Groundwater

Streams in the Loup River basin have a close hydrologic connection between groundwater and surface water. Groundwater springs are important hydrologic features that sustain the flow of the South Loup River. This study assesses the ability of these springs to maintain consistent flow of the South Loup River over periods of prolonged drought.

Nitrate, age tracer, and continuous groundwater-level data within the BGMA were interpreted in conjunction with AEM data as a case demonstration of the Nebraska Geocloud. The Nebraska Geocloud was initiated to protect taxpayer investments in AEM data collection and realize maximum benefit of these data by creating a publicly available, online digital database for long-term data storage. The Lower...

Water availability is a function of many factors, including the quantity and quality of water and the laws, regulations, economics, and environmental factors that control its use. The focus of the High Plains Groundwater Availability Study is on improving fundamental knowledge of the water balance of the basin, including the flows, storage, and water use by humans and the environment. An improved...

The High Plains aquifer underlies 111.8 million acres (about 175,000 square miles) in parts of eight States—Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming. In response to a directive from Congress, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with local, state, and federal entities, has collected water-level data from wells screened in the High Plains...

In the Elkhorn River and Loup River Basins, Natural Resources Districts (Upper Elkhorn, Lower Elkhorn, Upper Loup, Lower Loup, Middle Niobrara, Lower Niobrara, Lewis and Clark, and Lower Platte North) are collecting data and developing tools to assist with water resource planning. Critical planning issues in the Elkhorn River and Loup River basins are focused on the availability of the groundwater...

In eastern Nebraska, secondary aquifer systems are increasingly being considered to supplement growing municipal, domestic, and agricultural water demands. Within the Eastern Nebraska Water Resources Assessment (ENWRA) area, airborne geophysical surveys have mapped the thickness and extent of these aquifers over much of eastern Nebraska; however little is known about the age and quality of water...

Streams in the Loup River basin are sensitive to groundwater withdrawals because of the close hydrologic connection between groundwater and surface water. Pumping from aquifers that are hydrologically connected to surface-water bodies can have a significant effect on the streams by reducing the groundwater discharge to surface water. An evaluation of any groundwater management strategy needs to...

Eight unsaturated-zone research sites were installed in the Central Platte Natural Resources District as part of the High Plains Unsaturated-Zone Research Network. These 8 sites were installed to determine recharge and chemical transport rates in the unsaturated zone beneath important land-use settings and climate gradients across the Central Platte Natural Resources District.

Since 1991, the USGS Nebraska Water Science Center has collected water samples from six monitoring wells in the Platte River alluvial aquifer near Ashland. Analytes include major and trace metals, nutrients, dissolved organic carbon, pesticides and their degradates, and arsenic species. The samples are analyzed by the USGS National Water Quality Laboratory. The USGS also collects additional...