Preliminary map showing sand and gravel deposits of South Dakota
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
South Dakota↗
SEARCH · Geology Reports
Results for “Missouri Basin Study”
Search indexed USGS publications on groundwater, aquifers, geologic maps, mineral resources and earthquakes. Explore source records by subject and place.
Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.
Preliminary map showing sand and gravel deposits of Montana
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Montana↗
Preliminary map showing sand and gravel deposits of Nebraska
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Nebraska↗
Map showing construction materials and nonmetallic-mineral resources of Wyoming
No abstract available.
Wyoming↗
Effects of Impoundments and Land-Cover Changes on Streamflows and Selected Fish Habitat in the Upper Osage River Basin, Missouri and Kansas
A study was conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Conservation to estimate the effects of existing and proposed impoundments, land-cover changes, and reported water uses on streamflows in the 5,410-square mile upper Osage River Basin. The hydrologic model Hydrologic Simulation Program-FORTRAN (HSPF) was calibrated and validated to current (1995?2004 water years) regulation and water-use conditions, and scenarios were developed to evaluate differences for the same 10-years of record under pre-settlement, and proposed impoundment conditions. Analyses included quantification of changes in the magnitude, frequency, timing, and duration of streamflows under each simulation scenario. Streamflows from the simulations were used in conjunction with known streamflow-fish habitat relations to quantify effects of altered flows on fish-habitat area at selected Marais des Cygnes and Marmaton River locations. The cumulative effects of impoundments and land-cover changes were determined to substantially alter streamflows in the upper Osage River Basin model simulations spanning pre-settlement to proposed future conditions. The degree of streamflow alteration varied between major subbasins. Streamflows in the Marais des Cygnes River Basin were altered between pre-settlement and current conditions, primarily by major impoundments, with smaller changes expected with proposed regulation. Streamflows in the Little Osage River Basin were relatively unchanged between pre-settlement and current conditions with land-cover changes (primarily the conversion of native prairies to cultivated land) affecting flows more than the few current impoundments in this basin. The current peak flows in the Marmaton River Basin generally were higher than pre-settlement or proposed scenario peak flows. Of the three major subbasins, the Marmaton River Basin is likely to be the most affected by proposed impoundments. Declines in monthly minimum streamflows under a proposed impoundment scenario at the Marais des Cygnes River near the Kansas-Missouri state line, Kansas, were greatest for the lowest 10 percent of corresponding observed flows and during the driest years (2000, 2001 water years); that is, the greatest percent declines in flows under proposed conditions generally occurred during the lowest current/observed flow periods. In a small headwater basin in the Marmaton River Basin, simulated declines in minimum flows were small (generally less than 6 cubic feet per second and less than 1 cubic foot per second for 1- and 3-day scenarios), but resulted in 10 to 18 additional zero flow days for the 10-year simulation for the proposed scenarios relative to current simulated conditions. Reductions in minimum monthly flows as a result of additional impoundments generally were less than 5 cubic feet per second at the Marmaton River near Marmaton, Kansas, and resulted in 6 additional zero flow days. The greatest declines between proposed and current flows at the Marmaton River near the Kansas-Missouri state line, Missouri, generally occurred in the lower 50 percentile of the distribution of current simulated flows and during the drier simulation years (2001?2003). Proposed conditions resulted in declines in the 0-10 percentile flow values for the 1-, 3-, and 7-day durations. July, August, and October had the largest declines in proposed low flows relative to current simulated low flows for the 10-year simulation at this site. The flood frequency for the Marais des Cygnes River near the Kansas-Missouri state line was unchanged between observed and proposed conditions for the 10-year simulation, but was 450 percent greater under the pre-settlement scenarios compared to observed conditions. Flood frequency generally was greatest for the current condition scenarios in the Marmaton River Basin and least for the proposed conditions, although the effects of regulation on flood frequency decreased downstream from the Kansas-
Scientific Investigations Report↗
Drainage areas for selected stream-sampling stations, Missouri River Basin
As part of the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment Program (NAWQA), an investigation of the Missouri River Basin is being conducted to document trends in surface-water quality, specifically for trends in nutrients and suspended sediment. Surface-water samples were collected from streams at specific sampling stations. Water-quality characteristics at each station are influenced by the natural and cultural characteristics of the drainage area upstream from the sampling station. Efficient quantification of the drainage area characteristics requires a digital map of the drainage area boundary that may be processed, together with other digital thematic maps (such as geology or land use), in a geographic information system (GIS). Digital drainage-area boundary data for one stream-sampling station in the Missouri River Basin (MRB4) study area is included in this data release. The drainage divides were identified chiefly using 1:24,000-scale hypsography.
Colorado;Iowa;Kansas;Montana;Nebraska;North Dakota↗
Assessment of macroinvertebrate communities in adjacent urban stream basins, Kansas City, Missouri, metropolitan area, 2007 through 2011
Macroinvertebrates were collected as part of two separate urban water-quality studies from adjacent basins, the Blue River Basin (Kansas City, Missouri), the Little Blue River and Rock Creek Basins (Independence, Missouri), and their tributaries. Consistent collection and processing procedures between the studies allowed for statistical comparisons. Seven Blue River Basin sites, nine Little Blue River Basin sites, including Rock Creek, and two rural sites representative of Missouri ecological drainage units and the area’s ecoregions were used in the analysis. Different factors or levels of urban intensity may affect the basins and macroinvertebrate community metrics differently, even though both basins are substantially developed above their downstream streamgages (Blue River, 65 percent; Little Blue River, 52 percent). The Blue River has no flood control reservoirs and receives wastewater effluent and stormflow from a combined sewer system. The Little Blue River has flood control reservoirs, receives no wastewater effluent, and has a separate stormwater sewer system. Analysis of macroinvertebrate community structure with pollution-tolerance metrics and water-quality parameters indicated differences between the Blue River Basin and the Little Blue River Basin. A four-metric score (total taxa richness, Ephemeroptera plus Plecoptera plus Trichoptera taxa richness, Macroinvertebrate Biotic Index, and Shannon Diversity Index) for richest-targeted habitat was used to calculate a Stream Condition Index (SCI) in order to evaluate the aquatic-life status of the streams. About 80 percent of all samples combined were determined to be less than fully biologically supporting, and about 11 percent of spring samples were fully biologically supporting. No sites within the Blue River Basin had a fully supporting score. The aquatic-life status scores for the Little Blue River and its tributaries were higher (indicating more optimal conditions) than for the Blue River and its tributaries. Fall samples scored higher than spring samples. However, fall samples were collected at the Little Blue River Basin and rural sites only. The Little Blue River sites scored higher for fall samples than spring samples; about 39 percent fully biologically supporting and 61 percent partially biologically supporting; more similar to the rural comparison sites, 40 percent fully biologically supporting and 60 percent partially biologically supporting. The SCI was compared to other multimetric indices with more or other component metrics to determine if the SCI effectively described differences among sites. Environmental variables (streamflow, water quality, land use, impervious cover, and population density) were used in statistical analyses to evaluate relations to macroinvertebrate metrics. Multimetric indices (MMIs) were modeled using step regression with a simple urban intensity index (SUII) based on percentage of impervious cover, population density, and forest cover in a 30-meter stream-buffer zone, and two were selected for further analysis. Three other multimetric indices composed of metrics common to local and national studies show results similar to the two modeled MMIs. A common Benthic Index of Biotic Integrity (R 2 equals 0.71) developed for a national study had the highest correlation with urban intensity as measured with the SUII, followed by a modeled 6-metric index (R 2 equals 0.61). The other MMIs and the SCI explained less than a half of the variability in macroinvertebrate communities in relation to the SUII. Wastewater-treatment plant discharges during base flow, which elevated specific conductance and nutrient concentrations, combined sewer overflows, and nonpoint sources likely contributed to water-quality impairment and lower aquatic-life status at the Blue River Basin sites. Releases from upstream reservoirs to the Little Blue River likely decreased specific conductance, suspended-sediment, and dissolved constituent concentrations and may have benefitted water quality and aquatic life of main-stem sites. Chloride concentrations in base-flow samples, attributable to winter road salt application, had the highest correlation with the SUII (Spearman’s ρ equals 0.87), were negatively correlated with the SCI (Spearman’s ρ equals -0.53) and several pollution sensitive Ephemeroptera plus Plecoptera plus Trichoptera abundance and percent richness metrics, and were positively correlated with pollution tolerant Oligochaeta abundance and percent richness metrics. Study results show that the easily calculated SUII and the selected modeled multimetric indices are effective for comparing urban basins and for evaluation of water quality in the Kansas City metropolitan area.
Missouri↗
Hydrology and model study of the proposed Prosperity Reservoir, Center Creek Basin, southwestern Missouri
A dam and reservoir have been proposed for construction on Center Creek, Jasper County, in southwestern Missouri. Ground-water levels in the hills adjacent to the reservoir will rise when the impoundment is completed. One of the problems is that the proposed site of Prosperity Reservoir is a few miles upstream from the lead-zinc mining area known as the Oronogo-Duenweg belt. In this belt transmissivities are variable but appear to be higher than they are in the immediate area of the reservoir. Grove Creek lies down-gradient from the reservoir area and separates it from the mining belt. A model study indicates that inflow from the proposed reservoir to the water table could cause water level rises varying from about 20 feet near the reservoir to 0.5 to 1.0 foot in the southern part of Grove Creek drainage basin. These rises will cause significant changes to the natural ground-water flow system. Increased ground-water elevations in the reservoir area could result in increased ground-water gradients and discharge to Grove and Center Creeks. The increase in ground-water discharge to Grove Creek, and in turn Center Creek, will have the beneficial effect of diluting mine-water discharge from the Oronogo-Duenweg belt during periods of low flow. However, if Grove Creek does not act as an effective drain and if conduits extend beneath Grove Creek to transfer the increased water available to the Oronogo-Duenweg belt, the flow regimen could change in the mining belt west of Grove Creek increasing mine-water discharge to Center Creek downstream from the reservoir. Bedrock in the area is Mississippian limestone, the deeply solutioned formation that contained the ore deposits. The limestone in the mining district was greatly altered by solution prior to ore deposition while the limestone in the area of the reservoir was altered less. The extent of the alteration is related to the aquifer characteristics in that high and low values of transmissivity and storage coefficient correspond to greatly altered brecciated rocks in the mining district and less altered, less brecciated rocks in the reservoir area, respectively. The authors suggest that an ancestral east-flowing White River drained the area about Joplin in Late Mississippian time. This is based on the configuration of the contact between Meramecian and Osagean rocks of Mississippian age. A high topographic area existed in the region about Joplin in which the water table stood 200 feet below the land surface when sinkholes and caverns of that depth were formed. The large number of Pennsylvanian-filled sinkholes in the Joplin area and the smaller number to the east suggest a higher land surface to the west than that to the east. The distribution of paleokarst sinkholes supports the conclusion based on the configuration of the Meramecian-Osagean contact.
Missouri↗
Progress report on the geology and ground-water hydrology of part of the Oahe Unit, James River Division, South Dakota
The Oahe Unit, in the James River basin in eastern South Dakota, extends for about 100 miles north and south and is 20 to 80 miles wide, having the river as its east border. The Oahe irrigation project is planned to supply water to 750,000 to 1,500,000 acres of the most suitable land within the area. The studies that have been undertaken in the Oahe area by the Ground Water Division of the U. S. Geological Survey form a part of the investigations which are being carried on by several bureaus of the Department of the Interior and other government agencies for the conservation, control and utilization of the water resources of the Missouri River Basin. The field studies on which the present report is based were made during May 1947 through November 1948 and cover about 1,890 square miles in the southern part of the Oahe area. Data were collected on the character of the surficial geological deposits, and on the occurrence, movement, quantity, and quality of the groundwater supplies. The report describes the several water-bearing formations and presents nine typical logs of deep artesian wells. The records of fluctuation of the water table in 168 wells in or near the Oahe area are listed. Tabulated inventory of 3,257 wells and springs includes information on the observation wells and on all other wells that were noted within the area examined.
South Dakota↗
Water levels in observation wells in part of Montana, 1946-1953
Ground-water investigations were made by the Ground Water Branch, U. S. Geological Survey, from 1946 to 1954, inclusive, in several parts of Montana. These studies were made as part of the program of the Department of the Interior for development of the Missouri River Basin. Thus, the areas selected for study were principally those in which construction agencies such as the U.S. Bureau or Reclamation and the U. S. Bureau of Indian Affairs had problems relating to ground water. Figure 1 shows the areas in Montana in which ground-water studies have been made under the Missouri Basin Program from 1946 to 1954, inclusive.
Montana↗
Relations among geology, physiography, land use, and stream habitat conditions in the Buffalo and Current River systems, Missouri and Arkansas
This study investigated links between drainage-basin characteristics and stream habitat conditions in the Buffalo National River, Arkansas and the Ozark National Scenic Riverways, Missouri. It was designed as an associative study - the two parks were divided into their principle tributary drainage basins and then basin-scale and stream-habitat data sets were gathered and compared between them. Analyses explored the relative influence of different drainage-basin characteristics on stream habitat conditions. They also investigated whether a relation between land use and stream characteristics could be detected after accounting for geologic and physiographic differences among drainage basins. Data were collected for three spatial scales: tributary drainage basins, tributary stream reaches, and main-stem river segments of the Current and Buffalo Rivers. Tributary drainage-basin characteristics were inventoried using a Geographic Information System (GIS) and included aspects of drainage-basin physiography, geology, and land use. Reach-scale habitat surveys measured channel longitudinal and cross-sectional geometry, substrate particle size and embeddedness, and indicators of channel stability. Segment-scale aerial-photo based inventories measured gravel-bar area, an indicator of coarse sediment load, along main-stem rivers. Relations within and among data sets from each spatial scale were investigated using correlation analysis and multiple linear regression. Study basins encompassed physiographically distinct regions of the Ozarks. The Buffalo River system drains parts of the sandstone-dominated Boston Mountains and of the carbonate-dominated Springfield and Salem Plateaus. The Current River system is within the Salem Plateau. Analyses of drainage-basin variables highlighted the importance of these physiographic differences and demonstrated links among geology, physiography, and land-use patterns. Buffalo River tributaries have greater relief, steeper slopes, and more streamside bluffs than the Current River tributaries. Land use patterns in both river systems correlate with physiography - cleared land area is negatively associated with drainage-basin average slope. Both river systems are dominantly forested (0-35 per-cent cleared land), however, the potential for landscape disturbance may be greater in the Buffalo River system where a larger proportion of cleared land occurs on steep slopes (>15 degrees). When all drainage basins are grouped together, reach-scale channel characteristics show the strongest relations with drainage-basin physiography. Bankfull channel geometry and residual pool dimensions are positively correlated with drainage area and topographic relief variables. After accounting for differences in drainage area, channel dimensions in Buffalo River tributaries tend to be larger than in Current River tributaries. This trend is consistent with the flashy runoff and large storm flows that can be generated in rugged, sandstone-dominate terrain. Substrate particle size is also most strongly associated with physiography; particle size is positively correlated with topographic relief variables. When tributaries are subset by river system, relations with geology and land use variables become apparent. Buffalo River tributaries with larger proportions of carbonate bedrock and cleared land area have shallower channels, better-sorted, gravel-rich substrate, and more eroding banks than those with little cleared land and abundant sandstone bedrock. Gravel-bar area on the Buffalo River main stem was also larger within 1-km of carbonate-rich tributary junctions. Because geology and cleared land are themselves correlated, relations with anthropogenic and natural factors could often not be separated. Channel characteristics in the Current River system show stronger associations with physiography than with land use. Channels are shallower and have finer substrates in the less rugged, karst-rich, western basins than in the
Arkansas, Missouri↗
The patchwork governance of ecologically available water: A case study in the Upper Missouri Headwaters, Montana, United States
Institutional authority and responsibility for allocating water to ecosystems (“ecologically available water” [EAW]) is spread across local, state, and federal agencies, which operate under a range of statutes, mandates, and planning processes. We use a case study of the Upper Missouri Headwaters Basin in southwestern Montana, United States, to illustrate this fragmented institutional landscape. Our goals are to (a) describe the patchwork of agencies and institutional actors whose intersecting authorities and actions influence the EAW in the study basin; (b) describe the range of governance mechanisms these agencies use, including laws, policies, administrative programs, and planning processes; and (c) assess the extent to which the collective governance regime creates gaps in responsibility. We find the water governance regime includes a range of nested mechanisms that in various ways facilitate or hinder the governance of EAW. We conclude the current multilevel governance regime leaves certain aspects of EAW unaddressed and does not adequately account for the interconnections between water in different parts of the ecosystem, creating integrative gaps. We suggest that more intentional and robust coordination could provide a means to address these gaps.
Montana↗
Temporal changes in nutrient concentrations in the Lower Grand River and selected drainage basins, Missouri and Iowa, during the Mississippi River Basin Healthy Watersheds Initiative (2010–23)
This report describes a cooperative study by the U.S. Geological Survey and Missouri Department of Natural Resources that evaluated temporal changes in total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) concentrations in the Lower Grand River hydrologic unit. The study focused on trends since 2010, when the basin was designated as a priority drainage basin of the Mississippi River Basin Healthy Watersheds Initiative (MRBI). At three local drainage basins within the Lower Grand hydrological unit (MRBI sites), stream nutrient trends were evaluated using flow-adjusted (FA) TN and TP concentrations for water years 2011 through 2023. FATN concentration trends were not statistically significant for any MRBI site. One site (site 2) showed a statistically significant increasing trend in FATP concentration, indicating a possible increase in phosphorus sources in parts of the basin. Overall, streamflow variability appeared to be the dominant factor affecting nutrient concentrations at MRBI sites. At five regional drainage basins, including the Grand River and nearby rivers with data from 1994 through 2023 (long-term sites), annual flow-normalized (FN) TN and TP concentrations were evaluated for trends before (water years 2000–10) and during (water years 2010–23) the MRBI. For water years 2010 through 2023, annual FNTN and FNTP concentrations decreased in the Grand River, as well as in the Nodaway and Chariton Rivers, which were not targeted by the MRBI. The Grand River (site 9) reversed from increasing to decreasing FNTP concentrations after 2010, with a 26-percent reduction. Annual FNTN and FNTP concentrations also decreased at the Missouri River sites. While nutrient reductions in the Grand River may reflect the effects of implemented conservation practices, similar trends in nearby, nontargeted rivers and the absence of strong decreasing trends at MRBI sites suggest that broader regional factors, instead of or in addition to MRBI efforts, may have contributed to nutrient reductions in the Grand River.
Iowa, Missouri↗
An initial abstraction and constant loss model, and methods for estimating unit hydrographs, peak streamflows, and flood volumes for urban basins in Missouri
Streamflow data, basin characteristics, and rainfall data from 39 streamflow-gaging stations for urban areas in and adjacent to Missouri were used by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Metropolitan Sewer District of St. Louis to develop an initial abstraction and constant loss model (a time-distributed basin-loss model) and a gamma unit hydrograph (GUH) for urban areas in Missouri. Study-specific methods to determine peak streamflow and flood volume for a given rainfall event also were developed. Distinct basin characteristics were evaluated and selected for use on the basis of their theoretical relation to flow, results from previous studies, and the ability to reliably measure the basin characteristic using digital datasets and geographic information system (GIS) technology. The key basin characteristics determined or computed for each of the 39 basins upstream from the streamflow-gaging stations were drainage area, percent impervious area, main-channel slope based on the 10- and 85-percent length method, percentage of the basin area in storage (lakes, ponds, reservoirs, wetlands), the composite Natural Resources Conservation Service curve number estimated from a combination of the soil type data and land-use characteristics, and the streamflow variability index developed for the recently completed study of low-flow regression in Missouri. Characteristics of spatial and temporal rainfall distribution came from the next generation weather radar (NEXRAD) network. Procedures were developed for this study to convert the variable radar sweep rate into a 5-minute total rainfall hyetograph using data from the radar bin at the centroid of a given basin. Additional characteristics determined for each storm on the basin included the 5-day and 14-day antecedent rainfall, estimated from the mean of daily rainfall values from various rain gages in the area. The database of observed rainfall and runoff events for the 39 basins upstream from the streamflow-gaging stations was analyzed to compute the optimal storm-specific initial abstraction and constant loss values, as well as the time to peak, peak streamflow, and shape factor values of the GUH. The optimal storm-specific values were used to develop a regional regression equation for initial abstraction; conversely, the constant loss was estimated not by regression but from either a generalized or specific regional mean value. The optimal storm-specific values of GUH time to peak, GUH peak streamflow, and GUH shape factor were used to develop regression equations for the GUH. The regression equations for the GUH initially were tested alone, and then were combined with the appropriate regional regression equation for initial abstraction and both the generalized regional and specific regional mean constant loss values. For the GUH regression equations, the interquartile range was substantially smaller than the range spanned by the minimum and maximum values, which indicates most of the errors have much smaller variation, and the minimum and maximum values may be extreme outliers. The central tendency of the regressed errors for peak streamflow and runoff hydrograph volume were both approximately zero, which implies a generally unbiased estimation of these values. The mean and median of the regressed errors for time to peak streamflow were both small but greater than zero, which implies the GUH regression equations create a hydrograph that has a peak that is later in time than observed. Specifically, the regressed times indicate an offset of about 10 minutes, on average, from observed. The mean and median of the regressed errors for widths of the runoff hydrograph at 50 and 75 percent were less than zero, which implies the GUH tends to slightly underestimate these widths compared to the observed. The appropriate regional initial abstraction regression equation was combined with both the generalized and the specific regional mean constant loss values and the GUH regression equations. Both the generalized regional mean constant loss and specific regional mean constant loss forms of the basin-loss model worked equally well to model the observed runoff hydrograph based on the error analysis, and neither model seems to make a consistently better approximation. Both initial abstraction and constant loss models combined with the GUH regression equations were further validated using several storms available after the start of the project in early 2011 with similar but consistently higher error results. If these methods are used in an urban area in Missouri other than those examined in this study, advice to the user is given to consider using the generalized regional mean values. If these methods are used in an urban area that is a subbasin of one of the basins in this study, advice to the user is given to consider using the specific regional mean values. The rainfall-runoff pairs from the storm-specific GUH analysis were further analyzed against various basin and rainfall characteristics to develop equations to estimate the peak streamflow and flood volume based on a quantity of rainfall on the basin.
Missouri↗
Satellite remote sensing of crop water use across the Missouri River Basin for 1986–2018 period
Understanding historical crop water use (CWU) dynamics is important to improve land and water management. In this study, well-validated (coefficient of determination = 0.91, percent bias = 4%, and percent root mean square error = 11.8%) Landsat-based actual evapotranspiration (ETa) time-series estimations were used to (1) assess summer season CWU (CWU-Su) dynamics, (2) investigate CWU-Su trends over the study period (1986–2018; 33 years) at the regional- and pixel-scales, and (3) attribute CWU-Su driving factors across Missouri River Basin. Spatial variability of the ETa estimations along with the observed bimodal probability density distribution of ETa highlighted a strong relation between land cover and water uses across the basin. The bimodal distribution of ETa also indicated the presence of two major landcovers in the basin. The drier foothill regions in northwestern Missouri River Basin, dominated by grassland/shrubland, showed lower ETa (< 500 mm/year), whereas cropland dominated regions in lower semi-humid basin and forested subbasins exhibited higher ETa (> 600 mm/year). The CWU-Su anomalies revealed the vulnerability of the basin to year-to-year weather conditions. The CWU-Su trend analysis revealed a significant positive trend (p < 0.1) at the regional-scale affecting 30% of basin’s cropland pixels. The cropland pixels under positive CWU-Su trend were found to be clustered in the eastern and central Missouri River Basin as a result of the combined effect of increased crop production area, increased crop yields, crop practice shifts to higher biomass crops, and increased irrigated land. The effect of improved irrigation and water management practices on reducing CWU-Su was observed in western Missouri River Basin, which had a stable major crop throughout the study period. Overall, the study highlights the usefulness of Landsat imagery and remote sensing-based ETa modeling approaches in generating historical time-series ETa maps over a wide range of elevation, vegetation, and climate.
Missouri River Basin↗
Water-resources activities of the U.S. Geological Survey in South Dakota; fiscal years 1986-87
In South Dakota, the first collection of streamflow data by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) was in 1903. Despite its early beginning, it was not until October 16, 1944, that the Bismarck District, comprising the states of North Dakota and South Dakota , was created to assess the water resources of the two states. The next major increase in collection of surface water records occurred during the mid-1940 's as a result of the Pick-Sloan Plan for Missouri Basin development. Since 1944, about 98 water resources studies have been made in South Dakota. These range from reconnaissance-type studies of counties and Indian reservations to research on small basin runoff and toxic wastes, the quality of water in lakes, the use of remote sensing for defining aquifers, and studies using digital models to describe the groundwater regimen and surface water hydraulics such as those currently underway in the James River basin and the Big Sioux River basin. During the past 20 years, 140 formal reports describing the studies and results of investigations have been prepared to inform the public and the scientific community. The location of surface water stations and observation wells in bedrock are tabulated. Brief (1 page) descriptions of current water resources projects in South Dakota include information on the location, purpose, period of performance, cooperating agencies, project leader, and completed reports. (Lantz-PTT)
Open-File Report↗
Water resources of the Lake Traverse Reservation, South and North Dakota, and Roberts County, South Dakota
In 1994, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux Tribe; Roberts County; and the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Geological Survey Program, began a 6-year investigation to describe and quantify the water resources of the area within the 1867 boundary of the Lake Traverse Reservation and adjacent parts of Roberts County. Roberts County is located in extreme northeastern South Dakota, and the 1867 boundary of the Lake Traverse Reservation encompasses much of Roberts County and parts of Marshall, Day, Codington, and Grant Counties in South Dakota and parts of Richland and Sargent Counties in southeast North Dakota. This report includes descriptions of the quantity, quality, and availability of surface and ground water, the extent of the major glacial and bedrock aquifers and named outwash groups, and surface- and ground-water uses within the 1867 boundary of the Lake Traverse Reservation and adjacent parts of Roberts County. The surface-water resources within the 1867 boundary of the Lake Traverse Reservation and adjacent parts of Roberts County include rivers, streams, lakes, and wetlands. The Wild Rice and Bois de Sioux Rivers are tributaries of the Red River within the Souris-Red-Rainy River Basin; the Little Minnesota, Jorgenson, and North Fork Whetstone Rivers are tributaries of the Minnesota River within the Upper Mississippi River Basin, and the James and Big Sioux Rivers are tributaries within the Missouri River Basin. Several of the larger lakes within the study area have been developed for recreation, while many of the smaller lakes and wetlands are used for livestock watering or as wildlife production areas. Statistical summaries are presented for the water-quality data of six selected streams within the study area, and the dominant chemical species are listed for 17 selected lakes within the study area. The glacial history of the study area has led to a rather complex system of glacial aquifers. The boundaries of 11 aquifers and 6 named outwash groups were delineated based on hydrogeologic cross sections, water levels, and water-quality similarities/dissimilarities. The glacial aquifers include Coteau Lakes system, Big Sioux, Alta-mont, Revillo, James, Veblen system, Spiritwood, Hankinson, Rosholt, Milnor Channel, and Fairmount; the bedrock aquifer included in this report is the Dakota. Named outwash groups include the Prairie Coteau, Lonesome Lake, Marday, Eden, Roslyn, and Wilmot. A summary of the character-istics of each of the major aquifers and outwash groups and a summary of selected chemical analyses for each aquifer and outwash group are presented. All aquifers and outwash groups in the study area have either moderately hard or very hard water and are considered fresh to slightly saline. One or more water samples from some of the aquifers and outwash groups have a constituent that was above the recommended or mandatory limit for drinking water. Most aquifers and outwash groups have dissolved solids and sulfate contents above the recommended levels of 500 and 250 mg/L (milligrams per liter), respectively. The Dakota aquifer was the only one to have a mean chloride concentration above the recommended level of 250 mg/L. Nitrate concentrations greater than the mandatory limit of 10 mg/L were found in the Big Sioux aquifer and the Coteau Lakes and Veblen aquifer systems. Concentrations of arsenic greater than 10 ?g/L (micrograms per liter) were found in the Coteau Lakes and Veblen aquifer systems, and in the Rosholt and Fairmount aquifers. Municipalities and rural water systems currently provide most of the water used in the study area-nearly all of it from ground-water sources. Surface-water use is limited to livestock watering. About 55 percent of the total water used in Roberts County is for domestic purposes, with most domestic users served by a public supply system. Irrigation accounts for about 10 percent of the total water used. All
North Dakota, South Dakota↗