Office of Mission The Office of Earth Sciences Applications was established to improve the application of earth science information in land use and resource planning processes. The public and its elected officials, planners, policy makers, and decisionmakers, increasingly must cope with many issues, such as zoning, permitting, geologic hazard warnings and contingency plans, building site selection, and so forth, that entail technical information at varying levels of complexity and from a diverse range of scientific disciplines. Many times important geologic or hydrologic considerations are not included in the planning process because the information is not available, not known to be available, or not compatible to the needs of the user. The Office of Earth Sciences Applications addresses the need for an integration of scientific disciplines and communication of earth science information to the public. It manages cooperative projects that assist communities and planners in directly applying earth science information as well as programs that address techniques and methods to improve the utility and dissemination of earth science information. The Office is composed of earth scientists and specialists from a variety of related disciplines such as economics, urban planning, geography, and remote sensing. The major functions of the Office include: • Developing resource planning methods to enhance the usefulness of earth science information in the planning-decisionmaking process. • Overseeing compliance with environmental laws, including the preparation and review of environmental impact statements within the Survey. • Providing earth science information for land resources decisionmaking. • Collecting, processing, and distributing remotely sensed data and applying remote-sensing technology in support of land resource and environmental analyses. • Developing visual products and services designed to inform the scientific and nonscientific communities about applications of earth science information. The task of achieving these objectives is carried on by the following offices: Resource Planning Analysis Office (RPAO) Earth Sciences Assistance Office (ESAO) (EROS) Visual Information Services Office (VISO) Budget and Personnel Obligations for the Office of Earth Sciences Applications activities during fiscal year 1981 totalled $23.2 million, a decrease of $0.5 million, or 2 percent, below the amount obligated during the preceding year. Reimbursements of $4.3 million supplied 19 percent of funds used during fiscal year 1981. The work of the Office of Earth Sciences Applications is accomplished in part through research grants and contracts to private parties. During fiscal year 1981, $10.2 million, or approximately 44 percent, of the Office of Earth Sciences Applications activity total was obligated for contracts, because contract services were the major source of operational support at the EROS Data Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Programs of the Office of Earth Sciences Applications employed 205 full-time permanent personnel in 1981. There were, in addition, 67 temporary or part-time employees. The U.S. Geological Survey's Geologists generally view the Earth differently than do most others. They study the Earth's history, physical and chemical makeup, and behavior, including such processes as mountain building and land erosion. They look at it from afar using Earth-orbiting satellites and scrutinize its most minute details with electron microscopes. Some geologists mechanically squeeze slabs of rocks to learn more about the behavior of the Earth's crust under the forces of great earthquakes. Others map the land surface and the relations among the various geologic formations to deduce the Earth's past. Geologists then can use such insights and lessens of the past to look into the future and determine how the Earth's natural forces will continue to shape our planet and our lives. Through geologists' observations, mapping, and probing, we now know that the Earth's landforms, both the spectacular and the unimpressive, are caused by natural processes-processes that dominated the planet's past and will likely control its future. Some of these processes last just for days or even minutes at a time, while others work imperceptibly but continuously to create such majestic forms as the Grand Canyon. Some natural processes, such as volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, flooding, and subsidence, however, are hazardous; and each year considerable time, talent, and money are spent to devise and apply ways of reducing the damage they cause. Many famous centers of culture and commerce and far more numerous uncelebrated towns and villages have suffered extensive loss from sudden unanticipated natural catastrophes. For example, in 1531, Lisbon, Portugal, lost 30,000 people during an earthquake; in 1970, 20,000 residents in Peru's Yungay Valley were buried by a rapidly moving landslide. And, in one of the most famous natural catastrophes, the entire town of Pompeii, then a flourishing Greco-Roman city, was buried by the ashfall from the A.D. 79 eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Despite our increasing knowledge about these natural events-why they happen, where they are likely to happen, and how we may better cope with them - the damage they cause has been increasing nationally and globally. Perhaps this mounting toll of damage is due to larger populations and greater accumulation of goods and wealth. Or maybe it is because many of the more hazardous areas happen to be lands promising greatest wealth and growth. It also could be that some of the ways we use our resources and technology to cope with natural hazards and risk are instead causing greater damage. Whatever the reason, losses from geologic and hydrologic hazards will continue to rise unless greater attention is paid to the commanding processes of nature. There are several ways the U.S. Geological Survey responds to the risks posed by natural hazards and geologic catastrophes. As the Nation's primary geologic and hydrologic research institution, it has a responsibility to investigate the probability, cause, and patterns of earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, subsidence, and other damaging and life-threatening phenomena and to advise the public and governmental officials of its findings. The Survey has been doing this for over a hundred years and, during the past decade, has broadened its response to the threat and occurrence of natural hazards. An example of this response is the Survey's participation in the San Francisco Bay Area Study, in which scientists conducted the Nation's most comprehensive study of the value of incorporating geologic and hydrologic considerations into the practical decisions of homeowners, public administrators, legislators, building contractors, and anyone with an interest in reducing his vulnerability to natural catastrophes. This study, which produced more than 150 maps and reports, was supplemented by many days of briefings, public testimony, and lectures by scientists to government officials, citizen groups, and school groups. Through such studies and other actions, the Survey has been increasing its efforts to inform the public about the nature of geologic and hydrologic risks; equally important, it is prepared to demonstrate further the benefits of using earth science to help determine how best to live with natural hazards. In addition to broadening and improving its response to the threat of natural hazards, the Survey has taken two significant steps to respond to the occurrence of a major emergency resulting from geologic events. In 1977, it established a program for warning the public and its officials of geologic catastrophes, and, recently, it initiated a major effort to design formal procedures for a Survey response to geologic and hydrologic emergencies. The Survey's hazard warning program has issued 17 official hazard announcements. The most visible and urgent one of them was the 1980 Mount St. Helens warning. In late March 1980, University of Washington seismologists working with Survey scientists detected swarms of small and moderate earthquakes near and below Mount St. Helens. From its National Center in Virginia, the Survey contacted and daily briefed interested and responsible Washington State and Federal agencies. Field headquarters were established in Vancouver, Washington, about 45 miles from Mount St. Helens; with the support of the U.S. Forest Service, Survey geologists monitored the volcano's activity and briefed local emergency response officials and news media. After the major volcanic eruption was declared a national disaster, the Survey sent additional staff support to Vancouver to work with the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) emergency response team. Many lessons were learned from the eruption of Mount St. Helens. A large number were scientific and will be invaluable in assessing future eruptions of Mount St. Helens and other similar volcanoes, but the events also highlighted the value of a well-prepared response team. With the cooperation of local, State of Washington, and other Federal agencies, the Geological Survey adequately performed its roles of scientific investigation and counsel, but it continues its efforts to improve its response to similar events in the future. The Survey accordingly is preparing formal emergency response plans that detail the procedures key scientists and administrators are vance planning promises to encourage early and effective response to an imminent geologic threat. The Survey is seeking to meet the new and changing challenges posed by geologic and hydrologic hazards. How well it does respond will depend on the scientific advances it makes, and how well it can translate this knowledge into useful and credible advice. Above all, it will also have to be well prepared and to encourage other agencies and the public to be well prepared also. This will be a future challenge to the U.S. Geological Survey. Recently, the U.S. Geological Survey received the 1981 Outstanding Planning Program award from the American Planning Association at their national conference in Boston. The award was for the San Francisco Bay Region Environment and Resources Planning Study designed to collect and interpret earth science information for the use of planners and decisionmakers in avoiding hazards, conserving resources, and reducing property damage. The study, begun in 1970, produced over 150 maps and reports on a wide range of topics. Much of the information derived from this study is being used by community governments and organizations in the San Francisco Bay region to give the citizens an extra measure of security from future geological hazards. to follow during or in anticipation of geologically Workshops, Circuit related emergencies. These plans will be reviewed by FEMA officials to ensure that they complement other established emergency response plans. Public officials and citizens can benefit from a clearer understanding of the contribution of geology to reducing public vulnerability to geologic hazards. To better discharge its responsibilities and design a sound effective hazardwarning and preparedness program, the Geological Survey has been consulting with social science researchers who have been studying how the public and public officials respond to various warning systems, messages, and educational programs. Incorporating some of their research results into Survey programs is leading to a more positive hazard warning and education effort; for example, the Survey will cosponsor emergency response and planning workshops for State and local officials. These workshops will be for specific potential geologic hazards. They will not only explain the nature of the hazard and discuss ways to reduce public and private risk but will also focus on the preparation of State and local government emergency response plans. Such ad Riders, and County One of the keys to effective solution of problems involving energy, environment, and land use. is a better understanding by all concerned parties of the issues involved and the physical facts surrounding those issues. In an effort to improve the level of knowledge and understanding of resource and land use issues by planners, decisionmaking officials, and the general public, the U.S. Geological Survey is experimenting with a variety of approaches to technical information delivery. In cooperation with numerous Federal, State, and local agencies, universities, and private organizations, the Survey is sponsoring demonstration projects to test and evaluate three of the more promising of these approaches: workshops for local officials, circuit-rider geologists, and the use of County Extension Agents. WORKSHOPS The objective of the earth sciences application workshops project is to increase public awareness of the availability of earth sciences information and its use in helping to resolve land use planning, resource development, and environmental problems. Individual workshops address this objective by (1) identifying earth science problems and opportunities relevant to land use planning in the local area of the workshop, (2) identifying local scientific expertise available to address such problems, and (3) demonstrating selected local applications of earth science data for land use and natural resource planning. Each workshop is a joint effort involving personnel from various Survey offices, the State geological survey, the State association of professional planners, and earth science and planning professionals from local academic institutions. The workshop attendance consists primarily of local land use planners, elected and appointed governmental officials, educators, and other professionals in engineering, earth sciences, and planning. The workshop itself normally consists of a series of lectures by an expert faculty on selected local planning problems involving earth science considerations. A field trip may follow to illustrate these problems first hand and to show how they have been handled locally. The final session of the workshop involves a practical planning exercise using real earth sciences information for the local area. Specific local problems that have been addressed in workshops held to date include karst (sinkhole) terrain, slope stability, earthquake hazards, expansive soils, land subsidence resulting from ground-water withdrawals, flood hazards, solid-waste disposal, coastal erosion, and groundwater supplies. In addition, more general topics, such as land capability analysis and general earth science considerations for land use planning, have been addressed in most workshops. Since the project was initiated in March 1980, workshops have been held in Nashville, Tennessee, Seattle, Washington, Atlanta, Georgia, Houston, Texas, Orlando, Florida, Columbus, Ohio, and Corpus Christi, Texas. Tentative plans for the next year include workshops in Minnesota, Florida, Texas, Maine, Massachusetts, and New Jersey. CIRCUIT-RIDER GEOLOGIST The circuit-rider geologist demonstration project was a 2-year experimental effort, in coopera tion with the Division of Geology and Earth Resources of the Washington State Department of Natural Resources, to provide the services of a part-time "circuit-rider" geologist to three counties in the Puget Sound lowland. These counties (Clallam, Island, and Jefferson) were selected on the basis of their proximity to one another and their similarities in geology, stage of development, and kinds of development pressures. The counties also were alike in their generally low level of application of geology to day-to-day land use decisions. A senior staff geologist with the Division of Geology and Earth Resources who was already relatively familiar with the counties was assigned to lead the project. The Circuit-Rider Project was designed to try to meet the need for geologic assistance in three counties with the idea that, if successful, the concept will be applied elsewhere. Support for expanding the effort could be either from groups of interested counties, from joint county-State financing, or some combination of these approaches. Services provided by the circuit-rider geologist fell into one or more of five general categories: • Geotechnical education. A general orientation on the applications of earth sciences to the problems of local communities includes the use of geologic data by nongeologists or the use of nongeologic data for geologic purposes. • Geotechnical guidance. This is basically an extension of geotechnical education but with special emphasis on the applications of geology to local problems or questions of policy; for example, indepth discussions with county staff members on such subjects as coastal bluff landslides or longshore sediment transport processes. • Site analyses. These provide for early consideration of geologic and hydrologic factors influencing the siting of utilities such as sanitation, water, and access systems to avoid the need for remedial actions later on. • Geologic data source. Not only must the circuit rider provide needed information to his clients, he must cultivate in them the habit of coming to him when they need assistance. • Consultant relations. The increased use of consultants by developers results in county officials having to analyze geotechnical reports written by or for the very people they are charged with regulating. The circuit rider's role here is to alert local government personnel of problem areas, to aid in assessing the nature of the problems, and to assist in the review of the consultants' findings. |