DWR_3214880

• Title: GROUND WATER LEVELS IN WESTERN COLORADO ALLUVIAL AND BEDROCK AQUIFERS
• Year: 1999
• Document Type - Publications and Reports: Ground Water Levels Report

WATER LEVELS IN SELECTED BEDROCK AND ALLUVIAL
AQUIFERS
OF WESTERN COLORADO
1999
This report presents water level data from 57 wells located in Archuleta, Delta, Garfield,
Jackson, La Plata, Mesa, Moffat, Montrose, and Rio Blanco Counties. Most of the wells for
which data are reported were originally constructed in the 1970's by the United States
Geological Survey as a part of their statewide monitoring well network. The U.S.G.S.
routinely measured water levels in these wells until 1982. That historical data is included in
this report, along with more recent data gathered by the Colorado Division of Water
Resources.
The wells listed in this report are now part of a state-wide water level monitoring network
funded by Senate Bill 200 (1987 Legislative Session). That legislation directed that a
portion of the fees collected for water well permits be used for the establishment of a
program to monitor ground water levels throughout the state.
In 1991, the Division of Water Resources initiated a program to monitor water levels in
about 50 of the wells that had been a part of the U.S.G.S. monitoring system. A small
number of additional wells measured -are used for irrigation, stock watering, or domestic
purposes. Several of the Rio Blanco County wells are also measured at least quarterly in
connection with the ongoing monitoring in and around the C -b oil shale tract, and the
solution mining operation of North American Chemical Company's White River nahcolite
(sodium bicarbonate) plant. These data are also presented where available. No wells
were measured by DWR in 1994.
In this report, the wells are grouped first by county in alphabetical order and then by
township, range, and section within each county. Only 1 well is measured in each of the
following counties; Archuleta, La Plata, Mesa, and Moffat. Rio Blanco County contains the
largest number of wells (34) being monitored. The well I.D., shown on each tabular data
page, and along the left margin of each hydrograph describes the well location in the
standard well numbering system used by the Bureau of Reclamation and the United States
Geological Survey. The aquifers monitored include the alluvium, the Fruitland, Mesa
Verde, Wasatch, North Park, San Jose, Dakota/Burro Canyon, Green River, Uinta and
Parachute Creek members or formations. The specific aquifer being monitored in a well is
shown on the data sheet for that well.
In addition to the tabular data, the water level change for each well is presented on a
hydrograph. When interpreting the hydrographs, you should note carefully the month and
year of the measurement, as there is a 9 or 10 year data gap between the historic U.S.G.S.
data and the DWR data. Generally, this gap occurs during- the years between 1979 and
1991. The dashed segment on each hydrograph identifies the Period during which no data
were gathered. In addition, some data points that were obviously incorrect have been
deleted before preparation of the hydrographs. The hydrograph for each well is presented
on the page opposite the tabular data. Hydrographs were not created for wells with only 2
or 3 data points.