The ground-water resources of Dodge County were evaluated to aid planners in meeting the needs resulting from growth in population and industry. The sand-and-gravel, Silurian dolomite, Galena-Platteville, and sandstone aquifers are the principal sources of ground water. Probable well yields from the sand- and-gravel aquifer and the Galena-Platteville aquifer range from 100 to 500 gallons per minute. Probable well yields for the Silurian dolomite, which depend in part on the degree of fracturing, are about 100 gallons per minute. Probable well yields from the sandstone aquifer range from less than 100 to more than 1,000 gallons per minute.
Calcium and bicarbonate are the principal ions in ground water in Dodge County. The water is very hard, and the concentration of iron commonly exceeds the recommended limit for drinking water and the desirable concentration for water used for high-pressure boiler feed, some food processing, and leather finishing industries. The ground water generally is of suitable chemical quality for domestic, agricultural, and most industrial purposes.
In 1979, an average of about 13 million gallons of ground water was pumped daily for residential, industrial, commercial, irrigation, stock watering, and other purposes.
