RedN NAWQA
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Red River of the North Basin
National Water-Quality Assessment Program
Strobel, M.L., Luther, M.R., and Boespflug, K.L., 1992. Correlation of
Texture and Thickness of Pleistocene Sediments to the Presence of Saline
Soils and Wetlands and to Surface-Water Quality in the Red River of the
North Basin, North Dakota: in Proceedings of the North Dakota Water
Quality Symposium, 1992, p. 248.
Abstract
Saline ground water that migrates upwards from bedrock sources through
overlying Pleistocene sediments may have a significant influence on
surface-water quality in the Red River of the North and its tributaries in
northeastern North Dakota. Upward hydraulic gradients create conditions for
artesian flow, and low hydraulic conductivities of the Pleistocene sediments
retard upward leakage of the saline water. Previous investigations indicate
that the textures and thicknesses of Pleistocene sediments vary spatially and
may result in saline seeps at land surface. Textures and thicknesses of
Pleistocene sediments were determined from core records. Additional cores
were obtained during August 1991 from sites selected to represent glacial
till, nonsaline lacustrine sediments, and saline lacustrine sediments in the
Red River of the North basin. These cores were analyzed to complement
existing records. Results of the analysis indicate a poor correlation of
textures and thicknesses of the Pleistocene sediments with the presence of
saline soils and wetlands and degradation in surface-water quality, suggesting
that the hydrogeology in this area is complex.
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U.S. Department of the Interior |
U.S. Geological Survey