Saudi Geological Survey

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The Saudi Geological Survey (SGS) is the national geologic survey of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and was established as an independent entity attached to the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources following a Council of Ministers Decision in 1999. It is built from other governmental agencies, including the former Directorate General for Mineral Resources, the US Geological Survey mission (1963 - 1999) and the Bureau de Recherche et Geologique mission (1972-1999) that have studied the geology of the Kingdom since the 1960s. The initial USGS presence in the Kingdom was initiated in 1944 by King AbdulAziz al-Saud, and initially consisted of a lone hydrologist named Glen Brown, sent by US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt following a meeting with AbdulAziz on a US warship in the Red Sea. The SGS headquarters are in Jeddah, which is located on the Red Sea and is the second largest city in the country. Jeddah is also adjacent to the western margin of the Neoproterozoic Arabian Shield, and studies of that geologic region from one of the primary focuses of the Saudi Geologic Survey. A branch office maintained in Riyadh, the capital of the country, houses facilities for making and printing topographic maps.

Under the terms of its establishment, the SGS will be able to provide, on a contract basis, a number of its services and consultation skills to the public and private sectors. SGS also has the flexibility to operate abroad and can form partnerships with private companies or with other earth science agencies.

[edit] SGS Activities

The Saudi Geological Survey activities covers a broad range of strategic and applied earth science topics, with emphasis on understanding the geologic, economic, and engineering factors that affect sustainable management of mineral and groundwater resources, detection and mitigation of earthquakes and other geohazards, protection and management of the environment, and safe development of engineering and construction sites.

The bulk of the work involves: