DROUGHT HALTS LAKE RISE Ancient Fossil Find Legislature Acts
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PUBLISHED QUARTERLY BY UTAH GEOLOGICAL AND MINERAL SURVEY NOTE$ Service to the State of Utah May 1977 DROUGHT HALTS Geological Matters ... LAKE RISE Legislature Acts On Earthquake Hazards Great Salt Lake levels recorded (in Utah's 42nd Legislature adjourned and legislation for earthquake hazard feet above sea level) this winter and March 16 after 60 busy days considering reduction. A supplemental appropriation spring by the U. S. Geological Survey are: dozens of bills and resolutions related to of $80,000 was provided for the new Boat harbor Saline natural resources and passing a few of organization, which will be housed in the Date (south arm) (north arm) significance to the Utah Geological and USGS building for the present. Mineral Survey. February I 4,200.50 4,199.10 Febru ary 15 4,200.60 4,199.20 House Bill No. 47, introduced by Three bills that came to be known March 1 4,200.65 4,199.25 Representatives Nielsen and Atwood and as the earthquake hazard reduction March 15 4,200.75 4,199.25 Dewain C. Washburn (Monroe) and April l 4,200.75 4,199.30 package were enacted into law. The most Edison J. Stephens (Henefer), removes an April 15 4,200.75 4,199.30 important of these to UGMS was House exemption in effect at present and gives Bill No. 48, sponsored by Representative the Division of Water Rights (State The level of the south arm stood Genevieve Atwood (Salt Lake City) and Engineer) approval and inspection powers ' . l O feet lower on April 15, 1977, than Ray Nielsen (Fairview), which added to over dams built and operated by the U.S . .n the same date in 1976. The lake has the statute governing UGMS the specific Bureau of Reclamation. The momentum risen only 0.45 foot since the seasonal objective: " (6) to assist local and state for passing this bill was generated by the low level measured on November 1, 1976. government agencies in their planning, Teton Dam disaster in Idaho in June Average rise to the spring peak is 1.7 feet; zoning, and building regulation functions 1976. however, in recent years the rise has by publishing maps delineating appropri exceeded 2 feet. ately wide special earthquake risk areas and, at the request of state agencies or Among other legislation directly other governmental agencies, review the concerning UGMS was Senate Bill No. Ancient Fossil Find siting of critical facilities." 138 , sponsored by Senators Beck A paper by H. J. Hofmann of the (Kearns), Snow (Provo), and Bunnell University of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, A total of $48,000 was appropri (Price), which changed the method of published in Precambrian R esearch, v. 4 , ated with this bill to add a geotechnical distributing revenues derived by Utah p. 1-11 , 1977, describes the first identi engineer and an engineering geologist to from the federal government's Mineral fie d fossils found in the Uinta Mountain the UGMS Urban and Engineering 4 asing Fund. UGMS will no longer Group. Specimens of the microfossil, Geology section which will undertake this receive part of its monies as a percentage Chuaria, were fo und in outcrop samples work. Recruitment of these persons will of this fund, an amount which varied of the Precambri an Red Pine Shale from begin soon so that actual work can start considerably from year to year, but will Ye llowstone Creek on the south flank of shortly after July 1, the beginning of the receive a fixed amount to be appropriated the Uintas. In a paper in the Spring 1975 new fiscal year. The original budget each year. A thorny budgetary problem issue of Utah Geology, Crittenden and request of $125,000 would have provided for UGMS has been eliminated. Peterman assigned an age of 950 million funding for at least three additional employees and a more extensive mapping years to the Red Pine Shale on the basis Other bills of natural resource or of whole rock Rb /Sr analysis of samples program of earthquake risks than is geological importance increased the fro m a well on the north flank of the possible with the reduced appropriation. powers of the Division of Oil, Gas and Uintas . Mining in the statutory pooling of oil and House Bill No . 46, also sponsored gas interests in drilling units, created an The paper by Ho fmann, "The by Representatives Atwood and Nielsen, energy conservation and development roblematic fossil Chuaria from the Late creates a seismic safety advisory council council for the state, and included c'recambrian Uinta Mountain Group, and sets up a small organization under an protection and preservation of paleon executive director to review and coordi Utah," describes and illustrates the fossils tological objects under the state nate all seismic safety programs in the in detail and relates them to occurrences antiquities act. This last piece of legisla- of Chuaria in post-Middle Proterozoic state and to advise the governor and legis rocks elsewhere in the world. lature on needed administrative action (continued on page 13) May 19771 SURVEY RELEASES DIGGINS' LATEST STUDIES Arizona Minerals 85722. Cost is $9.75 (paper back) and $22.50 ( cloth bound). The University of Arizona Press has The latest publications of the Utah published Mineralogy of Arizona by John Gas and Oil on BLM Lands Geological and Mineral Survey are avail W. Anthony, Sidney A. Williams, and able through the UGMS Publication Sales Richard A. Bideaux. Most of the volume According to BLM Facts & Figures, Office, 606 Black Hawk Way, Salt Lake is a catalog of Arizona minerals and their 19 76, production in Utah for 1975 on City, Utah 84108. When ordering by occurrence listed by counties and mining BLM-administered lands accounted for 10 mail, add 10% for handling and mailing districts or localities within counties. In percent of the state's natural gas, 15 charges- minimum charge is $.25. Mailing addition, there are short sections on percent of its oil, 37 percent of its coal, charges for maps may vary: see listing of porphyry copper, porphyry copper and all its carbon dioxide. maps for prices. related, and uranium-vanadium mineral deposits. There is also a short article on Appointment Utah Geology, Vol. 4, No. 1, the minerals formed by the United Verde The Secretary of the Interior, Cecil Spring, 19 77. Published biannually. Sub mine fire at Jerome and a listing of D. Andrus, announced on April 23 the scriptions are $6.00 per year. Single issues meteorites found in the state. A compre formation of a committee that will look are $3.50. Handling and mailing charges hensive bibliography lists about 1,000 for ways to increase the production of are included in the subscription price. references. The final pages of the volume natural gas from federal oil and gas leases This issue contains the following articles: are index maps locating 246 mining on the Outer Continental Shelf. Dr. "Subdivisions of the Major Physiographic districts and localities within Arizona. Charles J. Mankin, Director of the Provinces in Utah," by Wm. Lee Stokes; Many vivid color illustrations add greatly Oklahoma Geological Survey and Presi "Heavy Metals in the Great Salt Lake, to the attractive appearance of this dent of the Association of American Utah," by Paul L. Tayler, Lynn A. Hutch volume. State Geologists, will serve as chairman. inson, and Melvin K. Muir; "Occurrence Mineralogy of Arizona (256 pages) Dr. Mankin is well known to many of Petrified Wood in Coal, Kane County, is available from the University of geologists in Utah who wish him well in Utah," by H. H. Doelling; "Pleistocene Arizona Press, Box 3398, Tucson, AZ this endeavor. Volcanic Ash Deposits in Utah," by W. P. Nash and Rebecca Pope Smith; "Approxi Status of Topo Mapping mation of Magnesium Concentration by Refractive Index Measurements in At the end of 1976, topographic map coverage in Utah was nearly complete, but Evaporating Brines of Great Salt Lake, large areas still remained to be covered by up-to-date 7½-minute quadrangles. Utah," by J. Wallace Gwynn and Paul A. Sturm; "The Boundary Between Uintah 7½-minute and Grand Counties, Utah," by Howard Status of quadrangles Area mapped Percent R. Ritzma; "Earthquake Epicenters in quadrangles completed (square miles) of State Utah January-June 1976," by Kenneth L. 7½-minute (published) 780 43,300 51.3 Cook; and "Classification of Ripple 7½-minute (in process) 104 1 6,675 7.9 Marks," by Lee R. High, Jr. and M. Dane 15-minute (published) 628 2 34 ,500 40.8 Picard. Total 1,512 84,475 100.0 1 Map 42, Earthquake Fault Map of a Approximate number- includes some maps published and in various stages of completion. 2 Four 7½-minute quadrangles equal one 15-minute quadrangle (157 fifteen-minute quadrangles). Portion of Salt Lake County, Utah, revised by Bruce N. Kaliser from Map 18 From 1965 through 1972 (fiscal years), the Utah Geological and Mineral Survey (originally issued in 1968). Printed on contributed $140,000 to the UGMS/USGS cooperative mapping project. Since 1973 the 8 ½" by 11" sheet. Map is free upon annual contribution h as been $50,000. The total contribution through fiscal 1976-77 request. Mailing charge is $.25. has been $470,000. Map 43, Physiographic Subdivisions of Utah, by Wm. Lee Stokes ($.25 ; cost AAPG/SEPM DATESSET by mail is $.50). Reprinted from Wm. Lee Howard Ritzma, UGMS assistant ogists, will meet in Salt Lake City, March Stokes' article, "Subdivisions of the director, took over duties as president of 19-22, 1978. About 1,500 geologists and Major Physiographic Provinces in Utah," the Rocky Mountain Section, American geophysicists involved in petroleum and in Utah Geology, Vol.