Real-time ground-water-level monitoring in New Jersey, 2002

This network was created to provide data to indicate water-level trends in shallow ground-water systems within the State of New Jersey and to make the data available in the shortest time possible. The wells in this network are located throughout New Jersey (fig. 1) and were chosen because they are completed in shallow aquifers (table 1). The monitoring of shallow aquifers is important because these aquifers are relied on for water supply and irrigation. Additionally, the natural discharge from shallow aquifers provides base flow to streams. Water levels in these aquifers respond relatively quickly to precipitation and dry periods, so the rapid reporting of water-level data is necessary to follow trends. This network, for example, provides data that allow observation of the onset of drought conditions in ground water. Also, the data from this network can be used to estimate the most recent water-level trend in surficial-aquifer wells not outfitted with satellite telemetry.