Hydrogeology and Water Quality of Five Principal Aquifers in the
Lower Platte South Natural Resources District, Eastern Nebraska,
1994
By A.D. Druliner and J.P. Mason
Prepared in cooperation with the
LOWER PLATTE SOUTH NATURAL RESOURCES DISTRICT
This report is also available as a pdf.
July 2004
U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report
00–4155
Abstract
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Lower Platte
South Natural Resources District, conducted a hydrogeologic and water-quality
reconnaissance study of the five principal aquifers in deposits of Quaternary
age in the Natural Resources District. The purpose of the study was to delineate
the approximate extent of the aquifers, to estimate volumes of drainable water
in three aquifers, to provide information that could be useful in designing
future ground-water-quality monitoring, and to determine baseline
water-quality conditions in the aquifers, focusing on nitrate concentrations.
The approximate lateral boundaries of the Dwight-Valparaiso,
Crete-Princeton-Adams, and Waverly aquifers were defined as areas in which the
thickness of continuous sand and gravel deposits was less than 40 feet. The
three aquifers were determined to contain about 1,340,000; 1,540,000; and 172,000
acre-feet of drainable water, respectively, assuming a specific yield of 0.20.
During the summer of 1994, ground-water samples were collected
from 46 wells in the five aquifers and analyzed for nitrate and screened for
triazine herbicides. Additionally, water samples from 39 of these wells were
analyzed for major ions, iron, and manganese, and 35 were analyzed for radon.
Water-quality analyses revealed that the water in the five aquifers
had specific conductances that ranged from 399 to 2,040 micro-siemens per centimeter
and was a calcium-carbonate to calcium-magnesium-sodium carbonate type. The
most mineralized water samples were from the Crete-Princeton-Adams aquifer,
which contained a median concentration of dissolved solids of 520 milligrams
per liter. Concentrations of nitrate in water samples from the aquifers ranged
from less than 0.05 to 23 milligrams per liter as nitrogen, and only six water
samples exceeded the Maximum Contaminant Level established by the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency of 10 milligrams per liter. The median concentration of radon
for water samples from the five aquifers was 300 picocuries per liter, which
is the proposed Maximum Contaminant Level. Water samples from the Crete-Princeton-Adams
and Waverly aquifers had the largest concentrations of radon among the five
aquifers. The Crete-Princeton-Adams aquifer had a median concentration of 440
picocuries per liter, and the Waverly aquifer had a median concentration of
390 picocuries per liter. Herbicides were detected in water from only six wells,
which were in four of the five aquifers. Atrazine, metabolites of atrazine,
metolachlor, and metribuzin were detected in concentrations generally less than
1.00 microgram per liter.
Contents
Abstract
Introduction
Purpose and Scope
Description of the Study Area
Location and Surface Features
Hydrogeologic Setting
Soils
Climate
Land Use
Previous Investigations
Acknowledgments
Methods
Aquifer Delineation and Drainable-Volume Estimation
Ground-Water-Quality Sample Collection and Analysis
Well Selection
Site Identification
Water-Quality Sample Collection
Laboratory Analyses
Statistical Analyses
Quality Assurance and Quality Control
Hydrogeology
General Description of the Western Part of Lower Platte South
Natural Resources District
Water Table
Base of Aquifers
Total Saturated Thickness
Description of Principal Aquifers
Dwight-Valparaiso Aquifer
Crete-Princeton-Adams Aquifer
Waverly Aquifer
Platte River Aquifer
Missouri River Aquifer
Ground-Water Quality
Field Measurements
Major Ions and Dissolved Solids
Nitrate
Radon
Herbicides
Quality-Assurance Results
Considerations for Future Ground-Water-Quality Monitoring
Summary
References
Appendix
For additional information write to:
District Chief
U.S. Geological Survey
Federal Building, Room 406
100 Centennial Mall North
Lincoln, NE 68508
Copies of this report can be purchased from:
U.S. Geological Survey
Information Services
Box 25296
Federal Center
Denver, CO 80225
For more information about the USGS and its products:
Telephone: 1-888-ASK-USGS
World Wide Web: http://www.usgs.gov/
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