GROUND WATER CONTRIBUTES HIGH LEVELS OF DISSOLVED SOLIDS TO RED RIVER DURING PERIODS OF LOW FLOW (Map Area 19)

Analyses of samples of ground water and samples from tributaries and along the main stem of the Red River of the North showed that during low stage and low flow conditions in March and December, ground water contributes a large percentage of the flow. The ground water contains significantly higher levels of dissolved solids than snowmelt and surface runoff. Flow from most tributaries contain higher levels of dissolved solids than the main stem. Reconnaissance sampling of fish tissue and stream sediment showed only trace levels of heavy metals and organic carbons.


Return to main document about USGS National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program || USGS National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program home page
The URL for this page is <http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/overview.docs/redriv.html>.
Last modified: Tue Oct 31 15:36:45 1995