The Utah Geological Survey has received nearly $133,000 in grants to study environmental patterns of the past and where they may be headed.
The National Science Foundation gave the largest grant, $77,868. It will give scientists the funds needed to research an area in China similar to the Great Basin.Through other funds, archaeologist David Madsen and the University of Kansas will try to define where the shoreline of Lake Bonneville was when settlers first came to the region 10,000 years ago. Researchers will look in the Dugway Proving Grounds area, which is where the shoreline is believed to be. They will also try to determine the bed of the ancient Old River, which flowed into the lake.
The U.S. Department of Transportation has given the Utah Geological Survey $20,000 to experiment with the creation and operation of a digital natural gas or hazardous chemical pipeline. The agency will determine if a computerized system would be safer and more environmentally sound.