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Storage of ground water behind sub surface dams in the Columbia River Basalt, Washington, Oregon and Idaho: hydrology of volcanic-rock terranes. Professional paper 383-A Item Info

The Columbia River basalt, a thick sequence of accordantly layered lava flows, forms the bedrock beneath about 50,000 square miles in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. The rubbly rock at the top and bottom of some of the flows is permeable and transmits water laterally between the flows. Where the strata are displaced vertically by faults, barriers to movement of the water are common. Where these barriers are transverse to the dip of the basalt layers, ground-water reservoirs are formed. Many such reservoirs are present in mountainous areas or on the flanks of mountain uplands, and their water has been little used to date. Properly designed and constructed test wells are suggested as a means of determining the feasibility of withdrawing water from these reservoirs during the growing season and allowing the reservoirs to refill during the winter and spring. Benefits from such a practice may be especially great in stream valleys where water is needed in the late summer.

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Title:
Storage of ground water behind sub surface dams in the Columbia River Basalt, Washington, Oregon and Idaho: hydrology of volcanic-rock terranes. Professional paper 383-A
Authors:
Newcomb, R.C.
Date Created (ISO Standard):
1962-05
Description:
The Columbia River basalt, a thick sequence of accordantly layered lava flows, forms the bedrock beneath about 50,000 square miles in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. The rubbly rock at the top and bottom of some of the flows is permeable and transmits water laterally between the flows. Where the strata are displaced vertically by faults, barriers to movement of the water are common. Where these barriers are transverse to the dip of the basalt layers, ground-water reservoirs are formed. Many such reservoirs are present in mountainous areas or on the flanks of mountain uplands, and their water has been little used to date. Properly designed and constructed test wells are suggested as a means of determining the feasibility of withdrawing water from these reservoirs during the growing season and allowing the reservoirs to refill during the winter and spring. Benefits from such a practice may be especially great in stream valleys where water is needed in the late summer.
Subjects:
geohydrology test wells water storage permeability
Location:
Columbia Basalt
Latitude:
46.96
Longitude:
-118.08
Collection:
Palouse Basin
Rights:
Rights to the digital resource are held by the University of Idaho. http://www.uidaho.edu/
Publisher:
US Geological Survey Professional Paper 383-A
Contributing Institution:
University of Idaho
Type:
Text
Format:
application/pdf
Cataloger:
wbv
Date Digitized:
2012

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Source
Preferred Citation:
"Storage of ground water behind sub surface dams in the Columbia River Basalt, Washington, Oregon and Idaho: hydrology of volcanic-rock terranes. Professional paper 383-A", Idaho Waters Digital Library, University of Idaho Library Digital Collections, https://www.lib.uidaho.edu/digital/iwdl/items/iwdl-1962_newcomb_storage_of_g_w.html
Rights
Rights:
Rights to the digital resource are held by the University of Idaho. http://www.uidaho.edu/
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