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Paper No. 2
Presentation Time: 8:25 AM

GROUNDWATER AVAILABILITY OF THE COLUMBIA PLATEAU REGIONAL AQUIFER SYSTEM, WASHINGTON, OREGON, AND IDAHO


KAHLE, Sue C.1, BURNS, Erick2, ELY, D. Matthew1, HAYNES, Jonathan V.2, MORGAN, David S.2, ORZOL, Leonard L.2, SENAY, Gabriel3, SNYDER, Daniel T.2, VACCARO, John J.1 and WELCH, Wendy1, (1)Washington Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, 934 Broadway Suite 300, Tacoma, WA 98402, (2)Oregon Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, 2130 SW 5th Avenue, Portland, OR 97201, (3)Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS), U.S. Geological Survey, Fort Collins, CO 80523, sckahle@usgs.gov

The Columbia Plateau Regional Aquifer System covers more than 44,000 square miles of eastern Washington and Oregon and western Idaho. The primary aquifers are basalts of the Columbia River Basalt Group and overlying basin-fill sediments. Groundwater availability issues in the basin include widespread water-level declines caused by pumping, corresponding reductions in base flow to rivers and associated effects on water temperature and quality, and effects of climate change on groundwater recharge, base flow, and groundwater availability.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Groundwater Resources Program is assessing the availability and use of the Nation’s groundwater resources and developing tools to help evaluate future system response to various human and environmental demands and climate change. As part of the National assessment program, USGS Water Science Centers in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho initiated a study of groundwater availability of the Columbia Plateau Regional Aquifer System in 2008. The major study elements include documenting changes in the status of the system, quantifying the hydrologic budget, updating the regional hydrogeologic framework, and simulating the system with a numerical groundwater flow model.

Region-wide synoptic water-level measurements were made in spring 2009 to help assess changes in the status of the system. MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) and other satellite imagery were used to help estimate irrigation water use on a regional scale from 1989-2007. Public supply and domestic water use was estimated using public water supply system information, census data, and per capita water-use rates. The regional hydrogeologic framework was updated by incorporating new information from large-scale hydrogeologic studies and using geostatistical techniques. Work is ongoing to complete development of the conceptual model, including a first-order hydrologic budget, and construction of a groundwater flow model.

Session No. 81

T1. Assessing Groundwater Availability and Sustainability I
Monday, 1 November 2010: 8:00 AM-12:00 PM
Room 612 (Colorado Convention Center)
Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 42, No. 5, p.200
© Copyright 2010 The Geological Society of America (GSA), all rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted to the author(s) of this abstract to reproduce and distribute it freely, for noncommercial purposes. Permission is hereby granted to any individual scientist to download a single copy of this electronic file and reproduce up to 20 paper copies for noncommercial purposes advancing science and education, including classroom use, providing all reproductions include the complete content shown here, including the author information. All other forms of reproduction and/or transmittal are prohibited without written permission from GSA Copyright Permissions.
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