Geology topics
Source-linked reports with geographic coverage including Arkansas.
This is a brief summary of the objectives, accomplishments, and work plans of the cooperative program between the Arkansas Department of Pollution Control and Ecology and the U.S. Geological Survey.
Most of the ground-water data for the Cache River alluvial aquifer-stream system in northeast Arkansas were collected between March 1973 and April 1976, but some were collected as early as April 1946. The data includes records of 363 wells and test holes, water-level measurements of 295 wells, logs of 32 test holes, and chemical analyses of water samples from 85 wells.
This report contains statistical information relating to water use in Arkansas. The principle categories of water use, other than hydroelectric energy generation, are public supply, self-supplied industrial use, rural domestic and livestock use, irrigation, fish and minnow farming, water for wild life impoundments, and thermoelectric-energy generation. About half the total or 2,440 Mgal/d was used for irrigation, and of that 86 percent was ground water. A little more than half the water used in the state was ground water; streams and reservoirs supplied the rest.
The flood on December 9-10, 1971, at Mulberry, Ark., damaged the west spur dike of the Mulberry River bridge. In addition, there was considerable scour around the toe of the dike and around some bridge piers and a moderate amount of filling under the west end of the dual structures. The Arkansas State Highway Department requested a study of the flow characteristics of the December 1971 flood. The peak flow was 56,100 cubic feet per second (1,589 cubic metres per second) and was analyzed for three conditions: (1) with dike shortened, (2) with dike repaired, and (3) with a relief bridge west of the main bridge. The flood of 56,100 cubic feet per second (1,589 cubic metres per second) would not cause serious damage with the dike shortened and riprapped. Repairing the dike to the original dimensions would not solve the problem. A relief bridge would eliminate the extreme concentration of flow near the dike and would reduce the mean velocity and backwater in the main bridge section.
The Arkansas State Highway Department plans to build a new two-lane highway bridge, parallel to and approximately 50 feet (15.2 metres) downstream from the centerline of the existing U.S. Highway 167 bridge, over the White River at Batesville. The existing bridge will be altered and remain in service, thus providing a four-lane crossing after completion of the new bridge. The State Highway Department requested a hydraulic analysis of the 50-year flood at the site, considering the effect of upstream flood storage in existing (1974) reservoirs. The purpose of this study was to determine for the regulated 50-year flood: (1) the discharge and elevation of peak flow and resulting backwater with existing bridge in place; (2) the discharge and elevation of peak flow and resulting backwater if an additional bridge of the same length, parallel to and 50 feet (15.2 metres) downstream from the existing bridge, is added; and (3) the effect that a reduction of the length of the relief span would have on backwater at existing buildings on the north bank of the up-stream flood plain.
The peak discharge of the Illinois River tributary for the flood of June 8, 1974, is well above that of the 100-year flood. Reconstruction of State Highway 59 caused an increase in water-surface elevation of 5.1 ft (feet) or 1.5 m (metres) for the 25-year flood, 5.5 ft (1.68 m) for the 50-year flood, and 10.8 ft (3.29 m) for the flood of June 8, 1974, at the approach section to the new culvert, as shown by flood profiles. Discharge for the 25-year flood is 640 ft 3 /s (cubic feet per second) or 18.11 m 3 /s (cubic metres per second), for the 50-year flood is 770 ft 3 /s (21.79 m 3 /s), and the peak discharge for the flood of June 8, 1974, was 1,470 ft 3 /s (41.60 m 3 /s).
No abstract available.
The Arkansas State Highway Department plans to build a new two-lane highway bridge, parallel to and approximately 50 feet (15.2 metres) downstream from the centerline of the existing U.S. Highway 167 bridge, over the White River at Batesville. The present bridge will be altered and remain in service, thus providing a four-lane crossing after completion of the new bridge. The State Highway Department requested a hydraulic analysis of the 5O-year flood at the site, considering the effect of upstream flood storage in existing (1974) reservoirs. The purpose of this study was to determine for the regulated 50-year food: (1) the discharge and elevation of peak flow and resulting backwater with existing bridge in place; (2) the discharge and elevation of peak flow and resulting backwater if an additional bridge of the same length, parallel to and 50 feet (15.2 metres) downstream from the existing bridge, is added; and 3) the reduction in length of relief span of proposed four-lane bridge that could be made without flooding existing buildings on the north bank of the upstream flood plain. Information is provided in this report to assist the Highway Department in deciding upon the most practical and economical river crossing within existing limitations. Floodflow characteristics of the design (50-year) flood are summarized in table 1 for (1) existing bridge and embankment, (2) proposed four-lane bridge the sane length as present structures, (3) proposed four-lane bridge with length of relief span reduced to 3,000 feet (914 metres), (4) Tenth of relief span reduced to 2,000 feet (610 metres), (5) length of relief span reduced to 1,000 feet X 305 metres), and (6) without a relief span. All elevations listed in this report are referenced to highway datum, which is mean sea level.
During the summers of 1972–73, 10 fish species were evaluated as predators against larvae of the dark rice field mosquito, Psorophora confinnis (Lynch-Arribalzaga), near Stuttgart, Ark. Stocking rates were 0.02, 0.03, and 0.06 fish/ft 2 . At the lowest stocking rate green sunfish, Lepomis cyanellus Rafinesque, reduced larval numbers by 89.7% and were significantly more effective than adult mosquitofish, Gambusia affinis (Baird and Girard). The white amur, Ctenopharynogodon idella Valenciennes, was intermediate in effectiveness when compared with the above. At 0.03 fish/ft 2 , green sunfish reduced larvae by 99.2% and were significantly more efficient than juvenile mosquitofish, which had little effect on the larval population. At the 0.06 fish/ft 2 rate mosquitofish; white amur; Israeli carp, Cyprinus carpio L.; and hybrids (Israeli carp × goldfish) were significantly more effective than bigmouth buffalo, Ictiobus cyprinellus (Valenciennes); black buffalo, Ictiobus niger (Rafinesque); goldfish, Carassius auratus (L.); or juvenile mosquitofish. Recovery counts of fish indicated that fish survived under natural conditions in Arkansas rice fields.
The Arkansas State Highway Department is constructing Interstate Highway 430 (1-430) across Fourche Creek in southwest Little Rock. The Highway Department requested the U.S. Geological Survey to determine the elevation, the discharge, and the frequency of the flood of April 21, 1974, and the elevation, the discharge, and the backwater for the 50-year flood, and to report on the hydrologic effects of alterations to the proposed bridges and roadway to accommodate the larger of the two floods. All elevations in this report are given to highway datum, which is mean sea level. This report was prepared under the provisions of the cooperative agreement between the Arkansas State Highway Commission and the Geological Survey.
The study area comprises about 3,200 square miles of the Mississippi Alluvial Plain in southeast Arkansas. About 90 percent of the area drains south to the Ouachita River in Louisiana. The alluvial aquifer and the streams are hydraulically connected and are studied as an aquifer-stream system. Bayou Bartholomew is a principal stream of the system. The aquifer is underlain by confining strata of the Jackson Group and Cockfield Formation. The mean annual surface-water yield of the area that drains to the Ouachita River basin is nearly 2 million acre-feet. Flood-control projects have significantly reduced flooding in the area. Basin boundaries and low-flow characteristics of streams have been altered as a result of the flood-control projects and streamflow diversion for irrigation. The direction of ground-water flow generally is southward. Bayou Bartholomew functions mostly as a drain for ground-water flow from the west and as a recharge source to the aquifer east of the bayou. As a result of navigation pools, the Arkansas River is mostly a steady-recharge source to the aquifer. Pumpage from the aquifer and streams increased from about 20,000 acre-feet in 1941 to 237,000 acre-feet in 1970. Estimates of flow, derived from analog analysis but lacking field verification, indicate that recharge to the aquifer in 1970 was about 161,000 acre-feet. About 70 percent of the recharge was by capture from streams as a result of ground-water pumpage. Discharge from the aquifer was about 233,000 acre-feet. About 80 percent of the discharge was through wells. Stream diversion in 1970 from capture and open channel, excluding capture from the Arkansas and Mississippi Rivers, was about 110,000 acre-feet. Return flow to streams from rice irrigation and fishponds was about 60,000 acre-feet. The chemical quality of streamflows is excellent for irrigation. Water from the aquifer generally ranges from permissible to excellent for irrigation. The use of water from the aquifer in the flood-plain area, exclusive of irrigation, is severely limited unless it is treated to remove the iron and reduce the hardness.
Water is available in Clay, Greene, Craighead, and Poinsett Counties from ground-water and surface-water sources. However, ground water is more accessible in many places than surface water. Ground water is available from the alluvium, which covers all the area except Crowleys Ridge, and is also available from other formations below the alluvium. Surface water is available from the Black and Cache Rivers west of Crowleys Ridge, and from the St/ Francis and Little Rivers, and from many ditches and laterals east of the ridge. Continuous water supplies are not available from streams on Crowleys Ridge, but additional surface-water supplies could be made available from reservoirs storage on the ridge. Average annual streamflow ranges from 1.2 cfs per sq mi (Cubic feet per second per square mile) in the western part of the four counties to 1.4 cfs per sq mi in the eastern part. Average annual precipitation is about 48 inches. Use of water in the area for agriculture greatly exceeds all other used combined, and progressively greater amounts of water are being used for irrigation. In 1965, 111.4 mgd (million gallons per day) was used for irrigation of other crops. An additional 16.9 mgd was used by industry, municipalities, and others. Of these amounts, 180.1 mgd was ground water and 19.7 mgd was surface water, or a total of 199.8 mgd. More than 80 manufacturing firms, many of which are closely allied to agriculture, use moderate amounts of water, mostly from municipal supplies.
Techniques are presented for estimating the magnitude and frequency of floods on Arkansas streams. Modern topographic maps now available and computer techniques facilitate in making a comprehensive analysis in which physical and climactic characteristics of river basins are related to flood characteristics at gaging stations. Equations derived from the analysis make it possible to estimate the magnitude of future floods with recurrence intervals of as much as 50 years on gaged and ungaged streams that have drainage areas of 0.1-3,000 square miles. An estimate of the future flood potential can be used to locate and design flood-control structures, establish flood-insurance rates, and devise flood-zoning plans. Appendixes in the report contain data on flood characteristics of gaged drainage basins, a summary of climatic and topographic characteristics of drainage basins, peak stages and discharges for gaging stations that have 5 or more years of record, and peak-flow data for outstanding floods at miscellaneous sites.