OF-09-04 Geologic Map of the Fruita Quadrangle, Mesa County, Colorado

The purpose of this map is to describe the geologic setting, structure, geologic hazards, and mineral and ground-water resources of this 7.5-minute quadrangle located northwest of Grand Junction in western Colorado. Geologists Richard Livaccari and James Hodge completed the fieldwork on this project during the spring, summer, and fall of 2008. Richard Livaccari was the principal investigator and author of this report and James Hodge was the principal mapper and author of the geologic map. Digital PDF Download. OF-09-04D

From the Author’s Notes:

The Fruita 7.5-minute quadrangle is located in the Grand Valley of Mesa County, western Colorado. The Grand Valley, along with Fruita, has historically been a major fruit-growing region with a large number of orchards and small farms. The name “Fruita” is derived from the fruit producing potential of this area. Except for the city of Fruita, the Fruita quadrangle area is dominated by agricultural land use. This is changing, however, as agricultural lands throughout the Grand Valley are rapidly being converted to urban uses. This is reflected in the population growth of this area. The population in all of Mesa County was approximately 139,000 in 2007 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2007). The 2005 population of the City of Fruita was 9,416. The population of the City of Fruita has more than doubled in the past fifteen years (from about 4,000 residents in 1990 to over 9,000 residents in 2005); this represents a “boom” growth rate.