DOCSLIB.ORG

Ground-Water Resources of the San Luis Valley Colorado

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Ground-Water Resources of the San Luis Valley Colorado Ground-Water Resources of the San Luis Valley Colorado GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1379 Prepared in cooperation with the Colorado Water Conservation Board and the United States Bureau of Reclamation Ground-Water Resources of the San Luis Valley Colorado By WILLIAM J. POWELL With a section on An Inflow-Outflow Study of the Area By PHILIP B. MUTZ GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1379 Prepared in cooperation with the Colorado Water Conservation Board and the United States Bureau of Reclamation UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1958 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FRED A. SEATON, 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 ______________________________________ 1 Introduction ____________________________________ 2 Location and extent of the area ____________________ 2 Purpose of the investigation _______________________ 2 The Closed Basin Committee and direction of the investigation_ 4 Previous investigations __________________________ 6 History and methods of investigation _________________ 6 Field work _______________________________ 6 Preparation of report _______________________ 8 Acknowledgments _____________________________ 8 Well-numbering system _________________________ 9 Geography ___________________________________ 10 Topography and drainage ________________________ 10 Climate ____________________________________ 13 Agriculture __________________________________ 13 Population _ _________________________ 15 Transportation ________________________________ 16 Geology _______________________________________ 16 General features ______________________________ 16 Tertiary deposits _____________________________ 18 Santa Fe formation _________________________ 18 Quaternary deposits ___________________________ 20 Alamosa formation _________________________ 20 Ground water __________________________________ 24 Artesian water ______________________________ 25 History of development _____________________ 26 Areas of flow _____________________________ 27 Pressure head ____________________________ 28 General features _______________________ 28 Fluctuations in pressure head ________________ 29 Piezometric surface ___?_______________________________ 30 Recharge _______________________________ 32 Discharge _____________________ 33 Discharge from wells ____________________ 33 Flowing wells _______________________ 33 Pumped wells _______________________ 36 Discharge from springs ____________________ 36 Mclntire Springs _______________ 37 Diamond Springs ____________________ 38 Russell Springs __________________^_ 38 Spring Creek __________________ _ 39 Hydrologic properties of artesian aquifers _____ 39 III IV CONTENTS Ground water Continued Pase Artesian water Continued Utilization of artesian water ____________________ 42 Domestic and stock supplies __________________ 43 Public supplies ______________ _ _ 43 Alamosa ___________________________ 43 Monte Vista _________________________ 44 Irrigation supplies _________ ___ - _ 45 Yields of wells _____________________-_ 46 Construction of small-diameter wells _________ 47 Construction of large-diameter wells ___ 48 Methods of lift _______________________ 50 Quantity of water discharged ______________ 50 Possibilities of additional development _ _ _ 51 Unconfined water ___________________________ 55 History of development ______________________- 56 Water table ______________________________ 57 Shape and slope _________________________ 58 Ground-water divide ______________________ 60 Fluctuations of water level ____________ _ _ 61 Recharge _________________________________ 62 Recharge from irrigation ___________________ 63 Recharge from precipitation ____________ _ _ 67 Recharge from artesian aquifers ___________ 68 Leakage from artesian aquifers _ _ 68 Contributions from flowing wells ____ _ _ 69 Recharge from streams and canals ________ _ 69 Discharge ________________________________ 70 Discharge by evapotranspiration ____________ _ 71 Discharge from wells ___________-__ - - 73 Discharge by drains and canals ________ _ 74 Hydrologic properties of the unconfined aquifer ________ 74 Permeability and transmissibility ___________ 74 Laboratory determinations ______-____ 75 Pumping-test determinations _____________ 75 Specific yield ___________________________ 80 Utilization of unconfined water _________________ 81 Domestic and stock supplies ______________ 81 Irrigation supplies ___________________ 82 Yields and drawdowns of wells _______ 82 Construction of wells _i____________ _ 84 Methods of lift _______________________ 85 Quantity of water discharged __ _ 86 Possbilities of additional development _______ 88 Quality of water _________________________________ 90 Chemical constituents in relation to use _____ _ _ 90 Dissolved solids ____________________ _ 90 Hardness ______________________ ___ _ 91 Chloride _________________________________ 93 Fluoride _________________________________ 93 Boron ____________________________________ 94 Sodium __________________________________ 94 CONTENTS Quality of water Continued Surface water _______________________________ 97 Lakes __________________________________ 97 Canals and laterals _________________________ 97 Drains _________________________________ 98 Ground water ________________________________ 99 Confined water ____________________________ 99 Unconfined water ____________________;______ 99 Quantity and quality of ground water available to proposed closed basin drain ___________________________________ 102 Quantity of ground water _________________________ 103 Method of investigation _______________________ 103 Evaluation of factors ______________________ 105 Salvage from transpiration and evaporation_____ 105 Coefficient of transmissibility ______________ 107 Drawdown at the drain __________________ 108 Results of investigation _______________________ 109 Quality of ground water _________________________ 110 Inflow and outflow of water in selected irrigated area _________ 118 Inflow-outflow study, by Philip B. Mutz ___________________ 120 Introduction to inflow-outflow study __________________ 120 Location ________________________________ 120 Period of study ____________________________ 122 Climate ________________________________ 122 Soils ___________________________________ 122 General cropping practices _____________________ 123 Methods of irrigation ______________________ 124 Drainage^ ________________________________ 124 Method of study ___________________________ 124 Inflow _______________________________________ 124 Surface-water inflow ____________________'._______ 124 Precipitation _____________________________ 124 Discharge of artesian wells _________________ 125 Outflow ____________________________________ 125 Surface-water outflow _______________________ 125 Shallow ground-water outflow _________________ 125 Evaporation _______________________ 127 Change in ground-water storage _______________-_ 127 Land use ___________________________________ 127 Results of study ______________________________ 128 Records _______________________________________ 129 Summary of method of presentation of data _____________ 129 Logs of wells and test holes _______________ 238 Selected bibliography __________________________ _ 280 Index ________________________________________ 283 VI CONTENTS ILLUSTRATIONS [All plates in pocket except as indicated] Page PLATE 1. Map of part of San Luis Valley, Colo., showing location of wells and springs. 2. Jetting observation wells ________ _ Facing 3. Log of well on Baca Grant. 4. Artesian wells. A, Well 43-8-31bc2 discharging at the rate of about 580 gallons a minute; B, mercury pressure gage used in measuring head of flowing well Facing 32 5. Reconnaissance piezometric map of part of San Luis Valley. 6. A, Parshall flume used in measuring discharges of large wells; B, discharge of Mclntire Springs Facing 40 7. Deep-well irrigation __________ Facing 41 8. Map of part of San Luis Valley, showing water-table contours, 1948-49. 9. Map of the sump area of San Luis Valley, showing con­ tours on the water table during the period September- November 1946. 10. Map of the sump area of San Luis Valley, showing con­ tours on the water table during the period May-June 1947. 11. Sections along and across proposed line of closed basin drain. 12. Classification of ground and surface water for irrigation. 13. Analyses of unconfined and confined ground water from indicated wells, showing the lowest, average, and high­ est concentration of dissolved solids. 14. Analyses of unconfined ground water in the closed basin, showing the average concentration of dissolved solids by land-survey ranges. 15. Maps of the area of inflow-outflow study, showing poly­ gons used for determining changes in ground-water storage. 16. Map of part of San Luis Valley, showing line of proposed closed basin drain, lines of cross sections, test holes, and test wells. FIGURE 1. Index map of Colorado, showing area described in this re­ port and areas on which ground-water reports are pub­ lished or are in preparation 3 2. Well-numbering system ______ _ 10 3. Profile of San Luis Valley from a point 0.2 mile east of Del Norte to a point 10 miles east of San Luis Lake___ 11 4. Normal monthly precipitation and mean monthly tempera­ tures at Monte Vista ______ _ _ ___ _ 13 5. Annual precipitation in San Luis Valley _ _________ 14 6. Geologic sketch map of San Luis Valley ___________ 17 7. Graph
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Physiographic Subdivisions of the San Luis Valley, Southern Colorado
    113 PHYSIOGRAPHIC SUBDIVISIONS OF THE SAN LUIS VALLEY, SOUTHERN COLORADO by J. E. UPsolvf University of Idaho Moscow, Idaho EDITOR'S NOTE: The New Mexico Geological Society v is grateful to the Journal of Geology for permission to re- print this classic article. After 32 years the work still re- WVO. • mains the most quoted reference in its field on the basin. AP.. _ AC . I The photographs were retaken under Mr. Upson's direc- / tion and duplicate the originals as closely as possible, with –rt 1 the exception of Figure 5, which was taken a short distance ,0 "north" of the mouth of the Rio Costilla. Slight editorial /y .R changes in punctuation and capitalization were made on p 3, the article to conform to present day usage. Denver 70 0 0) INTRODUCTION 3 , CID The San Luis Valley, forming the upper end of the u) great valley of the Rio Grande, is one of the most impres- sive topographic features of southern Colorado. As orig- inally outlined by Siebenthal, 1 it is a great lowland about 150 miles long and 50 miles in maximum width, flanked on the east by the linear Sangre dc Cristo Range and on 0 7/, / the west by the eastern portion of the more extensive San 3 0 0N405 Juan Mountains. It is, in a sense, part of the chain of in- t4 •O 4. SP O V4 / termontane basins, or parks,2 lying west of the Southern ` 1,1‘0 AN Rocky Mountain front ranges, but is unlike the others in Llt IS q` having no southern mountain border.
    [Show full text]
  • An Archaeological Inventory in the Pike's Stockade Area, Conejos
    An Archaeological Inventory in the Pike’s Stockade Area, Conejos County, Colorado by Kevin D. Black Principal Investigator Colorado Historical Society with a contribution by Bruce Wahle Denver Chapter Colorado Archaeological Society Sponsored by Colorado Historical Society Office of the State Archaeologist of Colorado Program for Avocational Archaeological Certification Denver, Colorado Colorado State Permits #2004–21, 2005–6, 2006–41 October 2007 Abstract During the 2004–2006 field seasons, an archaeological survey was conducted east of Sanford, Colorado as part of the training available in the Program for Avocational Archaeological Certification (PAAC). The project thus used volunteers largely from the Colorado Archaeological Society (CAS) already enrolled in PAAC, supervised and trained by the Assistant State Archaeologist from the Colorado Historical Society. The inventory was completed on about 907 acres of the Pike’s Stockade State Historic Monument (PSSHM) in Conejos County, Colorado. The study tract encompassed a low shrubland environment on and around a volcanic mesa named Sierro del Ojito, bordering the wooded floodplain of the Conejos River, at elevations of 2,296–2,495 m. This area was intensively surveyed primarily to train PAAC volunteers in archaeological inventory and mapping methods. In addition, this portion of southern Colorado had been the subject of relatively little archaeological research interest, and the PSSHM—as a regional property of the Colorado Historical Society—made a logical choice for a PAAC survey project. As a result of the survey a total of 37 sites and 26 isolated finds (IFs) were recorded, including both American Indian and non-Indian materials. Historic period non-Indian sites comprise a rather diverse mix of artifact scatters, cairns, fences, stone enclosures, and rock inscriptions related primarily to ranching and recreational activities.
    [Show full text]
  • PDF Linkchapter
    Index [Italic page numbers indicate major references] Abajo Mountains, 382, 388 Amargosa River, 285, 309, 311, 322, Arkansas River, 443, 456, 461, 515, Abort Lake, 283 337, 341, 342 516, 521, 540, 541, 550, 556, Abies, 21, 25 Amarillo, Texas, 482 559, 560, 561 Abra, 587 Amarillo-Wichita uplift, 504, 507, Arkansas River valley, 512, 531, 540 Absaroka Range, 409 508 Arlington volcanic field, 358 Acer, 21, 23, 24 Amasas Back, 387 Aromas dune field, 181 Acoma-Zuni scction, 374, 379, 391 Ambrose tenace, 522, 523 Aromas Red Sand, 180 stream evolution patterns, 391 Ambrosia, 21, 24 Arroyo Colorado, 395 Aden Crater, 368 American Falls Lava Beds, 275, 276 Arroyo Seco unit, 176 Afton Canyon, 334, 341 American Falls Reservoir, 275, 276 Artemisia, 21, 24 Afton interglacial age, 29 American River, 36, 165, 173 Ascension Parish, Louisana, 567 aggradation, 167, 176, 182, 226, 237, amino acid ash, 81, 118, 134, 244, 430 323, 336, 355, 357, 390, 413, geochronology, 65, 68 basaltic, 85 443, 451, 552, 613 ratios, 65 beds, 127,129 glaciofluvial, 423 aminostratigraphy, 66 clays, 451 Piedmont, 345 Amity area, 162 clouds, 95 aggregate, 181 Anadara, 587 flows, 75, 121 discharge, 277 Anastasia Formation, 602, 642, 647 layer, 10, 117 Agua Fria Peak area, 489 Anastasia Island, 602 rhyolitic, 170 Agua Fria River, 357 Anchor Silt, 188, 198, 199 volcanic, 54, 85, 98, 117, 129, Airport bench, 421, 423 Anderson coal, 448 243, 276, 295, 396, 409, 412, Alabama coastal plain, 594 Anderson Pond, 617, 618 509, 520 Alamosa Basin, 366 andesite, 75, 80, 489 Ash Flat, 364 Alamosa
    [Show full text]
  • Geologic Map of the Alamosa 30′ × 60′ Quadrangle, South-Central
    Geologic Map of the Alamosa 30‘ × 60‘ Quadrangle, South-Central Colorado Scientific Investigations Map 3342 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey Geologic Map of the Alamosa 30’ × 60’ Quadrangle, South-Central Colorado By Ren A. Thompson, Ralph R. Shroba, Michael N. Machette, Christopher J. Fridrich, Theodore R. Brandt, and Michael A. Cosca Scientific Investigations Map 3342 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 Supersedes Open-File Report 2005–1392, and Open-File Report 2008–1124 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: Thompson, R.A., Shroba, R.R., Machette, M.N., Fridrich, C.J., Brandt, T.R., and Cosca, M.A., 2015, Geologic map of the Alamosa 30’ × 60’ quadrangle, south-central Colorado: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Map 3342, 23 p., scale 1:100,000, http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/sim3342.
    [Show full text]
  • Italic Page Numbers Indicate Major References]
    Index [Italic page numbers indicate major references] Abbott Formation, 411 379 Bear River Formation, 163 Abo Formation, 281, 282, 286, 302 seismicity, 22 Bear Springs Formation, 315 Absaroka Mountains, 111 Appalachian Orogen, 5, 9, 13, 28 Bearpaw cyclothem, 80 Absaroka sequence, 37, 44, 50, 186, Appalachian Plateau, 9, 427 Bearpaw Mountains, 111 191,233,251, 275, 377, 378, Appalachian Province, 28 Beartooth Mountains, 201, 203 383, 409 Appalachian Ridge, 427 Beartooth shelf, 92, 94 Absaroka thrust fault, 158, 159 Appalachian Shelf, 32 Beartooth uplift, 92, 110, 114 Acadian orogen, 403, 452 Appalachian Trough, 460 Beaver Creek thrust fault, 157 Adaville Formation, 164 Appalachian Valley, 427 Beaver Island, 366 Adirondack Mountains, 6, 433 Araby Formation, 435 Beaverhead Group, 101, 104 Admire Group, 325 Arapahoe Formation, 189 Bedford Shale, 376 Agate Creek fault, 123, 182 Arapien Shale, 71, 73, 74 Beekmantown Group, 440, 445 Alabama, 36, 427,471 Arbuckle anticline, 327, 329, 331 Belden Shale, 57, 123, 127 Alacran Mountain Formation, 283 Arbuckle Group, 186, 269 Bell Canyon Formation, 287 Alamosa Formation, 169, 170 Arbuckle Mountains, 309, 310, 312, Bell Creek oil field, Montana, 81 Alaska Bench Limestone, 93 328 Bell Ranch Formation, 72, 73 Alberta shelf, 92, 94 Arbuckle Uplift, 11, 37, 318, 324 Bell Shale, 375 Albion-Scioio oil field, Michigan, Archean rocks, 5, 49, 225 Belle Fourche River, 207 373 Archeolithoporella, 283 Belt Island complex, 97, 98 Albuquerque Basin, 111, 165, 167, Ardmore Basin, 11, 37, 307, 308, Belt Supergroup, 28, 53 168, 169 309, 317, 318, 326, 347 Bend Arch, 262, 275, 277, 290, 346, Algonquin Arch, 361 Arikaree Formation, 165, 190 347 Alibates Bed, 326 Arizona, 19, 43, 44, S3, 67.
    [Show full text]
  • Assessment of the Mineral Potential of Public Lands Located Within Proposed Solar Energy Zones in Colorado
    1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Colorado SEZ Mineral Assessment July 2012 CONTENTS NOTATION .............................................................................................................................. vii SIGNATURE PAGE ................................................................................................................ ix SUMMARY .............................................................................................................................. 1 S.1 Antonito Southeast SEZ .......................................................................................... 1 S.2 De Tilla Gulch SEZ ................................................................................................ 2 S.3 Fourmile SEZ .......................................................................................................... 3 S.4 Los Mogotes East SEZ............................................................................................ 3 1 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................... 5 1.1 Purpose of Report ................................................................................................... 5 1.2 Legal Description of the Subject Lands .................................................................. 5 1.3 Methodology and Resources ................................................................................... 7 1.4 Locatable Minerals.................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Principles of Oil and Gas Production
    aforneU Uninetattg Sltbtarg 3ttraca, ^tw ^aih BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME OF THE SAGE ENDOWMENT FUND THE GIFT OF HENRY W. SAGE 1891 Cornell University Library TN 870.J69 Principles of oil and gas production 3 1924 004 639 898 Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924004639898 PRINCIPLES OF OIL AND GAS PRODUCTION BY ^.CSWELL H. JOHNSON Professor of Oil and Gas Produclion, University of Pittsburg AND L. G. HUNTLEY Lecturer on Foreign Oil and Gas Fields, University of Pittsburg FIRST EDITION SECOND THOUSAND NEW YORK JOHN WILEY & SONS, Inc. London: CHAPMAN & HALL, Limited 1916 COPTBIGHT, 1916, BT ROSWELL H. JOHNSON AND L. G. HUNTLEY Stanbope ]press F. H. GILSON COMPANY BOSTON, U.S.A. PREFACE In preparing this work the authors' aim has been to fill the need for a general treatise on the production of oil and gas, since the books on the subject are too brief, out-of-date, inapplicable to American condi- tions or treat only a small part of the field. We are fully conscious that conditions differ widely, the world over, in the productive oil and gas fields. We have, therefore, limited ourselves to a discussion of the subject with reference chiefly to American conditions. Yet to treat in a well-balanced way all the multifarious subjects that might be included under the head of Oil and Gas Production would exceed the space we have allowed ourselves.
    [Show full text]
  • EIS-0386-DEIS-02-2007.Pdf
    Draft WWEC PEIS September 2007 DOCUMENT CONTENTS VOLUME I Executive Summary Chapter 1: Why Are Federal Agencies Proposing to Designate Energy Corridors in the West? Chapter 2: What Are the Alternatives Evaluated in This PEIS? Chapter 3: What Are the Potential Environmental Consequences of Corridor Designation and Land Use Plan Amendment? Chapter 4: How Are Cumulative Impacts Evaluated? Chapter 5: What Unavoidable Adverse Impacts Might Be Caused by Corridor Designation and Land Use Plan Amendment? Chapter 6: The Relationship between Local Short-Term Uses of the Environment and Long-Term Productivity Chapter 7: What Irreversible and Irretrievable Commitment of Resources Would Be Involved with Implementation of the Alternatives? Chapter 8: List of Preparers Chapter 9: References Chapter 10: Glossary VOLUME II Appendix A: Proposed Land Use Plan Amendments Appendix B: Summary of Public Scoping Comments for the Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement, Designation of Energy Corridors on Federal Land in the 11 Western States (DOE/FS-0386) Appendix C: Tribal Consultation Appendix D: Federal and State Regulatory Requirements Potentially Applicable When Designating Energy Corridors Appendix E: Energy Transport Technologies and Hypothetical Energy Transport Projects Appendix F: Section 368 Corridor Parameters Appendix G: Sensitive Resource Areas That Would Be Intersected by Proposed West-wide Energy Corridors Appendix H: Geographic Information System Data Appendix I: Summary of WWEC PEIS Webcasts for Corridor Review and Revision, 6/19/06 to 4/24/07
    [Show full text]
  • Lexicon of Stratigraphic Names Used in South-Central Colorado Amd Northern New Mexico, San Luis Basin Christina Lochman-Balk and James E
    New Mexico Geological Society Downloaded from: http://nmgs.nmt.edu/publications/guidebooks/22 Lexicon of stratigraphic names used in south-central Colorado amd northern New Mexico, San Luis Basin Christina Lochman-Balk and James E. Bruning, 1971, pp. 101-111 in: San Luis Basin (Colorado), James, H. L.; [ed.], New Mexico Geological Society 22nd Annual Fall Field Conference Guidebook, 340 p. This is one of many related papers that were included in the 1971 NMGS Fall Field Conference Guidebook. Annual NMGS Fall Field Conference Guidebooks Every fall since 1950, the New Mexico Geological Society (NMGS) has held an annual Fall Field Conference that explores some region of New Mexico (or surrounding states). Always well attended, these conferences provide a guidebook to participants. Besides detailed road logs, the guidebooks contain many well written, edited, and peer-reviewed geoscience papers. These books have set the national standard for geologic guidebooks and are an essential geologic reference for anyone working in or around New Mexico. Free Downloads NMGS has decided to make peer-reviewed papers from our Fall Field Conference guidebooks available for free download. Non-members will have access to guidebook papers two years after publication. Members have access to all papers. This is in keeping with our mission of promoting interest, research, and cooperation regarding geology in New Mexico. However, guidebook sales represent a significant proportion of our operating budget. Therefore, only research papers are available for download. Road logs, mini-papers, maps, stratigraphic charts, and other selected content are available only in the printed guidebooks. Copyright Information Publications of the New Mexico Geological Society, printed and electronic, are protected by the copyright laws of the United States.
    [Show full text]
  • The Tectonic Geomorphology of the Northern Sangre De Cristo Mountains, Near Villa Grove, Colorado
    The tectonic geomorphology of the northern Sangre de Cristo Mountains, near Villa Grove, Colorado Item Type text; Thesis-Reproduction (electronic) Authors Peterson, Robert Howard Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 28/09/2021 19:43:16 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/557357 THE TECTONIC GEOMORPHOLOGY OF THE NORTHERN SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS, NEAR VILLA GROVE, COLORADO by- Robert Howard Peterson A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF GEOSCIENCES In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 1 9 7 9 STATEMENT BY AUTHOR This thesis has been submitted in partial fulfillment of re­ quirements for an advanced degree at The University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the Library. Brief quotations from this thesis are allowable without special permission, provided that accurate acknowledgment of source is made. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the head of the major department or the Dean of the Graduate College when in his judg­ ment the proposed use of the material is in the interests of scholar­ ship. In all other instances, however, permission must be obtained from the author.
    [Show full text]
  • Ground Water Assessment
    February, 2002 Section IV: Ground Water IV. Ground Water Assessment Ground water in Colorado is highly variable in quality and availability because of the diverse environmental and hydrogeologic conditions across the state. Ground water occurs in a wide variety of geologic deposits, including unconsolidated silt, sand, and gravel deposited by wind and streams or as talus along mountain slopes; consolidated sedimentary bedrock formations; and fractured igneous and metamorphic rocks of mountainous regions. Hydrologic conditions range from shallow unconfined alluvial aquifers along rivers to confined artesian aquifers within deep structural basins. Ground water quality in Colorado ranges from excellent, in mountain areas where snowfall is heavy, to poor, in certain alluvial aquifers of major rivers where surface and ground water are used and reused for multiple purposes. Climate, hydrogeologic conditions, naturally occurring soluble minerals, and man's activities are the primary factors affecting ground water quality in the state. Ground water supplies 18 percent of water used in the state; approximately 96 percent of this is consumed by agriculture. The remainder is used for public and private water supplies. In some areas, ground water is the only source of water available. A. Major Aquifers in Colorado Colorado's complex geology is the result of multiple historic mountain-building episodes. Mountain uplifts in the central and western part of the state displaced overlying sedimentary formations, and subsequent erosion of these formations exposed the granite and crystalline metamorphic rock core. The uplifts also created deep basins filled with layered sedimentary formations. The High Plains, however, remained relatively undisturbed. Here the sedimentary Ogallala Formation, the only significant aquifer in the region, overlies the Pierre Shale.
    [Show full text]
  • Index to the Geologic Names of North America
    Index to the Geologic Names of North America GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 1056-B Index to the Geologic Names of North America By DRUID WILSON, GRACE C. KEROHER, and BLANCHE E. HANSEN GEOLOGIC NAMES OF NORTH AMERICA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 10S6-B Geologic names arranged by age and by area containing type locality. Includes names in Greenland, the West Indies, the Pacific Island possessions of the United States, and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1959 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FRED A. SEATON, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Thomas B. Nolan, Director For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington 25, D.G. - Price 60 cents (paper cover) CONTENTS Page Major stratigraphic and time divisions in use by the U.S. Geological Survey._ iv Introduction______________________________________ 407 Acknowledgments. _--__ _______ _________________________________ 410 Bibliography________________________________________________ 410 Symbols___________________________________ 413 Geologic time and time-stratigraphic (time-rock) units________________ 415 Time terms of nongeographic origin_______________________-______ 415 Cenozoic_________________________________________________ 415 Pleistocene (glacial)______________________________________ 415 Cenozoic (marine)_______________________________________ 418 Eastern North America_______________________________ 418 Western North America__-__-_____----------__-----____ 419 Cenozoic (continental)___________________________________
    [Show full text]