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ENVI 485 2/6/07

ENVI 485 2/6/07. Introduction to Environmental Geology (cont.) Land use planning Introduction to soils. Population growth Sustainability The earth system Uniformitarianism Hazardous earth processes. Geology as a basic environmental science. Fundamental Concepts of Environmental Geology.

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ENVI 485 2/6/07

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  1. ENVI 485 2/6/07 • Introduction to Environmental Geology (cont.) • Land use planning • Introduction to soils

  2. Population growth Sustainability The earth system Uniformitarianism Hazardous earth processes Geology as a basic environmental science Fundamental Concepts of Environmental Geology

  3. Fundamental Concepts-Geology as a basic environmental science • Geology is a factor in every person’s life: • “Civilization exists by geological consent…subject to change without notice”--Will Durant

  4. Fundamental Concepts-Geology as a basic environmental science • Branches of Environmental Geology: • Geomorphology (Geologic Landforms and Processes) • Hydrogeology (Water and soil / rock interactions) • Pedology (Soils) • Economic geology • Engineering geology • Classical geology

  5. Fundamental Concepts-Geology as a basic environmental science • Environmental problems are interdisciplinary • Physical Geography, geologic processes, hydrology, rock types, soil types, climate • Biological • Plants, animals, biologic conditions, spatial analysis of biologic information • Human interest/use Land use, economics, aesthetics, environmental law, hazards, historical/archaeological value

  6. Environmental Geology and Land-Use Planning • There is a limited supply of land • We strive to plan so that suitable land is available for specific uses for this generation and those that follow • Comprehensive plan – designed for long-range local development based on an environmental inventory of resources and hazards

  7. Landscape Evaluation • Environmental geologists provide geologic information and analysis to assist in planning, design, and construction • Former and present land use • Physical and chemical properties of earth materials • Pollutants • Engineering Properties of soil and rock • Natural hazards • Groundwater characteristics

  8. Site Selection • Cost-Benefits Analysis – Assumes all relevant costs and benefits can be determined • Examples: Building a shopping mall in a flood zone; Drilling oil wells in National Parks? • Physiographic Determination-applying ecological principals to planning • Considers physical, social, and aesthetic data • Let natural characteristics determine the choice of a site

  9. Environmental Impact Analysis • 1969- National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) • All major federal actions which could affect the quality of the human environment must be preceded by an evaluation of the project and the potential impact to the environment • Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) • Discussion of the environmental consequences of the proposed project and of the alternatives • State Environmental Impact Legislation • State Environmental Policy Acts (SEPAs) • California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)

  10. What do Environmental Geologists do? Mostly Site Assessments (ESAs) and Brownfields Studies

  11. What are “Brownfields”? • brownfield site • “real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant.”

  12. Conventional borings/excavation groundwater monitoring wells decontamination/plugging/abandonment/waste disposal crude field-screening off-site analysis Accelerated geophysical surveys direct-push probes field labs/test kits off-site analytical confirmation electronic data archiving/interpretation Sampling/Analysis –Sampling Methods

  13. What are ESAs? • Identify/evaluate: • environmental concerns • Magnitude and extent of contamination • Cleanup goals • Remediation options • Future land use

  14. Phase I ESA • Identify potential environmental concerns • All Appropriate Inquiry • Records review • Site reconnaissance • Interviews • Report

  15. Evaluates potential concerns from Phase I Tailored to site-specific needs Limited sampling/analysis Confirm/rule out concerns Expanded sampling/analysis Amount and extent of contamination Recommended cleanup goals/options Phase II ESA Increasing Costs

  16. Phase III ESA • Corrective actions for environmental concerns

  17. Land Uses Contaminants & Related Risk What are ESAs? – Summary Focus on: Site Improvements Past, Present & Future

  18. Sampling/Analysis –Sampling Methods • Conventional drilling/sampling technology

  19. Sampling/Analysis –Sampling Methods • Screening/field-based methods - Direct-push methods

  20. Sampling/Analysis –Sampling Methods • Geophysical Methods Ground-Penetrating Radar Electromagnetic Conductivity & Magnetic Surveys

  21. Soils • Crucial to land use planning • Waste disposal • Evaluation of natural hazards • Flooding • Landslides • Earthquakes • Evaluation building construction

  22. Soils as a natural resource “The thin layer of soil covering the Earth’s surface represents the difference between survival and extinction of most terrestrial life”

  23. Soil: Definition • Soil Scientist: • Solid earth material that can support rooted plant life • Engineer / Geologist: • Earth material that can be removed without blasting (any earth material that is ripable)

  24. What sphere of the earth system includes soil?

  25. What is soil made of?

  26. Components of soil:1. Minerals • inorganic materials derived from weathering rocks • extremely variable in size. • Provide nutrients to plants • Basis for soil classification

  27. Components of soil:2. Air • Pore spaces filled with air or water comprise 1/2 the volume. • The amount and composition of air in a soil are determined by the water content of the soil. • Metabolic activity of roots, microbes and fauna change the composition of soil air. (Carbon dioxide greater than atmosphere).

  28. Components of soil: 3. Water • Water is the major transport agent in soil • Within the soil • To groundwater • participates in geochemical cycles • weathering geological substrates • leaching materials to groundwater • moving ions and particles through the soil profile. • Organisms alter the suite of solutes in percolating water

  29. Components of soil:4. Organic Material • includes: • living organisms (soil biomass) • remains of organisms • decomposed organic compounds

  30. What is soil? • Open, dynamic, natural bodies in the landscape. • exchange water and air with the atmosphere, and ions and minerals with the lithosphere • Plants introduce reduced carbon to support a heterotropic biomass • Decomposition of these substrates results in the cycling of nutrients

  31. Controls on soil formation • Climate • Topography • Parent material • Time • Organic Processes

  32. Soils • Soil forming process produce distinctive layers (horizons) defined by the processes that form them • Leaching • Oxidation • Accumulation of minerals

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