Effects of increased ground-water development on water levels, water quality, and ground-water discharge in Northern Utah Valley , Utah

Project Number: 9716AQ5
Cooperating Agencies: Utah Department of Natural Resource, Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District, and Utah Valley County and City entities
Project Chief: Susan Thiros, USGS Salt Lake City, Utah
Project Period: 2003-2007

Problem: Ground water is the primary source of drinking water in northern Utah Valley and ground-water withdrawals for public supply are increasing because of rapid population growth. Increased withdrawals coupled with recent drought conditions have caused water levels in many wells in basin-fill deposits to decline to their lowest recorded levels. Effects of developing this resource or mitigating effects of development needs to be understood in order to protect the ground water and to minimize adverse effects on existing water rights and natural discharge areas.

Objectives: Develop a better understanding of the ground-water system in northern Utah Valley and its relation to ground water in adjacent consolidated rocks and to Utah Lake;
Provide water managers, state and local governments, and other interested parties with information and tools to help determine the water budget of the ground-water system in northern Utah Valley; and estimate what effects future ground-water development.

Relevance and Benefits: The relevance of this study falls primarily under Issue 3 of the USGS Strategic Directions in Water Resources Division Scientific Activities: Drinking-water availability and quality. This cooperative study will increase the understanding of the complex hydrologic setting in northern Utah Valley. Enhancement of the existing regional ground-water flow model will provide a tool for water managers that can be used to help understand impacts to the ground-water system from increased development and changing water use.

Approach: The study approach includes gathering and interpreting data to develop a better conceptualization of the ground-water system, incorporating this information into an updated ground-water flow model, and using this model to simulate the effects of different water-management options and periods of below normal precipitation.

Data compiled and collected during the study will conceptual models of basin geometry, aquifer properties, water-level fluctuations, system discharge, and flow paths and velocities. Updated concepts will then be incorporated and tested in model simulations. The model will also be used to simulate the effects of water-management options such as artificial recharge, increased ground-water withdrawals, land- and water-use changes, or changes in the distribution of surface water on ground-water levels, flow directions, discharge, and quality.

Products: A report that documents changes to the original ground-water flow model and presents the calibrated expanded area steady-state and transient-state ground-water flow models and their limitations. This report also would describe the results of model simulations done to estimate the effects of water-management options and below normal precipitation. The approved ground-water flow models would be made available in electronic format on the USGS or State of Utah, Division of Water Rights web sites.

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Page Last Modified: Wednesday, 10-May-2006 16:37:16 EDT