tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31085862.post5061384732139412534..comments2024-01-22T02:21:42.469-08:00Comments on State Geologists: Allen F. Agnew, former South Dakota State GeologistLee Allisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11520300956249160005noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31085862.post-65219222321420498462012-09-15T14:29:50.030-07:002012-09-15T14:29:50.030-07:00A very impressive article. Well prepared. Very mot...A very impressive article. Well prepared. Very motivating!! Set off on to wayAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31085862.post-41816555512104079542012-09-14T14:56:07.269-07:002012-09-14T14:56:07.269-07:00Two state geologists that I remember so well from ...Two state geologists that I remember so well from the time when I first became acquainted with AASG were John Rold and Allen Agnew. There could not have been nicer, more helpful, more encouraging people. Allen being from my home state of Illinois was actually in the same fraternity at the U of I as my uncle and father who he knew very well. During the preparations for the history volume Allen took great interest. His son help to prepare manuscript pages that he could read and he would give me feedback. <br /><br />Both John and Allen greatly enriched AASG and our profession. They set great examples for us and contributed a great deal to our worthy endeavors. <br /> <br />James C. Cobb<br />Director and State Geologist<br />Kentucky Geological Survey<br /><br /><br />James Cobbnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31085862.post-52628695987177779952012-09-14T14:49:37.541-07:002012-09-14T14:49:37.541-07:00About one month after I arrived at the University ...About one month after I arrived at the University of Northern Colorado to begin my teaching career in 1971, John came up to Greeley to give a talk. He illustrated the projects that the Colorado Geological Survey was doing in understanding Colorado's plethora of geologic hazards, and I became an instant fan of him and the survey. Through the decades, we kept in touch and I always enjoyed visiting with him whenever we crossed paths, never imagining that I would one day have the privilege of sitting at his desk. He occasionally asked me to write a letter of support for the survey, which I enthusiastically did.<br /><br />His legacy with CGS is immense. He fought huge battles on land use, the Marble Ski Area in the early 70s being one of the biggest. John and his right-hand man for a quarter of a century, Pat Rogers, had mapped large landslides in the Mancos shale where the lodge and lift towers were located. They had also mapped debris flow paths where condos were staked to be built. This became an extremely hot topic with lots of press coverage and accusations and threats leveled at CGS. It could have been the death knell for the newly-established agency. EXCEPT, that during the debates, a debris flow came right down one of the mapped paths, depositing a four-foot-thick layer of mud and boulders where the stakes for the not-yet built condos were located. The never-completed Marble Ski area still has abandoned towers and lodge that are warnings to all-- that Colorado's natural hazards should not be ignored. Indeed, a recent debris flow came roaring through town as another reminder. <br /><br />John was relentless in spreading the word throughout Colorado about the need to pay attention to geological hazards. He would show me how an angry developer would pound on his desk saying that he would have John's job. John would then hand him the phone and the governor's phone number. I have never experienced that in my eight-year tenure as director. And, I credit the lack of threats to the high degree of credibility for the land use work of CGS that was initially established during John's 23 years of working with Colorado's geological hazards. In the mid 80s, John offered a home to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center which remains with CGS today and is the premier avalanche center in the world.<br /><br />John's background in the energy industry gave him the insights to begin evaluating the potential for developing coalbed methane and geothermal energy in Colorado during the 1970s. Today, several geothermal projects are active in various parts of Colorado with participation by CGS. The tens of publications on coalbed methane in the 70s and 80s helped much of the industry get up to speed on the potential after word of Amoco's success began leaking out. Today, Colorado has the nation's largest reserves of coalbed methane and they provide billions of dollars annually to Colorado's economy and millions to its tax base.<br /><br />John was extremely interested in the geology of Colorado. One of his first acts as State Geologist was to commission the writing of a general summary of Colorado's geology called, "Prairie, Peak, and Plateau', which sold about 35,000 copies over the years. In the 1950s, John co-founded a small study group that still meets monthly to discuss geology. That small group currently includes at least four past-presidents of AAPG, as well as a current candidate for President-Elect.<br /><br />You couldn't talk to John for very long without him bringing up his membership in the Old Goats. It is hard to think of John without picturing a guy with twinkling eyes under a cowboy hat, framed by a bolo tie and vest with a smoldering pipe hanging out of his mouth.<br /><br />Tomorrow morning, some of us will gather to say goodbye and to remember a life of public service. Colorado is better off today as a result of John Rold's contributions to the safety and economic well being of its citizens.<br /><br />Vince Matthews, State Geologist, Director of the Colorado Geological Survey<br />Vince Matthewsnoreply@blogger.com