Pyrite
Pyrite

Geology, Hazards, Publications, Water

Case Study: NARD

Are pristine mountain waters always clean and pure? Can streams unaffected by human activities and livestock influences be unfit for human consumption, or for aquatic life? The existence of natural acid rock drainage (NARD) suggests a “no” to the former, and a “yes” to the latter question. But…

Check dams along drainage ditch
Check dams along drainage ditch

Hazards, Water

Case Study: stormwater

Stormwater runoff is excess water associated with a rain or snow storm event that flows over the land surface and is measurable in a downstream river, stream, ditch, gutter, or pipe. From a regulatory perspective, stormwater is managed through some sort of engineered conveyance and is focused…

A uranium-rich zone in a sandstone of the Morrison Formation
A uranium-rich zone in a sandstone of the Morrison Formation, Carnation Mine, San Miguel County, CO, January 2007. Photo credit: Chris Carroll (CGS).

Energy, Minerals

Colorado’s Uranium Deposits

[Ed: this document, written in 2011 by Jim Burnell, Ph.D., P.G. (former Senior Minerals Geologist, Colorado Geological Survey), provides an excellent narrative on the sources of uranium deposits on the Western Slope of Colorado. However, it’s not the whole story—there is fascinating new science research implicating biological/organismic activity underground that…