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Water resources of the Rio Grande Valley in New Mexico and their development
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Floods of August 1967 in east-central Alaska
East-central Alaska had record floods near Fairbanks following extensive rains of August 8-20, 1967. Precipitation during this period totaled as much as 10 inches, which is close to the average annual precipitation for this area. The most extensive flooding occurred in the White Mountains northeast of Fairbanks and along the major streams draining those mountains. Some of the major streams flooded were the Salcha, Chena, Chatanika, Tolovana, and lower Tanana Rivers, and Birch Creek west of Circle. Peak discharges on some streams in the flood area were from two to four times the probable 50-year flood. The peak discharge of 74,400 cubic feet per second of the Chena River at Fairbanks, from 1,980 square miles of drainage area, was 2.6 times the 50-year flood. The rise of ground-water levels in the Tanana River flood plain to the land surface during the flood caused foundation failures and prevented drainage of subsurface structures. Above-normal ground-water levels existed until the middle of September. Total flood damage was estimated in excess of $85 million. Six lives were reported lost, and about 12,000 persons were evacuated during the flood. This report has been prepared to furnish hydrologic data for development planning. Included are discussions of antecedent streamflow, meteorology of the storm, descriptions of floods, flood damage, flood frequency, ground-water conditions, and stages and discharges of major streams for August 1967.
Floods of September-October 1967 in south Texas and northeastern Mexico
Floods produced by Hurricane Beulah during September and October 1967 were outstanding because of the magnitude of the stage and discharge and because of the number of river basins affected. Previously known maximum stages were exceeded, at the downstream station, in five river basins in Texas by amounts ranging from 2.7 feet at Guadalupe River near Tivoli to 9.2 feet at Aransas River near Skidmore. The greatest relative maximum discharge recorded during the storm occurred at Medio Creek near Beeville, where the peak discharge was 4.1 times the previous maximum since 1919 and 6.0 times the magnitude of a regional 50-year flood. The inflow to Lake Corpus Christi was more than 4.5 times the volume of the lake at spillway elevation. Because of the large volume of fresh-water inflow to bays and estuaries along the Texas coast, the salinity of the water was greatly reduced. Data collected in Nueces Corpus Christi and Guadalupe San Antonio Bays show that dilution proceeded rapidly along the line of flow. Fresh-water inflow to Corpus Christi Bay exceeded 60,000 cubic feet per second from September 23 through September 28. The total inflow was about 1.5 times the volume of water normally in the bay, but because of its shape and depth, the bay was not entirely flushed of saline water. Fresh-water inflow to San Antonio Bay exceeded 40,000 cubic feet per second from September 21 through September 26. The total inflow was more than three times the volume of water normally in the bay, and most of the saline water was flushed from the bay. Measurements of water levels in wells indicate that Hurricane Beulah caused significant rises in water levels in shallow wells by percolation of rainfall and ponded waters and by the cascading of floodwaters directly into numerous inundated wells. Flooding along the Rio Grande and its floodways below Falcon Dam was the greatest since the American floodway system was completed in 1926. At Mission Branch Floodway, south of McAllen, Tex., the peak discharge was 2.15 times the previous maximum in 1932. The peak stage exceeded the previous maximum by 4.14 feet. Flooding along the Mexican floodways destroyed all stream-gaging equipment. A 4,000-square-mile area of south Texas having no defined drainage system contains thousands of shallow wind-formed depressions. These normally dry depressions were inundated by the storm runoff, which produced a vast amount of ponded water. The ponds blocked highways for several days and hampered ranching and oil field operations for months after the storm. Rainfall measurements of 25 inches during the period September 19-25, 1967, were common in Texas, and as much as 35 inches was measured in Mexico. Total damage in 39 counties of Texas was estimated by the Galveston District of the Corps of Engineers to be $168,844,000.
Summary of floods in the United States during 1967
This report describes the most outstanding floods in the United States during 1967. The two most destructive floods occurred in August in east-central Alaska and in September and October in southern Texas. In east-central Alaska, heavy rain on August 8-17 produced record-breaking floods near Fairbanks. Peak discharges on some streams in the area were from two to four times the 50-yea.r flood. Flood damage was estimated to have been $85 million, and six lives were lost. Torrential rains produced by Hurricane Beulah caused record-breaking floods on many streams in a 50,000-square-mile area in southern Texas and northeastern Mexico in September and October. As much as 25.5 inches of rain was measured at ESSA Weather Bureau stations in the period September 19-25. Major flooding occurred in the basins of the Guadalupe, San Antonio, Mission, Arkansas, and Nueces Rivers and in many small coastal basins in Texas ; on the Rio Grande and its floodways ; and in the Rio Alamo and Rio San Juan basins in Mexico. Peak discharges at several sites in Texas were more than three times the magnitude of a 50-year flood. Total damage in Texas due to wind, rain, stream flooding, sheet flow, ponding, and tidal flooding was $167 million. In addition to the two floods mentioned above, 27 others of lesser magnitude are considered important enough to be included in this annual flood summary.
Quality of surface waters of the United States, 1961, Parts 1 and 2: North Atlantic slope basins and South Atlantic slope and Eastern Gulf of Mexico basins
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Quality of surface waters of the United States 1961, Parts 3 and 4, Ohio River basin and St. Lawrence River basin
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Quality of surface waters of the United States, 1961, Parts 5 and 6, Hudson Bay and upper Mississippi River basins and Missouri River basin
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Quality of surface waters of the United States, 1961, Parts 7 and 8, Lower Mississippi River basin and western Gulf of Mexico basins
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Quality of surface waters of the United States, 1961, Parts 9-14, Colorado River basin to Pacific slope basins in Oregon and lower Columbia River basin
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Quality of surface waters for irrigation, western states 1969
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Maximum floodflows in the conterminous United States
Peak floodflows from thousands of observation sites within the conterminous United States were studied to provide a guide for estimating potential maximum floodflows. Data were selected from 883 sites with drainage areas of less than 10,000 square miles (25,900 square kilometers) and were grouped into regional sets. Outstanding floods for each region were plotted on graphs, and envelope curves were computed that offer reasonable limits for estimates of maximum floods. The curves indicate that floods may occur that are two to three times greater than those known for most streams.
Hydrology of the Upper Malad River basin, southeastern Idaho
The report area comprises 485 square miles in the Basin and Range physiographic province. It includes most of eastern' Oneida County and parts of Franklin, Bannock, and Power Counties of southeastern Idaho. Relief is about 5,000 feet; the floor of the Malad Valley is at an average altitude of about 4,400 feet. Agriculture is, by far, ,the principal economic .activity. In 1960 the population of the upper Malad River basin was about 3,600, of which about 60 percent resided in Malad City, the county seat of Oneida County. The climate is semiarid throughout the Malad Valley and its principal tributary valleys; ,above 6,500 feet the climate is subhumid. Annual precipitation ranges from about 13 inches in the lower Malad Valley to more than 30 inches on the highest peaks of the Bannock and Malad ranges. Owing to ,the normally clear atmospheric conditions, large daily and seasonal temperature fluctuations are common. Topography, distance from the Pacific Ocean, .and the general atmospheric circulation are the principal factors governing the climate of the Malad River basin. The westerlies transport moisture from the P.acific Ocean toward southeastern Idaho. The north-south tren4ing mountains flanking the basin are oriented orthogonally to the moisture flux so that they are very effective in removing precipitable water from the air. A minimum uplift of 6,000 feet is required to transport moisture from the Pacific source region; accordingly, most air masses are desiccated long before they reach the Malad basin. Heaviest precipitation is generally associated with steep pressure gradients in the midtroposphere that are so oriented as to cause a deep landward penetration of moisture from the Pacific Ocean. Annual water yields in the project area range from about 0.8 inch in the, lower Malad Valley to more than 19 inches on the high peaks north and east of Malad City. The mean annual water yield for the entire basin is 4 inches, or about 115,000 acre-feet. Evaporation is greatest in July when about 7 inches is lost from lakes, reservoirs, and waterlogged areas; losses from free-water surfaces may be as much .as 38 inches annually. An extensive ground-water reservoir consisting of sand and gravel interbedded with relatively impermeable beds of silt .and clay underlies much of the Malad Valley. Wells near the center of the valley exceeding 700 feet in depth do not reach bedrock. The Woodruff fault, which transects the constricted lower Malad Valley, is one of the main factors creating artesian conditions south of the latitude of Malad City. Recharge is obtained principally from mountain runoff which flows onto highly permeable alluvial fans surrounding the valley and from streams that flow across the valley floor. On the basis of a water balance analysis, under flow from the project area was estimated to be 28,000 acre-feet annually, surface-water outflow was 51,000 acre-feet, and transbasin imports were about 4,000 acre-feet. The principal tributaries of the Malad River are perennial along their upper and middle reaches and have well-sustained low flows. During the growing season, all surface water entering the Malad Valley is used for irrigation. Spine irrigation is practiced in the principal tributary valleys; however, a shortage of suitable reservoir sites has hampered surface-water development in these areas. The highly porous deposits underlying the Malad Valley tend to attenuate flood peaks. An unusual combination of meteorologic events early in 1962 effectively counteracted the high absorptive capacity of the valley and predisposed the basin to high flood risk. Subsequent rapid snowmelt combined with frozen ground produced the extraordinary flood of February 12, 1962. Calcium and bicarbonate commonly are the most abundant ions in the surface waters of the upper Malad River basin. In August 1967, the dissolved-solids content of streamflow ranged from 200 to 350 milligrams per liter in the middle and upper parts of the basin; however, much greater values were measured in the Malad River between Woddruff and Cherry Creek Lane. With the exception of that reach, the surface water of the project area is suitable for irrigating all but the most sensitive crops. The total water yield is not sufficient to meet all the water needs of the basin. A comprehensive water-management plan is required to ensure optimal use of the water resource.
Geology and water resources of the Bitterroot Valley, southwestern Montana, with a section on chemical quality of water
The Bitterroot Valley is a Late Cretaceous structural basin that was partly filled at its deepest point by more than 1,640 feet of Tertiary sediments. These sediments grade valleyward from coarse colluvial deposits along the edges of the valley to fine-grained deposits and then to coarse channel deposits of the ancestral Bitterroot River near the center of the valley. Beneath the flood plain and low terraces of the present Bitterroot River, about 40 feet of Quaternary alluvium overlies the Tertiary sediments. Each spring and summer, at rates greatly exceeding discharge, water infiltrates to the ground-water reservoir in the Tertiary and Quaternary rocks. During the fall and winter, water is released from storage. Net recharge in the spring of 1958 and 1959 was about 90,000 and 82,000 acre-feet, relatively. Net discharge during the rest of each year was about 90,000 and 76,000 acre-feet, respectively. Some surface water available for recharge during high runoff each rejected. During the 1958 and 1959 water years, total surface-water inflow about 1.7 million and 2.0 million acre-feet, respectively. Consumptive use during these water years was about 450,000 and' 400,000 acre-feet, respectively. Move pumping from the ground-water reservoir would provide additional storage space for peak runoff and would increase the potential consumptive use in the valley. Additional wells, capable of yielding more than 250 gpm (gallons per minute), can be constructed on the flood plain of the Bitterroot River and on some of the adjacent low terraces, especially those east of the river. Near Corvallis, on a low terrace, wells capable of yielding 1,000 gpm or more can be constructed. Wells capable of yielding 50 to 250 gpm can be constructed on many of the alluvial fans of the tributary streams. In the remaining area, wells will generally yield only enough water for domestic and stock use. From the hydrologic standpoint, the best use of ground water for irrigation is conjunctive use with surface water. Surface water is adequate early in the season and can be distributed throughout the area. As shortages occur, ground water can be used in areas where it is available in sufficient quantity, allowing the surface water to be used in areas of shortage where ground water is not available. Water in the Bitterroot Valley is of satisfactory chemical quality for domestic, stock, municipal, and most industrial uses. Surface water is softer, as a rule, and contains less dissolved solids than the ground water. Streams heading in the Sapphire Mountains are more mineralized than those heading in the Bitterroot Mountains. Bitterroot River water in October 1955 was about twice as mineralized at Florence, near the outlet of the valley, as it was at Darby, near the inlet, but the difference is not significant in relation to .the usefulness of the water.
The prevention of stream pollution by strawboard waste
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Selected techniques in water resources investigations, 1966-67
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Potential development and recharge of ground water in Mill Creek Valley, Butler and Hamilton Counties, Ohio, based on analog model analysis
Mill Creek valley is part of the greater Cincinnati industrial area in southwestern Ohio. In 1964, nearly 30 percent of the water supply in the study area of about 27 square miles was obtained from wells in the glacial-outwash aquifer underlying the valley. Ground-water demand has increased steadily since the late 1800's, and excessive pumpage during the years of World War II caused water levels to decline to critical levels. Natural recharge to the aquifer, from precipitation, is about 8.5 mgd (million gallons per day). In 1964, the total water use was about 30 mgd, of which 8.1 mgd was obtained from wells in Mill Creek valley, and the remainder was imported from outside the basin. With rapid industrial expansion and population growth, demand for ground water is continuing to increase. By the year 2000 ground-water pumpage is expected to exceed 25 mgd. At a public hearing before the Ohio Water Commission in 1961, artificial recharge of the aquifer through injection wells was proposed as a possible solution to the Mill Creek valley water-supply problem. The present study attempts to determine the feasibility of injection-well recharge systems in the Mill Creek valley. Although basically simple, the hydrologic system in Mill Creek valley is complex in detail and is difficult to evaluate using conventional quantitative methods. Because of this complexity, an electric analog model was used to test specific development plans. Three hypothetical pumping plans were developed by projecting past pumpage data to the years 1980 and 2000. Various combinations of injection wells were tested on the model under different hypothetical conditions of pumpage. Based on analog model analysis, from three to eight inject-ion wells, with an approximate input of 2 mgd each, would reverse the trend in declining groundwater levels and provide adequate water to meet anticipated future demands.