mountains rise as the bay block between them subsides to form the long basin partially flooded by the south bay. The south bay would be much larger but for the sediments eroded from the surrounding hills that partially fill the subsiding basin.

The Great Central Valley of California has drained through the bay basin for only the past 560,000 years. Prior to that time, a large, freshwater lake, Corcoran Lake, occupied the Central Valley and spilled through a narrow pass into the Salinas Valley, then ultimately into Monterey Bay. As crustal movements tilted the Coast Ranges northward, that spillway was defeated, forcing Corcoran Lake to spill over a lower divide to the north. The resulting catastrophic flood quickly cut the deep gorge referred to as Carquinez Strait.

The oldest archeological sites around the margins of the bay, mostly large shell mounds, date to about five-thousand years ago. However, it is quite likely that humans entered North American and the future Bay Area at least fifteen-thousand years ago. If so, the oldest shell mounds in the region lie on the ocean floor out beyond the Farallon Islands at ocean depths of about 100 m. Sea level rose so rapidly between fifteen- and five-thousand years ago that no large shell mounds could accumulate along the transgressing shoreline. However, small camp sites probably lie out on the continental shelf and beneath the muds of the present bay. Prior to the arrival of Europeans in 1769 there had been minimal human impact on the bay. However, by the early 1800′s the rapidly expanding European population, besides decimating the local native-American population, had hunted the harbor seals and sea otters of the bay to near extinction. And by 1900 it had severely reduced salmon and sturgeon popula tions in the bay. The still-expanding European population has severely polluted the waters of the bay, killed most of its natural fauna, and has converted most of its bounding salt marshes to evaporation ponds, agricultural land, garbage dumps, ship yards, harbors, airports, industrial sites and housing tracts. As population pressures mount, the challenge of the immediate future is to preserve what little remains of San Francisco Bay, the defining geologic feature for one of the most unique coastal sites in North America.

This month’s double-header presentations:

Quaternary Geology and Geomorphology in the Sacramento Valley, California – A Key to Assessing Levee Foundation Conditions by Janet Sowers, PhD, P.G. of Fugro Consultants, Inc.

and

Developing a Geomorphic Approach to Assessing Levee Underseepage by Jennifer Mendonça Wilson, P.G. of Fugro Consultants, Inc.

Tuesday, May 14, 2013 at Sinbad’s, Pier 2 Embarcadero, San Francisco.

RSVP Today! 
View our Meeting Announcement!

Read on for speaker biographies and abstracts. We hope to see you on May 14th!

Quaternary Geology and Geomorphology in the Sacramento Valley, California– A Key to Assessing Levee Foundation Conditions 

Janet Sowers, PhD, P.G.
Fugro Consultants, Inc.
Associate Geologist

Dr. Sowers has been practicing geology and conducting research for over 30 yrs. Her technical specialties are fluvial morphology, karst processes, soil science and age dating. She holds a B.A. in Environmental Science from University of Virginia, Charlottesville, and M.A. and PhD graduate degrees in Geology from University of California, Berkeley.

Abstract – Flood protection infrastructure in California’s Sacramento Valley typically is founded on unconsolidated Late Quaternary fluvial, basin, and estuarine sediments. The stability of these sediments as foundation materials depends on characteristics such as grain size, sorting, density, permeability, bedding, and cementation, which are largely  a reflection of the geologic origin and history of the sediments. This talk will discuss the development of original 1:24,000 scale mapping of Quaternary geologic units, present examples of these maps, and provide an overview of Sacramento Valley Quaternary history and geomorphology.

Developing a Geomorphic Approach to Assessing Levee Underseepage

Jennifer Mendonça Wilson, P.G.
Fugro Consultants, Inc.
Project Geologist

Ms. Wilson has been practicing consulting geology in the Bay Area for 5 years. Her technical emphasis includes geologic hazards, engineering geology and geomorphology. She holds a B.S. in Earth Sciences from the University of California Santa Cruz, and an M.S. in Geology from San Jose State University.

Abstract – The migration of water through levee foundation materials by underseepage can lead to piping and levee instability during critical high-water stages. As part of regional levee evaluation studies, a geomorphic assessment approach was developed to identify areas of potential vulnerability to underseepage along levees within the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys. The approach integrated existing and new Quaternary geologic mapping with soil hydrologic classes and geomorphic data to develop a criteria matrix of relative underseepage susceptibility classes (very high, high, moderate, and low). These classes were assigned to levee segments according to the criteria matrix, with late Holocene and historical channel deposits judged to have very high susceptibility, late Holocene natural levee, overbank, and crevasse splay deposits having high susceptibility, and older alluvial fan and fine-grained, basin deposits having moderate to low susceptibility. Documented past levee performance issues were also evaluated and spatially analyzed using GIS and compared to the underseepage susceptibility mapping to help calibrate the susceptibility rankings based on historical events. The GIS analysis of past performance was designed to include discrete (point) data as well as continuous (line) data. Epistemic uncertainties include the completeness and locational accuracy of the levee performance data and precision in the surficial mapping. Preliminary results suggest a strong correlation between paleochannel, historical natural levee, and peat deposits and documented levee performance issues.

The California Earthquake Clearinghouse will be participating in the 2013 Cal EMA Golden Guardian Exercise. The purpose of the Clearinghouse exercise is to introduce everyone to the concept of expanded  operations possible through the addition of the virtual Clearinghouse we’re developing using the Unified Incident Command and Decision Support (UICDS) middleware. This year’s scenario is a catastrophic San Francisco Bay Area earthquake. The exercise will take place over three days and updates will be posted to the California Earthquake Clearinghouse website throughout the exercise. On May 15, Clearinghouse members will have the opportunity to use data collection tools to share information with the Clearinghouse which will then be displayed on the Clearinghouse website. We will also host a webex running concurrent with the exercise where you can tune in to hear the action narrated live, ask questions and hear from the various Clearinghouse partners (CGS, Cal EMA, USGS, NASA, EERI, Berkeley Seismological Lab, SpotOnResponse) developing the tools you’ll be using.

This is the third of six planned Clearinghouse exercises.  Over the last year we’ve listened to the feedback you’ve provided and continue to refine the SpotOnResponse mobile app being developed for us and we are eager to share with you the latest improvements, including off-line reporting capability. We would like to invite you to attend a one-hour training session that will introduce you to the updated SpotOnResponse as well as tell you more about how you can participate in the Clearinghouses activities for Golden Guardian.  We ask that you RSVP to caclearinghouse@eqclearinghouse.org  and indicate which training session in which you would like to participate.   Training sessions will be held via Webex (see website for details) on the following dates:

April 30^th, 9:00 a.m.
May 2^nd, 1:00 p.m.
May 6^th, 1:00 p.m.
May 8^th, 1:00 p.m.

For more information please visit the California Earthquake Clearinghouse’s website:

http://www.californiaeqclearinghouse.org/2013-golden-guardian-exercise-3/

Our April Meeting will include presentations and posters from UC Berkeley, Stanford, San Jose State, and San Francisco State students!

Meeting sponsored by our generous friends at Test America!

Date:  Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Location:  Restaurant Peony, 388 9th St # 288, Oakland CA
Parking/Transit: Peony is located on the second floor of the plaza mall between Franklin and Webster Streets. Enter on 9^th street.
Just two blocks from the 12^th Street BART station. Parking available on nearby streets, or enter the building garage at 9^th and Franklin.
Time:  Social hour and sign-in at 6 pm, dinner at 7 pm, presentation at 8 pm
Cost:  $45 for AEG members and members’ spouses, $50 for non-members, $20 students
RSVP Today!

Below is the full list of student presentations and posters – we have a great lineup and hope you can join us!

Speakers:

Anne Jurek – Department of Geology, San Jose State University.

“Determining the vulnerability of groundwater in the Niles Cone Groundwater Basin in southern Alameda County to PCE contamination from past and present dry cleaning operations in Union City, Fremont and Newark.”

Anne Jurek is a graduate student in the Department of Geology at San José State University. Her main area of interest is hydogeology and water quality. Her adviser is Professor June Oberdorfer. She will be discussing her master’s thesis work on determining the vulnerability of groundwater in the Niles Cone Groundwater Basin in southern Alameda County to PCE contamination from past and present dry cleaning operations in Union City, Fremont and Newark.

Eitan Shelef – Department of Geological & Environmental Sciences, Stanford University.

“Randomness and Organization in Branched Channel Networks.”

Eitan Shelef is a Geology PhD student at Stanford University, interested in in geomorphology and active tectonics. In his PhD research Eitan utilizes numerical models and field observations to study channel forming mechanisms and their signature on the geometry of  channel networks.

Julien Cohen-Waeber – Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California Berkeley.

“InSAR and GPS tracking of Slow Moving Landslides in the Berkeley Hills”

Julien Cohen-Waeber is a Doctoral Candidate in Civil Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley.  His research interests are focused on the geomorphic expression of natural hazards and their characterization and monitoring through the use of the most current geodetic technologies.   Julien’s doctoral research involves the use of GPS and Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) to monitor slow moving landslides in the Berkeley Hills and at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, with the intent to characterize their triggering mechanisms and modes of failure.

Research Posters:
Matthew Thomas - Department of Geological & Environmental Sciences, Stanford University.

“An evolving feature of California’s coastal landscape: they call it Devil’s Slide”

Michael George – Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California Berkeley.

“Scour of Discontinuous Blocky Rock”

 Kathryn Mandapat, Michael Wiltermood, Abdul Mezal, Maurice Kimball, Saklaen SM, Josh Hughes, Joseph Alejandro – Department of Civil Engineering, San Francisco State University.

“SFSU Stormwater Conveyance and Treatment Facilities”

Upcoming Meetings:
May, 2013: Stay tuned for details
June 12th, 2013: Ken Lajoie (retired USGS) on the Geology of the San Francisco Bay Region – joint meeting with GRA and CCGO

Dear Professional Geologist:

An occupational analysis is now available to all California-licensed geologists pertaining to the Professional Geologist (PG) license, followed up shortly by separate analyses pertaining to both the Certified Engineering Geologist (CEG) and Certified Hydrogeologist (CHG) authorities. Please use the following link to access the survey via Survey Monkey:

(https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Geologist).

Please note:  If you received a separate email directly from Survey Monkey please use that link.

It is incredibly vital to your chosen profession that sufficient and appropriate licensees respond to these questionnaires so that the resulting examination test plan specifications truly and accurately reflect the respective practices as they occur in today’s world.

The Professional Geologist occupational analysis questionnaire link will be emailed to you in a few days.  It was developed through a collaborative effort between a group of Professional Geologists, the Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists, and the Department of Consumer Affairs’ Office of Professional Examination Services.  Please complete the questionnaire based on your own practice within the last year.

Since you may hold additional certifications above the normal Professional Geologist license, be sure to answer each questionnaire from the sole perspective of the appropriate level of licensure as indicated by that questionnaire.

Individual responses will remain confidential.  The summarized results from the initial questionnaire will help the Board to understand the current scope of Professional Geologist practice throughout the state and be used to develop new California Specific Examination test specifications beginning with Fall 2013.  The subsequent CEG / CHG questionnaires will help in similar fashion to support development of their respective certifications.

The email containing the initial questionnaire link will have “Professional Geologist Survey” in the subject line.  The entire questionnaire will only take about 30 minutes and your response is very important.  Please note that the questionnaire must be completed by Monday, April 1, 2013.

If you have any questions about this process, please contact Patty Smith, the Board’s Geology Program Lead Analyst at (916) 263-1847 or by email at patty.smith@dca.ca.gov.  Thank you, in advance, for support of our licensure program.

Sincerely,

Ric Moore, Executive Officer
Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists

Show your San Francisco Geologist colors with pride!

Thanks to our Section Chair Tom Barry for ordering up these fantastic new AEG SF Section tshirts!  Shirts are just $20 each, and costs will help subsidize meeting attendance by our students and recent graduates.

If you haven’t put in a pre-order with Tom, be sure to join us at our next meeting to snag a shirt of your own. These are going to go faster than a Buster Posey home run hit deep into left field!

Introductory presentation by: Anne Rosinski of CGS who will discuss AEG’s Coordination with the California Earthquake Clearinghouse

Followed by: Ric Moore and Erik Zinn of BPELSG presenting a BPELSG Update and Discussion

Tuesday, March 12, 2013 at 6pm, Sinbads Restaurant in San Francisco.

RSVP Today!
View our Meeting Announcement!

Mark your calendar for the following upcoming meeting:

April 2013: Student Presentation Night!

EnSafe Inc. Recruiting for Environmental Scientist/Geologist:

We are EnSafe Inc., an employee-owned, global professional services firm. This position will be based in our Concord, CA office (near BART). We strive to provide cutting-edge, creative solutions for our clients.  We are currently accepting applications for a project level geologist, with an environmental focus.  Responsibilities include: performing site investigation activities, remedial system and operation, subcontractor oversight; preparation of work plans; management of field health and safety, drilling, and scheduling; writing technical reports; and making technical recommendations for site assessment and remediation activities.  Experience working with DTSC, RWQCB, and/or EPA Region 9 is required. We require a minimum of a BS in Geology with three to seven years of experience.  HAZWOPER training and certification is preferred as well. 

Our employees are outgoing, self-motivated, and thrive in a fast-paced consulting environment.  Communication, written and verbal, is also critical to success.  Overnight travel will be required.

We offer a competitive salary and benefits, an outstanding work environment, and the opportunity to work on some really cool projects.  For consideration, submit your cover letter, salary expectations, and resume to:  resume@ensafe.com

 Check us out on the web at:  www.ensafe.com
EEO/AA

This month’s presentation: “Earthquake Potential of the Green Valley and Bartlett Springs Faults” by James Lienkaemper of USGS

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 at 6pm, Sinbads Restaurant in San Francisco.

RSVP Today!
View our Meeting Announcement!

Mark Your Calendar for Upcoming Meetings:
March 12th, 2013: Anne Rosinski of CGS (AEG coordination with the California Earthquake Clearinghouse), followed by a BPELSG Update with open Q&A session by Eric Zinn and Ric Moore
April 2013: Student Presentation Night!

2013 GSA Cordilleran Section Meeting
20-22 May 2013, Fresno, CA

T11. The Engineering Geology of Transporting Water in the Western United
States.

Cosponsors: GSA Engineering Geology Division and Association of Environmental and
Engineering Geologists (San Joaquin Valley Chapter, Sacramento Section).
Jerome V. De Graff, USDA Forest Service, jdegraff csufresno.edu.

Description: Throughout the western United States, many miles of canals,
pipelines, penstocks, and other water conveyances exist. These vital conveyances
sustain irrigated agriculture, municipal water supply, industrial operations, and
hydroelectric power generation and are built across a geologically diverse
landscape, making them vulnerable to breaching due to earthquakes, landslides,
and foundation soil conditions. This technical session will consider potential
sources of failure, describe the environmental impacts of breaching, and examine
efforts to address the vulnerability of these important engineering works.

Abstract deadline: 19 Feb. 2013

Be sure to indicate the abstract is for session T11 during submission process.

Full Technical Program

2013 GSA Meeting Information