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Evaluation of U.S. Geological Survey Monitoring-Well Network and Potential Effects of Changes in Water Use, Newlands Project, Churchill County, Nevada

By Douglas K. Maurer, Ralph L. Seiler, and Sharon A. Watkins

Report availability: Portable Document Format (PDF).

CONTENTS

Abstract
Introduction
Purpose and Scope
Acknowledgments
Physical and Hydrologic Setting
Methods Used
Evaluation of USGS Monitoring-Well Network
Evaluation of the Effects of Changes in Water Use
Changes in Ground-Water Levels
Changes in Ground-Water Quality
Suggestions for Improvement of the USGS Monitoring-Well Network
Summary and Conclusions
References Cited

FIGURES

  1. Map showing location of Carson River basin, Carson Desert, Lahontan Valley, and nearby geographic features
  2. Map showing location of irrigated lands of the Carson Division of the Newlands Project, general direction of shallow ground-water flow, and geographic features of Lahontan Valley
  3. Map showing approximate location of irrigated land, land where water-rights have been purchased, location of monitoring wells, and wells where water-level declines from the early 1990's to 2003 are 1 foot or less and greater than 1 foot
  4. Graphs showing the distance of monitoring wells from active canals or ditches
  5. Graphs showing the distance of monitoring wells from irrigated land
  6. Graph showing annual volume of water released from Lahontan Reservoir, 1967-2003
  7. Graph showing relation between water-level change between 1992-95 and 2003 and distance from canals
  8. Graph showing changes in specific conductance at selected wells, 1988-2003
  9. Map showing location of monitoring wells where continued monitoring would be useful, and where monitoring could be discontinued

TABLES

  1. Distance and direction between monitoring wells and nearest canal, ditch, or reservoir and nearest irrigated field in 2003
  2. Summary of acreage removed from irrigation near 25 monitoring wells
  3. Changes in water levels at selected wells from the early 1990's and mid-1970's to 2003

APPENDIXES

  1. Monitoring well measurement frequency 1998-2003, site identifier, location, and well construction data
  2. Truckee-Carson Irrigation District serial numbers of parcels near monitoring wells and summary of parcel size, average distance of parcel from well, gradient direction, irrigation history for water years 1992 through 2003, and irrigation prior to 1992 for parcels not irrigated 1992-2003
  3. Water-level hydrographs for monitoring wells for period of record at each well
  4. Summary of water-quality analyses for samples taken from monitoring wells

Return to SIR 2004-5246 or the Abstract.

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