Quantifying the Change in Volume of Water in the Sparta Aquifer, Northern Louisiana
Tuesday, December 5, 2017: 2:40 p.m.
102 A (Music City Center)
Samantha Wacaster
,
USGS, Little Rock, AR
Drew Westerman
,
Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Little Rock, AR
Leslie Duncan, PhD
,
Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Nashville, TN
John Lovelace
,
Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Baton Rouge, LA
Benton McGee
,
Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Ruston, LA
Leonard Orzol
,
Oregon Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Portland, OR
The Sparta aquifer, generally a confined aquifer, is the primary source of groundwater in north-central Louisiana. Increasing groundwater withdrawals at concentrated locations from wells screened in the Sparta aquifer, have resulted in regional water-level declines. Recent studies, including potentiometric maps and a groundwater flow model, have assessed the impacts of withdrawals on water levels in Sparta aquifer, and water levels and saltwater encroachment continue to be monitored at a network of wells screened in the aquifer in Louisiana. However, questions still persist regarding the volume of available water and the long-term sustainability of the aquifer. To address these concerns, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is developing a web-based tool that can compile these products into a single platform, whereby water-resource managers can easily assess the status of available water resources for a given location. The tool will provide estimates of changes in the volume of water in the Sparta aquifer from 1900 predevelopment conditions through 2012. Storage change will be evaluated using two methods: 1) Geographic Information Systems analysis and comparison of previously published USGS structure maps and potentiometric surfaces of the Sparta aquifer; and 2) analysis of simulated water storage in the aquifer derived from a groundwater-flow model. The interactive web tool, once developed, will allow users to compare results from both methods in a publically available visual mapping platform. Knowledge of the change in water volume within the Sparta aquifer will be useful for assessing recharge rates and could improve public understanding of the impacts of withdrawals over time.
Samantha Wacaster, USGS, Little Rock, AR
TBD
Drew Westerman, Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Little Rock, AR
Drew Westerman is a hydrologist for the U.S. Geological Survey Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center at Little Rock. He has worked in water resource investigations of groundwater and surface water that have included multiple states and six countries. Project responsibilities have included web-application design, Python programing, water resource computer modeling, and a full range of Geographic Information Systems endeavors. Outside of work, Drew actively contributes to the field of speleology through his caving adventures
Leslie Duncan, PhD, Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Nashville, TN
Dr. Leslie Duncan is a hydrologist with the Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center in Nashville, Tennessee. She completed her B.S. in mathematics and geosciences at Murray State University, and M.S. and Ph.D. in environmental engineering at Vanderbilt University. Her research interests include groundwater flow modeling and hydroclimatic studies.
John Lovelace, Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Baton Rouge, LA
John Lovelace is a native of south Louisiana. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Geology and a Masters Degree in Engineering Science from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. He has been with the U.S. Geological Survey since 1987 and currently works in the Baton Rouge Office as an Assistant Director of the Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center. During his career, John has been involved in numerous groundwater, surface-water, and water-use projects.
Benton McGee, Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Ruston, LA
Benton McGee is a supervisory hydrologist and leads the groundwater and studies assessment team for the Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center and works out of Ruston, Louisiana office.
Leonard Orzol, Oregon Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Portland, OR
Lenny works with the USGS Oregon Water Science Center and has developed and published useful applications for groundwater modeling such as Modflowarc and Modtools. He provides programming skills to assist on many USGS groundwater investigations in Oregon, Florida, and Massachusetts. He currently works mainly for the USGS National Water Information System (NWIS) program that provides web access to the data collected by the USGS nationwide. In addition, he has developed web sites that provide innovative access to data and results from these investigations to the public.
