| Title |
Water resources and utilization in the Sevier Basin and Old River Bed inland delta of Central Utah during the Pleistocene-Holocene transition |
| Publication Type |
dissertation |
| School or College |
College of Mines & Earth Sciences |
| Department |
Geology & Geophysics |
| Author |
Bradbury, Christopher David |
| Date |
2019 |
| Description |
Methods of geoarchaeology, geochemistry, and geophysics are used to reconstruct the hydrologic system of the Sevier basin and Old River Bed inland delta of central Utah, as well as its usage by human foragers during the Pleistocene-Holocene transition. This is accomplished using kernel density estimation to reconstruct forager land-use, the measurement of 87 Sr/86 Sr ratios of mollusks from dated channels of the Old River Bed inland delta, and ground-penetrating radar of a barrier spit in the Sevier basin. Results show that foragers at the Old River Bed inland delta preferentially used the terminal ends of channel systems where standing water would have been capable of sustaining wetlands. 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratio analysis of mollusks from several of these channel systems show that the predominant source of water to the region was from the Sevier basin via lake overflow during the Late Pleistocene and groundwater flow during the early Holocene. Ground-penetrating radar was used to image the Bitterweed Spit of the freshwater lake in the Sevier basin known as Lake Gunnison. Radar reflections show sigmoidal-oblique structures associated with sediment deposition in a stable overflowing body of water and support the 87 Sr/86 Sr ratios of mollusks at the Old River Bed inland delta that are consistent with lake overflow providing water to the region during the Late Pleistocene. |
| Type |
Text |
| Publisher |
University of Utah |
| Subject |
geoarchaeology; geochemistry; ground-penetrating radar; Lake Gunnison; Old River Bed Delta; Sevier Basin |
| Dissertation Name |
Doctor of Philosophy |
| Language |
eng |
| Rights Management |
(c) Christopher David Bradbury |
| Format |
application/pdf |
| Format Medium |
application/pdf |
| ARK |
ark:/87278/s6wq646f |
| Setname |
ir_etd |
| ID |
1709470 |
| Reference URL |
https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6wq646f |
