USGS Monthly Groundwater News and Highlights: August 1, 2019

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Feature: Seasonal and Spatial Variation in the Location and Reactivity of a Nitrate-Contaminated Groundwater Discharge Zone in a Lakebed

A recent USGS study examined what happens to nitrate, a primary wastewater contaminant in groundwater, as contaminated groundwater flows upward into the bottom of a freshwater lake. The Ashumet Pond study area on western Cape Cod, Massachusetts, has been a focal point of more than three decades of study by the USGS Toxic Substances Hydrology Program of contaminant fate and transport in shallow groundwater in granular aquifers. Nitrate can serve as a fertilizer within Ashumet Pond, causing a decrease in the quality of the lake water and potentially contributing to the growth of harmful algae. Groundwater nitrate discharged into the lake primarily near the lake shore, but the location of the discharge moved as the lake level rose and fell. The study showed that rapid flow through the lake-bottom sediments limited the time for biogeochemical nitrate removal to occur.

USGS Groundwater-Related Publications

Hydrogeologic framework and delineation of transient areas contributing recharge and zones of contribution to selected wells in the upper Santa Fe Group aquifer, southeastern Albuquerque, New Mexico, 1900-2050 (07/31/19)

Baseline groundwater hydrology and water quality in and around Bluff, Utah (07/31/19)

Water-level data for the Albuquerque Basin and adjacent areas, central New Mexico, period of record through September 30, 2018 (07/25/19)

Water-budget analysis of the Upper Big Sandy Designated Ground-water Basin alluvial aquifer, Elbert, El Paso, and Lincoln Counties, Colorado, 2016 (07/22/19)

Hydrologic study at Farm Creek Marsh, Dorchester County, Maryland, from April 2015 to April 2016 (07/09/19)

Hydrologic site assessment for passive treatment of groundwater nitrogen with permeable reactive barriers, Cape Cod, Massachusetts (07/03/19)

Differentiating anthropogenic and natural sources of uranium by geochemical fingerprinting of groundwater at the Homestake Uranium Mill, Milan, New Mexico, USA (07/22/19)

Groundwater quality and hydrology with emphasis on selenium mobilization and transport in the Lower Gunnison River Basin, Colorado, 2012-16 (07/01/19)

Hydrocarbons in upland groundwater, Marcellus Shale Region, Northeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New York, USA (07/17/19)

Water resources of East Carroll Parish, Louisiana (07/16/19)

Hydraulic, geochemical, and thermal monitoring of an aquifer system in the vicinity of Mammoth Lakes, Mono County, California, 2015-17 (07/01/19)

 

USGS Groundwater Flow and Transport Model Data Releases

MODFLOW2000 model and ZONEBUDGET computer program used to simulate the Upper Big Sandy Designated Groundwater Basin alluvial aquifer, Elbert, El Paso, and Lincoln Counties, Colorado, 2016

MODFLOW-LGR2 groundwater-flow model used to delineate transient areas contributing recharge and zones of contribution to selected wells in southeastern Albuquerque, New Mexico

iTOUGH2-EOS7C model used to analyze multiphase flow and hydromechanical coupling in underpressured shale at the Bruce Nuclear Site, Ontario, Canada

Field Photo

USGS is evaluating the current and long-term availability of groundwater resources at the U.S. Army Fort Irwin National Training Center (NTC) in California. Results of USGS studies can be used by the Army to inform NTC resource planning, including management of drinking water supplies and wastewater. In this photo, USGS Hydrologist Krishangi Groover lays a cable as part of geophysical surveys at Fort Irwin in July 2019. The geophysical data will be used to improve understanding of current groundwater conditions and to assess groundwater recharge rates. Learn more about USGS California Water Science Center groundwater studies at Fort Irwin.