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USGS1975

Water resources of the Cedar River watershed, southeastern Minnesota

The Cedar River Watershed Unit (as established by the states of Minnesota) consists of 1,204 square miles (3,118 square kilometres) of flat or gently undulating plain. The watershed is drained by the Cedar River and several smaller streams that flow south into Iowa and eventually into the Mississippi River. Its easternmost neck is part of a broad, flat, well-drained plain, covered by a thin sheet of glacial drift. Sinkholes have formed in the near surface carbonate bedrock, and a karst topography is developing. Farther north, along the east boundary, the drift is more than 200 feet (61 m) thick, and the land surface reaches altitudes of more than 1,450 feet (442 m) – the highest area in southeastern Minnesota. In the central part of the watershed in the southern flood plain of the Cedar River, the drift is less than 100 feet (30 m) thick, and the land surface altitude is less than 1,140 feet (347 m). The western part is dominated by a terminal moraine of the last Wisconsin glacier. Here the drift is more than 300 feet (91 m) thick, is poorly drained, and has numerous lakes. The watershed is mostly prairie and is well suited for farming, which is the dominant economic activity. Topographic quadrangle maps published by the U.S. Geological Survey are available for the entire watershed.

Minnesota↗

USGS1969

Geology, hydrology, and water quality in the Fresno area, California

The Fresno area comprises about 1.400 square miles lying west of the foothills of the Sierra Nevada and east of the trough of the San Joaquin Valley. The rainfall averages less than 10 inches per year causing agricultural development to depend mainly on surface-water deliveries and ground-water pumpage. Surface-water deliveries and ground-water pumpage, however, vary considerably from year to year. For example, in agricultural year 1958 (April 1, 1958-March 31, 1959) surface-water deliveries were about 1,340,000 acre-feet and agricultural ground-water pumpage was about 1,740,000 acre-feet, but in agricultural year 1960 deliveries were only about 560,000 acre-feet and pumpage was about 2,520,000 acre-feet. Alluvial fans are the dominant geomorphic features in the area. Small alluvial fans have been formed near the foothills by the deposits from the numerous intermittent streams that lie both north and south of the Kings River. Thicker and much more extensive alluvial fans have been formed under most of the area by deposits from the San Joaquin and Kings Rivers. Geologic units in the area consist of consolidated rocks and unconsolidated deposits. In turn, consolidated rocks consist of basement complex of pre-Tertiary age and marine and continental sedimentary rocks of Cretaceous and Tertiary age. Unconsolidated deposits are of both Tertiary and Quaternary age. Most of the geologic units dip gently southwestward approximately paralleling the back slope of the Sierra Nevada. Although some of these geologic units are faulted, especially in the deep subsurface, faulting has not affected the occurrence and movement of fresh ground water. The basement complex crops out along the eastern border of the area and yields only small amounts of water to wells; the marine and continental sedimentary rocks do not crop out in the area and do not yield any water to wells. The unconsolidated deposits are divided into an older series of Tertiary and Quaternary age, and a younger series of Quaternary age. The continental deposits of Tertiary and Quaternary age crop out beneath the extreme southeastern part of the area and yield small amounts of water to wells, and the deposits of Quaternary age crop out over most of the area and yield more than 90 percent of the water pumped from wells. The deposits of Quaternary age in turn are divided into older alluvium, lacustrine and marsh deposits, younger alluvium, flood-basin deposits. and sand dunes. The older alluvium is by far the most important aquifer in the Fresno area. It consists of intercalated lenses of clay, silt, silty and sandy clay, clayey and silty sand, sand, gravel, cobbles, and boulders, and in general it is fine grained near the trough of the valley and beneath the alluvial fans of intermittent streams. In the older alluvium, yields to wells range from less than 20 gpm (gallons per minute) to more than 3,000 gpm. The lacustrine and marsh deposits occur only in the subsurface in the western part of the area. Consisting mostly of silt and clay, they are virtually impermeable and thus restrict the vertical movement of water. These deposits from oldest to youngest are designated the E-clay, the C-clay, and the A-clay. The E-clay is the thickest and most extensive of all the lacustrine and marsh deposits. Because the clays tend to confine ground water in the Fresno area, five water bodies are recognized. These are the unconfined water body, the shallow water body, the confined water body below the A-clay, the confined water body below the C-clay, and the confined water body below the E-clay. The unconfined water body underlies most of the Fresno area. The shallow and confined water bodies underlie parts of the extreme western part of the area. There, heads in successively underlying water bodies are less than those in overlying water bodies, indicating that some ground water moves slowly downward through the clays. From agricultural years 1957 to 1962, outflow in the area exceeded inflow. As a result, for this period, the Fresno area had a net deficit of about 2,890,000 acre-feet. This deficit was made up for mostly by a decline in ground water stored. Water levels in all water bodies have been declining over the years, yet when streamflow and canal deliveries are large they show a general rise. The general movement of ground water in the Fresno area is toward the southwest, although pumping depressions near Fresno and near the western part of the area, cause ground water to move northward, southward, and westward toward them.

California↗

USGS1982

Physiographic divisions and differential uplift in the Piedmont and Blue Ridge

The Piedmont and Blue Ridge are dynamic landscapes that have undergone substantial change since the orogenies that ended in late Paleozoic or, as some believe, early Mesozoic time. The southern Blue Ridge region south of Roanoke, Va., lies on the crest of a topographic uplift that corresponds to the eastern continental drainage divide. To the north, this uplift and divide cross the Appalachian Valley and form the crest of the Appalachian Plateaus as far north as central Pennsylvania. The northern Blue Ridge Mountains as well as parts of the Piedmont are on the eastern part of the uplift area. The southeastern margin of the uplift corresponds to a line within the Piedmont physiographic province that extends northeastward from the Tallapoosa River at the Fall Zone and crosses the Rappahannock River at the Fall Zone. The differential elevation on either side of this line is sharp in some places, as, for example, northeast of Atlanta, Ga. In other places, the difference in elevation is difficult to detect, and, in effect, the line becomes a broad monoclinal slope. The region as a whole can be divided into at least six broad subregions that have somewhat different histories in late geologic time. The Piedmont Lowlands subprovince, southeast of the uplifted area, is dominated by a monotonous topography of low rounded ridges and ravines largely underlain by saprolite on crystalline rocks. Isolated ranges of hills of greater relief are scattered across the region; those investigated are directly related to the presence of erosionally resistant rocks. Stream patterns as well as broad topographic forms indicate that although the southern part of the Piedmont Lowlands was probably once covered by younger sediments, this area has been exposed to erosion for a long time. In North Carolina, the inner part of the Piedmont Lowlands has strongly trellised stream patterns, which suggest that subaerial erosion was active for an even longer time period, perhaps since the latest orogeny. North of the Cape Fear River, the outer part of the Piedmont Lowlands was covered by either fluvial or marine sediments or both, probably during Miocene time. Tectonic activity has affected the Piedmont Lowlands in late geologic time. The Fall Zone that forms the southeast border is, at least in places, controlled by faults active in Tertiary time. Late faults have also been found in the Pine Mountain area of Georgia. Minor differences in relief affecting large regions within the Piedmont Lowlands may be related to different rates of uplift in addition to rock resistance, either past or present. The Piedmont northeast of the Potomac River (Northeastern Highlands) rises to more than 300 m in altitude. The major streams have convex profiles that steepen as they near the Coastal Plain. Unusually narrow valleys and broad upland surfaces indicate an increased rate of erosion and show that the relief is now or recently has been increasing because of uplift or tilting. West of the southern end of the Piedmont Lowlands is an area herein called the Southwestern Highlands that in some respects is similar. The area is crossed by two large streams that have convex profiles. The highest mountain ranges in the area rise to altitudes greater than 600 m. Northwest of the Piedmont Lowlands, the topography and relief are higher, and in some places, the rise is gradual, forming a Foothill zone between the Piedmont Lowlands and the high Blue Ridge. This zone is morphologically more complex than the Piedmont Lowlands. North of the Roanoke River, the foothills are commonly chains of isolated hills and ridges generally underlain by resistant rocks. The hills increase in height near the Blue Ridge, an indication that they owe their height to tectonism of late geologic age. South of the Yadkin River, the hills are believed to be residual, the remnants of a larger highland that has been only partially reduced to the lower relief of the general Piedmont surface. The

Professional Paper↗

USGS2006

Geologic map and coal stratigraphy of the Doty Mountain quadrangle, eastern Washakie basin, Carbon County, Wyoming

This report provides a geologic map of the Doty Mountain 7.5-minute quadrangle, located along the eastern flank of the Washakie Basin, Wyo. Geologic formations and individual coal beds were mapped at a scale of 1:24,000; surface stratigraphic sections were measured and described; and well logs were examined to determine coal correlations and thicknesses in the subsurface. Detailed measured sections are provided for the type sections of the Red Rim Member of the Upper Cretaceous Lance Formation and China Butte and Overland Members of the Paleocene Fort Union Formation. The data set was collected as part of a larger effort to acquire data on Upper Cretaceous and Tertiary coal-bearing rocks in the eastern Washakie Basin and southeastern Great Divide Basin. Regions in the eastern Washakie Basin and southeastern Great Divide Basin have potential for coal development and were considered previously for coal leasing by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.

Scientific Investigations Map↗

USGS2007

Detrital mineral chronology of the Uinta Mountain Group: Implications for the Grenville flood in southwestern Laurentia

Numerous studies have shown that large quantities of Grenville-age detritus dominate Neoproterozoic to Cambrian arenites in southwest Laurentia (southwestern United States). U-Pb ages and Hf isotopic compositions of zircons and 40 Ar/ 39 Ar ages of white mica from clastic sedimentary rocks of the Neoproterozoic Uinta Mountain Group also indicate significant Mesoproterozoic detritus mixed with a variably abundant Archean component. Zircons with ages representative of the Paleoproterozoic basement in the eastern Uinta Mountains or the younger Paleoproterozoic rocks of the adjacent Yavapai-Mazatzal terranes were not observed. A limited range of initial ϵ Hf (∼90% between –3 and +3) for Mesoproterozoic zircons suggests derivation from a source region (or regions) characterized by mixing between juvenile and reworked older crust during Grenville orogenesis. The enriched Grenville-age basement proposed to underlie much of southeastern North America may be this source based on similarities of Hf isotopic data from Mesoproterozoic zircons in Mississippi River sand and available paleocurrent data. If so, then disruption of this supply in the Cambrian may be related to Iapetan rifting and, perhaps, the separation of the Precordillera terrane from Laurentia.

Geology↗

USGS1998

Carolina slate belt gold deposits in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia

The Southeastern United States, in particular, the Carolina slate belt of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, has been an important region of mineral production (fig. 1). This region is thought to have major potential for containing large undiscovered deposits of gold and silver, as well as copper, lead, zinc, molybdenum, and tin. Gold production from the major mines (Haile, Brewer, Ridgeway, and Barite Hill) in South Carolina ranked sixth in the Nation in 1992. Despite the closing of all but one mine in 1997, the region continues to attract intense scrutiny by the mining industry. Current U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) efforts in the slate belt are led by a multidisciplinary team focused on an integrated, multistate, and multiyear project that has the potential to result in a fundamental reinterpretation of the economic geology of the region. The slate belt is considered a scientific frontier because of the rapid pace of data acquisition by the USGS, academia, and private sector geologists and because emerging concepts of its geologic evolution are controversial. Establishing the origin of the gold deposits is important, not only in guiding exploration, but for more accurate assessment of the potential for the occurrence of new deposits throughout the southern Appalachians. These efforts may result in further industry exploration that may lead to discovery of new economically viable mineral deposits, which would have a broad economic impact on the region. Another goal is to find ways to prevent human activities related to gold extraction from remobilizing toxic metals found in these deposits, which could have potential harmful effects on the environment.

Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia↗

USGS2003

Geologic map of the Puye Quadrangle, Los Alamos, Rio Arriba, Sandoval, and Santa Fe Counties, New Mexico

The Puye quadrangle covers an area on the eastern flank of the Jemez Mountains, north of Los Alamos and west of Espanola, New Mexico. Most of the quadrangle consists of a dissected plateau that was formed on the resistant caprock of the Bandelier Tuff, which was erupted from the Valles caldera approximately 1 to 2 million years ago. Within the canyons of the east-flowing streams that eroded this volcanic tableland, Miocene and Pliocene fluvial deposits of the Puye Formation and Santa Fe Group are exposed beneath the Bandelier Tuff. These older units preserve sand and gravel that were deposited by streams and debris flows flowing from source areas located mostly north and northeast of the Puye quadrangle. The landscape of the southeastern part of the quadrangle is dominated by the valley of the modern Rio Grande, and by remnants of piedmont-slope and river-terrace deposits that formed during various stages of incision of the Rio Grande drainage on the landscape. Landslide deposits are common along the steep canyon walls where broad tracts of the massive caprock units have slumped toward the canyons on zones of weakness in underlying strata, particularly on silt/clay-rich lacustrine beds within the Puye Formation.

Miscellaneous Field Studies Map↗

USGS2007

A Precipitation-Runoff Model for the Blackstone River Basin, Massachusetts and Rhode Island

A Hydrological Simulation Program-FORTRAN (HSPF) precipitation-runoff model of the Blackstone River Basin was developed and calibrated to study the effects of changing land- and water-use patterns on water resources. The 474.5 mi2 Blackstone River Basin in southeastern Massachusetts and northern Rhode Island is experiencing rapid population and commercial growth throughout much of its area. This growth and the corresponding changes in land-use patterns are increasing stress on water resources and raising concerns about the future availability of water to meet residential and commercial needs. Increased withdrawals and wastewater-return flows also could adversely affect aquatic habitat, water quality, and the recreational value of the streams in the basin. The Blackstone River Basin was represented by 19 hydrologic response units (HRUs): 17 types of pervious areas (PERLNDs) established from combinations of surficial geology, land-use categories, and the distribution of public water and public sewer systems, and two types of impervious areas (IMPLNDs). Wetlands were combined with open water and simulated as stream reaches that receive runoff from surrounding pervious and impervious areas. This approach was taken to achieve greater flexibility in calibrating evapotranspiration losses from wetlands during the growing season. The basin was segmented into 50 reaches (RCHRES) to represent junctions at tributaries, major lakes and reservoirs, and drainage areas to streamflow-gaging stations. Climatological, streamflow, water-withdrawal, and wastewater-return data were collected during the study to develop the HSPF model. Climatological data collected at Worcester Regional Airport in Worcester, Massachusetts and T.F. Green Airport in Warwick, Rhode Island, were used for model calibration. A total of 15 streamflow-gaging stations were used in the calibration. Streamflow was measured at eight continuous-record streamflow-gaging stations that are part of the U.S. Geological Survey cooperative streamflow-gaging network, and at seven partial-record stations installed in 2004 for this study. Because the model-calibration period preceded data collection at the partial-record stations, a continuous streamflow record was estimated at these stations by correlation with flows at nearby continuous-record stations to provide additional streamflow data for model calibration. Water-use information was compiled for 1996-2001 and included municipal and commercial/industrial withdrawals, private residential withdrawals, golf-course withdrawals, municipal wastewater-return flows, and on-site septic effluent return flows. Streamflow depletion was computed for all time-varying ground-water withdrawals prior to simulation. Water-use data were included in the model to represent the net effect of water use on simulated hydrographs. Consequently, the calibrated values of the hydrologic parameters better represent the hydrologic response of the basin to precipitation. The model was calibrated for 1997-2001 to coincide with the land-use and water-use data compiled for the study. Four long-term stations (Nipmuc River near Harrisville, Rhode Island; Quinsigamond River at North Grafton, Massachusetts; Branch River at Forestdale, Rhode Island; and Blackstone River at Woonsocket, Rhode Island) that monitor flow at 3.3, 5.4, 19, and 88 percent of the total basin area, respectively, provided the primary model-calibration points. Hydrographs, scatter plots, and flow-duration curves of observed and simulated discharges, along with various model-fit statistics, indicated that the model performed well over a range of hydrologic conditions. For example, the total runoff volume for the calibration period simulated at the Nipmuc River near Harrisville, Rhode Island; Quinsigamond River at North Grafton, Massachusetts; Branch River at Forestdale, Rhode Island; and Blackstone River at Woonsocket, Rhode Island streamflow-gaging stations differed from the observed runoff v

Scientific Investigations Report↗

USGS1995

Geohydrology, water quality, and nitrogen geochemistry in the saturated and unsaturated zones beneath various land uses, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, California, 1991-93

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Eastern Municipal Water District, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, and the Orange County Water District, has completed a detailed study of the Hemet groundwater basin. The quantity of ground water stored in the basin in August 1992 is estimated to be 327,000 acre-feet. Dissolved-solids concentration ranged from 380 to 700 mg/L (milligrams per liter), except in small areas where the concentration exceeded 1,000 mg/L. Nitrate concentrations exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) of 10 mg/L nitrate (as nitrogen) in the southeastern part of the basin, in the Domenigoni Valley area, and beneath a dairy in the Diamond Valley area. Seven sites representing selected land uses-- residential, turf grass irrigated with reclaimed water, citrus grove, irrigated farm, poultry farm, and dairy (two sites)--were selected for detailed study of nitrogen geochemistry in the unsaturated zone. For all land uses, nitrate was the dominant nitrogen species in the unsaturated zone. Although nitrate was seasonally present in the shallow unsaturated zone beneath the residential site, it was absent at moderate depths, suggesting negligible migration of nitrate from the surface at this time. Microbial denitrification probably is occurring in the shallow unsaturated zone. High nitrate concentrations in the deep unsaturated zone (greater than 100 ft) suggest either significantly higher nitrate loading at some time in the past, or lateral movement of nitrate at depth. Nitrate also is seasonally present in the shallow unsaturated zone beneath the reclaimed-water site, and (in contrast with the residential site), nitrate is perennially present in the deeper unsaturated zone. Microbial denitrification in the unsaturated zone and in the capillary fringe above the water table decreases the concentrations of nitrate in pore water to below the MCL before reaching the water table. Pore water in the unsaturated zone beneath the citrus grove site contains very high concentrations of nitrate. Even though there are zones of microbial denitrification, nitrate seems to be migrating downward to the water table. The presence of a shallow perched-water zone beneath the irrigated-farm site prevents the vertical movement of nitrate from the surface to the regional water table. Above the perched zone, nitrate concentrations in the unsaturated zone are variable, ranging from below the MCL to four times the MCL. Periodically, nitrate is flushed from the shallow unsaturated zone to the perched-water zone. The unsaturated zone pore-moisture quality could not be adequately addressed because of the very dry conditions in the unsaturated zone beneath the poultry-farm site. Surficial clay deposits prevent water from percolating downward. At the two dairy sites, nitrate loading in pore water at the surface was very high, as great as 7,000 mg/L. Microbial denitrification in the unsaturated zone causes such concentrations to decrease rapidly with depth. At a depth of 20 ft, nitrate concentration was less than 100 mg/L. In areas where the depth to water is less than 20 ft, nitrate loading to ground water can be very high, whereas in areas where depth to water is greater than 100 ft, most of the nitrate is microbially removed before reaching the water table.

California↗

USGS1995

Hydrogeologic and agricultural-chemical data for the South Skunk River alluvial aquifer at a site in Story County, Iowa, 1992-93

A reconnaissance study was conducted during 1992-93 to collect background hydrogeologic and agricultural-chemical data for the South Skunk River alluvial aquifer near Ames, Iowa. Observation wells were drilled to characterize the surficial geologic materials of a field-scale study site and to provide locations for collecting waterlevel and agricultural-chemical data. Walnut Creek, a tributary to the South Skunk River, forms a lateral boundary on the northern edge of the field site. Water-level measurements showed a hydraulic-head gradient towards the South Skunk River under both wet and dry conditions at the study site. Walnut Creek appears to be losing water to the aquifer during most hydrologic conditions. More than 20 milligrams per liter of nitrate as nitrogen were present consistently in water from the southeastern part of the study site. Nitrate-as-nitrogen concentrations in water samples from other locations routinely did not exceed 10 milligrams per liter. The herbicide atrazine was detected most often, 36 of 38 times, in water samples collected from observation wells adjacent to Walnut Creek. Atrazine was not used on the study site during 1992-93 but was found frequently in water samples from Walnut Creek. Therefore, Walnut Creek appears to be a source of herbicide contamination to the alluvial aquifer.

Iowa↗

USGS2014

Estimating flood magnitude and frequency for urban and small, rural streams in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, 2011

Reliable estimates of the magnitude and frequency of floods are essential for the design of transportation and water-conveyance structures, flood insurance studies, and flood-plain management. Flood-frequency estimates are particularly important in densely populated urban areas. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) used a multistate approach to update methods for determining the magnitude and frequency of floods in urban and small, rural streams that are not substantially affected by regulation or tidal fluctuations in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina (Feaster and others, 2014). The multistate approach has the advantage over a single state approach of increasing the number of streamflow-gaging station (streamgages) available for analysis, expanding the geographical coverage that would allow for application of regional regression equations across state boundaries, and building on a previous flood-frequency investigation of rural streamgages in the Southeastern United States. This investigation was funded as part of a cooperative program of water-resources investigations between the USGS, the South Carolina Department of Transportation, and the North Carolina Department of Transportation. In addition, much of the data and information for the Georgia streamgages was funded through a similar cooperative program with the Georgia Department of Transportation.

Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina↗

USGS1947

Preliminary report on the gypsum deposits near Iyoukeen Cove, Chicagof Island, southeastern Alaska

The only known gypsum deposits in Alaska are on northeastern Chichagof Island, southeastern Alaska, at Iyoukeen Cove (fig. 1). The area first developed and for a time worked by the Pacific Coast Gypsum Co. is approximately 1 mile upstream from the mouth of Gypsum Creek at an elevation of about 70 feet (fig. 2). The second deposit, known as the Gypsum-Camel property, is on tidewater 12 miles northeast of the mouth of Gypsum Creek (fig. 2). Iyoukeen Cove is about 35 air miles southwest of Juneau and is on both the mail-boat and the airline routes between Juneau and Sitka. The two deposits were examined by a Geological Survey party during the summer of 1946. Topographic and geologic maps were made of the vicinity of both deposits (figs. 2 and 3). Accessible underground workings at the Gypsum-Camel property also were mapped,

Alaska↗

USGS2002

Assessments of aquifer sensitivity on Navajo Nation and adjacent lands and ground-water vulnerability to pesticide contamination on the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project, Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requested that the Navajo Nation conduct an assessment of aquifer sensitivity on Navajo Nation lands and an assessment of ground-water vulnerability to pesticide contamination on the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project. Navajo Nation lands include about 17,000 square miles in northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, and southeastern Utah. The Navajo Indian Irrigation Project in northwestern New Mexico is the largest area of agriculture on the Navajo Nation. The Navajo Indian Irrigation Project began operation in 1976; presently (2001) about 62,000 acres are available for irrigated agriculture. Numerous pesticides have been used on the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project during its operation. Aquifer sensitivity is defined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as 'The relative ease with which a contaminant [pesticide] applied on or near a land surface can migrate to the aquifer of interest. Aquifer sensitivity is a function of the intrinsic characteristics of the geologic material in question, any underlying saturated materials, and the overlying unsaturated zone. Sensitivity is not dependent on agronomic practices or pesticide characteristics.' Ground-water vulnerability is defined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as 'The relative ease with which a contaminant [pesticide] applied on or near a land surface can migrate to the aquifer of interest under a given set of agronomic management practices, pesticide characteristics, and aquifer sensitivity conditions.' The results of the aquifer sensitivity assessment on Navajo Nation and adjacent lands indicated relative sensitivity within the boundaries of the study area. About 22 percent of the study area was not an area of recharge to bedrock aquifers or an area of unconsolidated deposits and was thus assessed to have an insignificant potential for contamination. About 72 percent of the Navajo Nation study area was assessed to be in the categories of most potential or intermediate potential for contamination. About 6 percent of the study area was assessed to have the least potential for contamination, mostly in areas where the slope of the land surface is more than 12 percent. Nearly all fields on the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project were assessed to have the most potential for contamination. The assessment of ground-water vulnerability to pesticide contamination on the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project was based on pesticide application to various crops on part of the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project during 1997-99. The assessment indicated that ground water underlying fields of beans, wheat, barley, and alfalfa was most vulnerable to pesticide contamination; ground water underlying fields of corn and potatoes was intermediately vulnerable to pesticide contamination; and ground water underlying fields of hay was least vulnerable to pesticide contamination.

Arizona, New Mexico, Utah↗

USGS1978

Geologic map of the Casius Quadrangle of Mars

Geologic units of the martian surface are subdivided on the basis of surface morphology, albedo, and crater distribution and are placed in a stratigraphic sequence following principles of superposition, crosscutting relations, and, to a degree, crater density. The Casius quadrangle (30˚ N to 65˚ N lat; 240˚ W to 300˚ W long) is one of the northern tier of Lambert conformal sheets of the Mars Atlas. It consists of four distinctive physiographic regions: 1) part of the northern cratered plains which forms an incomplete annulus around the north polar region, 2) smooth lowland plains of Utopia Planitia across the central and southeastern part of the map, 3) mountainous terrain, in the Nilosyrtis Mensae region south of the lowland plains, consisting of distinct mountains with hummocky surfaces, and 4) cratered plateau in the southwest part of the map, forming the northern part of the large complex cratered region in the mid-latitudes of Mars. In the Casius quadrangle, the cratered plateau is broken by a set of linear to curved parallel-sided canyons on its northern margin.

IMAP↗

USGS1999

Ground-water levels and flow directions in the glacial sediments and the Lockport Dolomite in southeastern Darke and northeastern Preble counties, Ohio, July 1998

During the summer of 1997, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) began an emergency removal action at the Lewisburg Drum Site in northern Preble County, Ohio. The site is about 3 miles west-northwest of the village of Lewisburg. The USEPA removed about 1,200 drums of waste ink from the site, as well as 2,500 cubic yards of contaminated soil and 100,000 gallons of ground water. Because of the potential for off-site migration of ground-water contamination, USEPA sampled residential wells in the area; results from the samples collected by USEPA indicated that the quality of water in some privately owned wells may have been affected by contaminants from the site. However, the directions of ground-water flow in the area were not known. In 1998, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the USEPA, measure water levels in the vicinity of the site. This map will aid in the interpretation of the water-quality data collected by USEPA.

Ohio↗

USGS2003

Natural background concentrations of nutrients in streams and rivers of the conterminous United States

Determining natural background concentrations of nutrients in watersheds in the developed world has been hampered by a lack of pristine sampling sites covering a range of climatic conditions and basin sizes. Using data from 63 minimally impacted U.S. Geological Survey reference basins, we developed empirical models of the background yield of total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) from small watersheds as functions of annual runoff, basin size, atmospheric nitrogen deposition rate, and region-specific factors. We applied previously estimated in-stream loss rates to yields from the small watershed models to obtain estimates of background TN and TP yield and concentration throughout the stream/river network in 14 ecoregions of the conterminous United States. Background TN concentration varies from less than 0.02 mg L-1 in the xeric west to more than 0.5 mg L-1 along the southeastern coastal plain. Background TP concentration varies from less than 0.006 mg L-1 in the xeric west to more than 0.08 mg L-1 in the great plains. TN concentrations in U.S. streams and rivers currently exceed natural background levels by a much larger factor (6.4) than do TP concentrations (2.0). Because of local variation in runoff and other factors, the range of background nutrient concentrations is very large within some nutrient ecoregions. It is likely that background concentrations in some streams in these regions exceed proposed nutrient criteria.

Environmental Science & Technology↗

USGS1997

Water resources of Bannock Creek basin, southeastern Idaho

The potential for development of water resources in the Bannock Creek Basin is limited by water supply. Bannock Creek Basin covers 475 square miles in southeastern Idaho. Shoshone-Bannock tribal lands on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation occupy the northern part of the basin; the remainder of the basin is privately owned. Only a small amount of information on the hydrologic and water-quality characteristics of Bannock Creek Basin is available, and two previous estimates of water yield from the basin ranged widely from 45,000 to 132,500 acre-feet per year. The Shoshone-Bannock Tribes need an accurate determination of water yield and baseline water-quality characteristics to plan and implement a sustainable level of water use in the basin. Geologic setting, quantities of precipitation, evapotranspiration, surface-water runoff, recharge, and ground-water underflow were used to determine water yield in the basin. Water yield is the annual amount of surface and ground water available in excess of evapotranspiration by crops and native vegetation. Water yield from Bannock Creek Basin was affected by completion of irrigation projects in 1964. Average 1965-89 water yield from five subbasins in Bannock Creek Basin determined from water budgets was 60,600 acre-feet per year. Water yield from the Fort Hall Indian Reservation part of Bannock Creek Basin was estimated to be 37,700 acre-feet per year. Water from wells, springs, and streams is a calcium bicarbonate type. Concentrations of dissolved nitrite plus nitrate as nitrogen and fluoride were less than Maximum Contaminant Levels for public drinking-water supplies established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Large concentrations of chloride and nitrogen in water from several wells, springs, and streams likely are due to waste from septic tanks or stock animals. Estimated suspended-sediment load near the mouth of Bannock Creek was 13,300 tons from December 1988 through July 1989. Suspended-sediment discharge was greatest during periods of high streamflow.

Idaho↗

USGS2006

Geohydrology of the lower Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River basin, southwestern Georgia, northwestern Florida, and southeastern Alabama

The lower Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint (ACF) River Basin contains about 4,600 square miles of karstic and fluvial plains and nearly 100,000 cubic miles of predominantly karst limestone connected hydraulically to the principal rivers and lakes in the Coastal Plain of southwestern Georgia, northwestern Florida, and southwestern Alabama. Sediments of late-middle Eocene to Holocene in hydraulic connection with lakes, streams, and land surface comprise the surficial aquifer system, upper semiconfining unit, Upper Floridan aquifer, and lower semiconfining unit and contribute to the exchange of ground water and surface water in the stream-lake-aquifer flow system. Karst processes, hydraulic properties, and stratigraphic relations limit ground-water and surface-water interaction to the following hydrologic units of the stream-lake-aquifer flow system: the surficial aquifer system, upper semiconfining unit, Upper Floridan aquifer, and lower confining unit. Geologic units corresponding to these hydrologic units are, in ascending order: Lisbon Formation; Clinchfield Sand; Ocala, Marianna, Suwannee, and Tampa Limestones; Hawthorn Group; undifferentiated overburden (residuum); and terrace and undifferentiated (surficial) deposits. Similarities in hydraulic properties and direct or indirect interaction with surface water allow grouping sediments within these geologic units into the aforementioned hydrologic units, which transcend time-stratigraphic classifications and define the geohydrologic framework for the lower ACF River Basin. The low water-transmitting properties of the lower confining unit, principally the Lisbon Formation, allow it to act as a nearly impermeable base to the stream-lake-aquifer flow system. Hydraulic connection of the surficial aquifer system with surface water and the Upper Floridan aquifer is direct where sandy deposits overlie the limestone, or indirect where fluvial deposits overlie clayey limestone residuum. The water level in perched zones within the surficial aquifer system fluctuates independently of water-level changes in the underlying aquifer, adjacent streams, or lakes. Where the surficial aquifer system is connected with surface water and the Upper Floridan aquifer, water-table fluctuations parallel those in adjacent streams or the underlying aquifer. More...

Alabama, Florida, Georgia↗