UNDERGRADUATE GEOSCIENCE EDUCATION TAKING AN ACTIVE ROLE IN LOCAL COMMUNITIES: A CASE STUDY

Undergraduate students can, with minimal supervision, undertake and complete applied research projects that both educate the student and serve the local community. An environmental study of slope stability in an urban setting provides a good example of one kind of applied research that can be undertaken by an undergraduate in one academic semester. The slope stability evaluation was conducted along the entire six-mile length of Messalonskee Stream, a fourth-order stream within the city limits of Waterville, a small city in central Maine. Previous studies had delineated areas with mass-wasting potential, as determined by steep slopes and evaluations of surficial geology. The purpose of the current study was to determine areas where active mass wasting could be documented. The stream length was traversed by kayak, canoe, and on foot. Slope instability was detected by looking for evidence of slope movement such as bent trees, leaning fences, and hummocky topography, as well as visible slumps and planar failures. Evidence of slope failure was recorded in notes and photographed when possible. These sites of instability and failure were then delineated on a city planning map, scale 1:14400. More than 20 general areas were identified with significant evidence of ground failure. These ranged from minor slumping along immediate stream banks to surface creep and shallow planar failures that disrupted retaining walls and fences. The information collected will be presented to the local planning board to assist in the planning process and to identify areas of potential property damage from future movement. Along with providing the student with valuable field experience, this program yielded direct benefit to local planning agencies by providing evaluation of existing unstable slopes.