Publications

In 1991 , the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) began to implement a full -scale National Water-Quality Assessment (NA WQA) program. The long-term goal of the NA WQA program are to desc ribe the tatus and trends in the quality of a large, representative part of the Nation's urface- and ground-water resources and to provide a sound , scientific understanding of the primary natural and human...

The Prairie du Chien-Jordan aquifer, which consists of the dolomitic Prairie du Chien Group and the underlying Jordan Sandstone, extends over southeastern Minnesota (fig. 1). Water quality in the aquifer fluctuates areally and with depth throughout the aquifer. Differences in chemical constituent concentrations are a result of both natural hydrogeologic conditions and human activities.

Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, in southwestern Ohio, overlies a buried-valley aquifer. The U.S. Geological Survey installed 35 observation wells at 13 sites on the base from fall 1988 through spring 1990. Fourteen of the wells were completed in bedrock; the remaining wells were completed in unconsolidated sediments. Split-spoon and bedrock cores were collected from all of the bedrock...

Unconfined and the upper confined aquifers in glacial drift are the primary sources of water in a 1,600 square-mile area including parts of Beltrami, Cass, Clearwater, and Hubbard Counties, Minnesota. The unconfineddrift aquifer consists of coarse sand and gravel in the center of the study area. The total area underlain by the unconfined-drift aquifer is approximately 550 square miles...

A three-dimensional, ground-water-flow model was developed to gain an improved understanding of the ground-water-flow system and its response to withdrawals near the Minneapolis Water Works in Fridley, Minnesota. Eight hydrogeologic units are represented in the ground-water-flow model. Aquifers represented are the unconfined-drift, confined-drift, St. Peter, and Prairie du Chien-Jordan...

Water-quality and streamflow data were collected in the Coteau des Prairies region of southwestern Minnesota and eastern South Dakota to document the water-quality characteristics of streams and impoundments in the Coteau, and to predict the effect of proposed impoundments on the quality of water in Coteau streams. Reconnaissance data collection at 66 stream and 24 impoundment sites plus...

Monthly mean discharges for the period of record are given for the streamflow-gaging stations along the upper Mississippi River from its headwaters to Prescott, Wisconsin, as well as for the first upstream streamflow-gaging station on the major tributaries of the Mississippi River, the Minnesota and St. Croix Rivers. Differences in the monthly mean discharge between selected upstream and

Confined-drift aquifers in six aquifer zones identified in a 1,300-square-mile area of west-central Minnesota near Brooten and Belgrade range in thickness from 5 to 110 feet. Transmissivities generally range from 500 to 10,000 feet squared per day, and theoretical well yields generally range from 100 to 900 gallons per minute. Regional ground-water flow in the confined-drift aquifers is...

During 1984, above-normal ground-water levels flooded the fields and basements in the vicinity of the Crex Meadows Wildlife Area. In response to concerns of neighboring farmers and homeowners, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Geological Survey began a cooperative study to assess ground-water conditions in the area and to determine the causes of above-normal...

The 1988 drought was one of the most severe droughts since weather records have been kept in Wisconsin. This fact sheet describes the cause of the drought and its effects on the water resources, water use, and agriculture in the State.

Understanding the relation between the hydrologjc cycle and water use is important for effective water-resources management. The hydrologic cycle is the natural pathway of water from evaporation to precipitation to infiltration or runoff and to storage from which evaporation can again occur. The science of water use is the study of human influences on the hydrologic cycle. Human...

A survey of literature on well installation and water-quality sampling, particularly as they relate to investigations of ground-water contamination by organic compounds, has been conducted. Library card files and computerized data bases were searched to identify journal articles, conference proceedings, technical reports, books, and other publications. Pertinent information has been...