Hydrologic Assessment and Modeling
Hydrologic Assessment and Modeling
Scientists at the New Mexico Water Science Center collect weather, geologic and hydrologic data to assess the past and current state of New Mexico's water resources. These data are also used to develop and calibrate hydrologic models. These models can help water-resource managers understand trends in water availability and risks to the resources under different water-use and climate scenarios.
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Streamflow response to potential changes in climate in the Upper Rio Grande Basin
The Rio Grande is a vital water source for Colorado, New Mexico, Texas and northern Mexico. A model was developed to determine how Rio Grande streamflow could change in the future. Both streamflow timing and volume displayed substantial potential changes. However, streamflow timing was most affected, and runoff could arrive a month earlier than the historic average if temperatures continue to warm...
Investigations of Sources of Contaminants of Concern in the San Juan River
Metals attached to suspended sediments or dissolved in river water pose a potential health risk to communities that depend on that water for agricultural and domestic uses. Exceedances of Navajo Nation surface water quality standards for metals (especially lead and arsenic) indicate that communities on the Navajo Nation along the San Juan River are exposed to this potential risk. Sources for these...
Microbial Source Tracking and Escherichia coli Monitoring in the Rio Grande in the South Valley, Albuquerque, New Mexico
The Rio Grande, in southern Albuquerque, is an impaired reach for bacteria. Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria are elevated in this reach of the Rio Grande even without stormwater present, during what is referred to as “dry season”. Samples will be collected over a range of flows including during the dry season (November 1st-June30th). Water samples will be analyzed for E. coli and microbial...
Assessment of the Groundwater Resources of the Plains of San Agustin, New Mexico
The groundwater resources of the Plains of San Agustin basin are largely undeveloped, though recent interest in pumping and exporting some of these resources to the Albuquerque metropolitan area has caused uneasiness among some water-resources managers and the public. Protest and concern regarding this appropriation of water resources have been expressed by private, Federal, State, and Tribal...
Ecohydrologic and Water Quality Data Collection at Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge and the Albuquerque South Valley Community Commons
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) New Mexico Water Science Center (NM WSC), in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority (AMAFCA), and Bernalillo County (BERNCO), will measure and analyze...
New Mexico Water Science Center Sediment Field Program
Sediment is fragmental material transported by, suspended in, or deposited by water or air, or accumulated in beds by other natural agents. Sediment particles range in size from large boulders to colloidal-size fragments and vary in shape from rounded to angular. They also vary in mineral composition and specific gravity. Sediment is derived from a parent material subjected to erosional processes...
Geochemical Evidence of Groundwater Flow Paths and the Fate and Transport of Constituents of Concern in the Alluvial Aquifer at Fort Wingate Depot Activity, New Mexico
As part of an environmental investigation at Fort Wingate Depot Activity, New Mexico, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, interpreted aqueous geochemical concentrations to better understand the groundwater flow paths and the fate and transport of constituents of concern in the alluvial aquifer underlying the study area. The fine-grained nature of the...
Hydrogeologic and geochemical characterization and evaluation of two arroyos for managed aquifer recharge by surface infiltration in the Pojoaque River Basin
In order to provide long-term storage of diverted surface water from the Rio Grande as part of the Aamodt water rights settlement, managed aquifer recharge by surface infiltration in Pojoaque River Basin arroyos was proposed as an option. The initial hydrogeologic and geochemical characterization of two arroyos located within the Pojoaque River Basin was performed in 2014 and 2015 in cooperation...
The Source of Groundwater and Solutes to Many Devils Wash at a Former Uranium Mill Site in Shiprock, New Mexico
The Shiprock Disposal Site is the location of the former Navajo Mill, a uranium ore-processing facility, located on a terrace overlooking the San Juan River in the town of Shiprock, New Mexico.The milling operations, conducted at the site from 1954 to 1968, created radioactive tailings and constituents of concern that are now found in the groundwater beneath the Mill. Elevated concentrations of...
Simulation of Pre- and Post-Fire Streamflow in the Upper Rio Hondo Basin, NM
The 2012 Little Bear Fire burned 44,000 acres in the upper Rio Hondo Basin in south-central New Mexico. Landscape in the Basin ranges from mixed conifer forests at higher elevations (12,000 ft) to desert shrubland at lower (5,200 ft) elevations. Burned areas are at risk of substantial post-wildfire erosion and flash floods. USGS post-wildfire analysis estimated 70% of the burned area had a high...
USGS Data Collection: Real-Time Rain Gages for Post Conchas-Fire Flood-Early Warning System
The Las Conchas fire started on June 26, 2011, near the small community of Las Conchas in the Jemez Mountains of north-central New Mexico. When the fire was contained on August 3, 2011, it had burned 156,593 acres of mixed conifer, pinyon/juniper, and ponderosa forest. At the time, it was the largest wildfire in New Mexico history. Peak burn severity was extreme; over 60,000 acres of the total...
Rio Grande Transboundary Integrated Hydrologic Model: Modeling Conjunctive Use to Support Resource Management
The Palomas, Mesilla, and Conejos-Médanos Basins in New Mexico, Texas, and northern Mexico compose a geologically and hydrologically complex region. The conjunctive use of surface water and groundwater takes place under a myriad of legal and operational constraints, including the Rio Grande Compact, an international treaty, and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s Rio Grande Project. New demands are...