Bedrock valleys of the New England coast as related to fluctuations of sea level

Upson, J. E.; Spencer, Charles W.

doi:10.3133/pp454m

Cited by 18 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…A notable feature of the buried bedrock topography of Boston is the deep trough that crosses the map from northwest to southeast. This feature has been noted by earlier writers (Crosby, 1903;Chute, 1959;Upson and Spenser, 1964), all of whom suggested that it is a buried preglacial river valley. The present map depicts its shape in more detail than ever before.…”

Section: Characteristics Of the Bedrock Surfacesupporting

confidence: 60%

Preliminary map of bedrock surface under parts of Boston, Cambridge, and Brookline, Massachusetts

Kaye¹

1970

Open-File Report

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Section: Characteristics Of the Bedrock Surfacesupporting

confidence: 60%

Preliminary map of bedrock surface under parts of Boston, Cambridge, and Brookline, Massachusetts

Kaye¹

1970

Open-File Report

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“…Further concepts are presented regarding Holocene accretional processes, rates of sedimentation and the development of depositional patterns in time and space. In this Quaternary section, the uppermost unit, 8-15 m thick of inferred estuarine deposits, rests upon an erosional unconformity (Upson & Spencer, 1964). These sediments deposited during the Holocene sealevel-rise, contain plant remains and shell fragments locally.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Holocene stratigraphy and depositional history of the Narragansett Bay System, Rhode Island, U.S.A.

McMaster

1984

Sedimentology

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An extensive seismic reflection survey has been used to gain further knowledge of Holocene stratigraphy and depositional history in the Narragansett Bay System (NBS). The early Holocene stream‐dissected surface beneath the NBS is interpreted as having been flooded by the Holocene sea in a manner suggested by Oldale & O'Hara's (1980) sea‐level‐rise curve. The sea initially is believed to have penetrated the pre‐NBS East Passage trunk valley about 9000 yr BP and subsequently spread landward via the trunk valley and its branches. The Holocene sediments display stratigraphic relationships that differ spatially. At passage mouths, the basal unconformity is inferred to be covered over with some 3 m of paralic and 5 m of marine sands and silts separated, by a transgressive unconformity. In contrast the interior sequences reveal (a) a valley section up to more than 15 m thick in which the regressional unconformity is overlain by probable lower fluvial and/or estuarine sand‐silt facies that commonly grades upward to an estuarine silt‐clay facies and (b) an interfluve section in which a basal transgressive unconformity is blanketed by an estuarine nearshore sand‐silt facies that locally may change upward to a silt‐clay facies. Primarily Holocene silt‐clay accretion, produced by sedimentation processes associated with net non‐tidal estuarine circulation, infilled the evolving NBS. Depositional bodies, lenticular in shape and comprised of 12 m or more of sediment, developed in lowlands near Gould Island (˜9000 yr BP), in Upper Narragansett Bay (˜7500 yr BP), around Hope Island (˜7500 yr BP) and in Mt Hope Bay (˜6250 yr BP) with an average minimal sedimentation rate of 1.6–2.2 mm yr‐1. Silt‐clay deposition, commonly gas‐bearing, has buried the basal relief in most of the NBS upper and middle portions except for middle East Passage. A comparison of NBS sedimentation with that of Chesapeake, Delaware and Hudson Estuaries shows that the estuaries to the south have accumulated more sediment over a slightly longer period yet, with the exception of the higher rate in the Hudson Estuary, the sedimentation rates appear to be similar.

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“…During glacial retreat proglacial meltwater channels downstream of the ice terminus can infill existing valleys. The sedimentological processes active within these channels, coupled with localized glacial overriding and proglacial lakes, can create a wide variety of facies within the BBV aquifers (Upson and Spencer 1964;Kehew and Boettger 1986;Sharpe 1988;Broster and Pupek 2001;Rivard et al 2008;Cummings et al 2012). This complexity can create longitudinal and transverse hydraulic barriers and contrasting hydraulic responses (Kehew and Boettger 1986;Shaver and Pusc 1992;Russell et al 2004;Weissmann et al 2004; Van der Kamp and Maathuis 2012).…”

Section: Geology and Paleohydrologymentioning

confidence: 99%

The geology and hydrogeology of buried bedrock valley aquifers on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia: an overview

Baechler¹

2017

atgeol

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Buried bedrock valley aquifers are common across Canada, where multiple glaciations have buried both pre-glacial and Pleistocene valleys. These aquifers are becoming increasingly important as a supply of potable groundwater, for supporting aquatic habitat, and as part of strategies in adapting to a changing climate. However, in Canada, there are considerable knowledge gaps at national, regional, and local scales, such that many buried bedrock valleys remain unidentified or underexplored. Cape Breton Island provides a hydrogeological view into the roots of an ancient mountain range, now exhumed, glaciated, deglaciated, and tectonically inactive. Since the Cretaceous, a variety of geological processes have formed several buried bedrock valley aquifers over the island. These aquifers are important in providing municipal and commercial groundwater supplies, controlling mine dewatering, protection of salmonids, design and monitoring of waste disposal sites, and geotechnical investigations for infrastructure design. Of 150 sites assessed, 61% provided evidence of buried aquifers comprising unconsolidated sand and gravel of Cretaceous, Pleistocene, and Holocene ages. These sites provided the basis for five conceptual, 3-D hydrogeological block models. Three hydrogeological case studies provided further insight into the functioning of two of these models. Future studies should identify and characterize aquifers in high demand areas and/or those that support important riverine ecosystems. Research should focus on aquifer properties, groundwater-stream interaction, and the impact of changing climate with sea-level rise.

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Bedrock valleys of the New England coast as related to fluctuations of sea level

Abstract: Bedrock valleys of the New England coast as related to fluctuations of sea level, by Joseph E. Upson and Charles W.

Cited by 18 publications

References 16 publications

Preliminary map of bedrock surface under parts of Boston, Cambridge, and Brookline, Massachusetts

Preliminary map of bedrock surface under parts of Boston, Cambridge, and Brookline, Massachusetts

Holocene stratigraphy and depositional history of the Narragansett Bay System, Rhode Island, U.S.A.

The geology and hydrogeology of buried bedrock valley aquifers on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia: an overview

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