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Geology Projects

Geotechnical Investigations

  • Supervising CEG for crew of professional geologists logging test borings for Caltrans Seismic Retrofit of U.S. Highway 101 over-crossings at Corde Madera Creek, Marin County, CA.

  • Geotechnical Investigation in Southern Utah between Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks, for U.S. Military Defense Weaponry Site, Southern Utah.

  • Geotechnical Investigation for Office Building, Boy Scouts of America Camp, Willits, CA.

  • Geotechnical Investigation for Fort Bragg High School Addition, Fort Bragg, CA.

  • Geotechnical Investigation and Coastal Bluff Stability Review for Residential Development, Anchor Bay, Mendocino County, CA.

  • Geotechnical Investigation for Commercial Winery, Boonville, CA.

  • Geotechnical Investigation for Pedestrian Bridge Crossings, California Coastal Access Trail, for Mendocino Land Trust, Mendocino County, CA.

  • Geotechnical Investigation for Spa/Resort in Lucerne, Lake County, CA. Geologic mapping and geohazards evaluation as well as preliminary geotechnical evaluation for hillside to Clear Lake development, Lake County, CA.

  • Geotechnical Investigation for City of Lakeport Municipal Office Building, Lake County, CA.

Construction Field Observations and Materials Testing

  • Gloria-Ferrer Champagne Caves, construction observation and testing of soil compaction related to construction of underground winery, water supply and waste disposal treatment system, Sonoma County, CA.

  • Concrete inspection and testing for Bruener's Western United States Distribution Warehouse. Conducted slump tests, cast cylinders, field observations and documentation for super-flat, low tolerance concrete slabs, Fairfield, Solano County, CA.

  • Keyway observations and nuclear gauge density testing for landslide repair during construction of GEO Operators Well Pad, Geysers Geothermal Area, Northern California.

  • Construction observation and documentation of a concrete cap during implementation of a corrective action plan for DDT impacted soils along San Francisco Bay, U.S. EPA Heckathon Superfund Site, Richmond, CA.

  • Construction observation and documentation for lead impacted, hazardous soil waste cleanup and abatement at former U.S. Naval Shipyard dry dock, Richmond, Contra Costa County, CA.

  • Construction observation and documentation for hydrocarbon impacted wood waste piles at former Louisiana-Pacific Lumber Mill site being converted for potential development as a motel, casino, and golf course complex along the Russian River, Sonoma County, CA.

  • Engineering geologic mapping, landslide slip surface identification, keyway inspections, construction documentation and field nuclear density testing for landslide repairs of multiple landslide complexes along San Joaquin Drive, City of Clearlake, Lake County, CA.

  • Nuclear field density testing of engineered fill placement of backfill following USTs removal at numerous sites, including Avis Car Rental facility within reconstruction area for expansion of the San Francisco International Airport, San Francisco County, CA, and during conversion of a Cheveron Gasoline Station into a Napa Auto Parts Commercial facility in Sonoma County, CA.

Geologic Investigations

  • ​Conducted geologic investigation with USGS for coal lease evaluation in Eastern Montana and Western North Dakota. Mud rotary drilling and continuous core sampling for coal seam quality, thickness, and volume estimates for pending leases to private companies on Federal lands.

  • Geologic and geohazard reconnaissance of four square mile area for planning hillside development in Western Montana was submitted to Missoula County Planning Department, Missoula County, MT.  Results of mapping assist Missoula County Planning regulate development of the hillside property.  A previously unrecognized fault trace was identified and served as a contribution for planning a route for the Northern Tier natural gas pipeline.

  • Geologic assessment of two 10-acre parcels proposed for development on Mount Konocti, Kelseyville, Lake County, CA. Parcels were identified on Lake County Planning maps in a landslide geohazards area, speculated to be thousands of feet deep and as such were not feasible to stabilize.  Field observations and mapping of geologic units and contacts indicated that the early interpretations by CDMG of the area being a volcanic flow was correct, and more recent interpretations by other geologist mistaken interpreted hummocky topography of an ancient volcanic flow wrongly as recent landslide topography.  Field reconnaissance observations and relationships with non-deformed Quaternary lake bed deposits of a former stage of Clear Lake indicate that the area mapped as a landslide is an area of volcanic flow that during its molten stage flowed into a geomorphic expression similar to a landslide, but the lack of deformation of Quaternary horizontal bedded lake deposits verifies that the hillside has not experienced the speculated mass movement.  The two previously encumbered lots are now cleared for development.

Landslide Investigations, Repair, and Erosion Control

  • Geotechnical assessment and slope stability evaluation for road alignment and wind turbine sites for U.S. Windpower. Logged over 50 test pits at proposed wind turbines, access roads, and proximal landslide areas, prepared reports with recommendations and suggest changes in some road alignments and wind turbine locations to avoid large slope failures, and repair recommendations for small slides at retained road alignments and turbine sites, Rio Vista, Solano County, CA.

  • Landslide investigation, keyway observations, field observations and materials testing for 100,000 cubic yard landslide repair, Sunrise Meadows Subdivision, Browns Valley, Napa County, CA.​

  • Landslide Investigation, slope inclinometer installation, landslide mapping for repair recommendations in conjunction with repair of distressed residential foundation and driveway, Ukiah, Mendocino County, CA.

  • Installed multiple exploratory trenches and exploratory borings to define geometry of landslide complex distressing several acres, including roadways, residential foundations, and swimming pool.  Conducted geotechnical investigation for foundation stabilization design, and conducted construction documentation of foundation repairs, Ukiah, Mendocino County, CA.

  • Debris flow evaluation, field observations and mapping in steep terrain underlain with relatively strong Franciscan Assemblage bedrock covered with thin clay-rich colluvial soils subject to debris flow mobilization.  Provide recommendations to construct a debris catchment basin and diversion to protect existing residence during remodeling and reconstruction, Larkspur, Marin County, CA.

  • Evaluation of rockfall hazard with recommendations for placement of welded-wire netting installation on cutslope above hillside residence, Sausalito, Marin County, CA.

  • Landslide investigation of FHA housing subdivision developed on glacial till and weak glacio-lucustrine sediments overlying karstic limestone bedrock, Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio.

  • Landslide investigation of fill slope failure and geotechnical evaluation of bridge abutment erosion at Sho-ka-Wah Casino, Hopland, Mendocino County, CA.

  • Slope Indicator installation, monitoring, and investigation of deep-seated landslide threatening existing Water Supply Tank, geohazards and geotechnical investigation for replacement tank site, Millview Water District, Ukiah, Mendocino County, CA.

  • Member of team of William Cotton & Associates (Cotton Shires & Associates) geologists conducting plane table mapping and cross-sectioning for engineering geologic map of Blucher Valley Landslide, Sebastopol, Sonoma County, CA.

  • Prepared Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan with BMPs for Piedmont Lumber Company, Calpella, Mendocino County, CA.

  • Field Observations and Revision to Best Management Practices (BMPs) at hillside construction site for plaintiff in litigation by local District Attorney’s office and under observation by US Marine Fisheries Special Investigator, Butte County, CA.

Alquist-Priolo Special Study Zones (AP) Active Fault Investigations

  • A-P active fault investigation during planning for selection of water supply reservoir on San Gregorio Fault, found evidences of liquefaction sand boils and Riedel Shearing in trenches dug within right step-over of right lateral strike slip fault. San Mateo County Water District, San Mateo County, CA.

  • A-P active fault investigation in San Andreas Fault Zone, near Point Arena, CA, cleared site for development by documenting absence of active surface fault rupture within the designated building site. USGS provided radiocarbon date of 30,000 +/- years BP for a wood sample collected from sand unit at base of trench, Mendocino County, CA.

  • A-P active fault investigation of Maacama Fault, Alexander Valley, CA for proposed commercial winery facilities. Investigation discovered location of Holocene active surface fault rupture. Property planned for winery location was transected by location of active surface fault rupture, which generated a flower structure from shallow bedrock into agriculturally truncated surficial soils. A second parallel fault trench encountered vertically ruptured shallow bedrock with surface soils containing imbricate soil thrust sheets along the trace of the right lateral strike slip rupture.  Client opted not to request submittal of an A-P report to the State of California and as a result valuable information about surface fault rupture on this southern segment of the Maacama Fault was not transmitted to the State, however Bill McCormack, reviewing CEG, verified and documented the fault activity during his site observations on behalf of the local regulatory agency, the Sonoma County Planning Department.

Litigation Support and Expert Witness Testimony

  • Retained as Expert Witness for plaintiff in Baima v. Soper-Wheeler Logging Company. Provided litigation support documentation with detailed engineering geologic map of landslide area and surface water drainage diversion.  Plaintiff prevailed and a settlement agreement was established for their reimbursement of damages to private residence destroyed by mudflow below a Timber Harvest Unit in Cazadero, Sonoma County, California.

  • Provided Expert Witness Deposition and detailed erosion and sedimentation map for litigation support for defense, in State of California v. Wilson.  Detailed field mapping and re-calculation of sediment loss from vineyard into the Gualala River, a State and Federally protected Salmonoid stream.  Due to mapping and re-evaluation of sediment loss calculation State of California Water Quality Control Board using Universal Soil Loss Equation, the Defense obtained a fine reduction from State of California as a result of acknowledgement of a 10 times reduction, Healdsburg, Sonoma County, California. 

  • Provided Expert Witness Deposition and litigation support field mapping of surface water runoff diversion, erosion, landsliding, gully incision, and debris flow accumulation in Carmel Valley Highlands, Monterey County, California, for prosecution to show relationship of surface water runoff diversion from one basin to another and cause and effect relationship of plaintiff’s hillside erosion and landslide into a stream with protected federally endangered fish species.

  • Provided third party observations during excavation of petroleum hydrocarbon and solvent contaminated soil at former Memorex Facility being converted to world corporate headquarters for Dole Foods, Agoura Hills, Ventura County, CA. 

  • Provided third party observations during site investigation at dry cleaner facility that had been damaged by looters during the Rodney King riots, Compton, Los Angeles County, CA.

  • Provided Expert Witness Testimony for defense in Staley v. Howard, related to costs for investigation and remediation of a diesel UST and adjacent septic leachfield used for disposal of hydrocarbons from automobile dealership in Ukiah, Mendocino County, CA. Defense prevailed.

  • Retained as Expert Witness for Plaintiff by Masry & Vititoe, Thousand Oaks, CA, for State of California UST Cleanup Fund case in Mendocino County, CA.  A stipulated settlement was reached. Defense was responsible for a $600,000 judgment to plaintiff and FUND.

  • Provided Expert Witness Testimony in Siskiyou County, California for defense regarding relative slope stability observations, and geologic reconnaissance observations and slope angle measurements for mining and construction slopes at a quarry and construction site in Mt. Shasta, Siskiyou County, California.  Also provided expert witness testimony for volume calculations at adjacent illegal mining operation. Case is ongoing and likely to go to an Appellate Court outside of the local jurisdiction for a fair and unbiased trial.

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