Land subsidence, earth's crust explored in lectures
Feb. 1, 2001
KALAMAZOO -- The permeability of the earth's crust and the effects of human manipulation of groundwater will be explored by the current U.S. Geological Society's 2001 Birdsall-Dreiss Lecturer when he visits Western Michigan University Monday, Feb. 5.
Dr. Steven E. Ingebritsen, chief of the Branch of Regional Research for the Water Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey, will give two talks during his visit, which is sponsored by the WMU Department of Geosciences. Both presentations are free and open to the public.
His first presentation, titled "The Permeability of the Continental Crust," will begin at noon in Room 1136 of Rood Hall and describe an ongoing study of the earth's crust being conducted in collaboration with Dr. Craig Manning, a metamorphic petrogeologist at University of California, Los Angeles.
A second presentation on "Land Subsidence in the United States" will be held at 4 p.m. in Room 1118 of Rood Hall and will examine recent U.S. Geological Survey information on how human manipulation of groundwater causes land to subside. More than 40,000 square kilometers in 45 states experience land subsidence, which causes at least $125 million in damage annually.
The co-author of "Groundwater in Geological Processes," Ingebritsen is on a nationwide lecture tour as the GSA's Birdsall-Dreiss Lecturer. A member of the USGS since 1980, Ingebritsen holds master's and doctoral degrees in hydrogeology from Stanford University.
For more information, contact the WMU Geosciences Department at (616) 387-5485.
Media contact: Marie Lee, 616 387-8400, marie.lee@wmich.edu