NEHRP Clearinghouse
- Title
- Structure and Velocities of the Northeastern Santa Cruz Mountains and the Western Santa Clara Valley, California, from the SCSI-LR Seismic Survey.
- File
- PB2006110293.pdf
- Author(s)
- Catchings, R. D.; Goldman, M. R.; Gandhok, G.
- Source
- January 2006, 82 p.
- Identifying Number(s)
- USGS/OFR-2006-1014
- Abstract
- The Santa Clara Valley is located in the southern San Francisco Bay area of California and generally includes the area south of the San Francisco Bay between the Santa Cruz Mountains on the southwest and the Diablo Ranges on the northeast. The area has a population of approximately 1.7 million including the city of San Jose, numerous smaller cities, and much of the high-technology manufacturing and research area commonly referred to as the Silicon Valley. Major active strands of the San Andreas Fault system bound the Santa Clara Valley, including the San Andreas fault to the southwest and the Hayward and Calaveras faults to the northeast; related faults likely underlie the alluvium of the valley. This report focuses on subsurface structures of the western Santa Clara Valley and the northeastern Santa Cruz Mountains and their potential effects on earthquake hazards and ground-water resource management in the area. Earthquake hazards and ground-water resources in the Santa Clara Valley are important considerations to California and the Nation because of the valley's preeminence as a major technical and industrial center, proximity to major earthquakes faults, and large population.
- Keywords
- Geologic faults; California; Santa Cruz Mountains; San Francisco Bay; Geologic structures; Subsurface structures; Ground water; Alluvium deposits; Hazards; Water resources; Seismic surveys; Santa Clara Valley; Velocity; Valleys; Earthquakes