GROUND WATER ATLAS of the UNITED STATES

Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin

HA 730-J
1. SEGMENT 09
1.1 Geological Overview
The geologic nomenclature differs from State to State because of independent geologic
interpretations and varied distribution and lithology of rock units. Michigan region lies on the
periphery of the Canadian Shield, which is a vast province of extremely old (Precambrian) and
predominantly crystalline rocks in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The crystalline-rock surface
is an ancient erosional surface that yielded vast quantities of sediments through geologic time.
The sediments derived from the weathering of the crystalline rocks were transported and were
deposited as extensive sequences of sandstone, shale, and limestone. The Michigan Basin in the
Lower Peninsula of Michigan is the principal basin area.

Post depositional erosion of the sedimentary-rock sequence in Michigan region has beveled off
the sediments, especially in the topographically higher areas. As a consequence, successively
younger rocks form the bedrock surface downdip from the Transcontinental Arch and Wisconsin
Dome toward the Forest City, the Lower Peninsula of Michigan (figure.01) emphasize the
attitude of the rocks.
Figure 01: Generalized section showing bedrock units in the Michigan Basin

In some places, stratified deposits that consist of thin layers of principally fine-grained material
were laid down in glacial lakes. Stratified deposits also consist of mounds, hummocks, or terraces
of sand and gravel (kame or kame-terrace deposits) deposited by meltwater along an ice margin
or through an opening in the ice. Kame deposits tend to be extremely permeable and commonly
have collapse features that are the result of the melting of remnants of glacial ice beneath the
deposits. Some sorted and stratified deposits, especially those in deep bedrock valleys, were
overridden by later glaciation and covered by till or glacial-lake deposits. Many of these buried
deposits form productive aquifers; however, they are difficult to locate in the subsurface. Till is
unsorted and unstratified material that was deposited by the ice under and in front of the glacier.
Till consists of unsorted clay, silt, sand, gravel, and boulders. Because of the heterogenous nature
of till, it tends to have minimal permeability and yields only small quantities of water to wells.
1.2 Climate Information
Precipitation is the source of all water in Michigan region. Average annual precipitation ranges
from about 20 to 40 inches across the segment and generally increases from northwest to
southeast. Precipitation is least in the northwestern part of the segment because of the orographic
effect of the Rocky Mountains, which are hundreds of miles to the west. Annual precipitation in
excess of 36 inches that falls south and east of Lakes Superior and Michigan is a result of the
prevailing westerly winds. Average annual runoff in rivers and streams generally reflects average
annual precipitation patterns. Runoff generally increases from less than 1 to more than 20 inches.
Runoff also tends to be substantial downwind from Lakes Superior and Michigan. However, in no
part of the segment does runoff exceed precipitation. Much of the water from precipitation is
returned to the atmosphere by evapotranspiration-evaporation from the land and water surfaces,
and transpiration by plants. Some of the water is stored in aquifers through ground-water recharge
or is stored on the land surface in lakes, marshes, and reservoirs.
1.3 General Hydrogeology
There are two major aquifer systems and seven major aquifers in Segment consisting of rock
types that range in composition from unconsolidated glacial deposits to hard crystalline rocks. An
aquifer system consists of two or more aquifers that are hydraulically connected, and that function
similarly in response to changes in hydrologic conditions. Because rock types generally correlate
with geologic age in the segment, most aquifer systems and aquifers have been designated by
age, according to local usage. The major aquifer systems and aquifers in Segment 9 are, in
descending order: (a) the surficial aquifer system, which is generally present throughout the
segment; (b) the Cretaceous aquifer in southwestern Minnesota and northwestern Iowa; (c) the
Pennsylvanian aquifer in central Michigan; (d) the Mississippian aquifer in central and
southeastern Iowa and central Michigan the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system in Iowa.
The surficial aquifer system is the uppermost, and most widespread, aquifer system in the four-
State area. This system consists primarily of material deposited during multiple advances of
continental glaciers from the north during the Pleistocene and, possibly, Pliocene Epochs. The
bedrock surface of Segment 9 is obscured by thin to extremely thick unconsolidated glacial
deposits (representing the surficial aquifer system) except in the Driftless Area of southwestern
Wisconsin and adjacent parts of Minnesota and Iowa, which have not been glaciated; in smaller
areas, primarily in northern Minnesota and Wisconsin; and in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan,
where the glacial deposits have been removed by erosion. The surficial aquifer system is
generally hydraulically connected with each of the major bedrock aquifers in their area of outcrop.
All major bedrock aquifers, including those comprising the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system
in Segment 9, crop out at the bedrock surface, but also extend into the subsurface and yield
usable quantities of water in a much larger area than their outcrop.
1.4 Groundwater Withdrawal Rates
Ground water is a reliable source of water for nearly 13 million people (Table 1), or nearly 61
percent of the population of Segment 9. Water systems are approximately evenly divided between
public water-supply systems and private (domestic) water-supply systems. Ground water is the
source for nearly all public water-supply systems in small cities (less than 10,000 population) and
supplies nearly 100 percent of the unincorporated rural areas. Total fresh ground-water
withdrawals, by county, during 1985 in the four States of Segment 9 are illustrated in figure 2.
Large withdrawals in counties of each State are related to large population centers or
concentrations of industry or both. Many large cities located adjacent to major rivers or the Great
Lakes (for example, Milwaukee, Wis.) withdraw surface water for public supply; their effect is not
indicated on the map.

The trend toward increasing withdrawals has been confirmed by a 1987 compilation of water-use
data throughout the country by the U.S. Geological Survey. The surficial aquifer system, which is
present throughout most of the four-State area, supplied water at a rate of about 2.5 times as
much as the next largest producing aquifer and nearly 1.5 times as much as all other aquifers
combined during 1985. The Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system is the next largest producer and
supplied water at a rate of about 2.5 times the third largest producer, the Silurian-Devonian
aquifer. The lesser producing Cretaceous, Pennsylvanian, Mississippian, upper carbonate, and
combined Jacobsville and crystalline-rock aquifers are limited in areal extent or do not underlie
population or industrial centers or both with large water demands. Total withdrawal from all
aquifers during 1985 was 2,545 million gallons per day.
Figure 2: Freshwater withdrawal for both public and industrial use
1.5 Aquifer System
1.5.1 Surficial Aquifer System
The surficial aquifer system is the uppermost and the most widespread aquifer system in the four-
State area. This aquifer system consists primarily of material deposited during multiple advances
of continental glaciers from the north during the Pleistocene. The northwestern part of the basin
is largely covered by stratified outwash deposits of permeable sand and gravel that range in
thickness from a few to more than 200 feet. Potential yields of wells completed in the surficial
aquifer system typically are largest in the most permeable glacial deposits and smallest in the
least permeable glacial deposits. Potential well yields of 500 to 1,000 gallons per minute can be
expected from outwash deposits in the northern and the western parts of the Fox-Wolf River
basin. The largest rates of withdrawal from the surficial aquifer system were in Minnesota and
Michigan with 434 and 426 million gallons per day withdrawn, respectively.
The chemical quality of water in the surficial aquifer system also is affected by the permeability of
the glacial deposits. The largest concentrations (400-600 milligrams per liter) are in two small
areas underlain by clayey morainal and glacial-lake deposits in the south-central part of the basin.
The surficial aquifer system is hydraulically connected to streams because of its shallow depth,
ease of recharge by precipitation, and short ground-water flow systems. The greatest runoff,
which is more than 0.3 cubic foot per second per square mile of basin, generally is in the northern
and the western parts of the basin, which are underlain by permeable, thick outwash. The least
runoff, which is less than 0.12 cubic foot per second per square mile of basin, generally is in the
east and south-central parts of the basin, which are underlain by poorly permeable morainal and
glacial-lake deposits.
1.5.2 Cretaceous Aquifer
This aquifer consists of thick to thin, discontinuous sandstone beds overlain in places by limestone
and shale beds that confine the aquifer. In other places, the aquifer is directly overlain by glacial
deposits. In its principal area of use, the Cretaceous aquifer ranges from about 90 to 170 feet in
thickness. Although the aquifer contains gypsum, which, when dissolved, markedly increases
sulfate concentrations in the ground water, the aquifer is extensively pumped to supply domestic,
small-community, and agricultural needs. The water tends to contain large concentrations of
dissolved solids, especially because sulfate concentrations commonly exceed 1,000 milligrams
per liter; in some areas, wells have small yields of less than 2 to 10 gallons per minute; and the
aquifer is buried by glacial deposits to depths of 700 feet or more near the southern Minnesota
border. Hydraulic-conductivity values ranged from 37 to 50 feet per day; transmissivity values
ranged from 3,900 to 7,600 feet squared per day; and thickness values ranged from 89 to 162
feet. Water from the Cretaceous aquifer generally can be characterized as a calcium magnesium
sulfate type.
The water typically is very hard (hardness greater than 180 milligrams per liter as calcium
carbonate); hardness ranges from 22 to 1,600 milligrams per liter. (Dissolved-solids
concentrations range from 251 to 3,540 milligrams per liter. Many samples contain concentrations
of radionuclides (radium-226, radium-228) in excess of the 5 picocuries per liter allowed in public
water supplies. Fresh ground-water withdrawals from the Cretaceous aquifer during 1985 totaled
87 million gallons per day. Of the total, 10 million gallons per day was withdrawn in southwestern
Minnesota, and 77 million gallons per day in northwestern Iowa. Withdrawals from the Cretaceous
aquifer exceeded those from the Mississippian aquifer in Segment 9 (67 million gallons per day)
and were nearly equal to the 88 million gallons per day withdrawn from the Pennsylvanian aquifer.
About 50 percent of the water withdrawn from the Cretaceous aquifer was used for agricultural
purposes, including irrigation. Public-supply use accounted for about 30 percent, and domestic
and commercial uses accounted for about 14 percent. Only about 7 percent of the withdrawals
was used for industrial, mining, or thermoelectric-power purposes.
 GROUND WATER ATLAS of the UNITED STATES
California, Nevada
HA 730-B
2. SEGMENT 01
2.1 Geologic Overview
California and Nevada compose Segment 1 of the Ground Water Atlas of the United States. Rocks
and deposits exposed at the surface in Segment 1 range in age from Precambrian to Quaternary.
They consist of igneous intrusive rocks, pyroclastic and extrusive volcanic rocks, and marine and
continental sediments, many of which, particularly the older rocks (pre-Mesozoic) have been
intensely metamorphosed, folded, and faulted. During Precambrian time and the Paleozoic Era,
an almost uniform thickness of approximately 40,000 feet of marine sediments was deposited in
the Cordilleran geosyncline. This geosyncline was an elongated trough that extended north to
south in western North America and included the area that is now eastern Nevada and southern
California. Sedimentation was marked by two periods of alternating clastic and carbonate
deposition that resulted in the following sequence: quartzite and siltstone, limestone and dolomite,
argillite and quartzite, and limestone.
During the Cenozoic Era, volcanic rocks and sedimentary deposits accumulated over wide areas
of Segment 1, to thicknesses of as much as 50,000 feet. Early in the Cenozoic Era, the Basin and
Range area was a high mountain surface with external drainage. During middle to late Cenozoic
time, however, large-scale block faulting formed the Coast Range Mountains, the California
Trough, and the Sierra Nevada and caused the Basin and Range structures. These structures
are a sequence of alternating horsts and grabens that trend north-south and are reflected in the
present-day topography. Volcanism, which still continues today, formed much of the Cascade
Mountains.
In late Cenozoic time, the California Trough and the structural basins in the Coast Range were
filled with marine and terrestrial deposits that ranged from a few thousand to as much as 50,000
feet in thickness. The grabens of the Basin and Range were filled with continental deposits and
minor lava flows to thicknesses of generally less than 2,000 feet, but locally as much as 50,000
feet. The late Cenozoic also was the time of development of basins in the mountains of northern
California and Nevada. These basins were filled with clastic sediments and numerous basaltic
lava flows.
2.2 Climate Information
The diverse physiography and north-south extent of Segment 1 result in marked climatic contrasts
within the region. Five climate types in the Segment are based primarily on differences in
temperature and rainfall. Storms that bring moisture to the region are most frequent in winter;
about 80 percent of the annual precipitation falls between October and April. The extreme
northern part of California has slightly wetter summers than the rest of the segment. However,
amounts of precipitation vary greatly from year to year; for example, from 1860 to 1980 the
average annual precipitation of Sacramento, Calif., was 18 inches, but precipitation ranged from
35 to 195 percent of the average annual precipitation, or from about 6 to 35 inches per year. Fog
occurs frequently on the coast and provides some additional moisture that is used primarily by
vegetation. Mountain ranges that parallel the coast also affect temperature distribution. Seaward
of the mountains, temperature is moderated by the ocean, and the range between daily high and
low temperatures is usually less than 20 degrees Fahrenheit. Winters are cool, but they are not
generally cold in coastal areas, although temperatures drop sufficiently in the coastal part of
northern California to cause some frost and a dormant season for plants. Summers in coastal
areas are mild, but temperatures occasionally become hot in southern California. In contrast, the
valleys east of the coastal mountains experience much greater temperature extremes. In these
valleys, summer daytime temperatures can be greater than 90 degrees but fall to 55 degrees or
less at night. Winters in the interior valleys are relatively mild, and freezes are uncommon.
2.3 General Hydrogeology
Land use in Segment 1 is directly related to topography and the availability of water. The flat floor
of the Central Valley of California, one of the Nation's most important agricultural areas, is used
almost entirely for growing crops. Most of the cropland, however, must be irrigated. The
mountains that surround the Central Valley are areas of rugged topography and, accordingly, are
used predominantly as forest and woodland, even though they receive large amounts of
precipitation. Almost all of Nevada and large parts of southern California receive little precipitation;
accordingly, most of the land in these areas is desert shrubland, although sufficient water is
available to allow livestock to be grazed in some places.
The major cities in the coastal areas of California appear as large areas of urban sprawl. Although
coastal California receives moderate to large amounts of precipitation, surface-water and ground-
water supplies in those urban areas are not sufficient to provide the water needs of the population.
As a result, a huge network of reservoirs, canals, and aqueducts has been constructed in
California to transport water to these urban areas and other areas of water deficit.
2.4 Groundwater Withdrawal Rates
Ground water is an important resource in California and Nevada and accounted for nearly 40
percent of all freshwater used in the two States during 1985 (fig. 03). Fresh ground-water
withdrawals in California during this period were about 16 times as much as those in Nevada. In
Segment 1, irrigated agriculture accounts for the greatest amount of ground-water use, followed
by withdrawals for public supplies. More than 25 million people, or about 66 percent of the
population of the two-State area, depend on publicly supplied ground water. The Central Valley
aquifer system had the largest ground-water withdrawal in Segment 1 during 1985 (figure 03).
Approximately 9,000 million gallons per day (about 10 million acre-feet per year) was withdrawn
from the Central Valley aquifer system. Of that amount, approximately 8,000 million gallons per
day, or 8.9 million acre-feet per year, was withdrawn for irrigation and accounted for about 11.5
percent of all ground-water withdrawals in the United States. One acre-foot, or 43,560 cubic feet
of water, is the volume of water that will cover an area of 1 acre to a depth of 1 foot. The Coastal
Basins aquifers supply the largest population centers in Segment 1 and are second only to the
Central Valley aquifer system in total ground-water withdrawals.
Figure 03: Water use in the Central Valley

.
Much ground water is withdrawn for agricultural use in these coastal basins, but public supply
accounted for about 54 percent of the approximately 4,370 million gallons per day (about 4.9
million acre-feet per year) withdrawn during 1985; this is due primarily to the large population in
the coastal cities of southern California that depend heavily on ground water for public supply.
The northern California volcanic-rock aquifers and the northern California basin-fill aquifers
together supplied only 5 percent of the total fresh ground water withdrawn in Segment 1 during
1985. These aquifers compose only a small part of the segment, and the demand for ground
water in northern California is not great.
2.5 Aquifer System
2.5.1 Central Valley Aquifer
The Central Valley of California contains the largest basin-fill aquifer system in Segment 1. The
valley is in a structural trough about 400 miles long and from 20 to 70 miles wide and extends
over more than 20,000 square miles. The Central Valley and surrounding area is the product of a
complex series of geologic events. The surrounding area has undergone mountain building,
faulting, and erosion, and the valley has been inundated several times by the Pacific Ocean. The
Sierra Nevada, which forms the eastern side of the valley, is the eroded edge of a huge tilted
block of crystalline rock that also partially defines the base of the valley sediments (fig. 4).
Embedded in the granite and related plutonic rocks of the mountains are metamorphosed
sedimentary and volcanic rocks of Ordovician to Late Jurassic age. The uplift that formed the
Sierra Nevada probably took place between Late Jurassic and Late Cretaceous time. The
ancestral Central Valley was, at least in part, inundated by the Pacific Ocean until 2 million to 3
million years ago. The location, depth, and age of marine sediments in the valley indicates that
nearly the entire valley was covered by the sea during Paleocene and Eocene time (Figure 04).
As sea level declined, the area covered by the ocean decreased until only the southern end of
the basin was still under water in Pliocene time.
The consolidated volcanic and metamorphic rocks that surround and underlie the Central Valley
are almost impermeable, and flow through them is not significant. Little water flows through the
extensive deposits of consolidated marine and mixed marine and continental sediments that
overlie the crystalline rocks because the permeability of the deposits is generally minimal. The
marine sediments usually contain saltwater or brine, but near the northwestern, western, and
southeastern margins of the San Joaquin Valley, some freshwater is withdrawn from these
deposits. Under predevelopment conditions, the hydraulic head in the shallow water-table aquifer
where water entered the aquifer system at the valley margins was greater than the head in the
deeper confined aquifer; thus, ground water moved downward. Conversely, the head gradient
was reversed where water left the aquifer, typically by discharge to surface-water bodies, and the
hydraulic head in the water-table aquifer was less than that in the confined aquifer. The difference
in hydraulic head created upward movement of the ground water toward rivers and marshes.
Precipitation that fell on the valley floor and was not lost to evapotranspiration recharged the
water-table aquifer and moved down the head gradient toward the rivers and surrounding
marshes.
2.5.2 Coastal Basin Aquifer
The intermontane basins in the coastal mountains of California are structural troughs or
depressions that parallel the coastline and formed as a result of folding and faulting (fig.4). Most
of the folds and faults trend northwestward and result from the deformation of older rocks by the
intense pressures of colliding continental plates. The rocks that underlie the basins and form the
surrounding mountains are primarily marine sediments and metamorphic and igneous rocks, all
of which are of Mesozoic age but locally include rocks of Cenozoic age. The basins are partly
filled with unconsolidated and semi consolidated marine sedimentary rocks that were deposited
during periodic encroachment of the sea and with un-consolidated continental deposits that
consist of weathered igneous and sedimentary rock material which was transported into the
basins primarily by mountain streams.
Figure 04: Coastal basin acquirers
Unconsolidated deposits of sand, gravel, silt, and clay, which are Pliocene and younger and
primarily of alluvial origin, compose the Eureka area aquifers (fig. 104). Near the coast, the alluvial
deposits interfinger with estuarine sediments and locally are underlain by marine sediments. The
thickness of the unconsolidated deposits ranges from only a few feet to as much as 1,000 feet.
The unconsolidated deposits range from coarse to fine grained. Irrigation of pastureland accounts
for most ground-water use in the Eureka area, followed by withdrawals for industry and public
supply. Most of the withdrawals for irrigation are in the coastal plain of the Eel River Valley. The
cities of Eureka and Arcata use surface water for their public supplies, whereas many of the
smaller communities use ground water. Total estimated ground-water withdrawals during 1972
were 9,000 acre-feet in the Mad River Valley, 15,000 acre-feet in the Eureka Plain, and 10,000
acre-feet in the Eel River Valley. This is more than double the estimated total withdrawal of 15,000
acre-feet during 1952, but current (1995) rates of ground-water withdrawal do not appear to be in
excess of natural recharge.
Recharge to the ground-water flow system enters permeable sediments at the valley margins
primarily as runoff from precipitation in the mountains and hills that surround the val-leys. Other
sources of recharge are precipitation that falls directly on permeable deposits in low-lying areas
of the valleys and seepage through streambeds in areas where the water table is lower than the
stream level and the streambed sediments are sufficiently permeable to permit infiltration into the
aquifers. Discharge is by seepage to gaining reaches of streams, spring discharge,
evapotranspiration, and withdrawals from wells.
Ground-water quality in the upper basin is generally acceptable for most uses, except in local
areas. Dissolved-solids concentrations in the water range from about 200 to 700 milligrams per
liter. The only major area of concern is the so-called Bitter water area in the upper basin where
boron and arsenic that have been leached from aquifer materials and consolidated rocks can be
at excessive levels. Despite the near absence of regional water-quality problems, agricultural and
industrial activities have resulted in localized aquifer contamination.