Methods to Identify Changes in Background Water-Quality Conditions Using Dissolved-Solids Concentrations and Loads as Indicators, Arkansas River and Fountain Creek, in the Vicinity of Pueblo, Colorado

Ortiz, Roderick F.

doi:10.3133/sir20045024

Cited by 4 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…The only constituent for which concentrations from NWIS were not directly used in trend analysis was TDS. Specific conductance (SC) is a commonly used proxy for TDS [19,40]. Measurement of SC was more common for site visits than collection of samples for TDS analysis, and four sites had records of continuously monitored SC.…”

Section: Water-quality Trend Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

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Potential Climate and Human Water-Use Effects on Water-Quality Trends in a Semiarid, Western U.S. Watershed: Fountain Creek, Colorado, USA

Bern,

Ruckhaus,

Hennessy

2024

Water

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Nutrients, total dissolved solids (TDS), and trace elements affect the suitability of water for human and natural needs. Here, trends in such water-quality constituents are analyzed for 1999–2022 for eight nested monitoring sites in the 24,000 km2 Fountain Creek watershed in Colorado, USA, by using the weighted regressions on time, discharge, and season (WRTDS) methodology. Fountain Creek shares characteristics with other western U.S. watersheds: (1) an expanding but more water-efficient population, (2) a heavy reliance on imported water, (3) a semiarid climate trending towards warmer and drier conditions, and (4) shifts of water from agricultural to municipal uses. The WRTDS analysis found both upward and downward trends in the concentrations of nutrients that reflected possible shifts in effluent management, instream uptake, and water conservation by a watershed population that grew by about 40%. Selenium, other trace elements, and TDS can pose water-quality challenges downstream and their concentrations were found to have a downwards trend. Those trends could be driven by either a warming and drying of the local climate or decreased agricultural irrigation, as both would reduce recharge and subsequent mobilization from natural geologic sources via groundwater discharge. The patterns illustrate how changes in climate and water use may have affected water quality in Fountain Creek and demonstrate the patterns to look for in other western watersheds.

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Section: Water-quality Trend Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Therefore, by translating SC data into TDS concentrations, the quantity of data to support trend analysis could be substantially increased. Existing and new regressions were used to translate SC to TDS (Table S1; [19,40]).…”

Section: Water-quality Trend Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Potential Climate and Human Water-Use Effects on Water-Quality Trends in a Semiarid, Western U.S. Watershed: Fountain Creek, Colorado, USA

Bern,

Ruckhaus,

Hennessy

2024

Water

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“…Fountain Creek is used to convey transmountain return flows from Colorado Springs to the Arkansas River. Expected growth by the City of Colorado Springs could result in larger volumes of wastewater effluent entering Fountain Creek and, ultimately, the Arkansas River (Ortiz, 2004).…”

Section: Description Of the Study Reachesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Estimates of gains and losses from unmeasured sources and sinks for streamflow and dissolved-solids load in selected reaches of the Arkansas River, southeastern Colorado, 2009-2010

Ortiz¹

2013

Scientific Investigations Report

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For more information on the USGS-the Federal source for science about the Earth, its natural and living resources, natural hazards, and the environment, visit http://www.usgs.gov or call 1-888-ASK-USGS.For an overview of USGS information products, including maps, imagery, and publications, visit http://www.usgs.gov/pubprodTo order this and other USGS information products, visit http://store.usgs.gov Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.Although this information product, for the most part, is in the public domain, it also may contain copyrighted materials as noted in the text. Permission to reproduce copyrighted items must be secured from the copyright owner. Temperature in degrees Celsius (°C) may be converted to degrees Fahrenheit (°F) as follows: °F=(1.8×°C)+32Temperature in degrees Fahrenheit (°F) may be converted to degrees Celsius (°C) as follows: °C=(°F-32)/1.8Vertical coordinate information is referenced to the insert datum name (and abbreviation) here, for instance, "North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88)"Horizontal coordinate information is referenced to the insert datum name (and abbreviation) here, for instance, "North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83)"Altitude, as used in this report, refers to distance above the vertical datum. AbstractThe Arkansas River is an important municipal water supply and is the primary supply for about 400,000 acres of irrigated land in southeastern Colorado. The suitability of this water for domestic, agricultural, and industrial use is affected by high salinity in parts of the Arkansas River. There is a need to quantify mass loading of dissolved solids (DS) in the Arkansas River. In 2009, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Arkansas River Basin Regional Resource Planning Group and the Colorado Water Conservation Board, began a study to estimate gains and losses from unmeasured sources and sinks for streamflow and DS load in selected reaches of the Arkansas River in southeastern Colorado. Two study reaches were selected for investigation-Canon City to just upstream from Pueblo Reservoir (UARB) and Avondale to Las Animas (LARB).The results from the water-budget analyses indicated that potential areas of unmeasured sources and sinks of streamflow were identifiable in the two study reaches. In the UARB, a substantial volume of water in the subreach from Ark at Canon City to the seasonal gaging station 5 miles downstream (Ark nr Canon City) was unaccounted for by the methodology used in this analysis. The daily gain from unmeasured sources in this subreach was estimated to be about 100 cubic feet per second (ft 3 /s) or about 20 ft 3 /s per river mile. Water-budget estimates for the remaining 18 miles of the UARB study reach indicated that gains or losses from unmeasured sources or sinks were within the measurement error as defined for this report.In the LARB, gains and losses from unmeasured sources and sinks were identified in some of the subreaches but the mag...

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“…The interaction is affected by substantially variable flow (both in timing and quantity), streamflow diversions, return flows, groundwater withdrawals, and evapotranspiration (Kuhn, 1988). Fountain Creek is used to convey transmountain return flows from Colorado Springs to the Arkansas River (Ortiz, 2004), and the creek receives inflows from wastewater treatment plants (Mau and others, 2007) and storm drains from adjacent urbanized areas (Kenneth Watts, U.S. Geological Survey, oral commun., 2015). Fountain Creek has a sandy, braided channel ( fig.…”

Section: Hydrologic Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Groundwater and surface-water interaction, water quality, and processes affecting loads of dissolved solids, selenium, and uranium in Fountain Creek, near Pueblo, Colorado, 2012–2014

Methods to Identify Changes in Background Water-Quality Conditions Using Dissolved-Solids Concentrations and Loads as Indicators, Arkansas River and Fountain Creek, in the Vicinity of Pueblo, Colorado

Cited by 4 publications

References 3 publications

Potential Climate and Human Water-Use Effects on Water-Quality Trends in a Semiarid, Western U.S. Watershed: Fountain Creek, Colorado, USA

Potential Climate and Human Water-Use Effects on Water-Quality Trends in a Semiarid, Western U.S. Watershed: Fountain Creek, Colorado, USA

Estimates of gains and losses from unmeasured sources and sinks for streamflow and dissolved-solids load in selected reaches of the Arkansas River, southeastern Colorado, 2009-2010

Groundwater and surface-water interaction, water quality, and processes affecting loads of dissolved solids, selenium, and uranium in Fountain Creek, near Pueblo, Colorado, 2012–2014

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