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Research about Washington

Source-linked reports with geographic coverage including Washington.

At least 1,675 records · Page 93Linked to original sources
USGS1967

Mineral appraisal of the Flattery Rocks, Quillayute Needles, and Copalis National Wildlife Refuges, Washington

The Flattery Rocks, Quillayute Needles, and Copalis National Wildlife Refuges lie off the Pacific coast of the Olympic Peninsula between Cape Flattery and Grays Harbor. They have a total land area of 247 acres and consists of numerous small islands, sea stacks and rocks that rise above a wave-cut platform. The refuges are in a belt of intensely folded and faulted marine sedimentary and volcanic rocks of early Eocene to Pliocene age. Pleistocene glaciofluvial deposits blanket the Tertiary strata along this coastal belt. The disturbed belt borders the eastern margin of a depositional basin on the continental shelf that probably contains a thick sequence of late Tertiary rocks.

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USGS1966

Clinostomum marginatum in steelhead trout ( Salmo gairdneri ) and cutthroat trout ( Salmo clarki ) in a western Washington lake

Clinostomum marginatum (Trematoda: Clinostomatidae), the yellow grub parasite, was recorded in epizootic proportions from Lynch Lake, King County, Washington, in 1961 and 1962. The parasite larvae occurred principally in steelhead trout (Salmo gairdneri); cutthroat trout (S. clarki) were infected to a relatively minor degree. Fish and snail host populations were destroyed by rotenone and copper sulfate treatments.

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USGS1964

Ground-water supply for Mount Rainier National Park headquarters site near Ashford, Washington

A water well was drilled recently at the new headquarters site of Mount Rainier National Park, Washington. The headquarters site is in the narrow bedrock-walled, alluvium-floored valley of the Nisqually River. The well was drilled to a depth of 96 feet in a terraced outwash deposit which underlies the site. Two confined aquifers were penetrated but only the lower aquifer was screened and developed. The well was test pumped at various rates, the highest being 235 gallons per minute. During the first of two pumping tests, the specific capacity decreased abruptly. The decrease may have resulted from increased resistance to water movement caused by shifting of the sand and gravel adjacent to the well screen. The specific capacity of the well probably can be increased by additional development; however, because the well is capable of meeting the production requirements of the National Park Service additional development is not essential. Ground-water levels in the valley alluvium fluctuate at least 16 feet in response to seasonal variations in recharge. A sample of water taken from the well after 24 hours of pumping was of excellent chemical quality and is classified as soft. Future ground-water development probably will be most successful in the central and southeastern parts of the headquarters site where the valley alluvium is thickest.

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USGS1964

Geology and ground-water conditions of Clark County, Washington, with a description of a major alluvial aquifer along the Columbia River

This report presents the results of an investigation of the ground-water resources of the populated parts of Clark County. Yields adequate for irrigation can be obtained from wells inmost farmed areas in Clark County, Wash. The total available supply is sufficient for all foreseeable irrigation developments. In a few local areas aquifers are fine-grained, and yields of individual wells are low. An enormous ground-water supply is available from a major alluvial aquifer underlying the flood plain of the Columbia River in the vicinity of Vancouver, Camas, and Washougal, where the aquifer is recharged, in part, by infiltration from the river. Yields of individual wells are large, ranging to as much as 4,000 gpm (gallons per minute). Clark County lies along the western flank of the Cascade Range. in the structural lowland (Willamette-Puget trough) between those mountains and the Coast Ranges to the west. The area covered by the report includes the urban, the suburban, and most of the agricultural lands in the county. These lands lie on a Series of nearly fiat plains and benches which rise steplike from the level of the Columbia River (a few feet above sea level) to about 800 feet above sea level. Clark County is-drained by the Columbia River (the trunk stream of the Pacific Northwest) and its tributaries. The Columbia River forms the southern and western boundaries of the county. Although the climate of the county is considered to be humid, the precipitation ranging from about 37 to more than 110 inches annually in various parts of the county, the unequal seasonal distribution (about 1.5 inches total for ;July and August in the agricultural area) makes irrigation highly desirable for most .crops and essential for some specialized crops. Consolidated rocks of Eocene to Miocene age, chiefly volcanic lava flows and pyroclastics but including some sedimentary strata, crop out in the foothills of the Cascades in the eastern part of the county and underlie the younger, unconsolidated rocks in the lowlands to the west At most places small to moderate quantities of water can be obtained from fractures in the older consolidated rocks. However, in the populated parts of the county, these rocks generally are overlain by considerable thicknesses of more permeable materials, and few wells have been drilled in them. Springs and dug wells yield an ample domestic supply at a number of outlying farms in the foothills. The younger (Pliocene to Recent) unconsolidated materials were deposited chiefly by streams in the basin formed by downwarping of the older rocks. However, some lake deposits and glacial drift also are included. The oldest unit of this group, the lower member of the Troutdale formation of Pliocene age, consists chiefly of clay, silt, and fine sand but includes lenses of coarser sand and, rarely, gravel. The maximum known thickness of the lower member of the Troutdale formation is about 660 feet. This unit is not a good aquifer because most of the strata are fine grained. However, at a few places drilled wells have penetrated lenses of coarser grained materials in these deposits and have obtained small to moderate amounts of water from them. The upper member of the Troutdale formation consists almost entirely of lightly to moderately cemented gravel, of which the most striking feature is the presence of a considerable percentage of quartzite pebbles. The average thickness of the upper member of the Troutdale may originally have been 300 to 400 feet. The member crops out over considerable areas in the county and, where conditions of topography and exposure are optimum, has beer very deeply weathered. It is suggested that the upper member of the Troutdale formation may prove to be of early Pleistocene age.

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USGS1963

Effects of hydraulic and geologic factors on streamflow of the Yakima River Basin, Washington

The Yakima River basin, in south-central Washington, is the largest single river system entirely within the confines of the State. Its waters are the most extensively utilized of all the rivers in Washington. The river heads high on the eastern slope of the Cascade Mountains, flows for 180 miles in a generally southeast direction, and discharges into the Columbia River. The western part of the basin is a mountainous area formed by sedimentary, volcanic, and metamorphic rocks, which generally have a low capacity for storing and transmitting water. The eastern part of the basin is. formed by a thick sequence of lava flows that have folded into long ridges and troughs. Downwarped structural basins between many of the ridges are partly filled with younger sedimentary deposits, which at some places are many hundreds of feet thick. The Yakima River flows from structural basin to structural basin through narrow water gaps that have been eroded through the anticlinal ridges. Each basin is also a topographic basin and a ground-water subbasin. A gaging station will measure the total outflow of a drainage area only if it is located at the surface outlet of a ground-water subbasin and then only if the stream basin is nearly coextensive with the ground-water subbasin. Many gaging stations in the Yakima basin are so located. The geology, hydrology, size. and location of 25 ground-water subbasins are described. Since the settlement of the valley began, the development of the land and water resources have caused progressive changes in the natural regimen of the basin's runoff. These changes have resulted from diversion of water from the streams, the application of water on the land for irrigation, the storage and release of flood waters, the pumping of ground water, and other factors Irrigation in the Yakima basin is reported 'to have begun about 1864. In 1955 about 425,000 acres were under irrigation. During the past 60-odd years many gaging stations have been operated at different sites within the basin. Only stations in the upper reaches, such as those below Keechelus, Kachess, or Cle Elum Lakes, give discharge records which are an accurate measure of the natural outflow of the drainage area. Farther down, stream, as the utilization of water becomes more extensive, the records at a gaging station show the discharge passing a particular point, but they do not reflect the natural outflow of the basin. Large canals divert water for use on lands above a station or carry it around a station for irrigation downstream. The deep sedimentary deposits within subbasins and the overlying alluvial gravels permit downvalley movement of large subsurface flows which bypass the gaging stations, except in the near vicinity of the water gaps. At the water gaps ground water rises to the surface, becoming streamflow, and can be accurately measured. The location of gaging stations within each subbasin is important, therefore, in determining whether the flow measured represents the total downvalley outflow or whether it is merely the surface-water component. Surface and subsurface factors that may affect the discharge records at each gaging station in the Yakima River basin include a description of upstream diversions, surface return flows, bypass canals, storage reservoirs, subsurface bypass flows, ground-water withdrawals, and other items. The available data are not sufficiently complete to permit a quantitative determination of the total basin yield at most gaging stations. However, data on the existing bypass channels, such as canals and drainage ditches, and on related subsurface movement of water provide valuable information necessary to proper use and interpretation of the streamflow records.

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USGS1963

Geology and ground-water resources of northwestern King County, Washington

King County, in the west-central part of the State of Washington, includes about 2,135 square miles. The eastern part of the county lies in the Sierra-Cascade Mountains province and the remainder is in the Puget Trough of the Pacific Border province. The area covered by the present investigation is almost entirely within the Puget Trough and includes about 450 square miles.

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USGS1962

Geology and ground-water resources of the Ahtanum Valley, Yakima County, Washington

The Ahtanum Valley covers an area of about 100 square miles in an important agricultural district in central Yakima County, Wash. Because the area is semiarid, virtually all crops require irrigation. Surface-water supplies are inadequate in most of the area, and ground water is being used increasingly for irrigation. The purpose of this investigation was the collection and interpretation of data, pertaining to ground water in the area as an aid in the proper development and management of the water resources. The occurrence and movement of ground water in the Ahtanum Valley are directly related to the geology. The valley occupies part of a structural trough (Ahtanum-Moxee subbasin) that is underlain by strongly folded flow layers of a thick sequence of the Yakima basalt. The upper part of the basalt sequence interfingers with, and is conformably overlying by, sedimentary rocks of the Ellensburg formation which are as much as 1,000 feet thick. These rocks are in turn overlying unconformably by cemented basalt gravel as much as 400 feet thick. Unconsolidated alluvial sand and gravel, as much as 30 feet thick, form the valley floor. Although ground water occurs in each of the rock units within the area, the Yakima basalt and the unconsolidated alluvium yield about three-fourths of the ground water currently used. Wells in the area range in depth from a few feet to more than 1,200 feet and yield from less than 1 to more than 1,030 gallons per minute. Although water levels in water-table wells usually are shallow--often less than 5 feet below the land surface--levels in deeper wells tapping confined water range from somewhat above the land surface (in flowing wells) to about 200 feet below. Wells drilled into aquifers in the Yakima basalt, the Ellensburg formation, and the cemented gravel usually tap confined water, and at least 12 wells in the area flow or have flowed in the past. Ground-water levels fluctuate principally in response to changes in stream levels, variations in the flow of irrigation ditches and in rates of water application, variations in local precipitation, and seasonal differences in withdrawals from wells. Annual fluctuations of levels generally are less than 10 feet except in localities of heavy pumping. Periodic measurements of water levels in two observation wells in the area indicate, locally at least, a persistent decline in artesian pressures in confined basalt aquifers, although the record is too short to show whether withdrawal by pumping has reached, or is nearing, an optimum balance with recharge. The aquifers are recharged by precipitation, by infiltration from streams, and by ground-water underflow into the area. Ground water is discharged by seepage to streams, by evapotranspiration, by springs and seeps at the land surface, and, artificially, by withdrawal from wells. It is estimated that the seepage discharge to the Yakima River from the area studied may range from about 20,000 to 25,000 acre-feet per year. The consumptive waste of ground water by phreatophytes probably exceeds 4,000 acre-feet per year and may represent a large reclaimable source of water in the area. The annual withdrawal of ground water from wells in the area for domestic, industrial, irrigation, public, and stock supplies is estimated to be 6,300 acre-feet. The chemical quality of the ground water generally is satisfactory for most purposes, although the water from many wells is harder than is desirable for domestic use.

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USGS1962

Geology and ground-water resources of west-central Lewis County, Washington

Lewis County lies within the Puget Trough section of the Pacific Border physiographic province. The west-central part of the county, an irregularly shaped area of about 830 square miles, contains the bulk of the county's population and virtually all of its ground-water development. It occupies the central part of a structural and topographic basin surrounded by well-dissected hills, which rise as much as 2,000 feet above the flood plains of the major streams. The area is drained by two major river systems, the Chehalis-Newaukum and the Cowlitz.

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USGS1961

Geology of the Moses Lake North quadrangle, Washington

The geology of the Moses Lake North quadrangle was mapped in 1954 and 1958 by the U.S. Geological Survey. Some of the basic hydrologic data has been collected by the Geological Survey during the early investigations of ground-water conditions in the Quincy Basin (Henshaw, written communication, 1917; Schwennesen and Meinzer, 1918). Most of the data, however, were obtained by the Geological Survey since 1941, in cooperation with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and the Washington State Department of Conservation under continuing programs in the area of the Columbia Basin Project of the Bureau of Reclamation. Some preliminary geologic field work in the Moses Lake North quadrangle was done by the Geological Survey in 1954 in cooperation with the Washington State Department of Conservation.

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USGS1961

Floods in the Skagit River basin, Washington

According to Indian tradition, floods of unusually great magnitude harassed the Skagit River basin about 1815 and 1856. The heights of these floods were not recorded at the time; so they are called historical floods. Since the arrival of white men about 1863, a number of large and damaging floods have been witnessed and recorded. Data concerning and verifying the early floods, including those of 1815 and 1856, were collected prior to 1923 by James E. Stewart. He talked with many of the early settlers in the valley who had listened to Indians tell about the terrible floods. Some of these settlers had referenced the maximum stages of floods they had witnessed by cutting notches at or measuring to high-water marks on trees. In order to verify flood stages Stewart spent many weeks finding and levelling to high-water marks such as drift deposits, sand layers in coves, and silt in the bark of certain types of trees. Gaging stations have been in operation at various locations on the Skagit River and its tributaries since 1909, so recorded peak stages are available at certain sites for floods occurring since that date. All peak discharge data available for both historical and recorded floods have been listed in this report. The types of floods as to winter and summer, the duration of peaks, and the effect of reservoirs are discussed. In 1899 Sterling Dam was constructed at the head of Gages Slough near Sedro Woolley. This was the beginning of major diking in the lower reaches of the Skagit River. Maps included in the report show the location of most of the dike failures that have occurred during the last 73 years and the area probably inundated by major floods. The damage resulting from certain floods is briefly discussed. The report is concluded with a brief discussion of the U.S. Geological Survey method of computing flood-frequency curves as applied to the Skagit River basin. The treatment of single-station records and a means of combining these records for expressing regional significance are exemplified. Historical data are used in the development of both the single-station and the regional curves.

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