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Map reveals Merrill, Malin underground
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| A draft-version map issued by the state of Oregon shows geologic features in the Merrill-Malin area. Merrill is in the lower left area of the map, and Malin in the lower right. |
Published March 24, 2003
By DYLAN DARLING
H&N Staff Writer A new map issued by the state of Oregon will allow people to see the areas around Merrill and Malin in a new way.
The Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries released a draft geologic map of the Merrill and Malin Quadrangles last month.
The map will serve a variety of purposes, such as helping people looking for groundwater know where to look, said Margaret Jenks, co-author of the map.
Quadrangles are 6-by-10-mile chunks of land determined using latitude and longitude lines. The map shows where certain types of rock are found, and highlights several previously unmapped faults.
"What kind of rocks there are make a major difference as to where the water is," Jenks said. "Water passes through some rocks more easily than others."
She said the map will be of interest of many, from county maintenance crews to gravel companies to well drilling operations.
"We never will quite know who will use it," she said.
Not only does the map show where there are places where water could be flowing through sandy layers of rock, it also shows geological features like faults and clay deposits that can act as barriers to water.
"It's easier to figure what is going on with the water if you understand the geology," she said.
Ian Madin, co-author of the map, said the Oregon Water Resources Department, which studies the state's ground water and surface water, should be particularly interested in the map because it will help them understand why wells go dry and where people should be drilling.
"The rocks are the plumbing of how the ground water flows," he said.
And what that plumbing looks like will be clearer with the new map.
Jenks said the old map that covered the Merrill and Malin quadrangles had a lot less detail. The map showed the area stretching from the California Border to the Klamath Marsh and from Keno to Langell Valley and was at a scale of 1:250,000, where 1 inch on the map is equal to 250,000 inches on the ground.
The new map is at a scale of 1:24,000, where 1 inch on the map represents 24,000 inches on the ground.
"We can include 10 times the detail," she said.
A final version of the map will be out in three to four years, but the draft is valuable, Jenks said.
It often takes a number of years for maps to get finalized because the department's geologists spend most their time in the field. She said she didn't want to keep people waiting for the map.
"We wanted that information to be out there and available to the public, but it's not final," she said.
Madin said the department is now working on maps of the Lost River, Hamaker Mountain, and Worden quadrangles.
The map of the Merrill and Malin quadrangles is available on CD for $10 from the Nature of the Northwest Information Center, 800 NE Oregon Street No. 5, Portland, OR 97232. It can also be ordered by phone at (503) 872-2750 or online at www.naturenw.org. There is a $3 shipping and handling charge.
Reporter Dylan Darling covers natural resources. He can be reached at 885-4471, (800) 275-0982, or by e-mail at ddarling@heraldandnews.com.
By DYLAN DARLING
H&N Staff Writer A new map issued by the state of Oregon will allow people to see the areas around Merrill and Malin in a new way.
The Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries released a draft geologic map of the Merrill and Malin Quadrangles last month.
The map will serve a variety of purposes, such as helping people looking for groundwater know where to look, said Margaret Jenks, co-author of the map.
Quadrangles are 6-by-10-mile chunks of land determined using latitude and longitude lines. The map shows where certain types of rock are found, and highlights several previously unmapped faults.
"What kind of rocks there are make a major difference as to where the water is," Jenks said. "Water passes through some rocks more easily than others."
She said the map will be of interest of many, from county maintenance crews to gravel companies to well drilling operations.
"We never will quite know who will use it," she said.
Not only does the map show where there are places where water could be flowing through sandy layers of rock, it also shows geological features like faults and clay deposits that can act as barriers to water.
"It's easier to figure what is going on with the water if you understand the geology," she said.
Ian Madin, co-author of the map, said the Oregon Water Resources Department, which studies the state's ground water and surface water, should be particularly interested in the map because it will help them understand why wells go dry and where people should be drilling.
"The rocks are the plumbing of how the ground water flows," he said.
And what that plumbing looks like will be clearer with the new map.
Jenks said the old map that covered the Merrill and Malin quadrangles had a lot less detail. The map showed the area stretching from the California Border to the Klamath Marsh and from Keno to Langell Valley and was at a scale of 1:250,000, where 1 inch on the map is equal to 250,000 inches on the ground.
The new map is at a scale of 1:24,000, where 1 inch on the map represents 24,000 inches on the ground.
"We can include 10 times the detail," she said.
A final version of the map will be out in three to four years, but the draft is valuable, Jenks said.
It often takes a number of years for maps to get finalized because the department's geologists spend most their time in the field. She said she didn't want to keep people waiting for the map.
"We wanted that information to be out there and available to the public, but it's not final," she said.
Madin said the department is now working on maps of the Lost River, Hamaker Mountain, and Worden quadrangles.
The map of the Merrill and Malin quadrangles is available on CD for $10 from the Nature of the Northwest Information Center, 800 NE Oregon Street No. 5, Portland, OR 97232. It can also be ordered by phone at (503) 872-2750 or online at www.naturenw.org. There is a $3 shipping and handling charge.
Reporter Dylan Darling covers natural resources. He can be reached at 885-4471, (800) 275-0982, or by e-mail at ddarling@heraldandnews.com.
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