Geology and Hydrogeology of the Caribbean Islands Aquifer System of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the U.S
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U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey Geology and Hydrogeology of the Caribbean Islands Aquifer System of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands Regional Aquifer-System Analysis Professional Paper 1419 A T L A N T I C O C E A N Isla Desecheo St. Thomas St. John Puerto Rico Isla de Culebra Isla Mona Isla de Vieques St. Croix C A R I B B E A N S E A Geology and Hydrogeology of the Caribbean Islands Aquifer System of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands By ROBERT A. RENKEN1, W.C. WARD2, I.P. GILL3, FERNANDO GÓMEZ-GÓMEZ1, JESÚS RODRÍGUEZ-MARTÍNEZ1, and others REGIONAL AQUIFER-SYSTEM ANALYSIS—CARIBBEAN ISLANDS U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 1419 1U.S. Geological Survey, 2Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of New Orleans, 2000 Lakeshore Drive, New Orleans, LA 70148 (retired), 3Department of Geology, University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez, PR 00681 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR GALE A. NORTON, Secretary U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Charles G. Groat, Director Any use of trade, product, or firm names in this publication is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. Reston, Virginia 2002 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Geology and hydrogeology of the Caribbean islands aquifer system of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands / by Robert A. Renken ... [et al.]. p. cm. — (Regional aquifer-system analysis—Caribbean islands) (U.S. Geological Survey professional paper; 1419) Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 0-607-99361-8 1. Hydrogeology—Puerto Rico. 2. Hydrogeology—Virgin Islands of the United States. 3. Aquifers—Puerto Rico. 4. Aquifers—Virgin Islands of the United States. I. Renken, Robert A. II. Series: U.S. Geological Survey professional paper ; 1419 GB1055 .G46 2002 551.49'097295—dc21 2002029991 For sale by U.S. Geological Survey, Branch of Information Services, Box 25286, Federal Center, Denver, CO 80225 FORWARD THE REGIONAL AQUIFER-SYSTEM ANALYSIS PROGRAM The Regional Aquifer-System Analysis (ASA) Program represents a systematic effort to study a number of the Nation's most important aquifer systems, which, in aggregate, underlie much of the country and which repre- sent an important component of the Nation's total water supply. In general, the boundaries of these studies are identified by the hydrologic extent of each system and, accordingly, transcend the political subdivisions to which investigations have often arbitrarily been limited in the past. The broad objective for each study is to assemble geologic, hydrologic, and geochemical information; to analyze and develop an understanding of the system; and to develop predictive capabilities that will contribute to the effective manage- ment of the system. The use of computer simulation is an important element of the RASA studies to develop an understanding of the natural, undisturbed hydrologic system and the changes brought about in it by human activities, and to provide a means of predicting the regional effects of future pumping or other stresses. The final interpretive results of the RASA Program are presented in a series of U.S. Geological Survey Professional Papers that describe the geology, hydrology, and geochemistry of each regional aquifer system. Each study within the RASA Program is assigned a single Professional Paper number beginning with Professional Paper 1400. Charles G. Groat Director CONTENTS Page Page Forward ......................................................................................... III Geology of the North Coast ground-water province of Puerto Abstract ......................................................................................... 1 Rico—continued Introduction by Robert A. Renken ................................................ 2 Stratigraphy—continued Physiographic setting ............................................................. 3 Mucarabones Sand (upper Oligocene to lower Puerto Rico ........................................................................ 3 Miocene—continued Puerto Rico's offshore islands........................................... 7 Subsurface ................................................................... 53 Isla de Vieques ............................................................ 7 Cibao Formation (lower Miocene) .................................... 54 Isla de Culebra ............................................................ 7 Outcrop ........................................................................ 54 Isla Desecheo............................................................... 9 Subsurface ................................................................... 56 Isla Mona..................................................................... 9 Montebello Limestone Member.................................. 56 U.S. Virgin Islands............................................................ 9 Mudstone unit ............................................................. 56 Previous investigations........................................................... 12 Río Indio/Quebradas Arenas Limestone Members.... 59 Puerto Rico ........................................................................ 12 Undifferentiated Cibao Formation............................. 59 Puerto Rico's offshore islands........................................... 12 Aguada (Los Puertos) Limestone (lower to middle U.S. Virgin Islands............................................................ 13 Miocene).......................................................................... 59 Method of investigation .......................................................... 13 Outcrop ........................................................................ 59 Geology of the South Coast ground-water province of Puerto Subsurface ................................................................... 62 Rico by Robert A. Renken........................................................... 14 Aymamón Limestone (middle Miocene) ........................... 62 Stratigraphy ............................................................................ 15 Outcrop ........................................................................ 62 Juana Díaz Formation ...................................................... 18 Subsurface ................................................................... 63 Unnamed pelagic carbonate rocks ................................... 20 Quebradillas Limestone (uppermost Miocene to Ponce Limestone ............................................................... 20 Pliocene) ......................................................................... 63 Subsurface stratigraphic relations................................... 22 Outcrop ........................................................................ 63 Pleistocene to Holocene fan-delta and alluvial Subsurface ................................................................... 64 deposits ........................................................................... 22 Depositional history................................................................ 64 Configuration of basal Quaternary contact and Introduction....................................................................... 64 thickness of deposits ................................................ 31 Middle to late Oligocene ................................................... 64 Lithofacies ................................................................... 31 Late Oligocene to early Miocene ...................................... 65 Vertical profile............................................................. 32 Early Miocene.................................................................... 65 Sand and gravel percentage ....................................... 34 Late early Miocene to early middle Miocene ................... 68 The South Coast Tertiary Basin: Controls on clastic Middle Miocene ................................................................. 68 deposition ............................................................................. 35 Latest Miocene-Pliocene ................................................... 68 Structural features and evidence of tectonic movement Effects of structural movements on deposition of upper in the South Coast ground-water province................... 35 Oligocene to lower Miocene rocks........................................ 68 Changes in base level: Its record in the stratigraphic Sequence stratigraphy of Oligocene to middle Miocene sequence.......................................................................... 38 rocks...................................................................................... 72 Climate .............................................................................. 41 Introduction....................................................................... 72 Geology of the West Coast ground-water province of Puerto Sequence boundaries in northern Puerto Rico ................ 72 Rico ............................................................................................. 41 Geology of central St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands by I.P. Gill, Geology of the East Coast ground-water province of Puerto D.K. Hubbard, P.P. McLaughlin, and C.H. Moore.................... 76 Rico ............................................................................................. 44 Introduction............................................................................. 76 Geology of the Interior ground-water