Groundwater quality in the Antelope Valley, California
Fact Sheet
2012-3033
U.S. Geological Survey and the California State Water Resources Control Board. This report has related reports. Please see: SIR 2012-5040, FS 2012-3032, FS 2012-3034, FS 2012-3035, FS 2012-3036, FS 2012-3098.
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Abstract
Groundwater provides more than 40 percent of California’s drinking water. To protect this vital resource, the State of California created the Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program. The Priority Basin Project of the GAMA Program provides a comprehensive assessment of the State’s groundwater quality and increases public access to groundwater-quality information. Antelope Valley is one of the study areas being evaluated. The Antelope study area is approximately 1,600 square miles (4,144 square kilometers) and includes the Antelope Valley groundwater basin (California Department of Water Resources, 2003). Antelope Valley has an arid climate and is part of the Mojave Desert. Average annual rainfall is about 6 inches (15 centimeters). The study area has internal drainage, with runoff from the surrounding mountains draining towards dry lakebeds in the lower parts of the valley. Land use in the study area is approximately 68 percent (%) natural (mostly shrubland and grassland), 24% agricultural, and 8% urban. The primary crops are pasture and hay. The largest urban areas are the cities of Palmdale and Lancaster (2010 populations of 152,000 and 156,000, respectively). Groundwater in this basin is used for public and domestic water supply and for irrigation. The main water-bearing units are gravel, sand, silt, and clay derived from surrounding mountains. The primary aquifers in Antelope Valley are defined as those parts of the aquifers corresponding to the perforated intervals of wells listed in the California Department of Public Health database. Public-supply wells in Antelope Valley are completed to depths between 360 and 700 feet (110 to 213 meters), consist of solid casing from the land surface to a depth of 180 to 350 feet (55 to 107 meters), and are screened or perforated below the solid casing. Recharge to the groundwater system is primarily runoff from the surrounding mountains, and by direct infiltration of irrigation and sewer and septic systems. The primary sources of discharge are pumping wells and evapotranspiration near the dry lakebeds.
Suggested Citation
Dawson, B.J., Belitz, K., 2012, Groundwater quality in the Antelope Valley, California: U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 2012-3033, Report: 4 p.; Related Reports: SIR 2012-5040, FS 2012-3032, FS 2012-3034, FS 2012-3035, FS 2012-3036, FS 2012-3098, https://doi.org/10.3133/fs20123033.
ISSN: 2327-6932 (online)
Study Area
| Publication type | Report |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | USGS Numbered Series |
| Title | Groundwater quality in the Antelope Valley, California |
| Series title | Fact Sheet |
| Series number | 2012-3033 |
| DOI | 10.3133/fs20123033 |
| Year Published | 2012 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | U.S. Geological Survey |
| Publisher location | Reston, VA |
| Contributing office(s) | California Water Science Center |
| Description | Report: 4 p.; Related Reports: SIR 2012-5040, FS 2012-3032, FS 2012-3034, FS 2012-3035, FS 2012-3036, FS 2012-3098 |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| Other Geospatial | Antelope Valley |
| Additional Online Files (Y/N) | Y |