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U.S. Geological Survey
Bulletin 2185

Response Plan for Volcano Hazards in the Long Valley Caldera and Mono Craters Region, California

By David P. Hill, Dan Dzurisin, William L. Ellsworth, Elliot T. Endo, D.L. Galloway, Terry M. Gerlach, Malcolm S.J. Johnston, John Langbein, Ken A. McGee, C. Dan Miller, David Oppenheimer, and Michael L. Sorey

Persistent unrest in Long Valley Caldera—characterized by recurring earthquake swarms, inflation of the resurgent dome in the central sections of the caldera, and emissions of magmatic carbon dioxide around Mammoth Mountain—during the last two decades and continuing into the 21st century emphasize that this geologically youthful volcanic system is capable of further volcanic activity. This document describes the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) response plan for future episodes of unrest that might augur the onset of renewed volcanism in the caldera or along the Inyo-Mono Craters chain to the north. Central to this response plan is a four-level color code with successive conditions, GREEN (no immediate risk) through RED (eruption under way), reflecting progressively more intense activity levels as summarized in table 1 and 2 and described in detail in section II of this report.

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| Department of the Interior | U.S. Geological Survey | Geologic Division | Volcano Hazards Program |

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URL of this page: http://pubs.usgs.gov/bul/b2185/
Maintained by: Michael Diggles
Created: February 13, 2002
Last modified: October 31, 2005 (mfd)