| Abstract: | The Eagle River watershed is located near the destination resort town of Vail, Colorado. The area has a fastgrowing permanent population, and the resort industry is rapidly expanding. A large percentage of the land undergoing development to support that growth overlies the Eagle River watershed valley-fill aquifer (ERWVFA), which likely has a high predisposition to groundwater contamination. As development continues, local organizations need tools to evaluate potential land-development effects on ground- and surface-water resources so that informed land-use and water management decisions can be made. To help develop these tools, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with Eagle County, the Eagle River Water and Sanitation District, the Town of Eagle, the Town of Gypsum, and the Upper Eagle Regional Water Authority, conducted a study in 2006-2007 of the groundwater quality, age, and probability of contamination in the ERWVFA, north-central Colorado.
Ground- and surface-water quality samples were analyzed for major ions, nutrients, stable isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen in water, tritium, dissolved gases, chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) determined with very low-level laboratory methods. The major-ion data indicate that groundwaters in the ERWVFA can be classified into two major groups: groundwater that was recharged by infiltration of surface water, and groundwater that had less immediate recharge from surface water and had elevated sulfate concentrations. Sulfate concentrations exceeded the USEPA National Secondary Drinking Water Regulations (250 milligrams per liter) in many wells near Eagle, Gypsum, and Dotsero. The predominant source of sulfate to groundwater in the Eagle River watershed is the Eagle Valley Evaporite, which is a gypsum deposit of Pennsylvanian age located predominantly in the western one-half of Eagle County. |
| Genre: | USGS Numbered Series |
| ProdID: | 97707 |
| Citation Author: | Rupert, Michael G.; Plummer, L. Niel |
| Citation Contributing Office: | Colorado Water Science Center |
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| Citation Edition: | - |
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| Citation Language: | ENGLISH |
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| Citation LatN: | 0400000 |
| Citation LatS: | 0392000 |
| Citation LonE: | -1060000 |
| Citation LonW: | -1071000 |
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| Citation Phsyical Description: | viii, 59 p. |
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| Citation Public Comments: | Prepared in cooperation with Eagle County, the Eagle River Water and Sanitation District, the Town of Eagle, the Town of Gypsum, and the Upper Eagle Regional Water Authority |
| Citation Publisher: | U.S. Geological Survey |
| Citation Series: | Scientific Investigations Report |
| Citation Series Code: | SIR |
| Citation Series Number: | 2009-5082 |
| Citation Search Results Text: | Groundwater Quality, Age, and Probability of Contamination, Eagle River Watershed Valley-Fill Aquifer, North-Central Colorado, 2006-2007; 2009; SIR; 2009-5082; Rupert, Michael G.; Plummer, L. Niel |
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| Citation Year: | 2009 |
| Type: | citation/reference |
| Text: | Groundwater Quality, Age, and Probability of Contamination, Eagle River Watershed Valley-Fill Aquifer, North-Central Colorado, 2006-2007; 2009; SIR; 2009-5082; Rupert, Michael G.; Plummer, L. Niel |
| URL (THUMBNAIL): | http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/thumbnails/sir_2009_5082.jpg |
| URL (INDEX PAGE): | http://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2009/5082/ |
| Date Other: | Sat, 25 Jul 2009 00:00 -0500 |
| Publisher: | U.S. Geological Survey |
