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Alan L. Flint

Publications and source records attributed to Alan L. Flint.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

Regional analysis of ground-water recharge

A modeling analysis of runoff and ground-water recharge for the arid and semiarid southwestern United States was performed to investigate the interactions of climate and other controlling factors and to place the eight study-site investigations into a regional context. A distributed-parameter water-balance model (the Basin Characterization Model, or BCM) was used in the analysis. Data requirements of the BCM included digital representations of topography, soils, geology, and vegetation, together with monthly time-series of precipitation and air-temperature data. Time-series of potential evapotranspiration were generated by using a submodel for solar radiation, taking into account topographic shading, cloudiness, and vegetation density. Snowpack accumulation and melting were modeled using precipitation and air-temperature data. Amounts of water available for runoff and ground-water recharge were calculated on the basis of water-budget considerations by using measured- and generated-meteorologic time series together with estimates of soil-water storage and saturated hydraulic conductivity of subsoil geologic units. Calculations were made on a computational grid with a horizontal resolution of about 270 meters for the entire 1,033,840 square-kilometer study area. The modeling analysis was composed of 194 basins, including the eight basins containing ground-water recharge-site investigations. For each grid cell, the BCM computed monthly values of potential evapotranspiration, soil-water storage, in-place ground-water recharge, and runoff (potential stream flow). A fixed percentage of runoff was assumed to become recharge beneath channels operating at a finer resolution than the computational grid of the BCM. Monthly precipitation and temperature data from 1941 to 2004 were used to explore climatic variability in runoff and ground-water recharge. The selected approach provided a framework for classifying study-site basins with respect to climate and dominant recharge processes. The average climate for all 194 basins ranged from hyperarid to humid, with arid and semiarid basins predominating (fig. 6, chapter A, this volume). Four of the 194 basins had an aridity index of dry subhumid; two of the basins were humid. Of the eight recharge-study sites, six were in semiarid basins, and two were in arid basins. Average-annual potential evapotranspiration showed a regional gradient from less than 1 m/yr in the northeastern part of the study area to more than 2 m/yr in the southwestern part of the study area. Average-annual precipitation was lowest in the two arid-site basins and highest in the two study-site basins in southern Arizona. The relative amount of runoff to in-place recharge varied throughout the study area, reflecting differences primarily in soil water-holding capacity, saturated hydraulic conductivity of subsoil materials, and snowpack dynamics. Climatic forcing expressed in El Niño and Pacific Decadal Oscillation indices strongly influenced the generation of precipitation throughout the study area. Positive values of both indices correlated with the highest amounts of runoff and ground-water recharge.

Professional Paper

Application of the Basin Characterization Model to Estimate In-Place Recharge and Runoff Potential in the Basin and Range Carbonate-Rock Aquifer System, White Pine County, Nevada, and Adjacent Areas in Nevada and Utah

A regional-scale water-balance model was used to estimate recharge and runoff potential and support U.S. Geological Survey efforts to develop a better understanding of water availability for the Basin and Range carbonate-rock aquifer system (BARCAS) study in White Pine County, Nevada, and adjacent areas in Nevada and Utah. The water-balance model, or Basin Characterization Model (BCM), was used to estimate regional ground-water recharge for the 13 hydrographic areas in the study area. The BCM calculates recharge by using a distributed-parameter, water-balance method and monthly climatic boundary conditions. The BCM requires geographic information system coverages of soil, geology, and topographic information with monthly time-varying climatic conditions of air temperature and precipitation. Potential evapotranspiration, snow accumulation, and snowmelt are distributed spatially with process models. When combined with surface properties of soil-water storage and saturated hydraulic conductivity of bedrock and alluvium, the potential water available for in-place recharge and runoff is calculated using monthly time steps using a grid scale of 866 feet (270 meters). The BCM was used with monthly climatic inputs from 1970 to 2004, and results were averaged to provide an estimate of the average annual recharge for the BARCAS study area. The model estimates 526,000 acre-feet of potential in-place recharge and approximately 398,000 acre-feet of potential runoff. Assuming 15 percent of the runoff becomes recharge, the model estimates average annual ground-water recharge for the BARCAS area of about 586,000 acre-feet. When precipitation is extrapolated to the long-term climatic record (1895-2006), average annual recharge is estimated to be 530,000 acre-feet, or about 9 percent less than the recharge estimated for 1970-2004.

Scientific Investigations Report

Micrometeorological and Soil Data for Calculating Evapotranspiration for Rainier Mesa, Nevada Test Site, Nevada, 2002-05

Micrometeorological and soil-moisture data were collected at two instrumented sites on Rainier Mesa at the Nevada Test Site, January 1, 2002 - August 23, 2005. Data collected at each site include net radiation, air temperature, and relative humidity at two heights; wind speed and direction; subsurface soil heat flux; subsurface soil temperature; volumetric soil water; and matric water potential. These data were used to estimate 20-minute average and daily average evapotranspiration values. The data presented in this report are collected and calculated evapotranspiration rates.

Open-File Report

Hydrogeology of the upper and middle Verde River watersheds, central Arizona

The upper and middle Verde River watersheds in central Arizona are primarily in Yavapai County, which in 1999 was determined to be the fastest growing rural county in the United States; by 2050 the population is projected to more than double its current size (132,000 in 2000). This study combines climatic, surface-water, ground-water, water-chemistry, and geologic data to describe the hydrogeologic systems within the upper and middle Verde River watersheds and to provide a conceptual understanding of the ground-water flow system. The study area includes the Big Chino and Little Chino subbasins in the upper Verde River watershed and the Verde Valley subbasin in the middle Verde Rive watershed...more...A geochemical mixing model was used to quantify fractions of ground-water sources to the Verde River from various parts of the study area. Most of the water in the uppermost 0.2 mile of the Verde River is from the Little Chino subbasin, and the remainder is from the Big Chino subbasin. Discharge from a system of springs increases base flow to about 17 cubic feet per second within the next 2 miles of the river. Ground water that discharges at these springs is derived from the western part of the Coconino Plateau, from the Big Chino subbasin, and from the Little Chino subbasin. More...

Scientific Investigations Report

Multivariate geostatistical analysis of ground-water contamination: A case history

A case history is presented for the application of multivariate geostatistical methods to the problem of estimating pesticide concentrations in ground water from measured concentrations of nitrate and pesticide, when pesticide is under‐sampled. The shallow, poorly confined, sand and gravel aquifer underlying the lower Malheur River basin near Ontario, Oregon is contaminated by nitrate and metabolites of the herbicide Dacthal (dimethyl tetrachloroterephthalate) or DCPA. The results of extensive ground‐water sampling indicate that a significant positive correlation exists between measured nitrate and DCPA concentrations in the aquifer. This suggests that future sampling should include a large number of the less‐expensive nitrate analyses, and these data should be used to support the interpretation of fewer, more expensive DCPA analyses. Sample variograms were computed for nitrate and DCPA concentrations and were fit with isotropic, spherical variogram models with correlation ranges of 4 km. Incorporating measured nitrate concentrations in the DCPA estimates obtained by cokriging reduced estimation variances from 14 to 34%. A simple economic analysis demonstrated that for this aquifer, acquiring additional nitrate samples is a cost‐effective way to reduce estimation variances for DCPA.

Oregon

Fundamental concepts of recharge in the Desert Southwest: A regional modeling perspective

Recharge in arid basins does not occur in all years or at all locations within a basin. In the desert Southwest potential evapotranspiration exceeds precipitation on an average annual basis and, in many basins, on an average monthly basis. Ground-water traveltime from the surface to the water table and recharge to the water table vary temporally and spatially owing to variations in precipitation, air temperature, root zone and soil properties and thickness, faults and fractures, and hydrologic properties of geologic strata in the unsaturated zone. To highlight the fundamental concepts controlling recharge in the Southwest, and address the temporal and spatial variability of recharge, a basin characterization model was developed using a straightforward water balance approach to estimate potential recharge and runoff and allow for determination of the location of recharge within a basin. It provides a means for interbasin comparison of the mechanisms and processes that result in recharge and calculates the potential for recharge under current, wetter, and drier climates. Model estimates of recharge compare favorably with other methods estimating recharge in the Great Basin. Results indicate that net infiltration occurs in less than 5 percent of the area of a typical southwestern basin. Decadal-scale climatic cycles have substantially different influences over the extent of the Great Basin, with the southern portion receiving 220 percent higher recharge than the mean recharge during El Niño years in a positive phase of the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, whereas the northern portion receives only 48 percent higher recharge. In addition, climatic influences result in ground-water travel times that are expected to vary on time scales of days to centuries, making decadal-scale climate cycles significant for understanding recharge in arid lands.

Water Science and Application

The role of the unsaturated zone in artificial recharge at San Gorgonio Pass, California

The hydrogeology of the unsaturated zone plays a critical role in determining the suitability of a site for artificial recharge. Optimally, a suitable site has highly permeable soils, a capacity for horizontal flow at the aquifer boundary, a lack of impeding layers, and a thick unsaturated zone. The suitability of a site is often determined by field and laboratory measurements of soil properties, field experiments, and numerical modeling. An artificial recharge site in the San Gorgonio Pass area in southern California, USA was studied to better understand the role of the unsaturated zone in artificial recharge by surface spreading. Field measurements and observations were used to characterize the site and to develop a conceptual model of the unsaturated zone. A numerical model was developed based on the conceptual model and calibrated using data from a 50-d artificial recharge experiment conducted in 1991 and borehole data collected between 1997 and 2002. Results indicate that an impeding layer exists 70 m below land surface that will cause lateral diversion of artificially recharged water, which would spread out and delay recharge to the water table 185 m below land surface.

California

Water-quality data from 2002 to 2003 and analysis of data gaps for development of total maximum daily loads in the Lower Klamath River Basin, California

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) collected water-quality data during 2002 and 2003 in the Lower Klamath River Basin, in northern California, to support studies of river conditions as they pertain to the viability of Chinook and Coho salmon and endangered suckers. To address the data needs of the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board for the development of Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs), water temperature, dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, and pH were continuously monitored at sites on the Klamath, Trinity, Shasta, and Lost Rivers. Water-quality samples were collected and analyzed for selected nutrients, organic carbon, chlorophyll-a, pheophytin-a, and trace elements. Sediment oxygen demand was measured on the Shasta River. Results of analysis of the data collected were used to identify locations in the Lower Klamath River Basin and periods of time during 2002 and 2003 when river conditions were more likely to be detrimental to salmonid or sucker health because of occasional high water temperatures, low dissolved oxygen, and conditions that supported abundant populations of algae and aquatic plants. The results were also used to assess gaps in data by furthering the development of the conceptual model of water flow and quality in the Lower Klamath River Basin using available data and the current understanding of processes that affect water quality and by assessing needs for the develoment of mathematical models of the system. The most notable gap in information for the study area is in sufficient knowledge about the occurrence and productivity of algal communities. Other gaps in data include vertical water-quality profiles for the reservoirs in the study area, and in an adequate understanding of the chemical oxygen demands and the sediment oxygen demands in the rivers and of the influence of riparian shading on the rivers. Several mathematical models are discussed in this report for use in characterizing the river systems in the study area; also discussed are the specific data needed for the models, and the spatial and temporal data available as boundary conditions. The models will be useful for the future development of TMDLs for temperature, nutrients, and dissolved oxygen and for assessing the role of natural and anthropogenic sources of heat, oxygen-producing and -consuming substances, and nutrients in the Klamath, Shasta, and Lost Rivers.

Scientific Investigations Report

Influence of transitional volcanic strata on lateral diversion at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

Natural hydraulic barriers exist at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, a potential high‐level nuclear waste repository, that have been identified as possible lateral diversions for reducing deep percolation through the waste storage area. Historical development of the conceptual model of lateral diversion has been limited by available field data, but numerical investigations presented the possibility of significant lateral diversion due to the presence of a thin, porous rock layer, the Paintbrush nonwelded tuffs. Analytical analyses of the influence of transitional changes in properties suggest that minimal lateral diversion is likely at Yucca Mountain. Numerical models, to this point, have not accounted for the gradual transition of properties or the existence of multiple layers that could inadvertently influence the simulation of lateral diversion as an artifact of numerical model discretization. Analyses were made of subsurface matric potential measurements, and comparisons were made of surface infiltration estimates with deeper percolation flux calculations using chloride‐mass‐balance calculations and simulations of measured temperature profiles. These analyses suggest that insignificant lateral diversion has occurred above the repository horizon and that water generally moves vertically through the Paintbrush nonwelded tuffs.

Water Resources Research

Simulation of net infiltration and potential recharge using a distributed-parameter watershed model of the Death Valley region, Nevada and California

This report presents the development and application of the distributed-parameter watershed model, INFILv3, for estimating the temporal and spatial distribution of net infiltration and potential recharge in the Death Valley region, Nevada and California. The estimates of net infiltration quantify the downward drainage of water across the lower boundary of the root zone and are used to indicate potential recharge under variable climate conditions and drainage basin characteristics. Spatial variability in recharge in the Death Valley region likely is high owing to large differences in precipitation, potential evapotranspiration, bedrock permeability, soil thickness, vegetation characteristics, and contributions to recharge along active stream channels. The quantity and spatial distribution of recharge representing the effects of variable climatic conditions and drainage basin characteristics on recharge are needed to reduce uncertainty in modeling ground-water flow. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Department of Energy, developed a regional saturated-zone ground-water flow model of the Death Valley regional ground-water flow system to help evaluate the current hydrogeologic system and the potential effects of natural or human-induced changes. Although previous estimates of recharge have been made for most areas of the Death Valley region, including the area defined by the boundary of the Death Valley regional ground-water flow system, the uncertainty of these estimates is high, and the spatial and temporal variability of the recharge in these basins has not been quantified. To estimate the magnitude and distribution of potential recharge in response to variable climate and spatially varying drainage basin characteristics, the INFILv3 model uses a daily water-balance model of the root zone with a primarily deterministic representation of the processes controlling net infiltration and potential recharge. The daily water balance includes precipitation (as either rain or snow), snow accumulation, sublimation, snowmelt, infiltration into the root zone, evapotranspiration, drainage, water content change throughout the root-zone profile (represented as a 6-layered system), runoff (defined as excess rainfall and snowmelt) and surface water run-on (defined as runoff that is routed downstream), and net infiltration (simulated as drainage from the bottom root-zone layer). Potential evapotranspiration is simulated using an hourly solar radiation model to simulate daily net radiation, and daily evapotranspiration is simulated as an empirical function of root zone water content and potential evapotranspiration. The model uses daily climate records of precipitation and air temperature from a regionally distributed network of 132 climate stations and a spatially distributed representation of drainage basin characteristics defined by topography, geology, soils, and vegetation to simulate daily net infiltration at all locations, including stream channels with intermittent streamflow in response to runoff from rain and snowmelt. The temporal distribution of daily, monthly, and annual net infiltration can be used to evaluate the potential effect of future climatic conditions on potential recharge. The INFILv3 model inputs representing drainage basin characteristics were developed using a geographic information system (GIS) to define a set of spatially distributed input parameters uniquely assigned to each grid cell of the INFILv3 model grid. The model grid, which was defined by a digital elevation model (DEM) of the Death Valley region, consists of 1,252,418 model grid cells with a uniform grid cell dimension of 278.5 meters in the north-south and east-west directions. The elevation values from the DEM were used with monthly regression models developed from the daily climate data to estimate the spatial distribution of daily precipitation and air temperature. The elevation values were also used to simulate atmosp

Water-Resources Investigations Report

Evolution of the conceptual model of unsaturated zone hydrology at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

Yucca Mountain is an arid site proposed for consideration as the United States’ first underground high-level radioactive waste repository. Low rainfall (approximately 170 mm/yr) and a thick unsaturated zone (500–1000 m) are important physical attributes of the site because the quantity of water likely to reach the waste and the paths and rates of movement of the water to the saturated zone under future climates would be major factors in controlling the concentrations and times of arrival of radionuclides at the surrounding accessible environment. The framework for understanding the hydrologic processes that occur at this site and that control how quickly water will penetrate through the unsaturated zone to the water table has evolved during the past 15 yr. Early conceptual models assumed that very small volumes of water infiltrated into the bedrock (0.5–4.5 mm/yr, or 2–3 percent of rainfall), that much of the infiltrated water flowed laterally within the upper nonwelded units because of capillary barrier effects, and that the remaining water flowed down faults with a small amount flowing through the matrix of the lower welded, fractured rocks. It was believed that the matrix had to be saturated for fractures to flow. However, accumulating evidence indicated that infiltration rates were higher than initially estimated, such as infiltration modeling based on neutron borehole data, bomb-pulse isotopes deep in the mountain, perched water analyses and thermal analyses. Mechanisms supporting lateral diversion did not apply at these higher fluxes, and the flux calculated in the lower welded unit exceeded the conductivity of the matrix, implying vertical flow of water in the high permeability fractures of the potential repository host rock, and disequilibrium between matrix and fracture water potentials. The development of numerical modeling methods and parameter values evolved concurrently with the conceptual model in order to account for the observed field data, particularly fracture flow deep in the unsaturated zone. This paper presents the history of the evolution of conceptual models of hydrology and numerical models of unsaturated zone flow at Yucca Mountain, Nevada (Flint, A.L., Flint, L.E., Kwicklis, E.M., Bodvarsson, G.S., Fabryka-Martin, J.M., 2001. Hydrology of Yucca Mountain. Reviews of Geophysics in press). This retrospective is the basis for recommendations for optimizing the efficiency with which a viable and robust conceptual model can be developed for a complex site.

Nevada

Shallow infiltration processes at Yucca Mountain, Nevada: neutron logging data 1984-93

To determine site suitability of Yucca Mountain, Nevada, as a potential high-level radioactive waste repository, a study was devised to characterize net infiltration. This study involves a detailed data set produced from 99 neutron boreholes that consisted of volumetric water-content readings with depth from 1984 through 1993 at Yucca Mountain. Boreholes were drilled with minimal disturbance to the surrounding soil or rock in order to best represent field conditions. Boreholes were located in topographic positions representing infiltration zones identified as ridgetops, sideslopes, terraces, and active channels. Through careful field calibration, neutron moisture logs, collected on a monthly basis and representing most of the areal locations at Yucca Mountain, illustrated that the depth of penetration of seasonal moisture, important for escaping loss to evapotranspiration, was influenced by several factors. It was increased (1) by thin soil cover, especially in locations where thin soil is underlain by fractured bedrock; (2) on ridgetops; and (3) during the winter when evapotranspiration is low and runoff is less frequent. This data set helps to provide a seasonal and areal distribution of changes in volumetric water content with which to assess hydrologic processes contributing to net infiltration.

Nevada

Evaluation of measurement scale using imbibition experiments in volcanic tuffs

A major issue in the site characterization at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, a potential site for a high-level nuclear waste repository, is the relevance of laboratory-scale measurements on cores to field-scale processes, particularly water flow. Calculation of Philip`s sorptivity parameter using imbibition of water into rock was selected as a simple test to describe hydrologic parameters at both laboratory and field scales and to study effects of sample size and spatial variability. Laboratory-scale imbibition experiments were conducted on two sizes of core from two boreholes drilled in layered nonwelded tuff and fractured welded tuff. Laboratory experiments were compared with field experiments in the boreholes using neutron logs and a field-scale Mariotte system. Measured sorptivity for both sizes of core were virtually identical and both could predict field-scale sorptivity if enough samples were used to account for spatial heterogeneity. Core data was less useful in predicting the neutron log data due to the nature of the neutron probe measurement and difficulties in accounting for effects of the unique system geometry. Mean neutron log values could not predict the field results from the welded borehole due to fractures transmitting but not retaining water, and could not predict laboratory results because of scale and sampling volume differences. The mean neutron log data could, however, approximate the large-scale field results in the nonwelded borehole.

Nevada

Influence of seasonal climatic variability on shallow infiltration at Yucca Mountain

To analyze infiltration and the redistribution of moisture in alluvial deposits at Yucca Mountain, water content profiles at a 13.5 m deep borehole were measured at monthly intervals using a neutron moisture probe. Increases in water content to a maximum depth of 1.8 m in response to winter season precipitation were noted. Below a depth of 1.8 m, a gradual drying trend was indicated. A simulation study showed that, although small amounts of water may be percolating through the deep nonwetted ones of the profile, the influence of climatic variability on infiltration through thick alluvial deposits at Yucca Mountain is greatly mitigated by evapotranspiration.

Conference Paper

Precipitation estimation in mountainous terrain using multivariate geostatistics. Part I: structural analysis

Values of average annual precipitation (AAP) are desired for hydrologic studies within a watershed containing Yucca Mountain, Nevada, a potential site for a high-level nuclear-waste repository. Reliable values of AAP are not yet available for most areas within this watershed because of a sparsity of precipitation measurements and the need to obtain measurements over a sufficient length of time. To estimate AAP over the entire watershed, historical precipitation data and station elevations were obtained from a network of 62 stations in southern Nevada and southeastern California. Multivariate geostatistics (cokriging) was selected as an estimation method because of a significant (p = 0.05) correlation of r = .75 between the natural log of AAP and station elevation. A sample direct variogram for the transformed variable, TAAP = ln [(AAP) 1000], was fitted with an isotropic, spherical model defined by a small nugget value of 5000, a range of 190 000 ft, and a sill value equal to the sample variance of 163 151. Elevations for 1531 additional locations were obtained from topographic maps to improve the accuracy of cokriged estimates. A sample direct variogram for elevation was fitted with an isotropic model consisting of a nugget value of 5500 and three nested transition structures: a Gaussian structure with a range of 61 000 ft, a spherical structure with a range of 70 000 ft, and a quasi-stationary, linear structure. The use of an isotropic, stationary model for elevation was considered valid within a sliding-neighborhood radius of 120 000 ft. The problem of fitting a positive-definite, nonlinear model of coregionalization to an inconsistent sample cross variogram for TAAP and elevation was solved by a modified use of the Cauchy-Schwarz inequality. A selected cross-variogram model consisted of two nested structures: a Gaussian structure with a range of 61 000 ft and a spherical structure with a range of 190 000 ft. Cross validation was used for model selection and for comparing the geostatistical model with six alternate estimation methods. Multivariate geostatistics provided the best cross-validation results.

Nevada

Precipitation estimation in mountainous terrain using multivariate geostatistics. Part II: isohyetal maps

Values of average annual precipitation (AAP) may be important for hydrologic characterization of a potential high-level nuclear-waste repository site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Reliable measurements of AAP are sparse in the vicinity of Yucca Mountain, and estimates of AAP were needed for an isohyetal mapping over a 2600-square-mile watershed containing Yucca Mountain. Estimates were obtained with a multivariate geostatistical model developed using AAP and elevation data from a network of 42 precipitation stations in southern Nevada and southeastern California. An additional 1531 elevations were obtained to improve estimation accuracy. Isohyets representing estimates obtained using univariate geostatistics (kriging) defined a smooth and continuous surface. Isohyets representing estimates obtained using multivariate geostatistics (cokriging) defined an irregular surface that more accurately represented expected local orographic influences on AAP. Cokriging results included a maximum estimate within the study area of 335 mm at an elevation of 7400 ft, an average estimate of 157 mm for the study area, and an average estimate of 172 mm at eight locations in the vicinity of the potential repository site. Kriging estimates tended to be lower in comparison because the increased AAP expected for remote mountainous topography was not adequately represented by the available sample. Regression results between cokriging estimates and elevation were similar to regression results between measured AAP and elevation. The position of the cokriging 250-mm isohyet relative to the boundaries of pinyon pine and juniper woodlands provided indirect evidence of improved estimation accuracy because the cokriging result agreed well with investigations by others concerning the relationship between elevation, vegetation, and climate in the Great Basin. Calculated estimation variances were also mapped and compared to evaluate improvements in estimation accuracy. Cokriging estimation variances were reduced by an average of 54% relative to kriging variances within the study area. Cokriging reduced estimation variances at the potential repository site by 55% relative to kriging. The usefulness of an existing network of stations for measuring AAP within the study area was evaluated using cokriging variances, and twenty additional stations were located for the purpose of improving the accuracy of future isohyetal mappings. Using the expanded network of stations, the maximum cokriging estimation variance within the study area was reduced by 78% relative to the existing network, and the average estimation variance was reduced by 52%.

Nevada