Geology Reports⌕ Search
Home/Archive/USGS

USGS · sir20195052

Hydrogeologic framework and delineation of transient areas contributing recharge and zones of contribution to selected wells in the upper Santa Fe Group aquifer, southeastern Albuquerque, New Mexico, 1900–2050

Nathan C. Myers·Paul J. Friesz
View original source ↗Read source document ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

The Santa Fe Group aquifer is an important source of water to communities within the Middle Rio Grande Basin, including the Albuquerque-Rio Rancho metropolitan area and Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico. In November 1999, Kirtland Air Force Base personnel observed fuel-stained soils at the Bulk Fuels Facility on the base. Subsequent pressure tests identified pipeline leaks. Fuels stored at the Bulk Fuels Facility have included aviation gasoline, jet propellant 4, and jet propellant 8. The fuels migrated about 480 feet down to the water table. Ethylene dibromide, the constituent making up the most extensive part of the plume and a component of leaded aviation gasoline, has formed a plume that, in December 2016, was 400 to 1,300 feet wide, extended about 5,800 feet northeast from the Bulk Fuels Facility, and was about 3,700 feet from the nearest downgradient water-supply well. Prior to widespread development of groundwater resources in southeastern Albuquerque, groundwater near the present-day location of the Bulk Fuels Facility flowed to the southwest. Groundwater began flowing northeast in about 1980 towards a large area of lowered water levels caused by groundwater pumping. In 2013 and 2014 the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority, the U.S. Air Force, and the U.S. Geological Survey began a cooperative study to characterize the geology and hydrology of the Santa Fe Group aquifer in the vicinity of the ethylene dibromide plume and to develop a local-scale groundwater flow model to delineate areas contributing recharge and zones of contribution to selected water-supply wells. For this study, a previously developed Middle Rio Grande Basin regional groundwater-flow model was updated, and a smaller local-scale model was developed. Advective groundwater-flow paths were delineated and visualized with the MODPATH particle-tracking program. Of 11 wells included in the historical pumping analysis of areas contributing recharge, only wells K-3, K-7, and RC-4 derived a portion of their water from simulated recharge sources within the local-scale model. None of the areas contributing recharge overlap the Bulk Fuels Facility area or the ethylene dibromide plume footprint as delineated using December 2016 ethylene dibromide data. For the historical pumping analysis of zones of contribution, particles for the 11 selected wells generally moved southwest from the north and east boundaries of the local-scale model, moved past their target well, but reversed direction and moved back towards their target well after 1980 when groundwater flow changed to the northeast. Of the 11 wells, only BR-5, RC-5, and VH-2 had 1980–2013 particle pathlines that overlap the December 2016 ethylene dibromide plume footprint, and wells BR-5 and VH-2 have 1980–2013 particle pathlines that overlap the Bulk Fuels Facility area. Particles that were north of the Bulk Fuels Facility when groundwater flow reversed direction would not have the opportunity to interact with the ethylene dibromide plume. Wells BR-5, K-15, and VH-2 did have particles southwest of the Bulk Fuels Facility in 1980. Particles traveling to BR-5 and K-15 passed under or very near the Bulk Fuels Facility area in the 1980–2013 period, but none of the pathlines were shallow enough to interact with ethylene dibromide at the Bulk Fuels Facility. A few particles traveling to VH-2 passed through the Bulk Fuels Facility area at shallow enough depths to interact with ethylene dibromide at the Bulk Fuels Facility in the 1980–2013 period. Ethylene dibromide has not been detected in water samples collected in 2012 through 2015 from the VH-2 well. Of 10 water-supply wells near the ethylene dibromide plume included in the future pumping analysis of areas contributing recharge, only wells K-3, RC-3, and RC-4 had areas contributing recharge within the local-scale model. The areas contributing recharge for wells RC-3 and RC-4 do not overlap the Bulk Fuels Facility area or the December 2016 ethylene dibromide plume footprint, but K-3 derives part of its recharge prior to 1980 and during 1980–2015 from within the area of the December 2016 plume footprint. The analysis of the future pumping scenarios indicated that wells BR-5, K-3, K-16, RC-5, and VH-2 have pathlines for 1980–2015 and wells K-16 and VH-2 have pathlines for 2015–50 that when projected in plan view pass through the December 2016 plume footprint. Of these five wells, only K-3 and RC-5 have pathlines for 1980–2015 that are above an elevation of 4,800 feet and could interact with the ethylene dibromide plume if ethylene dibromide was present when the particles were present.

Explore related subjects

Scientific Investigations ReportReport
90° N90° S · 180° W ← longitude → 180° E
Source-reported bounding extent: 34.8687° to 35.2197° latitude; -107.1972° to -106.1446° longitude. This indicates report coverage, not an exact sampling location. View area on OpenStreetMap.

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

Nathan C. Myers, Paul J. Friesz. 2019-07-31. Hydrogeologic framework and delineation of transient areas contributing recharge and zones of contribution to selected wells in the upper Santa Fe Group aquifer, southeastern Albuquerque, New Mexico, 1900–2050. https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20195052

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related USGS reports

USGS2026

Baseline water-quality inventory and summary for the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park, New Jersey

The Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park (PAGR), established in 2011 in the City of Paterson, New Jersey, contains many cultural, historical, and natural resources. Because of the PAGR’s young age and limited resources, a long record of natural resource data is not available for use to guide future park management and planning decisions. A detailed natural resource inventory was identified as an immediate need in the “Foundation Document—Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park,” given the history of extensive industrial activity throughout the PAGR and the Passaic River Basin. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the National Park Service and the Urban Waters Federal Partnership for the Lower Passaic River, inventoried water-quality monitoring efforts and compiled historical water-quality data from secondary data sources to define baseline conditions in the PAGR and the surrounding study area. This report documents the methods used to harmonize water-quality data aggregated from multiple sources for the PAGR study area. Procedures implemented during data harmonization include compiling data from multiple sources, assessing the dataset for completeness, addressing metadata concerns, and creating a consistent and quality-assured dataset for future analysis. The harmonized dataset contains 14 aggregated surface-water sites, 1,103 individual sampling days, and 32,000 water-quality records throughout the period of record defined for this study (1952–2021). Summary statistics and comparison to water-quality criteria are provided for focus parameters that can support PAGR management, including field properties, suspended material, total dissolved solids, specific conductance, chloride, sulfate, Escherichia coli, nutrients, contaminants of concern related to fish consumption advisories, and litter and floatable debris. A spatial data gap was identified for the recreational area near the base of the Great Falls and immediately downstream from a known combined sewer overflow discharge location. Analytic data gaps were identified for continuous streamflow and water-quality parameters, floatable debris characterization, and harmful algal blooms identification. Continuous collection of contaminants of concern was identified as a temporal data gap, as these parameters were not consistently collected within the study area. The water-quality data synthesis and summary presented in this report can assist PAGR staff in understanding the complex baseline water resources within the study area and can serve as a baseline to design future water-quality monitoring efforts and evaluate changes in water quality over time. The harmonized dataset, as well as future New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and New Jersey Harbor Discharge Group monitoring data and assessments, can also be used to examine the status and trends in surface-water quality, support compliance with the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.), and further investigate changes to park water resources that can affect ecological and human health.

New Jersey↗
USGS2026

Slip tendency and dilation tendency of Quaternary faults in the Great Basin region, Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming

This report presents the results of slip tendency and dilation tendency analysis of Quaternary faults in the Great Basin region, in the states of Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming. This effort was undertaken as part of two studies: the U.S. Department of Energy Geothermal Technologies Office-funded Innovative Geothermal Exploration through Novel Investigations of Undiscovered Systems (INGENIOUS) project, which is a multidisciplinary, multi-institution effort to develop new methodologies and best practices to accelerate the discovery of new, commercially viable hydrothermal resources; and the U.S. Geological Survey Geothermal Resources Investigations Project. The goal of this work is to identify faults and fault segments that are appropriately oriented to be stress-loaded for slip or to dilate under the ambient stress conditions. Both conditions may make such faults more likely to host permeability and fluid flow relative to other faults in the region. Slip tendency and dilation tendency were calculated for all fault segments in the study area from the U.S. Geological Survey Quaternary Fault and Fold Database. Results demonstrate that faults with high slip tendency and dilation tendency are common in the Great Basin region. The areas containing many high slip tendency and dilation tendency fault segments are associated with high strain rates. These areas also host a relatively high proportion of the known hydrothermal systems. This indicates that faults with high slip tendency and dilation tendency in areas with high strain-rate are potentially most prospective for hosting hydrothermal systems. The database published in coordination with this report contains the slip tendency and dilation tendency results data, including the fault geometry and stress data used to calculate these quantities, for both the Great Basin study area and the smaller INGENIOUS study area.

Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, ↗
USGS2026

A spatial analysis of the groundwater emergence flood hazard in Long Island, New York, and coastal areas surrounding Long Island Sound in New York, Connecticut, and Rhode Island

Long Island, New York, and nearby coastal areas surrounding Long Island Sound are densely populated and, like other coastal areas, are susceptible to flooding from several potential sources, including stormwater from precipitation events, tidal flooding and storm surge, and groundwater emergence flooding. Groundwater emergence fooding refers to the intersection of a rising water table with land surface or critical infrastructure. Many studies of flood drivers either neglect or only briefly discuss how shallow groundwater conditions may contribute to or exacerbate flood conditions. As a part of a comprehensive study of compound flood hazards in the coastal areas of Long Island and Long Island Sound, a spatial analysis was completed by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Environmental Protection Agency’s Long Island Sound Partnership, formerly called the Long Island Sound Study, using available regional datasets to characterize the potential hazard for groundwater emergence flooding. The approximately 3,100 square mile study area was subdivided into 11,407 grid cells that were 900 meters by 900 meters (approximately 3,000 feet by 3,000 feet), for the purpose of integrating the spatial datasets to calculate and map the groundwater emergence flood hazard. The depth to the water table, hydrologic soil groups, and National Land Cover Database were harmonized to the common grid. A groundwater emergence flood hazard score was calculated for each grid cell for current average conditions following a set of rules accounting for the depth to the water table and the percentage of area within each cell with slow infiltrating soils. A scenario with a higher sea-level position was also calculated for the Long Island part of the study area. The calculated groundwater emergence flood hazard score was reviewed in conjunction with the National Land Cover Database to identify developed areas and associated infrastructure that may be at risk of potential groundwater emergence flooding. Study results indicate that the groundwater emergence flood hazard is highest in coastal areas and near surface water where the water table is close to ground surface. Inland areas away from surface waterbodies are not likely to be exposed to groundwater emergence flooding. For Long Island, in the scenario with higher sea-level position, a greater groundwater emergence flood hazard is calculated for some locations closer to the coast and where land is submerged. Away from the coast and surface-water drainage, the groundwater emergence flood hazard is similar between the current average sea-level condition and the higher sea-level position scenario.

Connecticut, New York, Rhode Island↗