Hydrologic Reconnaissance of Grouse Creek Valley, Box Elder County, Utah (TP-29)

By: J. W. Hood and D. Price

Grouse Creek valley is a trough-shaped depression that extends about 30 miles southward from T. 13 N. in the Grouse Creek and Goose Creek Mountains to the Great Salt Lake Desert in T. 7 N. The drainage basin extends a short distance into Nevada and includes about 430 square miles. The known ground-water reservoir in the valley is in unconsolidated and consolidated sedimentary rocks of Quaternary and Tertiary age and underlies at least 110 square miles. The source of water in Grouse Creek valley is precipitation on its drainage area, which is estimated to average 276,000 acre-feet annually. All but about 1 percent of the precipitation ultimately is consumed within the drainage basin. Most runoff and ground-water recharge to the valley is derived from precipitation on lands above an altitude of about 6,000 feet. The estimated average annual runoff from the uplands is 7,000 acre-feet. A very small part leaves the valley, mainly as ephemeral flow after summer storms.

This report is the seventh in a series by the U. S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Utah Department of Natural Resources, Division of Water Rights, which describes water resources of the western basins of Utah. Its purpose is to present available hydrologic data on Grouse Creek valley, to provide an evaluation of the potential water-resource development of the valley, and to identify studies that would help provide a better understanding of the valley's water supply.

Other Information:
Published: 1970
Pages: 54 p.
Location: Box Elder County
Media Type: Paper Publication