Ground-water resources of Honey Lake Valley, Lassen County, California, and Washoe County, Nevada
Water-Resources Investigations Report
90-4050
Prepared in cooperation with the California Department of Water Resources and the Nevada Division of Water Resources
By: Elinor H. Handman, Clark J. Londquist, and Douglas K. Maurer
Links
- Document: Report (pdf)
- Plates:
- Download citation as: RIS | Dublin Core
Abstract
Honey Lake Valley is a 2,200 sq-mi, topographically closed basin about 35 miles northwest of Reno, Nevada. Unconsolidated basin-fill deposits on the valley floor and fractured volcanic rocks in northern and eastern uplands are the principal aquifers. In the study area, about 130,000 acre- ft of water recharges the aquifer system annually, about 40% by direct infiltration of precipitation and about 60% by infiltration of streamflow and irrigation water. Balancing this is an equal amount of groundwater discharge, of which about 65% evaporates from the water table or is transpired by phreatophytes, about 30 % is withdrawn from wells, and about 5% leaves the basin as subsurface outflow to the east. Results of a groundwater flow model of the eastern part of the basin, where withdrawals for public supply have been proposed, indicate that if 15,000 acre-ft of water were withdrawn annually, a new equilibrium would eventually be established by a reduction of about 60% in both evapotranspiration and subsurface outflow to the east. Hydrologic effects would be minimal at the western boundary of the flow-model area. Within the modeled area, the increased withdrawals cause an increase in the simulated net flow of groundwater eastward across the California-Nevada State line from about 670 acre-ft/yr to about 2,300 acre-ft/yr. (USGS)
Study Area
| Publication type | Report |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | USGS Numbered Series |
| Title | Ground-water resources of Honey Lake Valley, Lassen County, California, and Washoe County, Nevada |
| Series title | Water-Resources Investigations Report |
| Series number | 90-4050 |
| DOI | 10.3133/wri904050 |
| Year Published | 1990 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | U.S. Geological Survey |
| Description | Report: vii, 112 p.; 4 Plates: 16.03 x 21.94 inches |
| Country | United States |
| State | California, Nevada |
| County | Lassen County, Washoe County |
| Other Geospatial | Honey Lake Valley |
| Google Analytic Metrics | Metrics page |