Hydrology of Stock-Water Development in the Ely Grazing District Sjevada
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Hydrology of Stock-Water Development in the Ely Grazing District SJevada JEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1475-L Drepared as part of the Soil and Moisture Conservation Program of he Department of the Interior Hydrology of Stock-Water Development in the Ely Grazing District Nevada By CHARLES T. SNYDER HYDROLOGY OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1475-L Prepared as part of the Soil and Moisture Conservation Program of the Department of the Interior UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1963 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR STEWART L. UDALL, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Thomas B. Nolan, Director For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington 25, D.C. CONTENTS Page Abstract-________________________________________________________ 383 Introduction._____________________________________________________ 383 31imate__________________________________________________________ 387 Vegetation._ ______________________________________________________ 387 Physiography _____________________________________________________ 391 General features.______________________________________________ 391 Mountains_ _ _ ________________________________________________ 391 Valleys_____________________________________________________ 392 Geology-_____________________________________________________ 392 Previous investigations.-_______________________________________ 392 General features.---._... ______________________________________ 393 Geology of the mountains._____________________________________ 393 Geology of the valleys...-. __________________ ___________________ 393 Vater resources ___________________________________________________ 395 Surface water.________________________________________________ 395 Reservoirs as a source of stock water____________________________ 396 Ground water.________________________________________________ 397 Vater resources of the individual valleys.____________________________ 401 Antelope Valley.______________________________________________ 401 Spring Valley.________________________________________________ 403 Steptoe Valley ________________________________________________ 404 Butte Valley________________________________________________ 406 Long Valley.--_-------____-_-______________________-_-__-_-__ 407 Ruby Valley._________________________________________________ 409 Huntington Valley.____________________________________________ 410 Newark Valley._______________________________________________ 410 Little Smoky Valley. __________________________________________ 412 Sand Spring Valley ____________________________________________ 413 Snake Valley________________________________________________ 414 White River Valley____________________________________________ 415 Jakes Valley._________________________________________________ 417 Railroad Valley._-_-_---_-_________________-__-__--___--_-_--_ 418 Lake VaUey__.___---_._-_______ __________-___________-_-__-_ 420 Dry Lake Valley,_____________________________________________ 421 Cave Valley._-____--_-_-__--_--_-_______-__-__-_-____-----_-- 422 Coal Valley_________________________________________________ 423 Garden Valley. _______________________________________________ 424 Camp Valley________________________________________________ 425 inclusions- _ ______________________-_-_______-__-_--_--_-_----_--- 426 ;cords of springs, reservoirs, and wells______________--__-___-----_-_ 427 jferences..-______________________ _______________________________ 437 iex____________________________________________________________ 439 IV CONTENTS ILLUSTEATIONS Fagi PLATE 23. Water resources map of the Ely Grazing District ______ In pockel FIGURE 47. Sketch showing numbering system used in this report_______ 38f 48. Histograms showing distribution of average monthly pre cipitation_ _________-_____-_-_______-_-____-.___^___ 38£ 49. Map of average annual precipitation in the Ely Grazing District._______________-____-___-_-___-__--___-_-_ 39( 50. Idealized cross section of the left half of an alluvium-filled valley___________________________________________ 39< TABLES TABLE 1. Precipitation, in inches, at stations in the Ely Grazing District. _ 38 2. Reservoirs in the Ely Grazing District, by valleys. ___________ 39 3. Hydrologic and topographic classification of valleys in the Ely Grazing District___________________________-___________ 40 4. Records of springs, reservoirs, and wells In the Ely Grazing District, Nevada.____________________________________ 42 HYDROLOGY OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN HYDROLOGY OF STOCK-WATER DEVELOPMENT IN THE ELY GRAZING DISTRICT, NEVADA By CHARLES T. SNTDER ABSTRACT The Ely Grazing District is an administrative unit established by the Bureau of Land Management. It covers about 9 million acres, or approximately 14,000 square miles, in White Pine, Nye, and Lincoln Counties, Nev. The district has an arid to semiarid climate. Precipitation ranges from 7 inches in the south to 13 inches in the north. In the southern part of the district precipitation is about equally divided between winter and summer, but in the northern part most of the precipitation occurs in the winter. The evaporation rate is high throughout the district. Physiographically the Ely Grazing District consists of isolated valleys sur rounded by mountains. The valleys lack exterior drainage except for three in the south which are tributary to the Colorado River. The geology of the area falls naturally into two general categories: (1) the geology of the mountains and (2) the geology of the valleys. The valleys are important for desert water supply as they contain the principal aquifers. Water supplies are derived chiefly from runoff of precipitation that falls in the mountains. Much of the rain that falls is lost in the mountains by evapora tion and transpiration; the remainder moves toward the valleys in surface streams or as ground water. Surface streams can be used directly by stock or the water can be stored in reservoirs for future use. Reservoir losses which take place through seepage and evaporation are high. The losses by evaporation may be minimized most eco nomically through use of deep reservoirs having a minimum surface area. Most of the ground water used in the Ely Grazing District occurs in the valley fills. A few wells have been dug or drilled into the bedrock of the mountains but dry holes are not uncommon. Water resources in 20 valleys in the district were investigated to determine the water supplies available for stock use and possible additional sources. It is con cluded that most of these valleys will sustain additional development. Each val ley, however, is a unique case; and before large-scale developments can be made, local test drilling and test pumping should be done. INTRODUCTION The public domain in the Western States provides forage for cattle and sheep which are the mainstay of the ranching industry. Large areas of this land are administered by the Bureau of Land Manage- 383 384 HYDROLOGY OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN ment, Department of the Interior, through local grazing districts. The Ely Grazing District in eastern Nevada is one such administrative unit. The Department has a responsibility to protect as well as to ad minister the land under its jurisdiction. The Soil and Moisture Con servation program of the Department contributes to the discharge of a part of this responsibility. In order to protect the range from erosion it is necessary to regulate grazing and reduce trailing, because overgrazed range, or land badly dissected by stock trails, is subject to accelerated erosion by wind and water. Experience has shown that adequate distribution of water sup plies results in a reduction of erosion and in optimum use of available forage. Usually range water has been developed on a random basis, which has led to uneven distribution of the supplies over the entire range. Under the Soil and Moisture Conservation program an effort is being made to achieve a better distribution of the stock-water supplies and better use of the range. This report, a contribution by the Geological Survey to the Soil and Moisture Conservation program, describes an investigation of the stock-water resources of the Ely Grazing District. It defines the avail able water sources and areas of water need, and it suggests measures for improvement of the supplies. A map, prepared during the field- work, shows the location of the existing supplies and the proposed developments. This map and report should be useful not only to the district manager for planning the Soil and Moisture Conservation activities in the district and in subdividing the district into individual allotments, but also to residents of the area whose livelihood depends in large part on the successful use of the public lands. The Ely Grazing District is in east-central Nevada between lat 37°40' and 40°06' N. and long 114° to 116° W. It includes all of White Pine County as well as the northern parts of Nye and Lincoln Coun ties. The district is approximately 170 miles from north to south and about 95 miles from east to west. It covers about 9,000,000 acres, of which more than 8,073,000 acres is administered by the Bureau of Land Management (written communication from D. E. Dimmick, Bu reau of Land Management). The total area amounts to 14,000 square miles, or approximately one-seventh of the State of Nevada. The district contains a number of intermontane desert basins that are elongated north to south. Most are nearly flat floored and some have a central