Prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Geophysical Logs of Selected Wells at the Diaz Chemical 

Superfund Site in the Village of Holley, New York, 2009

Data Series–500

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey
Cover: The Diaz Chemical Superfund Site in the Village of Holley, New York, in 2006. 
Prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Geophysical Logs of Selected Wells at the Diaz Chemical 

Superfund Site in the Village of Holley, New York, 2009

By David A.V. Eckhardt and J. Alton Anderson

Data Series–500

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey
i 

U.S. Department of the Interior

KEN SALAZAR, Secretary

U.S. Geological Survey

Marcia K. McNutt, Director

U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia 2010

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Eckhardt, D.A.V., and Anderson, J.A., 2010, Geophysical logs of selected wells at the Diaz Chemical Superfund 

Site in the Village of Holley, New York, 2009: U.S. Geological Survey Data Series–500,16 p., at 

http://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/500. 

Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply 

endorsement by the U.S. Government.

Although this report is in the public domain, permission must be secured from the individual 

copyright owners to reproduce any copyrighted material contained within this report.
ii

Contents

Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................................... 1

Introduction.................................................................................................................................................................... 1

Study Area ................................................................................................................................................................. 1

Description of Wells ................................................................................................................................................... 3

Description of Logs........................................................................................................................................................ 5

Acknowledgments.......................................................................................................................................................... 6

References Cited........................................................................................................................................................... 6

Appendix 1. Geophysical logs of selected wells at the Diaz Chemical Superfund Site at Holley, N.Y., 2009 ................ 8

Figures

1. Map showing location of study area and wells that were logged at the Diaz Chemical Superfund Site, Holley, 

N.Y., 2009......................................................................................................................................................... 2

Tables

1. Well construction information and types of geophysical logs collected from test wells at the Diaz Chemical 

Superfund Site, Village of Holley, New York, 2009........................................................................................... 4 
iii

Conversion Factors and Datum

Multiply By To obtain

Length

inch (in.) 2.54 centimeter (cm)

inch (in.) 25.4 millimeter (mm)

foot (ft) 0.3048 meter (m)

mile (mi) 1.609 kilometer (km)

Area

acre (ac) 4,047 square meter (m2)

acre (ac) 0.4047 hectare (ha)

Volume

gallon (gal) 3.785 liter (L) 

Flow rate

gallon per minute (gal/min) 0.06309 liter per second (L/s)

Transmissivity*

foot squared per day (ft2/d) 0.09290 meter squared per day (m2/d) 

Temperature in degrees Celsius (°C) may be converted to degrees Fahrenheit (°F) as follows:

 °F=(1.8×°C)+32

Vertical coordinate information is referenced to the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88).

Horizontal coordinate information is referenced to the North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83).

Altitude, as used in this report, refers to distance above the vertical datum.

*Transmissivity: The standard unit for transmissivity is cubic foot per day per square foot times foot of aquifer thickness 

[(ft3

/d)/ft2]ft. In this report, the mathematically reduced form, foot squared per day (ft2/d), is used for convenience.

Fluid conductivity (specific conductance) is given in microSiemens per centimeter at 25 degrees Celsius (μS/cm at 25 °C).
1 

Geophysical Logs of Selected Wells at the Diaz Chemical 

Superfund Site in the Village of Holley, New York, 2009

By David A.V. Eckhardt and J. Alton Anderson

Abstract 

Geophysical logs were collected and analyzed to define the bedrock fracture patterns and flow 

zones penetrated by three wells at the Diaz Chemical Superfund Site in the Village of Holley in Orleans 

County, New York. The work was conducted in December 2009 as part of the investigation of 

contamination by organic compounds in the shale, mudstone, and sandstone bedrock at the Site. The 

geophysical logs include natural-gamma, caliper, borehole image, fluid properties, and flowmeter data. 

The orientation of fractures in the boreholes was inferred from the log data and summarized in stereo 

and tadpole plots; when possible, the transmissivity and hydraulic head was also determined for fracture 

zones that were observed to be hydraulically active through the flowmeter logs. The data are intended, 

in part, for use in the remediation of the site. 

Introduction

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and semivolatile organic compounds (SVOCs) have been 

detected in groundwater sampled at the Diaz Chemical Superfund Site in the Village of Holley in 

Orleans County, N.Y. (fig. 1). The area was declared a Superfund Site by the U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency (USEPA) and listed on the National Priorities List 

(http://www.epa.gov/superfund/sites/npl/) in 2004. 

In June and July 2006 and December 2009, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the USEPA 

collected advanced borehole-geophysical logs at selected well sites as part of the investigation of VOC 

and SVOC contamination in the unconsolidated deposits and bedrock aquifer that underlie the site. The 

USGS analyzed the geophysical logs, along with core samples and outcrops of the bedrock, to define the 

rock fractures and groundwater flow zones penetrated by the wells. Log data collected in 2006 were

previously published (Eckhardt and Anderson, 2007). This report describes the geophysical methods 

and presents the three sets of borehole logs collected in December 2009. The logs are available upon 

request in wcl format (WellCAD, version 4.1), which allows the logs to be viewed in a tabular form or 

displayed and printed at user-specified vertical scales.

Study Area

The Diaz Chemical Superfund site occupies about 6 acresin the Village of Holley in eastern 

Orleans County, New York (fig. 1). The area is within a lowland region that lies along Lake Ontario 

between the cities of Rochester to the east and Buffalo to the west. The site and its history are described 

by Lockheed Martin Technology Services (2005), New York State (2002), and Haley & Aldrich of New 

York, Inc. (2000).
2 

Figure 1. Map showing location of study area and wells that were logged at the Diaz Chemical Superfund Site, 

Village of Holley, N.Y., 2009. 

The local topography consists of relatively flat terrain that is transected by a 40-ft-deep channel 

of East Branch Sandy Creek about 500 ft east of the site (fig. 1). The site is underlain by unconsolidated 

lacustrine silt and clay with some interbedded sand. The unconsolidated deposits range in thickness 

from 10 to 35 ft and overlie the Queenston Formation of upper Ordovician age, which consists of shales 

and subordinate fine-grained sandstones devoid of fossils (Brett and others, 1994; Goodman, 2005). At 

the site, the Queenston Formation consists of mudstone with some thin-bedded sandstone. The upper 

part of the shallow bedrock near its contact with the unconsolidated deposits is weathered into red clay. 

The deeper zones of unweathered rock are dense and have low permeability. The mudstone and 

sandstone layers are relatively flat lying, and the highest hydraulic permeability is likely along nearly

horizontal bedding planes and possibly along some sets of moderate- to high-angle fractures. The site is 

adjacent to an inferred spur of the Clarendon-Linden fault system, which is a series of north-striking, 

east-dipping normal faults in western New York (Fakundiny and Myers, 1978; Cannon and Noll, 2004). 
3 

Description of Wells 

Geophysical logs were collected from one test well and two abandoned production wells 

(locations shown in fig. 1). Well-construction information at the time of logging and the types of 

geophysical logs collected at the wells are given in table 1. One of the wells (MW-102-SR) was 

constructed as a 4-inch-diameter test well with an open borehole below steel casing that terminated in 

bedrock. Two of the wells were 6-inch-diameter abandoned production wells; one production well 

(PW-1) had an open borehole below steel casing set in bedrock, and the other (PW-2) had a steel screen 

that was open to weathered bedrock and unconsolidated overburden. After completion of logging, well 

PW-1 was converted to a 2-inch-diameter monitor well with a grouted PVC casing and a screened, 

sand-packed interval.
4 

Table 1. Well construction information and types of geophysical logs collected from test wells at the Diaz Chemical Superfund 

Site, Village of Holley, New York, 2009.

[Site locations shown in fig. 1. Local number assigned by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. USGS well number assigned by U.S. Geological 

Survey; OL, Orleans County; ft, feet; in, inches; Mech cal, mechanical caliper; Acou cal, acoustic caliper; ATV, acoustic televiewer; OTV, optical 

televiewer; HPFM, heat-pulse flowmeter; Cond, fluid electrical conductivity; Temp, temperature; amb, ambient; rec, recovery]

Type of Log

Local well 

number

USGS well

number 

Casing 

depth 

(ft)

Well 

depth 

(ft)

Well 

diameter

(in)

Natural

gamma

Mech

cal

Acou

cal

ATV OTV

__HPFM__ __Cond__ _ _Temp_ _ 

amb rec amb rec amb rec

PW-1 OL 49 29 49.5 6 X X X X X X X X X X X

PW-2 OL 50 20 23.5 6 X X X

MW-102-SR OL 51 28.5 38.5 4 X X X X X X X X
5 

Low well yields (less than 0.2 gal/min) at PW-1 and MW-102-SR prevented collection of 

borehole geophysical data under steady-state pumped conditions; therefore, some logs were collected 

during water-level recovery after pumping had ceased in these wells. The measured flow rates were then 

normalized to represent a steady drawdown level. Flow and fluid-property (specific conductivity and 

temperature) logs were completed at production well PW-1 for ambient hydraulic conditions and during 

water-level recovery. A wellbore constriction at 29 ft below land surface in test well MW-102-SR 

prevented collection of flow logs, but fluid-property logs were collected for the full well depth for 

ambient and recovery conditions. The screen in production well PW-2 allowed only the natural-gamma 

and fluid-property logs to be completed under ambient conditions. 

Description of Logs

The geophysical logs collected from the wells are presented in appendix 1 and include naturalgamma, caliper, borehole-image, fluid-conductivity and temperature, and heat-pulse-flowmeter data. 

The caliper logs were collected by mechanical and acoustical methods. Borehole-image logs were 

collected with an acoustic televiewer (ATV) and an optical televiewer (OTV). Borehole-deviation logs 

were collected with three-axis fluxgate magnetometers and vertical inclinometers that are incorporated 

in the ATV probe. Fluid-property logs included fluid-conductance and temperature measurements of the 

borehole water. Flowmeter logs were collected by heat-pulse methods. The types and sources of 

geophysical logs collected in each well are listed in table 1. Applications of these types of geophysical 

logs in groundwater studies are described by Williams and Lane (1998) and Keys (1990). The 

geophysical logs used in this investigation are described briefly below. 

Natural-gamma logs measure the gamma radiation of the rock units penetrated by the borehole. 

Major gamma emitters are uranium, thorium, and daughter products of potassium-40. Sedimentary 

rocks with relatively high gamma radiation when compared to other lithologic units include shales, 

mudstones, bentonites, and other argillaceous units, as well as phosphate-rich zones. The gamma tool 

has a vertical resolution of 1 to 2 ft. Gamma logs collected in open boreholes and through steel casing 

may be used for lithologic identification and stratigraphic correlation.

Mechanical (Mech) and acoustic (Acou) caliper logs record the diameter of the borehole. 

Changes in borehole diameter are related to drilling and construction procedures and competency of 

lithologic units, fractures, and solution features. Mechanical-caliper logs were collected with a springloaded, three-arm averaging tool; acoustic-caliper logs were calculated from acoustic traveltimes 

collected with the ATV tool. Caliper logs were used in the delineation of fractures, solution features, 

and lithology, and to confirm well and casing depths and diameters. 

Acoustic-televiewer (ATV) logs record a 360-degree acoustic image of the borehole wall 

(Williams and Johnson, 2000). ATV logs can be collected in clear or turbid water. Features with widths 

greater than 0.01 ft can be identified, and their strike and dip can be characterized relative to magnetic 

north. Acoustic-televiewer logs were used to characterize bedding and lithology, fracture aperture and 

orientation, solution features, and borehole-wall rugosity.

Optical-televiewer (OTV) logs record a 360-degree magnetically oriented optical image of the 

borehole wall (Williams and Johnson, 2000). OTV logs can be collected above the water level in a well 

but only in clear water below. Optical-televiewer logs are used to characterize bedding and lithology, 

fracture aperture and orientation, solution features, and rock fabric. 

Fluid-conductivity (Cond) logs record the electrical conductance of water in the borehole. 

Electrical conductance is directly related to the concentration of dissolved solids in the water. Slope 

changes in fluid-conductivity logs may indicate zones of inflow to or outflow from the borehole. 
6 

Temperature (Temp) logs record the temperature of air and water in the borehole. Temperature 

gradients that are smaller than the geothermal gradient may indicate intervals of borehole flow. 

Temperature logs were used with the fluid-conductivity logs to delineate the water level and possible 

changes in borehole flow. 

Heat-pulse flowmeter (HPFM) logs record the direction and rate of vertical flow in the borehole. 

Vertical flow occurs in wells that penetrate more than one water-producing fracture zone under differing 

hydraulic head (water level). Flow in the borehole is from zones of higher head to zones of lower head. 

The HPFM (Hess, 1982) measures the traveltime of a thermal pulse between a set of upper and lower 

heat sensors (thermistors). The flowmeter was used with flexible rubber diverters fitted to the nominal 

borehole diameter and has a measurement range of 0.01 to 1.5 gal/min in a stationary mode. Flow logs 

and fluid-property logs were obtained (when possible) under (1) steady-state ambient conditions, and (2) 

steady-state pumping or transient recovery conditions to provide a contrast of flow-rate gain or loss at 

discrete fracture zones with the boreholes (Paillet, 2000; 2001). 

Transmissivity (Trans), in square feet per day (ft2

/d), of the hydraulically active flow zones were 

estimated by analysis of the flowmeter data from one of the wells. Measured ambient and stressed flows 

were matched to simulated flows by trial-and-error adjustment of flow-zone transmissivity and 

hydraulic head (Paillet, 2000; 2001). The drawdown value used in the transmissivity analysis was based 

on the difference between the composite ambient and stressed water levels (Bennett and others, 1982). 

Fracture Stereo and Strike/Dip (S/D) logs present the inferred strike and dip of fractures 

observed through the ATV logs. The dip azimuth (0 to 360 degrees) and the dip angle (0 to 90 degrees) 

are shown in tadpole plots and lower hemisphere stereo-net diagrams. The blue symbols signify fracture 

zones that were observed to be hydraulically active throughout the flowmeter logs; the gray symbols 

signify fracture zones with no indication of flow. 

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the following individuals for their cooperation and assistance: Robert Alvey

and John DiMartino of the USEPA; Grant Anderson of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; John 

Dougherty and Anna Richter of Camp, Dresser, and McKee, Inc.; and William M. Goodwin of 

RESPEC, Inc.

References Cited

Bennett, G.D., Kontis, A.L., and Larson, S.P., 1982, Representation of multiaquifer-well effects in 

three-dimensional groundwater flow simulation: Ground Water, v. 20, no. 3, p. 334–341. 

Brett, C.E., Goodman, W.M., Loduca, S.T., and Lehmann, D.F., 1994, Ordovician and Silurian strata in 

the Genesee Valley area—Sequences, cycles, and facies, in New York State Geological Association 

66d Annual Meeting Field Trip Guidebook: Rochester, N.Y., University of Rochester, p. 381–442. 

Cannon, D.L., and Noll, M.R., 2004, Geochemical evidence for dolomitization along the ClarendonLinden fault in western New York: Geological Society of America, Annual Meeting, November 

2004, Denver, Colo. 

Eckhardt, D.A., and Anderson, J.A., 2007, Geophysical logs of selected test wells at the Diaz Chemical 

Superfund Site in Holley, New York: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2007–1081, 15 p., at 

http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2007/1081/OFR2007-1081.pdf.) 
7 

Fakundiny, R.H., and Myers, J.T., 1978, Structural instability features in the vicinity of the ClarendonLinden fault system western New York and Lake Ontario: Advances in analysis of geotechnical 

instabilities, University Of Waterloo Press, SM Study No. 13, Paper 4, p. 121–171. 

Goodman, W.M., 2005, Bedrock exposures in the lower Genesee River gorge—Their context within the 

stratigraphic framework for the Niagara region: Rochester, N.Y., Rochester Committee for Scientific 

Information, Bulletin 329, 30 p. 

Haley & Aldrich of New York, Inc., 2000, Report on remedial investigation, Diaz Plant, Holley, New 

York, Site No. 837009, February 2000: Rochester, N.Y., 230 p. 

Hess, A.E., 1982, A heat-pulse flowmeter for measuring low velocities in boreholes: U.S. Geological 

Survey Open-File Report 82–699, 44 p. (Also available at 

http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/usgspubs/ofr/ofr82699.) 

Keys, W.S., 1990, Borehole geophysics applied to groundwater investigations: U.S. Geological Survey 

Techniques of Water-Resources Investigations, book 2, chap. E2, p. 150. (Also available at 

http://pubs.usgs.gov/twri/twri2-e2/.) 

Lockheed Martin Technology Services, 2005, Review of remedial investigations/feasibility studies, 

Diaz Superfund Site, Holley, New York, March 2005: Edison, N.J., 6 p. 

New York State, 2002, Record of Decision, Diaz Chemical Corporation Site, Village of Holley, Orleans 

County, Site No. 8-37-009, March 2002: Albany, N.Y., Department of Environmental Conservation, 

60 p. 

Paillet, F.L., 2000, A field technique for estimating aquifer parameters using flow log data: 

Groundwater, v. 38, no. 4, p. 510–521. 

Paillet, F.L., 2001, Hydraulic head applications of flow logs in the study of heterogeneous aquifers: 

Groundwater, v. 39, no. 5, p. 667–675. 

Williams, J.H., and Johnson, C.D., 2000, Borehole-wall imaging with acoustic and optical televiewers 

for fractured-bedrock aquifer investigations, in Proceedings of the 7th Minerals and Geotechnical 

Logging Symposium: Golden, Colo., Minerals and Geotechnical Logging Society, p. 43–53. 

Williams, J.H., and Lane, J.W., 1998, Advances in borehole geophysics for groundwater investigations: 

U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 002–98, 4 p. (Also available at 

http://ny.water.usgs.gov/pubs/fs/fs00298/FS002-98.pdf.) 
8 

Appendix 1. Geophysical logs of selected wells at the Diaz Chemical Superfund 

Site at Village of Holley, N.Y., 2009

 

Explanation

Latitude/Longitude, in degrees-minutes-seconds, North American Datum of 1983

Gamma, natural-gamma radiation in counts per second (cps)

Caliper mech, mechanical three-arm caliper borehole diameter in inches (in.)

Caliper acou, acoustic caliper borehole diameter in inches (in.)

ATV, acoustic televiewer, oriented to magnetic north (MN)

OTV, optical televiewer, oriented to magnetic north (MN)

HPFM, heat-pulse flowmeter in gallons per min (gal/min) 

amb, ambient conditions; rec, recovery conditions

Fl Cond, fluid conductivity in microsiemens per centimeter (uS/cm) 

Temp, air and water temperature in degrees Celsius (deg C) 

Zone trans, estimated fracture transmissivity, in square feet per day (ft2/d)

Fracture stereo and strike/dip logs show azimuth (0–360 degrees) and dip angle (0–90 degrees) 

of fractures observed on the ATV logs; blue symbols signify fracture zones that were observed 

to be hydraulically active through use of the flowmeter logs; gray symbols signify fracture 

zones with no indication of flow 

Information on wells used in this study may be accessed online at http://ny.water.usgs.gov 

through search queries that use the following well-site identifications: 

USGS well number 

 (site name) Site ID

------------------------ ------------------------

 OL 49 431322078014401

 OL 50 431322078014402

 OL 51 431322078014403
9 
10
11
12
13
14
15

For additional information write to:

New York Water Science Center

U.S. Geological Survey

425 Jordan Road

Troy, N.Y. 12180

Information requests:

(518) 285–5600

Or visit our Web site at http://ny.water.usgs.gov
Eckhardt and Anderson—Geophysical Logs of Selected Test Wells at the Diaz Chemical Superfund Site in the Village of Holley, New York, 2009—Data Series–500