THE GEORGIA GEOLOGY AND AGGREGATE MATERIALS EXPLORER (GAME): DYNAMIC DELIVERY OF GEOLOGIC AND ENGINEERING DATA

The Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) evaluates and monitors the characteristics and quality of construction aggregate resources mined from more than 70 rock quarries and 50 sand pits across the Southeastern United States and several countries. The agency collects large amounts of petrologic, geochemical, structural, and engineering data that reflect the three-dimensional variability of a diverse set of deposits. GDOT has entered the initial stages of deploying the Georgia Geology and Aggregate Materials Explorer (GAME), a web-based application designed to deliver those data to government, industry, academia, and the public.

The Georgia GAME provides a searchable and filterable geologic database that users can query to produce custom maps relating lithology and structures to a variety of physiographical, political, and imagery datasets. Users can access petrologic (e.g., petrographic descriptions, photographs, and optical photomicrographs), crystallographic (powder X-ray diffractograms), and geochemical (X-ray florescence data) data from samples representing each unit. The datasets, including the base geology, will be updated frequently from GDOT investigations, external contributions, and compilations of cited sources. The platform also is designed to provide aggregate producers a secure portal for accessing historical documents and data maintained by GDOT for each company’s deposits and processing facilities. The GAME is designed to grow into a dynamic geologic mapping tool useful to education and infrastructure delivery.