Water type and suitability of Oklahoma surface waters for public supply and irrigation Part 4: Red River mainstem and North Fork Red River basin through 1979

Water-quality data for the Red River mainstem and the North Fork Red River basin within Oklahoma, through 1979, were examined for water type and suitability for public water supply and irrigation use. Of 96 stations with available data, 53 stations or 55 percent were considered to have sufficient data for analysis. The classification of water type was based on the relation of the major ions: calcium, magnesium, sodium, carbonate, bicarbonate, sulfate, and chloride to each other within the range of measured specific conductance. The suitability of the water for use as a public supply was based on the concentration distribution of selected constituents. The constituents selected were those with maximum contaminant levels established by regulation, or constituents for which recommended maximum limits have been established and for which historic data are available. The irrigation-classification method of Wilcox was used to relate sodium, calcium, and magnesium concentrations and the salinity distribution to the use of the water for irrigation. If data are available, the chance of phytotoxic effects by boron is discussed.