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Results for “Pennsylvania Geology”

Search indexed USGS publications on groundwater, aquifers, geologic maps, mineral resources and earthquakes. Explore source records by subject and place.

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At least 505 records · Page 28Linked to original sources
USGS1986

Ground-water availability in the Genesee River Basin, New York and Pennsylvania

New York State 's need to develop a groundwater management strategy for the protection of its aquifers led, in 1985, to a cooperative program between the U.S. Geological Survey and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, through the Genesee/Finger Lakes Regional Planning Council, to publish basinwide groundwater availability maps. As a part of this program, several maps that had been compiled during the 1960s, were selected for publication through a grant between the State and several regional planning agencies. These maps depict the surficial geology and groundwater availability of the basin at 1:125,000 scale. Each map consists of two sheets; sheets 1 and 2 depict the groundwater availability and geology of the northern and southern parts of the basin, and sheets 3 and 4 depict well and test-hole locations within the northern and southern parts of the basin. (Lantz-PTT)

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS2011

Trace metals related to historical iron smelting at Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site, Berks and Chester Counties, Pennsylvania

Iron ore containing elevated concentrations of trace metals was smelted at Hopewell Furnace during its 113 years of operation (1771-1883). The ore used at Hopewell Furnace was obtained from iron mines within 5 miles of the furnace. The iron-ore deposits were formed about 200 million years ago and contain abundant magnetite, the primary iron mineral, and accessory minerals enriched in arsenic, cobalt, copper, lead, and other metals. Hopewell Furnace, built by Mark Bird during 1770-71, was one of the last of the charcoal-burning, cold-blast iron furnaces operated in Pennsylvania. The most productive years for Hopewell Furnace were from 1830 to 1837. Castings were the most profitable product, especially the popular Hopewell Stove. More than 80,000 stoves were cast at Hopewell, which produced as many as 23 types and sizes of cooking and heating stoves. Beginning in the 1840s, the iron industry shifted to large-scale, steam-driven coke and anthracite furnaces. Independent rural enterprises like Hopewell could no longer compete when the iron and steel industries consolidated in urban manufacturing centers. The furnace ceased operation in 1883 (Kurjack, 1954). The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the National Park Service, completed a study at Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site (NHS) in Berks and Chester Counties, Pennsylvania, to determine the fate of toxic trace metals, such as arsenic, cobalt, and lead, released into the environment during historical iron-smelting operations. The results of the study, conducted during 2008-10, are presented in this fact sheet.

Pennsylvania↗
USGS1979

Chemical analysis of 617 coal samples from the Eastern United States

This report includes all the analytical data on 617 coal samples from 8 states east of the Mississippi River. The samples from each state are, Pennsylvania 71, Ohio 40, West Virginia 252, Virginia 72, Kentucky 27, Tennessee 27, Alabama 20, and Indiana 108. The U.S. Geological Survey has quantitatively determined the amounts of 35 major, minor and trace elements in each sample. It has also searched for 35 other trace elements using semi-quantitative spectrographic methods. In addition, the Coal Analysis Section of the Department of Energy has provided proximate and ultimate analyses, Btu, forms of sulfur, free swelling index, and ash fusion temperatures on 491 samples. Comparison of the geometric means of these samples with 331 bituminous coal samples of the Appalachian region reported by Swanson and others (1976) are as follows. As shown by the means for ultimate and proximate analyses small differences exist between the two sets of data, only the moisture content and oxygen are significantly different. The forms of sulfur and heat of combustion are also similar. The means for the major and minor oxides in ash are similar for SiO 2 , Al 2 O 3 , CaO, MgO, K 2 O 3 and TiO 2 . Na 2 O is significantly lower and Fe 2 O 3 and MnO higher in the analyses of the 617 samples of this report. Most means for the trace elements in the coals studied for this report are lower. Only Be is significantly higher in these coals.

Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Te↗
USGS1974

Hydrologic Unit Map -- 1974, State of Pennsylvania

This map and accompanying table show Hydrologic Units that are basically hydrographic in nature. The Cataloging Units shown will supplant the Cataloging Units previously used by the U.S. Geological Survey in its Catalog of Information on Water Data (1966-72). The previous U.S. Geological Survey Catalog-Indexing System was by map number and letter, such as 49M.

Pennsylvania↗
USGS2003

Hydrogeology of the Waverly-Sayre area in Tioga and Chemung Counties, New York and Bradford county, Pennsylvania

The hydrogeology of a 135-square-mile area centered at Waverly, N.Y. and Sayre, Pa. is summarized in a set of five maps and a sheet of geologic sections, all at 1:24,000 scale, that depict locations of wells and test holes (sheet 1), surficial geology (sheet 2), altitude of the water table (sheet 3), saturated thickness of the surficial aquifer (sheet 4), thickness of the lacustrine confining unit (sheet 5), and geologic sections (sheet 6). The valley-fill deposits that form the aquifer system in the Waverly-Sayre area occupy an area of approximately 30 square miles, within the valleys of the Susquehanna River, Chemung River, and Cayuta Creek. The saturated thickness of the surficial aquifer, which consists of alluvium, valley-train outwash, and underlying ice-contact deposits, ranges from zero to 90 feet and is greatest in areas where (1) the outwash is underlain by ice-contact sand and gravel or (2) the outwash is overlain by alluvium and alluvial fans. Estimated transmissivity of the surficial aquifer ranges from 5,600 to 100,270 feet squared per day, and estimated hydraulic conductivity ranges from 50 feet per day for ice-contact deposits to 1,300 feet per day for well-sorted, valley-train outwash. The surficial aquifer is underlain by deposits of lacustrine sand, silt, and clay in the main valleys; these deposits reach thicknesses of as much as 150 ft and form a thick confining unit. Beneath the lacustrine silt and clay confining unit is a thin, discontinuous sand and gravel aquifer whose thickness averages 5 feet but may be as much as 30 feet locally. This confined aquifer supplies many domestic well in the area; yields average about 22 gallons per minute for 6-inch-diameter, open-ended wells. Average annual recharge to the aquifer system is estimated to be approximately 52.5 Mgal/d (million gallons per day), of which 29.7 Mgal/d is from direct precipitation, 7.6 Mgal/d is from unchanneled upland runoff that infiltrates the stratified drift along the valley wall, and 15.2 Mgal/d is from infiltration from tributary streams on the valley floor.

New York, Pennsylvania↗
USGS2008

Regression method for estimating long-term mean annual ground-water recharge rates from base flow in Pennsylvania

A method was developed for making estimates of long-term, mean annual ground-water recharge from streamflow data at 80 streamflow-gaging stations in Pennsylvania. The method relates mean annual base-flow yield derived from the streamflow data (as a proxy for recharge) to the climatic, geologic, hydrologic, and physiographic characteristics of the basins (basin characteristics) by use of a regression equation. Base-flow yield is the base flow of a stream divided by the drainage area of the basin, expressed in inches of water basinwide. Mean annual base-flow yield was computed for the period of available streamflow record at continuous streamflow-gaging stations by use of the computer program PART, which separates base flow from direct runoff on the streamflow hydrograph. Base flow provides a reasonable estimate of recharge for basins where streamflow is mostly unaffected by upstream regulation, diversion, or mining. Twenty-eight basin characteristics were included in the exploratory regression analysis as possible predictors of base-flow yield. Basin characteristics found to be statistically significant predictors of mean annual base-flow yield during 1971-2000 at the 95-percent confidence level were (1) mean annual precipitation, (2) average maximum daily temperature, (3) percentage of sand in the soil, (4) percentage of carbonate bedrock in the basin, and (5) stream channel slope. The equation for predicting recharge was developed using ordinary least-squares regression. The standard error of prediction for the equation on log-transformed data was 9.7 percent, and the coefficient of determination was 0.80. The equation can be used to predict long-term, mean annual recharge rates for ungaged basins, providing that the explanatory basin characteristics can be determined and that the underlying assumption is accepted that base-flow yield derived from PART is a reasonable estimate of ground-water recharge rates. For example, application of the equation for 370 hydrologic units in Pennsylvania predicted a range of ground-water recharge from about 6.0 to 22 inches per year. A map of the predicted recharge illustrates the general magnitude and variability of recharge throughout Pennsylvania.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2019

Drinking water health standards comparison and chemical analysis of groundwater for 72 domestic wells in Bradford County, Pennsylvania, 2016

Pennsylvania has the second highest number of residential wells of any state in the Nation with approximately 2.4 million residents that depend on groundwater for their domestic water supply. Despite the widespread reliance on groundwater in rural areas of the state, publicly available data to characterize the quality of private well water are limited. In Bradford County, more than half of the residents use groundwater from private domestic-supply wells as their primary drinking source. The quality of private well water is influenced by the regional and local setting, including the surrounding soil, geology, land use, household plumbing, and well construction. The groundwater used for domestic water supply in Bradford County is obtained primarily from shallow bedrock and from unconsolidated (glacial) deposits that overlie the bedrock. Historical land use has been predominately forested, agricultural, and residential, but more recently unconventional oil/gas development has been distributed throughout the landscape. Pennsylvania is one of only two states in the Nation without statewide water-well construction standards. To better assess the quality of groundwater used for drinking water supply in Bradford County, data for 72 domestic wells were collected and analyzed for a wide range of constituents that could be evaluated in relation to drinking water health standards, geology, land use, and other environmental factors. Groundwater samples were collected from May through August 2016 and analyzed for physical and chemical properties, including major ions, nutrients, trace elements, volatile organic compounds, ethylene and propylene glycol, alcohols, gross-alpha/beta-particle activity, uranium, radon-222, and dissolved gases. A subset of samples was analyzed for radium isotopes (radium-226 and -228) and for the isotopic composition of methane. This study was conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Northern Tier Regional Planning and Development Commission and is part of a regional effort to characterize groundwater in rural areas of Pennsylvania. Results of the 2016 study show that groundwater quality generally met most drinking-water standards. However, a percentage of samples failed to meet maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) for total coliform bacteria (49.3 percent), Escherichia coli (8.5 percent), barium (2.8 percent), and arsenic (2.8 percent); and secondary maximum contaminant levels (SMCL) for sodium (48.6 percent), manganese (30.6 percent), gross alpha and beta activity (16.7 percent), iron (11.1 percent), pH (8.3 percent), total dissolved solids (5.6 percent), chloride (1.4 percent), and aluminum (1.4 percent). Radon-222 activities exceeded the proposed drinking-water standard of 300 picocuries per liter (pCi/L) in 70.4 percent of the samples. There were no exceedances of drinking water health standards for any volatile organic compounds, and the only detections were for three trihalomethanes in one sample. The pH of the groundwater had a large influence on chemical characteristics and ranged from 6.18 to 9.31. Generally, the higher pH samples had higher potential for elevated concentrations of several constituents, including total dissolved solids, sodium, lithium, chloride, fluoride, boron, arsenic, and methane. For the Bradford County well-water samples, calcium/bicarbonate type waters were most abundant, with others classified as sodium/bicarbonate or mixed water types including calcium-sodium/bicarbonate, calcium-sodium/bicarbonate-chloride, sodium/bicarbonate-chloride, sodium/bicarbonate-sulfate, or sodium/chloride types. Six principal components (pH, redox, hardness, chloride-bromide, strontium-barium, and molybdenum-arsenic) explained nearly 78.3 percent of the variance in the groundwater dataset. Groundwater from 12.5 percent of the wells had concentrations of methane greater than the Pennsylvania action level of 7 milligrams per liter (mg/L); detectable methane concentrations ranged from 0.01 to 77 mg/L. In addition, low levels of ethane (as much as 0.13 mg/L) were present in seven samples with the highest methane concentrations. The isotopic composition of methane in five of these groundwater samples was consistent with the isotopic compositions reported for mud-gas logging samples from these geologic units and a thermogenic source. Isotopic composition from a sixth sample suggested the methane in that sample may be of microbial origin. Well-water samples with the higher methane concentrations also had higher pH values and elevated concentrations of sodium, lithium, boron, fluoride, arsenic, and bromide. Relatively elevated concentrations of some other constituents, such as barium and chloride, commonly were present in, but not limited to, those well-water samples with elevated methane. Four of the six groundwater samples with the highest methane concentrations had chloride/bromide ratios that indicate mixing with a small amount of brine (0.02 percent or less) similar in composition to those reported for gas and oil well brines in Pennsylvania. In several other eastern Pennsylvania counties where gas drilling is absent, groundwater with comparable chloride/bromide ratios and chloride concentrations have been reported, implying a potential natural source of brine. Most of Bradford County well-water samples have chloride concentrations less than 20 mg/L, and those with higher chloride concentrations have chloride/bromide ratios that indicate anthropogenic sources (such as road-deicing salt and septic effluent) or brine. Brines that are naturally present may originate from deeper parts of the aquifer system, whereas anthropogenic sources are more likely to affect shallow groundwater because they occur on or near the land surface. The available data for this study indicate that no one physical factor, such as the topographic setting, well depth, or altitude at the bottom of the well, was particularly useful for predicting those well locations with an elevated dissolved concentration of methane. The 2016 assessment of groundwater quality in Bradford County shows groundwater is generally of good quality, but methane and some constituents that occur in high concentration in naturally occurring brine and also in produced waters may be present at low to moderate concentrations in groundwater in various parts of the aquifer.

Pennsylvania↗