Programs and Services
The Idaho Geological Survey investigates the geology of the state. It provides this service through field studies, mapping, laboratory analyses, data collecting, educational workshops, seminars, professional associations, research alliances, and popular and scholarly publications.
The agency has a veteran staff well-informed about Idaho's geology. Education and experience cover the following areas: general geology, economic geology, Quaternary geology, hydrogeology, environmental geology, earthquakes and geologic hazards, the Idaho batholith, mines and prospects, digital cartography, geochemistry, oil and gas, volcanology, remote sensing, the Belt Supergroup, structural geology, mineral exploration, GIS/CAD map production, igneous-metamorphic petrology, hydrothermal studies, and communications and publishing. With this diverse expertise, the staff sustains comprehensive research for the state.
Staff specialists set up programs to manage the Survey's long-term interests and to prepare for unpredictable geologic events. These programs, for instance, include one that collects data on the state's economic minerals and mining activity. Another anticipates and responds to concerns about geologic hazards and earthquakes. And still another examines the means and methods of educating the public about the relevance of earth science in their lives. These examples represent part of the Survey's mission to provide practical and timely information on the state's geology.
Successful programs always require ingenuity in planning and execution. Some projects must be arranged as cooperative endeavors because of the Survey's own fiscal limitations. Labor intensive geologic mapping often incorporates the research of university geologists studying in the state. Regional networks of state and federal agencies can more effectively respond to problems like geologic hazards and natural disaster emergencies. Professional links between the staff and other scientists broaden research capability and make it possible also to take on additional and bigger projects. Working associations like these expand research productivity in the state's interest. The Survey satisfies this service obligation by making the results of all its finished work readily available to the public through reports, books, and maps.
