| Abstract: | Climatic extremes affect ground-water levels and quality in the basins of western Utah. The five droughts since 1930: 1930-36, 1953-65, 1974-78, 1988-93, and 1999-2004--resulted in much-less-than-average recharge, and the pronounced wet period of 1982-86 resulted in much-greater-than-average recharge. Decreased recharge lowered the ground-water level, and increased recharge raised it. These changes were largest in recharge areas-in discharge areas the water level is relatively constant and the primary effect is a change in the discharge area-smaller during a drought and larger during a pronounced wet period.
The largest part of water-level change during climatic extremes, however, is not a result of changes in recharge but is related to changes in ground-water withdrawal. During a drought withdrawals increase to satisfy increased demand for ground water, especially in irrigated areas, and water levels decline. During a pronounced wet period, withdrawals decrease because of less demand and water levels rise. The amount of water-level change in representative observation wells in a basin is generally proportional to the basin‘s withdrawal. In undeveloped Tule Valley, water-level changes related to climatic extremes during 1981-2005 are less than 2 feet. In Snake Valley (small withdrawal), Tooele Valley (moderate withdrawal), and Pahvant Valley (large withdrawal), water-level declines in representative wells from 1985-86 to 2005 were 13.4, 23.8, and 63.8 feet, respectively.
Ground-water quality is also affected by climatic extremes. In six irrigated areas in western Utah, water-level decline during drought has induced flow of water with large dissolved-solids concentrations toward areas of pumping, increasing the dissolved-solids concentrations in water sampled from observation wells. During the 1982-86 wet period, increased recharge resulted in a later decrease in dissolved-solids concentrations in three basins. |
| Genre: | USGS Numbered Series |
| ProdID: | 79820 |
| Citation Author: | Gates, Joseph S. |
| Citation Contributing Office: | USGS Utah Water Science Center |
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| Citation Language: | ENGLISH |
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| Citation Phsyical Description: | vi, 10 p. |
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| Citation Publisher: | Geological Survey (U.S.) |
| Citation Series: | Scientific Investigations Report |
| Citation Series Code: | SIR |
| Citation Series Number: | 2007-5045 |
| Citation Search Results Text: | Effects of Climatic Extremes on Ground Water in Western Utah, 1930-2005; 2007; SIR; 2007-5045; Gates, Joseph S. |
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| Citation Year: | 2007 |
| Type: | citation/reference |
| Text: | Effects of Climatic Extremes on Ground Water in Western Utah, 1930-2005; 2007; SIR; 2007-5045; Gates, Joseph S. |
| URL (THUMBNAIL): | http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/thumbnails/usgs_thumb.jpg |
| URL (INDEX PAGE): | http://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2007/5045/ |
| Date Other: | Fri, 20 Apr 2007 00:00 -0500 |
| Publisher: | Geological Survey (U.S.) |
