Water-quality assessment and mapping for the principal valley-fill aquifer in Sanpete Valley, Sanpete County, Utah (SS-102)

By: M. Lowe, J. Wallace, and C. E. Bishop

Contains the final report and maps for a water-quality study conducted in cooperation with the Utah Division of Water Quality and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. We collected and analyzed ground-water samples from 443 wells and surface-water samples from two ponds during 1996 and 1997 to: 1.) provide an assessment of existing water quality in Sanpete Valley, 2,) identify sources of documented nitrate contaminations, and 3.) provide recommendations to protect the valley?s aquifer from future degradation.

Our assessment of the correlation between land use and water-quality degradation shows that several different land uses are the sources of nitrate for the 3.5 percent of the wells that exceeded the Utah drinking-water standard of this constituent. Utah drinking-water standards were also exceeded for lead in two wells, arsenic in two other wells, and copper in another well.

Other Information:
Published: 2003
Pages: 91 p.
Plates: 13 pl.
Scale: 1:100,000
Location: Sanpete County