If you think your property might be affected by a landslide, mine subsidence, a change in water quality or some other issue related to rocks and soil, you will likely need more expertise than we can provide.  To figure out what is happening to a given property often requires careful field examination and/or water sampling, and this requires people who specialize in this work.

If you think a government agency should be helping you (such as the Department of Environmental Protection or the City of Pittsburgh), but you haven’t had much success getting a response, contact the office of your local state or city representative.  Local representatives specialize in helping their constituents to navigate the government bureaucracy.  If you don’t know who your local representatives are, visit your local library!  Librarians love to help.

If you need a professional to visit your property, the Pittsburgh Geological Society has posted a helpful list of companies that do professional geologist consulting work:  https://pittsburghgeologicalsociety.org/geologic-consultants.html.  The notes below will help you decide what type of specialist you need.

• Landslides:  Active landslides are relatively easy to identify since their scars are fresh.  However, to predict the causes and future severity of land movement requires a geological engineer who specializes in geotechnical work.
• Mine Subsidence:  You can find out if your property is undermined by visiting the Pennsylvania Mine Map Atlas:  http://www.minemaps.psu.edu/.  The website isn’t entirely intuitive, so you’ll likely need to click the Tutorial button.  If your property is undermined, clicking on the map near your address will show a map of the mine under your house.  The website isn’t perfect:  You may get a whole series of maps covering your property, only some of which actually show the mine (others might show the white margins of a map).  The main point is if your house is over a mine, it is potentially affected by mine subsidence.  A geotechnical consultant would be able to give you more precise insights into your particular situation.
• Water quality:  Environmental geologists deal with a range of water issues, ranging from water quality to water quantity to soil contamination and beyond.