Is Your House on Shaky Ground?

Ground subsidence problems are very real in Colorado. Whether from naturally occurring elements in the soil or from the effects of Colorado’s mining history, the ground in certain parts of Colorado is susceptible to settling, collapsing, expanding, heaving, or swelling, all of which can have potentially hazardous effects on structures. So how do you know if your area is affected by subsidence and swelling soils? And if it is, what should you do?

When the Ground Lets You Down, a title in the Colorado Geological Survey’s popular Rock Talk series, provides an excellent introduction to these types of hazards. The geological processes are illustrated in simple diagrams and information is provided about insurance, emergency situations, and where to go for help.

Another helpful publication, produced especially for homeowners, is A Guide to Swelling Soils for Colorado Homebuyers and Homeowners. This helpful guidebook can be checked out from our library or through Prospector. 

Additional helpful resources available from our library include:

• Annotated Bibliography of Subsidence Studies Over Abandoned Coal Mines in Colorado
• Bentonite Soils and the Colorado Homeowner
• Boulder County Subsidence Investigation
• Building on Expansive Soils 
• Coal Mine Subsidence and Land Use in the Boulder-Weld Coalfield 
• Collapsible Soils in Colorado
• Colorado Springs Subsidence Investigation
• Colorado’s Geologic Hazards: How to Live with Them
• Expansive Soil Treatment Methods in Colorado
• Geologic Aspects, Soils and Related Foundation Problems, Denver Metropolitan Area
• Geologic Hazards, Land-Use Laws, and Professional Standards of Practice in Colorado
• Heaving-Bedrock Hazards, Mitigation, and Land Use Policy
• Heaving Bedrock Hazards Associated with Expansive, Steeply Dipping Bedrock, Douglas County, Colorado
• Home Construction on Shrinking and Swelling Soils
• Home Landscaping and Maintenance on Swelling Soil 
• Homeowner Tips in Mine Subsidence Areas
• Landscaping on Expansive Soils 
• Map of Areas Susceptible to Differential Heave in Expansive, Steeply Dipping Bedrock, City of Colorado Springs, Colorado
• Potentially Swelling Soil and Rock in the Front Range Urban Corridor, Colorado
• Soil and Bedrock Conditions and Construction Considerations, North-Central Douglas County, Colorado
• Solving Land Use Problems
• Subsidence Above Inactive Coal Mines 
• Tri-towns Subsidence Investigation, Weld County, Colorado

Also, search the term “geologic hazards” in our library’s online catalog for additional resources.