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At least 703 records · Page 39Linked to original sources
USGS1977

Ground-water supplies in the Murfreesboro area, Tennessee

Ground water occurs in the Murfreesboro area in solution openings in the otherwise dense paleozoic limestones that underlie most of central Tennessee. Test drilling based on conceptual models of ground-water occurrence in carbonate-rock aquifers indicate that multimillion-gallon-per-day supplies could be developed from strategically located production wells in the Shiloh and Overall Creek localities. The Shiloh locality which encompasses an elongated synclinal depression in the bedrock has the potential to supply 5 to 8 million gallons per day. The Overall Creek locality which straddles a joint-oriented lineament has the potential to supply 3 to 6 million gallons per day. Some local springs could be used as a supplemental source of potable water, but storage facilities would be needed to offset poorly sustained flows during dry periods. An exception is Fox Camp Spring which appears to be a natural well. The quality of ground water in the Murfreesboro area is typically hard, moderately mineralized and moderately to highly alkaline. Although the shallowest aquifers are subject to bacterial contamination from the land surface, aquifers beneath a depth of 100 feet are prone to yield potable water. (Woodard-USGS)

Tennessee↗
USGS1995

Geochemical processes and the effects of natural organic solutes on the solubility of selenium in coal-mine backfill samples from the Powder River basin, Wyoming

Geochemical processes and the effects of natural organic solutes on the solubility of selenium in coal-mine backfill aquifers were investigated. Backfill and ground-water samples were collected at coal mines in the Powder River Basin, Wyoming. Backfill was generally dominated by aluminum (14,400 to 49,000 mg/kg (milligrams per kilogram)), iron (3,330 to 23,200 mg/kg), and potassium (7,950 to 18,000 mg/kg). Backfill saturated-paste selenium concentrations ranged from 1 to 156 mg/kg (microsiemens per kilogram). Ground-water total selenium concentrations ranged from 3 to 125 mg/L. Dissolved organic carbon in all ground-water samples was dominated by hydrophobic and hydrophilic acids (38 to 84 percent). Selenite sorption/desorption experiments were conducted using background solutions of distilled-deionized water, 0.1 molar calcium chloride, and isolated hydrophobic and hydrophilic acids. Selenite sorption was larger when 0.1 molar calcium chloride was used. The addition of hydrophilic acid decreased selenite sorption more than the addition of hydrophobic acids. Geochemical modelling was used to predict the solid phases controlling dissolved selenium concentrations and to evaluate the effects of dissolved organic carbon on selenium solubility. Results suggested that 55 to 90 percent of selenium in backfill precipitation/dissolution extracts was dominated by magnesium selenate ion pairs. Dissolved organic carbon had little effect on selenium speciation. A redox chamber was constructed to control Eh and pH in water and backfill-core sample suspensions. The response of selenite and selenate in water samples to redox conditions did not follow thermodynamic predictions. Reduction of selenate in water samples did not occur at any of the redox levels tested.

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS2006

Two-dimensional resistivity investigation along West Fork Trinity River, Naval Air Station-Joint Reserve Base Carswell Field, Fort Worth, Texas, October 2004

Naval Air Station-Joint Reserve Base Carswell Field (NAS-JRB) at Fort Worth, Tex., constitutes a government-owned, contractor-operated facility that has been in operation since 1942. Contaminants, primarily volatile organic compounds and metals, have entered the ground-water-flow system through leakage from waste-disposal sites and manufacturing processes. Ground water flows from west to east toward the West Fork Trinity River. During October 2004, the U.S. Geological Survey conducted a two-dimensional (2D) resistivity investigation at a site along the West Fork Trinity River at the eastern boundary of NAS-JRB to characterize the distribution of subsurface resistivity. Five 2D resistivity profiles were collected, which ranged from 500 to 750 feet long and extended to a depth of 25 feet. The Goodland Limestone and the underlying Walnut Formation form a confining unit that underlies the alluvial aquifer. The top of this confining unit is the top of bedrock at NAS-JRB. The bedrock confining unit is the zone of interest because of the potential for contaminated ground water to enter the West Fork Trinity River through saturated bedrock. The study involved a capacitively-coupled resistivity survey and inverse modeling to obtain true or actual resistivity from apparent resistivity. The apparent resistivity was processed using an inverse modeling software program. The results of this program were used to generate distributions (images) of actual resistivity referred to as inverted sections or profiles. The images along the five profiles show a wide range of resistivity values. The two profiles nearest the West Fork Trinity River generally showed less resistivity than the three other profiles.

Texas↗
USGS1990

Geohydrology and ground-water geochemistry at a sub-arctic landfill, Fairbanks, Alaska

The Fairbanks-North Star Borough, Alaska, landfill is located on silt, sand, and gravel deposits of the Tanana River flood plain, about 3 miles south of the city of Fairbanks water supply wells. The landfill has been in operation for about 25 years in this sub-arctic region of discontinuous permafrost. The cold climate limits biological activity within the landfill with corresponding low gas and leachate production. Chloride concentrations, specific conductance, water temperature, and earth conductivity measurements indicate a small plume of leachate flowing to the northwest from the landfill. The leachate remains near the water table as it flows northwestward toward a drainage ditch. Results of computer modeling of this local hydrologic system indicate that some of the leachate may be discharging to the ditch. Chemical data show that higher-than-background concentrations of several ions are present in the plume. However, the concentrations appear to be reduced to background levels within a short distance along the path of groundwater flow from the landfill, and thus the leachate is not expected to affect the water supply wells. (USGS)

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS2002

Simulation of Fish, Mud, and Crystal Lakes and the shallow ground-water system, Dane County, Wisconsin

A new MODFLOW lake package (LAK3) that simulates ground-water/lake interaction was used in simulation of Fish, Mud and Crystal Lakes?three shallow seepage lakes located in northwestern Dane County, Wis. The simulations were done to help determine the cause of increasing lake stages and provide a tool to estimate the effect of pumping water from Fish lake on future lake stages. The ground-water-flow model was developed using a telescopic-mesh refinement of the Dane and southwestern Columbia Counties regional model previously developed by the U.S. Geological Survey and the Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey. The parameter estimation model, UCODE, was coupled to the steadystate ground-water model to automate and optimize the calibration procedure. The steady-state model was calibrated to measured ground-water levels, Spring Creek streamflow measured at Lodi, and Fish and Crystal Lake stages. The results of the steady-state model were used as initial conditions in a transient simulation beginning in 1966 and ending in 1998. Recharge based on annual baseflow in Black Earth Creek, runoff based on measured coefficients, and precipitation and evaporation from the lake surfaces, were varied during the transient simulation. Measured Fish Lake stage was matched to simulated stage to calibrate the transient model. Model results suggest that the increase in regional ground-water recharge resulted in increased ground-water flow to the lake, which in turn resulted in increased lake stages. Simulation results of withdrawal of water from Fish Lake at 500 gallons per minute, assuming 1990?98 climatic conditions, indicate that after 1 year of pumping the stage of Fish and Mud Lakes would be reduced more than 1 foot and the stage of Crystal Lake would be reduced by less than 0.2 foot. When pumping is stopped, the lake stages would recover to near pre-pumping levels within about 3 years. When pumping is extended to 5 years, Fish and Mud Lake stage would be reduced by a maximum of 3.8 feet and Crystal Lake stage is reduced a maximum of 0.8 feet. After 4 years of recovery, Fish and Mud Lake stages are within 0.9 foot of prepumping levels and Crystal Lake stage is within 0.7 foot.

Wisconsin↗
USGS1978

Gas-driven pump for ground-water samples

Observation wells installed for artificial-recharge research and other wells used in different ground-water programs are frequently cased with small-diameter steel pipe. To obtain samples from these small-diameter wells in order to monitor water quality, and to calibrate solute-transport models, a small-diameter pump with unique operating characteristics is required that causes a minimum alternation of samples during field sampling. A small-diameter gas-driven pump was designed and built to obtain water samples from wells of two-inch diameter or larger. The pump is a double-piston type with the following characteristics: (1) The water sample is isolated from the operating gas, (2) no source of electricity is ncessary, (3) operation is continuous, (4) use of compressed gas is efficient, and (5) operation is reliable over extended periods of time. Principles of operation, actual operation techniques, gas-use analyses and operating experience are described. Complete working drawings and a component list are included. Recent modifications and pump construction for high-pressure applications also are described. (Woodard-USGS)

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS2002

Simulation of ground-water flow in the Intermediate and Floridan aquifer systems in Peninsular Florida

A numerical model of the intermediate and Floridan aquifer systems in peninsular Florida was used to (1) test and refine the conceptual understanding of the regional ground-water flow system; (2) develop a data base to support subregional ground-water flow modeling; and (3) evaluate effects of projected 2020 ground-water withdrawals on ground-water levels. The four-layer model was based on the computer code MODFLOW-96, developed by the U.S. Geological Survey. The top layer consists of specified-head cells simulating the surficial aquifer system as a source-sink layer. The second layer simulates the intermediate aquifer system in southwest Florida and the intermediate confining unit where it is present. The third and fourth layers simulate the Upper and Lower Floridan aquifers, respectively. Steady-state ground-water flow conditions were approximated for time-averaged hydrologic conditions from August 1993 through July 1994 (1993-94). This period was selected based on data from Upper Floridan a quifer wells equipped with continuous water-level recorders. The grid used for the ground-water flow model was uniform and composed of square 5,000-foot cells, with 210 columns and 300 rows. The active model area, which encompasses about 40,800 square miles in peninsular Florida, includes areas of various physiographic regions classified according to natural features. Hydrogeologic conditions vary among physiographic regions, requiring different approaches to estimating hydraulic properties for different areas. The altitudes of water levels for the surficial aquifer system and heads in the Upper Floridan aquifer, for time-averaged 1993-94 conditions, were computed by using a multiple linear regression of measured water levels in each of the physiographic regions. Ground-water flow simulation was limited vertically to depths containing water with chloride concentrations less than 5,000 milligrams per liter. Water-level altitudes in the Floridan aquifer system beneath which chloride concentrations exceed 5,000 milligrams per liter were estimated from previously developed maps and analytical results of ground-water samples. Flow across the interface represented by this chloride concentration was assumed to be negligible. The ground-water flow model was calibrated using time-averaged data for 1993-94 at 1,624 control points, flow measurements or estimates at 156 springs in the study area, and base-flow estimates of rivers in the unconfined areas of the Upper Floridan aquifer obtained by using a generalized hydrograph separation of recorded discharge data. Transmissivity of the intermediate aquifer system, Upper Floridan aquifer, and Lower Floridan aquifer; leakance of the upper and lower confining units of the intermediate aquifer system, the intermediate confining unit, the middle confining unit, and the middle semiconfining unit; spring and riverbed conductances; and net recharge rates to unconfined areas of the Upper Floridan aquifer were adjusted until a reasonable fit was obtained. Root-mean-square residuals between computed and simulated heads in the intermediate aquifer system, Upper Floridan aquifer, and Lower Floridan aquifer were 3.47, 3.41, and 2.89 feet, respectively. The overall root-mean-square residual was 3.40 feet. Simulated spring flow was 96 percent of the total measured (or estimated) spring flow in the study area. Simulations were made to project water-level declines from 1993-94 to 2020 conditions. The calibrated flow model was used to simulate the potentiometric surfaces of the intermediate aquifer system, Upper Floridan aquifer, and Lower Floridan aquifer for 2020 using water-use projections provided by the Water Supply Assessment plans of the State Water Management Districts. Water-use projections for 2020 were based on estimated population growth and 1995 withdrawals. Heads in the Upper Floridan aquifer under projected 2020 water-use stresses were simulated for two scenarios: (1) assigning interpolated 1993-94 heads along the lateral boundaries of the Upper Floridan aquifer; and (2) assigning 1993-94 simulated flux rates across the same boundaries. Projected 2020 ground-water withdrawals for municipal, industrial, commercial, agricultural, and self-supplied domestic uses was approximately 3,400 million gallons per day, an increase of about 36 percent from 1993-94. The largest projected drawdown in the potentiometric surface of the Upper Floridan aquifer, for both scenarios, was simulated in Orange County, with a drawdown of 10 feet in the central part of the County. Projected drawdowns of 6 feet were simulated in parts of Duval and Polk Counties.

Florida↗
USGS1990

An investigation of spectral change as influenced by irrigation and evapotranspiration volume estimation in western Nebraska

Retrospective satellite image data were evaluated for their ability to demonstrate the influence of center-pivot irrigation development in western Nebraska on spectral change and climate-related factors for the region. Periodic images of an albedo index and a normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) were generated from calibrated Landsat multispectral scanner (MSS) data and used to monitor spectral changes associated with irrigation development from 1972 through 1986. The albedo index was not useful for monitoring irrigation development. For the NDVI, it was found that proportions of counties in irrigated agriculture, as discriminated by a threshold, were more highly correlated with reported ground estimates of irrigated agriculture than were county mean greenness values. A similar result was achieved when using coarse resolution Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) image data for estimating irrigated agriculture. The NDVI images were used to evaluate a procedure for making areal estimates of actual evapotranspiration (ET) volumes. Estimates of ET volumes for test counties, using reported ground acreages and corresponding standard crop coefficients, were correlated with the estimates of ET volume using crop coefficients scaled to NDVI values and pixel counts of crop areas. These county estimates were made under the assumption that soil water availability was unlimited. For nonirrigated vegetation, this may result in over-estimation of ET volumes. Ground information regarding crop types and acreages are required to derive the NDVI scaling factor. Potential ET, estimated with the Jensen-Haise model, is common to both methods. These results, achieved with both MSS and AVHRR data, show promise for providing climatologically important land surface information for regional and global climate models. ?? 1990 Kluwer Academic Publishers.

Climatic Change↗
USGS2007

A Precipitation-Runoff Model for the Blackstone River Basin, Massachusetts and Rhode Island

A Hydrological Simulation Program-FORTRAN (HSPF) precipitation-runoff model of the Blackstone River Basin was developed and calibrated to study the effects of changing land- and water-use patterns on water resources. The 474.5 mi2 Blackstone River Basin in southeastern Massachusetts and northern Rhode Island is experiencing rapid population and commercial growth throughout much of its area. This growth and the corresponding changes in land-use patterns are increasing stress on water resources and raising concerns about the future availability of water to meet residential and commercial needs. Increased withdrawals and wastewater-return flows also could adversely affect aquatic habitat, water quality, and the recreational value of the streams in the basin. The Blackstone River Basin was represented by 19 hydrologic response units (HRUs): 17 types of pervious areas (PERLNDs) established from combinations of surficial geology, land-use categories, and the distribution of public water and public sewer systems, and two types of impervious areas (IMPLNDs). Wetlands were combined with open water and simulated as stream reaches that receive runoff from surrounding pervious and impervious areas. This approach was taken to achieve greater flexibility in calibrating evapotranspiration losses from wetlands during the growing season. The basin was segmented into 50 reaches (RCHRES) to represent junctions at tributaries, major lakes and reservoirs, and drainage areas to streamflow-gaging stations. Climatological, streamflow, water-withdrawal, and wastewater-return data were collected during the study to develop the HSPF model. Climatological data collected at Worcester Regional Airport in Worcester, Massachusetts and T.F. Green Airport in Warwick, Rhode Island, were used for model calibration. A total of 15 streamflow-gaging stations were used in the calibration. Streamflow was measured at eight continuous-record streamflow-gaging stations that are part of the U.S. Geological Survey cooperative streamflow-gaging network, and at seven partial-record stations installed in 2004 for this study. Because the model-calibration period preceded data collection at the partial-record stations, a continuous streamflow record was estimated at these stations by correlation with flows at nearby continuous-record stations to provide additional streamflow data for model calibration. Water-use information was compiled for 1996-2001 and included municipal and commercial/industrial withdrawals, private residential withdrawals, golf-course withdrawals, municipal wastewater-return flows, and on-site septic effluent return flows. Streamflow depletion was computed for all time-varying ground-water withdrawals prior to simulation. Water-use data were included in the model to represent the net effect of water use on simulated hydrographs. Consequently, the calibrated values of the hydrologic parameters better represent the hydrologic response of the basin to precipitation. The model was calibrated for 1997-2001 to coincide with the land-use and water-use data compiled for the study. Four long-term stations (Nipmuc River near Harrisville, Rhode Island; Quinsigamond River at North Grafton, Massachusetts; Branch River at Forestdale, Rhode Island; and Blackstone River at Woonsocket, Rhode Island) that monitor flow at 3.3, 5.4, 19, and 88 percent of the total basin area, respectively, provided the primary model-calibration points. Hydrographs, scatter plots, and flow-duration curves of observed and simulated discharges, along with various model-fit statistics, indicated that the model performed well over a range of hydrologic conditions. For example, the total runoff volume for the calibration period simulated at the Nipmuc River near Harrisville, Rhode Island; Quinsigamond River at North Grafton, Massachusetts; Branch River at Forestdale, Rhode Island; and Blackstone River at Woonsocket, Rhode Island streamflow-gaging stations differed from the observed runoff v

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2007

Simulations of Ground-Water Flow and Residence Time near Woodbury, Connecticut

Water withdrawn for public use from glacial stratified deposits in Woodbury, Connecticut, is a mixture of water from different source areas, each having a characteristic water-quality signature. The physical processes leading to this mixture were explored using a numerical model to simulate steady-state ground-water source areas and residence times for a public water-supply well (PSW-1) in Woodbury. Upland areas contribute water to the well that is primarily from undeveloped and agricultural land. Valley bottoms contribute water to the well that is primarily from developed land. From 1985 to 2002, 6 percent of the contributing recharge area to the well changed from agricultural and undeveloped to developed land. The pattern of recharge areas and land use causes stratification of ground water by residence time and by characteristic water quality, which is related to land use. As land use changes with time, the water-quality signature of developed land moves deeper into the aquifer. Predicted nitrate concentrations decreased from 1985 to 1995 because of the conversion from agricultural land to developed land, but then began to increase after 1995 because of the conversion of undeveloped land to developed land. Total dissolved solids concentrations, on the other hand, increased from 1985 to 2002 because agriculture is associated with lower total dissolved solids concentrations than is developed land. About 40 percent of the water withdrawn from PSW-1 originated as upland recharge before flowing through glacial deposits in the valley. About 44 percent of the water originated as recharge in either fluvial deposits (mean residence time 7 years) or deltaic deposits (mean residence time 4 years). About 16 percent of the water originated as recharge through storm drains with ground-water discharge (often known as 'dry wells'). The residence time for water that originated as recharge in dry wells is 2 to 4 years, and the mean residence time is 3 years. Dry wells are a fast pathway for water to enter the aquifer and provide a significant amount of water to PSW-1; therefore, PSW-1 is more susceptible to contamination in runoff from the commercial area, which enters the dry wells, than to recharge elsewhere in the area. Water withdrawn from a well is a mixture of waters with different residence times, and a single residence time does not fully characterize the susceptibility of the well to recent contamination. The mean simulated flow-weighted residence time in PSW-1 is 6 years, which compares reasonably well with the apparent residence time measured using tritium/helium data of 6 and 7 years (samples for age dating were collected twice from this well). There are at least two modes to the distribution of ages, one mode with residence times less than 5 years and one mode with residence times greater than 5 years. About 34 percent of the ground-water in PSW-1 is younger than 5 years and 56 percent of the water is from 5 to 9 years. The estimated nitrate loading rate from a single-family septic system is 18 grams per day. If each household in the contributing recharge area contributes nitrate at that loading rate to the well PSW-1, each additional septic system in the contributing recharge area is responsible for a 0.045-milligram-per-liter increase in nitrate at PSW-1 at the current pumping rate. Uncertainty in the predicted contributing recharge area can be propagated through the analysis using a Monte Carlo technique. There is a greater degree of certainty in the delineation of the recharge area near the well, and as one moves from the well toward the recharge areas, the uncertainty in the model increases. The area that possibly contributes water to the well using the Monte Carlo model is much larger than the recharge area delineated using the optimal parameter estimates. Within the probabilistic recharge area, the number of septic systems could be twice the number initially estimated.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS1998

Hydrogeology, water quality, water budgets, and simulated responses to hydrologic changes in Santa Rosa and San Simeon Creek ground-water basins, San Luis Obispo County, California

Santa Rosa and San Simeon Creeks are underlain by thin, narrow ground-water basins that supply nearly all water used for local agricultural and municipal purposes. The creeks discharge to the Pacific Ocean near the northwestern corner of San Luis Obispo County, California. The basins contain heterogeneous, unconsolidated alluvial deposits and are underlain by relatively impermeable bedrock. Both creeks usually stop flowing during the summer dry season, and most of the pumpage during that time is derived from ground-water storage. Annual pumpage increased substantially during 1956?88 and is now a large fraction of basin storage capacity. Consequently, dry-season water levels are lower and the water supply is more vulnerable to drought. The creeks are the largest source of ground-water recharge, and complete basin recharge can occur within the first few weeks of winter streamflow. Agricultural and municipal pumpages are the largest outflows and cause dry-season water-level declines throughout the San Simeon Basin. Pumping effects are more localized in the Santa Rosa Basin because of subsurface flow obstructions. Even without pumpage, a large quantity of water naturally drains out of storage at the upper ends of the basins during the dry season. Ground water is more saline in areas close to the coast than in inland areas. Although seawater intrusion has occurred in the past, it probably was not the cause of high salinity in 1988?89. Ground water is very hard, and concentrations of dissolved solids, chloride, iron, and manganese exceed drinking-water standards in some locations. Probability distributions of streamflow were estimated indirectly from a 120-year rainfall record because the periods of record for local stream-gaging stations were wetter than average. Dry-season durations with recurrence intervals between 5 and 43 years are likely to dry up some wells but not cause seawater intrusion. A winter with no streamflow is likely to occur about every 32 years and to result in numerous dry wells, seawater intrusion, and subsidence. Digital ground-water-flow models were used to estimate several items in the ground-water budgets and to investigate the effects of pumpage and drought. The models also were used to investigate the hydrologic effects of selected water-resources management alternatives. Selection of alternatives was not constrained by issues related to water rights, which were under dispute during the study. Increases in the area and intensity of irrigation could increase agricultural water demand by 26 to 35 percent, an increase that would lower water levels by as much as 10 feet and possibly cause subsidence in the lower Santa Rosa Basin. An additional municipal well in the lower Santa Rosa Basin could withdraw 100 acre-feet per year without causing seawater intrusion, but subsidence might occur. Transferring 270 acre-feet per year of treated wastewater from a percolation area near the coast to an area about 0.5 mile upstream of the municipal well field in the San Simeon Basin could raise upstream water levels by as much as 12 feet without causing significant water-table mounding or seawater intrusion. Decreases in agricultural pumping after a winter without streamflow could prevent seawater intrusion while allowing municipal pumping to continue at normal rates.

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS2000

Application of nonlinear least-squares regression to ground-water flow modeling, west-central Florida

A nonlinear least-squares regression technique for estimation of ground-water flow model parameters was applied to an existing model of the regional aquifer system underlying west-central Florida. The regression technique minimizes the differences between measured and simulated water levels. Regression statistics, including parameter sensitivities and correlations, were calculated for reported parameter values in the existing model. Optimal parameter values for selected hydrologic variables of interest are estimated by nonlinear regression. Optimal estimates of parameter values are about 140 times greater than and about 0.01 times less than reported values. Independently estimating all parameters by nonlinear regression was impossible, given the existing zonation structure and number of observations, because of parameter insensitivity and correlation. Although the model yields parameter values similar to those estimated by other methods and reproduces the measured water levels reasonably accurately, a simpler parameter structure should be considered. Some possible ways of improving model calibration are to: (1) modify the defined parameter-zonation structure by omitting and/or combining parameters to be estimated; (2) carefully eliminate observation data based on evidence that they are likely to be biased; (3) collect additional water-level data; (4) assign values to insensitive parameters, and (5) estimate the most sensitive parameters first, then, using the optimized values for these parameters, estimate the entire data set.

Florida↗
USGS2005

Ground-water modeling of pumping effects near regional ground-water divides and river/aquifer systems - Results and implications of numerical experiments

Agreements between United States governors and Canadian territorial premiers establish water-management principles and a framework for protecting Great Lakes waters, including ground water, from diversion and consumptive uses. The issue of ground-water diversions out of the Great Lakes Basin by large-scale pumping near the divides has been raised. Two scenario models, in which regional ground-water flow models represent major aquifers in the Great Lakes region, were used to assess the effect of pumping near ground-water divides. The regional carbonate aquifer model was a generalized model representing northwestern Ohio and northeastern Indiana; the regional sandstone aquifer model used an existing calibrated ground-water flow model for southeastern Wisconsin. Various well locations and pumping rates were examined. Although the two models have different frameworks and boundary conditions, results of the models were similar. There was significant diversion of ground water across ground-water divides due to pumping within 10 miles of the divides. In the regional carbonate aquifer model, the percentage of pumped water crossing the divide ranges from about 20 percent for a well 10 miles from the divide to about 50 percent for a well adjacent to the divide. In the regional sandstone aquifer model, the percentages range from about 30 percent for a well 10 miles from the divide to about 50 percent for a well adjacent to the divide; when pumping on the west side of the divide, within 5 mi of the predevelopment divide, results in at least 10 percent of the water being diverted from the east side of the divide. Two additional scenario models were done to examine the effects of pumping near rivers. Transient models were used to simulate a rapid stage rise in a river during pumping at a well in carbonate and glacial aquifers near the river. Results of water-budget analyses indicate that induced infiltration, captured streamflow, and underflow were important for both glacial and carbonate aquifers; however, in many cases, traveltimes from the river to the well will limit river water from physically entering the well.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS1995

Hydrogeology, simulated ground-water flow, and ground-water quality at two landfills in Bristol, Vermont

A study was done to describe the hydrogeology of unconsolidated deposits, simulated ground-water flow, and ground-water quality at two landfills in Bristol, Vermont. The study area is characterized by a glacial delta greater than 200 feet thick on the west flank of the Green Mountains. An upper unconfined, coarse-grained glacial aquifer and a lower fine-grained glacial aquifer are separated throughout most of the study area by a sand, silt, and clay confining unit. A two-layer ground-water flow model was designed and calibrated to estimate ground-water-flow paths form the aquifers beneath the landfills. Large upward head gradients of 0.03 to 0.30 foot per foot are the result of ground water leaking from the underlying bedrock aquifer, which caused ground-water flow to concentrate in the upper aquifer. Most simulated ground-water-flow paths in the lower glacial aquifer beneath the landfills crossed into the upper aquifer. Simulated ground- water-flow paths in the upper aquifer, beneath the landfills, remained in the upper aquifer. Ground water characterized as landfill leachate, or influenced by landfill leachate, has a median specific conductance of 700 microseimens per centimeter at 25 degrees Celsius. Landfill leachate contained mean concentrations 1.5 to 10 times the background concentrations of common constituents and metals, including calcium, potassium, sodium, chloride, iron, magnesium, and manganese. Trace metals detected in the leachate included copper, nickel, zinc, cobalt, lead, and arsenic. Ten volatile organic compounds were found at four observation wells associated with one landfill and three volatile organic compounds were found at two observation wells associated with the record landfill. No one volatile organic compound was consistently found and detections were generally at or near detection limits.

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS2003

Estimated ground-water withdrawals from the Death Valley regional flow system, Nevada and California, 1913-98

Ground-water withdrawals from 1913 through 1998 from the Death Valley regional flow system have been compiled to support a regional, three-dimensional, transient ground-water flow model. Withdrawal locations and depths of production intervals were estimated and associated errors were reported for 9,300 wells. Withdrawals were grouped into three categories: mining, public-supply, and commercial water use; domestic water use; and irrigation water use. In this report, groupings were based on the method used to estimate pumpage. Cumulative ground-water withdrawals from 1913 through 1998 totaled 3 million acre-feet, most of which was used to irrigate alfalfa. Annual withdrawal for irrigation ranged from 80 to almost 100 percent of the total pumpage. About 75,000 acre-feet was withdrawn for irrigation in 1998. Annual irrigation withdrawals generally were estimated as the product of irrigated acreage and application rate. About 320 fields totaling 11,000 acres were identified in six hydrographic areas. Annual application rates for high water-use crops ranged from 5 feet in Penoyer Valley to 9 feet in Pahrump Valley. The uncertainty in the estimates of ground-water withdrawals was attributed primarily to the uncertainty of application rate estimates. Annual ground-water withdrawal was estimated at about 90,000 acre-feet in 1998 with an assigned uncertainty bounded by 60,000 to 130,000 acre-feet.

California, Nevada↗
USGS2003

Questa baseline and pre-mining ground-water quality investigation. 3. Historical ground-water quality for the Red River Valley, New Mexico

Historical ground-water quality data for 100 wells in the Red River Valley between the U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging station (08265000), near Questa, and Placer Creek east of the town of Red River, New Mexico, were compiled and reviewed. The tabulation included 608 water-quality records from 23 sources entered into an electronic database. Groundwater quality data were first collected at the Red River wastewater-treatment facility in 1982. Most analyses, however, were obtained between 1994 and 2002, even though the first wells were developed in 1962. The data were evaluated by considering (a) temporal consistency, (b) quality of sampling methods, (c) charge imbalance, and (d) replicate analyses. Analyses that qualified on the basis of these criteria were modeled to obtain saturation indices for gypsum, calcite, fluorite, gibbsite, manganite, and rhodocrosite. Plots created from the data illustrate that water chemistry in the Red River Valley is predominantly controlled by calcite dissolution, congruent gypsum dissolution, and pyrite oxidation.

New Mexico↗
USGS2001

Hydrogeology, model description, and flow analysis of the Mississippi River alluvial aquifer in northwestern Mississippi

The Mississippi River alluvial aquifer underlies a 7,000-square-mile area of the Mississippi River alluvial plain in northwestern Mississippi, an area locally known as the Delta. The alluvial aquifer is the most heavily pumped aquifer in Mississippi, and wells yielding more than 2,000 gallons per minute are common. About 98 percent of the pumpage from the alluvial aquifer is for agriculture. The sand and gravel that form the alluvial aquifer averages about 110 feet in thickness. The aquifer is confined over most of the Delta, and the upper confining unit averages about 25 feet in thickness. The average depth to water in the alluvial aquifer during fall 1999 was about 25 feet. The alluvial aquifer receives lateral recharge at the western boundary from the Mississippi River and at the eastern boundary from aquifers that directly underlie the Bluff Hills. The alluvial aquifer receives water vertically from precipitation, internal streams and lakes, and locally from the Cockfield and Sparta aquifers where they directly underlie the alluvial aquifer. The alluvial aquifer also discharges water to the underlying aquifers, and during extended periods with no surface runoff, to the Mississippi River and to the internal streams and lakes. The magnitude of recharge from the Mississippi River, precipitation, and internal lakes and streams can vary greatly depending upon hydrologic and climatic conditions. The U.S. Geological Survey modular threedimensional finite-difference ground-water flow model, MODFLOW, was used to simulate the Mississippi River alluvial aquifer flow system in northwestern Mississippi. The model uses one layer with a rectangular-grid and 1-mile square cells to represent the alluvial aquifer. The model was calibrated and verified by using spring and fall water-level measurements from January 1988 through December 1996. The values of selected model calibration-derived parameters for the alluvial aquifer are hydraulic conductivity, 425 feet per day; specific yield, 0.32; and storage coefficient, 0.016. The model showed that the aquifer lost water from storage at an average rate of 404 cubic feet per second during the 9-year simulation period. During this period, the average pumpage rate was 1,270 million gallons per day (1,980 cubic feet per second). Simulated areal recharge from precipitation averaged 2.6 inches per year (1,360 cubic feet per second). Vertical recharge from the internal streams and lakes and lateral recharge from aquifers underlying the Bluff Hills averaged 113 and 108 cubic feet per second, respectively. Model results indicated that net recharge from the Mississippi River and from aquifers directly underlying the alluvial aquifer was small.

Mississippi↗
USGS2002

Simulated pond-aquifer interactions under natural and stressed conditions near Snake Pond, Cape Cod, Massachusetts

A numerical model was used to simulate pond-aquifer interactions under natural and stressed conditions near Snake Pond, Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Simulation results show that pond-bottom hydraulic conductivity, which represents the degree of hydraulic connection between the pond and the aquifer, is an important control on these interactions. As this parameter was incrementally increased from 10 to 350 feet per day, the rate of ground-water inflow into the pond under natural conditions increased by about 250 percent, the associated residence times of water in the pond decreased by about 50 percent, and ground-water inflow to the pond shifted closer to the pond shore. Most ground-water inflow (90 to 98 percent) was in the upper model layer, which corresponded to shallow, near-shore areas of the pond, over the entire range of pond-bottom hydraulic conductivity. Ground-water flow paths into the pond became more vertical, the contributing area to the pond became larger, and the pond captured water from greater depths in the aquifer as the hydraulic conductivity of the pond bottom was increased. The pond level, however, remained nearly constant, and regional ground-water levels and gradients differed little over the range of pond-bottom hydraulic conductivity, indicating that calibrated models with similar head solutions can have different pond-aquifer interaction characteristics. Hydrologic stresses caused by a simulated plume-containment system that specifies the extraction and injection of large volumes of ground water near the pond increased the pond level by about 0.4 foot and ground-water inflow rates into the pond by about 25 percent. Several factors related to the operation of the simulated containment system are affected by the hydraulic conductivity of the pond bottom. With increasing pond-bottom hydraulic conductivity, the amount of injected water that flows into Snake Pond increased and the amount of water recirculated between extraction and injection wells decreased. Comparison of simulations in which pond-bottom hydraulic conductivity was varied throughout the pond and simulations in which hydraulic conductivity was varied only in areas corresponding to shallow, near-shore areas of the pond indicate that the simulated hydraulic conductivity of the pond bottom in deeper parts of the pond had little effect on pond-aquifer interactions under both natural and stressed conditions.

Massachusetts↗