Search USGS⌕ Search

Geology topics

Marilyn E. Pabst

Publications and source records attributed to Marilyn E. Pabst.

22 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

January 1977 water levels, and data related to water-level changes since 1950, western Kansas

This report contains basic data on water-level measurements in observation wells in western Kansas. Most of the measurements were made in January 1977; a few were made in December 1976 and in February 1977. The measurements were made in mid-winter when pumping was minimal and water levels had recovered from the effects of pumping during the previous irrigation season. This report also contains basic hydrologic data for 1950-77 that are provided for consideration in relation to the January 1977 water-level measurements. The annual water-level measurements are made by personnel of the Division of Water Resources of the Kansas State Board of Agriculture and of the U.S. Geological Survey. State-agency support for this program is provided through the Kansas Geological Survey. Wells in this report are numbered according to the Bureau of Land Management's system of land subdivision. In this system, the first set of digits of a well number indicates the township; the second set, the range east or west of the sixth prinicipal meridian; and the third set, the section in which the well is situated. The first letter denotes the 160-acre tract, the second, the 40-acre tract, and the third, the 10-acre tract. The letters are designated in a counterclockwise direction beginning in the northeast quarter of the section. Where there is more than one well in a 10-acre tract, consecutive numbers, beginning with "2", are added in the order in which the wells are inventoried.

Kansas↗

Water development for irrigation in northwestern Kansas

Northwestern Kansas, an area of 8,050 square miles (21,000 square kilometres), is a flat to gently rolling plain that is dissected by the Smoky Hill and Republican Rivers. Loessial soils underlying the plain are ideal for cultivation. The climate is semiarid with the mean annual precipitation ranging from 16 to 21 inches (41 to 53 centimetres). Precipitation occurring mainly as thunderstorms during the 6-month growing season is four to five times less than the potential evaporation. Principal aquifers are the Dakota Formation, which yields a few gallons per minute of water to domestic and stock wells; the Ogallala Formation, which commonly yields 500 to 1,200 gallons per minute (32 to 76 litres per second) to irrigation wells; and the alluvium, which locally yields as much as 1,500 gallons per minute (95 litres per second) to irrigation wells. Irrigation by ground water from wells has developed principally since the early 1950's. Development has increased from about 100 wells irrigating 10,000 acres (4,000 hectares) in 1950 to about 2,200 wells irrigating 300,000 acres (120,000 hectares) in 1972. The rate of withdrawal by irrigation, municipal, and industrial wells in 1972 was about 500,000 acre-feet (620 x 10 6 cubic metres) of water per year, of which about 99 percent was for irrigation. A comparison of water levels measured in 1950 and in 1973 indicates that declines greater than 10 feet (3 metres) are common in much of the area. Declines greater than 30 feet (9 metres) have occurred near Goodland and Colby. The areas of greatest irrigation-well density correspond to the areas of greatest water-level decline. More ground water could be withdrawn annually for irrigation, but additional water-level declines in some areas may make the wells uneconomical to pump. The ground-water reservoir can be managed to prolong the irrigation economy of the area.

Kansas↗

Water resources of Gove, Logan, and Wallace Counties, west-central Kansas

This atlas presents information on the geology and water resources of a three-county area in west-central Kansas (index map). The report is intended promarily as a guide to the availability of ground water, which is the main source of supply for domestic, stock, inductrial, irrigation, and municipal uses.

Kansas↗