Recharge and Discharge Areas for the Principal Basin-Fill Aquifer, Curlew Valley, Box Elder County, Utah
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RECHARGE AND DISCHARGE AREAS FOR THE PRINCIPAL BASIN-FILL AQUIFER, CURLEW VALLEY, BOX ELDER COUNTY, UTAH by Stefan M. Kirby and Mike Lowe, Utah Geological Survey and Jason L. Kneedy, Chesapeake Energy 113°0'0"W 112°45'0"W CASSIA COUNT Y ONEIDA COUNTY IDAHO 42°0'0"N Kelton Pass BOX ELDER COUNTY Curlew UTAH 84 113°15'0"W 42 Junction 30 Snowville Pilot Spring ER IV S R IN T TAINSA F N A U RAFTR O RIVER MOUNTM Coyote Spring L S E IN S AAINS N T A In N d HHANSELU ian O MOUNTM Cre CEDAR ek WILDCAWILDCATT 30 HILLS HILL k e e r C p e e D Study Area Kelton 41°45'0"N Boundary Locomotive Springs UTAH N WE S 0 5 10 Scale in Miles ISBN 1-55791-737-X MAP 218 UTAH GEOLOGICAL SURVEY a division of Utah Department of Natural Resources 2005 STATE OF UTAH Jon Huntsman, Jr., Governor DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES Michael Styler, Executive Director UTAH GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Richard G. Allis, Director PUBLICATIONS contact Natural Resources Map/Bookstore 1594 W. North Temple telephone: 801-537-3320 toll-free: 1-888-UTAH MAP website: http://mapstore.utah.gov email: [email protected] THE UTAH GEOLOGICAL SURVEY contact 1594 W. North Temple, Suite 3110 Salt Lake City, UT 84116 telephone: 801-537-3300 web: http://geology.utah.gov Although this product represents the work of professional scientists, the Utah Department of Natural Resources, Utah Geological Survey, makes no warranty, expressed or implied, regarding its suitability for any particular use. The Utah Department of Natural Resources, Utah Geological Sur- vey, shall not be liable under any circumstances for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages with respect to claims by users of this product. The Utah Department of Natural Resources receives federal aid and prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, age, national origin, or disability. For information or complaints regarding discrimination, contact Executive Director, Utah Department of Natural Resources, 1594 West North Temple #3710, Box 145610, Salt Lake City, UT 84116-5610 or Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 1801 L. Street, NW, Wash- ington DC 20507. Printed on recycled paper 1/05 CONTENTS ABSTRACT . .1 INTRODUCTION . .1 Background . .1 Purpose and Scope . .1 Setting . .2 Physiography and Drainage . .2 Climate . .2 Land Use . .3 Previous Studies . .3 METHODS . .3 GEOLOGY . .5 Bedrock . .5 Unconsolidated Sediments . .6 GROUND WATER . .7 Overview . .7 Fractured Bedrock Aquifers . .8 Aquifer Characteristics . .8 Recharge and Discharge . .8 Water Quality . .8 Unconsolidated Basin-Fill Aquifer . .8 Aquifer Characteristics . .8 Recharge and Discharge Areas . .8 Water Quality . .9 Potential for Water-Quality Degradation . .9 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS . .9 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . .9 REFERENCES . .10 APPENDIX . .11 FIGURES Figure 1. Curlew Valley study area, Utah . .2 Figure 2. Relative water levels in wells in recharge and discharge areas . .4 Figure 3. Numbering system for wells in Utah . .5 Figure 4. Simplified geology of Curlew Valley . .6 Figure 5. Recharge block diagram . .7 TABLES Table A. Records of water wells . .12 RECHARGE AND DISCHARGE AREAS FOR THE PRINCIPAL BASIN-FILL AQUIFER, CURLEW VALLEY, BOX ELDER COUNTY, UTAH by Stefan M. Kirby and Mike Lowe, Utah Geolgocial Survey and Jason L. Kneedy, Chesapeake Energy ABSTRACT rate of movement. Because contaminants can readily enter an aquifer system in recharge areas, management The primary source of drinking and irrigation of potential contaminant sources in these areas water in Curlew Valley is ground water from the prin- deserves special attention to protect ground-water cipal basin-fill aquifer. We mapped recharge and dis- quality. Ground-water recharge-area mapping delin- charge areas for the principal aquifer to provide a tool eates these vulnerable areas. for management of potential contaminant sources to Ground-water recharge-area maps typically show: help protect ground-water quality. (1) primary recharge areas, (2) secondary recharge Curlew Valley is a roughly Y-shaped, north-south- areas, and (3) discharge areas (Anderson and others, trending valley that extends from Great Salt Lake in 1994; Lowe and Snyder, 1996). Primary recharge Utah in the south to the Sublett Range and Stone Hills areas, commonly along bedrock uplands and adjoining in Idaho in the north; this report covers only the broad portions of valley fill, do not contain thick, continuous, southern arm of the valley in Utah. The Utah portion fine-grained layers and have a downward ground- of Curlew Valley is bounded on the east by the north- water gradient. Secondary recharge areas, commonly east-trending Hansel Mountains and on the west by the valley benches, have fine-grained layers thicker than Raft River Mountains. The principal basin-fill aquifer 20 feet (6 m) and downward ground-water gradients. of Curlew Valley consists of interbedded alluvial-fan, Ground-water discharge areas are generally in valley lacustrine, and volcanic deposits. Wildcat Hills, Cedar lowlands. Discharge areas for unconfined aquifers are Hill, the mountains surrounding Curlew Valley, and the where the water table intersects the ground surface upper parts of alluvial fans along the margins of these causing springs or seeps. Discharge areas for confined uplands, make up the primary recharge areas. The aquifers are where the ground-water gradient is northern margin of Great Salt Lake is the principal dis- upward and water is discharging to a shallow uncon- charge area. Water quality is generally moderate with fined aquifer above the upper confining bed, or to a total-dissolved-solids values at or above 2000 mg/L spring or flowing well. Extent of recharge and dis- recorded across much of Curlew Valley. charge areas for an aquifer may vary both seasonally and annually due to changes in the amount of precipi- tation. INTRODUCTION Purpose and Scope Background The purpose of this study is to help state and local The principal basin-fill aquifer is the most impor- government officials and local residents protect the tant source of both drinking and irrigation water in the quality of ground water in Curlew Valley by delineat- Utah portion of Curlew Valley. Recharge to this un- ing areas where ground-water aquifers are vulnerable consolidated aquifer is primarily from precipitation in to contamination from land-surface sources of pollu- mountainous areas (Baker, 1974), including infiltration tion. The scope of work included a literature review of runoff from intermittent streams along the valley and analyses of drillers’ logs of water wells to define margins. Recharge areas are typically underlain by hydrogeologic conditions in Curlew Valley. Relevant fractured rock and/or coarse-grained sediment with rel- information was recorded from each water-well log atively little ability to inhibit infiltration of contaminat- (appendix) and well locations were plotted on ed water. Ground-water flow in recharge areas has a 1:24,000-scale base maps. Generalized recharge- and significant downward component and relatively fast discharge-area boundaries were then delineated and 2 Utah Geological Survey entered, along with well locations, into a geographic The valley floor ranges in elevation from 4200 feet information system database. (1300 m) along the shore of Great Salt Lake to about 4800 feet (1460 m) along the foothills of the adjoining Setting mountain ranges. The generally uniform north to south slope of the valley floor is interrupted in the southern Curlew Valley is a roughly Y-shaped, north-south- part of the valley by a line of low hills and knolls, trending valley that extends from Great Salt Lake in including Cedar Hill and Wildcat Hills (figure 1) northern Utah in the south to the Sublett Range and (Bolke and Price, 1969). Stone Hills in southern Idaho. The valley covers an Indian Creek and Deep Creek are the two largest area of about 1200 square miles between latitude streams in the Utah portion of Curlew Valley (figure 1) 40°41′ and 42°30′ north, and longitude 112°30′ and (Baker, 1974). Except during rare flood episodes, both 113°20′ west (3100 km2) (figure 1). This report covers streams dry completely before reaching Great Salt only the broad southern arm of the valley in Utah, with Lake (Bolke and Price, 1969). All other drainages are emphasis on the approximately 550 square-mile (1420 intermittent or ephemeral (Baker, 1974). km2) valley floor. Climate Physiography and Drainage The climate of Curlew Valley, as measured at The Curlew Valley drainage basin is in the Basin Snowville, is semi-arid with moderately cold winters and Range physiographic province (Stokes, 1977). and warm, dry summers (Bolke and Price, 1969). The Utah portion of Curlew Valley is bounded on the Temperatures in the valley range from a maximum of east by the northeast-trending Hansel Mountains and about 90°F (32°C) to a minimum of about 10°F on the west by the east-west-trending Raft River (-12°C); the maximum daily temperature variation is Mountains, with peaks in the drainage basin reaching greatest in the summer when fluctuations can be as elevations of 6300 to 9000 feet (1900 to 2700 m) above much as 40°F (22°C) (Ashcroft and others, 1992). sea level (Bolke and Price, 1969). Mean annual temperature was 45.4°F (7°C) from 1948 113°0'0"W 112°45'0"W CASSIA COUNT Y ONEIDA COUNTY IDAHO 42°0'0"N Kelton Pass BOX ELDER COUNTY Curlew UTAH 84 113°15'0"W 4422 Junction 30 Snowville Pilot Spring ER IV S R IN T TAAINS F N A U RRAFTO RIVER MMOUNT Coyote Spring L S E IN S AAINS N T A In N d HANSELH U ian O MMOUNT Cre CEDAR ek WILDCAWILDCATT 30 HILLS HILL k e e r C p e e D Study Area Kelton 41°45'0"N Boundary Locomotive Springs UTAH N WE S Figure 1.