Chapter 11 Geology and Soils This chapter describes the affected environment for geology and soils, as well as potential environmental consequences and associated mitigation measures, as they pertain to implementing the alternatives. This chapter presents information on the primary study area (area of project features, the Temperance Flat Reservoir Area, and Millerton Lake below RM 274). It also discusses the extended study area (San Joaquin River from Friant Dam to the Merced River, the San Joaquin River from the Merced River to the Delta, the Delta, and the CVP and SWP water service areas). Affected Environment This section describes the affected environment related to geology, geologic hazards, erosion and sedimentation, geomorphology, mineral resources, soils, and salts. Where appropriate, geology and soils characteristics are described in a regional context, including geologic provinces, physiographic regions, or other large-scale areas, with some area-specific geologic maps and descriptions of specific soil associations. Geology This section describes the geology of the primary and extended study areas. Primary Study Area A description of the surficial geologic units encountered in the primary study area is presented in Table 11-1. Geologic maps of the primary study area and the area of project features are presented in Figure 11-1 and Figure 11-2, respectively. Draft – August 2014 – 11-1 Upper San Joaquin River Basin Storage Investigation Environmental Impact Statement Table 11-1. Description of Surficial Geologic Units of the Primary Study Area Geologic Map of Millerton Lake Quadrangle, West-Central Sierra Nevada, California1 Formation Surficial Deposits General Features Abbreviation Plutonic rocks characterized by undeformed blocky hornblende prisms as long as 1 cm and by biotite books as Tonalite of Blue Canyon much as 5 mm across. Surface geology would potentially be Kbl - blocky hornblende intercepted by area project features, including the 500-foot facies power transmission alignment and haul roads under Option C. Metamorphosed volcanic and volcanogenic rocks Metamorphosed characterized as generally strongly foliated and lineated with Pzv Volcanic and amphibolite, often massive. Surface geology would be Volcanogenic Rocks intercepted by area project features, including access roads cut and fill and the powerhouse footprint. Metasedimentary rocks are strongly foliated and lineated with Metasedimentary Rocks Pzs minor folds that are isoclinal, and which axes plunge steeply. - quartz-biotite schist These rocks include thin layers of quartzite. Biotite-rich facies of the tonalite of Blue Canyon in the northeastern part of the primary study area may contain 5 to 12 percent poikilitic K-feldspar crystals 1 to 3 cm across. The Tonalite of Blue Canyon Kblb portion of the biotite-rich facies in the south-central portion of - Biotite-rich facies the quadrangle that overlaps with the primary study area may contain subhedral biotite books and quartz crystals as large as 1 cm across. Gabbro is primarily plagioclase-hornblende that exhibits a range of textures and locally contains minor olivine and/or augite. Surface geology would be intercepted by area project KJgb Gabbro features, including access and haul roads, cut and fill, potential batch plant (Options A, B, and C), diversion tunnel, and selective level intake structure (Alternative Plan 4). Debris flow deposits may be a few meters thick and are typically composed of angular trachyandesite blocks, from erosional undercutting of margins of Kennedy Table, and Qdf Debris Flow rounded metavolcanic cobbles in a sandy matrix. Surface geology could be intercepted by potential area project features, including access roads under Option C. Millerton Ridge pluton is located in the south-central part of the quadrangle and would overlap with area project, features including the potential aggregate quarry (Option A) and batch Kgd Biotite Granodiorite plant (Options A, B, and C), a portion of the proposed Temperance Flat RM 274 Dam site, and staging area. Millerton Ridge is a leucogranodiorite and contains garnet (0.1 – 2 mm across) along the western edge. Metamorphosed volcanic and volcanogenic rocks Metamorphosed characterized as generally strongly foliated and lineated with Volcanic and amphibolite, often massive. Surface geology would Pzvh Volcanogenic Rocks - potentially be intercepted by area project features, including quartz-hornblende- the 500-foot power transmission alignment and potential plagioclase schist batch plant (Options B and C). Metamorphosed Metamorphosed volcanic and volcanogenic rocks Volcanic and characterized as generally strongly foliated and lineated with Pzva Volcanogenic Rocks - amphibolite, often massive. Surface geology would plagioclase-diopside- potentially be intercepted by area project features, including hornblende amphibolite a potential aggregate quarry (Option C). 11-2 – Draft – August 2014 Chapter 11 Geology and Soils Table 11-1. Description of Surficial Geologic Units of the Primary Study Area (contd.) Geologic Map of Millerton Lake Quadrangle, West-Central Sierra Nevada, California1 (contd.) Formation Surficial Deposits General Features Abbreviation Metasedimentary and Pzu Metavolcanic Rocks, Metasedimentary and metavolcanic rocks, undifferentiated Undifferentiated Qal Alluvium Stream and gravel alluvium Geologic Map of California, Fresno Sheet2, Scale 1:250,000 Formation Surficial Deposits General Features Abbreviation Tvb Tertiary volcanic Pyroclastic rocks Tc Tertiary nonmarine Tertiary nonmarine grg Mesozoic granitic rocks Granodiorite Sources: 1 Bateman and Busacca 1982 2 Matthews and Burnett 1966 Key: cm = centimeter mm = millimeter RM = river mile Draft – August 2014 – 11-3 Upper San Joaquin River Basin Storage Investigation Environmental Impact Statement Note: Resolution varies across the area shown due to differences in resolution of source maps. Figure 11-1. Surficial Geology of the Primary Study Area 11-4 – Draft – August 2014 Chapter 11 Geology and Soils Note: Resolution varies across the area shown due to differences in resolution of source maps. Figure 11-2. Geology in the Vicinity of Project Features Draft – August 2014 – 11-5 Upper San Joaquin River Basin Storage Investigation Environmental Impact Statement The location of the proposed dam and appurtenant facilities rises uniformly from elevation 385 in the original San Joaquin River channel near RM 274. The left abutment location (facing downstream) rises to elevation 1,582 at Pincushion Mountain and the right abutment location (facing downstream) rises to elevation 1,473 at an unnamed mountain. The proposed dam site, both abutment locations, and appurtenant site are mostly granite and granodiorite, with alluvium in the channel section. The granite is typically hard to very hard where exposed in the bottom of drainages and along the reservoir shoreline. The upper 1 to 10 feet of the granite are intensely weathered to decomposed, and soft to very soft. This decomposed granite represents a weathered in-place, soil-like profile at the ground surface. Hard, erosion-resistant granite outcrops are scattered on the proposed abutment locations. Some outcrops are detached blocks of rock up to 25 feet in maximum dimension. A zone of hard, slightly fractured meta-granite or granite gneiss is present near the dam centerline on the left abutment, and appears to outcrop in a shallow drainage located upstream from the proposed dam centerline on the right abutment. Alluvium of unknown thickness occurs below the reservoir water surface in the San Joaquin River channel. The alluvium likely ranges from fine to coarse-grained, with rock blocks up to 25 feet in maximum dimension that detached from the slopes near the proposed abutments. No unstable wedges, toppling, or slides were observed at the site (Reclamation 2002a). Extended Study Area The various geologic processes active in California over millions of years have created many geologically different areas, called provinces. The upper San Joaquin River lies in the Sierra Nevada Province, and lower San Joaquin River in the Central Valley Province. The upper San Joaquin River is located in the central portion of the Sierra Nevada Province at its boundary with the eastern edge of the Central Valley Province. The Sierra Nevada Province encompasses the Sierra Nevada, and comprises primarily intrusive rocks, including granite and granodiorite, with some metamorphosed granite and granite gneiss. The province is a tilted fault block nearly 400 miles long, with a high, steep multiple-scarp eastern face and a gently sloping western face that dips beneath the Central Valley Province (CGS 2002a). The central Sierra Nevada has a complex history 11-6 – Draft – August 2014 Chapter 11 Geology and Soils of uplift and erosion. The greatest uplift tilted the entire Sierra Nevada block to the west. The high elevation of the Sierra Nevada leads to the accumulation of snow, including the Pleistocene glaciation responsible for shaping much of the range. Snowmelt in the Sierra Nevada feeds the San Joaquin River and its major tributaries, including those upstream from Friant Dam, as well as the Merced, Tuolumne, Stanislaus, and Mokelumne rivers and other tributaries downstream from the Merced River confluence. These large rivers and their smaller tributaries cut through the granitic rocks present in the upper San Joaquin River Basin, and through intrusive formations and sedimentary and metamorphosed rocks. The metamorphic bedrock in these watersheds contains