Geology topics
Research about Texas
Source-linked reports with geographic coverage including Texas.
A study of some effects of urbanization on storm runoff from a small watershed
The evaluation of the effects of urbanization on the runoff characteristics of a small watershed is a problem that can be studied by either a short-range or a long-range investigation. Because the long-range type of investigation would require several years for hydrologic data accumulation, it cannot provide any immediate information on the changes in watershed behavior arising as a result of urbanization. A short-range investigation, however, based on synthetic evaluation of present data would provide immediate answers. It is in the realm of this short-range objective that this study of a small urban watershed is directed.
Surface water records of Texas, 1964
The surface-water records for the 1964 water year for gaging stations, partial-record stations, miscellaneous sites, and base-flow studies within the State of Texas are given in this report. For convenience there are also included records for a few pertinent gaging stations in bordering States. The records were collected and computed by the Water Resources Division of the U. S. Geological Survey, under the direction of Trigg Twichell, district chief, Water Resources Division. Through September 30, 1960, the records of discharge and stage of streams and contents and stage of lakes or reservoirs were published in an annual series of U.S. Geological Survey water supply papers, entitled "Surface Water Supply of the United States." Since 1951 there have been 20 volumes in the series; each volume covered an area whose boundaries coincided with those of certain natural drainage areas. The records in Texas were contained in Parts 7 and 8 of that series. Beginning with the 1961 water year, streamflow records and related data have been released by the Geological Survey in annual reports on a State-boundary basis. Distribution of these basic-data reports is limited and primarily for local needs. Records will be published in Geological Survey water-supply papers at 5-year intervals.
Flood on Big Fossil Creek at Haltom City near Fort Worth, Texas, in 1962
The approximate area inundated near Fort Worth, Texas, by Big Fossil Creek, during the flood of September 7, 1962, is shown on a topographic map to record the flood hazard in graphic form. Big Fossil Creek, which drains an area of 74.7 square miles, flows generally southeastward along the northeast edge of Fort Worth through Richland Hills and Haltom City, into West Fork Trinity River. The flood of September 7, 1962, the greatest in Richland Hills since at least 1900 was the result of a high rate of discharge from the area upstream from the confluence of Big Fossil Creek and Whites Branch. Greater floods are possible, but no attempt has been made to show their probable overflow limits. Future protective works may reduce the frequency of flooding in the area but will not necessarily eliminate flooding. Changes in culture such as new highways and bridges and changes in land use may influence the inundation pattern of future floods. Mapping of the West Fork Trinity River flood was beyond the scope of the Big Fossil Creek study, and is not shown.
Preliminary report on investigation of salt springs and seeps in a portion of the Permian Basin in Texas
The Permian Basin (fig. 1) comprises a large area in the southern midcontinent region and includes major portions of Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Kansas. Within this basin brine springs and seeps discharge more than 20,000 tons per day of sodium chloride (common table salt). This brine contaminates many streams greatly impairing the utility of their waters. The water in some streams is of such poor quality it cannot be used for municipal and industrial purposes and for irrigation. Nor is the problem limited to the Permian Basin. The contaminated streams leaving the Permian Basin bring salty water to downstream areas of Arkansas and Louisiana, as well as to other parts of Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Kansas. In no comparable area of the interior United States are natural sources of salt water so widespread or deleterious to the fresh water supply of so large a segment of the nation's population and industry. The Brazos River traverses the eastern part of the Permian Basin, and is potentially one of the principal sources of water in Texas. It carries an average daily load of 1,650 tons of sodium chloride (common table salt) into Possum Kingdom Reservoir, about 110 miles west of Dallas. More than 85 percent of this salt is contributed by the Salt Fork Brazos River, and more than one-half originates from Springs and seeps in Croton and Salt Croton Creeks, tributaries to the Salt Fork Brazos River. The undesirably high chloride content of the water impounded in Possum Kingdom Reservoir limits the utility of this water, although it is used for irrigation and by some industries. Understanding of the origin and hydrology of the natural brine is fundamental to consideration of engineering measures to control the flow of salt water to streams, or to general plans to alleviate the situation in any way that includes altering the brine-discharge system. Previous investigations of natural brine features have been directed toward describing the local details of individual problem areas. Thus the occurrence of brine features has been described strictly in terms of the local environment. The origin and discharge of brine have been ascribed invariably to local sources and to local hydraulic controls. The case for local origin of the brine has been stated by Ward and Leonard (1961). According to their hypothesis brines evolve in the circulation of ground water in local hydraulic systems which feature the following conditions: (a) halite deposits or halite-bearing rocks at relatively shallow depth; (b) ground water that circulates to the halite-bearing zones; and (c) a local topographically low area where the water can emerge as a mineral spring. An alternate hypothesis (Greenman and Stevens, 1963) is that the salt springs originate as outcrops of a regional body of brine and that the primary factors determining their distribution are regional hydrologic controls, such as physiography, geology, and climate. The precise location of springs, the nature and amount of discharge, as well as their salinity, depend on secondary hydrologic factors, such as local geologic conditions, local topography that governs the movement of the overlying fresh water, and the hydrologic environment in the vicinity of the springs, which determines the amount of mixing of the brine and the fresh water at each locality. In general, the brine is a water body separate and distinct from the overlying fresh water. The salinity of individual springs is determined by the amount of mixing of the brine with the fresh water not by solution of salt-bearing materials in local hydraulic systems. The geographic zone in which all of the brine springs and seeps occur is determined by regional topographic and perhaps climatic conditions. If the regional hypothesis is true, remedial measures must take into account a set of hydraulic and hydrologic circumstances that is fundamentally different from that postulated previously.
Geology of the Sierra Diablo region, Texas; with special determinative studies of Permian fossils
No abstract available.
Base-flow studies Nueces River, Texas quantity and quality, November 23-25, 1964
An investigation was made by the U.S. Geological Survey, under a cooperative agreement with the Texas Water Development Board, to determine the changes in quantity and chemical quality of the base flow of the Nueces River in a 52.2-mile reach beginning at U.S. Highway 90 and extending to the crossing of Farm Road 1025 north of Crystal City. Knowledge of the changes in quantity and chemical quality of base flow is necessary for any evaluation of the effectiveness of the river channel in conveying water released from potential upstream reservoirs. The investigation was made November 23-25, 1964, during a period when evaporation and transpiration were small and the discharge past the stream-gaging station, Nueces River below Uvalde, was constant. Floods of September 1964 contributed considerably to the recharge of the alluvium in the reach investigated, resulting in a higher than average base flow.
Radioelement dispersion in a sedimentary environment and its effect on uranium exploration
The radioelement content of the major part of the southeast Texas Coastal Plain sedimentary sequence falls within a range common for sandstones and shales. Exceptions to the normal limit are mainly in small, widely scattered areas. One anomalous area, however, covers several tens of square miles and contains most of the important uranium deposits. Both mechanical and chemical dispersion of radioelements takes place in the immediate vicinity of the ore deposits, though no attempt is made to extend this local dispersion model to the large, regional gamma radiation anomaly. It is suggested that the point-source concept for sedimentary uranium deposits is unrealistic and that conventional aeroradiometric survey grid spacing can be substantially enlarged without seriously reducing efficiency in uranium exploration .
Uranium and helium in the Panhandle gas field, Texas, and adjacent areas
No abstract available.
Geology and ground-water resources of Uvalde County, Texas
The principal aquifer in Uvalde County is the Edwards and associated limestones of Cretaceous age. The aquifer underlies an extensive area in south-central Texas extending along the Balcones fault zone from Kinney County eastward to San Antonio, and thence northeastward to Hays County. The hydrologic unit making up the Edwards and associated limestones consists of the Comanche Peak limestone, the Edwards limestone, the Kiamichi formation, and the Georgetown limestone. Other less important aquifers in Uvalde County include the Glen Rose limestone, the Buda limestone, the Austin chalk, and the Leona formation. Uvalde County occupies parts of two physiographic provinces, the Edwards Plateau on the north and the Coastal Plain on the south; the two provinces are separated by the Balcones fault zone. In the Edwards Plateau the formations of the Edwards and associated limestones crop out on the plateau surface; in the Coastal Plain where the formations have been down-faulted, they underlie younger rocks. In both provinces the formations dip gently toward the south and southeast; the dips are greatest in the Coastal Plain. Igneous intrusions have penetrated the formations in many places in the Coastal Plain, and locally have formed barriers to ground-water movement. The aquifers in Uvalde County are recharged by precipitation within the county and in the drainage areas of streams entering the county from the north and west. In the Edwards Plateau, the Edwards and associated limestones are recharged by precipitation that falls on the outcrop. The aquifer is drained by springs at the contact with the underlying Glen Rose limestone where streams have cut through the Edwards at the edge of the plateau. These springs maintain the base flow of the streams that drain the plateau. Most of the base flow and much of flood flow of the streams is lost to the Edwards and associated limestones where they crop out in streambeds in the Balcones fault zone. This stream loss to the aquifer constitutes the greatest part of the recharge in the county, although some of the recharge from the West Nueces River enters the county as underflow from Kinney County. The normal annual recharge to the Edwards in Uvalde County is estimated to be about 200,000 acre-feet. Discharge from the Edwards and associated limestones in Uvalde County can be divided into two .major segments: discharge by underflow from the county to the east and south and discharge to the surface through wells and springs. Discharge by underflow during the period 1934-47, when changes in storage were small, is estimated to have been about 190,000 acre-feet per year. During the drought years 1947-56 the underflow was somewhat less. The discharge to the surface during 1934-47 averaged about 17,000 acre-feet per year. During the 1947-56 drought the rate of discharge to the surface increased principally because of increased use of water for irrigation, reaching a maximum of 58,000 acre-feet in 1956. The chemical quality. of the ground water in Uvalde County ranges between wide limits. Except in the extreme southern part of the county where the water is saline, the water in the Edwards and associated limestones is of good chemical quality except that it is hard. The water in the Glen Rose limestone is saline in many places; the principal objectionable constituents are high concentrations of calcium and magnesium sulfate. The water in the Leona formation is generally of good chemical quality. The water from the other formations varies widely in quality from place to place and no generalizations can be made. Ground-water withdrawals from the Edwards and associated limestones in Uvalde County probably could be maintained indefinitely at a rate of about 200,000 acre-feet per year, provided that withdrawals north and west of the county were not increased. However, continued withdrawals at this rate-would cause wells in structurally high areas to go dry, and underflow into Medina County would cease. Furthermore, saline water might invade the fresh-water part of the aquifer from the south, and perennial spring flow in the Leona River valley would cease.
Natural sources of salinity in the Brazos River, Texas with particular reference to the Croton and salt Croton Creek basins
The average daily load of the Brazos River at Possum Kingdom Reservoir is about 2,800 tons of dissolved solids, of which 1,000 tons is chloride. More than 85 percent of the chloride load is contributed by the Salt Fork Brazos River, and more than 50 percent of the chloride load of the Brazos River originates from salt springs and seeps in Croton and Salt Crotdn Creeks, which are tributaries of Salt Fork Brazos River. The rest of the chloride is contributed from many small sources. The average daily chloride load of Croton Creek is 70 tons, much of which is carried during periods of flood runoff. The average daily chloride load of Salt Croton Creek is about 480 tons. Of this total, 330 tons is contributed by the base flow, which ranges from 0.5 to 2 cubic feet per second. The principal areas of salt springs and seeps in the Croton Creek basin are Hot Springs and Short Croton Salt Flats in northeastern Kent County. In the Salt Croton Creek basin, saline water is discharged in Dove Creek Salt Flat, Dove Creek near Dove Creek Salt Flat, and three small salt flats on Haystack Creek, all in southwestern King County and northwestern Stonewall County. Salt springs and seeps discharge from the rocks of the Whitehorse Group undifferentiated in the Croton Creek basin, and from the upper part of the Dog Creek Shale of the Pease River Group in the Salt Croton Creek basin. Both groups are of Permian age. The water that is discharged by springs and seeps in the Croton Creek basin is derived from the infiltration of precipitation and seepage from streams in the Duck Creek basin. The source of the water that discharges in the Salt Croton basin is not known. The salt load contributed to the Brazos River by the springs and seeps can be reduced, although the volume of salt water for disposal probably cannot be reduced or eliminated. Collecting and disposing of the base flow of Salt Croton Creek would reduce the salt load of the Brazos River by 30 percent; disposal of the total flow of Salt Croton Creek would reduce the salt load by 45 percent. The salt water may be disposed of by impounding it in reservoirs for evaporation or by injecting it underground through oil wells, oil tests, or wells drilled for saltwater disposal. Sediments in which the salt water possibly could be injected underlie the. Dove Creek Salt Flats at depths of less than 7,000 feet.
A summary of the occurrence and development of ground water in the southern High Plains of Texas
The Southern High Plains of Texas occupies an area of about 22,000 square miles in northwest Texas, extending from the Canadian River southward. about 250 miles and from the New Mexico line eastward an average distance of about 120 miles. The economy of the area is dependent largely upon irrigated agriculture, and in 1958 about 44,000 irrigation wells were in operation. The economy of the area is also dependent upon the oil industry either in the form of oil and gas production or in the form of industries based on the production of petroleum. The Southern High Plains of Texas is characterized by a nearly flat land surface sloping gently toward the southeast at an average of 8 to 10 feet per mile. Shallow undrained depressions or playas are characteristic of the plains surface, and during periods of heavy rainfall, runoff collects in the depressions to form temporary ponds or lakes. Stream drainage on the plains surface is poorly developed; water discharges over the eastern escarpment off the plains only during periods of excessive rainfall. The climate of the area is semiarid; the average annual precipitation is about 20 inches. About 70 percent of the precipitation falls during the growing season from April to September. Rocks of Permian age underlie the entire area and consist chiefly of red sandstone and shale containing numerous beds of gypsum and dolomite. The Permian rocks are not a source of water in the Southern High Plains, and any water in these rocks would probably be saline. The Triassic rocks underlying the Southern High Plains consist of three formations of the Dockum group: the Tecovas formation, the Santa Rosa sandstone. and the Chinle formation equivalent. The Tecovas and Chinle formation equivalent both consist chiefly of shale and sandy shale; however, the Santa Rosa sandstone consists mainly of medium to coarse conglomeratic sandstone containing some shale. The formations of the Dockum group are capable of yielding small to moderate quantities of water in many parts of the Southern High Plains; however, in practically all places the water is rather saline and probably unsuitable for most uses. The Cretaceous formations in the Southern High Plains consist of several formations of the Trinity, Fredericksburg, and Washita groups. The rocks underlie a large part of the southern part of the Southern High Plains; they consist of sandstone, shale, and limestone, the sandstone and limestone being the principal water-bearing units. In a few places where the Cretaceous rocks appear to be in hydraulic connection with the overlying Ogallala formation, moderate quantities of water are obtained, particularly from the limestones. Locally the Cretaceous rocks may be important aquifers where other water is not available, but they generally do not constitute a large source of water for irrigation or municipal use. The Ogallala formation of Pliocene age is the principal aquifer in the Southern High Plains of Texas; it supplies practically all the water used for all purposes. The formation is continuous throughout most of the Texas part of the Southern High Plains and extends into New Mexico. The .formation consists chiefly of sediments deposited by streams that had their headwaters in the mountainous regions to the west and northwest. The Ogallala formation rests unconformably upon an erosional surface of the underlying Triassic and Cretaceous rocks. The Ogallala consists of beds and lenses of clay, silt, sand, and gravel; caliche occurs as a secondary deposit ,in many places in the formation. In general the Ogallala is thicker in the northern part of the area; the thickness ranges from 400 to 500 feet in central Parmer, west-central Castro, and southwestern Floyd Counties to a knife edge where the formation wedges out against outcrops of the older rocks.
Hydrologic studies of small watersheds, Honey Creek basin, Collin and Grayson Counties, Texas, 1953-1959
This report presents the results of an investigation into the effects of floodwaterretarding structures in the 39 square miles of the Honey Creek basin above the stream-gaging station near McKinney, during the period October 1952 to September 1959. The number of such structures in the study area was increased from 2 to 12 during the investigation. Data were collected which permit computation of basin and watershed precipitation, inflow to and outflow from each floodwater-retarding structure, evaporation and seepage from each pool, and a continuous record of discharge from the entire study area. Transpiration was not evaluated, but in the water-budget summary it is included in the item "pool consumption", together with evaporation and seepage. During the 7-year study period, the annual inflow to the gaged pools ranged from 1.34 to 26.50 inches and averaged 7.39 inches, of which 0.73 inch was direct rainfall on the pool surface. The annual pool consumption ranged only from 1.33 to 1.85 inches, and averaged 1.62 inches. These results indicate that in a year of substantial runoff the floodwater-retarding structures would have only a minor effect on downstream water yield, but in a year of low runoff the structures would have a marked effect on downstream water yield. The effect on the flood regimen at a downstream point because of floodwaterretarding structures in the headwaters will vary with the amount and intensity of the precipitation and with antecedent conditions. The beneficial effects of the structures on Honey Creek during the floods of April and May 1957 is illustrative. During the period April 19 to May 31, 1957, the total volume of inflow to the floodwater-retarding structures was equivalent to 4.3 times the combined capacities of the pools from an average basin rainfall of 30.31 inches. The retarding effects of the structures limited the flooding on Honey Creek at the gage to minor flooding on only five occasions during that period.