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New Map of Greater Evansville, IN / Henderson, Ky. Area Released

Lexington, Ky. (July 29, 2009) —A new map of the area around Evansville, Indiana and Henderson, Kentucky has been published as a result of a collaborative effort between the U. S. Geological Survey and the state surveys of Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois. Several geologists from the Kentucky Geological Survey at the University of Kentucky were involved in the creation of the map.

“Surficial Geologic Map of the Evansville, Indiana, and Henderson, Kentucky, Area” is a publication of the USGS which includes a 42” x 39” descriptive map depicting the surface features of the area, plus a twenty page booklet of introductory, background, and reference materials relating to the map.

“This represents a mutually beneficial and productive effort between KGS and USGS mappers,” says KGS Geologic Mapping Section Head William Andrews. “It documents knowledge that a lot of people from different disciplines have collected on this area.”  Andrews is one of the co-authors of the publication, along with Ron Counts and Steve Martin of KGS and Mark F. Thompson, a geologist who formerly worked at the Survey. The KGS staff mapped all the Kentucky areas south of the river depicted on the new map and collaborated on the field work on the area north of the river in the Evansville area. 

Though it is a technical geologic map, Andrews believes a wide and varied audience can apply the information found in the publication to a number of academic and applied disciplines. The information can be applied, for instance, to assessments of water supplies and geotechnical and environmental planning efforts. The project to develop the map began in the USGS Urban Hazard Mapping program, and data on the map will be useful for assessing liquefaction, ground-motion amplification, and landslide potential for earthquake hazard assessments.  The mapped area lies in the Wabash Valley seismic zone and is potentially susceptible to damages from large tremors from the New Madrid seismic zone.

The publication can be downloaded from the U.S. Geological Survey website at http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3069/.  Paper copies are available from the KGS Public Information Center at the Mining and Mineral Resources Building on the UK campus for $9.00 each plus applicable tax and shipping and may be ordered by calling (859) 257-3896 or toll free at (877) 778-7827.