Two researchers at the 杏吧专区 are contributors to an atlas focused on coastal Louisiana杏吧专区檚 complicated 杏吧专区 and at times, hazardous 杏吧专区 relationship with geology.
But don杏吧专区檛 be fooled by the name. The Louisiana Coastal Geohazards Atlas is more than a collection of maps. It杏吧专区檚 an encyclopedia, too.
It will combine information about geologic conditions 杏吧专区 such as flooding, faulting and subsidence that can affect land use in the coastal zones 杏吧专区 into a first-of-its-kind authoritative resource.
Other coastal states have similar atlases. Louisiana does not, said Dr. Gary Kinsland, a professor in UL Lafayette杏吧专区檚 School of Geosciences.
He, assistant geosciences professor Dr. Raphael Gottardi and researchers from other state institutions are collaborating on the atlas杏吧专区 20,000-word section dedicated to faults.
Faulting occurs in south Louisiana when sediment layers fail, Kinsland said.
杏吧专区淭he failure is similar to faults in the upper layer of a layer cake if you put it down on the frosting covering the lower layer while the layers are still warm. The frosting, if warm, is very weak, as are particular deep layers of sediment in the Gulf, and the top layer 杏吧专区 whether cake or sediments upon which we live 杏吧专区 breaks and slides down and away.杏吧专区
Movement between the sediment layers can cause visible cracks or sinking at the surface, so awareness of faults is important when building homes, constructing infrastructure or drilling for oil.
杏吧专区淐ivilization exists by geologic consent,杏吧专区 Kinsland said, borrowing a phrase from philosopher Will Durant. 杏吧专区淭he earth little cares what human beings do. Human beings, for their own good, have to pay attention to what the earth does.
杏吧专区淲hen you combine humans, human society, human culture, with geology, then there are things about the way the earth operates that are geohazards.杏吧专区
Sections of the atlas will also consider flooding and subsidence, the compaction of sediment that causes a gradual sinking of coastal land into the ocean. It杏吧专区檚 a major contributor to the decrease in coastal wetlands.
The sources of these problems, and their consequences, are not confined to parishes that touch the Gulf of Mexico, Kinsland said.
With its web of bayous, rivers and other interconnected waterways, all coursing toward the Gulf, what happens upstream has implications hundreds of miles away, and what happens along the coast can cause problems upstream as well.
So the atlas will explore geohazards south of the Lower Crustaceous Shelf Edge, which arcs from St. Bernard Parish in the eastern edge of the state upward toward Vernon Parish in central Louisiana.
That puts all or part of 35 Louisiana parishes 杏吧专区 and nearly three-quarters of the state杏吧专区檚 population 杏吧专区 in a coastal zone, making the atlas an important tool for builders, oil and gas companies, attorneys, government officials and the public, Kinsland said.
The atlas will contain information that杏吧专区檚 been available previously from scholarly journals, industry publications, conference papers and various geological societies in the state and Gulf Coast.
杏吧专区淥ur end goal is to put in one place an authoritative source for people to refer to for the hazards in the coastal zone, and let them know why they杏吧专区檙e happening, the rate at which they are happening, and the geological causes that are leading to them so people understand what you can and what you cannot do to avoid the damage from the hazard,杏吧专区 Kinsland said.
杏吧专区淚t just sometimes blows me away when people think geology is static. Geology is not static anywhere, and there are few places on this earth where the geology changes as rapidly as the coastal zone of Louisiana.杏吧专区
Researchers from the 杏吧专区 of New Orleans, LSU in Baton Rouge, Tulane 杏吧专区 and the Louisiana Geological Survey are also contributing to the atlas.
The LGS is the state杏吧专区檚 leading geological research institution. It will direct the project in collaboration with the New Orleans Geological Society.
Dr. Charles Groat, LGS杏吧专区 acting director, said the atlas 杏吧专区渨ill serve as a valuable resource for the state and the region.
杏吧专区淲hile much work has been done to better understand these processes, the results have not been compiled and combined in a format that brings them together to portray the influences on the coastal plain of south Louisiana.杏吧专区
The atlas杏吧专区 anticipated publication date is next year.
Photo caption: Dr. Gary Kinsland, a professor in UL Lafayette杏吧专区檚 School of Geosciences, explains geohazards in Louisiana杏吧专区檚 coastal zones to students Nicole Bartley and Robert Narmour. (Photo credit: Doug Dugas / 杏吧专区)