137
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to
Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
S. J. Culver (ed.), Troubled Waters, Springer Climate,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52383-1_9
Chapter 9
Drilling the North Carolina Coastal Plain –
Discovering What Lies Beneath
Kathleen M. Farrell
Abstract This chapter explains how geologic environments of the Quaternary are
explored by a field geologist who drills holes and collects core samples from the
coastal plain of North Carolina, USA, and why these cores are windows into the
sedimentary rock pile that lies beneath our Earth’s surface. It is the tale of one
geologist who maps landforms and cores for stratigraphy not only because it’s so
much fun, but also because society can benefit from the research findings—usually
in the form of geologic maps and cross sections constructed from cores. Maps and
cross sections can help us to identify surface water pathways and underground flowpaths, the size and scale of underground reservoirs and aquifers, and the distribution
of economically valuable minerals. They can also be used to develop geologic hazard and groundwater vulnerability maps, for more effective land use planning.
Keywords Coastal Plain · Stratigraphy · Geomorphology · Coastal geology ·
Geologic coring · Quaternary · Barrier island · North Carolina · Louisiana, Georgia
My Life as a Geologist: What It Entails, and Reasons
for Pursuing Field Geology as a Profession
Although discovering and collecting fossils is of great interest to both the layperson
and scientists, geologists must also describe and understand the sediments (unconsolidated gravel, sand and mud deposits) and sedimentary rocks (consolidated and
hard) in which the fossils are found. This area of study is called stratigraphy—strata
means layer and sedimentary rocks are layered, like a layer cake. I am a stratigrapher, a sedimentologist (study of sediment), and a geomorphologist (study of the
shape of the earth’s surface, i.e., the landscape, and its landforms). I work as a
Senior Geologist at the North Carolina Geological Survey (NCGS), conducting
applied research on North Carolina’s Coastal Plain. My job is to divide up the
K. M. Farrell (*)
North Carolina Geological Survey, Raleigh, NC, USA
e-mail: kathleen.farrell@ncdenr.gov
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to
Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
S. J. Culver (ed.), Troubled Waters, Springer Climate,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52383-1_9
Chapter 9
Drilling the North Carolina Coastal Plain –
Discovering What Lies Beneath
Kathleen M. Farrell
Abstract This chapter explains how geologic environments of the Quaternary are
explored by a field geologist who drills holes and collects core samples from the
coastal plain of North Carolina, USA, and why these cores are windows into the
sedimentary rock pile that lies beneath our Earth’s surface. It is the tale of one
geologist who maps landforms and cores for stratigraphy not only because it’s so
much fun, but also because society can benefit from the research findings—usually
in the form of geologic maps and cross sections constructed from cores. Maps and
cross sections can help us to identify surface water pathways and underground flowpaths, the size and scale of underground reservoirs and aquifers, and the distribution
of economically valuable minerals. They can also be used to develop geologic hazard and groundwater vulnerability maps, for more effective land use planning.
Keywords Coastal Plain · Stratigraphy · Geomorphology · Coastal geology ·
Geologic coring · Quaternary · Barrier island · North Carolina · Louisiana, Georgia
My Life as a Geologist: What It Entails, and Reasons
for Pursuing Field Geology as a Profession
Although discovering and collecting fossils is of great interest to both the layperson
and scientists, geologists must also describe and understand the sediments (unconsolidated gravel, sand and mud deposits) and sedimentary rocks (consolidated and
hard) in which the fossils are found. This area of study is called stratigraphy—strata
means layer and sedimentary rocks are layered, like a layer cake. I am a stratigrapher, a sedimentologist (study of sediment), and a geomorphologist (study of the
shape of the earth’s surface, i.e., the landscape, and its landforms). I work as a
Senior Geologist at the North Carolina Geological Survey (NCGS), conducting
applied research on North Carolina’s Coastal Plain. My job is to divide up the
K. M. Farrell (*)
North Carolina Geological Survey, Raleigh, NC, USA
e-mail: kathleen.farrell@ncdenr.gov