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Groundwater, Lakes, and Wetlands: How They …Groundwater, Lakes, and Wetlands: How They Interact...
Transcript of Groundwater, Lakes, and Wetlands: How They …Groundwater, Lakes, and Wetlands: How They Interact...
Groundwater, Lakes, and Wetlands: How They Interact
Perry Jones
U.S. Geological Survey
Presentation Outline
What is groundwater?
How does groundwater interact with lakes and wetlands?
How do you measure/assess groundwater/surface-
water interactions?
Groundwater
Groundwater - water below the land surface totally filling openings in underground
rocks and sediments
http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/1993/ofr93-643/
From U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 93-643
Recharge - water that seeps from the land surface down to the groundwater
Water table - top of groundwater
"Groundwater moves along flow paths of varying lengths in transmitting
water from areas of recharge to areas of discharge“ USGS Circular 1139
Groundwater/Surface-Water Interactions
Exchange of water and its components between aquifers and other
groundwater systems and surface-water bodies
Areal Photography, White Bear Lake
April 1, 2006
Aquifer - underground rocks and sediments containing groundwater for
water supplies
Mahtomedi Public Beach
Groundwater Discharge to Ditches
Groundwater/Lakes/Wetlands Interactions
Lakes and wetlands can
A) receive groundwater inflow
B) lose water to groundwater
C) both
http://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/circ1139/
From USGS Circular 1139
General Water Balance - Closed Basin Lake
Precipitation
Evaporation
Plant
Transpiration
Well
Factors controlling the amount and location of
groundwater interacts with lakes and wetlands
Physical and hydraulic characteristics of lake sediments
and aquifer material
Groundwater and surface-water levels
Characteristics of lakes and wetlands
Topographic settings – upland, hillslope, and lowland
Closed versus open basins
Characteristics of lakes and wetlands
Watershed area
Geologic settings – presence of bedrock valleys,
fractures
Regulated water levels/flows
What could cause changes groundwater
interacts with lakes and wetlands?
2) Water use
Changes in:
3) Water diversions
1) Climate
Factors To Consider In Tools/Techniques Selection
Study objective – location, flow direction, or flux
Scale of interest
Hydrologic/water-quality setting
Groundwater/Surface-Water Interactions
3000!
0.2
Editors:
Don Rosenberry
and Jim LaBaugh
http://pubs.usgs.gov/tm/04d02/
Examples of Tools/Techniques
Identifying locations of exchange/flow directions
Portable piezometers
(hydraulic potentiomanometers)
Thermal signatures
Major constituents
Stable isotopes
Seepage meters
Water-borne geophysical surveys
Measuring/Calculating Flux
Wells
Baseflow discharge measurements
Groundwater-flow modeling
Potentiometric Surface
for Quaternary (Glacial)
Water-table Aquifer
March 2011
12 wells and 66 lakes
Contribution Area to Lake – Glacial Aquifers
Well – water level measurement
Direction of Groundwater Inflow
Direction of Lake Water Outflow
Potentiometric Contour
Water-table aquifer
Buried aquifer
Groundwater Synoptic Water Levels
Mahtomedi Public Beach
Site 1
Well/Piezometers
- Well
- Shallow
Piezometer
- Deep
Piezometer
N
40
231
338
319
65
- Specific
Conductivity
(µS/cm2) in
Lake and Well
Waters - 6/ 1998
Wells Surveys - Water level differences and quality
Portable Piezometer Surveys - Water level differences and quality
Rosenberry and LaBaugh, 2008
July – September, 2011
Water Temperatures in Nearshore Lake Sediments
16 - 18 °
14 -16 °
12 -14 °
18 - 20 °
20 - 22 °
22 - 24 °
24 - 26 °
26 - 28 °
28 - 30 °
Cooler Temperatures –
Groundwater Inflow
(springs)
Collected Water Samples
USGS “Air USGS “Air
Force”Force”
Water-quality survey - Ecomapper
July 11-14, 2011 White Bear Lake
Nearshore Seepage Meter Surveys – August 2011
Average Flux (cm/day)
Outflow – less than 0.15
3.0
28
7.0
20
3.2
6.9
27
3.0
Small Inflow (0.02 – 1.1)
High Inflow (3.0 – 28)
Rosenberry and LaBaugh, 2008
Stable Isotopes – Lake Hydrology
Isotopes – “heavy” and “light” forms of the same chemical
element, i.e. hydrogen, oxygen
Hydrology
Use isotopic ratios to
identify sources and mixtures of waters
Compare
“Light/Heavy” Hydrogen ratio vs “Light/Heavy” Oxygen ratio
Snow, rain, lake water, and well water samples
What are stable isotopes?
Stable Isotopes – White Bear Lake
Snow, Rain, and Lake Water Lake Water
Wells Sampled for
Stable Isotope Analysis
2011 – 2012
Aquifers
- Glacial (GLA)
- St. Peter Sandstone (STP)
Prairie du Chien Group /
Jordan Sandstone (PDCJ)
N
- August – November 2011
- May 2012
- Both sampling periods
0
0
1 mile
1 kilometer
Groundwater sampled from wells and surface waters sampled from White Bear Lake
100% Groundwater
100%
Lake
water
Groundwater sampled from wells and surface waters sampled from White Bear Lake
100% Groundwater
100%
Lake
water
Prairie du Chien/Jordan Aquifer (May 2012)
Groundwater sampled from wells and surface waters sampled from White Bear Lake
100% Groundwater
100%
Lake
water
Prairie du Chien/Jordan Aquifer (May 2012)
Prairie du Chien/Jordan Aquifer (August 2012)
Stable Isotope Model
2011 - Wells
Percentage of Contribution
N
St. Peter Sandstone
Glacial
Groundwater Lake water
General Groundwater Flow Direction – PDCJ
August 2011
Prairie du Chien Group /
Jordan Sandstone (PDCJ)
General Hydrogeology – White Bear Lake
1,000
1,000
800
600
400
Elevation
(feet AMSL)
Geology
White Bear Lake
Glacial
Sands/Clays/
Tills
St. Peter S.S
Prairie du Chien
Group
Jordan Sandstone
St. Lawrence
Formation
West East
Well
Mixture of
Groundwater/Lake
Water
(modified from Mossler and Bloomgren, 1990)
920’ 925’ 925’
912’
910’ 908’
White Bear Lake – Line 22
Structure Slumped
Sediments
“Trapped” Gases in Sediments
Continuous-seismic-reflection profiling
From Jeff Green, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Rochester
Nitrogen Losses and Groundwater Movement in the vicinity of
Decorah Edge Wetlands
Decorah edge wetlands
St. Peter Sandstone
Glenwood Shale
Platteville Limestone
Decorah Shale
Cummingsville
Limestone/Shale
Groundwater
high nitrate conc.
Groundwater
low nitrate conc.
Groundwater discharge to
wetlands/soils
Denitrification
Plant Uptake
Immobilization in soil
Microorganisms
in soils
Recharge aquifers
Nitrate Concentrations (mg N·L-1) in Monitoring Points in Wetland, 2004
0 50 100 150 200
Distance along Transect from Upgradient Monitoring Point (ft)
0
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
April 13-14
May 10-11
June 14-16 0 50 100 150 200
Distance along Transect from
Upgradient Monitoring Point (ft)
0
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
August 3-11
October 18-20
N
Monitoring Points
Transect 1
Transect 2
Transect 3
Transect 4
Transect 5
Up
Up - Upgradient
Up
Up Up
Up
Down - Downgradient
Down
Down
Down
Down
Down
Groundwater-Flow Modeling: Rising Water Levels - Canisteo Mine Pit
Mine Pit Water Levels – 1998 - 2013
Groundwater-Flow Simulation - Canisteo Mine Pit
MODFLOW/MODPATH
simulations – Different Pit
Water Levels
- Taconite
Municipal Wells
- Bovey
- Coleraine
0 0.500.25 MILES
0 0.25 0.50 KILOMETERS
Quarry Hill Well
Olmsted Cty Wells 1 and 2
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
0 2,000 4,000 6,000 8,000 10,000
Discharge
(cfs)
Distance Downgradient of Highway 22 (ft)
0 0.500.25 MILES
0 0.25 0.50 KILOMETERS
Quarry Hill Well
Olmsted Cty Wells 1 and 2
-70
-65
-60
-55
-50
-45
-40
-10 -9 -8 -7 -6
Oxygen-18/oxygen-16 ratio, per mil
Deuterium/protium
ratio, per mil
Rochester Well 27
Silver Creek –
MDNR stream gage
Silver Creek - 15th Ave.
Silver Creek –11th Ave.
Meteoric Water Line
Princeton, MN
Sept.
Apr.
Oct.
Aug. July
June
May
Characterizing Groundwater/Surface-water Interactions
Know your objective and the scale of the issue
Use multiple tools/techniques
Know your hydrologic setting
3000!
0.2
47 47
123
74 211
245
285 61 46
Any Questions?
Photos from Phi Wheeler, Terry Lee, Olmsted County
Water Quantity Issues along Decorah Edge
Damage to Existing Housing
Olmsted County Web Presentation: The Decorah Edge: A Critical Ecological System
Construction
http://www.co.olmsted.mn.us/upload_dir/admin/decorahedge.pdf
Potentiometric Surface for
Prairie Du Chien/Jordan
Aquifer
March 2011
113 wells
Well – water level measurement
Potentiometric (Groundwater
Elevation) Contour
Estimated Potentiometric
Contour
N
Direction of Groundwater Flow
Groundwater Level Synoptic Survey
Measure water levels in wells and lakes
a short period of time
Results
Two surveys
1) March - April (low pumping) 2) August (high pumping)
measured water levels in 238 wells and 66 lakes
Regional Groundwater Levels for Aquifers in the
White Bear Lake Area
USGS, State of Minnesota (DNR, MPCA, and BWSR), Met Council
Iron Seeps forming at Mahtomedi Public Beach
Groundwater inflow to White Bear Lake
Areal Photography April 1, 2006
Cool Water Sediment Temperatures and Iron Stains
Conclusions on White Bear Lake
Low lake levels can be explained by higher
regional pumping and lower precipitation
Groundwater flows into the lake from glacial
sediments
Lake water flows out and reaches wells in Prairie
du Chien/Jordan and glacial aquifers
http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/
publication/sir20135044
White Bear Lake – Groundwater/Surface Water Report
Available on the web
at
GW/SW Interactions in NE Metro Lakes
• Statistical analysis of existing hydrologic information for NE
Metro lakes – (November 2013 – November 2014)
• Stable isotope of surface-water and groundwater and
age-dates of well waters (March 2013 – December 2014)
• Assess seepage rates between White Bear Lake and lower
aquifers (November 2013 – December 2015)
water-borne geophysics
lake-sediment coring
mini- piezometers/ seepage meters
tracer tests
• Assess the impact of gw pumping on lake levels using a
groundwater flow model and optimization techniques
(January 2014 – March 2016)
Groundwater sampled from wells and surface waters sampled from White Bear Lake
100% Groundwater
100%
Lake
water
Prairie du Chien/Jordan Aquifer (May 2012)
Prairie du Chien/Jordan Aquifer (August 2012)
Stable Isotope Model
2011-12 - Wells
Percentage of Contribution
N Groundwater Lake water
Prairie du Chien Group /
Jordan Sandstone (PDCJ)
Direction of Groundwater Flow
Potentiometric (Groundwater
Elevation) Contour
Estimated Potentiometric
Contour
N
White Bear Lake
Presence of “Sinkhole”? Mahtomedi, 1989
From: Barr and Alexander, 2012, 57th Midwest Ground Water Conference
White Bear
Lake
Lake Depth
From: MDNR, 1978
General Cross-section Showing Water Balance for a Closed
Basin Lake
Precipitation
(Rain and Snow)
GW flow
GW flow
Well Pumping
Deep GW flow
Evaporation
Transpiration
(Plants, Grass, Tree)
GW flow
Surface
Runoff
2011 Monthly Water Balance for White Bear Lake
March August
In inches
LL 1.8 -0.3
P 2.7 5.8
SR 0 1.5
GWin 2.1 1.8
E 0 4.9
Lwout - QWTA 0.1 0.1
Lwout - QBAA/Bedrock + Errors 2.9 4.4
Lake area = 2,401 acres
Water-quality survey - Ecomapper
Water temperature
July 11-14, 2011 White Bear Lake
Dissolved Oxygen
Specific Conductance
Chlorophyll
Turbidity
Blue-green Algae
pH
From: MDNR, 1978