Integrated Geophysical Investigation and 3-D Fault Characterization of
the Rochester and Adna 7.5 Minute Quadrangles, Thurston and Lewis
Counties, Washington
Abstract
The Rochester and Adna 7.5 minute quadrangles in the Washington forearc
of the Cascadia subduction zone encompass the Doty fault, a large
forearc fault crossing the I-5 corridor south of Centralia. We have
begun a cooperative geological and geophysical study of the area to
assess the seismic hazard to a water retention facility that has been
proposed to mitigate flooding along the Chehalis River and the I-5
corridor. This region between Olympia and Portland is undergoing
north-south compression, clockwise rotation, and regional uplift
associated with both subduction processes and the northward migration of
the forearc block. Past studies identified multiple faults that strike
NW-SE and E-W in the northern and southern parts of the study area,
respectively. The Kopiah, Scammon Creek, Salzer Creek and Doty faults
all interact within our study area, in ways that are poorly understood.
An integrated geophysical investigation will assist the State-Federal
cooperative mapping program called STATEMAP efforts to produce detailed
1:24,000 scale geologic maps of the area. Geophysical field work in the
summer of 2018 includes a roughly 15 x 32 km gravity grid with
~2 km station spacing. Station spacing along known
geologic structures is ~1 km to provide greater
resolution. Results from our coarse gravity grid will provide targets
for additional high resolution profiles. A high resolution ground
magnetic grid also extends across both quadrangles, and preliminary
results demonstrate its efficacy at elucidating structure. Seismic
profiles acquired by the USGS across the Doty fault will constrain our
geophysical modeling, which will combine the high resolution gravity and
magnetic profiles in a geologic model of the subsurface to support the
mapping efforts of the STATEMAP program. The data and models will
provide insight about total offset across these faults, precisely
identify locations of faults that are not exposed at the surface, and
allow us to better understand the structure of these faults. These
interpretations will allow us to more accurately understand the
potential seismic risk these faults pose to nearby population centers
and infrastructure.