THE CORELOGGER PROGRAM: A STANDARDIZED DIGITAL METHOD FOR LOGGING CORE DRILLED AT THE IDAHO NATIONAL LABORATORY

The Idaho National Laboratory (INL) occupies 890 square miles on the eastern Snake River Plain (ESRP) of Idaho and overlies the Snake River Plain aquifer. The Snake River Plain aquifer is the sole source of water at the INL and is an important source of water for neighboring farms and communities. The U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) has studied the geology and hydrology of the ESRP at the INL since 1949. More than 88,000 feet of core drilled from the ESRP at the INL have been collected and archived at the Lithologic Core Storage Library (CSL), operated by the USGS INL Project Office in cooperation with the Department of Energy.

In 2003, the USGS INL Project Office developed a standardized digital method for logging core drilled at the INL so that consistent descriptions and photographs of selected core could be made available on the World Wide Web. This method, now called the “Corelogger Program,” was designed to be a cost-effective way to collect and disseminate data about core stored at the CSL and to help preserve a record of core before possible loss or consumption during analysis. The program also was designed to be implemented by senior or graduate geology students.

The Corelogger Program is in its third season of data collection and has been used by three different students. Interns log and photograph core using commercially available logging and photo-processing software. Interns then enter descriptions using a set format, which limits interpretation, and record lithologic and sedimentary information in symbolic or numeric form. The Corelogger Program has produced consistent core descriptions and photographs suitable for download from the World Wide Web. Increased availability of information about the core stored at the CSL would allow researchers to decide which cores would best suit their needs, save time and money both for researchers and CSL staff, and preserve core for future research.