Colloquium: Late Pleistocene to Holocene Evolution of the San Francisco Bay

The California Colloquium on Water presents

"Late Pleistocene to Holocene Evolution of the San Francisco Bay"

Given by:
B. Lynn Ingram

Professor, Earth and Planetary Sciences & Geography, UC Berkeley

Tuesday, March 13th
5:30pm – 7:00pm

Goldman School of Public Policy, Room 250

(2607 Hearst Ave at LeRoy)

Meet the speaker, 5:15pm – 5:30pm.

Summary of lecture :

The San Francisco Bay and Delta are considered the heart of California's water system. A huge region of California (about 40%) is drained by rivers that eventually reach the San Francisco Bay. San Francisco Bay is California's largest estuary, and is a vital part of its economy, culture, and landscape. The Bay's inland Delta provides fresh water to two-thirds of the population of California, some twenty three million people. Sediments deposited beneath the Bay, within surrounding marshlands, and within the Bay's watershed contain a rich history of how this estuarine system evolved over the past million years, including major changes in climate. These
sediments demonstrate that the Bay has only existed sporadically – during warmer interglacial periods, and became a river valley during the ice ages. While the earliest inhabitants of California adapted to a varying water supply, archaeological and geological evidence suggests that climate extremes – both wetter and drier – have occurred throughout the past 10,000 years.

For more information, contact the Water Resources Center Archives at (510) 642-2666 or waterarc@library.berkeley.edu, or check out the Colloquium web site.