Research Projects

Expanding the Indiana Geological and Water Survey’s contribution to the NGWMN

Status Start Date End Date Locations
completed Sep 1, 2020 Aug 31, 2022 All Counties
Director: Ginger Davis
Other Researchers: Dana Bissey, Ben Romlein, McKailey Sabaj,
Funding: U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) - National Ground-Water Monitoring Network (NGWMN)
Issue: According to the Indiana Active Water Level Network maintained by the USGS (http://groundwaterwatch.usgs.gov/StateMap.asp?sa=IN&sc=18), there are 68 wells in Indiana where trend/backbone monitoring is being conducted. The work proposed herein seeks to increase the number of high-frequency trend monitoring sites by adding additional wells to the NGWMN in Indiana. Furthermore, most of the proposed sites include micrometeorological and vadose-zone soil-moisture monitoring components that strengthen the value of such sites from a trend-identification perspective.
Objective: Groundwater-elevation data are collected primarily to determine how groundwater levels are changing over time. The data from sites with continuous/high-frequency water-level records are also used to assess groundwater-recharge dynamics for various hydrogeologic settings.
Approach: Groundwater-level data are typically logged on hourly time intervals using non-vented pressure transducers and downloaded during monthly or bi-monthly site visits. Manual depth-to-water measurements are also collected during site visits. Groundwater-level data are barometrically compensated using site-specific barometric pressure data that are also logged using hourly time intervals. The daily corrected data are converted from water-column depth measurements to groundwater elevations based on a linear relationship established using matched pairs of manual-measured elevations and compensated pressure transducer water-column data. The daily groundwater elevation data are compiled and stored in spreadsheets, and hydrographs are plotted along with hand-measured groundwater elevations for quality assurance and quality control purposes.
Products: We will address three NGWMN program objectives during the proposed two-year project period
Benefits: Long-term groundwater elevation data for several aquifers in Indiana. Finding the hydraulic parameters of the hosting aquifers. Describing the collected cores from well drilling, and make them available to public.