Hydrogeology and Groundwater Qualityof the
UW-Platteville Pioneer Farm and Vicinity
Jacob A. MachollGeorge J. Kraft
July 2010
Objectives
• Process geologic data• borehole geophysical data
• Evaluate spatial and temporal trends in:• Hydrogeology
• water-table configuration• hydraulic gradients
• Groundwater quality• nitrate, chloride, pesticide residues
WISCONSIN
NorthernMississippi
ValleyLoess Hills
Military Ridge
£¤151
College Farm Road
PLATTEVILLE BELMONT
Center Drive Road
Upper Fever River Watershed
UW-Platteville Pioneer Farm
EXPLANATION
0 1 2 MILES
0 2 41 KM
")X
¹
TOTO
USGS Gauging Station
Study Area
NMVLH (MLRA 105)
• 22,209 mi² - 1/5th of WI
• Unglaciated
• Well drained loess soils
• Predominantly agricultural
Upper Fever River Watershed
• 3,357 ac.
• Representative of NMVLH
• Location of UWP Pioneer Farm
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
! !
1050
1050
1100
LF-466
LF-472 LF-463
LF-464LF-465
LF-462
LF-467
LF-471
LF-470
LF-469
LF-468
LF-461
UpperFever RiverWatershed
STUDYAREA
College Farm Road
B
B'
C'
C
AA'
1000
0 250 500 YARDS
0 200 400 METERS
EXPLANATION! Borehole (piezometer nest)
Surface contour; 10 ft interval
Line of transectA A'
Pioneer Farm bui
Instrumentation
• 12 boreholes at the Pioneer Farm• Range from 42 to 254 ft below land surface
Instrumentation
soileluvium
LowerGalena
St. Peter
BOREHOLECASING
Glenwood
SpechtsFerry
GalenaUpper
Decorah
Platteville
784
834
884
934
984
1034
ELEV
ATI
ON
,IN
FEET
AB
OVE
MEA
NSE
ALE
VEL
0 1000
SPONTANEOUSPOTENTIAL
(MILLIVOLTS)0 4000
FORMATIONRESITIVITY
(OHM-M)0 200
GAMMA(COUNTS PER
SECOND)6 14
CALIPER(INCHES)
250
200
150
100
50
0
DEP
TH,I
NFE
ETB
ELO
WLA
ND
SUR
FAC
E
PIEZOMETERCOMPLETION &STRATIGRAPHY
1 2
Borehole LF-465
8-INCH 64-I
• Nested piezometers (monitoring wells)
• Sample discrete interval - 5 to 10 ft
• Quality
• Hydraulic head
• 2 to 4 per borehole
• 37 total (2 usually dry)
• FLUTe
• Borehole LF-472
• 8 port device
• 2 to 5 ft sample interval
• ~180 ft west of LF-465
soil
UpperGalena
LowerGalena
BOREHOLECASING
Decorah
892
902
912
922
932
942
952
962
972
982
992
1002
1012
1022
1032
ELEV
ATI
ON
,IN
FEET
AB
OVE
MEA
NSE
ALE
VEL
0 1000
SPONTANEOUSPOTENTIAL
(MILLIVOLTS)0 800
SINGLE-POINTRESISTANCE
(OHMS)0 150
GAMMA(COUNTS PER
SECOND)6 18
CALIPER(INCHES)
140
130
120
110
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
DEP
TH,I
NFE
ETB
ELO
WLA
ND
SUR
FAC
E
FLUTeCOMPLETION &STRATIGRAPHY
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Borehole LF-4
LF-472
LF-465
soil
UpperGalena
LowerGalena
BOREHOLECASING
0 150
GAMMA(COUNTS PER
SECOND)6 8
CALIPER(INCHES)
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
DEP
TH,I
NFE
ETB
ELO
WLA
ND
SUR
FAC
E
PIEZOMETERCOMPLETION &STRATIGRAPHY
1 2 3 4
Borehole LF-466
990
1000
1010
1020
1030
1040
1050
1060
1070
ELEV
ATI
ON
,IN
FEET
AB
OVE
MEA
NSE
ALE
VE
LF-466
Geology• Geophysical logs
• Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey
• Interpret subsurface geology, structure
• Completed prior to piezometer installation
• Assisted placement
soileluvium
LowerGalena
St. Peter
BOREHOLECASING
Glenwood
SpechtsFerry
GalenaUpper
Decorah
Platteville
784
834
884
934
984
1034
ELEV
ATI
ON
,IN
FEET
AB
OVE
MEA
NSE
ALE
VEL
0 1000
SPONTANEOUSPOTENTIAL
(MILLIVOLTS)0 4000
FORMATIONRESITIVITY
(OHM-M)0 200
GAMMA(COUNTS PER
SECOND)6 14
CALIPER(INCHES)
250
200
150
100
50
0
DEP
TH,I
NFE
ETB
ELO
WLA
ND
SUR
FAC
E
PIEZOMETERCOMPLETION &STRATIGRAPHY
1 2
Borehole LF-465
8-INCH 64-I
Borehole LF-465“Deep well”
• ~300 ft of Ordovician dolomites and limestones - Sinnipee Group
• Overlies 1200+ ft of older sandstones and carbonates
• Separated by Glenwood shale• aquitard
Geology
GeologyFence Diagram – Transect Locations
A
A’
BC
B’C’
Pioneer Farm
A
A’
BC
B’C’
GeologyFence Diagram
Lower Galena dolomite
Decorah Formation
Spechts Ferry member (shale)
Platteville Formation
Glenwood shale
St. Peter Sandstone
EXPLANATIONsoil
Interbedded shale
Upper Galena dolomiteOgu
Ogl
Od
Ods
Op
Ogs
Osp
weatheredbedrock
OspOgsOp
Ods
OglOgu
GeologyCross-section B-B’
• Dissolution zone approximated from caliper, flow and optical logs
#Water-table
soil
Ogl
Od
Osp
Ogu
Ods
Op
Ogs
B B'
weathered
VERTICAL EXAGGERATION X 5
1110 FT
780 FT
AB
OV
EM
EA
NS
EA
LE
VE
L
Upper FeverRiver
(WEST) (EAST)LF-464
LF-472
LF-465
LF-469 LF-468
LF-461
LF-466
#
approx. lower extentof dissolution zone
Hydrogeology
• Water-table
• Measured piezometer hydraulic head during sample collection
• Head varies:
• seasonally, annually
• with location
Jan-2010Jan-2009Jan-2008Jan-2007
1050
1040
1030
1020
1010
WAT
ER-T
ABLE
ELE
VATI
ON
, FEE
T AM
SL
LF-461-3LF-462-4LF-463-2LF-464-4LF-466-4LF-467-4LF-468-4LF-470-3LF-471-3
PIEZOMETER
Solid symbols: uplands
Hollow symbols: lowlands and intermediate areas
HydrogeologyWater-table: Average Configuration
1025
1000
1030
1005
1040
1020
1025
10301010
1015 1035
1050
1050
1100
0 100 200
YARDS
Upper FeverRiver
GroundwaterDivide
EXPLANATION
Monitoring well
Water-table contour
Surface contour
Building
Groundwater flowdirection
Heads from June 2009
Hydrogeology
• Vertical Gradients
• Indicate direction of groundwater flow (up, down, horizontal)
• In the Sinnipee aquifer, gradients were:
• downward beneath uplands,
• upward near the Fever River,
• generally horizontal in-between
• Largest was 1.4 downward – across Glenwood shale
• Spechts Ferry shale and(or) Platteville Fm may play a role
• Groundwater flow is described with equipotential lines
HydrogeologyEquipotential Lines
920
102510201030
1015
1035
Transect B-B'
1110 FT
780 FT
AB
OV
EM
EA
NS
EA
LE
VE
LUpper FeverRiver
LF-464
LF-472
LF-465
LF-469 LF-468
LF-461
LF-466
VERTICAL EXAGGERATION X 5
surface
Water-table: May 2007
Potentiometric surface, St. Peter-Priaire du Chien-Jordan:May 2007
PiezometerEquipotential line
Gro
undw
ater
Div
ide
Groundwater flowpath
Groundwater Quality
• Groundwater Samples
• 733 samples from October 2006 to January 2010
• Primary constituents
• Nitrate-N
• Chloride
• Conductivity
• pH
• Some samples of Pesticide residues, D.O., Metals, TKN, etc.
Major agricultural pollutants
Groundwater Quality
• Average = 10.9 mg/L
• range <0.1 to 76.3 mg/L
• MCL = 10 mg/L
• 20 of 35 piezometers (57%) had median exceeding MCL
• 26 (74%) had at least one above MCL
• Few significant temporal trends (year or season)
• more data required to conclude if specific trends exist
• Spatial distribution remained relatively constant
Nitrate-N
Groundwater QualityNitrate-N: Map view
!
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!
! ! 15
5
10
15
15
20
30
20
25
45
40
35
1050
1050
LF-464
LF-469
LF-471
LF-461
LF-463
LF-468
LF-465
LF-467
LF-472
LF-462
LF-470
LF-466Upper FeverRiver
1100
¹0 500 1,000250
FEET
EXPLANATION
Building
Contour line (ft AMSL); Interval 10 ft
! BoreholeTransectAA'
A A' B'
C'
C
B
Nitrate-N isoline and concentration (
Groundwater QualityNitrate-N: Cross-section
!!!!
!!!!
!
!!
LF-4
61
LF
-462
LF-4
67
!!!!
!!!!
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!
!
!
!!
!!
!
!!
!!
!!
LF-4
68
LF-4
66LF
-46
1
LF-4
64
LF-4
65
LF-4
72
LF-4
69
!
!!
!(
!!
!(
!
!
!
!!
!!
LF-4
66
LF-4
71
L F-4
70
LF-4
63
EXPLANATION
!( Not sampled! Piezometer
DISTANCE ALONG TRANSECT (FEET)
ELEVATION(FEETABOVE
MEANSEALEVEL)
A-A'
B-B'
C-C'
surface
surface
surface#
#
#
Water-tableJune 2009
#
0.1
0 1000 2000 3000 4000
90
01
00
011
00
10
00
110
09
00
80
01
00
011
00
10 2030 40
10
10
0.1
2030
40
10
101515
20
2025
30
Nitrate-N isolineand concentration (mg/L
DissolutionZone
Groundwater QualityChloride
• Average = 19.4 mg/L
• range <0.1 to 84 mg/L
• Significantly correlated to Nitrate-N
• Spatial distribution similar to Nitrate-N
Groundwater QualityChloride: Map view
!
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!
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!
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!
!
!
! !
LF-461
LF-468
1050
1050
LF-471
LF-462
LF-472
10
20
7060
30
40
50
20
LF-470
LF-466
LF-465
LF-464
LF-463
LF-467
LF-469
Upper FeverRiver
1100
¹0 500 1,000250
FEET
EXPLANATIONChloride isoline and concentration (mg/L)
Building
Contour line (ft AMSL); Interval 10 ft
! BoreholeTransectAA'
A A' B'
Groundwater QualityChloride: Cross-section
!!!!
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!
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!!
!!
!
!!
!!
!!
LF-4
68
LF-4
66LF
-46
1
LF-4
64
LF-4
65
LF-4
72
LF-4
69
!!!!
!!!!
!
!!
LF-4
61
LF
-462
LF-4
67
!
!!
!(
!!
!(
!
!
!
!!
!!
LF-4
66
LF-4
71
LF-4
70
LF-4
63
EXPLANATION
!( Not sampled! Piezometer
Chloride isolineand concentration (mg/L)
DISTANCE ALONG TRANSECT (FEET)
ELEVATION(FEETABOVE
MEANSEALEVEL)
A-A'
B-B'
C-C'
surface
surface
surface#
#
#
Water-tableJune 2009
#
10 20
20
30
4050
6070
0.5
10 20 30 40 50
60 70
30
20
0 1000 2000 3000 4000
90
01
00
011
00
10
00
110
09
00
80
01
00
011
00
3020
20
3030
Groundwater QualityPesticide Residues
• Detected residues:
• Alachlor ESA
• Metolachlor ESA
• Acetochlor OA
• Metolachlor OA
• Atrazine and its degradate deethyl-atrazine
• ESA degradates account for 90% of cumulative concentration
• Metolachlor ESA: up to 10.5 µg/L
• Alachlor ESA: up to 4.7 µg/L
• Spatial distribution similar to other pollutants
Most frequently detected
Groundwater QualityPesticide Residues: Cross-section
!!!!
!(!(!(!(
!(
!(
!(
!(
!
!
!
!
!!
!!
!
!!
!(!(
!(!(
LF-4
68
LF-4
66LF
-46
1
LF-4
64
LF-4
65
LF-4
72
LF-4
69
ELEVATION(FEETABOVE
MEANSEALEVEL)
B-B'
surface #
10
00
110
09
00
80
01
6
2
3 45
578
!(!(!(!(
!!!!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!!
!!
!(
!(
!(
!(!(
!(!(
LF-4
68
L F-4
66LF
-46
1
LF-4
64
LF-4
65
LF-4
72
LF-4
69
DISTANCE ALONG TRANSECT (FEET)0 1000 2000 3000 4000
10
00
110
09
00
80
0
surface#
12
34
56 7 8
1014
12
B-B' July 2007
December 2006
EXPLANATION
!( Not sampled! Piezometer Water-table
June 2009
#Summed pesticide residue isolineand concentration (µg/L)
Conclusions
• Dissolution zone is likely the major conduit for transport of groundwater and pollutants
• Degree of bedrock weathering important • Borings show Sinnipee grades from:
• soil• weathered bedrock• dissolution zone (near water-table)• competent bedrock
• Groundwater flows primarily from topographic highs down-gradient to Fever River.
• Groundwater basin similar to surface watershed
• BUT varies with changes in water-table elevation
Hydrogeology
Permeability decreases with depth
Conclusions
• High Nitrate-N common in groundwater
• Majority of piezometers (74%) contain nitrate-N above 10 mg/L MCL
• Chloride also elevated, up to 84 mg/L
• Pesticide residues detected during winter and summer
• Primarily ESA degradates of Alachlor and Metolachlor
• Higher concentrations detected in summer
• Pollutants greater in upgradient part of farm and in shallower part of aquifer
• Pollutants have not fully penetrated aquifer
• Yearly and seasonal trends not evident in groundwater Nitrate-N and Cl
• Suggests near steady state conditions during the study period
Groundwater Quality
What Next?• Continue groundwater quality sampling
• To identify trends
• Nitrate-N, Cl, pH, Conductivity: monthly
• Other constituents: at least annually
• Collect additional samples from deeper FLUTe ports
• LF-472-6, -7, and -8
!!!!
!(!(!(!(
!(
!(
!(
!(
!
!
!
!
!!
!!
!
!!
!(!(
!(!(
LF-4
68
LF-4
66LF
-46
1
LF-4
64
LF-4
65
LF-4
72
LF-4
69
surface #
10
00
110
09
00
80
0
!!
!
GalenaDecorah
Platteville
St. Peter
Fill this gap
What Next?
• Continue groundwater quality sampling
• To identify trends
• Collect additional samples from deeper FLUTe ports
• LF-472-6, -7, and -8
• Construct groundwater flow model
• Gain more insight into groundwater flow system
• Characterize hydraulic conductivity, important model parameter
• Slug tests
• Process new water level, temperature, conductivity data
• Groundwater response to events
Acknowledgments
• WGNHS• Ken Bradbury• Dave Hart• Roger Peters• Dan Hallau
• UWP Pioneer Farm Staff
Generalized Stratigraphy
Dolomite, limestone, and shale, green and brown; bentonite near base
70-330Siltstone and sandstone
Sandstone 440-780
700-1050
Sandstone, siltstone and dolomite
Sandstone and siltstone, glauconitic 110-140
120-150
Sandstone 60-140
Sandstone, quartz, coarse, rounded 40 +
0-240
280-320Dolomite, light-buff, cherty; sandy near base and in upper part;
shaly in upper part
Dolomite, yellowish-buff, thin-bedded, shaly
Dolomite, yellowish-buff, thick-bedded
Dolomite, drab to buff, cherty
35-40
55-75Limestone and dolomite, brown and grayish;
green, sandy shale at base
Franconia sandstone
Dresbach sandstone
Eau Claire sandstone
Mount Simonsandstone
90
110
108-240
80
105
225Galena dolomite
Decorah formation
Platteville formation
St. Peter sandstone
Prairie du Chiengroup
Trempealeauformation
Group orFormation
DescriptionAverage thickness
(feet)
Edgewood dolomite
Maquoketa shale
200
Dolomite, buff, cherty
Dolomite, buff, cherty; argillaceous near base
Shale, blue, dolomitic; phosphatic depauperate fauna at base
Sys
tem
Silurian
Ordovician
Cam
brian
Middleand
Low
erUpper
Middle
Low
erUpper
Ser
ies
Modified from Heyl et al., 1959
40
Gle
StudyZone
Aquitard
Shale Maquoketa Confining Unit
12-16Shale 0-8
0-18
Glenwood Shale 0-3St. Peter-Prairie du Chien-
Jordan Aquifer
Sinnipee Aquifer
Sinnipee
Maquoketa
30
20-24
40 +40 +
55-75
32-44
Unalteredthickness (ft)
HydrogeologicUnit
108-240
120
105
225
20
Poorly cementedsandstone
Thinly bedded dolomiteand limestone
Mixed dolomite,limestone, and shale
Thickly bedded dolomite,cherty
Thickly bedded dolomite,vuggy
Group FormationMember andSubdivision
Description
Ancell
St. Peter
Pecatonica
Noncherty(Upper)Unit
Cherty(Low
er)Unit
Ion
GuttenbergSpechts FerryQuimbys Mill
McGregor
Galena
Stewartville
Dubuque
Prosser
Decorah
Platteville
Modified from Heyl et al., 1959 and You
GeologyDetailed Stratigraphy and Hydrostratigraphy
Unsaturatedin UFRW