Red Barn Event - Geologic Fluids and Plant Life
Four geologic fluids have influenced the local availability of water, the fluid most associated with plant life. Flow of the Earth’s mantle over the last 40 million years, humongous lava flows 16 million years ago, flow of glacial ice about 16,000 years ago, and air flow have all shaped the north-central Washington landscape. The effects of these fluids govern how water moves in and through our landscape, thereby shaping our plant communities.
Ralph Haugerud has been studying the geology of the Pacific NW for over 50 years. He is a Seattle native, a graduate of WWU and UW, and a research geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey. He lives in Wenatchee.