Discharge, Suspended Sediment, Bedload, and Water Quality in Clear Creek, Western Nevada, Water Years 2010–12
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Prepared in cooperation with the Nevada Department of Transportation Discharge, Suspended Sediment, Bedload, and Water Quality in Clear Creek, Western Nevada, Water Years 2010–12 Scientific Investigations Report 2015–5124 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey Cover: Photograph showing hydrologic technician, Joseph Joyner, hiking to headwater sample site, Clear Creek above Highway 50 near Spooner Summit, Nevada (USGS streamgage 10310485). (Photograph taken by Daniel Riddle, U.S. Geological Survey.) Discharge, Suspended Sediment, Bedload, and Water Quality in Clear Creek, Western Nevada, Water Years 2010–12 By Jena M. Huntington and Charles S. Savard Prepared in cooperation with the Nevada Department of Transportation Scientific Investigations Report 2015–5124 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey U.S. Department of the Interior SALLY JEWELL, Secretary U.S. Geological Survey Suzette M. Kimball, Acting Director U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2015 For more information on the USGS—the Federal source for science about the Earth, its natural and living resources, natural hazards, and the environment—visit http://www.usgs.gov or call 1–888–ASK–USGS. For an overview of USGS information products, including maps, imagery, and publications, visit http://www.usgs.gov/pubprod/. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. Although this information product, for the most part, is in the public domain, it also may contain copyrighted materials as noted in the text. Permission to reproduce copyrighted items must be secured from the copyright owner. Suggested citation: Huntington, J.M., and Savard, C.S., 2015, Discharge, suspended sediment, bedload, and water quality in Clear Creek, western Nevada, water years 2010–12: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5124, 39 p., http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/sir20155124. ISSN 2328-0328 (online) iii Contents Abstract ...........................................................................................................................................................1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................1 Purpose and Scope ..............................................................................................................................4 Previous Investigations........................................................................................................................4 Description of Study Area ...................................................................................................................4 Surface-Water Hydrology ............................................................................................................................5 Annual Peak Discharge and Floods ...................................................................................................9 Sediment and Water-Quality Study Methods..........................................................................................12 Collection Methods ............................................................................................................................12 Sediment Concentration and Transport ..................................................................................................13 Suspended-Sediment Concentrations ............................................................................................13 Sediment Loads ...................................................................................................................................17 Suspended-Sediment Loads ....................................................................................................17 Bedload........................................................................................................................................23 Total Sediment Loads ................................................................................................................24 Water-Quality Characteristics ..................................................................................................................24 Summary and Conclusions .........................................................................................................................31 References Cited..........................................................................................................................................32 Appendix 1. Streamflow, Field Measurements, and Suspended-Sediment Analyses for Samples Collected at Clear Creek Sites, Western Nevada, Water Years 2010–12 .............35 Appendix 2. Bedload-Sediment Data for Samples Collected at Clear Creek sites, Nevada, Water Years 2010–12 ......................................................................................................................38 Appendix 3. Water-Quality Data for Samples Collected at Clear Creek sites, Nevada, Water Years 2010–12 ......................................................................................................................39 iv Figures 1. Map showing Clear Creek drainage basin, land ownership, and sampling sites near Carson City, western Nevada .....................................................................................................2 2. Map showing generalized land cover in the Clear Creek drainage basin, Carson City and Douglas County, western Nevada ..............................................................................3 3. Graph showing mean annual discharge for periods of record at site 2, Clear Creek near Carson City, Nevada, water years 1949–62 and 1990–2012 .........................................6 4. Boxplots showing mean monthly discharge for periods of record, water years 1949–62 and 1990–2012 and monthly discharge for water years 2010–12, at site 2, Clear Creek near Carson City, western Nevada ......................................................................7 5. Graphs showing daily mean discharges for water year 2010, water year 2011, and water year 2012 and periods of record for site 2, Clear Creek near Carson City, western Nevada ............................................................................................................................8 6. Graph showing flow duration at site 2, Clear Creek near Carson City, western Nevada, water years 1949–2003, 2004–07, and 2010–12 ........................................................9 7. Graph showing annual peak discharge at site 2, Clear Creek near Carson City, western Nevada, water years 1948–78 and 1989–2012 ........................................................10 8. Graph showing annual exceedance probability of annual peak discharges for site 2, Clear Creek near Carson City, western Nevada ................................................................11 9. Graphs showing dates and types of samples collected and daily mean discharge for water years 2010, 2011, and 2012, at site 2, Clear Creek near Carson City, western Nevada ..........................................................................................................................14 10. Boxplots showing distribution of suspended-sediment concentration at sites 1, 2, and 3 on Clear Creek, western Nevada, during water years 2010–12 and 2004–07 ........15 11. Boxplots showing ranges of suspended-sediment concentrations measured under specified ranges of discharge at site 1, site 2, and site 3, Clear Creek, western Nevada, water years 2004–07 and 2010–12 ............................................................................16 12. Graphs showing relation between suspended-sediment concentration and sand break for site 1, site 2, and site 3, Clear Creek, western Nevada, water years 2004–07 and 2010–12 ..................................................................................................................18 13. Boxplots showing distribution of suspended-sediment loads at sites 1, 2, and 3 on Clear Creek, western Nevada, water years 2010–12 and 2004–07 ...................................19 14. Graphs showing relation between suspended-sediment transport rate and instantaneous discharge for site 1, site 2, and site 3, Clear Creek, western Nevada .....21 15. Boxplots showing suspended-sediment loads measured under specified ranges of discharge at site 1, site 2, and site 3, Clear Creek, western Nevada, water years 2004–07 and 2010–12 .................................................................................................................22 v Figures—Continued 16. Graph showing relation between bedload and discharge at site 2, Clear Creek, western Nevada, water years 2004–07 and 2010–12 ............................................................23 17. Graphs showing bedload composition and associated discharge at site 2, Clear Creek near Carson City, western Nevada , water years 2010, 2011, and 2012 .................25 18. Graphs showing bedload composition and associated discharge at site 3, Clear Creek, western Nevada, water years 2010 and 2011 ............................................................26 19. Graph showing relation between annual mean creek discharge and annual total sediment load for site 2, Clear Creek near Carson City, western Nevada ........................27 20. Boxplots showing range of specific conductance measured at all three Clear Creek sampling sites, western Nevada, water years 2010–12 ......................................................28