Groundwater recharge and chemical evolution in the southern High Plains of Texas, USA |
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Authors: | Alan E Fryar William F Mullican Stephen A Macko |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Geological Sciences, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40506-0053, USA,;(2) Texas Water Development Board, P.O. Box 13231, Austin, Texas 78711-3231, USA,;(3) Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22903, USA, |
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Abstract: | The unconfined High Plains (Ogallala) aquifer is the largest aquifer in the USA and the primary water supply for the semiarid
southern High Plains of Texas and New Mexico. Analyses of water and soils northeast of Amarillo, Texas, together with data
from other regional studies, indicate that processes during recharge control the composition of unconfined groundwater in
the northern half of the southern High Plains. Solute and isotopic data are consistent with a sequence of episodic precipitation,
concentration of solutes in upland soils by evapotranspiration, runoff, and infiltration beneath playas and ditches (modified
locally by return flow of wastewater and irrigation tailwater). Plausible reactions during recharge include oxidation of organic
matter, dissolution and exsolution of CO2, dissolution of CaCO3, silicate weathering, and cation exchange. Si and 14C data suggest leakage from perched aquifers to the High Plains aquifer. Plausible mass-balance models for the High Plains
aquifer include scenarios of flow with leakage but not reactions, flow with reactions but not leakage, and flow with neither
reactions nor leakage. Mechanisms of recharge and chemical evolution delineated in this study agree with those noted for other
aquifers in the south-central and southwestern USA.
Electronic Publication |
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Keywords: | Groundwater recharge High Plains Hydrochemistry Hydrochemical modeling Texas |
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