Proceedings of the 12th International INQUA meeting on paleoseismology, active tectonic and archaeoseismology

272 PATA Days 2024 C O N C L U S I O N S Approximately 1 mm/yr of extensional strain accumulation is accommodated by earthquakes along active faults distributed across central Nevada. The Buffalo Valley fault is expressed by prominent tectonic geomorphology similar to other faults in the region. Field and lidar observations indicate that the fault consists of several subparallel traces that extend across the piedmont and displace relatively old (Qfo) and intermediate (Qfi) alluvial fan deposits. Topographic profiles indicate that cumulative displacement across these deposits is about 21 m and 6.3 m across Qfo and Qfi surfaces, respectively. Soils developed into Qfi surfaces are characterized by Stage II+ to III carbonate development suggesting that the surfaces were abandoned ~100- 200 ka. Based on these data we infer a late Pleistocene slip rate for the Buffalo Valley fault of 0.03-0.06 mm/yr, however in progress 36 Cl soil depth profile analyses are anticipated to refine this rate. This ongoing work serves to better characterize seismic hazards in the region and inform geothermal energy resource evaluations. A C K N O W L E D G E M E N T S This work was funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Geothermal Technologies Program under grant award DE-EE0009254. We gratefully acknowledge the University of Otago sabbatical leave program for partial support of Stirling during his stay in Reno. Fig. 5: Topographic profiles surveyed across fault scarps that displace middle Pleistocene Qfo fans (Profiles 2 and 3) and late Pleistocene Qfi fans (Profiles 1, 4, and 5). Light green lines indicate slope projections used to estimate vertical displacement. Profile locations shown on Fig. 3.