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Press Release: Study Explores Groundwater and Geothermal Energy in Drought-Stricken Eastern Oregon and Neighboring States

Technical Announcement: USGS Issues Revised Framework for Hydrogeology of Floridan Aquifer

Press Release: High Plains Aquifer Groundwater Levels Continue to Decline

Regional Groundwater Availability Study Geospatial Data

Press Release: USGS Assesses Current Groundwater-Quality Conditions in the Williston Basin Oil Production Area

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STRATEGIC DIRECTIONS FOR THE U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY GROUND-WATER RESOURCES PROGRAM

A Report to Congress

November 30, 1998

CONTENTS

• Introduction
• The importance of ground water to the Nation
• Evolving ground-water issues and USGS Programs
• Relationship of Ground-Water Resources Program to other USGS programs
• Current activities of the Ground-Water Resources Program
• Future priorities for the Ground-Water Resources Program
  • Scientific assessments of critical ground-water issues
    • Ground-water depletion
    • Ground-water/surface-water interactions
    • Freshwater/saltwater relations
    • Subsidence
    • Ground water in complex geologic environments
  • Regional and national overviews
  • Access to ground-water data
  • Research and methods development
• Concluding remarks

FIGURES

1. Ground water is an important source of drinking water in every State. (Map)
2. In the conterminous United States, 24 regions were delineated where the
   interactions of ground water and surface water are considered to have
   similar characteristics. (Map)
3. Diagram of a cross section of ground-water flow to a stream illustrating
   various effects of ground-water development. (Diagram)
4. From 1978-95, the USGS intensively studied 25 regional aquifers as part
   of the Regional Aquifer-System Analysis (RASA) Program. (Map)
5. Availability of an adequate supply of freshwater is a significant issue
   affecting continued economic growth of cities and towns in the Southwest,
   which also contains of the most productive agricultural lands in the
   United States. (Diagram)
6. The High Plains aquifer covers eight States in the central United States. (Map)
7. Sand and gravel aquifers in areas that underwent continental glaciation
   (such as much of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio) and in alluvium along rivers
   (such as the Ohio River) are important sources of ground water. (Map)
8. Understanding wetland hydrology will be improved if the relationships
   between ground water and wetlands are more clearly established. (Map)
9. Development of ground-water resources along the Atlantic coast has
   caused saltwater to intrude many highly productive freshwater aquifers. (Map)
10. (A) Much of the Nation is underlain by carbonate rocks or gypsum that are
    exposed at the land surface or are in the zone of active ground-water
    circulation. (B) In many areas, these rocks, which are slowly soluble to
    ground water develop caves and other karst features, making it
    particularly difficult to evaluate ground-water conditions. (Map & Diagram)
11. Hydrogeologic environments throughout the United States are highly
    varied and include many complex settings in which it is difficult to
    characterize the availability and sustainability of ground-water resources. (Map)

TABLE

1. USGS Ground-Water Resources Program and general ground-water resource investigations--Past, present and potential future activities.