| Abstract: | Groundwater quality in the approximately 1,500 square-mile Mojave (MOJO) study unit was investigated from February to April 2008, as part of the Priority Basin Project of the Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program. The GAMA Priority Basin Project was developed in response to the Groundwater Quality Monitoring Act of 2001 and is being conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB). MOJO was the 23rd of 37 study units to be sampled as part of the GAMA Priority Basin Project.
The MOJO study was designed to provide a spatially unbiased assessment of the quality of untreated ground water used for public water supplies within MOJO, and to facilitate statistically consistent comparisons of groundwater quality throughout California. Samples were collected from 59 wells in San Bernardino and Los Angeles Counties. Fifty-two of the wells were selected using a spatially distributed, randomized grid-based method to provide statistical representation of the study area (grid wells), and seven were selected to aid in evaluation of specific water-quality issues (understanding wells).
The groundwater samples were analyzed for a large number of organic constituents [volatile organic compounds (VOCs), pesticides and pesticide degradates, and pharmaceutical compounds], constituents of special interest (perchlorate and N-nitrosodimethylamine [NDMA]) naturally occurring inorganic constituents (nutrients, dissolved organic carbon [DOC], major and minor ions, silica, total dissolved solids [TDS], and trace elements), and radioactive constituents (gross alpha and gross beta radioactivity, radium isotopes, and radon-222). Naturally occurring isotopes (stable isotopes of hydrogen, oxygen, and carbon, stable isotopes of nitrogen and oxygen in nitrate, and activities of tritium and carbon-14), and dissolved noble gases also were measured to help identify the sources and ages of the sampled ground water. In total, over 230 constituents and water-quality indicators (field parameters) were investigated.
Three types of quality-control samples (blanks, replicates, and matrix spikes) each were collected at approximately 5-8 percent of the wells, and the results for these samples were used to evaluate the quality of the data for the groundwater samples. Field blanks rarely contained detectable concentrations of any constituent, suggesting that contamination was not a significant source of bias in the data for the groundwater samples. Differences between replicate samples generally were within acceptable ranges, indicating acceptable analytical reproducibility. Matrix spike recoveries were within acceptable ranges for most compounds.
This study did not attempt to evaluate the quality of water delivered to consumers; after withdrawal from the ground, untreated groundwater typically is treated, disinfected, or blended with other waters to maintain water quality. Regulatory thresholds apply to water that is served to the consumer, not to untreated ground water. However, to provide some context for the results, concentrations of constituents measured in the untreated ground water were compared with regulatory and non-regulatory health-based thresholds established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and thresholds established for aesthetic and technical concerns by CDPH. Comparisons between data collected for this study and thresholds for drinking-water are for illustrative purposes only, and are not indicative of compliance or non-compliance with those thresholds.
Most constituents that were detected in groundwater samples in the 59 wells in MOJO were found at concentrations below drinking-water thresholds. In MOJO‘s 52 grid wells, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were detected in 40 percent of the wells, and pesticides and pesticide degradates were detected in 23 percent of the grid wel |
| Genre: | USGS Numbered Series |
| ProdID: | 97914 |
| Citation Author: | Mathany, Timothy M.; Belitz, Kenneth |
| Citation Contributing Office: | California Water Science Center |
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| Citation Edition: | - |
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| Citation Language: | ENGLISH |
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| Citation LatN: | 0420000 |
| Citation LatS: | 0320000 |
| Citation LonE: | -1140000 |
| Citation LonW: | -1250000 |
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| Citation Phsyical Description: | x, 81 p. |
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| Citation Public Comments: | Prepared in cooperation with the California State Water Resources Control Board; A product of the California Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program |
| Citation Publisher: | U.S. Geological Survey |
| Citation Series: | Data Series |
| Citation Series Code: | DS |
| Citation Series Number: | 440 |
| Citation Search Results Text: | Groundwater Quality Data in the Mojave Study Unit, 2008: Results from the California GAMA Program; 2009; DS; 440; Mathany, Timothy M.; Belitz, Kenneth |
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| Citation Year: | 2009 |
| Type: | citation/reference |
| Text: | Groundwater Quality Data in the Mojave Study Unit, 2008: Results from the California GAMA Program; 2009; DS; 440; Mathany, Timothy M.; Belitz, Kenneth |
| URL (THUMBNAIL): | http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/thumbnails/ds_440.jpg |
| URL (INDEX PAGE): | http://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/440/ |
| Date Other: | Sat, 10 Oct 2009 00:00 -0500 |
| Publisher: | U.S. Geological Survey |
