Surficial-geologic map, Alaska Highway corridor, Delta Junction to Dot Lake, Alaska

Reger, R.D. Stevens, D.S.P. Solie, D.N. 200812 Surficial-geologic map, Alaska Highway corridor, Delta Junction to Dot Lake, Alaska vector digital data Preliminary Interpretive Report PIR 2008-3A Fairbanks, Alaska - USA State of Alaska, Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys 35 p., 2 sheets, scale 1:63,360 http://www.dggs.dnr.state.ak.us/pubs/pubs?reqtype=citation&ID=17961 During 2006 and 2007 the Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys conducted reconnaissance surficial-geologic mapping in segment 1 of the Alaska Highway corridor, which straddles the Alaska Highway through the Tanana River valley from Delta Junction to the eastern boundary of the Mt. Hayes Quadrangle. Surficial-geologic deposits were initially mapped by interpreting ~1:63,360-scale, false-color infrared aerial photographs taken in August 1980 and field verified in 2006-2007. This report and map are a part of ADGGS's Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline Geology and Geohazards project, mapping the surificial-geologic deposits along the the Alaska Highway between Delta Junction and Dot Lake. The study was done in anticipation of the proposed natural gas pipeline along the Alaska Highway corridor, to further the geologic understanding of the area andas a basis for evaluating geohazards for proposed infrastructure. The layers listed below are present as ArcGIS shape files. To enhance print quality, this publication utilized a vector topography data set. The topography data set is not included with this release. Attribute information for the following layers (entities) is included in this metadata file under the "Entity_and_Attribute_Information" section. There are 6 layers. Each layer is listed and described in detail under its own heading starting "Entity_Type_Label."Layers include: >surf_geology polygons of surficial-geologic map units >faults trace of known active faults discussed in PIR 2008-3d >escarpment trace of prominent escarpments discussed in text >soilpits locations of soil pits discussed in the text >radiocarbon locations of radiocarbon samples discussed in text >outline outline shape of the study area 1969 1970 1980 2006 2007 ground condition Complete Unknown -145.947285 -143.936074 64.126215 63.497248 None Age Dates Alluvial Deposits Alluvial Fan Alluvium C14 Colluvial Deposits Colluvium Depositional Environment Dunes Eolian Erratics Esker Erosion Faults Floodplain Floods Gasline Geologic Hazards Geologic Map Geologic Materials Geomorphology Glacial Deposits Glacial Drift Glacial Geology Glacial Hazards Glacial Lake Glacial Processes Gravel Ice Contact Deposits Jokulhlaups Lake Level Landslide Measured Sections Outburst Floods Outwash Paleoenvironment Paleosols Paludal Peat Permafrost Proposed Natural Gas Pipeline Radiocarbon Dating Rock Glaciers Sand Soil Soils Surficial Surficial Geology Talus Terrace Thaw Lakes Transportation Corridor Unconsolidated Deposits Water Table None Alaska Highway Corridor Big Delta Big Delta Quadrangle Delta Junction Delta River Lake George Mount Hayes Quadrangle Tanana River Dot Lake None Holocene Quaternary Pleistocene Cenozoic Tertiary This report, map, and/or dataset are available directly from the State of Alaska, Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys (see contact information below). Any hard copies or published datasets utilizing these datasets shall clearly indicate their source. If the user has modified the data in any way, the user is obligated to describe the types of modifications the user has made. User specifically agrees not to misrepresent these datasets, nor to imply that changes made by the user were approved by the State of Alaska, Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys. State of Alaska, Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys GIS Data Manager/Cartographer mailing and physical

3354 College Road

Fairbanks AK 99709-3707 (907) 451-5029 (907) 451-5020 (907) 451-5050 dggspubs@dnr.state.ak.us You may view our web site at http://www.dggs.dnr.state.ak.us for the latest information on available data.Please e-mail your questions and data requests when possible since our web site and e-mail address will remain current even if our phone number and mailing address change. This research was supported by Alaska State Capital Improvement Projects funding.Additional Acknowledgments: Mapping of surficial geology in the vicinity of the Clearwater Lake escarpment and its intersection with the trans-Alaska oil pipeline was accomplished in the mid 1970s in collaboration with Alyeska Pipeline Service Company, who released a report that includes data on near-surface stratigraphy and radiocarbon dates and provides evidence that the Clearwater Lake escarpment is not fault related (Alyeska Pipeline Service Company, 1976). We gratefully acknowledge the cooperation provided by Mike Metz and Alyeska. We also appreciate the logistical support and interest of Steve Squires and the rest of the Dry Creek community, who supplied us with fresh vegetables, excellent drinking water, and the log of their water well. Several other colleagues have collaborated in our study of this initial segment of the proposed pipeline corridor. Gary Carver brought his outstanding expertise in neotectonics of the central and eastern Alaska Range to the DGGS effort and provided enthusiastic leadership during the fault-trenching program. Tom Hamilton provided his unpublished report on the glacial history of the area and graciously allowed us to release his unpublished radiocarbon dates from the Gerstle River, Little Gerstle River, and Johnson River drainages. Tom Ager provided early black-and-white aerial photographs and discussed his interpretation of climatic changes in the corridor. Field visits with Dave Carter, John Galloway, and Florence Weber examined evidence of the oldest known glaciation in the corridor and first alerted us to the possibility of massive outburst flooding. Santosh Panda accompanied us into the field on numerous occasions and provided preliminary unpublished information on permafrost in the corridor. We thank the other members of the DGGS field crew, especially Kyle Obermiller and Sharon Hansen, for their support in the field and office, and Tom Ratledge for flying us safely in and out of all those tight places. Rod Combellick graciously reviewed this report and provided helpful comments that improved our presentation. ArcGIS 9.+, Adobe Acrobat Reader, and any text editor. Reger, R.D. Solie, D.N. 200812 Engineering-geology map, Alaska Highway Corriodr, Delta Junction to Dot Lake, Alaska vector digital data Preliminary Interpretive Report PIR 2008-3B Fairbanks AK Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys 2 sheets, scale 1:63,360 Reger, R.D. Solie, D.N. 200809 Reconnaissance interpretation of permafrost, Alaska Highway corridor, Delta Junction to Dot Lake, Alaska vector digital data Preliminary Interpretive Report PIR 2008-3C Fairbanks AK Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys 10 p., 2 sheets, scale1:63,360 Carver, G.A. Bemis, S.P. Solie, D.N. Obermiller, K.E. 200812 Active and potentially active faults in or near the Alaska Highway corridor, Delta Junction to Dot Lake, Alaska tabular digital data preliminary interpretive report PIR 2008-D Fairbanks AK Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys 32 p. Solie, D.N. Werdon, M.B. Newberry, R.J. Freeman, L.K. Lessard, R.R. 200802 Major-oxide, minor-oxide, trace-element and geochemical data from rocks collected in the Alaska Highway corridor, Mount Hayes quadrangle, Alaska in 2006 and 2007 tabular digital data Raw-data File RDF 2008-2 Fairbanks AK Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys 23 p. Initial reconnaissance field observations were made in 2006, after which surficial geology air-photo interpretations were done. Contacts were hand-drawn, using a magnifying stereoscope, onto acetate air-photo overlays at the scale of the air-photos (approximately inch-to-the-mile). The air-photos were taken in August 1980. During summer field work in 2007, map units were described, samples collected for analysis, and a limited number of test pits was dug. The accuracy of the map unit boundary locations vary due to the scale and interpretive nature of the mapping, but are expected to be accurate to at least 50 ft. Map units labeled with a "?" are considered to have an uncertain assignation. Information from previous geologic reports was incorporated during the interpretation process. Polygon topology is present on appropriate coverages; others are line or point coverages. This dataset includes coverages that contain information about the mapped and interpreted surficial-geologic deposits in the map area. Subsurface data were not available for use in creating this map coverage, other than about 10-15 soil pits dug to depths no more than 1.3 m and observations of exposures in gravel pits, highway cuts, and river banks. Soil colors were described using the Munsell soil color charts. The Wentworth scale was used for grain size classification. Soil horizon descriptions in the map area used the U.S. Soil Conservation Service soil taxonomy (Soil Survey Staff, 1975). The radiocarbon analyses shown on Table 2, from T.D. Hamilton (unpublished), were run by Geochron Laboratories in the 1970's. Specific analytical procedures were not reported. The active faults shown on sheets 1 and 2 are more fully described in ADGGS Preliminary Interpretive Report 2008-3d by Carver and others (2008). The surficial geology was first hand-drawn, using a magnifying stereoscope, onto acetate overlays registered to 1:50,000-scale (nominal) prints of digital aerial photographs. The horizontal accuracy of the map unit boundary locations varies due to the scale and interpretive nature of the mapping, but is expected to be accurate to at least 15 m.The 400dpi digital air photos were orthorectified using OrthoMapper 3.6 with an RMS error generally constrained to be less than 4 pixels, equating to approximately 20 m on the ground, although some areas with rugged terrain have larger errors.The individual orthophotos were mosaicked using Erdas Imagine 9.2 and ArcGIS 9. The acetate overlays were individually scanned and orthorectified using OrthoMapper based on the same equations developed for generating the orthophotos. Map unit boundaries were digitized on-screen into ArcGIS from the orthorectified overlays at a scale of approximately 1:25,000, using a combination of a digital USGS topographic 1:63,360-scale map layer (DRG) and the orthophoto mosaic layer to verify the position of the lines. Total horizontal accuracy of the mapped surficial-geologic contacts is thus on the order of 25 m or better, with somewhat lesser accuracy expected in areas of rugged relief.Coordinates of soil pits and other field sites that are discussed in the text were recorded using a Garmin GPS model 76CSx with a horizontal error of 4 meters or less. Radiocarbon sample localities on sheets 1 and 2 were located by visual transfer of points from hand-drawn figures (T.D. Hamilton, unpublished) and should be considered estimated locations with an accuracy of approximately 120 m or better. 25 mapped surficial-geologic contacts 4 soilpits and other field sites 120 radiocarbon sample localities Kreig, R.A. Reger, R.D. 1976 Preconstruction terrain evaluation for the trans-Alaska pipeline project book chapter Stroudsburg Dowden, Hutchinson, and Ross in Coates, D.R., ed., Geomorphology and engineering: p. 55–76. paper 1976 ground condition Kreig and Reger, 1976 Contains terrain evaluation for trans-Alaska oil pipeline Kreig, R.A. Reger, R.D. 1982 Air-photo analysis and summary of landform soil properties along the route of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System document Geologic Report GR-66 Fairbanks AK Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys 149 p. paper 1982 ground condition Kreig and Reger, 1982 Contains air-photo analysis and landform soil properties for trans-Alaska oil pipeline Péwé, T.L. Reger, R.D. 1983 Middle Tanana River valley book chapter Guidebook Guidebook 1 Fairbanks AK Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys in Péwé, T.L., and Reger, R.D., eds., Guidebook to permafrost and Quaternary geology along the Richardson and Glenn Highways between Fairbanks and Anchorage, Alaska, p. 5–45 Péwé, T.L., ed. Reger, R.D., ed. 1983 Guidebook to permafrost and Quaternary geology along the Richardson and Glenn Highways between Fairbanks and Anchorage, Alaska document Guidebook Guidebook 1 Fairbanks AK Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys paper 1983 ground condition Pewe and Reger, 1983 Contains information about Quaternary geology of Tanana Valley Carter, L.D. Galloway, J.P. 1978 Preliminary engineering geologic maps of the proposed natural gas pipeline route in the Tanana River valley, Alaska document Open-file report OFR 78-794 United States U.S. Geological Survey 26 p., 3 map sheets, scale 1:125,000 paper 1978 ground condition Carter and Galloway, 1978 engineering geologic maps at 1:125,000 Carver, G.A. Bemis, S.P. Solie, D.N. Obermiller, K.E. 200812 Active and potentially active faults in or near the Alaska Highway corridor, Delta Junction to Dot Lake, Alaska tabular digital data Preliminary Interpretive Report PIR 2008-3D Fairbanks AK Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical 32 p. online 2007 ground condition Carver and others, 2008 Source of active faults shown on map sheets 1 and 2 Duk-Rodkin, Alejandra Barendregt, R.W. Froese, D.G. Weber, Florence Enkin, Randy Smith, I.R. Waters, Pamela Klassen, Rudy 2004 Timing and extent of Plio–Pleistocene glaciations in northwestern Canada book chapter Development in Quaternary Science v.2 New York Elsevier p. 313–345 Ehlers, J. Gibbard, P.L. 2004 Quaternary glaciations—extent and chronology, part II: North America book chapter Development in Quaternary Science v. 2 New York Elsevier p. 313–345 paper 2004 ground condition Duk-Rodkin and others, 2004 Information about timing of glaciation in Canada and Alaska Hamilton, T.D. 1994 Late Cenozoic glaciation of Alaska book chapter Geology of North America v. G-1 United States Geological Society of America p. 813–844 Plafker, George Berg, H.C. 1994 The Geology of Alaska book chapter Geology of North America v. G-1 United States Geological Society of America p. 813–844 paper 1994 ground condition Hamilton, 1994 Late Cenozoic glaciation of Alaska Holmes, G.W. 1965 Geologic reconnaissance along the Alaska Highway, Delta River to Tok Junction, Alaska document Bulletin 1181-H United States U.S. Geological Survey 19 p., 1 map sheet, scale 1:125,000. paper 1965 ground condition Holmes, 1965 Geologic reconnaissance along the Alaska Highway, Delta River to Tok Junction Mason, O.K. Begét, J.E. 1991 Late Holocene flood history of the Tanana River, Alaska journal article United States Arctic and Alpine Research v. 23, no. 4, p. 392–403. paper 1991 ground condition Mason and Beget, 1991 Holocene flooding in Tanana valley Muhs, D.R. Ager, T.A. Betis, E.A., III McGeehin, John Been, J.M. Begét, J.E. Pavich, M.J. Stafford, T.W., Jr. Stevens, D.S.P 2003 Stratigraphy and palaeoclimatic signifi cance of late Quaternary loess–palaeosol sequences of the late interglacial–glacial cycle in central Alaska journal article United States Quaternary Science Reviews v. 22, p.1,947–1,986. paper 2003 ground condition Muhs and others, 2003 Loess sequences in central Alaska Péwé, T.L. 1975 Quaternary geology of Alaska document Professional Paper PP 835 United States U.S. Geological Survey 145 p. paper 1975 ground condition Pewe, 1975 Quaternary geology of Alaska Weber, F.R. 1986 Glacial geology of the Yukon–Tanana Upland book chapter Anchorage, Alaska Alaska Geological Society p. 79–98. Hamilton, T.D., ed. Reed, K.M., ed. Thorson, R.M., ed. 1986 Glaciation in Alaska; The geologic record book chapter Anchorage, Alaska Alaska Geological Society p. 79–98. paper 1986 ground condition Weber, 1986 Glacial geology of the Yukon–Tanana Upland Aerial photograph interpretation- Stereo pairs of ~1:63,360-scale, false-color infrared aerial photographs taken in August 1980 were used to initially map the surficial geology. Unit boundaries were drawn by hand onto acetate overlays, using a magnifying stereoscope. Overlays were registered to aerial photos using tick marks on the photos. Digital aerial photos and scanned overlays were individually orthorectified using Orthomapper 3.6. Krieg and Reger, 1976 Kreig and Reger, 1982 Carter and Galloway, 1978 Holmes, 1965 2007 Digital cartography- The acetate overlays were then individually scanned and orthorectified, using Orthomapper, v. 3.6, and georeferenced. The air-photos were orthorectified, photomosaiced and georeferenced. Map unit boundaries were digitized on-screen into ArcGIS from the orthorectified overlays at a scale more detailed than 1:63,360, using a combination of a USGS topographic 1:63.360 map layer and the orthophotomosaic layer to verify the position of the lines.Surficial geology map polygons and lines were then edited and attributed using ArcMap 9.0. 2008 Fieldwork - Reconnaissance field work was done in September 2006, during which observations were recorded for use during aerial photograph interpretation. In July-August 2007, field work to verify aerial photograph interpretations was performed. In addition to observations from ground traverses, several soil pits were dug using shovels to maximum depth of 1.3 meters to observe soil profiles, and observations of exposures along river banks and highway cuts were recorded. Pewe and Reger, 1983 Carver and others, 2008 Duk-Rodkin and others, 2004 Hamilton, 1994 Mason and Beget, 1991 Muhs and others, 2003 Pewe, 1975 Weber, 1986 2007 Metadata creation - Metadata were assembled by D.N. Solie to FGDC Standards using Metavist 1.2, DGGS 7.05, a data entry program for FGDC metadata with XML output. 2008 radiocarbon_data - radiocarbon samples were collected by Thomas D. Hamilton during fieldwork in 1969 and analyzed in the 1970's by Geochron Laboratories. Analytical details are not known. 1969 Vector Universal Transverse Mercator 6 0.999600 -147.000000 0 500000.0 0 coordinate pair 0.000000001 0.000000001 meters surf_geology Universal Transverse Mercator 6 0.999600 -147.000000 0 500000.0 0 coordinate pair 0.000000001 0.000000001 meters faults Universal Transverse Mercator 6 0.999600 -147.000000 0 500000.0 0 coordinate pair 0.000000001 0.000000001 meters escarpment Universal Transverse Mercator 6 0.999600 -147.000000 0 500000.0 0 coordinate pair 0.000000001 0.000000001 meters soilpits Universal Transverse Mercator 6 0.999600 -147.000000 0 500000.0 0 coordinate pair 0.000000001 0.000000001 meters radiocarbon Universal Transverse Mercator 6 0.999600 -147.000000 0 500000.0 0 coordinate pair 0.000000001 0.000000001 meters outline North American Datum of 1927 Clarke 1866 6378206.4 294.978698 outline outline.shp polygon outlining boundary of map area Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Shape shape of polygon outlining map boundary Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys shape of map area surf_geology surf_geology.shp polygons representing surficial-geologic map units Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys unit_label Map unit label shown on map and described in text and codeset.pdf Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys PIR2008-3A_codeset.pdf Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys http://www.dggs.dnr.state.ak.us/metadata/PIR2008-3A_codeset.pdf faults faults.shp Trace of identified active faults Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys fault_type Type of fault Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Type of fault as represented by line symbol on map name Name of fault Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Name of fault shown on map: Dot "T" Johnson fault (Granite Mountain and Dot Lake segments), Canteen fault, Panoramic fault escarpment escarpment.shp Trace of prominent escarpments discussed in text Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys name Name of escarpment Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Escarpment name: Clearwater Lake escarpment, Gerstle-Clearwater escarpment, Dot Lake Village escarpment type Type of escarpment as represented by line type on map Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys observed location or approximately located escarpment soilpits soilpits.shp location of soilpits discussed in text Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Soil_Pit_S Label of individual soilpits shown on map Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Soil pit label: SP-1, SP-2, SP-3, SP-4, SP-5 Northing Northing of soil pit location Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys 7057387.085 7079152.105 meters Easting Easting of soil pit location Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys 581647.801 626929.894 meters radiocarbon radiocarbon.shp Location of radiocarbon samples described in text Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Radiocarbo Radiocarbon sample number Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys RC-1, RC-2, RC-3 Northing Northing of radiocarbon sample location Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys 7066480.506 7072241.128 meters Easting Easting of radiocarbon sample location Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys 605243.687 645960.985 meters State of Alaska, Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Natural Resource Technician mailing and physical

3354 College Road

Fairbanks AK 99709-3707 USA 907-451-5020 None available. 907-451-5050 dggspubs@alaska.gov 8 am to 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday, except State holidays Please view our Web site (http://www.dggs.dnr.state.ak.us) for the latest information on available data. Please contact us using the e-mail address provided above when possible. Preliminary Interpretive Report PIR 2008-3a The State of Alaska makes no express or implied warranties (including warranties of merchantability and fitness) with respect to the character, function, or capabilities of the electronic services or products or their appropriateness for any user's purposes. In no event will the State of Alaska be liable for any incidental, indirect, special, consequential, or other damages suffered by the user or any other person or entity whether from the use of the electronic services or products, any failure thereof, or otherwise, and in no event will the State of Alaska's liability to the requester or anyone else exceed the fee paid for the electronic service or product. Current publication is available on paper. To purchase this or other printed reports and maps, contact DGGS by phone (907-451-5020), e-mail (dggspubs@alaska.gov), or fax (907-451-5050). Payment accepted: Cash, check, money order, VISA, or MasterCard. Printed publication can be purchased for $31, (contact information below) plus shipping if mailed. PDF 1.6 No compression applied http://www.dggs.dnr.state.ak.us/pubs ArcGIS Shapefile ESRI ArcGIS 9.x No compression applied CD-ROM Joliet Digital files on CD-ROM are available for $10.00 (contact information below). Scanned images of these products may be viewed online or downloaded for free from the DGGS Web site. Order by phone (907-451-5020), e-mail (dggspubs@alaska.gov), or fax (907-451-5050). Payment accepted: Cash, check, money order, VISA, or MasterCard. Two weeks unless special arrangements are made and an express fee is paid. It is suggested that MapInfo users import ESRI shape files (if provided) due to the possibility of data loss when importing Arc Export .e00 files.Please check the MapInfo Web site (http://www.mapinfo.com/) for the latest documentation on importing Arc Export and/or ESRI shape files. 20081205 State of Alaska, Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Metadata Manager mailing and physical address

3354 College Road

Fairbanks AK 99709-3707 USA 907-451-5039 907-451-5050 dggspubs@alaska.gov 8 am to 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday, except State holidays. Please contact us through the e-mail address above whenever possible. FGDC Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata FGDC-STD-001-1998 none If the user has modified the data in any way they are obligated to describe the types of modifications they have performed in the supporting metadata file. User specifically agrees not to imply that changes they made were approved by the State of Alaska, Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys.