California’s Mineral, Energy, California’s Mineral, Energy, and Soil Resourcesand Soil Resources

Chapter 13A, Section 1Chapter 13A, Section 1

Geology of CaliforniaGeology of California• Some of the features of the California landscape

formed as the result of tectonic processes that took place deep beneath the surface

• Wind, water, ice, and other agents of erosion at the surface carved other features of the landscape

• Millions of years ago, the subduction of an oceanic plate beneath the North American plate forming large pools of magma and later crystallizing

• Uplift and erosion eventually exposed these batholiths to form the Sierra Nevada Mountains

• Surface processes formed places like the Central Valley (used to be an inland sea)

California’s Mineral ResourcesCalifornia’s Mineral Resources• California’s major mineral resources include sand, gravel,

crushed stone, building stone, gold, silver, iron, evaporite minerals, and clay

• Sand and gravel are California’s most valuable industrial minerals, used in road-building and construction

• Gold, silver, and iron are the major metallic minerals mined in California

• The most productive gold mines include the Sierra Nevada, the Klamath Mountains, and the Mojave Desert

• Silver is mined in the Sierra Nevada• Iron is from the Mojave desert region• We also have an abundance of non-metallic minerals,

including: borates, gypsum, and clay• Small quantities of gemstones, such as tourmaline, garnet,

agate, and jade

California’s Mineral ResourcesCalifornia’s Mineral Resources

Concept CheckConcept Check

• What does the term mineral resources mean?

• Natural resources that include minerals, rocks, and sediment

California’s Energy ResourcesCalifornia’s Energy Resources

• California’s major energy resources—oil, natural gas, and geothermal energy—are the result of geologic processes that occur deep beneath the surface

• Source Rocks – rocks in which oil forms

• Reservoir Rocks – porous rocks in which oil collects and becomes trapped

• Geothermal Field – an area of land where magma lies relatively close to the surface and heats the groundwater

Geothermal EnergyGeothermal Energy

Concept CheckConcept Check

• What is a geothermal field?

• An area where magma that is close to the surface heats the groundwater.

California’s Soil ResourcesCalifornia’s Soil Resources• The soils of California include soils of the

Sierras, soils of the Coast Ranges and Cascades, valley soils (including the Central Valley), and desert soils

• CA’s fertile valley soils are its most important soil resource

• In northern CA, heavy rains wash away the nutrients from the soil

• In southern CA, the soils contain more nutrients, due to the small amount of rainfall

• Every year, many acres of farmland are lost or damaged because of soil erosion or the spread of urban areas

• It can take over 500 years to build up 2.5 cm of soil

California’s Soil ResourcesCalifornia’s Soil Resources

AssignmentAssignment

• Read Chapter 13A (pg. CA 4 – CA 26)

• Ch 13 Assessment– # 1 – 33 (pg. CA 31 – CA 32)– # 1 – 6 (pg. CA 33)