Search USGS⌕ Search

Geology topics

Research about South Carolina

Source-linked reports with geographic coverage including South Carolina.

At least 397 records · Page 22Linked to original sources
USGS1985

Potentiometric surfaces of November 1982 and declines in the potentiometric surfaces between the period prior to development and November 1982 for the coastal plain aquifers of South Carolina

Characteristics of the Coastal Plains aquifer of South Carolina are being studied as a part of the Regional Aquifer Systems Analysis program of the U.S. Geological Survey. A framework has been developed to best represent the hydrology of the State by dividing the aquifers into a system of five aquifers. This framework includes a surficial aquifer consisting of coastal terrace deposits, a limestone and stratigraphically equivalent sand aquifer of Eocene age, and three sand aquifers of Cretaceous age. (USGS)

South Carolina↗
USGS1985

Cost effectiveness of the stream-gaging program in South Carolina

The cost effectiveness of the stream-gaging program in South Carolina was documented for the 1983 water yr. Data uses and funding sources were identified for the 76 continuous stream gages currently being operated in South Carolina. The budget of $422,200 for collecting and analyzing streamflow data also includes the cost of operating stage-only and crest-stage stations. The streamflow records for one stream gage can be determined by alternate, less costly methods, and should be discontinued. The remaining 75 stations should be maintained in the program for the foreseeable future. The current policy for the operation of the 75 stations including the crest-stage and stage-only stations would require a budget of $417,200/yr. The average standard error of estimation of streamflow records is 16.9% for the present budget with missing record included. However, the standard error of estimation would decrease to 8.5% if complete streamflow records could be obtained. It was shown that the average standard error of estimation of 16.9% could be obtained at the 75 sites with a budget of approximately $395,000 if the gaging resources were redistributed among the gages. A minimum budget of $383,500 is required to operate the program; a budget less than this does not permit proper service and maintenance of the gages and recorders. At the minimum budget, the average standard error is 18.6%. The maximum budget analyzed was $850,000, which resulted in an average standard error of 7.6 %. (Author 's abstract)

South Carolina↗
USGS1985

Hydrology and its effects on distribution of vegetation in Congaree Swamp National Monument, South Carolina

Congaree Swamp National Monument preserves a large stand of old-growth southern bottomland hardwood forest on the flood plain of the Congaree River. The distribution of vegetation types in the Monument is controlled by duration of saturated soil conditions during the growing season, which is related to duration of inundation by the flooding river. During dry periods upland streams fed by seepage from shallow and deep aquifers supply water to the flood plain, and the potentiometric gradient in the flood plain slopes toward the river. During floods river water flows into the flood plain through breaches in the natural levee, inundating as much as 90 percent of the Monument an average of once per year. During floods the potentiometric gradient briefly slopes away from the river. The frequency of large floods has decreased slightly since completion of Lake Murray Dam in 1929.

South Carolina↗
USGS1985

Potential impacts of discharging tertiary-treated wastewater into Port Royal Sound, South Carolina

An assessment of physical characteristics of Port Royal Sound was combined with the results of a dye tracer study and with data collected from a previous environmental study to describe the impact on the water quality from discharging tertiary treated wastewater into the sound. Calculated velocities for the time of maximum velocity in the tidal cycle ranged from 2.32 ft/sec near the bottom to 4.65 ft/sec near the surface of the sound in a cross section in the vicinity of a proposed wastewater outfall. Vertical velocity distributions calculated for the time of maximum velocity were similar at all stations at which velocities were measured except the station in shallow water near the shore. A recent bathymetric chart of the vicinity of the proposed outfall indicates that a bar extends farther along the northern shore of Hilton Head Island than indicated on earlier nautical charts of Port Royal Sound. Continued extension of this bar could alter the impact on water quality from discharge of treated wastewater into the sound. Further study may be needed to monitor changes in the bar if the outfall is located between the bar and Hilton Head Island. Conservative calculations based on the results of the dye tracer study indicate that the discharge of 10.9 million gallons/day of wastewater having concentrations of biochemical oxygen demand and suspended solids of 15 mg/L will result in a maximum cumulative increase in concentrations of biochemical oxygen demand of < 0.01 mg/L and no increase in concentrations of suspended solids at high slack tide in the part of Port Royal Sound most affected by the proposed wastewater discharge. (Author 's abstract)

South Carolina↗
USGS1984

Brief statement on the hydrology of the Sampit River area near Georgetown, South Carolina

The Carolina Refining and Distributing Company is planning to locate an oil-refining plant near Georgetown, South Carolina. To aid in the preparation of an environmental impact statement, a description of the stratigraphy, ground-water resources, and an assessment of possible seismic activity that may occur in the Winyah Bay vicinity has been prepared. Additional data will be required to quantitatively evaluate the impact of an oil spill on the shallow aquifer in the area. (USGS)

South Carolina↗
USGS1984

Water-Level Measurements for the Coastal Plain Aquifers of South Carolina Prior to Development

Tabulations of water-level measurements for the Coastal Plain aquifers of South Carolina representing water levels prior to man-made development are presented. Included with the tabulations are local well number, location, land-surface altitude, well depth, screened interval, depth to water, water- level altitude, and date measured. These water-level measurements were used in compiling regional potentiometric maps for the Coastal Plain aquifers. This data set will be useful in the planning for future water-resource development.

South Carolina↗
USGS1984

General description of the hydrology and burial trenches at the low-level radioactive waste burial facility near Barnwell, South Carolina

The Barnwell low-level radioactive solid waste burial site is located in Barnwell County, South Carolina, 5 miles west of the city of Barnwell. Approximately 1,050 feet of stratified gravel, sand, silt, clay, and limestone, ranging in age from Late Cretaceous to Holocene, underlie the burial site. Ground water within the study area occurs under water table, semi-confined, and artesian conditions. Overland flow and most precipitation that recharges the ground-water system at the burial site is discharged to Marys Branch Creek. This creek originates as a spring about 3,000 feet south of the burial site and flows to the southwest into lower Three Runs. Lower Three Runs discharges into the Savannah River. Waste shipments to the site were reduced from 200,000 cubic feet per month for the period 1971 to 1979 to 100,000 cubic feet per month by October 1981. The wastes consist of both nonfuel cycle and nuclear fuel-cycle wastes. The standard trench dimensions at the burial site are 100 feet wide by 1,000 feet long and 22 feet deep. Trench bottoms are a minimum of 5 feet above the water table. Seven soil mapping units occur at the waste disposal facility. The three major soil types are all well drained and cover approximately 84 percent of the study area. (USGS)

South Carolina↗
USGS1984

Quality of water from bedrock aquifers in the South Carolina Piedmont

The geographic distributions of 12 common water-quality parameters of ground water from bedrock aquifers in the Piedmont physiographic province of South Carolina are presented in a series of maps. The maps are based on analyses by the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control of water samples taken during the period 1972 to 1982 from 442 public and private wells developed in the Piedmont. In general, alkalinity, hardness, and concentrations of sodium, magnesium, and chloride were higher in the Carolina Slate Belt than they were in the other geologic belts of the Piedmont. (USGS)

South Carolina↗
USGS1984

Impact of the proposed I-326 crossing on the 500-year flood stages of the Congaree River near Columbia, South Carolina

A two-dimensional finite-element surface water flow modeling system based on the shallow water equations was used to study the hydraulic impact of the proposed Interstate crossing on the 500-year flood. Infrared aerial photography was used to define regions of homogeneous roughness in the flood plain. Finite-element networks approximating flood plain topography were designed using elements of three roughness types. High water marks established during an 8-year flood that occurred in October 1976 were used to calibrate the model. The 500-year flood (630,000 cu ft/sec) was simulated using the dike on the left bank as the left boundary and the right edge of the flood plain as the right boundary. Simulations were performed without and with the proposed highway embankments in place. Detailed information was obtained about backwater effects upstream from the proposed highway embankments, changes in flow distribution resulting from embankments, and velocities in the vicinity of the bridge openings. The results of the study indicate that the four bridge openings in the right flood plain should be adequate to handle the 500-yr flood flow. Forty percent of the flow passes through the main channel bridge, while the remaining 60% of the flow passes through the three overflow bridges. Average velocities in the bridge openings ranged from 3.4 ft/sec to 6.9 ft/sec with a maximum vertically averaged velocity of 9.3 ft/sec occurring at the right edge of one of the overflow bridges.

South Carolina↗
USGS1984

Floodflow characteristics of Filbin Creek at proposed interstate highway 526, North Charleston, South Carolina

A study to determine the impact of two alternative construction plans for proposed interchange between the existing Interstate Highway 26 and Interstate Highway 526 in the Filbin Creek drainage basin near North Charleston, South Carolina was performed by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the South Carolina Department of Highways and Public Transportation. A computerized reservoir routing technique was used to route synthetic flood hydrographs through the basin system. Simulation results indicate that the new roadway will cause little or no change in water-surface elevations downstream of Interstate Highway 26. Upstream of Interstate Highway 26, approximately 0.5 foot of backwater will be created by either alternative during a 100-year flood as a result of the Interstate Highway 526 embankments and structures. (USGS)

South Carolina↗
USGS1984

A new occurrence of telluride minerals in South Carolina

A study of drill cores from the Haile gold mine, Lancaster County, South Carolina, has revealed grains containing large amounts of Te with various combinations of Pb, Ag and Au in pyrite. These telluride minerals have so far not been identified. The nearby Brewer mine, on the basis of chemical evidence, also contains tellurides. The probable telluride localities in South Carolina are now expanded to three, significantly increasing the few reports of Te minerals from the Au deposits of the southeastern Piedmont, many of which are now considered to be volcanogenic. The occurrence of telluride minerals in gold ore from the Haile-Brewer area may help to explain the divergence in Au/Ag ratios reported in chemical analyses of drill core, ore samples and production records. Te, in addition, may be useful in geochemical exploration programmes in the SE Piedmont, including programmes using heavy mineral concentrates derived from stream alluvium. -R.S.M.

South Carolina↗
USGS1983

Impact of discharges from point and nonpoint sources on water quality of the upper Reedy River near Greenville, South Carolina

Impacts of discharge from nonpoint sources in the urban area of Greenville, South Carolina and from the point source, the Mauldin Road Wastewater Treatment Plant, on water quality of the Reedy River were studied from October 1979 through September 1980. Streamflow and water-quality data were collected before and during two storms. The pH and concentrations of organic nitrogen, ammonium, nitrate plus nitrate, ultimate carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand, dissolved oxygen, and orthophosphate were determined. Streamflow and concentrations of dissolved oxygen were measured continuously at three stations from May through September 1980. Discharge from the point source resulted in average daily concentrations of dissolved oxygen less than 5 milligrams per liter in the Reedy River on 34 days during low streamflow in the summer of 1980. During periods of high streamflow that resulted from the two storms. Dissolved oxygen remained at about 5 milligrams per liter in the Reedy River because increased dilution of loads of oxygen-demanding materials reduced the impacts of these loads on the quality of the Reedy River. (USGS)

South Carolina↗