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USGS · 70179103

Hydrology and potential for ground-water development in southeastern Tooele Valley and adjacent area in the Oquirrh Mountains, Tooele County, Utah

Bernard J. Stolp
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Abstract

Communities in southeastern Tooele Valley, Utah, are growing, and future demand for water is expected to increase. To prepare for this demand, local surface- and ground-water resources were evaluated. Average streamflow in Settlement, Middle, and Soldier Canyons is about 6,000, 2,100, and 3,900 acre-feet per year, respectively. The combined average perennial streamflow of Pine, Pole, Swensons, Leavetts, and Pass Canyons is about 700 acre-feet per year. Average ground-water recharge to basin-fill deposits in southeastern Tooele Valley is about 44,000 acre-feet per year. Discharge approximately equals recharge. Specific capacity of wells in the basin fill ranges from less than 1 to 180 gallons per minute per foot of drawdown, and dissolved-solids concentration ranges from 363 to 1,550 milligrams per liter. Stream-channel deposits are recharged mainly by streamflow losses and subsurface inflow. Average discharge from stream-channel deposits in Settlement and Middle Canyons is about 2,100 and 3,400 acre-feet per year, respectively. Specific capacity of wells in the stream-channel deposits ranges from less than 1 to 45 gallons per minute per foot of drawdown, and dissolved-solids concentration ranges from 320 to 350 milligrams per liter. Average ground-water recharge to consolidated rock is about 42,000 acre-feet per year. Discharge, mainly by subsurface outflow to southeastern Tooele Valley, approximately equals recharge. Locations of springs in consolidated rock are not correlated with known topographic or geologic features. Specific capacity of wells in the consolidated rock ranges from less than 1 to 97 gallons per minute per foot of drawdown, and dissolved-solids concentration ranges from 220 to 1,400 milligrams per liter. Areas southwest of Tooele City and near Lincoln are considered to have potential for additional ground-water withdrawal.

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90° N90° S · 180° W ← longitude → 180° E
Source-reported bounding extent: 40.43858586704331° to 40.5930995321649° latitude; -112.36679077148438° to -112.22259521484375° longitude. This indicates report coverage, not an exact sampling location. View area on OpenStreetMap.

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BibTeXRIS

Bernard J. Stolp. 1994. Hydrology and potential for ground-water development in southeastern Tooele Valley and adjacent area in the Oquirrh Mountains, Tooele County, Utah. https://pubs.usgs.gov/publication/70179103

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USGS2003

Hydrology and simulation of ground-water flow in Kamas Valley, Summit County, Utah

Kamas Valley, Utah, is located about 50 miles east of Salt Lake City and is undergoing residential development. The increasing number of wells and septic systems raised concerns of water managers and prompted this hydrologic study. About 350,000 acre-feet per year of surface water flows through Kamas Valley in the Weber River, Beaver Creek, and Provo River, which originate in the Uinta Mountains east of the study area. The ground-water system in this area consists of water in unconsolidated deposits and consolidated rock; water budgets indicate very little interaction between consolidated rock and unconsolidated deposits. Most recharge to consolidated rock occurs at higher altitudes in the mountains and discharges to streams and springs upgradient of Kamas Valley. About 38,000 acre-feet per year of water flows through the unconsolidated deposits in Kamas Valley. Most recharge is from irrigation and seepage from major streams; most discharge is to Beaver Creek in the middle part of the valley. Long-term water-level fluctuations range from about 3 to 17 feet. Seasonal fluctuations exceed 50 feet. Transmissivity varies over four orders of magnitude in both the unconsolidated deposits and consolidated rock and is typically 1,000 to 10,000 feet squared per day in unconsolidated deposits and 100 feet squared per day in consolidated rock as determined from specific capacity. Water samples collected from wells, streams, and springs had nitrate plus nitrite concentrations (as N) substantially less than 10 mg/L. Total and fecal coliform bacteria were detected in some surface-water samples and probably originate from livestock. Septic systems do not appear to be degrading water quality. A numerical ground-water flow model developed to test the conceptual understanding of the ground-water system adequately simulates water levels and flow in the unconsolidated deposits. Analyses of model fit and sensitivity were used to refine the conceptual and numerical models.

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