Quality and Age of Water in the Madison Aquifer, Cascade County ...
Quality and Age of Water in the Madison Aquifer, Cascade County ...
Quality and Age of Water in the Madison Aquifer, Cascade County ...
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<strong>Quality</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Age</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Water</strong> <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong>,<br />
<strong>Cascade</strong> <strong>County</strong>, Montana<br />
John LaFave<br />
Montana Ground-<strong>Water</strong> Assessment Program<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> Limestone<br />
Great Falls
<strong>Madison</strong> Limestone – Structural Sett<strong>in</strong>g<br />
Kev<strong>in</strong>-Sunburst<br />
Dome<br />
Great Falls<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> outcrop<br />
Porcup<strong>in</strong>e<br />
Dome<br />
Poplar<br />
Dome
<strong>Madison</strong> Limestone – Economic Geology<br />
Kev<strong>in</strong>-Sunburst<br />
Dome<br />
Great Falls<br />
Porcup<strong>in</strong>e<br />
Dome<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> outcrop<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> - Petroleum well<br />
Metal, cement, burnt lime m<strong>in</strong>e<br />
Poplar<br />
Dome
Giant Spr<strong>in</strong>gs<br />
Bla<strong>in</strong>e Spr<strong>in</strong>gs<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> Limestone – Spr<strong>in</strong>gs<br />
Great Falls<br />
Snowflake Spr<strong>in</strong>gs LaDuke Spr<strong>in</strong>g<br />
Layout<br />
Spr<strong>in</strong>g<br />
Big Spr<strong>in</strong>g
o<strong>the</strong>r<br />
counties<br />
15 %<br />
<strong>Cascade</strong> Co.<br />
85 %<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> Limestone – <strong>Aquifer</strong><br />
<strong>Cascade</strong> Co.<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> water well<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> major spr<strong>in</strong>g
Pyrite<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – Geologic Sett<strong>in</strong>g<br />
Kootenai Fm<br />
Morrison Fm<br />
Sunburst mbr.<br />
Cut Bank mbr.<br />
<strong>Madison</strong><br />
Limestone<br />
Mm<br />
coal<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> Ls (Mm)<br />
Sun Riv.<br />
Giant Sp.<br />
S<br />
N<br />
L<strong>in</strong>e <strong>of</strong><br />
section<br />
Little Belt Mtns.<br />
N S<br />
N<br />
5 mi<br />
Great Falls<br />
Coal M<strong>in</strong>es<br />
Mm<br />
Coal M<strong>in</strong>es<br />
Belt<br />
Highwood<br />
Mtns.
Number <strong>of</strong> wells<br />
Well depth (ft)<br />
Well Use<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – <strong>Cascade</strong> <strong>County</strong><br />
4 %<br />
5 %<br />
85 %<br />
N<br />
5 mi<br />
- <strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> well
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – Porosity<br />
1 - Bedd<strong>in</strong>g
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – Porosity<br />
2 - Fracture
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – Porosity<br />
3 - Solution
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – Porosity<br />
Heterogeneous
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – <strong>Water</strong> <strong>Quality</strong> Data<br />
Field SC – 120 wells<br />
Sampled – 50 wells<br />
N<br />
5 mi<br />
1 – GWCP Samples
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – <strong>Water</strong> <strong>Quality</strong> Data<br />
Field SC – 120 wells<br />
Sampled – 50 wells<br />
Tritium – 14 wells<br />
N<br />
5 mi<br />
2 – Tritium
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – <strong>Water</strong> <strong>Quality</strong> Data<br />
Field SC – 120 wells<br />
Sampled – 50 wells<br />
Tritium – 14 wells<br />
O<strong>the</strong>r samples – 35 wells<br />
N<br />
5 mi<br />
3 – O<strong>the</strong>r samples<br />
Ab<strong>and</strong>oned coal m<strong>in</strong>es<br />
With AMD
SC uS/cm<br />
1400<br />
1000<br />
600<br />
200<br />
Meas. TDS<br />
(n=85)<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – <strong>Water</strong> <strong>Quality</strong><br />
Estimated <strong>and</strong> measured total dissolved solids<br />
TDS mg/L<br />
TDS mg/L<br />
Est. TDS<br />
(n=70)<br />
500<br />
N<br />
5 mi<br />
Ab<strong>and</strong>oned coal m<strong>in</strong>es<br />
With AMD<br />
< 500 mg/L<br />
500 – 1,000 mg/L<br />
> 1,000 mg/L
20<br />
40<br />
60<br />
80<br />
80<br />
Mg<br />
60<br />
20<br />
40<br />
Cl + SO4=><br />
40<br />
60<br />
20<br />
80<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – <strong>Water</strong> <strong>Quality</strong><br />
80<br />
20<br />
Measured total dissolved solids<br />
60<br />
40<br />
1,000 mg/L
Ca-HCO3<br />
low TDS<br />
20<br />
40<br />
60<br />
80<br />
80<br />
60<br />
20<br />
40<br />
Cl + SO4=><br />
40<br />
Ca Na HCO3+CO3<br />
2000<br />
1500<br />
1000<br />
500<br />
60<br />
20<br />
80<br />
80<br />
20<br />
60<br />
40<br />
20<br />
40<br />
60<br />
80<br />
80<br />
60<br />
20<br />
40<br />
Cl + SO4=><br />
40<br />
Ca Na HCO3+CO3<br />
2000<br />
1500<br />
1000<br />
500<br />
Ca-SO4<br />
high TDS<br />
Ca-HCO3<br />
low TDS<br />
60<br />
20<br />
80<br />
80<br />
20<br />
60<br />
40<br />
Ca-HCO3<br />
low TDS<br />
20<br />
40<br />
60<br />
80<br />
80<br />
60<br />
20<br />
40<br />
Cl + SO4=><br />
40<br />
Ca Na HCO3+CO3<br />
4<br />
3<br />
2<br />
1<br />
0<br />
Ca-SO4<br />
high TDS<br />
60<br />
20<br />
80<br />
80<br />
20<br />
60<br />
40<br />
Pyrite Oxidation<br />
FeS 2 + 7/2 O 2 + H 2O<br />
Fe 2+ + 2SO 4 + 2H +<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – <strong>Water</strong> <strong>Quality</strong><br />
<strong>Madison</strong> wells drilled by Byrne Drill<strong>in</strong>g<br />
N<br />
5 mi
FeS 2 + 7/2 O 2 + H 2O<br />
Fe 2+ + 2SO 4 + 2H +<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – <strong>Water</strong> <strong>Quality</strong><br />
Pyrite Oxidation<br />
N<br />
wells with pyrite note <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> log<br />
5 mi
Concentrations <strong>of</strong> CFC’s <strong>in</strong> air<br />
<strong>and</strong> tritium <strong>in</strong> precipitation<br />
Tritium<br />
CFC-12<br />
CFC-11<br />
CFC-113<br />
1940 1960 1980 2000<br />
submodern<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – Tritium concentrations<br />
modern<br />
Tritium (TU)<br />
N<br />
5 mi<br />
Tritium (TU)<br />
< 1.5 (or ND)<br />
4.5 – 10<br />
10 – 20<br />
ND<br />
ND<br />
20
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – CFC age dat<strong>in</strong>g<br />
A<br />
A’<br />
Giant Spr<strong>in</strong>gs<br />
Well 216851: 470<br />
ft deep
Recharge yr<br />
CFC-11 – 1974<br />
CFC-12 – 1982<br />
Apparent <strong>Age</strong> = 24 yrs<br />
3H = 10.2 TU<br />
A<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – CFC age dat<strong>in</strong>g<br />
samples collected <strong>in</strong> 2005<br />
Giant<br />
Spr<strong>in</strong>gs<br />
~ 1,400 ft<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> Limestone<br />
∆<br />
Well<br />
216851<br />
~ 440 ft<br />
Kootenai<br />
Formation<br />
Morrison<br />
Fm<br />
A’<br />
Recharge yr<br />
CFC-11 – 1975<br />
CFC-12 – 1979<br />
Apparent <strong>Age</strong> = 26 yrs<br />
3H = 10.1 TU
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – Groundwater Velocity<br />
Groundwater is mov<strong>in</strong>g at a rate <strong>of</strong>:<br />
~ 1 mile/year, or<br />
~ 14 – 15 ft/day<br />
(In this part o f <strong>the</strong> aquifer)<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> Ls (Mm)<br />
5 mi<br />
Distance ~ 25 – 30 miles<br />
N<br />
Sun Riv.<br />
Giant Sp.<br />
Mm<br />
25 – 30 miles<br />
Little Belt Mtns.<br />
Highwood<br />
Mtns.
PMC 14C age BP<br />
49.38 5,668<br />
d13C: -7.1<br />
3H = 10.2 TU<br />
A<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong> – 14C dat<strong>in</strong>g<br />
Giant<br />
Spr<strong>in</strong>gs<br />
~ 1,400 ft<br />
<strong>Madison</strong> Limestone<br />
1) CO 2 + H 2O H 2CO 3<br />
CO 2 dissolves <strong>in</strong> water <strong>and</strong> hydrates to carbonic acid<br />
∆<br />
Well<br />
216851<br />
2) H 2CO 3 + CaCO 3 2HCO 3 - + Ca 2+<br />
½ HCO 3 from CO 2 (modern) <strong>and</strong> ½ from limestone (dead)<br />
~ 440 ft<br />
Kootenai<br />
Formation<br />
Morrison<br />
Fm<br />
A’<br />
PMC 14C age BP<br />
47.48 5,920<br />
d13C: -7.2<br />
3H = 10.1 TU
Conclusions – <strong>Madison</strong> <strong>Aquifer</strong><br />
1)Most utilized <strong>in</strong> <strong>Cascade</strong> Co.<br />
2)<strong>Water</strong> quality variable:<br />
• Ca-Mg-HCO3 (low TDS) – Ca-Mg-SO4 (high TDS)<br />
3)Pyrite oxidation – controls?<br />
4)Tritium –modern to sub-modern– variable porosity<br />
5)Giant Spr<strong>in</strong>gs: Young water<br />
John LaFave<br />
Ground <strong>Water</strong> Assessment Program<br />
Montana Bureau <strong>of</strong> M<strong>in</strong>es <strong>and</strong> Geology<br />
jlafave@mtech.edu
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