Where can I go for more information on Bay Area earthquake hazards?

There is a lot of information available on earthquakes and earthquake hazards in the Bay Area. While some information is available online, not all material has been digitized and transferred to the Web.

One of the most common requests we receive is for fault maps. As of this time, most of the on-line maps do not have sufficient resolution for you to identify the location of your home, school, or office. Please check our Suggested Reading list section on maps for an index of interesting maps on Bay Area Faults. For example, the USGS publishes an excellent map of the Hayward fault (Lienkaemper, J.,Map of recently active traces of the Hayward Fault, Alameda and Contra Costa Counties, California, USGS Miscellaneous Field Studies Map, Map MF-2196, 1992.). For general information on maps, please see our FAQ on maps.

In addition to general fault maps or geologic maps, recent seismic hazard maps provide information on the California and Bay Area Earthquake Risk. Through the Seismic Hazards Evaluation and Zoning Program, the California Division of Mines and Geology and the USGS have produced probablistic seismic hazards maps for California. The Association of Bay Area Governments has produced a number of reports and studies on regional earthquake hazards. Their site includes ground shaking hazard maps, information on hazards such as liquefaction, dam failure, and hazardous materials, and studies on the impact of earthquakes on housing and transportation.

One last word on maps: If you are interested in images of the San Francisco Bay Area showing topography, faults, and the location of historical earthquakes, check out the collaborative USGS-PGE Web site.

Our Suggested Reading list also contains information about a number of interesting books, reports, and publications on California faults and earthquakes, including references on the San Andreas Fault and information on the earthquakes of 1906, 1957, and 1989.

In recent years, earth scientists begun to focus their attention on the question of evaluating earthquake probabilities for major faults. In 1988, the Working Group on California Earthquake Probabilities issued a report assessing the probablity of large earthquakes in California. After the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, the group issued a new report on Bay Area probabilities. Several years ago, the Working Group on Northern California Earthquake Potential took up the cudgle and prepared a database of potential earthquake sources in the San Francisco Bay Area. Based on this database, the Working Group has issed a new report on earthquake probabilities in the San Francisco Bay Region:

Earthquake Probabilities in the San Francisco Bay Region:2000 to 2030 - A Summary of Findings

References to the 1988,1990,1996, and 1999 reports can be found in our Suggested Reading list.

For information on earthquake preparedness - and steps you can take to reduce future earthquake losses, please see our FAQ on Earthquake Preparedness. An on-line version of the pamphlet produced after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake is available from the USGS The Next Big Earthquake.

If you wish to surf for your own information, please check out our list of Internet resources in Earth Sciences.

The following agencies are good sources of information for earthquake data and information, as well as public safety issues and other geology/geophysics topics.

UC Berkeley Seismological Laboratory
202 McCone Hall, UC Berkeley
Berkeley, CA 94720-4760
510-642-3977
Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG)
P.O. Box 2050
Oakland CA 94604-2050
510-464-7900
California Geological Survey
801 K Stret, MS14-33
Sacramento, CA 95812
(916) 445-5716
California Seismic Safety Commission
1900 K Street, Suite 100
Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 322-4917
Governor's Office of Emergency Services (OES)
Coastal Region
1300 Clay Street, Suite 400
Oakland, CA 94612
(510) 286-0895
(510) 286-0853 fax
pbw@oes.ca.gov email
United States Geological Survey (USGS)
Earth Science Information Center
345 Middlefield Road
Menlo Park, CA 94025
(650) 329-4390
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
Region IX
Attn: Mitigation Division
P.O. Box 2998
Presidio of San Francisco, CA 94129-1250
(415) 923-7100 (SF branch)
(800) 525-0321 (National disaster information line)

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Berkeley Seismological Lab
215 McCone Hall, UC Berkeley
Berkeley CA 94720-4760
www@seismo.berkeley.edu