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At least 289 records · Page 16Linked to original sources
USGS1983

Analytical results for 544 water samples collected in the Attean Quartz Monzonite in the vicinity of Jackman, Maine

Water samples were collected in the vicinity of Jackman, Maine as a part of the study of the relationship of dissolved constituents in water to the sediments subjacent to the water. Each sample was analyzed for specific conductance, alkalinity, acidity, pH, fluoride, chloride, sulfate, phosphate, nitrate, sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and silica. Trace elements determined were copper, zinc, molybdenum, lead, iron, manganese, arsenic, cobalt, nickel, and strontium. The longitude and latitude of each sample location and a sample site map are included in the report as well as a table of the analytical results.

Open-File Report↗
USGS1985

Iowa ground-water-quality monitoring program

A ground-water-quality monitoring network has been designed to collect data to describe the long-term chemical quality of major bedrock and Quaternary aquifer systems in Iowa. The network was designed because of data needs expressed by several State and Federal agencies. Areas where new or additional data are needed are nitrate and bacteria concentrations in alluvial and glacial drift aquifers, fluoride and radionuclides in deep bedrock aquifers, general quality of water in the Missouri River alluvium, changes in water quality of deep bedrock aquifers caused by large withdrawal, effects of land use on shallow aquifers, and the impact of agricultural injection wells on receiving aquifers. Most of the ground-water-quality monitoring in the State has been directed at compliance or ambient monitoring of municipal water supplies. Some site-specific monitoring has occurred. More recently several special studies or research monitoring activities have been completed or begun. The monitoring program utilizes a strategy that includes low frequency and sparse distribution of samples from Cambrian-Ordovician, Silurian-Devonian, Mississippian,Pennsylvanian, and Dakota aquifers. A larger density and greater frequency of samples will be obtained from shallow bedrock wells and from wells penetrating Quaternary aquifers suck as alluvial, buried channel, and other drift aquifers. More than 1,200 wells are available and acceptable for the network. From these and newly completed wells, 200 samples will be collected and analyzed annually. Analyses will be made for common anions and cations, trace metals, nutrients, and radionuclides. One out of ten samples will be analyzed for priority pollutants and pesticides. Data from this program will be published annually in Water Resources Data, Iowa, U.S. Geological Survey Water-Data Report.

Iowa↗
USGS1985

Data from a solute transport experiment in the Leviathan Mine drainage, Alpine County, California, October 1982

A twenty-four hour injection of chloride and sodium was made into Leviathan Creek, Alpine County, California to aid interpretation of the coupled interactions between physical transport processes and geochemical reactions. Leviathan Creek was chosen because it receives acid mine drainage from Leviathan Mine, an abandoned open-pit sulfur mine. Water samples were collected at 15 sites along a 4.39 kilometer reach and analyzed for chloride, sodium, sulfate and fluoride. Dissolved concentrations are presented in tabular format and time-series plots. Duplicate samples were analyzed by two laboratories: the Central Laboratory, Denver, Colorado and a research laboratory in Menlo Park, California. A tabular comparison of the analyses and plots of the differences between the two laboratories is presented. Hydrographs and instantaneous discharge measurements are included. (USGS)

Open-File Report↗
USGS1986

Application of the aerial profiling of terrain system

Test well Ch-Bf 146 was drilled to 1,650 ft below land surface to explore and evaluate the Patapsco Formation aquifers deeper than 1,000 ft in the Waldorf/La Plata area of Charles County, Maryland. The test hole penetrated two major aquifer systems above a depth of 1,000 ft and another major aquifer system and aquifer below 1,000 ft. The deepest aquifer system found in the test drilling, the Lower Patapsco aquifer system, is comprised of a group of sands which lie between 1,140 ft and the base of the Patapsco Formation at 1,417 ft. The Waldorf aquifer system, overlies the Upper Patapsco aquifer system and includes sands in the Waldorf/La Plata area that are referred to as the ' Magothy aquifer ' by other. At the test well site, the Waldorf aquifer system consists solely of sands in the Magothy and Monmouth Formations. The three major aquifer systems and the Middle Patapsco aquifer are correlative along the regional strike for at least 10 miles in the Waldorf/La Plata area. Correlations of geophysical logs indicate that individual sands 15 to 25 ft thick can be traced between wells. Geophysical log correlations also indicate that, at some well sites, the Waldorf aquifer system and the Upper Patapsco aquifer system are in sand-on-sand contact and function as one major hydrologic system at these sites. A production well (Ch-Bf 147) was drilled at the site of the test well (Ch-Bf 146). The initial static water level of these aquifers was 9.8 ft below sea level. Evaluation of the 24-hr pumping test of Ch-Bf 147 resulted in a transmissivity of 14,000 gpd/ft (gallons per day per foot) for the first 2 hours of the test and 7,300 gpd/ft for the remainder of the test. The decrease of 6,700 gpd/ft in the transmissivity indicates that the well 's expanding cone of depression intersected a transmissivity boundary after 2 hours of pumping. The Patapsco sands tested in Ch-Bf 147 have a storage coefficient of 0.0016. The hydraulic conductivity of the producing sands in Ch-Bf 147 is 127 gpd/sq ft. The quality of groundwater from the Lower Patapsco aquifer system and the Middle Patapsco aquifer is suitable for most purposes. The water is nearly neutral (pH = 7.4), low in dissolved solids (about 200 mg/L), low in specific conductance, slightly warm (22 C), very soft, naturally fluoridated, and moderately high in dissolved silica. (Lantz-PTT)

Open-File Report↗
USGS1987

Solute geochemistry of the Snake River plain regional aquifer system, Idaho and eastern Oregon

Three geochemical methods were used to determine chemical reactions that control solute concentrations in the Snake River Plain regional aquifer system: (1) Calculation of a regional solute balance within the aquifer and of mineralogy in the aquifer framework to identify solute reactions, (2) comparison of thermodynamic mineral saturation indices with plausible solute reactions, and (3) comparison of stable-isotope ratios of the ground water with those in the aquifer framework. The geothermal ground-water system underlying the main aquifer system was examined by calculating thermodynamic mineral saturation indices, stable-isotope ratios of geothermal water, geothermometry, and radiocarbon dating. Water budgets, hydrologic arguments, and isotopic analyses for the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer system demonstrate that most, if not all, water is of local meteoric and not juvenile or formation origin. Solute-balance, isotopic, mineralogic, and thermodynamic arguments suggest that about 20 percent of the solutes are derived from reactions with rocks forming the aquifer framework. Solute reactions indicate that calcite and silica are precipitated in the aquifer. Mineralogic evidence and thermodynamic arguments suggest that olivine, pyroxene, pyrite, and anhydrite are being dissolved and plagioclase is being weathered. Large amounts of sodium and chloride, relative to their concentration in the igneous rock, are being removed from the aquifer. Release of fluids from inclusions in the igneous rocks, and initial flushing of grain boundaries and pores of detrital marine sediments in interbeds are believed to be the source of the sodium chloride. Identification and quantification of reactions controlling solute concentrations in ground water in the eastern plain indicate that the aquifer is not a large mixing vessel that simply stores and transmits water and solutes but is undergoing diagenesis and is both a source and sink for solutes. Evaluation of solute concentrations and stable-isotope ratios of hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, and sulfur along ground-water flowpaths that transect irrigated areas suggests that irrigation water may have altered solute concentrations and isotope ratios in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer system. The changes, however, have been small, owing to similarity of solute concentrations in applied irrigation water and in native ground water and rapid movement and large dispersivity of the aquifer. Reactions controlling solutes in the western Snake River basin are believed to be similar to those in the eastern basin but, because of different hydrologic conditions, a definitive analysis could not be made. The regional geothermal system that underlies the Snake River Plain contains total dissolved solids similar to those in the overlying Snake River Plain aquifer system but contains higher concentrations of sodium, bicarbonate, silica, fluoride, sulfate, chloride, arsenic, boron, and lithium, and lower concentrations of calcium, magnesium, and hydrogen. These solutes are believed to be derived from reactions similar to those in the Snake River Plain aquifer system, except that ion exchange may be a significant mechanism controlling solute concentrations in the geothermal system. Geothermometry calculations of selected ground-water samples from known geothermal areas throughout the basin suggest that the geothermal system is large in areal extent but has relatively low temperatures. Approximately half of the silica-quartz calculated water temperatures are greater than 90 degrees Celsius. Radiocarbon dating of geothermal water in the Salmon Falls and Bruneau-Grand View areas in the south-central part of the Snake River basin suggests that residence time of the geothermal water is about 17,700 years.

Idaho, Oregon↗
USGS1986

Analytical results and sample locality map of heavy-mineral-concentrate and rock samples from the Castle Peaks Wilderness Study Area (CDCA- 266), San Bernardino County, California

The report presents water-quality and geohydrologic information for 106 public water-supply wells in Illinois. These wells were sampled during April to December 1984 as part of a pilot program to develop a ground-water observation network in the State. The pilot program was designed to sample single-aquifer wells from three major aquifer systems--(1) sand and gravel, both confined and unconfined; (2) Silurian dolomite; and (3) the Ironton-Galesville deep sandstone. Data are tabulated for water temperature, pH, specific conductance, oxidation-reduction potential, ammonia nitrogen, nitrate + nitrite nitrogen, phosphorus, silica, arsenic, lead, mercury, fluoride, chloride, sulfate, cyanide, phenols, selenium, residue on evaporation at 180 degrees Celsius, alkalinity, calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, barium, boron, beryllium, cadmium, chormium, copper, cobalt, iron, aluminum, manganese, nickel, silver, strontium, vanadium, zinc, and selected geohydrologic information.

California↗
USGS1986

Geohydrologic data from Port Royal Sound, Beaufort County, South Carolina

Nine offshore wells were drilled through overlying sediments into the Upper Floridan aquifer in Port Royal Sound, South Carolina and the adjacent Atlantic Ocean, to obtain geologic, hydrologic, and water quality data. The Upper Floridan aquifer consists predominantly of light-gray, poorly consolidated, fossiliferous limestone. In the Port Royal Sound area, the Upper Floridan is overlain by olive-gray, medium to course sand and silty sand. Falling-head permeability tests on these overlying clastic sediments indicate permeabilities of 1,100 to 4.3 x 10 to the 7th power centimeters/sec. Other geologic and hydrologic data, including geophysical logs, sieve analyses, and detailed core descriptions were obtained, along with continuous water level records of the wells, tidal records, and barometric pressure records. Water collected from the Upper Floridan aquifer beneath Port Royal Sound and the ocean ranged in concentration of chloride from 54 to 12,000 mg/l. Measured pH ranged from 6.8 to 8.4, and alkalinity ranged from 122 to 368 mg/l as CaC03. Other water quality data obtained include temperature, specific conductance, carbon-13, carbon-14, tritium , deuterium, oxygen-18, dissolved oxygen, dissolved solids, nitrogen species, phosphorus, organic carbon, cyanide, sulfide, calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, sulfate, fluoride, silica , bromide, iodide, and selected trace metals. (USGS)

South Carolina↗
USGS1986

Data on snow chemistry of the Cascade-Sierra Nevada Mountains

Snow chemistry data were measured for solutes found in snow core samples collected from the Cascade-Sierra Nevada Mountains from late February to mid-March 1983. The data are part of a study to assess geographic variations in atmospheric deposition in Washington, Oregon, and California. The constituents and properties include pH and concentrations of hydrogen ion, calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride, sulfate, nitrate, fluoride, phosphate, ammonium, iron, aluminum, manganese, copper, cadmium, lead, and dissolved organic carbon. Concentrations of arsenic and bromide were below the detection limit. (USGS)

Open-File Report↗
USGS1989

Data on ground-water quality, Carson Valley and Topaz Lake areas, Douglas County, Nevada, for year ending September 1986

Douglas County, Nevada encompasses 708 sq mi and has been one of the fastest growing counties in the Nation, according to the 1980 census. This rapid population growth has led to concern about the present and future impacts of development upon the groundwater. A network of 33 wells was recently established (1985) in the Carson Valley and Topaz Lake areas of Douglas County to characterize the current groundwater quality and its seasonal variability and to monitor temporal responses to changing land-use activities. This report presents data collected from that network during November 1985 through September 1986. The primary drinking water standard was exceeded for fluoride at two domestic wells, for nitrate-nitrogen at one domestic well, and for arsenic in one non-domestic shallow monitoring well. Secondary drinking water standards were exceeded as follows: pH at one public-supply well and one domestic well; sulfate at one shallow monitoring well; and manganese at three shallow monitoring wells and one public-supply well. Concentrations of unidentified organic compounds were estimated by gas chromatograph and flame ionization detector for groundwater samples collected from 30 network wells. Seven wells (2 domestic and 5 non-domestic) had concentrations greater than 10 micrograms/L relative to the internal standard compound perdeuteronaphthalene. (Thacker-USGS)

Open-File Report↗
USGS1992

Assessment of nonpoint-source contamination of the High Plains Aquifer in south-central Kansas, 1987

Ground-water quality was assessed in a 5,000-square-mile area of the High Plains aquifer in south-central Kansas that is susceptible to nonpoint-source contamination from agricultural and petroleum-production activities. Of particular interest were agricultural chemicals, mainly atrazine, and oil-derived hydrocarbons, which might occur in association with brines that formerly were disposed into unlined ponds. Random sampling of ground water was done within a framework of discrete land-use areas (irrigated cropland, petroleum-production land containing former brine-disposal ponds, and undeveloped rangeland) of 3 to 10 square miles. Although true baseline water-quality conditions probably are rare, these baseline conditions are represented most closely by ground water beneath the areas of undeveloped rangeland. The sampling design enabled statistical hypothesis testing of the effects of land use, unsaturated-zone lithology, and type of well sampled. Statistical testing was based on nonparametric procedures. Results indicate that regional ground-water quality has been affected by prevailing land-use activities, as shown mainly by increased concentrations of several inorganic constituents. Ground water beneath irrigated cropland is characterized by significantly (95-percent confidence level) larger concentrations of hardness, alkalinity, calcium, magnesium, potassium, fluoride, and nitrite plus nitrate than is water beneath undeveloped rangeland. Nondegraded pesticides generally were not detected in the aquifer, probably because of degradation and sorption. Atrazine is present locally in ground water in small concentrations. Ground water beneath petroleum-production land is characterized by significantly (95-percent confidence level) larger concentrations of hardness, alkalinity, dissolved solids, sodium, and chloride than is water beneath undeveloped rangeland. Nonpoint-source ground-water contamination by oil-derived hydrocarbons was not discernible. The occurrences of trace-organic compounds were similar between petroleum-production land and undeveloped rangeland, which indicates a natural origin for these compounds. The unsaturated zone in the study area is lithologically heterogeneous and contains substantial amounts of clay that inhibit the downward movement of water and solutes. Within the aquifer, the rate of regional lateral flow and solute transport is sufficiently slow so that the ground-water quality reflects overlying land use in discrete areas of several square miles. Regional flow, however, is sufficiently rapid so that the type of well sampled is not important in regional characterization of water quality beneath irrigated cropland; the seasonal pumping of irrigation wells does not appear to divert regional flow enough to cause substantial local anomalies of more mineralized ground water.

Kansas↗
USGS1993

Concentration of 23 trace elements in ground water and surface water at and near the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, Idaho, 1988-91

Water samples from 167 wells and 12 surface-water sites at and near the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory were analyzed for a suite of as many as 23 trace elements in 1988-91. The samples were collected and analyzed as a continuation of a water-quality program initiated in 1987 and as part of studies conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey. Water samples were collected from 148 wells completed in the Snake River Plain aquifer, 18 wells completed in discontinuous deep perched-water zones, and 1 well completed in an alluvial aquifer. Samples were collected from these wells using dedicated or portable pumps. Grab samples were collected at surface-water sites. Data indicated that water locally contained detectable concentra- tions of aluminum, arsenic, barium, beryllium, bromide, cadmium, chromium, hexavalent chromium, cobalt, copper, iron fluoride, lead, lithium, manganese, mercury, nickel, selenium, silver, strontium, vanadium, and zinc. Molybdenum and thallium were not detected. Except for chromium, the concentrations of trace elements from all sites were less than the Maximum Contaminant Levels for drinking water established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Chromium equaled or exceeded the Maximum Contaminant Level at 12 water-quality monitoring wells. (USGS)

Open-File Report↗
USGS1994

Ground-water quality and geochemistry in Dayton, Stagecoach, and Churchill Valleys, western Nevada

The U.S. Geological Survey investigated the quality of ground water in the Dayton, Stagecoach, and Churchill Valleys as part of the Carson River Basin National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) pilot study. Four aquifer systems have been de- lineated in the study area. Principal aquifers are unconsolidated deposits at altitudes of less than 4,900 feet above sea level and more than 50 feet below land surface. Shallow aquifers are at altitudes of less than 4,900 feet and less than 50 feet below land surface. Upland aquifers are above 4,900 feet and provide recharge to the principal aquifers. Thermal aquifers, defined as those having a water temperature greater than 30 degrees Celsius, are also present. Ground water used in Dayton, Stagecoach, and Churchill Valleys is pumped from principal aquifers in unconsolidated basin-fill deposits. Ground water in these aquifers originates as precipitation in the adjacent mountains and is recharged by the Carson River and by underflow from adjacent upstream valleys. Ground-water flow is generally parallel to the direction of surface-water flow in the Carson River. Ground water is discharged by pumping, evapo- transpiration, and underflow into the Carson River. The results of geochemical modeling indicate that as ground water moves from upland aquifers in mountainous recharge areas to principal aquifers in basin-fill deposits, the following processes probably occur: (1) plagioclase feldspar, sodium chloride, gypsum (or pyrite), potassium feldspar, and biotite dissolve; (2) calcite precipitates; (3) kaolinite forms; (4) small amounts of calcium and magnesium in the water exchange for potassium on aquifer minerals; and (5) carbon dioxide is gained or lost. The geochemical models are consistent with (1) phases identified in basin- fill sediments; (2) chemical activity of major cations and silica; (3) saturation indices of calcite and amorphous silica; (4) phase relations for aluminosilicate minerals indicated by activity diagrams; and (5) results of optical, X-ray diffraction, and scanning-electron microscopy examination of mineral grains in the aquifer sediments. Sulfur-isotopic composition of ground- water samples also supports the models. In general, the quality of ground water in the study area meets Nevada State drinking-water standards and is acceptable for most uses. In addition to analysis for major ions, samples were analyzed for 22 inorganic trace elements, 3 nutrients, and 4 radionuclides. Selenium in 1 sample is the only constituent that exceeded Nevada State primary drinking-water standards. Nevada State secondary- drinking water standards were exceeded for fluoride in 1 sample, for iron in 7 samples, and for manganese in 19 samples. Minor constituent con- centrations are generally the result of local redox conditions, and are primarily from minerals in volcanic and marine metasedimentary rocks, metal- oxide coatings on mineral grains, and organic matter.

Open-File Report↗
USGS1994

Ground-water quality and geochemistry, Carson Desert, western Nevada

Aquifers in the Carson Desert are the primary source of drinking water, which is highly variable in chemical composition. In the shallow basin-fill aquifers, water chemistyr varies from a dilute calcium bicarbonate-dominated water beneath the irrigated areas to a saline sodium chloride- dominated water beneath unirrigated areas. Water samples from the shallow aquifers commonly have dissolved solids, chloride, magnesium, sulfate, arsenic, and manganese concentrations that exceed State of Nevada drinking-water standards. Water in the intermediante basin-fill aquifers is a dilute sodium bicarbonate type in the Fallon area and a distinctly more saline sodium chloride type in the Soda Lake-Upsal Hogback area. Dissolved solids, chloride, arsenic, fluoride, and manganese concen- trations commonly exceed drinking-water standards. The basalt aquifer contains a dilute sodium bicarbonate chloride water. Arsenic concentrations exceed standards in all sampled wells. The concen- trations of major constituents in ground water beneath the southern Carson Desert are the result of evapotranspiration and natural geochemical reactions with minerals derived mostly from igneous rocks. Water with higher concentrations of iron and manganese is near thermodynamic equilibrium with siderite and rhodochrosite and indicates that these elements may be limited by the solubility of their respective carbonate minerals. Naturally occurring radionuclides (uranium and radon-222) are present in ground water from the Carson Desert in concen- tratons higher than proposed drinking-water standards. High uranium concentrations in the shallow aquifers may be caused by evaporative concentration and the release of uranium during dissolution of iron and manganese oxides or the oxidation of sedimentary organic matter that typically has elevated uranium concentrations. Ground water in the Carson Desert does not appear to have be contaminated by synthetic organic chemicals.

Open-File Report↗
USGS1994

Water-quality conditions and streamflow gain and loss of the South Prong of Spavinaw Creek basin, Benton County, Arkansas

A study of the South Prong of Spavinaw Creek Basin conducted baween July 14 and July 23. 1993. described the surface- and ground-water quality of the basin and the streamflow gain and loss. Water samples were collected from 10 sites on the mainstem of the South Prong of Spavinaw Creek and from 4 sites on tributaries during periods of low to moderate streamflow (less than 11 cubic feet per second). Water samples were collected from 4 wells and 10 springs located in the basin. In 14 surface-water samples, nitrite plus nitrate concentrations ranged from 0.75 to 4.2 milligrams per liter as nitrogen (mg/L). Orthophosphorus concentrations ranged from 0 03 to O. 15 mg/L as phosphorus. Fecal coliform bacteria counts ranged from 61 to 1,400 colonies per 100 milliliters (col/lOO mL), with a median of 120 col/100 mL. Fecal streptococci bacteria counts ranged from 70 to greater than 2,000 col/100 mL with a median of 185 col/lOO mL. Analysis for selected metals collected at one surface-water sites indicates that concentrations were usually below the reporting limit. Diel dissolved oxygen concentrations and temperatures were measured at an upstream and downstream site on the mainstem of the stream. At the upstream site, dissolved oxygen concentrations ranged from 7.2 to 83 mg/L and temperatures ranged from 15.5 to 17.0 C. Dissolved oxygen concentrations were higher and temperature values were lower at lhe upstream site, which is located close to two springs that produce all of the flow at that site. Dissolved nitrite plus nitrate was present in all four wells sampled in the basin with concentrations ranging from 0.04 to 3.5 mg/L as nitrogen. Orthophosphorus was present in concentrations ranging from less than 0.01 to 0.07 mg/L as phosphorus. Volatile organic compound analyses in two wells indicate that toluene was present in both wells and chloroform was present in one well. All other volatile organic compounds were found to be below the reporting limits. Analysis for common constituents and selected metals indicated that fluoride concentrations in one well exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's primary maximum contamination levels for drinking water. Analyses of water samples collected from springs indicate that nitrite plus nitrate concen- trations ranged from 0.43 to 3.9 mg/L as nitrogen. Dissolved ammonia plus organic nitrogen concentrations ranged from less than 0.20 to 0.64 mg/L as nitrogen. Dissolved ammonia plus organic nitrogen concentrations ranged from less than 0.20 to 0.64 mg/L at nitrogen. Orthophosphorus concentrations ranged from 0.02 to 0.09 mg/L as phosphorus. Fecal coliform bacteria counts ranged from less than 3 to more than 2,000 col/100 mL, with a median of 370 col/100 mL. Fecal streptococci bacteria counts ranged from less than 4 to greater than 2,000 col/100 mL with a median of 435 col/100 mL. Streamflow in nine reaches of the mainstream increased an average of 20 percent. Six losing reaches were identified during the study, one located on the mainstem and the other five located on tributaries to the mainstem.

Open-File Report↗
USGS1995

Geochemical data of fumarolically altered rocks, Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, Alaska

Samples from a fossil fumarole originating in the 1912 ash-flow tuffin the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes have been analyzed to ascertain chemical changes resulting from high-temperature fumarolic alteration and subsequent cooling and weathering of the protolith. Samples of the underlying, dominantly leached, dacite-rich portion of the ash-flow tuff adjacent to the fumarolic conduit and samples of encrusted fallout from the shallow part of the fossil fumarole were interpreted using the isocon method of Grant (1986). The results show that, relative to unaltered l9l2 dacite, chosen as a standard composition for the protolith in this fossil fumarole, mass was conserved during the alteration reactions for most of the system, but mass gains of l4–2D% were determined for three samples in the leached ash-flow tuff Relative to unaltered dacite protolith, significant enrichments occurred in SO 3 , LOI (~H 2 O), Cl, F, Zn, Pb, Cu, Sn, Cr, Ni, As, Sb, Au, Br in various parts of the fossil fumarole. Some of these were during the high-temperature part of the alteration, and some were during cooling processes when acid alteration becomes prominent. The REEs indicate some depletion in highly altered samples relative to dacite protolith and differential mobility of Eu 2+ relative to trivalent REEs. This is manifested by positive Eu anomalies in REE patterns normalized against REE in the dacite protolith. Mineral phases introduced in the alteration assemblages include alunite reflecting high SO 3 , activity, hydrated aluminum hydroxy-fluoride (a ralstonite-like phase) and fluorite reflecting high F activity, smectite, magnetite, hematite, and goethite reflecting oxidation and hydration reactions. Opal and a portion of the α-cristobalite reflect SiO 2 , mobility; however, the abundance of α-cristobalite is formed from pumice leached during high-temperature vapor-phase processes and devitrification of the altered glass.

Open-File Report↗
USGS1996

Reconnaissance of water quality at four swine farms in Jackson County, Florida, 1993

The quality of ground water on four typical swine farms in Jackson County, Florida, was studied by analyzing water samples from wastewater lagoons, monitoring wells, and supply wells. Water samples were collected quarterly for 1 year and analyzed for the following dissolved species: nitrate, nitrite, ammonium nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, sulfate, chloride, calcium, magnesium, fluoride, total ammonium plus organic nitrogen, total phosphorus, alkalinity, carbonate, and bicarbonate. Additionally, the following field constituents were determined in the water samples: temperature, specific conductance, pH, dissolved oxygen, and fecal streptococcus and fecal coliform bacteria. Chemical changes in swine waste as it leaches and migrates through the saturated zone were examined by comparing median values and ranges of water- quality data from farm wastewater in lagoons, shallow pond, shallow monitoring wells, and deeper farm supply wells. The effects of hydrogeologic settings and swine farmland uses on shallow ground-water quality were examined by comparing the shallow ground-water-quality data set with the results of the chemical analyses of water from the Upper Floridan aquifer, and to land uses adjacent to the monitoring wells. Substantial differences occur between the quality of diluted swine waste in the wastewater lagoons, and that of the water quality found in the shallow pond, and the ground water frm all but two of the monitoring wells of the four swine farms. The liquid from the wastewater lagoons and ground water from two wells adjacent to and down the regional gradient from a lagoon on one site, have relatively high values for the following properties and constituents: specific conductance, dissolved ammonia nitrogen, dissolved potassium, and dissolved chloride. Ground water from all other monitoring wells and farm supply wells and the surface water pond, have relatively much lower values for the same properties and constituents. To determine the relation between land uses and ground-water quality on the four swine farms, ground-water-quality data were divided according to the following land uses: confined operations in which swine are kept in houses and not allowed to roam freely, and unconfined operations in which swine are allowed to roam freely in determined areas. Confined operations had lagoons to receive the diluted swine wastes washed from the houses.

Florida↗
USGS1996

Water-quality characteristics and suspended sediment of the Clinch and Powell rivers in northeastern Tennessee, 1989-94

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Tennessee State Planning Office, conducted a 4 l/2-year water-quality study in the Clinch and Powell River drainage basins in northeastern Tennessee. An intermittent sampling program was conducted from June 1989 through January 1994. Water-quality samples were collected and analyzed for an upstream site and a downstream site on each river. The upstream sites were near the Tennessee-Virginia State line, and the downstream sites were located on the rivers upstream of Norris Lake. At the upstream sites, fecal coliform bacteria exceeded the water-quality criteria for recreational use in 14 of 40 samples. At the downstream sites, counts exceeded the criteria limits in 2 out of 22 samples. Concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus compounds were within the range expected for natural surface water. Nutrient discharge did not correlate well to streamflow, rainfall, and seasonal effects. Suspended-sediment discharge at the four study sites was related to streamflow, a rainfall factor, and seasonal effects. Average annual sediment yields among sites were estimated at 97 tons per square mile per year on the Clinch River and 184 tons per square mile per year on the Powell River. Concentrations of calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, sulfate, chloride, silica, and fluoride were all measured within the range expected for a natural carbonate system. Instantaneous total-iron concentrations exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency criteria for fish and aquatic life at the upstream sites in 23 of 28 samples on the Clinch River, and in 38 of 44 samples on the Powell River. At the downstream sites, total iron exceeded the same criteria in 2 of 5 samples on the Clinch River, and in 1 of 4 samples on the Powell River.

Tennessee↗
USGS1999

Selected hydrologic data from the Cedar Rapids area, Linn County, Iowa, April 1996 through March 1999

The City of Cedar Rapids, Iowa obtains its municipal water supply from four well fields along the Cedar River. The wells are completed at depths of about 60 to 80 feet in a shallow alluvial aquifer adjacent to the Cedar River. The City of Cedar Rapids and the U.S. Geological Survey have conducted a cooperative study of the groundwater flow system and water quality near the well fields since 1992. The purpose of this report is to document selected hydrologic data collected from April 1996 through March 1999. Data include the results of water-quality analyses, ground-waterlevels continuously measured with pressure transducers and data recorders, and physical properties continuously monitored using multiprobe instruments. Water-quality samples were collected from selected wells and the Cedar River to conduct periodic monitoring, to evaluate ground-water geochemistry, to assess the occurrence of pesticides and herbicide degradates in the alluvial aquifer, and to characterize water quality in shallow ground water near a wetland area in the Seminole Well Field. Types of water-quality analyses included common ions (calcium, chloride, iron, magnesium, manganese, potassium, silica, sodium, and sulfate), trace elements (boron, bromide, and fluoride), nutrients (ammonia as nitrogen, nitrite as nitrogen, nitrite plus nitrate as nitrogen, and orthophosphate as phosphorus), dissolved organic carbon, and selected pesticides and herbicide degradates. Ground-water levels in selected observation wells were continuously measured to assess temporal trends in groundwater levels in the alluvial aquifer and bedrock aquifer, to help calibrate a ground-water flow model being constructed to simulate local groundwater flow under transient conditions near the well fields, and to assess hydrologic conditions near a wetland area in the Seminole Well Field. Physical properties (specific conductance, pH, dissolved oxygen, and water temperature) were continuously monitored to assess temporal variation and to help evaluate the interaction between the Cedar River and ground water in the alluvial aquifer.

Iowa↗