AIPG California Section
Newsletter Fall 2014
2014 AIPG-AHS
NATIONAL
CONFERENCE
First and foremost, the 2014
AIPG
and
Arizona
Hydrological Society (AHS)
National Conference occurred
September
13-16,
2014.
Hundreds of members were in
attendance and dozens of
exhibitors were featured.
There were several days of
well attended field trips, three
days of technical sessions, and
a poster session. The business
meetings were held on
Saturday, September 13 and
the President of the California
Section was the delegate. Bill
Siok, CPG, the long-time
Sinkhole in Sedona, Arizona (J. Jacobs)
AIPG Executive Director has
retired and moved to Tuscon,
Arizona. He is still quite active with AIPG, and attended the meeting, but the new director, Bob
Stewart, CPG, is now up and running. Many of you will remember Bob as the TPG newsletter
editor. Bob moved from Connecticut to the Denver, Colorado area and he and his family are
enjoying the new location.
Paul A. Lindberg, a well-known Arizona geologist from Sedona, Arizona led the field trip to
Jerome and Sedona. The photo above is in Sedona near the city limits. In the foreground is the
Devil’s Kitchen, a large historic sinkhole. Subsurface Mississippian blocky and highly fractured
Redwall Limestone caves lying below the water table are enlarging in modern time to the point
of collapse of the overlying Esplanade Sandstone, Hermit formation and Schnebly Hill
Sandstone (near the top, forming the famous rock spires in Sedona). If these formation names
sound strangely familiar, they should, as they are the same rock units as exposed in the nearby
Grand Canyon. Numerous vertical fractures (1” or more) were observed on horizontal surfaces
at ground surface at the top of the sinkhole. According to the field trip leader, these same
AIPG California Section Fall 2014 Newsletter
Page 1
fractures were much smaller in width (1/4” or less) a few years ago. Freeze-thaw cycles and tree
roots help to enlarge the vertical cracks from the surface. On the other end of the sinkhole,
forces deep in the subsurface are causing the removal of the structural support through cave
formation in the saturated limestone, removing the structural integrity of the surface rocks. This
sinkhole feature is actively expanding in an area of $3-5 million homes, where the unsuspecting
owners of these exclusive homes are probably unaware of the extent to which their properties
could be undermined. The Redwall Limestone which provides the soluble carbonate for
continued cave expansion also allows for rainwater infiltration. The Redwall Limestone is also
used as local water source.
A New AIPG Award Created: David Sadoff wins
AIPG Section Leadership Award for 2014
Several AIPG Section Leadership Awards were presented in 2014 in
Prescott, Arizona at the annual meeting and David Sadoff received the
award in the first year it was offered. David is a CPG, and has been
either a Vice President or President of the California Section for over a
decade. During that time, he has been a delegate at the national
meetings, and served two terms on the National AIPG Advisory Board,
giving up his time freely for the organization. He has participated in
several of the Sacramento Drive-In meetings over the years. Of great
value for the California Section, Dave has been a science fair judge. He
has taken care of attending and arranging for additional judges and the awards for the annual
California State Science Fair in the California State Science Center in southern California. This
has been an annual event. He has been going to these fairs as a judge, taking a day off of work
each year, and participating as a judge and by encouraging students in the earth sciences. This
effort is important, and he usually writes up the event for The Professional Geologist magazine.
He has also helped mentor students at the UC Davis AIPG Student Section meeting a few years
ago by leading a round-table discussion about his career as a geologist with a major insurance
company and some of his projects. David exemplifies the conscientious professional geologist in
California, and he is deserving of a Section Leadership Award.
AIPG California Section - UC
Davis Student Section Meetings:
First Thursday of Each Month
Summary of the Past Year:
During the past year, the AIPG California Section and UC
Davis Student Section were busy - we had eight meetings, one international conference
(Goldschmidt 2014 in Sacramento) and one field trip (Comstock Mine in Virginia City with
Larry Martin, CPG from the AIPG Nevada Section). Thanks go to Robert Zierenberg, UC Davis
Professor and UC Davis Student Section Advisor, and the officers of the student section,
AIPG California Section Fall 2014 Newsletter
Page 2
especially the UC Davis Student Section President Richie Winn. Richie did a lot of behind the
scenes help to make sure all the meetings were successful. Timothy Nelson is the new president
of the student section. James Jacobs is the Student Section Sponsor, and is the contact for those
offering technical talks. A speaker’s list is maintained for those interested in offering a future
talk. Steve Baker and Rob Sydnor are official Student Section Mentors. The sponsor and
student section mentors attended the meetings trying to offer good advice. Bill Motzer was also
quite helpful to the UC Davis Student Section in giving a talk about the New Almaden Mine at
the March 2014 meeting as well as agreeing to lead the October 25th, 2014 field trip (see below).
Figure 1: Earth Sciences Building Map of the UC Davis Campus with the Earth and
Physical Sciences Building (in brown)
WHERE ARE
THE AIPG
MEETINGS
HELD?
UC Davis- Earth
Sciences Building,
E.
Moores
Conference Room
(first floor in the
front) at 6 pm.
The Earth Sciences
Building is near
the entrance from
I-80, past the guard
house and left at
the
Mondavi
building. Evening
from 6 pm – 8 pm,
Pizza and soft
drinks
are
provided.
AIPG CALIFORNIA SECTION – UC DAVIS
STUDENT SECTION MEETING SCHEDULE:
2014
October 9th, 2014
Rob Campbell, GeoSolve, Inc. Rob is back by popular demand! Rob is an engineering
geologist and a business owner. He is also a UC Davis graduate. In his last talk two years ago,
students were asking him the hard questions about making a reasonable living and being a
professional geologist at the same time. Come hear Rob divulge his creative answers to really
tough career choices.
AIPG California Section Fall 2014 Newsletter
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October 25th, 2014 Field Trip
Bill Motzer, Todd Engineers, will lead a trip to the New Almaden Mine
State Park in San Jose, California. Bill spoke at a recent meeting in the
spring of 2014 about the mercury mining at the New Almaden Mine State
Park, and he will now lead a trip to the park. Details will be sent closer to
the time of the trip. Please let Timothy Nelson know of your interest at
[email protected]. See article below.
November 6th, 2014
Paul Henshaw, an inspiring University of California at Berkeley professor with over 30 years of
experience in the oil industry and teaching will talk about his interesting career in the oil industry
and academia. Paul enjoys mentoring students and young professionals and will provide insights
into career development and life-long learning.
Dec. 4th, 2014
Mel Erskine is truly an expert in a variety of geology subject areas, including energy-related
topics and basin analysis. Mel will speak from his experiences about the functions of a
consultant and the secrets about becoming an earth science expert who is in high demand.
2015
January 8th, 2015 – to be announced
February 5th, 2015
John Karachewski has worked in the oil and gas industry, worked as an environmental
consultant, teaches geology classes at a local college, and currently works for the State of
California at the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC). He is also one of the best
geology photographers in the nation and his covers have graced many scientific publications. He
will talk about his career choices and observations.
March 5th, April 2nd and May 7th- open. Your topic is of value to up and coming geologists.
Please call James Jacobs (510-590-1098) or email to [email protected]
FIELD TRIP OCTOBER 25th, 2014
The AIPG California Section – UC Davis Student Section Field Trip is planned for late October
2014. Bill Motzer, Ph.D., P.G., C.H.G., Geochemist for Todd Engineers will lead the trip. Bill
spoke to the group at the March 2014 monthly talk. His topic was the mercury mining in the
Coast Ranges in California and the links to historic gold production and the residual mercury
contamination in California’s rivers and lakes. The field trip, offered at the March 2014 meeting,
is the follow up field presentation of historic mercury mining in California and features the
Almaden Quicksilver Mine in San Jose, California.
AIPG California Section Fall 2014 Newsletter
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The Almaden Quicksilver County Park is an interesting park in the Santa Clara County Park
system. The park has historical significance, natural beauty, and sits on the southern edge of the
Silicon Valley with millions of people and thousands of businesses and industries spreading out
down slope from it to the north. It occupies most of the Los Capitancillos Ridge, running
southeast from the Guadalupe Landfill to the Almaden Reservoir. To the north are the upscale
suburbs of the Almaden Valley. To the southeast is the historic mining town of New Almaden.
To the southwest is the soaring forested wall of the Sierra Azuls, topped by Mt. Umunhum. The
park takes up 4157 acres of steep hillsides, cool forests, open meadows, and deep valleys. It
borders two long reservoirs and contains several small ponds. It is crisscrossed by trails,
including 34.2 miles for hiking, 23 miles for equestrians, and 10 miles for bicycling. The park is
mostly undeveloped, but its history includes intense mercury mining operations that date back to
the Gold Rush Era. The mercury mined from here was used in the gold and silver mines in the
Sierras to extract the precious metals from the ore. The hills here are honeycombed with tunnels
that run for thousands of feet, some below sea level. All mining has ceased, and most of the
tunnels have been sealed up. However, remnants of the park's mining history can be seen
scattered throughout the park and in the Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum in New Almaden.
The vast majority of the park, though, is undeveloped wild land, filled with wildlife and covered
with trees, grasses, and beautiful spring wildflowers. It provides an ideal and easily-accessible
escape from the pressures of the fast-paced life in the high-tech capital of the world. (From the
web site: http://www.newalmaden.org/AQSPark/index.html ).
Entry sign to the park (left), and a closed mine entry (right) at the Almaden Quicksilver County
Park in San Jose, California (photos from commons.wikimedia.org). Below, historic photos of
the New Almaden Mine:
AIPG California Section Fall 2014 Newsletter
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!!Napa Earthquake!!
Pavement buckling and tented sidewalk resulting from ~14 cm of compression on Sandybrook
Lane, north end of the main rupture. The photo was taken in Napa, California on August 24,
2014 by Thomas Holzer of the USGS.
2014-2015 CALIFORNIA SECTION OFFICERS / ADVISORS
President, Newsletter Editor, CCGO representative, UC Davis Student Section Sponsor:
James A. Jacobs; Clearwater Group, 229 Tewksbury Ave., Pt. Richmond, CA 94801
Cell: 510-590-1098 Fax: 415-381-5816 [email protected]
Northern California Vice President, AIPG Student Science Fair Judge, Delegate
Dave Sadoff; [email protected]
Southern California Vice President, AIPG Student Science Fair Judge:
Mark W. Rogers; Work: 949-387-4466 [email protected]
Secretary/Treasurer
Karel L. Detterman; [email protected]
California Section Advisor:
Mehmet Pehlivan; Bays Environmental Remediation Mgt. 27281 Pinocha Mission Viejo, CA
92692 Work: 888-511-5335 [email protected]
UC Davis Student Section Mentors:
Robert Sydnor; Cell phone: 916-335-1441; [email protected]
Steve Baker; HydroSolutions of California, Inc. and Operation Unite, PO Box 922, Nevada
City, CA 95959, Work: 530-478-1260; [email protected]
AIPG California Section Fall 2014 Newsletter
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UC Davis Student Section
Robert Zierenberg, Professor of Geology, One Shields Avenue, Department of Earth and
Planetary Sciences, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616-8605
530-752- 1863 Office, 530-752-0951 Fax; http://www.geology.ucdavis.edu
[email protected]
Richie Winn, Past Student President; UC Davis Student Section; [email protected]
Timothy Nelson, Current Student President; UC Davis Student Section; [email protected]
Photo taken in May 2014 of most of the participants of the California Section AIPG – UC Davis
Student Section Field Trip at the Comstock Mine in Virginia City, Nevada, led by Larry Martin
of the Nevada Section.
STUDENT MENTOR PROGRAM NEEDS MORE MENTORS
Mentoring students and young professionals may be one of the most important and lasting
contributions that a geologist can make to the profession. In an effort to encourage the student
AIPG members in California colleges and universities and young professionals who are
encouraged (with other AIPG members) to attend the meetings, the California Section has
developed a California Section Mentor Program. To be a mentor, a professional AIPG member
needs to make a commitment to attending the local student section meetings and assist in
answering career and professional questions of the students. Each AIPG Student Section can
have several mentors. Bob Sydnor and Steve Baker are California Section Mentors. For those
interested in playing this important professional role, please contact the California Section
President.
AIPG California Section Fall 2014 Newsletter
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