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At least 505 records · Page 28Linked to original sources
USGS2013

Progress toward establishing a national assessment of water availability and use

The Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-11) was passed into law on March 30, 2009. Subtitle F, also known as the SECURE Water Act, calls for the establishment of a "national water availability and use assessment program" within the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). A major driver for this recommendation was that national water availability and use have not been comprehensively assessed since 1978. This report fulfills a requirement to report to Congress on progress in implementing the national water availability and use assessment program, also referred to as the National Water Census. The SECURE Water Act authorized \$20 million for each of fiscal years (FY) 2009 through 2023 for assessment of national water availability and use. The first appropriation for this effort was \$4 million in FY 2011, followed by an appropriation of \$6 million in FY 2012. The National Water Census synthesizes and reports information at the regional and national scales, with an emphasis on compiling and reporting the information in a way that is useful to states and others responsible for water management and natural-resource issues. The USGS works with Federal and non-Federal agencies, universities, and other organizations to ensure that the information can be aggregated with other types of water-availability and socioeconomic information, such as data on food and energy production. To maximize the utility of the information, the USGS coordinates the design and development of the effort through the Federal Advisory Committee on Water Information. A National Water Census is a complex undertaking, particularly because there are major gaps in the information needed to conduct such an assessment. To maximize progress, the USGS engaged stakeholders in a discussion of priorities and leveraged existing studies and program activities to enhance efforts toward the development of a National Water Census.

Circular↗
USGS1986

Development of a water-use data system in Minnesota

The Minnesota State Legislature passed laws as early as 1937 to regulate use of Minnesota's ground water and surface water through a permit system. Several unsuccessful attempts were made to computerize water-use data reported to the State. The U.S. Geological Survey, through the National Water-Use Information Program, assisted the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the Minnesota State Planning Agency, Land Management Information Center, in developing MWUDS (Minnesota Water-Use Data System). The Minnesota Water-Use Data System stores data on the quantity of individual annual water withdrawals and discharges in relation to the water resources affected, provides descriptors for aggregation of data and trend analysis, and enables access to additional data contained in other data bases. MWUDS is stored on a computer at the Land Management Information Center, an agency associated with the State Planning Agency. Interactive menu-driven programs simplify data entry, update, and retrieval and are easy to use. Estimates of unreported water use supplement reported water use to completely describe the stress on the hydrologic system. Links or common elements developed in the MWUDS enable access to data available in other State waterrelated data bases, forming a water-resource information system. Water-use information can be improved by developing methods for increasing accuracy of reported water use and refining methods for estimating unreported water use.

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS2014

Assessment of Appalachian basin oil and gas resources: Utica-Lower Paleozoic Total Petroleum System

The Utica-Lower Paleozoic Total Petroleum System (TPS) in the Appalachian Basin Province is named for the Upper Ordovician Utica Shale, which is the source rock, and for multiple lower Paleozoic sandstone and carbonate units that are the important reservoirs. The total organic carbon (TOC) values for the Utica Shale are usually greater than 1 weight percent. TOC values ranging from 2 to 3 weight percent outline a broad, northeast-trending area that extends across western and southern Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio, northern West Virginia, and southeastern New York. The Utica Shale is characterized by type II kerogen, which is a variety of kerogen that is typically prone to oil generation. Conondont color-alteration index (CAI) isograds, which are based on samples from the Upper Ordovician Trenton Limestone (or Group), indicate that a pod of mature Utica Shale source rocks occupies most of the TPS. The following strata (in ascending stratigraphic order) are the most important reservoir rocks for oil and gas in the Utica-Lower Paleozoic TPS: (1) the Upper Cambrian Copper Ridge dolomite in Ohio; (2) the Upper Cambrian Rose Run sandstone in Ohio; (3) the Upper Ordovician Black River Limestone (or Group) and Trenton Limestone in New York, West Virginia, and Ohio; (4) the Lower Silurian “Clinton” sandstone, Medina sandstone, Medina Group sandstones, and Tuscarora Sandstone in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and West Virginia; and (5) the Lower and Upper Silurian Lockport Dolomite (also known as the Newburg zone) in Ohio. Strata containing oil and gas reservoirs of secondary importance are sandstone reservoirs in the Upper Ordovician Queenston Shale in New York, the Upper Ordovician Bald Eagle Sandstone in Pennsylvania, and the Upper Silurian Williamsport Sandstone (also known as the Newburg sandstone) in West Virginia. The Upper Ordovician Utica Shale may be an important gas and oil(?) reservoir in the future. In about 2011, after this report was written, commercial natural gas and oil was discovered in the Utica Shale in eastern Ohio. Both conventional oil and gas resources and continuous (unconventional) gas resources are present in the UticaLower Paleozoic TPS. Conventional oil and gas resources in the Utica-Lower Paleozoic TPS were assessed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in 2002 in the following assessment units (AU): (1) the Lower Paleozoic Carbonates in Thrust Belt AU, (2) the Knox Unconformity AU, (3) the Black River-Trenton Hydrothermal Dolomite AU, and (4) the Lockport Dolomite AU. The total estimated undiscovered oil and gas resources for these four AUs, at a mean value, was about 46 million barrels of oil (MMBO) and about 3 trillion cubic feet of gas (TCFG), respectively. In contrast, continuous (unconventional) gas resources in the TPS were assessed by the USGS in 2002 in four AUs associated with the “Clinton” sandstone, Medina sandstone, Medina Group sandstones, Tuscarora Sandstone, and sandstones in the Queenston Shale. The total estimated undiscovered gas for these four AUs, at a mean value, was about 26.8 TCFG. A hypothetical Utica Shale AU for oil(?) and continuous gas is identified in this report. In 2012, the Utica Shale was recognized by the USGS as a continuous AU and was assessed by Kirschbaum and others (2012).

Appalachian basin, Utica-Lower Paleozoic Total Pet↗
USGS1997

Time of travel of solutes in the Sabine River basin, Texas, August-November 1996

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Sabine River Authority, did a time-of-travel study in the Sabine River Basin during low flow from August to November 1996. The study was done to provide accurate estimates of the time-of-travel and dispersion characteristics for solutes during low flow in a 1.8-mile (mi) reach of Grace Creek, a 23.9-mi reach of the mainstem Sabine River, a 3.4-mi reach of Hawkins Creek, and a 1.9-mi reach of Rocky Creek. This report explains the approach and documents the results of the study. The results of the study will be used by the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission in a water-quality model to determine waste-load allocation in Segment 0505 of the Sabine River Basin. The time-of-travel and dispersion characteristics also provide useful information on the probable behavior of soluble contaminants that might be introduced into the streams measured in this study.

Texas↗
USGS2017

Multiscale guidance and tools for implementing a landscape approach to resource management in the Bureau of Land Management

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is implementing a landscape approach to resource management (hereafter, landscape approach) to more effectively work with partners and understand the effects of management decisions. A landscape approach is a set of concepts and principles used to guide resource management when multiple stakeholders are involved and goals include diverse and sustainable social, environmental, and economic outcomes. Core principles of a landscape approach include seeking meaningful participation of diverse stakeholders, considering diverse resource values in multifunctional landscapes, acknowledging the tradeoffs needed to meet diverse objectives in the context of sustainable resource management, and addressing the complexity of social and ecological processes by embracing interdisciplinarity and considering multiple and broad spatial and temporal perspectives. In chapter 1, we outline the overall goal of this report: to provide a conceptual foundation and framework for implementing a landscape approach to resource management in the BLM, focusing on the role of multiscale natural resource monitoring and assessment information. In chapter 2, we describe a landscape approach to resource management. BLM actions taken to implement a landscape approach include a major effort to compile broad-scale data on natural resource status and condition across much of the west. These broadscale data now provide a regional context for interpreting monitoring data collected at individual sites and informing decisions made for local projects. We also illustrate the utility of using multiscale data to understand potential effects of different resource management decisions, define relevant terms in landscape ecology, and identify spatial scales at which planning and management decisions may be evaluated. In chapter 3, we describe how the BLM Rapid Ecoregional Assessment program and Assessment, Inventory and Monitoring program may be integrated to provide the multiscale monitoring data needed to inform a landscape approach. We propose six core, broad-scale indicators of natural resource status and condition: the amount, spatial distribution, patch size and connectivity of ecosystems and wildlife habitats, and the pattern of existing development across the landscape. Additional supplemental broad-scale indicators may include fire return intervals, distributions of invasive species, and vulnerability of ecosystems to a changing climate. Landscape intactness is an additional derived indicator that is calculated from one or more of the core and supplemental broad-scale indicators. We then outline a process for assessing broad-scale indicators that is consistent with the overall BLM Assessment, Inventory, and Monitoring process, facilitating development of a multiscale natural resource monitoring program. Finally, we describe how broad-scale indicators of natural resource status and condition may guide field monitoring implemented through the BLM Assessment, Inventory and Monitoring program and help address complex management questions. In chapter 4, we consider the specific question of assessing the ecological integrity of rangelands across the western United States. We first define ecological integrity and its relation to land health. We then suggest that a combination of six local-scale indicators collected through field sampling at individual sites and five complementary broad-scale indicators together provide information on the composition, structure, and function of rangelands. The terrestrial monitoring indicators collected at the level of individual field sites are the amount of bare ground, vegetation composition (including invasive plants and plants of management concern), vegetation height, and the proportion of the soil surface in large intercanopy gaps. The broad-scale indicators are vegetation amount, distribution, patch size, connectivity, and productivity, along with the pattern of terrestrial development. Our suggested approach to quantifying ecological integrity focuses specifically on informing management of public lands for multiple resource uses, and illustrates how existing data collected through BLM monitoring and assessment programs may be used together to provide multiscale information on land condition across broad extents. In chapter 5, we develop a method for quantifying landscape intactness and apply this method to the western United States. Our multiscale index of landscape intactness is designed to be defensible, decomposable, and easy to understand. The foundation of the multiscale index of landscape intactness is the surface disturbance footprint of anthropogenic development, including energy and urban development, roads and railroads, cultivated croplands, surface mines and quarries, and energy transmission lines and pipelines. The index represents a gradient of anthropogenic influence as represented by development summarized at two spatial scales of analysis: 2.5 and 20 kilometers. We provide several example applications of the index, illustrating how these data may inform natural resource decisions at the spatial extent of BLM field and district offices, states, ecoregions, and the western United States. We find that 19.2 percent of lands managed by the BLM across the 17 western states of the conterminous United States had the highest landscape intactness. The largest intact areas occur on public lands at high elevations or in the Great Basin. We believe the frameworks, processes, and analyses provided in this report will improve the ability of the BLM to identify and evaluate potential direct and indirect effects of management actions (such as habitat restoration and renewable energy development), and assist the BLM in further implementing a landscape approach to resource management.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2000

Water quality of selected springs and public-supply wells, Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, South Dakota, 1992-97

This report presents results of a water-quality study for the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, South Dakota. The study was a cooperative effort between the U.S. Geological Survey and the Water Resources Department of the Oglala Sioux Tribe. Discharge and water-quality data were collected during 1992-97 for 14 contact springs located in the northwestern part of the Reservation. Data were collected to evaluate potential alternative sources of water supply for the village of Red Shirt, which currently obtains water of marginal quality from a well completed in the Inyan Kara aquifer. During 1995-97, water-quality data also were collected for 44 public-supply wells that serve about one-half of the Reservation's population. Quality-assurance sampling was used to evaluate the precision and accuracy of environmental samples. Ten of the springs sampled contact the White River Group, and four contact the Pierre Shale. Springs contacting the White River Group range from calcium bicarbonate to sodium bicarbonate water types. Two springs contacting the Pierre Shale have water types similar to this; however, sulfate is the dominant anion for the other two springs. In general, springs contacting the White River Group are shown to have better potential as alternative sources of water supply for the village of Red Shirt than springs contacting the Pierre Shale. Nine of the springs with better water quality were sampled repeatedly; however, only minor variability in water quality was identified. Six of these nine springs, of which five contact the White River Group, probably have the best potential for use as water supplies. Discharge from any of these six springs probably would provide adequate water supply for Red Shirt during most periods, based on a limited number of discharge measurements collected. Concentrations of lead exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) action level of 15 µg/L for three of these six springs. Five of these six springs also had arsenic concentrations that exceeded 10 µg/L, which could be problematic if the current maximum contaminant level (MCL) is lowered. Blending of water from one or more springs with water from the existing Inyan Kara well may be an option to address concerns regarding both quantity and quality of existing and potential sources. All nine springs that were sampled for indicator bacteria had positive detections on one or more occasions during presumptive tests. Although USEPA standards for bacteria apply only to public-water supplies, local residents using spring water for domestic purposes need to be aware of the potential health risks associated with consuming untreated water. One spring contacting the White River Group and two springs contacting the Pierre Shale exceeded 15 pCi/L for gross alpha; these values do not necessarily constitute exceedances of the MCL, which excludes radioactivity contributed by uranium and radon. Additional sampling using different analysis techniques would be needed to conclusively determine if any samples exceeded this MCL. Nine springs were sampled for selected pesticides and tritium. The pesticides atrazine, carbaryl, and 2,4-D were not detected in any of the samples. The nine springs were analyzed for tritium in order to generally assess the age of the water and to determine if concentrations exceeded the MCL established for gross beta-particle activity. Tritium results indicated two springs are composed primarily of water recharged prior to atmospheric testing of nuclear bombs and two other springs have a relatively large percentage of test-era water. The remaining five springs had tritium values that indicated some percentage of test-era water; however, additional sampling would be needed to determine whether water is predominantly pre- or post-bomb age. Of the 44 public-supply wells sampled, 42 are completed in the Arikaree aquifer, one is completed in an alluvial aquifer, and one is completed in the Inyan Kara aquifer. Water from the alluvial well is a sodium bicarbonate water type, water from Arikaree aquifer ranges from calcium bicarbonate to sodium bicarbonate types, and water from the Inyan Kara well is a calcium sulfate bicarbonate type. Of the 44 wells sampled, 28 (64 percent) tested positive for indicator bacteria in presumptive tests. Because these were single samples that generally were collected upstream from chemical treatment feeders, positive detections do not necessarily constitute exceedances of drinking-water standards. A single sample from an Arikaree well exceeded the MCL for arsenic of 50 µg/L. Arsenic exceeded 10 µg/L for six additional Arikaree wells and for the alluvial well and the Inyan Kara well, which could be problematic if the current MCL is lowered. The alluvial well also exceeded the secondary maximum contaminant level (SMCL) for dissolved solids, which is non-enforceable, and the action level for lead. The Inyan Kara well exceeded the SMCL's for iron and for manganese and the MCL of 5 pCi/L for radium-226 and 228 combined. Several Arikaree wells exceeded SMCL's for either pH, sulfate, dissolved solids, iron, or manganese. One Arikaree well exceeded the MCL of 4.0 mg/L for fluoride and another exceeded the MCL of 10 mg/L for nitrite plus nitrate. Ten Arikaree wells equalled or exceeded 15 pCi/L for gross alpha; however, these values do not necessarily constitute exceedances of the MCL, which excludes radioactivity contributed by uranium and radon. Additional sampling using different analysis techniques would be needed to conclusively determine if any samples exceeded this MCL. Eight wells, all from the Arikaree aquifer, equalled or exceeded the proposed MCL of 20 µg/L for uranium and 33 wells (75 percent) equalled or exceeded one-half of the proposed MCL. Although this standard has only been proposed, additional information regarding the extent of elevated uranium concentrations in the Arikaree aquifer, and the geochemical processes involved, may be beneficial. It was determined from analyses of uranium isotope data for five wells that the source of elevated uranium concentrations is naturally occurring, rather than anthropogenic.

South Dakota↗
USGS2021

Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units program—2020 Year in review

Established in 1935, the Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units program (CRU program) is a unique cooperative partnership among State fish and wildlife agencies, universities, the Wildlife Management Institute, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Designed to meet the scientific needs of natural resource management agencies and the necessity for trained professionals in the growing field of wildlife management, the program has grown from the original 9 wildlife-only units to a program that today includes 40 Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units located on university campuses in 38 States. The partnerships that form each unit are some of the USGS’s strongest links to Federal and State land and natural resource agencies as mandated by the Cooperative Research and Training Units Act of 1960 (P.L. 86–686). This report highlights the activities and accomplishments of the program and its cooperators for calendar year 2020.

Circular↗
USGS2022

Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units program — 2021 year in review

Established in 1935, the Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units program is a unique cooperative partnership among State fish and wildlife agencies, universities, the Wildlife Management Institute, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Geological Survey. Designed to meet the scientific needs of natural resource management agencies and the necessity for trained professionals in the growing field of wildlife management, the program has grown from the original 9 wildlife-only units to a program that today includes 41 Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units located on university campuses in 39 States. The partnerships that form each unit are some of the USGS’s strongest links to Federal and State land and natural resource agencies as mandated by the Cooperative Research and Training Units Act of 1960 (P.L. 86–686). This report highlights the activities and accomplishments of the program and its cooperators for 2021.

Circular↗
USGS1994

Black Hills hydrology study

The Black Hills area of western South Dakota is a valuable resource center. The area has attracted numerous residents and industries because of the availability of mineral, timber, agricultural, recreational, and water resources. The water resources of the area have been stressed locally by increasing population, periodic drought, and development of other resources. In response to residents' concerns about these stresses on the water resources, the Black Hills Hydrology Study was initiated in 1990 as a cooperative effort among the U.S. Geological Survey, the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and the West Dakota Water Development District. West Dakota represents the various local and county cooperators. This report describes the purpose, scope, approach, and status of the study and presents highlights from the first project data report produced for the study.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2015

Potentiometric surface, 2013, and water-level differences, 1991-2013, of the Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer in northwest Louisiana

The Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer is the primary source of fresh groundwater for public supply as well as industrial, agricultural, and domestic uses in several parishes in northwestern Louisiana, including Bienville, Bossier, Caddo, De Soto, Natchitoches, Red River, Sabine, and Webster. In 2010, about 19 million gallons per day (Mgal/d) were withdrawn from the Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer in Louisiana. This is an increase of over 6 Mgal/d from 1990 withdrawal amounts. The largest increase in withdrawals occurred in Caddo (3.79 Mgal/d) and De Soto Parishes (2.32 Mgal/d), whereas the largest decrease in withdrawals occurred in Natchitoches Parish (1.17 Mgal/d). Groundwater withdrawals from the Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer have caused water-level declines throughout much of the aquifer in the study area. Additional knowledge about the effects of withdrawals on water levels and flow directions in the Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer are needed to assess current conditions in the aquifer. In 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources began a study to document current water levels and water-level changes in selected aquifers. This report presents data and maps that illustrate the potentiometric surface of the Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer during March–May 2013 and water-level differences from 1991 to 2013. The potentiometric surface map can be used for determining the direction of groundwater flow, hydraulic gradients, and effects of withdrawals on the groundwater resource. The rate of groundwater movement also can be estimated from the gradient when the hydraulic conductivity is applied. Water-level data collected for this study are stored in the USGS National Water Information System (NWIS) ( http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis ) and are on file at the USGS office in Baton Rouge, La.

Louisiana↗
USGS2025

Estimation of baseflow and flooding characteristics for East Canyon Creek, Summit and Morgan Counties, Utah

An improved understanding of hydrologic responses to changing climatic conditions is needed to better inform water management practices. East Canyon Creek, a perennial, snowmelt-dominated stream in the Wasatch Mountains of northern Utah, is subjected to increasing development and demands on water in the Snyderville Basin and adjacent areas. In this study, streamflow and specific conductance measured at three U.S. Geological Survey streamgages on East Canyon Creek were used to estimate daily baseflow for water years 2011–22. Trends in these estimates and correlations with climate data from two Natural Resource Conservation Service snow telemetry (SNOTEL) stations within the Snyderville Basin above East Canyon Reservoir, were quantified and reported. Peak annual streamflow also was assessed for flood potential on the study reach of East Canyon Creek. The hydrograph separations showed consistent baseflow indices among all sites, with a larger baseflow component during the fall–spring period (September–April; baseflow indices approximately equal to [≈] 0.751–0.835) and smaller component during the summer period (May–August; baseflow indices ≈ 0.428–0.532). In-stream specific conductance during spring (February–April) was influenced by road salt application, limiting the utility of the hydrograph separation approach. Annual streamflow and climate data were evaluated for trends using the nonparametric Mann–Kendall test, with inconclusive results. Related tests for trends, the Seasonal and Regional Kendall tests, were used to evaluate data at monthly timesteps and indicated a decreasing trend in total streamflow and baseflow at all streamgages. The rank-based Kendall’s tau test for correlation was used to measure the ordinal association with climatic data at co-located SNOTEL stations. Total streamflow and baseflow were strongly correlated with precipitation and snow-water equivalent. By incorporating a predictive regression model, the nonparametric Theil–Sen line, these correlations could support the development of streamflow forecast models using climate data from SNOTEL stations. Such models would provide water managers with tools to help make proactive decisions, such as reservoir or water reclamation releases and curtailment of withdrawals, in response to regional drought or varying snowpack and spring runoff in a given year.

Utah↗
USGS2000

Microbiological and chemical quality of ground water used as a source of public supply in southern Missouri — Phase II, April–July, 1998

The protection of public health through quality public ground-water systems is the responsibility of the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency and the State of Missouri, through the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Public Drinking Water Program. Approximately 95 percent of the public-water supplies in Missouri use ground water as their source of drinking water through more than 3,700 public wells. Karst terrain, intensive agricultural operations, extensive numbers of on-site sewage systems, and poor well construction can lead to chemical and microbiological contamination of the contributing aquifers. Sitespecific studies and routine regulatory monitoring have produced information on the overall quality and potability of the State's public-drinking-water supplies, but little is known about the presence of viruses. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, sampled 109 public-water supplies to characterize the physical, chemical, bacterial, and viral conditions in southern Missouri. During April to July 1998, these wells were sampled for nutrients, total organic carbon, optical brighteners, indicator bacteria, enteric viruses, and ribonucleic acid and somatic coli phages. These constituents indicate possible surface contamination of the sampled aquifer. Selection of the wells to be sampled depended on the age of the well (pre-1970), land use, geohydrology, and well construction. None of the physical or chemical constituents measured or analyzed exceeded Missouri's Drinking Water Standards set by the Public Drinking Water Program of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. The majority of ammonia plus organic nitrogen, nitrite, and phosphorus concentrations were below the laboratory's minimum reporting levels. There were a greater number of detects above the minimum reporting level with respect to the nitrite plus nitrate, ammonia, orthophosphate, and total organic carbon concentrations. Analyses included comparing and contrasting the data by grouping according to well age and construction, karst type, geohydrology, soil type, and land use. There was little variation in well construction between selected wells. The results indicated several groupings of similar and dissimilar concentrations, most expected because of hydrological, physical, or land use differences. Dissolved oxygen values indicated distinct variation in the different groupings. There were significant differences in dissolved oxygen values between the secondary and non-karst areas, the Ozark confined and Ozark unconfined geohydrologic groups, and between agricultural and other land uses. In groupings by soil and geohydrology, the Missouri bootheel region differed with respect to ammonia, total organic carbon, and phosphorus when compared with the other groups. Less than 10 percent of the wells sampled tested positive for bacterial contamination. E. coli was the most frequently detected bacterium. The public wells at Monett and West Plains, Missouri, had plates with colonies too numerous to count for all three indicator bacteria. Further analyses by rRNA (ribosomal RiboNucleic Acid) hybridization techniques detennined that much of the bacteria present were from ruminant and human sources. No enteric viruses were detected in the 109 samples. Both ribonucleic acid and somatic coliphage were detected at two wells. One additional well had ribonucleic acid coliphage and another had somatic coliphage for a total of four wells with coliphage selects.

Missouri↗
USGS1997

Water and salt balance of Great Salt Lake, Utah, and simulation of water and salt movement through the causeway

The water and salt balance of Great Salt Lake primarily depends on the amount of inflow from tributary streams and the conveyance properties of a causeway constructed during 1957-59 that divides the lake into the south and north parts. The conveyance properties of the causeway originally included two culverts, each 15 feet wide, and the permeable rock-fill material. During 1980-86, the salt balance changed as a result of record high inflow that averaged 4,627,000 acre-feet annually and modifications made to the conveyance properties of the causeway that included opening a 300-foot-wide breach. In this study, a model developed in 1973 by Waddell and Bolke to simulate the water and salt balance of the lake was revised to accommodate the high water-surface altitude and modifications made to the causeway. This study, done by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Utah Department of Natural Resources, Division of State Lands and Forestry, updates the model with monitoring data collected during 1980-86. This report describes the calibration of the model and presents the results of simulations for three hypothetical 10-year periods. During January 1, 1980, to July 31, 1984, a net load of 0.5 billion tons of dissolved salt flowed from the south to the north part of the lake primarily as a result of record inflows. From August 1, 1984, when the breach was opened, to December 31,1986, a net load of 0.3 billion tons of dissolved salt flowed from the north to the south part of the lake primarily as a result of the breach. For simulated inflow rates during a hypothetical 10-year period resulting in the water-surface altitude decreasing from about 4,200 to 4,192 feet, there was a net movement of about 1.0 billion tons of dissolved salt from the south to the north part, and about 1.7 billion tons of salt precipitated in the north part. For simulated inflow rates during a hypothetical 10-year period resulting in a rise in water-surface altitude from about 4,200 to 4,212 feet, there was a net movement of about 0.2 billion tons of dissolved salt from the south to the north part and no salt was precipitated in the north part of the lake.

Utah↗