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Environmental Setting and Its Relations to Water Quality in the Kanawha River Basin

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Environmental Setting and Its Relations to Water Quality in the Kanawha River Basin Environmental Setting and Its Relations to Water Quality in the Kanawha River Basin National Water-Quality Assessment Program Water Resources Investigations Report 00-4020 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey Environmental Setting and Its Relations to Water Quality in the Kanawha River Basin By Terence Messinger and C.A. Hughes Water-Resources Investigations Report 00-4020 National Water-Quality Assessment Program Charleston, West Virginia 2000 U.S. Department of the Interior Bruce Babbitt, Secretary U.S. Geological Survey Charles G. Groat, Director Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. For additional information write to: Copies of this report can be purchased from: District Chief U.S. Geological Survey U.S. Geological Survey Branch of Information Services 11 Dunbar Street Box 25286 Charleston, WV 25301 Denver, CO 80225-0286 Information regarding the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program is available on the Internet via the World Wide Web. You may connect to the NAWQA Home Page using the Universal Resource Locator (URL): http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/ Cover photo--The New River. Printed with permission from Charleston Newspapers, 1001 Virginia Street E. Charleston, WV 25301. Foreword The mission of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) This information will help support the development is to assess the quantity and quality of the earth resources and evaluation of management, regulatory, and monitor- of the Nation and to provide information that will assist ing decisions by other Federal, State, and local agencies resource managers and policymakers at Federal, State, to protect, use, and enhance water resources. and local levels in making sound decisions. Assessment The goals of the NAWQA Program are being of water-quality conditions and trends is an important achieved through investigations of 59 of the Nation’s part of this overall mission. most important river basins and aquifer systems, which One of the greatest challenges faced by water- are referred to as study units. These study units are dis- resources scientists is acquiring reliable information that tributed throughout the Nation and cover a diversity of will guide the use and protection of the Nation’s water hydrogeologic settings. More than two-thirds of the resources. That challenge is being addressed by Federal, Nation’s freshwater use occurs within the 59 study units State, interstate, and local water-resource agencies and and more than two-thirds of the people served by public by many academic institutions. These organizations are water-supply systems live within their boundaries. collecting water-quality data for a host of purposes that National synthesis of data analysis, based on aggre- include: compliance with permits and water-supply stan- gation of comparable information obtained from the dards; development of remediation plans for a specific study units, is a major component of the program. This contamination problem; operational decisions on indus- effort focuses on selected water-quality topics using trial, wastewater, or water-supply facilities; and research nationally consistent information. Comparative studies on factors that affect water quality. An additional need will explain differences and similarities in observed for water-quality information is to provide a basis on water-quality conditions among study areas and will which regional- and national-level policy decisions can identify changes and trends and their causes. The first be based. Wise decisions must be based on sound infor- topics addressed by the national synthesis are pesticides, mation. As a society we need to know whether certain nutrients, volatile organic compounds, and aquatic biol- types of water-quality problems are isolated or ubiqui- ogy. Discussions on these and other water-quality topics tous, whether there are significant differences in condi- will be published in periodic summaries of the quality of tions among regions, whether the conditions are the Nation’s ground and surface water as the information changing over time, and why these conditions change becomes available. from place to place and over time. The information can This report is an element of the comprehensive body be used to help determine the efficacy of existing water- of information developed as part of the NAWQA Pro- quality policies and to help analysts determine the need gram. The program depends heavily on the advice, coop- for and likely consequences of new policies. eration, and information from many Federal, State, To address these needs, the U.S. Congress appropri- interstate, Tribal, and local agencies and the public. The ated funds in 1986 for the USGS to begin a pilot program assistance and suggestions of all are greatly appreciated. in seven project areas to develop and refine the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program. In 1991, the USGS began full implementation of the program. The NAWQA Program builds upon an existing base of Robert M. Hirsch water-quality studies of the USGS, as well as those of Chief Hydrologist other Federal, State, and local agencies. The objectives of the NAWQA Program are to: •Describe current water-quality conditions for a large part of the Nation’s freshwater streams, riv- ers, and aquifers. •Describe how water quality is changing over time. •Improve understanding of the primary natural and human factors that affect water-quality conditions. Foreword III Contents Abstract........................................................................................................................................................................................................ 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................................................................ 2 Purpose and scope ......................................................................................................................................................................... 2 Relation to other reports and information on the World Wide Web ....................................................................................... 2 Acknowledgments........................................................................................................................................................................... 2 Environmental Setting of the Kanawha River Basin ............................................................................................................................ 4 Physiography.................................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Ecoregions........................................................................................................................................................................................ 6 Geologic Setting .............................................................................................................................................................................. 6 Crystalline rocks .................................................................................................................................................................. 10 Carbonate rocks................................................................................................................................................................... 10 Clastic rocks ......................................................................................................................................................................... 11 Mineral deposits and extraction ....................................................................................................................................... 12 Soil.......................................................................................................................................................................................... 13 Population......................................................................................................................................................................................... 13 Land use and land cover ................................................................................................................................................................ 14 Coal mining ........................................................................................................................................................................... 18 Forest ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 23 Agriculture ............................................................................................................................................................................ 24 Urban ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 25 Climate............................................................................................................................................................................................... 25 Temperature ........................................................................................................................................................................
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