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Research about North Dakota

Source-linked reports with geographic coverage including North Dakota.

432 records · Page 24Linked to original sources
USGS1950

Geology and ground-water hydrology of the Heart River irrigation project and the Dickinson area, North Dakota

The Heart River irrigation project, in southwestern North Dakota, lies in the Missouri Plateau section of the Great Plains physiographic province, which extends from the Missouri escarpment to and beyond the western border of the State. The area ranges in altitude from 1,620 to 2,275 feet and locally has strong relief. The floor of the Heart River Valley is underlain by alluvial deposits of Quaternary age. In the westernmost part of the areas the Fort Union formation of Paleocene (Tertiary) age forms the valley sides, but in a downstream direction the Cannonball and Ludlow formations, here undifferentiated, also of Paleocene age, crop out in the valley sides and underlie progressively broader areas of the upland surface. The Hell Creek formation of Upper Cretaceous age appears above stream level only in the stretch of the valley between the center of T. 136 N., R. 85 W., and the northeastern part of T.. 137 N., R. 84 W. Glacial Drift, which once covered the whole area, now has been almost entirely removed by erosion except for .scattered boulders on the uplands. The Cannonball and Ludlow unit and the Fort Union formation yield, moderate supplies of ground water, and the river alluvium yields more abundant supplies. At the present rate of withdrawal and with normal precipitation there is little danger of seriously depleting the supply. In 1946 the average depth to water in observation wells in the Heart River Valley was 19 feet, whereas the depth to water in observation wells in the upland averaged 30 feet. The Dickinson area is small and is about 45 miles upstream from the Heart River irrigation project. Ground-water levels in the Dickinson municipal well field have declined considerably within recent years, but the impounding of Heart River water is expected to insure a more adequate water supply for the town. Samples of ground water from four wells in the lower Heart River Valley were analyzed to determine the present mineral character of the waters in this region. Waters from shallow and deep wells in the Dickinson area were analyzed to assist in determining the practicability of further utilization of ground water as a public supply. A map showing areas of the least-mineralized ground water in the Dickinson area is presented and the need of further exploratory work is discussed.

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USGS1950

Progress report: chemical character of surface waters in the Devils Lake Basin, North Dakota

Devils Lake in northeastern North Dakota was at one time the most popular summer resort in the state. With decline in lake level the lake has become a shallow body pf vary saline water, which scenic value and recreational appeal completely destroyed. Under the Missouri River development program, it is proposed to restore the lake level to an altitude of 1,425 feet by diversion of Missouri River water. The chemical character of the water in Devils Lake and in other surface bodies in Devils Lake Basin is determined from the analyses of 95 samples. The physical and chemical properties of lake bed deposits are also shown. Lake water in the basin vary considerable in both concentration and composition, ranging from fresh bicarbonate waters of 300 parts per million dissolved solids to sulfate waters of over 100,000 parts per million of soluble salts. Twenty-four samples indicates the chemical character of water in the Red River of the North and its tributaries. The probable concentration of dissolved solids in water of Devils Lake at altitude 1,425 feet has been estimated as ranging from 3,000 to 7,600 parts per million. Final concentration will largely depend upon the percentage of deposited salts reentering solution and the quality of the inflow water. The possible effects of lake effluents on downstream developments, with particular reference to sanitation and pollution problems, are also discussed in this report.

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USGS1949

Progress report on the geology and ground-water hydrology of the Lower Missouri-Souris Unit; Part 1, Crosby-Mohall area, North Dakota

The Crosby-Mohall area covers about 2,700 square miles in the north- western part of North Dakota. This area is included in the 2,500,000-acre Missouri-Souris and Garrison Diversion irrigation projects,which are im portant units in the general plans for development of the water resources of the Missouri River Basin. Although the Crosby-Mohall area lies outside the drainage basin of the Missouri River, plans have been made for the irrigation of about 1,000,0)0 acres (equivalent to 1,560 square miles) of the most suitable land, with water brought by canal from the Missouri River in Montana. The studies that have been undertaken in the area by the Division of Ground Water of the United States Geological Survey form a part of the investigations which have been initiated by the Survey and several other bureaus of the Department of the Interior, especially the Bureau of Reclamation. The studies on which the present report is bas2 were made during the field seasons of 1945, 1946 and 1947, to obtain information on the occurrence, movement, quantity, and quality of the ground water. The report contains data on the several kinds of water-bearing materials, water analyses, and well logs; the records of fluctuation of water level in about 400 wells; and an inventory of 4,636 wells and test holes. Later studies for the whole of the Missouri-Souris Unit will supply additional data on ground-water levels and piezometric surfaces, more extensive information on quality of water, a complete inventory of wells, and further geologic information relating to ground-water supplies. Other work that is planned also includes the drilling of additional test holes and the analysis of water samples from representative wells throughout the area.

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USGS1947

Preliminary report on the general geology and engineering geology of Noonan quadrangle, North Dakota

The Noonan quadrangle is in northwestern North Dakota adjacent to the Dominion of Canada and approximately 35 miles east of Montana. The small coal-mining, farm, and railroad town of Noonan is located near the eastern edge of this sparsely populated area. The east-west State Highway 5 bisects the quadrangle. Cultural development in this area depends largely on agricultural exploitation of the glacial deposits that mantle the bedrock. For this reason, emphasis in this report is on the description, classification, and analysis of the surficial deposits. The geologic map is the base of the report. The map explanation includes a description of the material found in the various deposits along with the distinctive topographic and lithologic characteristics. Most of the text and the analyses of samples are written in tabular form so that specific information may be easily found. Depth relations may be determined from the cross section attached and the data on the map page. Most of the subsurface data in this report are inferred from drill-hole logs and water-well information provided by the North Dakota State Geological Survey, the U. S. Bureau of Reclamation, and the Ground Water Division of the U. S. Geological Survey.

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USGS1942

Water supply of the Dakota sandstone in the Ellendale-Jamestown area, North Dakota, with reference to changes between 1923 and 1938

The Dakota sandstone underlies most of North Dakota and South Dakota and considerable parts of nearby States. In most of the area that it occupies it is covered with thick deposits of younger formations, chiefly shale, that confine the water in the sandstone under considerable pressure. Where the topography is favorable, as it is in the Ellendale-Jamestown area in southeastern North Dakota, wells that tap the sandstone flow at the surface. The first well in North Dakota to tap the Dakota sandstone was drilled in 1886 in the city of Ellendale. It was started as an 8- or 10-inch hole and was finished at a depth of 1,087 feet with a 3%-inch casing. It flowed 600 to 700 gallons a minute and had a pressure reported by different persons as being from 115 to 175 pounds to the square inch. The expense of drilling such large and deep wells discouraged their construction for a time. About 1900, however, the jetting method of drilling was introduced^ and during the following two decades hundreds of farm wells 1 inch to 2 inches in diameter were sunk to the sandstone. The decline in artesian head that resulted from the increased draft on the basin was not apparent at first, but by about 1915 the flow of most wells had decreased noticeably and the flow of a few wells in the western part of the area of flow stopped entirely. It is estimated that by 1923 the artesian head at the western boundary of the area of artesian flow had fallen about 330 feet from its original level. In 1916 steps were taken to initiate measures for conserving the artesian water in North Dakota, but it was not until 1921 that the State legislature passed a law providing for the reduction of flow of artesian wells to that which could be used beneficially. The enforcement of the law was placed in the office of the State geologist, and this difficult task was assigned to H. E. Simpson, who directed the work until his death in 1938. Between 1923 and 1928 each artesian well in the Ellendale-Jamestown area was visited and advice was given the owner regarding the flow to which his well should be reduced. Many of the wells were visited again between 1928 and 1935 in order to check on whether the flow had been sufficiently reduced. Through this program much artesian water was conserved and much valuable information was obtained on the discharge from the basin. It is estimated that between 1920 and 1923 the artesian head in the western part of the Ellendale-Jamestown area declined at an annual rate of about 4 feet, whereas in 1938 the rate of decline was only about 0.5 foot a year. Between 1915 and 1923 the part of the area of artesian flow in the Edgeley quadrangle was reduced an average of 16.5 square miles a year as a result of the eastward movement of the western boundary of the area. Between 1923 and 1938, however, the average rate of shrinkage of this part of the area of artesian flow was only about 4.5 square miles a year. The perennial recharge to each row of townships in the area of artesian flow has been estimated to be about 500 gallons a minute. In 1923 the flow from wells in T. 129 N., Rs. 50 to 65 W., was about 1,000 gallons a minute, or twice the estimated recharge. In 1938 the flow from wells in this row of townships was about 520 gallons a minute, or only slightly more than the estimated recharge. Thus it appears that a balance is being approached between the withdrawal of water from the basin and the perennial recharge to it. It is believed that the water withdrawn from the basin in excess of the perennial recharge has been obtained from storage by the compression of .the sandstone and associated beds of shale due to the increased load placed upon them by the decline in artesian pressure. Calculations made on this theory indicate that the coefficient of storage is about 0.001 that is, about 0.001 cubic foot of water is released from each column of sandstone and shale 1 foot square for each foot of decline in artesian head. Additional computations show that the effect of the large decline in artesian pressure in southeastern North Dakota probably has caused only a few feet of lowering of artesian head at distances of more than 100 miles west of the area of artesian flow. The quality of the artesian water is very poor and much of it is unfit for human consumption. Of the 33 analyses included in this report, all show total dissolved solids of more than 2,200 parts per million. Much of the water is salty, and all contains sufficient fluoride to cause mottling of the enamel of the teeth. The temperature of the water from flowing wells ranges from 47° to 69° F.

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USGS1929

Geology and ground-water resources of North Dakota, with a discussion of the chemical character of the water

Water is the most valuable of the mineral resources. The study of ground waters is therefore clearly within the field of economic geology and constitutes an important part of the work of the geological surveys, both State and national, as defined by law. In the spring of 1911 the investigation of the ground waters of North Dakota was begun by the North Dakota Geological Survey, and the work was assigned to the author of this paper. During each of the three summers 1911, 1912, and 1913 several weeks were devoted by the author to the field work of a general survey. A report on the ground waters of the State was then prepared by him and was transmitted by the director of the North Dakota Geological Survey to the State printing commission for publication. However, owing to lack of available funds the report was not published. A portion of the summer of 1914 was given to a study of artesian conditions in the Souris River Basin. Since that time considerable work has been done in connection with detailed surveys made for a number of cities and villages in an effort to obtain the best available supply of water for public use. During the summer of 1920 arrangements were made by the United States Geological Survey with the North Dakota Geological Survey whereby the author completed the work as fully as possible by correspondence and brought the report up to date. In the spring of 1921 samples of water from 196 sources were collected by the author and J. H. Buchanan and were sent to the United States Geological Survey for analysis. Most of these samples were analyzed by H. B. Riffenburg, who has used the analyses for a description of the chemical character of ground waters in the State. In addition to the analyses of samples collected in connection with the preparation of this report, over 700 partial analyses from different sources were examined. These analyses are not given in this paper, because the location of many of the wells was not stated definitely, and most of the analyses were incomplete. They were useful, however, in confirming the conclusions based on the analyses that are printed, particularly for counties where only a few samples were collected for this report.

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USGS1925

The artesian water supply of the Dakota sandstone in North Dakota, with special reference to the Edgeley quadrangle

The Dakota sandstone and the overlying dense plastic shales form the most remarkable artesian basin in the United States with respect to its great extent, the long distances through which its water has percolated from the outcrops of the sandstone in the western mountains to the areas of artesian flow, and especially the tremendous pressure under which the water in the sandstone was originally by thick and continuous cover of impermeable shales. In 1882 a well was drilled to the Dakota sandstone at Aberdeen, S. Dak., by the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Co. This well was reported by Nettleton 1 to have been "the first bore put down which reached the artesian basin of the Dakotas." In 1896 Darton 2 estimated that about 400 artesian wells had been drilled to the Dakota sandstone, presumably in South Dakota and adjacent parts of the artesian basin in North Dakota which he investigated. 3 The strongest of these wells had pressures ranging from 100 to more than 200 pounds to the square inch and flows ranging from 1,000 to more than 4,000 gallons a minute. The present brief paper is based chiefly on the data that have been obtained in the successive surveys in regard to about 230 artesian wells in or near the Edgeley quadrangle. A table of these well data is on file in the United States Geological Survey and is to be published in the detailed report on the geology and hydrology of the Edgeley and La Moure quadrangles that has been prepared by Mr. Hard. The well data obtained by Mr. Hard have already been published in a report prepared by him in his capacity as State flood-control engineer.

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