G E O L O G Y F A N O D T N M I E N M E T R R A A L P I E N D D U N S O T G R E I R E OREGON GEOLOGY S O 1937 Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries Volume 65, Number 1, Spring 2003 INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Geothermal Resource Publications of the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries OREGON GEOLOGY VOLUME 65, NUMBER 1 SPRING 2003 Contents Introduction VICKI S. MCCONNELL . 3 Geothermal Resource Publications of the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries JL Clark . 4 Thesis Abstracts. 21 Geologic Notes: Overview of the Kelly Point Park Earthquake, Portland, Oregon . 25 Index to Geothermal Articles and Information in OREGON GEOLOGY . 26 New DOGAMI Publications . 28 Highlighting Recent Publications . 29 OREGON DEPARTMENT OF GEOLOGY AND MINERAL INDUSTRIES Governing Board Coastal Field Office: 313 SW Second Street, Suite D, Newport Donald W. Christensen, Chair. Salem 97365, phone (541) 574-6642, FAX (541) 265-5241. Vera E. Simonton . Pendleton George R. Priest, Geologist, Coastal Section Leader. Barbara P. Seymour . Salem Grants Pass Field Office: 5375 Monument Drive, Grants Pass 97526, William M. Elliott . Lake Oswego phone (541) 476-2496, FAX (541) 474-3158. Donald A. Haagensen . Portland Thomas J. Wiley, Geologist, Southwest Oregon Section Leader. State Geologist. John D. Beaulieu Mineral Land Regulation and Reclamation Program: 229 Broadal- Deputy Director. Vicki S. McConnell bin Street SW, Albany 97321-2246, phone (541) 967-2039, FAX (541) 967-2075. Editor . Clark A. Niewendorp Gary W. Lynch, Assistant Director of Regulation. Production Assistants . Kate Halstead, James Roddey Nature of the Northwest Information Center: Suite 177, 800 NE Main Office: Suite 965, 800 NE Oregon Street # 28, Portland Oregon St. # 5, Portland, OR 97232-2162, phone (503) 872-2750, FAX 97232, phone (503) 731-4100, FAX (503) 731-4066. (503) 731-4066. Internet: http://www.naturenw.org Internet: http://www.oregongeology.com Donald J. Haines, Manager. Baker City Field Office: 1510 Campbell Street, Baker City 97814, Permission is granted to reprint information contained herein. Credit phone (541) 523-3133, FAX (541) 523-5992. given to the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries for Mark L. Ferns, Geologist, Eastern Oregon Section Leader. compiling this information will be appreciated. On the Cover In Klamath Falls, the Esplanade Bridge over the "A" Canal uses a geothermal heating system for pavement de-icing. The geothermal heating system keeps the bridge deck relatively snow free even when outside temperatures drop to -10oF and a snowfall up to 3 inches per hour. Several government, commercial, and educational buildings in Klamath Falls also use geothermal energy for heating, as do hundreds of private homes. Photos by Margi Jenks. Oregon Geology (ISSN 0164-3304) is published in Spring and Fall by the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries on its web site http://oregongeology.com. (Volumes 1 through 40 were entitled The Ore Bin.) 2 OREGON GEOLOGY, VOLUME 65, NUMBER 1, SPRING 2003 Introduction BY VICKI S. MCCONNELL, DEPUTY STATE GEOLOGIST Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries, 800 NE Oregon Street, #28, Portland OR 97232 Geothermal energy is "back on the radar screens" as a Cascades. These thermal gradients, when projected to viable energy source. As a matter of fact, Oregon was the usual geothermal well depth of 7,000-10,000 ft, in- one of the western states recently identified by the dicate adequate heat for commercial power genera- Bush Administration's alternate energy strategists as tion. We also know that there are a number of excel- containing geothermal energy resources. This issue of lent targets for geothermal exploration in locations Oregon Geology provides a compilation of nearly fifty around the state outside of Wilderness Areas or the reports that DOGAMI and others have prepared docu- National Parks. menting Oregon's geothermal potential. High heat flow also occurs in southeastern Oregon. Oregon has the desirable distinction of being a state There the geologic structure is considered part of the where geothermal resources are available in many Basin and Range, a series of mountains and valleys areas. Our geothermal resources are suitable for many stretching from New Mexico north. Water that circu- different types of uses but are commonly divided into lates in the deep faults and fractures that make up the two categories: high and low temperature. High tem- Basin and Range is heated up to temperatures that perature resources (>150° C) are suitable for electrical make it applicable for geothermal energy production. generation with conventional cycles (steam), low tem- perature resources (<150° C) are employed for direct Geothermal energy has a number of positive features heat uses and electricity generation using a binary flu- making it competitive with conventional energy ids cycle. sources and some renewable sources. These features include: Right now in Oregon, lower temperature geothermal energy is used for space heating in several locations z As a local energy source, it can reduce demand for across the state. For example, the city of Klamath Falls, imported fossil fuels. Klamath County, Oregon, began to tap into its geot- hermal energy in 1981. The city has since developed a z It has a large positive impact on the environment by heating district that supplies geothermal water for displacing combustion of CO2 and fossil fuels. heating government and downtown buildings and road de-icing. Also, there are hundreds of geothermal z It is efficient and competitive with conventional wells in Klamath Falls equipped with downhole heat commercial power generation, in part by population exchangers. These are used by single homes, shared by distribution and because of recent energy price several homes, and provide heat to schools and apart- trends. ment buildings. z Geothermal plants can operate continuously, with- Oregon does not generate commercial electricity from out constraints imposed by weather conditions, un- geothermal energy. The potential is there because of like other renewable sources. the geologic processes that formed the High Cascades. Active or recently active volcanoes, such as the Cas- z It has an inherent storage capability and is best suit- cade volcanic chain, give off heat from cooling magma ed to base-load demand. chambers. For example, we know from heat flow measurement studies of the ground in Oregon that z It is a reliable and safe energy source, which does high temperature gradients cover the full length of the not require storage or transportation of fuels. Learn more about DOGAMI’s oil, gas, and geothermal program by logging on to: www.oregongeology.com OREGON GEOLOGY, VOLUME 65, NUMBER 1, SPRING 2003 3 Geothermal Resource Publications of the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries COMPILED BY JL CLARK Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries, 800 NE Oregon Street, #28, Portland OR 97232 Short annotations and summaries on the major findings of these publications are included. Please note that all time references in the summaries (for example, "This project will be completed soon") refer to the period of the original report. Publications can be purchased from the department. "On file" and "Out of print" publications can be inspected at the department library in Portland. We are in the process of scanning these publications, and they will be re-released on CDs as they become available. Check the website (www.oregongeology.com) for updates. STATEWIDE OPEN-FILE REPORT O-79-03 Chemical analyses of thermal springs and wells in Oregon, 1979 by USGS and DOGAMI Chemical analyses contained in this report were derived from specific samples collected of water, condensate, or gas from thermal surface 171 p. springs or wells in Oregon. SPECIAL PAPER 4 Heat flow of Oregon, 1978 by D.D. Blackwell, D.A. Hull, R.G. An extensive new heat-flow and geothermal gradient data set for the Bowen, and J.L. Steele State of Oregon is presented on a contour map of heat-flow at a scale of 1:1,000,000 and is summarized in several figures and tables. The 42 p. 1:1,000,000-scale heat-flow map is contoured at 20 milliwatts per meter square (mW/m2 [0.5 HFU]) intervals. Also presented are maps of heat- 1 pl., 1:1,000,000 flow and temperature at depth of 1 km averaged for 1º x 1º intervals. His- tograms and averages of geothermal gradient and heat-flow for the State of Oregon and for the various physiographic province within Oregon are also included. One group of provinces with the greatest potential for geothermal devel- opment occupies the southeastern third of the state and includes the High Lava Plains, Basin and Range, Owyhee Upland and Western Snake River Basin provinces. The mean heat-flow is 98.4 ± 3.8 mW/m2 (2.34 ± 0.08 HFU) and the mean gradient is 89.1 ± 3.4º C/km. These values are ex- tremely high. In the past, extensive volcanism and tectonism character- ized these provinces and now hydrothermal convection systems are com- mon, resulting in a large scatter in the observed heat-flow values. Large scale crustal effects on the heat-flow are also observed. Because of the high geothermal gradient and high heat-flow, this area of the state proba- bly has the greatest potential for geothermal development for both high and moderate temperature geothermal systems. The fourth area of the state includes the High Cascades Range. Reliable heat-flow data are not available for the central and eastern parts of this Issues of Oregon Geology also contain short articles, and news and statistics of pertinence to Oregon’s geother- mal resources. An index to geothermal articles and information in Oregon Geology can be found on page 26.