Dr. Martitia Tuttle has more than 30 years of research experience and more than 15 years of consulting experience with primary emphasis in paleoseismology and paleoliquefaction studies for the purpose of defining the earthquake potential of fault zones or source areas. Dr. Tuttle studied liquefaction features and related ground failures resulting from the 1988 Saguenay, Quebec, 1989 Loma Prieta, California, 2001 Bhuj, India, and 2010-2011 Canterbury, New Zealand earthquakes. She is a recognized expert in the identification, dating, and interpretation of earthquake-induced liquefaction features and played a pivotal role in defining the earthquake potential of the New Madrid seismic zone in the central U.S. and the Charlevoix and Passamaquoddy seismic zones in southeastern Canada. In addition, Dr. Tuttle studied tsunami deposits resulting from the 1929 Grand Banks and the 2004 Sumatran-Andaman earthquakes and developed criteria for distinguishing between tsunami and storm deposits. Currently, she is engaged in paleoliquefaction studies in the Central and Eastern United States (CEUS) and in paleotsunami studies in the northeastern Caribbean.
From 2010 through 2012, Dr. Tuttle served as a resource expert in paleoliquefaction for the CEUS Seismic Source Characterization for Nuclear Facilities project sponsored by EPRI, U.S. DOE, and U.S. NRC. During that project, she led the effort to develop a CEUS paleoliquefaction database and a technical report on the database, uncertainties associates with paleoliquefaction data, and guidance for seismic source characterization (Technical Report, Appendix E). Subsequently, Dr. Tuttle developed a guidance document for conducting paleoliquefaction studies (NUREG/CR-7238), spearheaded paleoliquefaction research in the New Madrid and Central Virginia seismic zones (NUREG/CR-7257), and organized a training workshop for the U.S. NRC. Following the 2010-2011 Canterbury earthquake sequence in New Zealand, Dr. Tuttle provided guidance to and collaborated with earth scientists at GNS Science and Lincoln University on liquefaction research. For more details, click here for Dr. Tuttle's Curriculum Vitae.
