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Open Access Theses & Dissertations
2012-01-01 Use Of Environmental Isotope Tracer And Gis Techniques To Estimate Basin Recharge Abdulganiu A.a. Odunmbaku University of Texas at El Paso, [email protected]
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Recommended Citation Odunmbaku, Abdulganiu A.a., "Use Of Environmental Isotope Tracer And Gis Techniques To Estimate Basin Recharge" (2012). Open Access Theses & Dissertations. 2156. https://digitalcommons.utep.edu/open_etd/2156
This is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UTEP. It has been accepted for inclusion in Open Access Theses & Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UTEP. For more information, please contact [email protected]. USE OF ENVIRONMENTAL ISOTOPE TRACER AND GIS TECHNIQUES TO ESTIMATE BASIN RECHARGE
ABDULGANIU A.A. ODUNMBAKU Environmental Science and Engineering Program
APPROVED:
Barry A. Benedict, Ph.D. Chair
Raed Aldouri, Ph.D. Co-Chair
John Walton, PhD
Thomas E. Gill, Ph.D.
Horacio Gonzalez, Ph.D.
Benjamin C. Flores, Ph.D. Dean of the Graduate School
Copyright ©
by Abdulganiu A.A. Odunmbaku 2012
Dedication
I dedicated this research to my dad (SAO), for all his struggle and dedication toward educating all his children,
I pray Allah give him al-janna firdaus (paradise),
also to my mum.
O my Lord increase me in knowledge.
USE OF ENVIRONMENTAL ISOTOPE TRACER AND GIS TECHNIQUES TO ESTIMATE BASIN RECHARGE
by
ABDULGANIU A.A. ODUNMBAKU, B.ENG, M.S.
DISSERTATION
Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of The University of Texas at El Paso
in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
Environmental Science and Engineering Program THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT EL PASO December 2012
Acknowledgements
“Who so ever is not grateful to people would not be grateful to Allah (SWA)”
……………....Abu Dawod and Trimizi)
I give all glory to Allah for making me complete my PhD amidst all difficulties.
Special thanks to my committee chair Dr. B. Benedict, my co-chair Dr. R. Aldouri, Dr. J. Walton the technical adviser for this research, Dr. T. Gill and Dr. H. Gonzalez. Thank you all for volunteering and support in making this dissertation a reality. I would like to extend my appreciation to the staff of former Center for Environmental Resource Management (CERM) for their support in the first two years of my PhD, all the professors and staff of the Environmental
Science and Engineering Ph.D. program and the staff of the Regional Centre for Geospatial study. Furthermore, I would like to thank my fellow students of the Environmental Science and
Engineering Ph.D. program.
Finally, I would like to extend my sincere appreciation to my back bone, my family without them
I am nobody. My wife for her unending support, my mum and my numerous brothers and sisters. I pray Allah help and support you all.
v Abstract
The extensive use of ground water only began with the advances in pumping technology at the early portion of 20th Century. Groundwater provides the majority of fresh water supply for municipal, agricultural and industrial uses, primarily because of little to no treatment it requires.
Estimating the volume of groundwater available in a basin is a daunting task, and no accurate measurements can be made. Usually water budgets and simulation models are primarily used to estimate the volume of water in a basin.
Precipitation, land surface cover and subsurface geology are factors that affect recharge; these factors affect percolation which invariably affects groundwater recharge. Depending on precipitation, soil chemistry, groundwater chemical composition, gradient and depth, the age and rate of recharge can be estimated. This present research proposes to estimate the recharge in
Mimbres, Tularosa and Diablo Basin using the chloride environmental isotope; chloride mass- balance approach and GIS. It also proposes to determine the effect of elevation on recharge rate.
Mimbres and Tularosa Basin are located in southern New Mexico State, and extend southward into Mexico. Diablo Basin is located in Texas in extends southward. This research utilizes the chloride mass balance approach to estimate the recharge rate through collection of groundwater data from wells, and precipitation. The data were analysed statistically to eliminate duplication, outliers, and incomplete data. Cluster analysis, piper diagram and statistical significance were performed on the parameters of the groundwater; the infiltration rate was determined using chloride mass balance technique. The data was then analysed spatially using ArcGIS10.
Regions of active recharge were identified in Mimbres and Diablo Basin, but this could not be clearly identified in Tularosa Basin. CMB recharge for Tularosa Basin yields 0.04037mm/yr
(0.0016in/yr), Diablo Basin was 0.047mm/yr (0.0016 in/yr), and 0.2153mm/yr (0.00848in/yr) for vi Mimbres Basin. The elevation where active recharge occurs was determined to be 1,500m for
Mimbres and Tularosa Basin and 1,200m for Diablo Basin. The results obtained in this study were consistent with result obtained by other researchers working in basins with similar semiarid mountainous conditions, thereby validating the applicability of CMB in the three basins.
Keywords: Recharge, chloride mass balance, elevation, Mimbres, Tularosa, Diablo, Basin, GIS, chloride, elevation.
vii Table of Contents
Page
Acknowledgements…………………………………………………………………. 1
Abstract……………………………………………………………………………… 2
Table of Contents……………………………………………………………………. 4
List of Figures………………………………………………………………………… 8
List of Table………………………………………………………………………….. 12
Chapter 1……………………………………………………………………………… 14
1.1 Introduction………………………………………………………………….. 14
1.2 Hydrogeological Concepts…………………………………………………... 15
1.2.1 Hydrology Circle…………………………………………………….. 15
1.2.2 Water Budget (Inflow/Outflow Relationships)……………………. . 16
1.2.3 Water Table, Zones, Withdrawal and Cone of Depression………. . 17
1.2.4 Groundwater Management and Sustainability…………………….. . 20
1.3 Hypothesis…………………………………………………………………… 26
Chapter 2
2.1 Basin Hydrogeology…………………………………………………………. 27
2.1.1 Mimbres Basin Hydrogeology………………………………………. 27
2.1.2 Diablo Basin Hydrogeology………………………………………….. 31
2.1.3 Tularosa Basin Hydrogeology…………………………………………. 32
2.2 Climate and Precipitation in the Study Area………………………………... 34
2.2.1 Mimbres Basin Climate and Precipitation……………………………. 34 viii 2.2.2 Tularosa Basin Climate and Precipitation……………………………. 37
2.2.3 Diablo Basin Climate and Precipitation……………………………... 40
2.3 Chloride Application as an Environmental Isotope………………………. 42
2.4 GIS Application in Environmental Research………………………………. 44
2.5 Chemical Evolution of Ground Water……………………………………… 46
2.5.1Total Dissolved Solids………………………………………………… 48
2.5.2 pH……………………………………………………………………… 49
2.5.3 Alkalinity……………………………………………………………… 49
2.5.4 Chloride……………………………………………………………….. 50
2.5.5 Nitrate…………………………………………………………………. 50
2.5.6 Calcium………………………………………………………………... 51
2.5.7 Fluoride……………………………………………………………….. 51
2.5.8 Potassium……………………………………………………………... 51
2.5.9 Sulfur………………………………………………………………….. 52
2.5.10 Sodium………………………………………………………………. 52
2.6 Environmental Isotopes in Groundwater and Precipitation………………... 54
2.6.1 Environmental Isotopes in Groundwater …………………………….. 54
2.6.2 Environmental Isotopes Precipitation………………………………… 56
2.7 Statistics……………………………………………………………………... 58
2.7.1 Cluster Analysis………………………………………………………. 58
ix 2.7.2 Correlation Analysis………………………………………………….. 58
2.7.3 Piper Diagram…………………………………………………………. 59
Chapter 3
3.0 Methodology………………………………………………………………… 60
Data Compilation, Processing and Quality Assurance…………………….. 60
3.1 Data Compilation…………………………………………………………… 60
3.2 Data Processing……………………………………………………………... 62
3.2.1 Data Quality Assurance………………………………………………. 63
3.2.2 Outliers………………………………………………………………... 63
3.2.3 Missing Data…………………………………………………………... 63
3.3 Statistical Analysis………………………………………………………….. 64
3.4 Chloride Mass Balance Approach………………………….………………. 64
3.5 Spatial Analysis…………………………………………………………….. 66
Chapter 4
4.0 Result ……………………………………………………………………………. 67
4.1Precipitation Chemistry Data……………………………………………………. 67
4.2 Groundwater Chemistry Well Data……………………………………………. 69
4.2.1 Mimbres Basin Groundwater Chemistry Well Data………………….. 69
4.2.2 Diablo Basin Groundwater Chemistry Well Data……………………… 76
x 4.2.3 Tularosa Groundwater Chemistry Data………………………………… 83
4.3 Spatial and CMB Analysis of the Basins……………………………………... 90
4.3.1 Mimbres Basin Spatial and CMB Analysis…………………………….. 91
4.3.2 Tularosa Basin Spatial and CMB Analysis…………………………….. 97
4.3.3 Diablo Basin Spatial and CMB Analysis………………………………. 104
Chapter 5
5.1 Discussion………………………………………………………………………… 110
5.2 Conclusion and Further Work…………………………………………………….. 114
References……………………………………………………………………………... 115
Appendix………………………………………………………………………………. 128
Vita…………………………………………………………………………………….. 144
xi List of Figure s
Page
Chapter 1
Figure 1.0: Groundwater system in steady state (a) and not in steady state (b)…...... 17
Figure 1.1: Cone of depression……………………………………………………….. 19
Figure 1.2: Well interference………………………………………………………….. 19
Figure 1.3: Induced recharge…………………………………………………………. 20
Figure 1.4: Fissures created by lowering of water table resulting into earth
subsidence in south-central Arizona……………………………………… 23
Figure 1.5: Annual average concentration during last 60 years of some
environmental tracers used to determine groundwater ages……………... 25
Chapter 2
Figure 2.1: Mimbres Basin Subsystems…………………………………………….. 30
Figure 2.2: Total groundwater withdrawal and use from Diablo Basin………….. ... 37
Figure 2.3: Total groundwater withdrawal and use from the Tularosa Basin……….. 33
Figure 2.4: Annual precipitation in Mimbres Basin from 1914-2005……………….. 35
Figure 2.5: Average Temperature in Mimbres Basin Area from 1975-2005………... 37
Figure 2.6: Annual Average Temperature in Tularosa Basin from 1910-2012……… 39
Figure 2.7: Average Annual Temperature in Tularosa Basin from 1911-2010……… 39
xii Figure 2.8: Average Annual Precipitation in Dell City (Diablo Basin) from 1980-2010 41
Figure 2.9: Average Annual Temperature in Dell City (Diablo Basin) from 1980-2010 42
Figure 2.10: Chloride concentration in Mimbres basin wells……………………… 45
Figure 2.11: Annual average concentration during last 60 years of some
environmental tracers used to determine groundwater ages…………. 55
Figure 2.12: Mayhill NM08 NADP/NTN Site…….………………………………. 58
Figure 2.13: Cl concentration in continental United States.
Chapter 4
Figure 4.1: Plot of Cl concentration against the elevation in Mimbres Basin……… 72
Figure 4.2: Plot of Cl concentration against the elevation in Mimbres Basin at above
1500m………………….……………………………………………. 72
Figure 4.3: Ca/Cl vs. Cl plot in Mimbres Basin…………………………………….. 73
Figure 4.4: SO4/Cl vs. Cl plot in Mimbres Basin.………………………………….. 73
Figure 4.5: K/Cl vs. Cl plot in Mimbres Basin………………..……………………. 74
Figure 4.6: SiO2/Cl vs. Cl plot in Mimbres Basin..………………………………… 74
Figure 4.7: Na/Cl vs. Cl plot in Mimbres Basin..…………………………………... 75
Figure 4.8: TDS/Cl vs. Cl plot in Mimbres Basin…………………………….……. 75
Figure 4.9: Mimbres Basin Piper diagram plot….....……………………………….. 76
Figure 4.10: Cl/Elevation plot in Diablo Basin……………………………………. 79
xiii Figure 4.11: Plot of Cl concentration against the elevation in Diablo Basin at
1200m elevation…………….………………………………………………. 79
Figure 4.12: Ca/Cl vs. Cl plot in Diablo Basin……………………………………... 80
Figure 4.13: SO4/Cl vs. Cl plot in Diablo Basin……………………………………. 80
Figure 4.14: Na/Cl vs. Cl plot in Diablo Basin……………………………………. . 81
Figure 4.15 HCO3/Cl vs. Cl plot in Diablo Basin.………………………………….. 81
Figure 4.16: Mg/Cl vs. Cl plot in Diablo Basin……………………………………. 82
Figure 4.17: Diablo Basin Piper diagram plot………………………………………. 83
Figure 4.18: Cl/Elevation in Tularosa above 1200m ..……………………………... 86
Figure 4.19: Cl/Elevation in Tularosa above 1500m.………………………………. 86
Figure 4.20: Tularosa Basin Ca/Cl vs. Cl plot……………………………………… 87
Figure 4.21: HCO3/Cl plot in Tularosa Basin ……………………………………… 87
Figure 4.22: Tularosa Basin SO4/Cl vs. Cl plot..…………………………………… 88
Figure 4.23: Tularosa Basin Mg/Cl vs. Cl plot.…………………………………….. 88
Figure 4.24: Tularosa Basin SiO2/Cl vs. Cl plot…………………………………….. 89
Figure 4.25: Figure 4.25: Tularosa Basin TDS/Cl vs. Cl plot……………………….. 89
Figure 4.26: Tularosa Piper diagram …………………………………………….….. 90
Figure 4.27: Mimbres Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1100m .……. 92
Figure 4.28: Mimbres Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1400m….….. 93
xiv Figure 4.29: Mimbres Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1500m .…….. 94
Figure 4.30: Mimbres Basin elevation, and groundwater Cl concentration..………. 95
Figure 4.31: Mimbres Basin recharge, and well water level contour lines………….. 96
Figure 4.32: Tularosa Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1300m..……... 98
Figure 4.33: Tularosa Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1400m ..…….. 99
Figure 4.34: Tularosa Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1450m ……… 100
Figure 4.35: Tularosa Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1500m ……… 101
Figure 4.36: Tularosa Basin chloride concentration, and elevation..………………… 102
Figure 4.37: Tularosa Basin recharge, and well water level contour lines…………… 103
Figure 4.38: Diablo Basin sampling locations and elevation above 1100m .………… 105
Figure 4.39: Diablo Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1200m………….. 106
Figure 4.40: Diablo Basin sampling locations and elevation above 1300m …………. 107
Figure 4.41: Diablo chloride concentration and elevation……………………………. 108
Figure 4.42: Diablo Basin recharge and well water level contour lines………………. 109
xv List of Tables
Page
Chapter 1
Table 1.0: Forms and volume of water available in the earth………………………. 16
Table 1.1: Location and causes of major subsidence and fissures in USA………… 21
Chapter 2
Table 2.1: Annual precipitation in cities around Mimbres Basin………………… 35
Table 2.2: Summer and winter temperatures in some stations of the Mimbres Basin 36
Table 2.3: Summer and winter temperatures in some stations in Tularosa basin. 38
Table 2.4: Temperatures in selected towns around Diablo Basin…………………. 41
Table 2.5: Dissolve elements constituent in groundwater…………………………. 48
Table 2.6: Components, sources and concentration of elements in groundwater 53
Table 2.7: Site parameters of NADP/NTN sites……………………………………. 57
Chapter 3
Table 3.1: Organization and type of data sourced from them……………………… 62
Chapter 4
Table 4.1: Descriptive statistic of NADP/NTN NM 08 site precipitation chemistry 68
Table 4.2: Precipitation Chemistry Descriptive Statistics for NADP/NTN
TX22 and TX04 Site…………………………………………………….. 69
Table 4.3: Descriptive statistic for Mimbres Basin………………………………… 71 xvi Table 4.4: Diablo Basin groundwater chemical data parameters descriptive statistics 78
Table 4.5: Tularosa Basin groundwater chemical data parameters descriptive statistics 85
xvii Chapter 1
1.1 Introduction
Ground water represents the largest reservoir of fresh water, supplying over 95% of all domestic and industrial fresh water consumption; this is based on the fact that its quality is suitable for direct human consumption with little or no processing required. Groundwater quantity does not appear to be depleted, but recent trends indicate that this perception is false. The over- exploitation of groundwater from the cumulative effects of human activities has resulted in unsustainable industrialized agriculture and the drying of once-perennial streams, and springs, among other surface water. Authorities are now treating groundwater as a natural resource that should be conserved and utilized in a sustainable way. This requires an accurate estimation of a quantifiable basin-wide groundwater recharge since recharge dictates sustainable yield.
Difficulty in estimating the actual amount of groundwater available in a basin makes water resource management difficult for local, regional, and national authorities. The impossibility of direct groundwater flow measurements, preferential flow pathways of ground water in the unsaturated zones, and spatial variability of recharge greatly complicate the task of quantifying basin recharge rates (Alley et al, 2002). Basin recharge has been estimated using different methods, prominently including the use of water budgets, tracers, geophysical method, and simulation models. Experts recommend combining multiple techniques to obtain an accurate recharge rate as a single technique is not very accurate. Modeling techniques like the PRO-
GRADE, the MODFLOW/MODBRANCH, and Basin Characterization Model (BCM) have been used by researchers to measure recharge rates (Heilweil et al. 2007).
1 1.2 Hydrogeological Concepts
1.2.1. Hydrology Circle
The water cycle describes the metamorphosis of water from one stage and storage medium to other stages. Water exists in three phases and each phase has its storage medium; the media are the following:
Solid phase, stored in form of ice and snow (known as the cryosphere)
Gas phase, stored in form of water vapor, pour vapor (ground water) and steam
Liquid phase, available in water both surface water and ground water.
Surface water is stored in reservoirs and occurs in streams, lakes, wetlands, snow, ice, bays and oceans. Groundwater is stored below the earth’s surface and is composed of deep groundwater, soil water and soil moisture. Table 1 indicates the total surface water available on the earth
(1,399,244,000 km3) with most occurring in the ocean. Movement of surface water from one phase to the other occurs through evaporation, transpiration, precipitation (as in snow, hail, dew or rain fall) and sublimation (as in snow).
Interaction of surface water and ground water occurs through infiltration and through seepage.
Groundwater can recharge surface water, or vice versa in a basin depending on the water level in a region. Alternately, both can occur at different point in a basin. Surface water recharges ground water through infiltration and seepage; groundwater recharges surface water through springs and gaining stream. The concept of movement of ground water from one phase to another is easily visualized, as we experience it every day and in every season of the year. However, the concept of ground water movement is a little complicated and not easily visualized.
2 Table 1.0: Forms and volume of water available in the earth. (Starr, 2000)
Main Reservoirs Volume (103cubic Km)
Oceans 1,370,000
Ice, glaciers 29,000
Groundwater 4,000
Lake, rivers, wet lands, streams 230
Soil Moisture 67
Water Vapor 14
1.2.2 Water Budget (Inflow/Outflow Relationships)
At steady state water entering (inflow) and leaving (outflow) a groundwater system is in equilibrium (Eq. 1.0 & Figure 1.0a,) that is before human interference through excessive pumping or natural disaster like earth quakes. At this stage total inflow is equal to outflow.
Total Inflow Recharge = Total Outflow (Discharge) Equ 1.0
When there is excessive withdrawal from groundwater system the equation above (Equ 1.0) would become imbalanced and in unsteady state as indicated in Equ 1.0 and Figure 1.0b.
That is
Total Inflow (Recharge) ≠ Total Outflow (Discharge) Equ 1.1
3 a Ground Water System (Basin, Aquifer or other water storage Outflow InflowInflowinflow medium)
b
Ground Water System (Basin,
Aquifer or other water storage Outflow InflowInflowinflow medium)
Pumpin
Figure 1.0: Groundwater system in steady state (a) and in unsteady state (b).
Drawdown occurs in the water level of the ground water the system when there is too much withdrawal. The groundwater storage and distribution system is transit; it responds to recharge and withdrawal appropriately. When withdrawal is stopped the system tends to adjust over time to the lowering in groundwater level and the steady state equilibrium is reached gain. Overtime the system shift from Equ 1.1 & Figure 1.0b to Equ 1.0 & Figure 1.0a above.
1.2.3 Water Table, Zones, Withdrawal and Cone of Depression
Water that infiltrates into the ground hits a point where the water pressure is equal to the atmospheric pressure, this point is called the water table. The water table fluctuates with precipitation and the season of the year; it rises and is typically higher in early spring and lower in late summer in most regions. In periods of extreme drought the water table is at its lowest
4 point. This water table serves as the top of the saturated zone in groundwater reserve. The saturated zone is usually bounded on top by the water table.
The saturated zone is a region of groundwater storage where groundwater is bounded by the bedrock at the base and the water table at the top. The pores in the saturated zone are filled with water to saturation. The unsaturated zone is a region between the land surface and the water table; it exists above the water table and fluctuates according to the level of water in the ground.
At some point (when the water table is same as the ground surface) the unsaturated zone might not exit. Water movement occurs in the unsaturated zone, and pores are mostly filled with moisture and air rather than water in this region.
Removal of ground water is usually done through well pumping with motorized equipment; most pumping is done for agricultural, municipal, and mining uses among others. The longer the time of pumping and more the number of wells in a region the lower the water table. When the rate of well withdrawal is high in a well, the water table is lowered around the well forming an inverted cone shape known as a cone of depression (Figure 1.1). The land area above a cone of depression is called the area of influence. This causes a change in flow direction and an increase in the unsaturated region around the well as indicated in Figure 1.1. When the cone of depression occurs among several wells in a basin well interference occurs (Figure 1.2). This can lead to permanent lowering of water table and induced recharge when it extends to surface water bodies (rivers, lakes, pool and etc.) in the basin (Figure 1.3). If this is not checked all the surface water in the area of influence would completely dry up.
5
Figure 1.1: Cone of Depression (Raymond, 1988).
Figure 1.2: Well Interference (Raymond, 1988).
6
Figure 1.3: Induced recharge (Raymond, 1988).
1.2.4 Groundwater Management and Sustainability
The extensive use of ground water has resulted in damaging effects on the ecosystem, over pumping for municipal and agricultural use has led to drastic reduction in groundwater availability. González el al (2012) reported that the magnitude 5.1 earthquakes that occurred in
Lorca, southeastern Spain on 11 May 2011 at 16.47 UTC causing injury to hundreds of people, nine deaths and significant property damage were caused by anthropogenic activities. Using the elastic dislocation model and other tools they discovered that over extraction of water from Alto
Guadalentin Basin due to long-term sustained groundwater pumping for agriculture usage resulted in high ground subsidence rates (>10 cm yr1) which created faults corresponding to the nucleation and the area of the main fault slip of the earthquake.
In the United States over 17,000 square miles of land in 45 states have been affected by land subsiding. The primary are causes are aquifer-system compaction, drainage of organic soils,
7 underground mining, hydrocompaction, natural compaction, sinkholes, and thawing permafrost
(Galloway et al 2000). Regions that have experienced land subsiding in the United State are indicated in Table 1.1 below:
Table 1.1: Location and causes of major subsidence and fissures in USA.
Location Cause of Subsiding
Santa Clara Valley, Califonia Long time agricultural ground-water withdrawal resulted in subsidence and increase food risks in the greater San Jose area.
San Joaquin Valley, Califonia Excessive groundwater withdrawal for
agricultural use resulted in human alterations of the Earth’s surface topography
Houston- Galveston, Texas Historic production of oil and gas and ground- water pumping have resulted into severe and costly coastal-flooding hazards, affecting critical environmental resources and salt water intrusion in the Galveston Bay estuary
West-central Florida Sinkholes appearance in west and central Florida due to acceleration of dissolution of thick carbonate deposits that underline west and central Florida soil. These are caused by the movement of surface water rich in chemicals to replace ground water extracted and dissociating the limestone as it travel through.
Las Vegas Valley, Nevada Subsidence as a result of groundwater
depletion has been observed in metropolis Nevada because of population increase in fast-
8 growing metropolis and conversion of a desert oasis. Also the agriculture irrigation has caused massive subsidence and fissuring in south central Arizona (Figure 1.3)
Florida Extensive land subsidence that has been caused by drainage and oxidation of peat soils 50 percent of the original wetlands remain.
South central Arizona Extensive use of groundwater for irrigation, mining, and municipal use have resulted in land subsidence as much as 600 feet in some places. Tucson and Phoenix are affected in Arizona among other regions.
9
Figure 1.4: Fissures created by lowering of the water table resulting into earth subsidence in south-central Arizona (Galloway et al, 2000).
Sustainable use and management of groundwater to minimize and avoid the problems itemized in Table 1.1 above are needed to be implemented by all groundwater stake holders. Such an approach has been implemented in the Central Arizona Project (CAP) which links Colorado
River to central Arizona through an aqueduct delivering water. Water delivery through the
Central Arizona Project (CAP) coupled with some sustainable agricultural practice has reduced depending solely on groundwater and help recharge the depleted aquifer.
Alley et al, (1999) gives the priorities for groundwater management as the following (modified from Downing, 1998):
10 Sustainable long term yield from aquifers
Effective use of the large volume of water stored in the aquifers
Preservation of ground water quality
Preservation of the aquatic environment by prudent abstraction of ground water
Integration of ground and surface water into comprehensive water and
environmental management system.
Environmental isotopes are useful for estimating ground water age and measuring ground water flow. Anthropogenic tracers resulting from industrial activities include CFCs (CFC-11, CFC-12, and CFC-113), and SF6. Other isotopes are 2H, 18O, Cl36, 14C and 85Kr as indicated in Figure 1.5 below. Anthropogenic environmental tracers released as a result of nuclear tests include 3H
(employed mainly in dating of young groundwater), and 36Cl. Numerous studies have used the environmental tracers to model flow and quantify groundwater.
Cartwright and other scientists (2006) used the Br/Cl ratio to study recharge variability and groundwater flow in the southeast Murray Basin, Australia. Chloride mass balance was employed by Dettinger (1984) to estimate the average natural recharge rate in Nevada, USA.
Numerous researchers have also quantified groundwater movement using this method; prominently Allison et al, (1994); Jin et al, (2000); and Phillips (1994).
11
Figure 1.5: Annual average concentration during last 60 years of some environmental tracers
used to determine groundwater ages. Adapted from Alley et al, (2002).
12 1.3 Hypothesis
Water is essential to life. The exponential increase of the human population in the last century due to technological innovation and better healthcare have been accompanied by diminishing natural resources including water resources. Human beings are usually proactive in nature; therefore proper quantification of water is essential to ensure its availability in sustaining generations to come. A typical question asked by hydrologists (first hypothesis) is,
“There is a more accurate way to determine the recharge of a basin using
a modern contemporary method (chloride mass balance CMB )?”
Another hypothesis for the research (second hypothesis) is the
“What is the role of elevation in basins recharge?”
This research attempts to answer these questions. It provides a method different from traditional approach used to quantify regions of recharge in basins. It estimates the infiltration rate, and subsequently determines the basin recharge rate. The contemporary methods employed in this recharge study are the application of GIS, environmental isotope hydrology, and a chloride mass balance approach.
Experimental data was collected for the isotopic chemistry data in the atmosphere and sub- surface water. This data was used to determine the recharge in the basin and the role of elevation using the CMB technique. The final aim of this study is to determine the overall recharge in the
Basins.
13 Chapter 2
2.1 Basin Hydrogeology
2.1.1 Mimbres Basin Hydrogeology
Mimbres River Basin is a 13,300 km² basin, located in southwestern New Mexico; it extends into
Mexico and is drained by the Mimbres River and the San Vicente Arroyo. It is located predominantly in Luna County but also extends into portions of Sierra County, Dona Ana
County, and Chihuahua State in Mexico. The upper portion of the Mimbres Basin (northern part) consists of forest land cover to range land in the middle part of the basin and then to drier desert land in the southern part extending into Mexico. Mimbres Basin consists of a series of seven interconnected sub basins. Most recharge in Mimbres Basin takes place in the semiarid region, a fraction of it actually reaches to the groundwater (Hearene and Dewey, 1988).
Mimbres Basin average elevation is about 4,700feet above sea level. The basin was officially declared by the New Mexico State engineer in July 1931 with an initial area of 762 square miles that subsequently extended over time to its current size. Approximately 14, 801, 7820.506 m3 of water are withdrawn from the basin yearly (Blair and Stevens, 1991) for irrigation to grow alfalfa, chili, cotton, and sorghum.
The geology of Mimbres Basin consists of three tectonic provinces. The first basin is situated in southern Mogollon-Datilvolcanic field; the rest of Mogollon-Datil volcanic field lies north of the
Basin. The second is the primary Basin and Range province (Seager el al., 1982). The third is the
Florida basin east of the Florida Mountains which is part of the Rio Grande rift (Hanson el al.,
1994, Seager and Morgan, 1979). Structural and bedrock components of the basin have been itemized by Hawley et al., (2000) as indicated in Figure 2.1 below. The basin can be divided into
14 seven sub-basin components and intra-basin features (Hanson el al., 1994, Klein 1995) although other researchers use different designations for the sub-basin units e.g. Seager (1995).
The seven basin subdivisions are listed below (Figure 2.1) according to NMWRRI:
1. Upper Mimbres Sub-basin: The upper Mimbres sub-basin is situated between the eastern
Black Range uplift and Cobre uplift of Santa Rita area. This sub-basin extends southward into
Rio Grande rift and adjoins the Florida sub-basin
2. San Vicent Sub-basin: The sub-basin thickness is about 1,300m. This basin is located between the Cobre-Pinos Altos Uplift around Silver City-Santa Rita area to the northeast and the southwest of Cookes Range horst. Its eastern boundary is the Treasure Mountain fault zone, and it adjoins the Mangas sub-basin to the northwest.
3. Dwyer Sub-basin: This falls in the middle reach of the Mimbres River. The basin adjoins the Upper Mimbres and Managas-San Vicente sub-basin; it’s positioned southwestward, and lies west of Cookes Range uplift and south east of Cobre uplift. The Mimbres River lies in the middle of this sub-basin.
4. Florida Sub-basin: This sub-basin extends southward into Mexico and merges with the
Bolson de los Muertos. It is situated in the north between the Graben and half Graben complex
(between the Cookes Range and Goodsight Mountain) and in the south between the Florida and
West Potrillo uplifts as indicated in section profile (Figure 2.1).
5. Deming Sub-basin: This sub-basin has a thickness of 1.3 km. The basin extends northeast toward San Vicente; it is bounded on the north by the Snake Hill fault zone, on the south by the
Seventy-six fault zone, and the Burdick Hills-Tres Hermanas horst.
6. Hermanas Sub-basin: This sub-basin trends northwest-ward and lies between the Burdick
Hills-Tres Hermanas horst, and Cedar Mountain uplift. The eastern portion extends into Mexico
15 where it is bounded by the Sierra Alta frontal fault zone on the west and, in the southern end by the Palomas volcanic field and the playa-lake basin of Laguna Polvaredones. The southern portions of this sub-basin merge with Rio Casas Grandes east of Boca Grande.
7. Columbus Sub-basin: The Columbus sub-basin has a thickness of about 300m. The sub- basin is bounded in the south, by the Palomas depression in Mexico and in the east by the southern Florida sub-basin as indicated in Figure 2.1 below.
16
Figure 2.1: Mimbres Basin Subsystems (Data Source: New Mexico Water Research and
Resources Institute). 17 2.1.2 Diablo Basin Hydrogeology
The Diablo Basin lies below the Diablo Plateau; it’s located in a semi-arid region in far west
Texas and extends into New Mexico in the northern direction. The Diablo Basin is bounded in the west by the Hueco Bolson, to the east by the Salt Basin, and south by several mountain ranges extending into New Mexico. Groundwater in this basin is not developed because the region is barren and devoid of habitants, with exception of Dell City. Diablo Basin aquifer was not named as a minor aquifer of Texas but categorized in the ‘other’ category of aquifers by the
Texas Water Development Board (TWDB, 2002).
Elevation in the basin ranges from 2750m in the Sacramento Mountains (highest point) to
1095m in the Salt Basin of the east. The Otero Mesa/Diablo P l a t e a u , Sacramento
Mountains, the Sacramento R i v e r , and t he Salt Basin are important landmarks in the basin region. Dell City is the most populated region in the basin, economic activities in the region are mostly cattle and sheep ranching, farming and growing hay with irrigation. Groundwater use in
Diablo Basin mainly in Dell City is indicated in Figure 2.2 below.
18
Figure 2.2: Total groundwater withdrawal and use from the Diablo Basin (Data from George et al, 2005)
Geology of the Diablo Plateau consists primarily of the Permian- and Cretaceous-aged limestone; they are embedded with sandstones and shale. The sandstones and shale have patches of Miocene to Holocene and Quaternary alluvium, occasional Tertiary intrusive rocks, and an area of Precambrian rhyolite and porphyry (Henry and Price, 1985; Kreitler et al. 1986).
Mullican and Mace (2001) reported in their studies that the Diablo Basin has “good-quality water, good well yields, and evidence of recent recharge over most of the aquifer”. The basin has been recognized and designated as an aquifer and has potential to supply an enormous amount of groundwater supply in future by the Texas Water Development Board.
2.1.3 Tularosa Basin Hydrogeology
Tularosa Basin is located in Otero County in New Mexico; it extends north into Socorro County and westward into Sierra, Lincoln and Dona Ana Counties. The area of Tularosa Basin is
19 approximately 17,000 km2, the distance between the north and south is about 240 km, and its widest point in east-west direction is about 100 km. Total water withdrawal from the basin is about 147,000 cubic meters per day (Data from Huff, 2004). Most of the landmass in Tularosa
Basin are occupied by the White Sands Missile Range, White Sands National Monument, and
Holloman Air Force Base. Agriculture irrigation account for the most withdrawals from the basin as indicated in Figure 2.3
Figure 2.3: Total groundwater withdrawal and use from the Tularosa Basin (Data from Huff,
2004).
The basin is surrounded by mountains, in the north it is bounded by Chupadera Mesa; in the west by the Franklin, Organ, San Augustin, and San Andres Mountains. In the east it’s bounded by the
Sacramento Mountains. The southern portion of the basin is connected to Hueco Bolson and water flows from Tularosa into Hueco Bolson Basin (Heywood and Yager, 2003). In El Paso -
Ciudad Juarez border region (US-Mexico) the water supply is sourced from the Hueco Bolson; it has been excessively withdrawn which has resulted significantly in drastic water-level decline.
20 Principal towns in the basin are Alamogordo, Carrizozo, Tularosa, La Luz, Orogrande,
Carrizozo, and Boles Acres. The geology consists of rocks of Precambrian to Tertiary age in escarpments surrounding the basin floor; it forms the bedrock that underlies the basin and it is a part of the Rio Grande Rift System (Seager and Morgan, 1979). Quaternary alluvial and aeolian sediments are deposited at the basin surface.
The New Mexico Water Resources Research Institute (NMWRRI) has conducted some research in this basin. They developed a GIS web interface displaying the geospatial layers of water resources, land, biological resources, a digital elevation model (DEM), relief and other important layers (NMWRRI, 2011).
2.2 Climate and Precipitation in the Study Area
2.2.1 Mimbres Basin Climate and Precipitation
The annual precipitation in Mimbres Basin varies from less than 254mm/year to 762mm/year depending on the elevations (WRCC, 2012a). The majority of the rainfall cycle occurs between
July and September during the North American monsoon. Precipitation varies considerably in the basin, generally increasing with the elevation and decreasing in the southeastern portion of the basin. Annual precipitation varies considerably in the basin, as indicated in Figure 2.4 in the period from 1914-2005. Precipitation varies in the basin from year to year with high precipitation occurring approximately every 10 years. Table 2.1 indicates the annual precipitation of cities located within the basin. Average snow depth for the same period in the higher elevation of the basin was 890 mm (WRCC, 2012a).
21 Annual Preciptaion in Mimbres Basin 300
250
Annual Percipitation (mm) 200
150
100
50
0
1963 1914 1917 1930 1933 1936 1939 1942 1945 1948 1951 1954 1957 1960 1966 1969 1972 1975 1978 1981 1984 1987 1990 1993 1996 1999 2002 2005 Time (Years ) Figure 2.4: Annual Precipitation in Mimbres Basin from 1914-2005 (WRCC, 2012a).
Table 2.1: Annual precipitation in cities around Mimbres Basin (Source: WRCC, 2012a).
City Elevation Annual Precipitation
Columbus 1,268.000m 244.000 mm.
White Signal (Southwest of Silver City) 1,850.000m 378.000mm
Deming USGS station 1,321.000m 234.000mm
Gage USGS Station 1,344.000m 261.000mm
Mimbres Ranger Station 1,904.000m 433.000mm
Pinos Altos USGS Station 2,134.000m 495.000mm
The annual temperature in Mimbres Basin also varies with elevation, the summers being hot in lower elevation and mild in higher elevations of the basin. In the winter, the temperature is usually mild in lower elevations and cold in higher elevations as indicated in Table 2.2 below. 22 Table 2.2: Summer and winter temperatures of some stations in Mimbres Basin (WRCC, 2012a).
Temperature (oC) City Max Temp Min Temp Average Temp
Mimbres Ranger Station 30.000°C -7°.000C 18.500°C
Deming 32.000°C -2.200°C 15.800° C
Gage 25.000°C 5.000°C 15.200°C
Florida 27.000°C 5.000°C 14.900°C
Deming’s mean annual air temperature for the periods 1948-1995 was 15.8° C. Figure 2.5 indicates the average annual air temperature from 1957 to 2005 in the Mimbres Basin. During the summer months (June, July, and August) the maximum temperature exceeded 32°C, the minimum temperature was above 13.9°C in June, and above 16.6°C during July and August.
During the winter months (December, January and February) the maximum temperatures reached about 14.4°C and minimum temperatures dropped to -2.2°C.
Mean annual temperatures in the Mimbres Basin range from 17.8C in the south to 4.5C in the northern part of the basin (Figure 2.5). Mean annual temperatures are similar at the lower elevation stations for example in Columbus it is 16.8°C, Gage it is 15.2°C, and Florida it is
14.9°C. In higher elevations, temperatures are cooler, with the maximum summer temperature at the Mimbres Ranger Station below 30°C. Minimum temperatures in higher elevation in the winter are much colder with the Mimbres Ranger station average of about -7°C. Large diurnal changes in temperature are common throughout the basin with a range of plus or minus 17°C.
Elevation affects the relative humidity in the Mimbres Basin. Relative humidity is lower in the southern section and higher in the northern section of the basin. The relative humidity ranges
23 from 65% at sunrise to about 30% or below at noon. Records of pan evaporation are only available for the Florida station where the annual total class A pan evaporation (1948-1992) was
2610mm. Generally, evaporation ranges from 1041.4mm in the northern part to 1854.20mm in southern part of the basin.
Annual Average Temprature in Mimbres Range Station 20
19 Avegage Te 18
mp mp ( 17
°
C)
16
15
14
Time (Years))
Figure 2.5: Annual Average Temperature in Mimbres Range Station 1957-2005 (WRCC, 2012a).
2.2.2 Tularosa Basin Climate and Precipitation
The climate of the Tularosa Basin is dry and cool with an average elevation of about 4000 feet in subtropical arid regions when the spring season is usually dry and windy. In the winter season there is little precipitation and in the autumn and early winter it is usually cool. Most rainfall originates from air flowing from the Gulf of Mexico, the Gulf of Mexico air and local ascending air currents into result into condensation and fall in midsummer as a few localized heavy storms
(Gile et al, 1981). 24 Median annual precipitation in Alamogordo is 283 mm per year as indicated in Figure 2.6 below.
The US Bureau of Reclamation and the State of New Mexico (1976) reported that the average rainfall in the basin was 284.48mm. Precipitation levels are higher in the mountain region in the north while the southern region has little precipitation, storm rainfall from the northern region of the basin results in an intermittent stream which flows into the desert region and forms a playa as it infiltrates and dries up.
Temperatures in the basin vary widely because of the difference in latitude and elevation in the basin as seen in Figure 2.7. The high northern section of the basin has a much cooler temperature than the southern low land arid region, with average temperatures of 16.11oC in higher elevation of Alamogordo and 13.28oC in the lower elevations in the Holloman Air Force Base (Table 2.3).
WRCC (2012b) reported the lake evaporation near Alamogordo measured by the U.S. Bureau of
Reclamation and the State of New Mexico (1976) is 1905.00 mm per year (0.0052 meter per day).
Table 2.3: Summer and winter temperatures in some stations in Tularosa Basin (WRCC, 2012b).
Temperature (oC) City Altitude Max Temp Min Temp Average Temp (m) Alamorgordo 1322.220 42.780 -17.700 16.110
Tularosa 1400.000 24.330 7.610 15.970
White Sands 1219.200 25.610 5.220 15.420
Holloman Air 1247.550 27.222 6.000 16.611 Force Base
25 Tularosa Annual Precipitation 600
550
500
450
400
350 Rainfall Rainfall (mm) 300
250
200
150
1983 2008 1911 1914 1918 1921 1929 1933 1937 1940 1943 1949 1952 1957 1962 1969 1974 1977 1986 1989 1992 1996 1999 2002 2005 Time (Year)
Figure 2.6: Average Annual Temperature in Tularosa Basin from 1911-2010 (WRCC, 2012b).
Tularosa Annual Temperature 19
18
17
16
C) o 15
14
Temperature( 13
12
11
10
1989 1910 1912 1919 1925 1949 1951 1953 1955 1957 1959 1962 1964 1966 1968 1970 1972 1974 1976 1978 1981 1983 1985 1987 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 Time (Years)
Figure 2.7: Annual Average Temperature in Tularosa Basin from 1910-2012 (WRCC, 2012b).
26 2.2.3 Diablo Basin Climate and Precipitation
Diablo Basin’s climatic condition is mostly subtropical arid, dry with drought (Thornthwaite,
1931); it’s characterized by low rainfall and very high evaporation rates. The rainfall that occurs in the basin is concentrated between May and October, the rain are usually heavy with thunderstorms. Moderate rainfall, low relative humidity and cooler temperatures characterize the mountainous regions of the basin (The Guadalupe, Davis, and Chisos Mountains), mostly in the northern part. The southern regions have a subtropical arid climate, which results from the Gulf of Mexico air flow which is disturbed by intermittent seasonal intrusions of continental air. The
Gulf of Mexico air flows northward and rises by convention as it approaches the mountainous region resulting in orographic rainfall causing localized short but intense storms (Carr, 1967).
The average precipitation in the basin is around 397.26mm (Figure 2.8); a wide range exists in precipitation because of the changes of the basin climate from moderate rainfall (Figure 2.8) in the northern part to subtropical arid in the south (70 to 860mm). The temperature in the basin varies just like the precipitation; the subtropical arid climate has high mean temperatures with marked fluctuations over broad diurnal and annual ranges. Table 2.4 indicates the temperature of some towns around the basin. The minimum and maximum average annual temperatures recorded in the basin fall between 7°C and 27°C as indicated in Figure 2.9 (WRCC, 2012c). Pan evaporation rates measured in the basin averaged 1802.13 mm.
27 Dell City Annual Precipitation 600
500
400
300 Precipitation(mm)
200
100
1985 1994 1980 1981 1982 1984 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1995 1996 1997 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 Time (Years)
Figure 2.8: Average Annual Precipitation in Dell City (Diablo Basin) from 1980-2010. (WRCC,
2012c).
Table 2.4: Temperatures in selected towns around Diablo Basin (WRCC, 2012c).
Temperature (oC) Location Max Temp Min Temp Average Temp
Hueco Bolson 26.670 7.220 16.950
Eagle Mountains 22.220 5.000 13.610
Red Light Draw 27.222 8.889 18.333
Diablo Plateau 25.000 6.670 15.840
28 Dell City Annual Average Temperature 18
17.5
17
C) o
16.5
Temperature( 16
15.5
15 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 Time (Year)
Figure 2.9: Average Annual Temperature in Dell City (Diablo Basin) from 1980-2010 (WRCC,
2012c).
2.3 Chloride Application as an Environmental Isotope
Improvements in accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) analysis, solid source mass spectrometry
(SSMS), and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) techniques have made the application of Chloride (Cl) and other isotopes important as environmental tracers. Chloride in the surface water and groundwater are constant from historic to present time; with no addition of
Cl sources or sink into groundwater, groundwater age can be estimated by measuring the initial and secular equilibrium of the 36Cl/35Cl ratio in the system (Bentley et al. 1986).
Chlorine 36 isotope is proposed for this study because of the following reason:
29 It utilizes inexpensive techniques, requiring only the measurement of chloride
concentration in groundwater and from annual precipitation; there is no need for
expensive and sophisticated instruments to take measurements
It is useful for estimating recharge rates that are integrated spatially over the
watershed and overtime for tens to thousands of years
Chlorine 36, with a half-life of 3.01 x 105years, has the potential of dating
groundwater over a long period, whereas tritium, the most widely used radioactive
isotope, has a half-life of 12.3 years.
Bazuhair and Wood (1996) listed the conditions necessary for the applicability of the method as follows:
(1) There is no other source of chloride in the ground water other than that from
precipitation,
(2) Chloride is conservative in the system; it does not disintegrate in a medium. Its
steady-state conditions are maintained with respect to long term precipitation
and chloride concentration in that precipitation,
(3) Precipitation is evaporated and/or recharged to ground water with no surface
runoff leaving the aquifer area,
(4) No recycling of chloride occurs within the basin and no evaporation of
groundwater occurs up gradient from the ground water sampling points.
Chloride was chosen as the tracer isotope for this research because of the reasons aforementioned; also because of its relative affordability for analysis, and sampling techniques are not complicated or time consuming. Other techniques include measured protocol, analytical
30 methods and modeling techniques: These techniques can be replicated by technicians, personnel of state water agencies, local and federal agencies.
2.4 GIS Application in Environmental Research
Several related GIS studies have been conducted in the Mimbres and Tularosa Basins by the
New Mexico Water Resources Research Institute (NMWRRI). Geospatial layers of water resources, land, biological resources, a digital elevation model (DEM), relief, and other important layers were developed by the NMWRRI (NMWRRI, 2011). The presences of these geospatial layers make this location good for conducting this research.
The application of Geographic Information System (GIS) in environmental studies is a novel approach. Significant attempts have been made using spatial distribution maps, satellite images,
Digital Elevation Model (DEM), and other remote sensing data to study ground water pollution sources, watershed management, and other surface related environmental disturbances [see Gavit and Fyzee (2009), Khorasgani and Karimi, (2008), Pashakolaie et al, (2007), and Piyadasa et al,
(2005). Gossel et al, (2004) developed a GIS-based groundwater flow model for the Nubian sandstone aquifer in the Eastern Sahara without application of the environmental trace techniques. Kwicklis et al, (2005) developed a map of net infiltration for Los Alamos, New
Mexico, extrapolating characteristics of the study area (topography, vegetation cover, and surface geology) using GIS.
A correlated application of GIS to water movement was developed by Heilweil et al, (2007).
They developed a model to determine the net infiltration through sandstone in the Sand Hollow area of southwestern Utah by using parameters such as soil thickness, soil coarseness, vegetation cover, topographic slope, and buried sandstone fracture density (Heilweil et al, 2007). A similar approach will be used to develop a model that determines recharge in the Mimbres River Basin.
31 The method that will be applied in this research involves the use of environmental isotopes of chloride 36 (Figure 2.10). Chloride concentration was high in some regions.
Figure 2.10: Chloride concentration in Mimbres Basin wells.
The typical approach employed mainly by government agencies to measure groundwater recharge involves integration of models developed by the USGS into ArcMap. Such developed models in which GIS and Cl Mass Balance application were applied include the following:
Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) developed by the Blackland Research
Center (part of Texas A&M Texas Agricultural Experiment Station), for the USDA,
(Arnold et al. 1998). Watersheds are modeled by dividing them into smaller sub-basins;
the data for each parameter to be modeled (land use, vegetation, soil type, etc.) are input
for each sub-basin into the model.
Geographic Resources Analysis Support System (GRASS) was developed by the
Environmental Division of the U.S. Army Construction Engineering Research
32 Laboratory, (Jayakrishnan et al., 2005). GRASS was developed as a raster graphic
modeling tool developed for a multipurpose, interactive and spatial information analysis
package with high visual graphics display output. Input interface for GRASS can be
generated from the SWAT model or any other model and the results are analyzed and
displayed with GRASS. Typical application of GRASS includes modeling of runoff and
evapotranspiration of continental U.S. as applied by Arnold et al, (1999).
The Better Assessment Science Integrating Point and Nonpoint Sources
(BASINS) model was developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (U.S.
EPA's) Office of Water to estimate the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) of nutrients
discharged under the Clean Water Act (Di Luzio et al., 2002). It is a model that integrates
environmental parameters and a GIS program (ArcView).
The Hydrologic Unit Model For The United States (HUMUS) model was
developed to provide “better information than has ever been obtained before about the
uses of water on irrigated and non-irrigated agricultural lands, and the physical and
economic effects of changing agricultural practices and cropping patterns on the future
water needs and supplies,” (Jayakrishnan et al, 2005), as demanded by the Resource
Conservation Act of 1977 and as amended by the RCA. The HUMUS system combines
the SWAT and GRASSES (SWAT–GRASS) models to accomplish this task. Alexander
et al., (2002) employed the HUMUS model to determine nutrient loading in continental
USA.
2.5 Chemical Composition of Ground Water
With the advances and development of powerful chemical analysis tool such as ICPMS, the chemistry of ground water can be conducted in large quantities and at cheaper cost. These have
33 enabled us to understand the geochemistry and forensic analysis of ground water. Furthermore, it enables us to understand and model natural systems, trace pathways of contamination and understanding and designing remediation processes in subsurface environments.
Ion (anion and cation) availability defines the chemical composition of the ground water; these are influenced by the chemical elements of the groundwater at the head source and sink, the elemental, geological and mineral composition of the medium of groundwater transport, chemical composition of precipitation and geochemical processes along the transport and resident medium of the groundwater. Andre et al, (2004) use major ions in defining the hydro chemical faces of water, the spatial variability, and connectivity of aquifers. The following seven elements and compounds make up 95% of groundwater chemical composition calcium
(Ca), magnesium (Mg), sodium (Na), potassium (K), chloride (Cl), sulfate (SO4), and bicarbonate (HCO3) (Herczeg and Edmunds, 1999). Composition of elements and compounds in the groundwater based on their concentration are indicated in Table 2.5.
34 Table 2.5: Dissolve Elements Constituent in Groundwater
Major constituents Secondary constituents Minor constituents (1.0 to 1,000 mg l-1) (0.01 to 10.0 mg l-1) (0.0001 to 0.1 mg l-1) Sodium Iron Arsenic Calcium Aluminium Barium Magnesium Potassium Bromide Bicarbonate Carbonate Cadmium Sulphate Nitrate Chromium Chloride Fluoride Cobalt Silica Boron Copper Selenium Iodide Lead Lithium Manganese Nickel Phosphate Strontium Uranium Zinc
(Adapted from Todd, 1980)
The components, sources, and concentration of elements in groundwater are indicated in Table
2.6 below. The following are the elemental composition of groundwater:
2.5.1 Total Dissolved Solids
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) are the amounts of solid composition of ground water, mainly from weathering, leaching, evaporation and concentration of salts minerals. In semi-arid regions
TDS are usually high because of high evaporation. Constituent of TDS are inorganic salts and organic matter (from leaf and plant origin) which dissolved in water. The principal constituents
35 are usually the cations calcium, magnesium, sodium and potassium and the anions carbonate, bicarbonate, chloride and sulfate (Atekwana et al, 2004). TDS measured are conducted using the conductivity test; that can also be determined by gravimetric means.
TDS measurement gives a good indicator of the mineralized character of groundwater.
Groundwater with TDS of less than 500 mg/L is satisfactory for domestic and industrial use while that of greater than 1000 mg/L TDS is unsatisfactory.
2.5.2 pH pH refers to the total hydrogen ion concentration; it measures the free, uncomplex hydrogen ion in a concentration. It can also be defined as the measurement of the negative log of the hydrogen ion in a concentration (Equ 2.0). pH influences many chemical properties of groundwater; it determines the solubility and reactivity which in turn determines the concentration of elements
(Frengsta et al, 2000). pH and other parameters have been used to trace evolutionary trends of ground water (Deutsch, 1997). From groundwater evolution one would expect that the dissolved concentrations of a wide range of elements would increase with increasing pH, as they are released from carbonate and silicate matrices during weathering.
pH = -log (H+) Equ 2.0
Where (H+) = Hydrogen ion concentration
2.5.3 Alkalinity
The measure of the acid neutralizing capability of a solution is defined as alkalinity. It can also be defined as the acid neutralizing capacity of a solution. Alkalinity is measured in most in groundwater because of the carbonate and bicarbonate ions present in the ground. Therefore alkalinity concentrations are measured in the concentrations of carbonate and bicarbonate.
36 Alkalinity of water samples is determined by titration, the water sample is titrated with an acid mostly H2SO4, until an end point of pH 5.4 is reached producing a methyl orange color. The procedure for determining the alkalinity of water is defined by the Handbook of Standard
Methods method 2320 (APH, 1989). Acids such as carbonic, phosphoric, silicic and boric acid present in ground water contribute to alkalinity of groundwater by the production of anions when reactions are not complete.
2.5.4 Chloride
Natural chloride is produced by the cosmic-ray spallation of Argon in the atmosphere by secondary cosmic radiation interacting with the stable ions Ca and K in near surface rocks and soils (Davis et al, 2001). Anthropogenic chlorides were produced during surface nuclear testing conducted in the 50’s and early 60’s. Other anthropogenic sources of chloride include the use of road salt, landfill, and brine disposal etc). Isotopes of chloride ranges from Cl- to Cl7+, Cl- is the only isotopes available in ground water (Hem, 1985).
Chemically, chloride behaves as neutral in water; it doesn’t precipitate in redox (oxidation- reduction) reactions. It does not form any important soluble complexes with any other ions unless at high concentrations and only takes place in a few biochemical roles in the groundwater reaction (Hem, 1985). These properties allow chloride to migrate in the ground with little or no retardation, loss, and low effect by subsurface biochemical processes. These properties make chloride conservative in soil water and its concentration only varies by its dilution or evapotranspiration (Forget et al, 2000).
2.5.5 Nitrate
Nitrogen in natural environments is converted from one from to the other in the nitrogen cycle, through the biological fixation of atmospheric N2 by nitrobacteria or direct atmospheric
37 conversion through lighting (atmospheric N2 is oxidized to NOx). Anthropogenic sources are the greatest addition of nitrogen to the nitrogen system presently, through the planting of legume crops and addition of synthesized fertilizers to crops (Table 2.6). Nitrogen leaches rapidly into groundwater; moving at the same rate as ground water movement, this is because of its negative charge causes it not to sorb readily.
2.5.6 Calcium
Calcium is present naturally as salts, it does not occur by itself because it quickly oxidizes on exposure to air, and releases hydrogen from water. Calcium is deposited during leaching of water and it exists in deposited forms as carbonate, calcite, aragonite, dolomite, and the sulphates anhydrite and gypsum (Table 2.6; Rail, 2000). Calcium in addition to magnesium is among the cation minerals that occur in abundance in natural waters (Agustina et al, 2004).
2.5.7 Fluoride
Fluoride is found as components of igneous and metamorphic rocks and it is mainly released into groundwater during weathering. Fluoride has low solubility and it is limited in water.
Atmospheric deposition accounts for a greater part of fluoride deposition mostly from airborne dust in quarry, industrial process and airborne suspensions from human generated weathering process (Jacks et al, 2004). Fluorine is found in minerals such as micas, pyroxene, hornblende and apatite (where Fl is replaced by the OH- ion during oxidation).
2.5.8 Potassium
Potassium leaching potential is low and its concentration is low in rainwater and groundwater because it has a strong tendency to sorb with solid weathering products particularly clay minerals
(Hem, 1985). Potassium is also localized and added to aquifer by anthropogenic means in farming regions, where potassium fertilizers are applied excessively (Matthess, 1982). The small
38 concentrations of potassium in groundwater may be derived through the dissolution of silicate minerals and by desorption and exchange from clay minerals. It is more soluble with water and displaces sodium salt and also, it reacts more readily with oxygen and water (Table 2.6).
Potassium minerals include potassium feldspars (orthoclase and microcline), the micas
(muscovite and biotite), and feldspathoid leucite (KAlSi2O6) (Matthess, 1982).
2.5.9 Sulfur
Sulfur occurs in igneous rocks, and it is present under various forms, the most common being dissolved sulfate of evaporative sediments. (Hem, 1985). The sulfate ion is a principal component of gypsum and anhydrite which are highly soluble minerals that are likely to occur throughout an aquifer system. Groundwater sulfate is also locally supplied by volcanic solid particle discharge and gas to particle conversion. Anthropogenic sources of sulfur are from industrial emissions in airborne discharges of sulfur oxides (SOx). Reduction of sulfur takes place in the natural environment through oxidation to sulfates by bacterial (Desulfovibrio genus) activity (Matthess, 1982).
2.5.10 Sodium
Sodium is a major element that is a constituent of igneous rock, and it is present in the feldspar mineral plagioclase (Matthess, 1982). Sodium is an alkali metal that is highly soluble in water, and remains in the solution; it can only be precipitated out by evaporation. When present in high concentrations it precipitates out as sodium salt (sodium chloride, sodium bicarbonate, sodium sulfate, and sodium nitrate). Sodium behaves similarly to potassium, thus at times they are combined as one in groundwater analysis.
Sodium is mainly derived in groundwater from dissolution of plagioclase by desorption from clay mineral surfaces. Sodium rich groundwater occurs in New Mexico in Eddy County at
39 around Salado Formation and Rustler Formation with a concentration of 121,000mg Na+ l-1
(Hen, 1985).
Table 2.6: Components, sources, and concentration of elements/ions in groundwater
Component Natural sources Concentration in natural water Dissolved Mineral constituents dissolved in Usually < 5,000 mg l-1, but some solids water brines contain as much as 300,000 mg l-1 Nitrate Atmosphere, legumes, plant Usually < 10 mg l-1 debris, and animal excrement Sodium Feldspars (albite), clay minerals, Generally < 200 mg l-1; about evaporites such as halite, and 10,000 mg l-11 in sea water; ~ industrial wastes 25,000 mg l-1 in brines Potassium Feldspars (orthoclase, Usually < 10 mg l-1, but up to microcline), feldspathoids, some 100 mg l-1 in hot springs and micas, and clay minerals 25,000 mg l-1 in brines Calcium Amphiboles, feldspars, gypsum, Usually < 100 mg l-1, but brines pyroxenes, dolomite, aragonite, may contain up to 75,000 mg l-1 calcite, and day minerals Magnesium Amphiboles, olivine, pyroxenes, Usually < 50 mg l-1 about 1,000 dolomite, magnesite, and clay mg l-1 in ocean water; brines may minerals have 57,000 mg l-1 Carbonate Limestone, and dolomite Usually < 10 mg l-1, but can exceed 50 mg l-1 in water highly charged with sodium Bicarbonate Limestone, and dolomite Usually < 500 mg l-1, but can exceed 1,000 mg l-1 in water
highly charged with CO2 Chloride Sedimentary rock (evaporites), and Usually < 10 mg l-1 in humid a little from igneous rocks areas; up to 1,000 mg l-1 in more arid regions; approximately 40 19,300 mg l-1 in sea water and up to 200,000 mg l-1 in brines Sulfate Oxidation of sulfide ores, gypsum, Usually < 300 mg l-1, except in and anhydrite wells influenced by acid mine drainage; up to 200,000 mg l-1 in some brines Silica Quartz, feldspars, ferromagnesian Ranges from 1-30 mg l-1 but as and clay minerals, amorphous much as 100 mg l-1 can occur silica, chert, and opal. and concentrations may reach 4,000 mg l-1 in brines Fluoride Amphiboles (hornblende), apatite, Usually < 10 mg l-1, but up to fluorite, and mica 1,600 mg l-1 in brines Iron Igneous rocks: amphiboles, Usually < 0.5 mg l-1 in fully
ferromagnesian micas, FeS, FeS2, aerated water; groundwater with 3 -1 magnetite, and Fe O4. Sandstone pH < 8 can contain 10 mg l ; rocks: oxides, carbonates, sulfides infrequently, 50 mg l-1 may be or iron clay minerals present Manganese Accessory elements in soils and Usually < 0.2 mg l-1 sediments. Metamorphic and sedimentary rocks and mica biotite, and amphibole hornblende minerals contain Mn
Adapted from Todd, 1980.
2.6 Environmental Isotopes in Groundwater and Precipitation
2.6.1 Environmental Isotopes in Groundwater
Groundwater contains chemical elements in varying amounts, but not all these elements can be used in gauging soil water movement because they are easily degraded, they are involved in chemical reactions with soil among other factors. Environmental isotopes are relatively constants
41 in ground water; they do not degrade, and seldom undergo chemical reactions with soil constituents as indicated in Figure 2.11.
Figure 2.11: Annual average concentration during last 60 years of some environmental tracers
used to determine groundwater ages. Adapted from Alley et al, (2002).
Environmental isotopes can be used as an indicator of water source and origin, when compared to conventional geochemical data; they are applicable in the detection of water source as well.
Friedman et al, (1992) defined the global meteoric water line (GMWL) as the annual average isotope compositions of precipitation at locations around the globe. Guay et al, (2006) used environmental isotopes to differentiate between groundwater of different source and origin in
42 Colorado Basin. Their research concluded that stable hydrogen, oxygen isotopes, and tritium provide clues to the origin of groundwater in wells along the Colorado River.
Tritium, with a half-life of 12.3 years remains unnoticeable in water, but with the advent of atmospheric thermonuclear bomb testing from the period 1952 to 1972, the measurable amount of tritium has been detected in surface and groundwater. The tritium in river-water and groundwater have gradually declined steadily from the peak of 716 tritium units (TU) in 1967 to about 8 TU in 2007, mainly due to its radioactive disintegration (half-life). Tritium is also being actively used (the pulse) to quantify recent post nuclear weapon water recharge by monitoring its flow through groundwater. Other isotopes used to trace the source and quantify ground water movement include carbon 14 (14C), krypton 85( 85K), and isotopes of Cl among others.
Like tritium, chloride 36 (36C1) was derived from fallout of nuclear bomb testing, it was produced by the thermonuclear neutron activation of 35C1 in seawater. The peak fallout of 35Cl was in 1955. Careful monitoring of these isotopes can allow us to detect the origin, source, movement and recharge of groundwater.
2.6 Chloride Isotopes Precipitation
At the onset of the discontinuation of ground surface, atmospheric, or sea nuclear weapons testing, the spike in environmental isotopes of 36Cl and 3H are gradually returning to the post test base measurement. Most anthropogenic environmental isotopes laden in the atmosphere due to weapons testing are almost removed. Additional Cl is emitted in the atmosphere as salt aerosol from sea and wind laden with Cl after travelling through salt water for a long time. These are then scrubbed from the atmosphere during precipitation and by direct fallout from the atmosphere.
The National Trends Network (NTN) of the National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP)
43 is a network that provides a long-term record of precipitation chemistry all across the United
States. The New Mexico precipitation chemical data was from the data collected at the Mayhill
(NM08) NADP/NTN station located in Otero County and covers both Mimbres and Tularosa
Basin (Figure 2.12). The Diablo precipitation chemistry data was from the data collected at the
Guadalupe Mountains National Park Frijole Ranger Station TX22 station located in Culberson
County and Big Bend National Park - K-Bar TX04 both in Texas. The site parameters are indicated in Figure 2.12.
There exist only one NADP/TNT station for Texas and New Mexico in the study area, these represent an idealized study. More stations in the study area would generate additional data which might provide different result for this study.
Table 2.7: Site parameters of NADP/NTN sites
Station Mayhill NM08 Guadalupe Mountains Big Bend National New Mexico National Park Frijole Park - K-Bar TX04 Ranger Station TX22 Location Otero County Culberson County, Texas Brewster County, Texas
Operating 1/24/1984-Present 6/5/1984 - Present 4/10/1980 - Present Date Latitude 32.9094 31.9069 29.3025
Longitude -105.471 -104.805 -103.178
Elevation 2022.000m 1705.000m 1056.000 m
Operating US Forest Service Guadalupe Mountains Big Bend National Park agency National Park
Source: NADP (2012)
44
Figure 2.12: Mayhill NM08 NADP/NTN Site (NADP, 2012)
2.7 Statistics
2.7.1 Cluster Analysis
Cluster analysis is a means of measuring conglomeration among a set of data, the data to be analyzed are grouped together based on their similarities. Depending on the distance between the data a clustering is derived, clusters with measurement similar to each other are grouped together. Ward’s clustering was used in this research.
2.7.2 Correlation Analysis
Statistical correlation indicates a relationship between variables and, and this would be employed to indicate if a relationship exists between the data collected for this research. If a change is observed in one variable and it is accompanied by a change in the other, therefore the variables
45 are correlated. Correlation can indicate whether the relationship between the variables is positive or negative and also the relationship strength. The measure of correlation indicates the strength of the correlation coefficient, coefficient of correlation ranges from +1.0 to -1.0. If r > 0, this indicates a positive relationship; if r < 0 this indicates a negative relationship; if r = 0 this indicates that no relationship among the data. If r = +1.0, this indicate a perfect positive correlation, if r = -1.0 it indicate a perfect negative correlation.
2.7.3 Piper Diagrams
The Piper diagram is used to graphically describe the abundance or relative abundance of ions in individual water samples. It allows comparison of a large number of samples and groups the samples into sample cluster and water type. This is useful in the classification of water samples into hydrochemical facies (Drever, 1997). Piper diagrams graphically represent the ions in water
+ + 2+ 2+ by plotting the % meq/L relative abundance of cations of Na + K , Mg , and Ca on the cation
2- - - 2- triangle, and the relative abundance of SO4 , Cl , and HCO3 + CO3 on the anion triangle.
The GW-Chart software created by the USGS was used for creating the groundwater Piper diagram in this study.
46 Chapter 3
3.0 Methodology
Data Compilation, Processing and Quality Assurance
3.1 Data Compilation
The data for this research were sources from various research organizations and government agencies. Due to the nature of the research, different data was needed for different parameters; the data was downloaded from different sites. The data needed was sourced for the following parameters:
Water chemistry
Well location and water level in the wells
Precipitation chemistry
GIS shapefile and layers
Comprehensive data was obtained for the parameters above from the following government/ research organizations:
The Texas Water Development Board (TWDB)
New Mexico Water Research Resources Institute (NMWRRI)
United States Geological Survey (USGS)
National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP)
Texas Tech GIS Centre
The Texas Water Development Board (TWB) maintains a comprehensive database of groundwater wells for numerous aquifers in the state of Texas, and it is accessible to the public
47 by downloading from their website. The TWDB data sets contain information on the chemical properties of the water samples, duration and time of sampling, the geology of the well area and geodetic coordinate locations of the groundwater wells. New Mexico Water Research Resources
Institute (NMWRRI) developed a GIS server where users can connect to and download GIS shapefiles and layers, and they also maintain the FTP site where GIS data can be downloaded.
National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP) has several locations in the US where precipitation chemistry data are taken automatically, and updated to their database and website; the data recorded are available for the general public. Data obtained from the NADP contain precipitation chemistry properties, amount of precipitation, and the date of collection. The USGS is the most comprehensive of all, and has multiple data for download. The USGS has monitoring groundwater well sites all over the US, and some of these wells capture data automatically, while others are manually collected. The data collected are available on the USGS website for public download. Parameters must be chosen to download; because of the numerous amounts of data available, downloading all parameters would be too cumbersome and difficult to process. The parameters selection for download on the USGS database are the site name, geodetic coordinates locations of the groundwater wells, well water level and depth, and date it was measured.
Some organizations provided more than one type of data; for example the NMWRRI supplied the groundwater chemistry and GIS shapefile and layer data for the Mimbres Basin and Tularosa
Basin. USGS provided well groundwater level and GIS shapefiles and layers data for all the three basins (Table 3.1).
48 Table 3.1: Organization and type of data sourced from them
Organization Data Sourced
Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) Diablo basin groundwater chemistry data
New Mexico Water Resources Research New Mexico groundwater chemistry data for Institute (NMWRRI) the Mimbres and Tularosa Basin, GIS shapefiles and layers data for both basins
United States Geological Survey (USGS) Well water level, GIS shapefiles, and layers for the Mimbres, Tularosa, and Diablo Basin
National Atmospheric Deposition Program Precipitation chemistry data for the Mimbres, Tularosa, and Diablo basin
Texas Tech GIS Centre GIS layer data for the Diablo Basin
3.2 Data Processing
After downloading the data from organizations above (Table 3.1), the data was processed in
Microsoft® Excel 2007 from Microsoft Corp using the following procedure:
1. Download ground water chemical and other data in tabs and shapefiles for the GIS
2. Convert the data from comma-tab into table form using Microsoft Excel 2007
3. Deletion of repetitions and data with incomplete records
4. Deletion of parameters not needed for this study in order to streamline data
5. In sites with multiple measurements, the latest well reading was used, and older
reading deleted.
49 3.2.1 Data Quality Assurance
Quality assurance for the data download was done using the outliers and missing data processing enumerated below. Most of the data used for this research have complete values (NADP and
NMWRRI data), with few outliers and requiring no missing data processing.
3.2.2 Outliers
Some data were exceptionally high or too low from its data range, they are in regions outside the overall general pattern of distribution (Moore et al, 1999). They fall at ranges more than 1.5 times the interquartile range that is above the third quartile or below the first quartile. Common cause of outliers in the data downloaded for this research was uncompleted data reading, and data from some stations were recorded just in some time of the year not all year long. These cause the data to be skewed below the first quartile. Z scores were used to identify outliers from the data after normalizing them. The Z scores was computed from the raw values of each well chloride data, Z score values used for identification and elimination of outliers was obtain from
Z values greater or lesser by 1.5 times of the interquartile range.
3.2.3 Missing Data
Missing data are the cause of most outliers observed in the data processed, missing data occurs because the values ware not measured or they were misplaced. The strategy employed for dealing with missing data was it if did not have a significant effect, it is left alone. This is determined by when there is about a third or more of data set missing for a groundwater well site, the whole location is eliminated when there are other groundwater well sites close by.
For the Piper diagram, the rows missing values within the data were ignored, because the GW-
Chart software does into accommodate missing values.
50 3.3 Statistical Analysis
A decision test was conducted for the data and decisions were based on the cluster analysis and correlation analysis. The cluster analysis was used to infer similarity between the groundwater chemical parameters. Correlation was conducted between the chemical parameters and the elevation to see if any significant relationship existed between them.
3.4 Chloride Mass-Balance Approach
The recharge in the basins was estimated using chloride mass-balance approach as applied by
Edmunds and Walton (1980) and Allison et al, (1985) in estimating paleorecharge rates. It involves the use of the ratio of chloride in precipitation and groundwater to determine the recharge. . It is an idealized approach because it only considers vertical motion of groundwater and does not consider the horizontal component. The chloride mass balance (CMB) approach employed by Wood and Sanford (1995) as indicated in Equ 3.0 will be used in estimating the recharge flux in the basin.
q = Equ 3.0
Where: q = Groundwater recharge flux (mm/yr)
P = Average annual precipitation (mm/yr)
Clwap = Average weight of chloride concentration in wet and dry precipitation (mg/l)
Clgw = Average chloride concentration in ground water (mg/l).
Another approach involves direct calculation (Bromley et al, 1997) using a simple Cl balanced approach as indicated in Equ 3.1 to estimate recharge. 51 Fp + Fd = Fs +Fm Equ 3.1
Where:
Fp = Average rainfall {input} (mm)
Fd = Dry deposition fluxes {input}
Fs = Net steady state output fluxes in the drainage water {output}
Fm= Net flux of chloride precipitated or adsorbed by minerals {output}.
Also, F can be estimated by multiplying the recharge and mean chloride concentration.
F = Rd. Cs Equ 3.2
Where
Cs = Chloride concentration in pore water (mg/l),
Rd = Recharge (mm/yr).
Combining Equ 3.1 and Equ 3.2, Bromley et al, (1997) Equ 3.4 is obtained for the recharge assuming no interaction of chloride with basin minerals (Fm = 0)
Equ 3.3
Where:
P = Average long time annual rainfall (mm)
Fd = Net dry deposition of chloride flux
Cs1 = Interstitial water concentration (mg/l)
Cp = Precipitation concentration (mg/l)
52 If Fd = 0, therefore the fraction of rainfall moving into recharge can be estimated from the ratio of Equ 3.3 above. Therefore direct recharge computation from rainfall can be calculated from this ratio:
Equ 3.4
The same equation (Equ 3.4) was obtained by Wood and Sanford (1995) as in Equ 3.0 above, this would be used for estimating of the basin recharge, inputting data obtained from Table 3.1 above.
The chloride mass balance that was applicable in this research as indicated in Equ 3.0 is a point estimation, recharge at specific point in the basins are considered throughout the three basin.
3.5 Spatial Analysis
ArcMap 10 software (ESRI® 1999-2010) was used to interpolate and display the chloride concentration and recharge. After processing the data in Microsoft Excel, recharge was estimated using Equ 3.0 above, and the result was added a layer in ArcMap. The DEM and the shapefiles downloaded from TTU, GIS center and NMWRRI was added to the layer data on ArcMap. It was then displayed and spatial analysis conducted on them. The results are displayed in the next section. The data for each basin was analyzed spatially and displayed in a layer, the layers corresponding to each slide were then added to each other they were then assigning different transparent value in order to detect any pattern in the basin discharge and chemical characteristic of the basin. Using the generated contour with border analysis tool elevation of the basins was derived; this was then added to the layers to test the second hypothesis on the role of elevation in the recharge of the basin.
53 Chapter 4
4.0 Result
4.1Precipitation Chemistry Data
The descriptive statistics for the precipitation chemistry data sourced from the site operated by
Dr. Dave DuBois (New Mexico State Climatologist, and state coordinator of the NADP/TNT) of the Plant and Environmental Sciences Department at New Mexico State University are indicated in Table 4.1 for the New Mexico. The descriptive statistics for the Texas sites are indicated in
Table 4.2 below.
Non parametric test of the Mayhill New Mexico NADP/NTN NM 08 site data indicates a non- significant level for the data. One-way ANOVA analysis on the site indicates that the Cl concentration in the atmosphere was not statistically significantly different between the atmospheric chemical composition with most p-value >0.05. Analysis by Pearson correlation of the Cl concentration and other chemical parameter concentration indicate a significant correlation exists. The data are significant and have a high correlated (p= 0.025), all these indicates a high level of reliability and dependability of the data.
One way ANOVA analysis of the Guadalupe Mountains National Park Frijole Ranger Station
TX22 and the Big Bend National Park - K-Bar TX04 NADP/NTN sites indicated that the Cl concentration is not statistically significantly different between the atmospheric chemical composition with most p-value > 0.05, except with the NH4 and NO3 where it indicates there exist a significant difference (P<0.05). Cluster analysis indicates two significant clusters formation, indicating little or no differences among the data as was observed in the ANOVA.
54 Conduction of two tailed Pearson correlation indicate a significant correlation among the chemical parameters data.
Table 4.1: Descriptive statistic of NADP/NTN NM 08 site precipitation chemistry
Ion N Minimum Maximum Mean Std. Deviation
Ca_mg/L 128 .099 .721 .248 .100
Mg 128 .010 .306 .0240 .0267
K 128 .009 .136 .0269 .0187
Na 128 .017 .504 .0644 .053
NH4 128 .030 .567 .2027 .088
NO3 128 .260 1.455 .8675 .207
Cl 128 .035 .327 .0932 .040
SO4 128 .360 1.64 .794 .214
Lab_pH 128 4.68 5.92 5.121 .227
Valid N 128
55 Table 4.2: Precipitation chemistry descriptive Statistics for NADP/NTN TX22 and TX04 Site
Variables N Minimum Maximum Mean Std. Deviation Variance Skewness
(mg/l) Statistic Statistic Statistic Statistic Statistic Statistic Statistic Std. Error
Year 58 1980 2010 1995 8.559 73.258 -.048 .314
Ca 58 .142 1.483 .515 .258 .067 1.046 .314
Mg 58 .010 .136 .031 .019 .000 3.152 .314
K 58 .009 .064 .026 .011 .000 1.385 .314
Na 58 .038 .311 .100 .057 .003 1.799 .314
NH4 58 .099 .499 .255 .087 .008 .454 .314
NO3 58 .412 1.467 .767 .208 .043 .708 .314
Cl 58 .064 .426 .120 .0543 .003 3.386 .314
SO4 58 .447 1.760 1.036 .278 .077 .427 .314
Lab pH 58 4.98 5.850 5.422 .221 .049 .170 .314
Lab Cond. 58 4.94 14.240 8.486 1.845 3.403 .631 .314
Valid N 58
4.2 Groundwater Chemistry Well Data
4.2.1 Mimbres Basin Groundwater Chemistry Well Data
Descriptive statistic for Mimbres Basin groundwater chemical data are indicated in Table 4.3 below. The data are evenly distributed with the exception of the TDS (Table 4.3). Z scores values obtained for the 99% of raw Mimbres Basin Cl data at z = 3.0 was 85mg/l, values above this were outliers. Figure 4.1 – 4.8 indicate the plots of ion/Cl- against Cl in Mimbres Basin; a plot of Cl- against the elevation (Figure 4.1) indicates a smooth and coherent Cl concentration 56 above a certain elevation in the basin. The line of fit (both log and linear) indicates a decline in
Cl concentration as the elevation increases. Cl concentrations tend to be uniformly distributed at above 1500m (Figure 4.2), at lower elevation Cl concentration are unusual high and no trends can be observed (Figure 4.1).
A close analysis of the trend in the plots of the ion ratio (Ca, SiO2, and K)/Cl against the chloride indicates a positive correlation and there are chemical evolutions occurring in the basins (Figures
4.3, 4.5, and 4.6 below). From the Figures (Figures 4.3, 4.5, and 4.6) as the Cl tends to become
more concentrated (Cl is conservative in nature), the (Ca, SiO2, and K )/Cl tends to become less and eventually drop to zero at certain points due to their low solubility. The same trend was
observed in the TDS plot (Figure 4.8). Highly soluble ions (SO4 and Na) travel more with the Cl
and increases in concentrated as the Cl does (Figures 4.4 and 4.7). The correlation among SO4, and Na indicated in Figures 4.4, and 4.7 can be traced to the basin geology.
Figure 4.7 indicates the Piper diagram plot of Mimbres Basin; the arrow indicates the concentration of Cl from low to high regions. Spatial analysis plot of different elevations and Cl concentration are indicated below in Figures sub-section 4.3.1.
57 Table 4.3: Descriptive statistic for Mimbres Basin
Total Variable Count Mean SE Mean StDev Min Q1 Median Q3 Max
SO4 84 133.800 29.600 270.800 3.300 13.000 34.000 34.000 91.000 1600.000
Ca 84 80.230 8.710 79.850 19.000 38.000 56.000 56.000 81.750 500.000
Cl_GW 84 28.010 7.260 66.570 1.000 8.350 14.000 14.000 23.500 460.000
Cl_WAP 84 0.117 0.000 0.00 0.117 0.117 0.117 0.117 0.117 0.117
SIO2 84 34.720 1.460 13.380 0.000 26.500 33.500 33.5.00 41.000 76.000
Na 84 17.810 4.880 44.760 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 17.500 240.000
K 84 0.683 0.162 1.489 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.975 8.400
CO2 84 8.810 1.290 11.790 0.000 0.000 5.000 5.000 14.750 82.000
TDS 84 449.900 44.300 406.5000 111.000 242.300 289.500 289.500 457.500 2410.000
Elev_m 84 84.000 1750.00 16.200 148.500 1501.00 1637.500 1756.000 1810.800 2207.000
CL_GW = Chloride of groundwater, Cl_WAP = Atmospheric chloride concentration (wet and
dry deposition), Elev_m = Elevation (m)
58 Mimbres Basin Cl/Elevation Linear (Cl) y = -0.348x + 634.66 Log. (Cl) R² = 0.0237 1400
1200
1000
800
Cl (ug/l) Cl 600
400
200
0 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000 2100 2200 Elevation (m)
Figure 4.1: Plot of Cl concentration against the elevation in Mimbres Basin.
Mimbres Cl/Elevation at above 1500m
100 Linear (Cl) 90 80 70
60 50
Cl (ug/l) Cl 40 30 20 10 0 1450 1550 1650 1750 1850 1950 2050 2150 2250 Elevation (m)
Figure 4.2: Plot of Cl concentration against the elevation in Mimbres Basin at above 1500m
59 Mimbres Basin Ca/Cl vs Cl y = -2.486ln(x) + 12.194 25 R² = 0.3148 Log. (Ca/Cl)
20
15 Ca/Cl 10
5
0 0 20 40 60 80 100 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.3: Ca/Cl vs. Cl plot in Mimbres Basin
y = 0.8463ln(x) + 4.1897 Mimbres Basin SO4/Cl vs Cl R² = 0.0065 60 Log. (SO4/Cl) 50
40
30 SO4/Cl
20
10
0 0 20 40 60 80 100 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.4: SO4/Cl vs. Cl plot in Mimbres Basin
60 Mimbres Basin K/Cl vs Cl y = -0.006ln(x) + 0.0511 0.37 R² = 0.007 Log. (K/Cl) 0.32
0.27
0.22
K/Cl 0.17
0.12
0.07
0.02 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.5: K/Cl vs. Cl plot in Mimbres Basin
Mimbres Basin SiO2/Cl y = -3.415ln(x) + 12.92 R² = 0.5803 20 Log. (Si02/Cl)
15
10 SiO2/Cl
5
0 0 20 40 60 80 100 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.6: SiO2/Cl vs. Cl plot in Mimbres Basin
61 Mimbres Basin Na/Cl y = 0.0473ln(x) + 0.559 6.5 R² = 0.0013 Log. (Na/Cl) 5.5
4.5
3.5 Na/Cl
2.5
1.5
0.5 0 20 40 60 80 100 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.7: Na/Cl vs. Cl plot in Mimbres Basin
Mimbres Basin TDS/Cl y = -13.44ln(x) + 66.548 120 R² = 0.3831 Log. (TDS/Cl) 100
80
60 TDS/Cl 40
20
0 0 20 40 60 80 100 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.8: TDS/Cl vs. Cl plot in Mimbres Basin
62
Figure 4.9: Mimbres Basin Piper diagram plot
4.2.2 Diablo Basin Groundwater Chemistry Well Data
Descriptive statistics of chemical parameters of Diablo Basin are indicated Table 4.4, the data values are evenly distributed with not a lot different between the Q1 & Q3 and the standard deviation. Z scores values obtained for the raw Diablo Basin Cl data at z = 3.0 was 3000mg/l, values above this were outliers. The water Na, SO4 and the TDS are high in the water, Ca, Mg and K all have moderate values.
63 The plot of Cl/Elevation indicates the same effect as observed in the Mimbres Basin, the normal and log line of best fit plot are identical with no significant different (Figure 4.10). At elevation above 1200m the concentration tends to decrease rapidly in the Basin (Figure 4.11). Also, at higher elevations the chloride concentrations are more coherent and correlated unlike at lower elevation. Chats of ions/Cl against the Cl are indicated in Figure 4.12- 4.16. From Figures 4.12-
3 16 below, it can be observed that as the Cl concentration increase the ratio of Ca, SO4, Na, HCO and Mg was reducing, a negative trends was observed. This is in contract to what was obtained in Mimbres Basin for Na and SO4, where they tend to travel in conservative nature with the Cl.
The Piper diagram (Figure 4.17) indicates that the water tends toward low the Ca2+ + Mg2+ and
CO2+ + HCO3+ combinations, the anions and cations are also in moderate to low level. Diablo
Basin subsurface geology can be attributed to the correlation among the Basin ions (Ca, SO4, K,
3 Na, NO3, and HCO ).
64 Table 4.4: Diablo Basin groundwater chemical data parameters descriptive statistics
Variable Count Mean SE Mean StDev Minimum Q1 Median Q3 Max
Ca 107 110.000 9.530 98.530 5.000 54.000 86.000 86.000 134.000 605.000
Mg 107 40.770 3.620 37.410 0.000 16.000 28.000 28.000 58.000 193.000
Na 107 323.500 35.000 361.900 16.000 101.000 247.000 247.000 432.000 2645.000
K 107 6.938 0.575 5.953 1.000 3.400 5.400 5.400 8.400 40.500
HCO3 107 323.000 14.400 149.300 62.200 242.800 319.700 319.700 369.800 928.000
Cl_GW 107 257.700 47.600 492.600 4.700 58.00 128.000 128.000 340.000 4050.000
Cl_WAP 107 0.120 0.000 0.000 0.120 0.120 0.120 0.120 0.120 0.120
SO4 107 489.800 38.400 397.500 20.00 185.00 467.000 467.000 664.000 2210.000
TDS 107 1416.000 103.000 1070.000 304.000 701.00 1269.000 1269.000 1860.000 8079.000
Ppt 107 9.690 0.000 0.00 9.690 9.69.00 9.690 9.690 9.690 9.690
Elev_m 107 1334.200 8.390 86.800 1200.600 1274.800 1324.900 1324.900 1384.700 1549.3
CL_GW = Chloride of groundwater, Cl_WAP = Atmospheric chloride concentration (wet and
dry deposition), PPt = Precipitation (m), Elev_m= Elevation (m)
65 Diablo Basin Cl/Elevation Log. (Elevation m) 800 Linear (Elevation m)
700 y = -151.1ln(x) + 1345 R² = 0.0004 600
500
400 Cl mg/l Cl 300
200
100
0 1190 1240 1290 1340 1390 1440 1490 1540 Elevation m
Figure 4.10: Cl/Elevation plot in Diablo Basin
800 Cl/Elevation in Diablo Basin
700
600
500
400
Cl (mg/l) Cl 300
200
100
0 1200 1250 1300 1350 1400 1450 1500 1550 1600 Elevation (m)
Figure 4.11: Plot of Cl concentration against the elevation in Diablo Basin at 1200m elevation 66 Diablo Basin Ca/Cl vs Cl y = -6.156ln(x) + 6.7445 R² = 0.3839 14 Log. (Ca/Cl)
12
10
8 Ca/Cl 6
4
2
0 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.12: Ca/Cl vs. Cl plot in Diablo Basin
Diablo Basin SO /Cl vs Cl 4 y = -2.67ln(x) + 19.117 R² = 0.1973 30
25
20
/Cl 4
15 SO
10
5
0 0.5 500.5 1000.5 1500.5 2000.5 2500.5 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.13: SO4/Cl vs. Cl plot in Diablo Basin 67 Diablo Basin Na/Cl vs Cl y = -0.506ln(x) + 4.0009 R² = 0.4742 6 Log. (Na/Cl)
5
4
Na/Cl 3
2
1
0 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.14: Na/Cl vs. Cl plot in Diablo Basin
Diablo HCO3/Cl vs Cl y = -2.757ln(x) + 18.08 R² = 0.4713 20 Log. (HCO3/Cl) 18
16
14
12
10
HCO3/Cl 8
6
4
2
0 0.2 500.2 1000.2 1500.2 2000.2 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.15 HCO3/Cl vs. Cl plot in Diablo Basin
68 Diablo Mg/Cl vs Cl y = -0.294ln(x) + 2.1007 R² = 0.2555 4 Log. (Mg/Cl) 3.5
3
2.5
2 Na/Cl 1.5
1
0.5
0 0.5 500.5 1000.5 1500.5 2000.5 2500.5 3000.5 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.16: Mg/Cl vs. Cl plot in Diablo Basin
69
Figure 4.17: Diablo Basin Piper diagram plot
4.2.3 Tularosa Basin Groundwater Chemistry Well Data
The descriptive statistics of the Tularosa Basin ground water chemical analysis indicated a well- rounded data, the deviations and quadratiles in the data are minimal (Table 4.50). Z scores values obtained for the raw Cl data at z = 3.0 was 640mg/l, values above this were outliers. ANOVA analysis of the chemical parameters of Tularosa Basin indicate that there were significant differences between the Cl, Ca, Mg, SO4, Na, HCO3and K (p<0.05). A plot of Cl against the elevation of the Basin elevation indicates a gradual reduction in Cl concentration as elevation 70 increases (Figure 4.18), these can be observed more at higher elevations above 1500 (Figure
4.19).
Plots of ions/Cl against Cl concentration are indicated in Figure 4.18 – 4.25 below, positive correlations exist between the ions (Mg, and HCO3), these ions increases as the Cl concentration increase. The less soluble ions tend to drop off the chart as the Cl concentration increases as indicated in Figures 4.20, and 4.24.The SO2 (Figure 4.22) display a different characteristic by reducing at first and then remain relatively constant in the groundwater as the Cl concentration increases, the TDS indicate this as well (Figure 4.25). The Piper diagram indicates that the water
+ 2+ 2+ - samples has a high level of Ca + Mg , and SO4 + Cl combinations. High levels of HCO3 and
Ca2+ are observed also, these high ions can be attributed to basin geology.
71 Table 4.5: Tularosa Basin groundwater chemical data parameters descriptive statistics
Variable Total
(mg/l) Count Mean SE Mean StDev Min Q1 Median Q3 Max
CA 178 187.400 16.700 222.600 6.100 46.000 98.000 212.500 212.500 1300.000
MG 178 112.100 34.700 462.500 0.900 10.000 38.000 60.500 60.500 5000.000
K 178 4.960 2.630 35.120 0.000 0.000 0.000 2.200 2.200 460.000
NA 178 155.600 74.400 992.000 0.000 0.000 22.000 85.000 85.000 13000.000
CL_GW 178 543.000 219.000 2920.000 2.000 25.000 55.000 146.000 146.000 29000.000
HCO3 178 191.220 6.320 84.330 0.000 140.000 190.000 231.000 231.000 780.000
SO4 178 852.000 195.000 2597.000 34.000 90.000 260.000 620.000 620.000 30000.000
TDS 178 2237.000 604.000 8053.000 176.000 386.000 651.000 1340.000 1340.000 90500.000
Elev_m 178 1358.700 13.500 180.200 1198.000 1247.800 1280.500 1376.500 1376.500 2006.000
CL_GW = Chloride of groundwater, Cl_WAP = Atmospheric chloride concentration (wet and
dry deposition), Elev_m= Elevation (m).
72 Linear (Elvation) y = -0.1679x + 400.24 Cl/Elvation in Tularosa Basin Log. (Elvation) R² = 0.0063 2000 1800 1600 1400
1200 1000
Cl (mg/L) Cl 800 600 400 200 0 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000 2200 2400 2600 Elevation (m)
Figure 4.18: Cl/Elevation in Tularosa above 1200m
Tularosa Cl/Elvation y = -0.0405x + 175.25 600 R² = 0.0078
500
400
300
Cl Con Cl (mg/l) 200
100
0 1450 1650 1850 2050 2250 2450 2650
Elevation (m)
Figure 4.19: Cl/Elevation in Tularosa above 1500m 73 y = -2.457ln(x) + 13.953 Tularosa Ca/Cl vs Cl Plot R² = 0.4746
14 Log. (Ca/Cl)
12
10
8 Ca/Cl 6
4
2
0 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.20: Tularosa Basin Ca/Cl vs. Cl plot
y = 0.1296ln(x) + 5.8729 Tularosa HCO3/Cl vs Cl Plot R² = 0.0001 80 Log. (HCO3/Cl) 70
60
50 l
40
HCO3/C 30
20
10
0 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.21: HCO3/Cl plot in Tularosa Basin
74 y = -1.36ln(x) + 13.972 Tularosa S04/Cl vs Cl Plot R² = 0.0324 60 Log. (S04/Cl) 50
40
30 SO4/Cl
20
10
0 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.22: Tularosa Basin SO4/Cl vs. Cl plot
y = 0.6835ln(x) - 0.0519 Tularosa Mg/Cl vs Cl Plot R² = 0.0137 30 Log. (Mg/Cl) 25
20
15 Mg/Cl
10
5
0 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.23: Tularosa Basin Mg/Cl vs. Cl plot
75 Tularosa SiO2/Cl vs Cl Plot y = -0.544ln(x) + 2.83 R² = 0.6977 2 1.8 Log. (SiO2/Cl) 1.6 1.4
1.2 1
SiO2/Cl 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.24: Tularosa Basin SiO2/Cl vs. Cl plot
y = -12.46ln(x) + 72.8 Tularosa TDS/Cl vs Cl Plot R² = 0.574 100 90 Log. (TDS/Cl) 80 70
60 50
TDS/Cl 40 30 20 10 0 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 Cl (mg/l)
Figure 4.25: Tularosa Basin TDS/Cl vs. Cl plot
76 Figure
4.26: Tularosa Piper diagram
4.3 Spatial and CMB Analysis of the Basins
Chloride mass balance (CMB) approach was used to estimate the recharge using Equ 3.1, imputing the parameters represented the chart above. Microsoft Excel was used to calculate the
CMB recharge before being input into ArcMap using the “Display XY data” function. The worksheet containing the data that was created in Microsoft Excel was plotted into different layers of the chloride concentration, elevation; recharge estimated using the CMB, and well contour lines. The outputs of the spatial analysis indicating the layers of the chloride
77 concentration, elevation, recharge estimated using the CMB, and well contour lines are indicated
Figures 4.23-4.38 below.
A test for the second hypothesis was conducted by selection of the chloride concentration at different elevations (in blues) to determine a relationship between the elevation and chloride concentration in the basins. Also, regions of high chloride concentration in the basin would be compared to the CMB recharge, and finally determine the applicability of the CMB in the basins.
4.3.1 Mimbres Basin Spatial and CMB Analysis
Figures 4.27-4.31 below indicate the spatial output of the CMB results for Mimbres Basin. The analyses of the of chloride concentration occurrence at different elevations are indicated in
Figure 4.27 for the 1100m, Figure 4.28 for the 1400m and Figure 4.29 for the 1500m elevation.
The plot of 1550m elevation and chloride concentration in Mimbres Basin are indicated in Figure
4.30, Cl concentrations are distributed uniformly in the northern portion of the Basin. Figure 4.31 indicates the recharge, elevation and the well water level contour lines in Mimbres Basin, well water level decrease southward in the Basin. Recharge is scattered in the north western part of the basin and in the mountain range as indicated in Figure 4.31.
78 Data From: NMWRRI
Figure 4.27: Mimbres Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1100m selected (in blue)
79 Data From: NMWRRI
Figure 4.28: Mimbres Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1400m selected (in blue)
80 Data From: NMWRRI
Figure 4.29: Mimbres Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1500m selected (in blue)
81 Data From: NMWRRI
Figure 4.30: Mimbres Basin elevation, and groundwater Cl concentration
82 Data From: NMWRRI & USGS
Figure 4.31: Mimbres Basin recharge, and well water level contour lines 83 4.3.2 Tularosa Basin Spatial and CMB Analysis
Characterization of the spatial output of the CMB results for Tularosa Basin are indicated in
Figure 4.32-4.373 below using steps indicated in section 4.3.1 above. The plots of the sample locations with different elevations are indicated in Figure 4.32- 4.35. Figure 4.32 indicate the plot for 1300m elevation, Figure 4.33 for the 1400m elevation, Figure 4.34 for the 1450m elevation, and Figure 4.35 for the 1500m elevation. Chloride concentration at 1500m elevation of the Tularosa Basin is indicated in Figure 4.36, with most Cl concentration occurring in the mountain base. Figure 4.37 indicates the recharge, elevation and the contour lines of the water level in Tularosa Basin wells from the surface in feet in the basin, with recharge occurring in the peripheral areas of the mountains ranges.
84 Data From: NMWRRI
Figure 4.32: Tularosa Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1300m selected (in blue)
85 Data From: NMWRRI
Figure 4.33: Tularosa Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1400m selected (in blue)
86 Data From: NMWRRI
Figure 4.34: Tularosa Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1450m selected (in blue)
87 Data From: NMWRRI
Figure 4.35: Tularosa Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1500m selected (in blue)
88 Data From: NMWRRI
Figure 4.36: Tularosa Basin chloride concentration, and elevation
89 Data From: NMWRRI
Figure 4.37: Tularosa Basin recharge, and well water level contour lines
90 4.3.3 Diablo Basin Spatial and CMB Analysis
The spatial output of the CMB techniques application for the Diablo Basin was created by inserting a layer of the chloride concentration, the elevation layer and other layers as indicated in
Figures 4.38- 4.42 below. The chloride concentration and the different elevation interpolation is indicated in Figure 4.38 for the 1100m elevation, Figure 4.39 for the 1200m elevation and Figure
4.40 for the 1300m elevation. Chloride concentrations occurrences at 1200m elevation in the
Basin are indicated in Figure 4.41, most occurrences are in the center of the Basin. Combining all parameters (recharge, elevation and the well water level contour lines of the basin) a pattern of recharge is detected at different elevation, Figure 4.42 visualize these recharge parameters and well water level decreasing as one goes westward in the basin.
91 Data Source: TWDB
Figure 4.38: Diablo Basin sampling locations and elevation above 1100m selected (in blue)
92 Data Source: TWDB
Figure 4.39: Diablo Basin sampling locations, and elevation above 1200m
93 Data Source: TWDB
Figure 4.40: Diablo Basin sampling locations and elevation above 1300m selected (in blue)
.
94 Data From: TWDB
Figure 4.41: Diablo chloride concentration and elevation
95 Data From: TWDB & USGS
Figure 4.42: Diablo Basin recharge and well water level contour lines
96 Chapter 5
5.1 Discussion
In semi-arid and arid regions found in the research sites, groundwater is the primary source of water, without groundwater some cities would not exist in this region; groundwater determines the availability of life in the research region. This research was able to suggest regions of active recharge in the Mimbres, Tularosa and Diablo Basin as well as the role elevation plays in the recharge of these basins based on the vertical flow consideration. Most regions in the basins researched are devoid of population except in some parts of the Mimbres Basin that are sparsely populated. Dell City in Diablo Basin with a population of about 413 inhabitants exists primarily because of the shallow nature of basin, supporting irrigation for farming and ranching. Many smaller cities like Dell City and ghost towns are common in Diablo Basin region and the other basins considered in this research.
Water in the Diablo Basin have high salinity, because the ions in the groundwater tend toward
2+ 2+ 2+ + the Ca + Mg and Co + HCO3 combinations as seen in the Piper diagram, also the high
- 2+ 2- + - - correlations between the Cl and Ca , SO4 , K, Na , NO3 , and HCO3 confirm this. The significant amounts of Na+ and high TDS confirms that high salinity exist in the Basin. This is collaborated by the basin geology, with the presence of limestone, dolomite and other calcareous subsurface strata of the basin materials. These materials are soluble in water to at least some degree increasing the water’s alkalinity as it travels through them, breaking down calcium bicarbonate into calcium chloride therefore increasing the basin water’s salinity.
The Mimbres water indicates a hard water trend, that can be attributed to the high TDS; this can be attributed to the subsurface geology mentioned above (as related to the Diablo Basin), and
2- 2+ because of a strong positive correlation between the SO4 , Mg (these two are found in 97 association with nitrates not measured in the data of this research) that are found in agricultural fertilizers indicating these waters are from agricultural infiltration. The Tularosa Basin water is
2+ 2+ 2+ - fresh in nature. This conclusion is attributed to the high level of Ca + Mg , and SO4 + Cl combinations as indicated in its Piper diagram, as well as by the high correlations between the
2+ - Ca and Cl ions.
Elevation plays a very important role in recharge of the basins under consideration; it was determined that most recharge takes place at higher elevation in the basins. CMB can’t be applicable at lower elevations in semi-arid regions due to horizontal flow, runoff into playas, and subsequent evaporation leaving salt patches and accumulation of chloride in the shallow sediment (Al-Qudah, 2011). All of these invalidate the conditions for applicability of CMB at lower elevations (Bazuhair and Wood, 1996). Spatial interlaying of the elevation and sample locations in ArcMap was used to determine safe regions for applicability of CMB as shown in the ArcMap generated charts for the layers of different elevations and sample locations. The safe elevation for CMB applicability was determined to be 1,500m for Mimbres Basin, 1,500m for
Tularosa Basin, and 1,200m for Diablo Basin based on the procedures used. Similar conclusions were reached by Al-Qudah, (2011) that the applicability of CMB breaks down in lower elevations (less than 1,000m) in the Armargosa desert region of Nevada with similar semi-arid conditions as the present research sites.
The chosen elevations were validated from the plot of the chloride/elevation, the spatial layer representation of the Cl concentration, and elevation in in ArcMap; indicating a smooth and gradual transition in Cl concentrations from higher elevation to the lowest elevation in the regions considered. At low elevation the chloride concentration was not correlated to the regions of greater recharge in the basins as observed in the Cl concentration layer plot, and the recharge
98 layer plot; but a correlation exists at higher elevations. This is also indicative that active recharge occurs in higher elevation in the basins.
Regions of active recharge are located along the Mimbres Basin mostly in the middle reach of the Mimbres River, at an elevation of 1,500m. This is confirmed by Finch et al (2008), where it was reported that recharge occurs at 1,524m in the highland of Mimbres Basin. It was also discovered that recharge occurs mostly in the North West portion of the basin around Silver City and San Lorenzo. The well water level decreases as one goes southward into the Chihuahuan desert in the basin, which corresponds to decreasing recharge and elevation in the basin.
Average CMB recharge estimated for Mimbres Basin was 0.2153mm/yr (0.00848in/yr).
1,500m was chosen for base elevation in applying the CMB in the Tularosa Basin following the procedure outlined above. Chloride concentrations in the basin are located predominantly around the north eastern part of the basin, around Oscura and Carrizozo. There were some spikes in Cl concentration scattered all around the basin. Surprisingly despite the Cl concentration spikes being distributed almost uniformly around the basin; they do not correlate to regions of active recharge (indicated in the recharge layer plot). Despite prominent occurrence of Cl concentration around Carrizozo and Oscura, only a low to moderate recharge takes places in between these regions.
No area can be a designated zone of active recharge in the Tularosa Basin, because of the even distribution of active recharge zones in the mountainous base around the basin as indicated in the
Tularosa Basin CMB recharge plot. This was also concluded by Huff (2005); Burns and Hart
(1988); and Morrison (1989). The even recharge distribution around the basin can be attributed to the geology of the basin with the top layers being filled with coarse sediment of alluvial fans,
99 this was collaborated by Burns and Hart (1988); Risser (1988); and Morrison (1989). Estimated recharge by CMB of Tularosa Basin yields 0.04037mm/yr (0.0016in/yr).
Another observation in the recharge and well water level contour plot in Tularosa Basin was the distinct, isolated, and independent formation of contour isolines in each region of the basin.
Each of these independent and isolated contour isolines is formed around cities in the basin corresponding to the water withdrawal in the basin. These independent isolines tend to correspond and form in each Tularosa subbasin structure outlined by Waltermeyer (2001).
A level of 1,200m was used for the base elevation for applicability of the CMB in the Diablo
Basin. The Cl concentration is evenly distributed across the basin with two outstanding high concentrations. As was observed in other basins the Cl concentration distribution pattern did not follow the recharge pattern in the basin, instead they are distinctly different. CMB average recharge estimated for the basin was 0.047mm/yr (0.0016 in/yr).
Active recharge occurs mostly in the southern part, but it also occurs sporadically in central parts of the basin extending northward collaborating the conclusion by Kreitler and others, (1990) that recharge occurs in all parts of the basin and travels from the south central to the south eastern part of the basin. This deviates from the observation in other basins considered in this research where recharge occurs mostly in the northern part of the basins. CMB recharge estimated for the basin was 1.47mm/yr (0.05787 in/yr), in line with 0.008 to 0.276 in/yr values obtained by Mayer
(1995). The water level in the basin drops rapidly as it goes west-ward; the water level was 230 feet in Dell City and 320 feet as it approaches Fabens; however, this does not have any effect on the recharge in the basin.
100 5.2 Conclusion and Further work
Environmental isotope tracer and GIS techniques utilized to estimate basin recharge are used in determining the recharge in Mimbres, Tularosa and Diablo Basins using chloride mass balance techniques. This research demonstrates that elevation plays a very important role in the basins considered. In addition, it identifies regions of active recharge in the Mimbres and Diablo Basin but these regions cannot be identified in Tularosa Basin.
Finally, further work can be done by using the basin faults to characterize the recharge The
Tularosa Basin does not have as much prior research conducted in comparison to the other basins. Chloride mass balance point estimate was used to compute recharge in this research, an approach involving the integration of the recharge over the flow path of the basins would be more accurate, and this can be further approach on this research. More research is required to be conducted to understand the basin dynamics particularly in regions of higher elevation where active recharge occurs. This is essential to better understand the hydrologic processes controlling groundwater recharge, thus the sustainable use of groundwater as a valuable resource in this semi-arid region.
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114 Appendix Appendix1 Basin chemical data plots and GIS layer of chloride concentration in basin.
Box & Whisker Plot 1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
-200
-400
-600
-800
-1000 Mean WELL_NUMBE MG K HCO3 Mean±SD Mean±1.96*SD CA NA CO3 CL
Figure 12: A box plot of Ca, Mg, Na, CO3, HCO3, and Cl of Wells in Mimbres Basin.
115 Appendix2
Diablo Basin groundwater chemical data parameters descriptive statistics N Minimum Maximum Mean Std. Deviation Variance Skewness
Statistic Statistic Statistic Statistic Statistic Statistic Statistic Std. Error Ca 107 5.0000 605.0000 109.997196 98.5292452 9708.012 3.000 .234 Mg 107 .0000 193.0000 40.768411 37.4111553 1399.595 1.858 .234 Na 107 16 2645 323.52 361.889 130963.365 3.966 .234 K 107 1.0000 40.5000 6.938486 5.9525393 35.433 2.915 .234
CO3 107 .0 8.4 .079 .8121 .659 10.344 .234
HCO3 107 62.2400 928.0000 322.952991 149.3064601 22292.419 1.217 .234 Cl_GW 107 4.7 4050.0 257.707 492.5700 242625.205 5.825 .234
SO4 107 20 2210 489.84 397.453 157968.927 1.696 .234 TDS 107 304 8079 1416.28 1069.908 1144702.789 3.075 .234 Valid N 107
(listwise)
116 Appendix 3
117 Appendix 4
Mimbres Basin elevation and CMB appication
118 Appendix 5
Mimbres Basin elevation and Cl concentration
119
Appendix 6 Chloride and other chemical parameters concentration in wells of Mimbres Basin from NMWRRI.
WELL_ Rec FID LONG_DD LAT_DD CA MG K NA CL CO3 HCO3 SO4 TDS NUMBE
1 0 1 -108.12 32.56 28 14 0 31 11 0 140 47 240
2 1 2 -107.88 32.62 0 0 0 0 13 19 110 42 0
3 2 3 -108.34 32.71 62 7.8 1.6 0 22 0 190 20 258
4 3 4 -108.1 32.78 86 19 0 53 11 0 240 190 495
5 4 5 -108.17 32.78 63 25 0 15 6 0 230 93 338
6 5 6 -108.1 32.8 280 34 0 94 34 0 230 780 1360
7 6 7 -108.03 32.81 120 0 0 0 8 0 400 0 0
8 7 8 -108.3 32.81 0 0 0 0 14 0 320 0 0
9 8 9 -108.01 32.93 26 10 0 5 2.5 0 120 7.7 168
10 9 10 -108.39 32.54 0 0 0 0 8 0 210 0 0
11 10 11 -108.06 32.81 37 30 0 16 29 0 160 72 281
12 11 12 -108 32.86 0 0 0 0 5 0 210 0 0
13 12 13 -107.94 32.82 46 10 0 9 3.5 0 190 8.6 220
14 13 14 -107.93 32.82 0 0 0 0 8 0 230 0 0
15 14 15 -108.12 32.84 0 0 0 0 16 0 400 0 0
16 15 16 -108.1 32.82 0 20 0 6 6.5 0 320 46 340
17 16 17 -108.08 32.8 0 0 0 23 120 0 330 77 0
18 17 18 -108.23 32.85 0 0 0 0 0 0 240 0 0
19 18 19 -108.27 32.84 210 56 0 40 12 0 230 620 1070
120 20 19 20 -108.28 32.82 170 31 0 42 24 0 290 350 775
21 20 21 -108.25 32.8 0 0 0 0 13 0 370 0 0
22 21 22 -107.8 32.74 0 0 0 15 8 0 210 21 0
23 22 23 -107.78 32.72 53 4.8 0 11 12 6 150 23 239
24 23 24 -107.81 32.71 45 4.4 0 36 13 17 150 26 284
25 24 25 -107.9 32.75 56 10 0 20 6 0 250 9.5 263
26 25 26 -107.87 32.75 39 3.5 0 17 3 7 160 9.1 187
27 26 27 -107.89 32.75 160 44 0 26 70 30 270 91 821
28 27 28 -107.89 32.75 55 13 0 0 9 10 180 15 0
29 28 29 -107.89 32.75 40 10 0 32 15 11 150 29 297
30 29 30 -107.9 32.72 0 0 0 37 24 0 230 41 0
31 30 31 -107.85 32.73 0 0 0 80 18 0 240 59 0
32 31 32 -107.89 32.72 0 0 0 38 7 0 380 12 0
33 32 33 -107.87 32.7 0 0 0 38 7 0 210 37 0
34 33 34 -108.16 32.77 0 0 0 0 0 0 260 0 0
35 34 35 -108.22 32.76 21 5.8 0 72 38 0 190 19 271
36 35 36 -108.22 32.76 0 0 0 0 26 0 170 0 0
37 36 37 -108.15 32.75 73 28 0 23 31 0 270 68 398
38 37 38 -108.17 32.74 44 0 0 0 12 0 200 17 0
39 38 39 -108.17 32.74 51 0 0 0 7 0 250 0 0
40 39 40 -108.26 32.76 58 16 0 26 29 0 210 38 321
41 40 41 -108.28 32.71 66 27 0 6 21 0 180 28 369
42 41 42 -108.3 32.72 48 9.7 0 28 14 0 220 15 241
43 42 43 -108.34 32.71 58 10 0 21 19 0 230 14 266
44 43 44 -108.33 32.71 57 11 0 18 13 0 240 7.8 260
121 45 44 45 -108.33 32.71 46 7.6 3 0 14 0 210 7.5 236
46 45 46 -107.75 32.62 0 0 0 25 8 0 270 18 0
47 46 47 -107.89 32.68 0 0 0 50 8 0 330 22 0
48 47 48 -107.89 32.66 0 0 0 53 16 0 280 51 0
49 48 49 -107.87 32.64 0 0 0 50 9 0 280 25 0
50 49 50 -107.86 32.63 0 0 0 46 39 0 290 67 0
51 50 51 -108.13 32.65 54 17 0 78 23 0 330 70 400
52 51 52 -108.13 32.64 38 12 0 34 11 0 200 31 265
53 52 53 -108.09 32.61 0 0 0 0 9 0 150 56 0
54 53 54 -108.23 32.66 0 0 0 0 18 0 190 0 0
55 54 55 -108.14 32.65 0 0 0 0 21 0 150 0 0
56 55 56 -108.2 32.63 57 15 0 26 16 0 200 55 322
57 56 57 -108.25 32.69 38 22 0 12 16 0 190 17 280
58 57 58 -108.02 32.57 31 14 0 27 7 0 210 8.4 242
59 58 59 -108.03 32.54 38 9.9 0 0 13 0 180 19 301
60 59 60 -108.1 32.58 0 0 0 0 6 0 0 0 0
61 60 61 -108.03 32.59 0 0 0 0 16 0 0 0 0
62 61 62 -108.08 32.54 0 0 0 0 10 0 0 0 0
63 62 63 -108.07 32.52 0 0 0 0 10 0 0 0 0
64 63 64 -108.04 32.53 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
65 64 65 -108.14 32.58 24 0 0 0 10 0 160 0 0
66 65 66 -108.22 32.53 0 0 0 0 18 0 160 0 0
67 66 67 -108.24 32.59 0 0 0 0 11 0 170 0 0
68 67 68 -108.33 32.59 0 0 0 0 11 0 120 19 0
69 68 69 -108.3 32.52 52 12 0 23 16 0 190 35 280
122 70 69 70 -108.42 32.55 89 16 0 34 24 0 310 56 417
71 70 71 -108.37 32.56 110 25 1.5 0 52 0 230 200 578
72 71 72 -108.02 32.57 38 11 0 30 8.8 0 210 15 257
73 72 73 -108.14 32.57 26 9.2 0 32 9.6 0 150 23 0
74 73 74 -108.1 32.67 0 0 0 0 58 0 200 0 0
75 74 75 -108.33 32.68 37 5.5 2.2 0 5.5 0 160 7.5 200
76 75 76 -108.33 32.7 38 6.1 0 25 14 0 180 11 219
77 76 77 -108.33 32.7 38 6.1 0 25 14 0 180 11 219
78 77 78 -108.33 32.71 54 14 0 14 9.5 0 250 5.7 251
79 78 79 -107.78 32.72 53 4.8 0 11 12 6 150 23 239
80 79 80 -107.89 32.75 74 12 0 16 9 10 240 33 323
81 80 81 -108.08 32.82 330 110 0 45 31 0 190 1100 1780
82 81 82 -108.07 32.85 140 45 0 32 13 0 230 370 747
83 82 83 -107.91 32.61 0 0 0 65 3 0 230 33 0
84 83 84 -107.94 32.82 0 0 0 0 7 0 220 0 0
85 84 85 -108.17 32.74 42 13 0 18 10 0 200 13 238
86 85 86 -108.01 32.93 0 0 0 0 3 0 100 0 0
87 86 87 -107.92 32.81 58 14 0 10 7.2 0 230 12 278
88 87 88 -107.47 32.6 14 3.9 3.8 0 11 0 190 27 284
89 88 89 -107.7 32.6 41 17 0.6 0 14 0 250 33 304
90 89 90 -107.69 32.54 110 22 0 21 9.4 0 300 170 0
91 90 91 -107.8 32.59 0 0 0 40 27 0 150 46 0
92 91 92 -107.76 32.59 0 0 0 34 13 0 220 26 0
93 92 93 -107.72 32.55 92 25 0 14 9.6 0 290 110 0
94 93 94 -107.87 32.59 0 0 0 36 10 0 260 19 0
123 95 94 95 -107.83 32.54 0 0 0 43 16 0 180 37 0
96 95 96 -107.84 32.54 0 0 0 42 18 0 200 43 0
97 96 97 -107.87 32.54 0 0 0 110 21 0 260 23 0
98 97 98 -107.56 32.5 37 7.1 3.6 0 12 0 0 73 301
99 98 99 -107.44 32.45 32 11 6.4 0 18 0 200 27 330
100 99 100 -107.65 32.48 64 17 3.7 0 26 0 250 37 398
101 100 101 -107.65 32.46 59 17 2.1 0 13 0 0 17 340
102 101 102 -107.73 32.47 55 20 0.4 0 14 0 310 100 476
103 102 103 -107.96 32.44 45 12 2 0 7.8 0 200 19 249
104 103 104 -108.07 32.5 0 0 0 0 15 0 200 59 0
105 104 105 -108.03 32.45 53 19 4.5 0 17 0 260 46 349
106 105 106 -107.47 32.4 42 14 4.3 0 28 0 200 41 353
107 106 107 -107.48 32.35 31 5.4 2.4 0 13 0 170 28 261
108 107 108 -107.93 32.38 27 8.7 1.8 0 7.7 0 150 14 190
109 108 109 -107.35 32.34 25 7.3 8.3 0 24 0 0 35 365
110 109 110 -107.35 32.34 23 7 9.7 0 24 0 180 37 360
111 110 111 -107.45 32.28 23 6.3 2.3 0 14 0 170 38 273
112 111 112 -107.56 32.27 15 7.4 1.2 0 11 0 340 45 433
113 112 113 -107.67 32.3 11 5.5 1.2 0 9.2 0 210 22 256
114 113 114 -107.73 32.27 44 11 3 0 7.6 2 200 22 269
115 114 115 -107.77 32.27 30 5.8 3 0 9.5 0 180 17 229
116 115 116 -107.77 32.27 29 6.6 0 39 0 0 190 14 193
117 116 117 -107.75 32.26 30 3.9 0 45 15 0 180 17 0
118 117 118 -107.94 32.31 40 8.7 2.8 0 9.1 0 200 21 245
119 118 119 -108.11 32.32 35 5.6 3 0 10 0 240 19 290
124 120 119 120 -108.04 32.28 2.9 0.6 1 0 11 1 180 31 266
121 120 121 -107.38 32.25 21 13 0 92 30 0 240 48 399
122 121 122 -107.57 32.24 15 2.9 2 0 24 0 250 69 440
123 122 123 -107.55 32.25 18 7.8 0 150 21 0 350 57 436
124 123 124 -107.55 32.25 11 2 0 100 30 7 150 66 296
125 124 125 -107.55 32.25 18 7.8 0 150 21 0 350 57 436
126 125 126 -107.55 32.25 18 7.8 0 150 21 0 350 57 436
127 126 127 -107.59 32.25 4 0.6 0 100 9 46 120 34 332
128 127 128 -107.57 32.24 14 4.6 0 210 35 0 420 83 572
129 128 129 -107.57 32.24 14 3.4 0 73 10 0 160 40 231
130 129 130 -107.56 32.24 22 3 3 0 8.8 0 160 40 301
131 130 131 -107.56 32.24 22 3 3 0 8.8 0 160 40 301
132 131 132 -107.57 32.23 7 4 15 0 9.5 0 160 23 286
133 132 133 -107.55 32.25 20 7 0 170 28 5 350 74 502
134 133 134 -107.55 32.24 20 7 0 170 28 5 350 74 502
135 134 135 -107.56 32.22 20 0.5 2.1 0 15 0 120 55 239
136 135 136 -107.56 32.21 1200 140 26 0 2500 0 420 2000 7180
137 136 137 -107.55 32.21 1200 140 26 0 2500 0 420 2000 7180
138 137 138 -107.56 32.21 77 8 7 0 200 0 210 230 888
139 138 139 -107.71 32.25 0 0 0 0 10 0 200 0 0
140 139 140 -107.7 32.2 30 12 4 0 16 5 200 26 304
141 140 141 -107.69 32.2 9.2 1.4 3 0 8.2 3 160 22 269
142 141 142 -107.72 32.25 0 0 0 0 21 0 220 0 0
143 142 143 -107.72 32.25 0 0 0 0 11 0 210 0 0
144 143 144 -107.81 32.24 29 7 3 0 9.8 0 180 18 225
125 145 144 145 -107.73 32.24 57 13 4 0 49 4 200 49 369
146 145 146 -107.73 32.22 6.8 1.3 4 0 10 5 170 27 252
147 146 147 -107.76 32.21 30 5.9 4 0 7 4 180 18 227
148 147 148 -107.76 32.21 30 5.9 4 0 7 4 180 18 227
149 148 149 -107.84 32.24 42 8.2 0 21 6 0 190 15 224
150 149 150 -107.84 32.24 42 8.2 0 21 6 0 190 15 224
151 150 151 -107.82 32.23 0 0 0 0 8 0 190 0 0
152 151 152 -107.95 32.24 36 8.1 0 21 4 0 180 11 205
153 152 153 -107.93 32.24 150 11 0 660 30 0 78 1700 2590
154 153 154 -107.93 32.23 36 6.6 0 280 15 4 120 570 992
155 154 155 -107.93 32.22 37 9.3 0 31 7 0 190 20 236
156 155 156 -107.95 32.23 0 0 0 0 7.1 0 180 0 0
157 156 157 -107.96 32.22 20 4.5 2.8 0 7.1 0 200 33 277
158 157 158 -107.96 32.22 0 0 0 0 7.5 0 190 0 0
159 158 159 -107.95 32.22 0 0 0 0 7.1 0 180 0 0
160 159 160 -108.09 32.25 32 9.5 2 0 10 0 170 34 255
161 160 161 -108.09 32.23 34 5.5 3.4 0 15 0 160 25 231
162 161 162 -108.1 32.18 50 58 4.5 0 88 0 0 120 636
163 162 163 -108.07 32.17 84 43 0 0 20 0 0 50 394
164 163 164 -107.43 32.17 0 0 0 0 27 39 210 35 0
165 164 165 -107.43 32.17 2 12 0 150 50 21 270 58 508
166 165 166 -107.43 32.17 2 12 0 150 50 21 270 58 508
167 166 167 -107.45 32.17 4.6 0.4 0 170 52 45 200 50 514
168 167 168 -107.47 32.17 10 6.6 0 170 27 8 330 97 545
169 168 169 -107.47 32.17 10 6.6 0 170 27 8 330 97 545
126 170 169 170 -107.47 32.16 10 6.6 0 170 27 8 330 97 545
171 170 171 -107.49 32.17 24 10 0 180 32 0 360 130 657
172 171 172 -107.48 32.17 22 10 0 220 67 12 310 200 808
173 172 173 -107.48 32.17 22 10 0 220 67 12 310 200 808
174 173 174 -107.48 32.16 6.5 3.5 0 180 53 23 210 77 556
175 174 175 -107.48 32.14 2 0.9 0 240 36 43 360 67 640
176 175 176 -107.49 32.13 3.2 0.5 2.9 0 31 19 380 120 627
177 176 177 -107.52 32.15 54 17 0 280 230 0 270 240 1010
178 177 178 -107.51 32.16 54 17 0 280 230 0 270 240 1010
179 178 179 -107.6 32.1 75 13 0 14 6.7 0 270 39 0
180 179 180 -107.6 32.09 61 13 1.2 0 7 0 0 22 292
181 180 181 -107.63 32.14 94 19 0.9 0 13 0 0 97 401
182 181 182 -107.7 32.14 38 11 0 46 15 0 210 37 258
183 182 183 -107.72 32.14 38 11 0 46 15 0 210 37 258
184 183 184 -107.72 32.14 36 8.7 0 41 16 0 200 24 228
185 184 185 -107.75 32.15 0 0 0 0 8 0 180 14 0
186 185 186 -107.83 32.13 19 6.1 2.6 0 7.1 0 160 38 249
187 186 187 -107.95 32.15 35 4 0 33 9.6 0 180 15 262
188 187 188 -108.01 32.11 9.4 1.8 2.6 0 5.6 0 0 10 269
189 188 189 -108.04 32.08 40 15 3.3 0 49 0 0 46 409
190 189 190 -107.7 32.04 120 83 3.9 0 250 0 210 380 1100
191 190 191 -107.74 32.08 37 12 0 32 11 0 200 27 220
192 191 192 -107.86 32.04 23 16 1.5 0 9.2 0 0 39 341
193 192 193 -107.82 32.02 26 20 2.5 0 26 0 300 80 467
194 193 194 -107.92 32.05 57 44 0 560 71 0 370 1100 2030
127 195 194 195 -108.03 32.06 11 0.7 0 68 5 0 200 4.3 224
196 195 196 -108.11 32.05 20 2.8 4.2 0 16 0 0 32 327
197 196 197 -108.07 32.03 9.1 1.8 2.8 0 8.6 0 0 15 308
198 197 198 -108.15 32.06 21 5.4 7.4 0 13 0 0 65 435
199 198 199 -108.14 32.02 100 33 0 170 120 0 430 220 934
200 199 200 -107.4 31.97 31 17 0 250 290 0 240 83 829
201 200 201 -107.59 31.95 9.2 4.6 0 380 46 49 780 61 940
202 201 202 -107.69 31.97 12 5 0 120 27 5 200 90 423
203 202 203 -107.65 31.96 12 4.8 0 160 50 5 200 130 493
204 203 204 -107.63 31.95 16 9.5 0 170 27 14 390 64 568
205 204 205 -107.63 31.92 4 6 0 320 110 24 370 220 856
206 205 206 -107.63 31.92 4 6 0 320 110 24 370 220 856
207 206 207 -107.71 31.98 24 13 0 42 10 0 210 17 284
208 207 208 -107.86 31.99 45 7.5 16 0 47 0 0 300 972
209 208 209 -107.84 31.96 21 4 0 260 36 0 390 220 783
210 209 210 -107.85 31.95 16 3.6 15 0 40 0 0 220 834
211 210 211 -107.37 31.89 8.3 3.6 0 420 230 0 570 140 1130
212 211 212 -107.34 31.85 440 61 0 4800 6900 0 240 1900 14300
213 212 213 -107.45 31.89 11 2.4 0 710 570 0 460 360 1920
214 213 214 -107.56 31.89 4 2.3 0 420 200 37 390 240 1180
215 214 215 -107.59 31.86 0 0 0 0 220 18 450 0 0
216 215 216 -107.57 31.86 2 6 0 450 260 30 400 250 1160
217 216 217 -107.52 31.84 3.2 1.2 0 450 230 30 390 250 1210
218 217 218 -107.64 31.91 11 6 0 210 50 0 340 140 0
219 218 219 -107.61 31.85 5.2 3.6 0 370 130 28 420 230 1060
128 220 219 220 -107.62 31.85 5.2 2.1 0 290 55 13 400 190 803
221 220 221 -107.64 31.84 8 2.2 7.3 0 46 0 0 170 696
222 221 222 -107.63 31.84 4 7 0 290 71 9 5 170 796
223 222 223 -107.65 31.85 9 3 0 270 51 0 420 170 758
224 223 224 -107.62 31.83 5.8 4.3 0 280 64 6 410 180 0
225 224 225 -107.62 31.83 5.8 4.3 0 280 64 6 410 180 0
226 225 226 -107.71 31.87 79 26 5.2 0 22 0 0 54 537
227 226 227 -107.83 31.9 23 2.4 7.4 0 83 0 0 230 857
228 227 228 -107.89 31.88 13 2.8 0 320 94 6 250 370 994
229 228 229 -107.98 31.84 38 17 2.7 0 20 0 0 28 339
230 229 230 -107.98 31.84 140 57 0 120 170 0 360 220 1060
231 230 231 -108.02 31.85 50 18 2.3 0 18 0 0 24 343
232 231 232 -107.41 31.8 28 14 0 760 440 0 0 900 2560
233 232 233 -107.64 31.8 6.8 2.1 0 290 65 0 430 180 814
234 233 234 -107.64 31.8 6.8 2.1 0 290 65 0 430 180 814
235 234 235 -107.61 31.8 6.8 2.1 0 290 65 31 370 180 814
236 235 236 -107.61 31.8 6.8 2.1 0 290 65 31 370 180 814
237 236 237 -107.68 31.79 13 3.1 0 210 62 0 330 120 623
238 237 238 -107.68 31.79 13 3.1 0 210 62 0 330 120 623
239 238 239 -107.83 31.81 9.5 14 0 220 57 0 330 180 682
240 239 240 -107.83 31.81 9.5 14 0 220 57 0 330 180 682
129 Vita
Abdulganiu A.A. Odunmbaku was born in Lagos, Nigeria. He earned his Bachelor of
Engineering degree in Agricultural Engineering from Federal University of Technology Akure,
Ondo State, Nigeria in 2004. He proceeds to Scotland UK for his Masters of Science degree in
Aquatic Ecosystems Management at Edinburgh Napier University Scotland UK in 2007. He started is PhD at the University of Texas at El Paso in 2009.
Abdul work as a radioecologist at the International Atomic Energy Agency Vienna Austria before starting his MS degree. While pursuing his degree, he worked as a teach assistant for the department of Biological Science and research assistant for the Environmental Science and
Engineering Program.
Abdul’s list of publications and conference presentations are indicated below.
Publications
Peer-Reviewed Journal Papers
Odunmbaku, A.A.A, 2012. Assessment of Eutrophication and Environmental Impact in Lake
Chad. International Journal of the Constructed Environment. In press.
Adewuni B. A., Odunmbaku, A.A.A., and Bayode, 2006. Design and Construction of Solar
Incubator for Rural Farmers in Nigeria. J. of Rural Tech. Vol.3 No.1 Oct. 2006
130 Conference Abstract/Presentations
Odunmbaku A.A.A, Walton, J., and Benedict. B., 2012. Application of Multivariate Analysis and Chloride Mass Balance Approach in Estimating Recharge in South Western United State
Basin. 2012 Tularosa Basin Conference 11-12 May 2012. Tularosa Community Centre Tularosa
NM
Odunmbaku AbdulGaniu A.A, Adewumi B.A., Idris M., 2008. Overview of Mining and Milling
Tailing, and its Environmental Consequent in Nigeria. 30th Annual Canadian Nuclear Society
Conference and 33rd CNS/CNA Student Conference 2009 31 May - 3 June 2009, Calgary,
Alberta, Canada.
Thesis
Assessment of Eutrophication in Nigerian Aquatic Environment 2006. M.Sc. Thesis.
Design Construction and Testing of Solar Incubator 2004. B.Eng Thesis.
Permanent Address:
8435 Brompton Place Drive
Houston Texas 77083
USA.
This dissertation was typed by Abdulganiu A.A.A. Odunmbaku. November 21st, 2012.
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