About This Item
- Full text of this item is not available.
- Abstract PDFAbstract PDF(no subscription required)
Share This Item
The AAPG/Datapages Combined Publications Database
Houston Geological Society Bulletin
Abstract
Abstract: The Recent Inundation of the Jefferson Island Mine: Implications
By
Jefferson Island in Iberia Parish, Louisiana, is the most
northwesterly member of the well-known Five Islands Trend of
South Louisiana. Each of the five islands is a manifestation of
the uplifting of landscapes by a rising salt mock from bedded
(Louann) salt, perhaps as deep as 50,000 feet. In contrast to
the other four islands of the trend which are surrounded by
swamps, Jefferson Island is a topographic eminence on a dry
plain, its crest (maximum elevation 75 ft. above MSL) being a
peninsula of land extending into Lake Peigneur with its south,
west and northwest sides exposed to the lake.
Jefferson Island has had a history of industrial activities
pertaining to exploitation of salt, sulfur and petroleum, in
addition to fishery and recreational facilities.
On November 20, 1980, Lake Peigneur drained into the
Jefferson Island salt mine beneath it. This disaster was
preceded by two types of concurrent mineral activities:
petroleum drilling on the surface by Texaco, and underground
salt mining by Diamond Crystal Salt co. This disaster
underscores the hazard of human activities interfering with
the natural environment.
The author's presentation will include a brief chronologic
overview of the events related to the lake bottom collapse and
the mine flooding, and will focus on the surficial changes
resulting from the accident. Additionally, it may be possible to
throw some light on possible causes of the mine inundation,
and the storage potential of salt domes. End_of_Record - Last_Page 2---------------