Hydrology j^jtot*^-* -*- 1 ' a./ of the Alluvial

Deposits in the Ohio 

River Valley in Kentucky

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1818

Prepared in cooperation with the Com-

, ., £> *+'-^»'*-

mo&Wealth of Kentucky, University of 

Kentucky, Kentucky Geological Survey, 

and the Kentucky Department of 

Commerce
Hydrology of the Alluvial 

Deposits in the Ohio 

River Valley in Kentucky

> JOHN T. GALLAHER and W. E. PRICE, JR.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1818

Prepared in cooperation with the Commonwealth of Kentucky, University of 

Kentucky, Kentucky Geological Survey, 

and the Kentucky Department of 

Commerce

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1966
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

WILLIAM P. CLARK, Secretary

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

Dallas L. Peck, Director

First printing 1966 

Second printing 1984

For sale by the Distribution Branch, U.S. Geological Survey, 

604 South Pickett Street, Alexandria, VA 22304
CONTENTS

Page

Abstract _-.-_.._-_-___-_-__---------_------_--_----_---___--------- 1

Introduction. _______-________--_-_-_______-___-_-_--__------.--_--- 1

Purpose and scope._____-_-_-_-____-______---__--_--____-_--_-_ 1

Water utilization and water problems____________________________ 2

Procedures used and subjects covered__________----_-___-________ 5

Description of area____________________________________________ 5

Previous investigations._._______-___.__-_--__----____-____.--__ 6

Acknowledgments_____________________________________________ 6

Hydrologic system.________________________________________________ 6

The container,___________________-___-____--..-------__---_--__ 7

The water. ___---____-_-_----_-------------_------------------ 9

Ohio River and tributaries._____________-_-____-__-_----____ 9

Ground water in the alluvium.._____________________________ 10

Interrelation between aquifers and streams._____________-_---_ 12

Changes in water as it moves through the system._____________ 14

Controlling factors in water-supply development.______________________ 17

Availability. .____________-________---_--_-___--__-_____-_-_-__ 17

Saturated thickness...____-____-_____-_---_-__-_-___-_-_-__ 17

Occurrence of water in the alluvium... ______________________ 19

Water movement._______-__-_--__-_-_-__-_---__-_-_---___- 20

Effect of paving or fill_______-______------_-_--_----.--_-- 22

Development of ground-water supplies..___-____-_.______.___-___ 22

Types of wells.. __,_______-_____-___-__-_----_--__----__-_- 22

Specific capacity_---_--___---__--__-----_--_----_--_-_--.-- 24

Cones of depression._______________--__--___-__-__-___---_- 25

Induced infiltration.________________________________________ 29

Well location.._.__.________.__.._____-___-__--.___.-__-.__ 30

Well construction and development._________--__-__--__---_. 31

Quality of water.______________________________________________ 33

Range and general character._____._____.____.._______-..-_- 33

Existing water-quality conditions.___________________________ 33

Effects of recharge.-__.____._.-____.__-___---_-__.-.__-_-_. 36

Effects of flooding _________________________________________ 37

Screen incrustation_______-___-_______.-___--___-_-__-_---. 38

Availability and quality of ground water in developed areas_____________ 38

Ashland area._________________________________________________ 38

Covington-Newport area. _____________-__-_______----------_-_- 43

Louisville area_ _______________________________________________ 47

Brandenburg area_ ____________________________________________ 51

Owensboro area_______________________________________________ 53

Availability and quality of ground water in relatively undeveloped areas-_ 57

Area between Owensboro and the Hawesville vicinity______________ 57

Area from Owensboro to Spottsville___________-_-_----__--__---_- 61

Areas of poor potential or with special problems___-----_----____------ 66

in
IV CONTENTS

Page

Factors affecting future ground-water quality and quantity____________ 67

Increased withdrawal._-____-__-___-_-_--___-__--___-__--__-___ 67

Changes in chemistry, temperature, and radioactivity of C *iio River

water ______________________________________________________ 67

Drainage problems associated with increased urbanization._________ 69

Higher dams and resulting changes in pool stage_________________ 69

Changes in amount or character of river-bottom sediment._________ 69

Conclusions._________________-___-_-_---_---___--_--___-__--__-___ 69

Recommendations for future study_ _-____-___-_____-__.__-_______-__ 70

Detailed studies of problem areas--_-_-_-___---_---__---_-___--__ 70 

Study of the geology and hydrology of small bottoms and tributary

valleys _____________________________________________________ 71

Monitoring stations for ground-water quality.____-______....__-_._ 71

Geochemicalstudies. __________________________________________ 71

Periodic inventory of water use-------__-_______--_______-______ 71

Water-table maps. -__________---__--__--__-_--________-_-__-__ 72

Artificial recharge. ____________________________________________ 72

Selected references.________________________________________________ 73

Index.-___-_-_----___.___-_----__--._---_-___-___--____-_---_--_- 77

ILLUSTRATIONS

Page

FIGURE 1. Index map of Kentucky showing area covered by 1 ydrologic 

investigations atlases of the Ohio River valley series...___

2. Generalized block diagram of a segment of the Ohio River 

valley.__---_--_____-____-___--______________._______

3. Diagram showing bedrock valley and alluvial fill in the Ohio 

River valley near Madison, Ind_-_.--._-__-.__.__._____

4. Generalized section showing surface and subsurface features 

in the Ohio River valley________________________.______

5. Graphs showing mean monthly precipitation, surplus water, 

and recharge to ground water, Louisville, Ky____________

6. Demonstration of the relation of the water table to the overlying unsaturated soil materials._______________________

7. Diagrams showing causes of some artesian conditions found 

in the Ohio River valley...____________________________

8. Diagrams showing movement of ground water into stream 

channel and movement of surface water into aquifer_____.

9. Section showing movement of water in the hydrologic system._

10. Diagram showing types of wells commonly const-ucted in 

alluvium ------__-.___._._._____.____._______________

11. Typical radial-collector well shown in section and p)an______

12. Pla,ns and sections showing the expansion of cone of depression 

when well is pumped._________________________________

13. Plan and section showing increased drawdowns and spread of 

cones of depression resulting from increased or prolonged 

pumpage near an impermeable barrier.__________________

14. Diagram showing effect of too-close spacing of wells - _______

10

11

13

14

18

23

 25

26

28

29
CONTENTS V

Page

FIGURE 15. Generalized section showing cones of depression where recharge is induced from a perennial stream_______________ 29

16. Generalized section illustrating relatively impermeable layers 

that reducq the rate at which Ohio River water moves into 

the more permeable sand and gravel.___________________ 30

17. Diagram illustrating advantage of placing line of wells

perpendicular to direction of ground-water movement. _ _ _ _ 32

18. Diagram showing effect of well development on the aquifer_ _ 33

19. Diagram showing construction of a gravel-packed well. _ ____ 34

20. Graph and map showing average hardness and sulfate content

of water in the Ohio River valley.______________________ 35

21. Map showing distribution of ground-water pumping in the

Louisville area, 1962._.-__._..__._._.....___.______.__ 48

22. Map showing water-level contours in the Louisville area.

December 1960_--____---_________-.____._____.__._.__ 49

TABLES

TABLE 1. Source and significance of dissolved mineral constituents and 

physical properties of natural waters in the Ohio Valley 

alluvium ____________________________________________ 15

2. Hydrologic characteristics of the alluvial deposits and specific

capacities of wells along the Ohio River in Kentucky, _____ 21
HYDROLOGY OF THE ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS IN THE CHIO 

RIVER VALLEY IN KENTUCKY

By JOHN T. GALLAHER and W. E. PRICE, JR.

ABSTRACT

In the Ohio River valley, water available for use is found in three interconnected and interrelated parts of the hydrologic system: on the surface, in the 

bedrock, and in the alluvial deposits. The alluvium is one of the major g-oundwater aquifers in the Central States, and future development of the area along 

the Ohio River will depend on the availability and quality of water from this 

source. Parts of the area are already heavily developed; others have ar even 

greater potential, and a few have little potential or have problems related to 

quality or quantity of water.

Large quantities of water are available to wells drilled in the coarse basal 

alluvium. Saturated thickness of the alluvium increases downstream, from 

35 feet near Ashland to about 110 feet in the Owensboro and Henderson areas. 

Yields of 200-800 gallons per minute from properly constructed drilled we1 Is are 

not uncommon. Many high-discharge wells are located close to the Ohio River, 

where water movement between the river and the aquifer allows irduced 

infiltration. Ground-water shortages can and do occur in some areas, in s~>ite of 

this seeming abundance owing to heavy pumpage.

Quality, rather than quantity, of the ground-water supply will be the major 

controlling factor in the future. Under natural conditions the water is of the 

calcium bicarbonate type and contains varying amounts of sulfate; it is t ard to 

very hard and has a high iron content. It also has a constant low temperature 

a feature that makes it valuable for air conditioning and industrial cooling. 

As a result of man's activities in the valley, however, heating and chemical or 

organic pollution of the ground water occurs in varying degrees, and increased 

water usage may lead to greater problems of quality control.

Present and future development of ground-water supplies can best be done 

with foresight and an understanding of the hydrologic system as a whole. Users 

of large quantities of water should plan their well fields carefully an-1 give 

adequate consideration to the problems of waste disposal. Pumpage should be 

inventoried more frequently, especially in areas where an increase in withdrawal 

may lower the water table excessively. To detect changes in quality of the 

ground-water supplies, a network of quality-of-water monitoring stations should 

be established throughout the Ohio River valley, especially in or near industrial 

and municipal areas.

INTRODUCTION

PURPOSE AND SCOPE

This report analyzes and interprets basic data on the ground-water 

resources of the alluvium of the Ohio Kiver valley in Kentucky. It

1
2 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

is intended to supplement a series of 14 hydrologic investigations atlases of the same area. The atlases consist of maps and sections which 

describe the geology and hydrology of the alluvium ard the quality, 

availability, and occurrence of water within the hydrologic system. 

This report describes the hydrologic system and its function in the 

Ohio River valley and shows how the data presented in the atlases 

are applicable to further understanding and solution of some of 

the water problems of the valley.

The hydrologic investigations atlas series, as shown in figure 1, 

describes the geology and hydrology of the following areas, listed in 

downstream order:

HA-75, Catlettsburg to South Portsmouth,

HA-73, South Portsmouth to Manchester Islands,

HA-94, Manchester Islands to Silver Grove,

HA-98, Newport to Warsaw,

HA-97, Ethridge to Twelvemile Island,

HA-130, Prospect to southwestern Louisville,

HA-111, Southwestern Louisville to West Point,

HA-95, Wolf Creek to West Point,

HA-72, Hawesville to Cloverport,

HA-74, Lewisport to Owensboro,

HA-110, Stanley area,

HA-96, Spottsville to Reed,

HA-91, Henderson area,

HA-129, Uniontown area to Wickliffe.

WATER UTILIZATION AND WATER PROBLEMS

Municipalities and modern industry can thrive only c n an adequate, 

dependable supply of water with moderately close quality tolerances. 

Supplies of raw water from rivers of the area sometimes: fail to satisfy 

quality requirements owing to waste-water discharge, turbidity, and 

summer temperatures. Ground water, on the other hand, is uniform 

in chemical quality, free from turbidity, and cooler thar surface-water 

supplies during the summer months. In some places ground water 

is the sole source of municipal or industrial supplies; elsewhere it 

may serve as a supplementary water source during low riverflow of 

the summer months or, because it is easily treated, as industrial-process 

water.

The alluvial deposits along the Ohio River constitute one of the 

principal sources of ground water in the Central States. E. H. Walker 

estimated (1957, p. 2) that a trillion gallons of water are in storage 

in the Ohio River valley alluvium. A perennial abundance is possible in many areas because of natural and induced infiltration of 

water from the river into the adjacent and under tying sand and 

gravel. Much development of the alluvial aquifer has already taken 

place, but the full potential of this source is far from being realized.
INTRODUCTION

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782-611 O - 66 - 2
4 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

Heavy pumping is currently confined to a few municipal and industrial areas, as Louisville and Ashland.

The adequacy and quality of the ground water in the Ohio River 

valley indicate that future progress, coupled with greying watersupply problems throughout the Nation, will lead to nuch greater 

use of this potential supply. Larger amounts will be needed for 

public and domestic supplies, industry, and agriculture.

Not only is the population of the area increasing, but so is the trend 

toward greater use of water per person. Automatic washing devices, 

garbage-disposal units, increased lawn care, and swimming pools all 

add to the quantity of water which is demanded from the available 

supplies.

In the petroleum industry, waterflooding, as a means of secondary 

recovery of crude oil from the oil-bearing formations, is becoming 

increasingly important. Three of the leading oil-producing counties 

in Kentucky are bordered on the north by the Ohio Fiver, and at 

present about one-fourth to one-half of the production in these counties is by waterflooding methods (E. N. Wilson, Kentucky Geol. 

Survey, written commun., 1964). Eventually, most production will 

be by secondary-recovery methods, and water from the alluvium will 

probably be used wherever possible.

Annual precipitation is in excess of 40 inches per year. The time 

and rate of precipitation, however, do not necessarily coincide with 

the time of greatest need by crops. Many farmers are turning to 

irrigation as insurance against untimely dry periods. The increased 

yield and quality of irrigated crops, such as tobacco and vegetables, 

indicate that crop irrigation may be more extensively used in the 

future. A quantity of water sufficient for this purpose can be reached 

by driven or drilled wells in the alluvium in most area? of the flood 

plain.

Problems exist in the development of suitable ground-water supplies 

in some areas, and the increasing demands on the wate" system will 

probably create more and greater problems in the future. As the 

complexity of industrial and municipal development increases along 

the valley, the need for extensive cooperation and planr ing will also 

increase, so that the rights of all users will be protected. The surest 

way of protecting these rights, of course, is by the instigation and strict 

enforcement of wise legislation. The problem of quantity can be 

controlled by the proper spacing of wells in areas where the wateryielding properties of the alluvium are satisfactory for large developments. Quality control, however, is more complex; careful legislative regulation is necessary as a safeguard against factors that may 

degrade the quality of the ground-water supply.
INTRODUCTION 5 

PROCEDURES USED AND SUBJECTS COVERED

Fieldwork for this study was begun in 1955. Wells were inventoried 

to determine the depth, yield, depth to water, and the purpose for 

which the water is used. Wherever possible, pumping tests were 

made. Water samples were collected for chemical analysis, and 

samples of alluvium were tested for their hydrologic properties In 

addition, logs for thousands of water wells, oil wells, and test holes 

were collected from owners, drillers, and organizations concerned with 

oil-field activities.

The contact between the alluvium and the bedrock, as shovT n in 

atlases of the Ohio River valley series, was mapped either in the field 

or by the use of aerial photographs and topographic maps. Tl ? location of the contact between the Ohio River and the tributary alluvial 

deposits was approximated or was based on thickness and texture of 

deposits as recorded in well logs,

DESCRIPTION OF AREA

The Ohio River valley in Kentucky is approximately 666 miles long. 

It is a broad U-shaped rock-bottomed trough (fig. 2) partly filled with 

clay, silt, sand, gravel, and some deep lying boulders. The alluvial 

surface is relatively smooth and even and slopes gradually toward the 

river, except where it is broken by sloughs and remnants of alluvial 

terraces.

The Ohio River has cut through the upper part of the unconsolidated materials, and its winding course across the valley determines 

the width of the plain on either side of the river. On the Kentucky 

side of the river, the alluvium ranges in width from a few feet, in areas 

such as Greenup, to about 11 miles, near Stanley. The river in this 

area is now (January 1964) divided into pools by 18 navigation dams. 

Larger replacement structures, planned or under construction, will 

reduce this number to eight.

Sand, gravel, and boulders Old deep channel

FIGURE 2. Segment of the OMo River valley (generalized).
6 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

Superimposed upon the valley floor are tributary streams and their 

deposits of fine-grained sediment. An indefinite boundary exists 

where these deposits merge with the coarser grained alluvium of the 

Ohio River.

The rich flood plain is used primarily for farming. Numerous oil 

fields have been developed in or near the flood plain in the western 

part of the State. Industry is concentrated in many areas along the 

valley, especially where the presence of coarse permeable alluvium 

allows the development of large water supplies and where dangers 

are minimal.

PREVIOUS INVESTIGATIONS

The deep channel, the alluvial deposits, and the geologic history of 

the Ohio Eiver valley in Kentucky are described by E. H. Walker 

(1957). An atlas by Hendrickson (1958), which summarizes the 

occurrence of ground water in Kentucky, includes a section concerning 

the water of the alluvial deposits. These, and many oth?.r atlases and 

reports that give more localized information on the water resources 

of the valley, are included in the list of references.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This report is one of a series published by the U.S. GQological Survey to describe the ground-water resources of Kentucky. The work 

was jointly financed by the U.S. Geological Survey ard agencies of 

the Commonwealth of Kentucky; narr^y, the Kentucky Geological 

Survey and the Kentucky Department of Jommerce.

The authors express their appreciate for the generous assistance 

of all those who contributed information or helped in the collection 

of data for this report. Data compiled by the late Otto Gutenson 

supplied valuable information concerning the geology of the Covington-Newport area. The Ashland Oil Co. and the Kentucky Geological Survey aided greatly by giving access to their well-log files. The 

Kentucky State Highway Department, the Illinois Central Railroad, 

the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, and the U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers provided many useful logs of test holes. Leland Glidden 

and Joseph Valla of the Ranney Construction Co., Louisville, Robert 

Diehl and Charles Kelly of Diehl Pump & Supply Co., Louisville, 

and Fred Klaer, Jr., of Fred Klaer, Jr. & Associates, Cclumbus, Ohio, 

all contributed invaluable data in the form of well logs and pumpingtest results.

HYDROLOGIC SYSTEM

The Ohio River valley may 'be thought of as a huge water container. 

Water is stored on or flows across the valley surface in the Ohio River
HYDROLOGIC SYSTEM 7

and its tributaries, and even greater amounts of water are present 

beneath the land surface.

THE CONTAINER

The container is a trench which has been cut down into the bedrock 

and partly filled with water-deposited sediments.

During the ice age several glaciers, carrying rock particles, approached the area that is now the Ohio Eiver valley. As one of the 

earlier lobes of glacial ice melted, torrents of water flowed out, carrying 

debris released from the ice. This waterborne debris, acting as an 

abrasive agent, scoured out the bedrock channel to its present size and 

shape. The erosion was accomplished in much the same way that the 

present river cuts its channel as it meanders across the valley.

The width and depth of the channel in any particular area vrere 

influenced largely by the hardness of the bedrock and its resistance to 

the cutting action of the waterborne debris. In areas of strong, resistant rocks, as at Madison, Ind. (fig. 3), the valley narrows, and the 

trench tends to have a smooth bottom and steep walls. The old deep 

channel occupies a relatively small part of the bedrock floor here, and 

its course coincides closely with that of the present river.

Where the rocks were generally less resistant the valley is wide and 

the valley walls are less abrupt. In these areas the meanders of the 

ancient river did not plane the floor of the trench to uniform smoothness. The deepest part of the buried channel meanders across the 

valley floor, and only by coincidence does it lie beneath the present 

stream channel. Buried bedrock hills, valleys, benches, and cuspr? lie 

beneath the valley alluvium. Good examples of many of these features 

are found in the Bon Harbor Hills region, west of Owensboro. The 

bedrock there rises as much as 140 feet above the surrounding valley

Bedrock

1 MILE

FIGURE 3. Bedrock valley and alluvial fill in the Ohio River 

valley near Madison, Ind. (from Walker, E. H., 1957).
8 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

and 280 feet above the old deep bedrock channel, which splits and 

passes on either side of the hills. The presence of these channels and 

the existence of buried benches and hills are indicated ir well logs.

The fill material in the valley was deposited during the retreat of 

two later glaciers. Initially the great velocity and volume of the 

melt-water stream made possible the transport of all but the largest 

boulders. As the flow lessened so did the stream's ability to carry its 

load of heavy sediments. This caused the dropping out and deposition 

of fairly well-sorted glacial debris onto the valley floor.

The deposits can be divided into two somewhat heterogeneous but 

distinctly different types. The lower part, dropped by a fast-moving 

stream, is primarily composed of boulders, cobbles, gravel, and coarse 

sand (fig. 4). This coarse material forms a rather persistent layer 

atop the bedrock across the width of the valley. Som°- clay, silt, and 

fine-grained sand are also present, either mixed with the coarse material or in definite lenses. These finer materials represent periods of 

slack water or temporary ponding of the stream.

Valley wall

Soil and 

Slough Terrace^ tributary depggjjs^

'_.__ Upjper,Jme:gr^jnied. deposits ._-_'. 

 Normal ground.-water table^

.Coarse basal deposits ° ' ,° . { \ . .^^Bedrock

channel

FIGURE 4. Surface and subsurface features in the Ohio F'ver valley 

(generalized).

The upper part of the valley deposits is composed mostly of finer 

grained material clay, silt, and sand deposited during the waning 

of the last glacier. Lenses of gravel and coarse sard are common, 

however, and represent periods of fast-moving water.

Initially, the total thickness of the valley deposits was as much as 

180 feet, as indicated by remnants of the glacial sand and gravel 

far above the present valley floor.

Since the retreat of the last glacier, the Ohio River had meandered 

across the upper part of the alluvial fill, gradually cutting the valley 

surface down to its present level. In only a few places, as near Louisville, where it meandered over a buried rock bench, has the river
HYDROLOGIC SYSTEM 9

eroded its way down to the bedrock. In many places along the valley 

as much as 140 feet of alluvium still remains.

Throughout this time the tributaries of the ancient Ohio Kiver in 

Kentucky also were active, carrying their load of sediment into the 

valley. These streams deposited mostly clay, silt, and fine-grained 

sand. Where these lesser streams entered the main valley, an indefir ite 

contact exists between valley and tributary sediments.

THE WATER

Precipitation is the source of essentially all water in the hydrolo^ic 

system. It varies slightly in amount along the length of the valley; 

averages range from 40 to 46 inches annually. This amount is fairly 

evenly distributed throughout the year with only slightly more durng 

the winter and early spring than throughout the rest of the year.

Water in the basin is in two major environments: on the surface, in 

stream channels; and underground, in the void spaces of the alluvium 

and bedrock. Surface water moves relatively rapidly through the 

area, but ground water moves so slowly that it can be considered as 

being in a form of storage. Water may move from one environment 

to another. Surface water, alluvial water, bedrock water, and the 

atmosphere are, therefore, all parts of one system.

Less than one-half of the precipitation is potentially available for 

use. In the study of a flood plain at Louisville, Rorabaugh (19^6) 

calculated that of the 42.86 inches average annual precipitation for 

the area, nearly 23 inches returns to the atmosphere by evaporation, 

primarily during the warm months of the growing season (fig. 5). 

More than 8 inches of the remaining surplus flows directly over the 

ground to become part of the surface streams, and only 12 inches of 

the total moisture actually enters the ground. About 5 inches of this 

last amount is retained temporarily as soil moisture, to be lost later by 

evaporation and transpiration. After soil requirements are fulfilled, 

the remaining 7 inches percolates very slowly downward to become 

part of the ground-water system.

This precipitation study was made of a relatively undeveloped area, 

where the coarse basal alluvium is overlain by 5-40 feet of fine to very 

fine sand, silt, and clay, not atypical of the valley.

OHIO RIVER AND TRIBUTARIES

A large amount of water is carried through the valley by the Ohio 

River. As it passes, a considerable quantity of it is used by man, 

plants, and animals. Part of the water used is returned to the atmosphere by evapotranspiration, part becomes ground water, and part is 

returned to the river after use. At the same time the tributary
10 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS. OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

co 5

Precipitation less evapotranspiration computed 

according to method of 

Thornthwaite

FIGURE 5. Mean monthly precipitation, surplus water, and 

recharge to ground water, Louisville, Ky.

streams, overland runoff, and underground seepage add to the volume 

of the river. The flow of the Ohio River increases f rorr an average of 

50 billion gallons per day at Ashland, Ky., to three times that amount 

where the Ohio discharges into the Mississippi River.

GBOUN1> WATER IN THE AJJL.UVIUM

Ground water occupies the open spaces between particles of sand 

and gravel, much as would water poured into a pan of dry sand (fig. 6) .
HYDROLOGIC SYSTEM 11

Stream channel 

in alluvium

\\:':'.'. ' . ' ' . '. ^^ ^N^^^^ /:7T^ ^^ ':";i£/-Sand, saturated

Sand, noOXv/.-/; :;. : ; : : ; ; .^^:.*&#&&7

saturated -Bowl represents impermeable 

bedrock container

p of saturated zone 

^jlif^T^ (water table)

FIGURE 6. Demonstration of the relation of the water table to the 

overlying unsaturated soil materials (adapted from Leopold rnd 

Langbein, 1960).

Water that enters the alluvium from precipitation percolates downward by gravity and follows the open spaces until it reaches either an 

impermeable barrier or the surface of the zone already saturated by 

water. The time necessary for this downward passage varies with the 

temperature and viscosity of the water, the perviousness of the material, and the distance to the ground-water surface. This may require several months under adverse conditions, such as those created 

by the presence of a thick impermeable elay layer.

The top of the saturated zone, known as the water table, is a free 

surface not confined by an overlying impermeable layer, and water in

782-611 O - 66 - 3
12 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

a well that penetrates such an aquifer will stand at the level of the 

water table. The water table is not flat, as is a body of surface water 

(fig. 7). The water-table level is highest near valley walls and lowest 

where it intersects channels of streams. This variance of level creates 

a gradient or slope which the water in the saturated zone follows 

laterally and downward until it intersects the river channel and becomes part of the surface water. The downgradient spe^d of ground 

water varies greatly within the saturated zone; it is far-test near the 

water table and decreases with depth in the basal parts.

Ground water that has no free surface but is confined by an overlying impermeable layer, such as clay, is known as artesian water. 

The overlying layer creates pressure on the aquifer and the water in a 

well penetrating such a zone will rise above the water table to an altitude known as the piezometric surface.

Two artesian conditions are fairly common along the Ohio River 

valley. Near the valley wall (fig. 7A) the more permeable materials 

are overlain by fine-grained less permeable deposits. Surface runoff 

and seepage from the bedrock area move downward and laterally 

through the coarser material along the ground-water gradient toward 

the river. If this lateral movement is blocked by overlying less 

permeable sediments, a pressure head is built up. Similar conditions 

prevail along the river (fig. 7.Z?), where fine-grained stream deposits 

and clay slumping down along the riverbank may effectively block the 

flow of ground water into the stream. Also, high water in the stream 

may raise the water table in the alluvium near the river to such an 

extent that the water table is forced against an overlying impermeable 

clay layer. Under both conditions an artesian pressure h°,ad is created 

in the aquifer.

INTERRELATION BETWEEN AQUIFERS ANI> STBEAMS

Water in the Ohio River and water in the alluvial aquifer are not 

separate entities. Rather, they are connected and interdependent 

parts of the water-supply system of the basin, and water can move 

from one environment to the other. Whatever affects tt e quantity or 

quality of one part, therefore, must also have an effect on the other.

Throughout most of the year ground water seeps into the stream 

channel (fig. 8, upper) and helps to maintain the volume of water in 

the river. Without this underground flow the Ohio River would be 

reduced to a trickle during times of drought. During floods, however, 

the situation is reversed (fig. 8, lower), and excess water in the river 

channel moves into and saturates the nearby alluvium or flows into 

the Mississippi River.
HYDROLOGIC SYSTEM 13

A

edrock

Permeable saturated zone 

. 0 o .

B

Well

Piezometric surface

.«> - Water table 

. "--Clay lens

Permeable saturated zone

Bedrock

FIGURE 7. Causes of some artesian conditions found in the Ohio River valley. 

A, Area near valley wall. B, Area near river. Arrows indicate direction of 

waterflow.
14 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

f^r. ; .o -.: O-/Y.

. o

..o.o. 

 . o 0 ' <

Alluvium .' .' o

 O O

Bedrock

/

Flood stage

*\r . . : rrr^- V T o o 

' > O '0.1(0 . ° ' J- '" - . . .

.o . o 

 o o

.r0 . . °. Alluvium . . o - o .' ; .' 

 < > . o ~ . ' .' o - 0 ' - - ' ' - '-

. ° . o ° . ° o o o . . o . - - . 

o-.' o * ° '' . -.o

o -°' ° .° ' o-. «'. ° ° ° -' ° ' ' Bedrock

FIGURE 8. Upper part: Ground-water drainage into stream channel. 

Lower part: Movement of surface water into aquifer during flood 

stage of river. Direction of waterflow is indicated by arrows in both 

parts.

CHANGES IN WATER AS IT MOVES THROUGH THE SYSTEM

Water enters the system as precipitation. This water is never 

entirely pure when it reaches the ground surface, for while it is still 

in the atmosphere it takes gases notably carbon dioxide into solution. Though dilute, this water is very slightly acidic snd corrosive 

in nature. As the water moves downward through the soil and 

underlying alluvium, it dissolves a minute part of the minerals with 

which it comes in contact. These minerals are taken into solution in 

the form of charged particles called ions. The major positively 

charged ions (cations) generally found in ground water are calcium, 

magnesium, sodium, and potassium, and minor amounts of iron, 

manganese, and silica. The negative ions (anions) generally present 

are bicarbonate, sulfate, and chloride, and lesser amounts of carbonate, 

nitrate, and fluoride. The source and significance of charged ions
HYDROLOGIC SYSTEM 15

are shown in table 1. These ions remain in solution unless they are 

precipitated by changes in temperature, pressure, or chemical 

environment.

TABLE 1. Source and significance of dissolved mineral constituents and physical 

properties of natural waters in the Ohio River valley alluvium

[ppm, parts per million]

Constituent or 

physical property

Silica (SiO2).

Iron (Fe).

Manganese (Mn).

Calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg).

Sodium (Na) and potassium (K).

Bicarbonate (HC03 ) 

and carbonate (COa).

Sulfate (SO-i)-

Chloride (Cl)__

Source or cause

Fluoride (F).

Dissolved from almost all 

rocks and soils, usually in 

small amounts from 1-30 

ppm. High concentrations as much as 100 

ppm generally occur in 

highly alkaline waters.

Dissolved from almost all 

rocks and soils. May 

also be derived from iron 

pipes, pumps, and other 

equipment. More than 1 

or 2 ppm of soluble iron in 

surface water usually indicates acid wastes from 

mine drainage or other 

sources.

Dissolved from some rocks 

and soils. Not as common as iron. Large 

quantities often associated 

with high iron content 

and with acid waters.

Dissolved from almost all 

soils and rocks, especially limestone, dolomite, 

and gypsum. Calcium 

and magnesium are found 

in large quantities in 

some brines. Large 

quantities of magnesium 

are present in sea water.

Dissolved from almost all 

rocks and soils. Found 

also in ancient brines, 

sea water, some industrial brines, and sewage.

Action of carbon dioxide in 

water on carbonate rocks 

such as limestone and 

dolomite.

Dissolved from rocks and 

soils containing gypsum, 

iron sulfides, and other 

sulfur compounds. Usually present in mine 

waters and in some industrial wastes.

Dissolved from rocks and 

soils. Present in sewage. 

Found in large amounts 

in ancient brines, sea 

water, and industrial 

brines.

Dissolved in small to minute quantities from 

most rocks and soils.

Significance

Forms hard scale in pipes and boilers. Carried 

over in steam of high-pressure boilers to form 

deposits on blades of steam turbines. Iihibits 

deterioration of zeolite-type water softeners.

On exposure to air, iron in ground water oxidizes 

to reddish-brown sediment. Content of more 

than about 0.3 ppm stains laundry and rtensils 

reddish brown. Objectionable for food processing, beverages, dyeing, bleaching, ice manufacture, brewing, and other processes. The 

U.S. Public Health Service (1962) recom-nends, 

in its water-quality standards, that iron and 

manganese together should not exceed 0.3 ppm; 

larger quantities cause unpleasant taste and 

favor growth of iron bacteria.

Same objectionable features as iron. Causes 

dark-brown or black stain. Federal standards 

recommend that iron and manganese together 

should not exceed 0.3 ppm.

Cause most of the hardness and scale-forming 

properties of water; soap consuming (see hardness). Water with low calcium and magnesium contents desired for electroplating, tanning, dyeing, and textile manufacturing.

Large amounts, in combination with chloride, 

give a salty taste. Moderate quantities have 

little effect on the usefulness of water for most 

purposes. Sodium salts may cause foaming in 

steam boilers, and a high sodium ratio may 

limit the use of water'for irrigation.

Bicarbonate and carbonate produce alkalinity. 

Bicarbonates of calcium and magnesium decompose in steam boilers and hot-water facilities to form scale and release corrosive carbon 

dioxide gas. In combination with calcium and 

magnesium cause carbonate hardness.

Sulfate in water containing calcium forrrs hard 

scale in steam boilers. In large amounts, sulfate in combination with other ions gives 

bitter taste to water. Some calcium sulfate 

is considered beneficial in the brewing process. 

Federal standards recommend that the sulfate 

content should not exceed 250 ppm.

In large amounts in combination with sodium 

gives salty taste to drinking water. In large 

quantities increases the corrosiveness of water. 

Federal standards recommend that chloride 

content should not exceed 250 ppm.

Fluoride in drinking water reduces the incidence 

of tooth decay when the water is consumed 

during the period of calcification. However, 

it may cause mottling of the teeth depending 

on the concentration of fluoride, age of the 

child, amount of drinking water consumed, 

and susceptibility of the individual (Maier, 

1950).
16 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

TABLE 1. Source and significance of dissolved mineral constituents and physical 

properties of natural waters in the Ohio River valley alluvium Continued

[ppm, parts per million]

Constituent or 

physical property

Nitrate (N03 )---~~

Source or cause

Decaying organic matter, 

sewage, and soil nitrates.

Dissolved solids-.____--_ Chiefly mineral constituents dissolved from rocks 

and soils. Includes any 

organic matter and some 

water of crystallization. 

Nearly all the hardness in 

most waters is due to calcium and magnesium. 

All metallic cations other 

than the alkali metals 

also cause hardness.

Hardness as CaCOj... _.

Specific conductance 

(micromhos at 25°C).

Hydrogen-ion concentration (pH).

Temperature .

Mineral content of the 

water.

Acids, acid-generating 

salts, and free carbon 

dioxide lower the pH. 

Carbonates, bicarbonates, 

hydroxides and phosphates, silicates, and 

borates raise the pH.

Significance

Concentrations much greater than the local 

average may suggest pollution. There is evidence that mo?e than abor t 45 ppm of nitrate 

may cause a type of methemoglobi'nemia in 

infants, sometimes fatal. Water with high 

nitrate content should not be used in baby 

feeding (Maxcy, 1950). Nitrate has shown to 

be helpful in reducing intercrystalline cracking 

of boiler steel. It encourages growth of algae 

and other organisms which produce undesirable 

tastes and odors.

Federal standards recommend that dissolved 

solids should not exceed 500 ppm. Water 

becomes unsuitable for nnny purposes when 

it contains more than 1,OCO ppm of dissolved 

solids.

Consumes soap before a latter will form. Deposits soap curd on batrtubs. Hard water 

forms scale in boilers, wate* heaters, and pi'pes. 

Hardness equivalent to the bicarbonate and 

carbonate is called carbonate hardness. Any 

hardness in excess of this is called noncarbonate 

hardness. Waters of hardness up to 60 ppm 

are considered soft; 61-120 ppm, moderately 

hard; 121-200 ppm, hard; more than 200 ppm, 

very hard.

Specific conductance is a measure of the capacity 

of water to conduct an electric current; varies 

with concentration and degree of ionization of 

the constituents. Varies with temperature; 

reported at 25°C.

pH of 7.0 indicates neutrality of a solution. 

Values higher than 7.0 derote increasing alkalinity; values lower than 7.0 indicate increasing 

acidity. The pH is a measure of hydrogen-ion 

activity. The corrosive properties of water 

generally increase with decreasing pH; however, excessively alkaline water may also attack 

metals.

Affects the usefulness of wate* for many purposes. 

For most uses, a water of uniformly low temperature is desired. Shallow wells show some 

seasonal fluctuations in water temperature. 

Ground water from moderate depths usually 

is nearly constant in terrnerature, which is 

near the mean annual air temperature of the 

area. In very deep wells the water temperature generally increases or the average about 

1°F with each 60-ft increirent of depth. Seasonal fluctuations in temperatures of surface 

water are comparatively urge depending on 

the depth of water but do not reach the 

extremes of air temperature.

Most water in the alluvium is more highly mineralized than is the 

water in the Ohio River. The concentration of dissolved solids in 

ground water averages slightly more than 400 ppm (parts per million) 

as compared with about 220 ppm in river water. The amount and 

type of mineralization in water depends on the availability of minerals with which the water can react and the time it takes for these 

reactions to come to equilibrium.

The temperature of ground water remains fairly constant throughout the year and generally approximates the average annual air tern-
CONTROLLING FACTORS IN WATER-SUPPLY DEVELOPMENT 17

perature of about 57 °F. Exceptions exist in shallow dug wells 

the water is more exposed to changing air temperature.

Ground water under natural conditions is generally nonturbid, 

colorless, and usually pure bacteriologically. It has the further desirable characteristic of being fairly constant in quality throughout 

the year. River water varies greatly in composition both seasonally 

and from day to day. Its temperature during the year ranges from 

slightly over 32°F to about 87°F, it is often turbid and colored, and 

is affected by municipal and industrial wastes. Ground water may 

be used advantageously as process water because of its uniform chemical composition for it is more easily treated than surface water.

CONTROLLING FACTORS IN WATER-SUPPLY 

DEVELOPMENT

AVAILABILITY

Certain inherent factors determine the amount of ground water 

available to a well system. There must be a layer of water-saturated 

material with a source of recharge to replenish the water withdrawn 

from the system. Also, this material must be of such texture, thickness, and extent that it can yield water at a satisfactory rate. In areas 

where the physical properties of the aquifer are not conducive to yielding large supplies of water, it is necessary to be especially judicious in 

the choice of type, construction, and location of a well.

SATURATED THICKNESS

The saturated thickness of alluvium is the vertical distance between 

the water table and the underlying bedrock; it varies both in time 

and space along the Ohio River valley. The variation of the height 

of the water table determines the thickness of the saturated zone and 

represents the balance between water entering the alluvium by precipitation, flooding, and bedrock seepage and that leaving the alluvium 

by evapotranspiration, drainage, and withdrawal by pumping.

Most water that recharges the aquifer enters the ground during 

winter and early spring. Precipitation is slightly greater then, and 

the Ohio River is filled to overflowing as melting snows from upstream 

overload the tributary streams. The lowland areas along the Ohio 

Valley are inundated for long periods of time, and when the river 

recedes much of the land surface is waterlogged. Near the river 

where permeable formations are exposed, recharge to the aquifer may 

be very rapid. Throughout most of the valley bottom, however, the 

saturated upper part of the alluvium is relatively impermeable, and 

downward movement of the water to the water table may take months.
18 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

Though rainfall throughout the rest of the year averages from 3 to 

31/2 inches per month, it has little effect on ground-water levels, for 

very little of it gets below the soil level. High temperatures increase 

evaporation losses, and growing plants return much water to the 

atmosphere (fig. 9). During the growing season orly a rain of 

unusual intensity and duration would contribute to the ground-water 

supply. Most ground water, therefore, is added to the system during 

the winter and early spring, and an unusually dry summer has no great 

immediate effect upon the saturated thickness of the aquifer.

In addition to the natural evapotranspiration losses, greater quantities of water are pumped during the summer months fc^ cooling and 

irrigation purposes. Most of this water is not returned to the groundwater supply. Thus, after midsummer, water is removed from the zone 

of saturation by man and by natural seepage into stream channels at 

a rate that exceeds the rate of recharge to the aquifer.

Maximum thickness of the saturated zone increases downstream 

along the Ohio River valley from an average of 35-40 feet in the 

easternmost section to about 110 feet in the Owensboro and Henderson 

areas.

The saturated thickness also increases across the valley (fig. 9) 

toward the river. Near the valley wall, although water-table altitudes 

are much higher than those near the river, the alluvium has thinned to 

such an extent that the saturated thickness is greatly reduced. An 

exception to this occurs where the presence of the old deep channel in 

the valley adds several feet of thickness to the basal part of the 

saturated zone.

Precipitation

Evaporation and transpiration

OHIO RIVER

Normal 

pool stage

Normal ground-water table

-Old deep channel 

FIGURE 9. Movement of water in the hydrologic system of the Ohio River valley.
CONTROLLING FACTORS IN WATER-SUPPLY DEVELOPMENT 19

A more favorable condition exists in the alluvium close to the rver. 

Though the actual altitude of the water table is lower than that near 

the valley-wall area, it is perennially at or above stream level. Vrells 

in this area, if they penetrate below the low-flow level of the Ohio 

River, will yield water throughout the year.

Data shown in the hydrologic atlases can be used to determine the 

thickness of the saturated zone in many areas along the Ohio Valley. 

The difference between the land-surface altitude and the altitude of the 

bedrock (as shown by contours or by actual figures) represents the 

total thickness of alluvium in an area. The alluvium-thickness figure 

minus the figure that represents the depth to water equals the thickness 

of the saturated alluvium.

For example, a well is to be drilled in an area where the land surface 

is about 380 feet above sea level. The 260-foot bedrock contour in 

the hydrologic atlas passes close by the proposed location of the well. 

Subtraction (380 260) shows that the alluvium at this point is 

approximately 120 feet thick. The data for a nearby well shows 30 

feet as the depth to water. The depth-to-water figure subtracted from 

the total-thickness figure (120 30) shows that there probably is 90 

feet of saturated alluvium present. Deviations from the calculated 

saturated thickness are usually caused by the seasonal fluctuation of 

the water table.

OCCURRENCE OF WATER IN THE ALJUUVIUM

Water in the zone of saturation occupies the space between the 

grains of alluvium. The percent of this void space in a given total 

volume of alluvium is called porosity; it governs the amount of v7ater 

that can be stored in an aquifer. Porosity is dependent upon si ape, 

arrangement, degree of compaction, and cementation of the particles. 

It is not, however, dependent upon grain size, so long as the size is 

uniform. A coarse graded gravel, for example, has no greater porosity 

than a silt or fine-grained sand of uniform size. Alluvium composed 

of a mixture of grain sizes is more compact and has a much smaller 

porosity than alluvium of a uniform grain size, because the smaller 

grains fill up the spaces between the larger grains.

Porosities of the alluvial deposits in the Ohio River valley are 

generally high. The sorting action of the streams has created deposits 

of relatively uniform grain size. A study of 66 samples of alluvium 

taken along the Ohio Valley in Kentucky showed an average porosity 

of 43.2 percent. The maximum porosity is 53.5 percent; the mininum, 

27.7 percent. Most samples showing low porosity were collected from 

areas where Ohio River alluvium had been mixed with tributary 

alluvium. In those areas, owing to mixing, a greater variety of grain 

sizes exists. Physical characteristics of the Ohio River alluvium

782-611 O - 66 - 4
20 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

where mixing has not taken place are probably such that the overall 

porosities are higher than those shown by the'tests.

WATEB MOVEMENT

A high percentage of contained or stored water, however, is no 

guarantee that the water can move freely through the aouifer or that 

it can be readily pumped from a well. Movement requires that the 

material also must be pervious to the passage of water. This quality, 

called permeability, depends on the size and shape of thQ- void spaces 

and upon the size, shape, and extent of the interconnections between 

these spaces. The openings in a coarse gravel of uniform size have 

good interconnections and readily permit movement of the contained 

water. In contrast, much water adheres to the contairing particles 

in fine-grained alluvium and does not move freely. Such materials 

are relatively impermeable to the passage of water.

Quantitatively, perviousness is expressed as a factor known as the 

permeability coefficient. This is the rate of waterflow, in gallons per 

day, through a 1-foot-square cross section of aquifer under certain 

standard conditions. Permeabilities given in this report were determined by laboratory analysis of alluvial samples. Transmissibility, 

a measurement mentioned in the tables of some hydrologic atlas sheets 

of the area, is a measure of the capacity of the full thickness of an 

aquifer to transmit water at the prevailing water temperature and 

arbitrarily assumes the aquifer to be composed of uniform-sized 

material. Transmissibilities were computed from the results of 

pumping tests.

Table 2 presents, by atlas area, the data from permeability and 

transmissibility tests of alluvium along the Ohio Valley in Kentucky. 

Conditions that create the extremes of either exceptional or very poor 

water-supply potential tend to be somewhat localized.

Data concerning the previously mentioned porosity studies (p. 19) 

show that porosity does not necessarily indicate permeability. The 

highest porosities were those of a windblown silt (loess) wT hich caps 

many hills in western Kentucky. Permeability coefficients of the loess 

samples, however, averaged only 1.6 gpd per sq ft (gallons per day 

per square foot) as compared with an overall average of 259 gpd per 

sq ft for all samples of the alluvial area. The highest permeabilities 

were found in uniformly sized medium-grained sand deposits. If 

gravel had been tested, the permeabilities would have been even higher.

It is believed that the average coarseness of the basal alluvium, and 

thus its perviousness, decreases downstream along the Ohio River 

valley. Nevertheless, in most areas downstream, lenses of gravel or 

even cobble-sized material exist, just overlying the bedrock. This
TABLE 2. Hydrologio characteristics of the alluvial deposits and specific capac

Area of Hydrologic Investigations Atlas

HA-73, South Portsmouth-Manchester Islands..

HA-97, Ethridge-Twelvemile Island, _ .........

HA-111, Southwestern Louisville- West Point... 

HA-95, Wolf Creek- West Point. .... _-.........

Permeabilities (gpd per sq ft)

Number 

of 

samples

5 

3 

1

1 

32 

22 

4 

1 

7

4

22

102

Maximum

1,360 

120 

280

300 

1,700 

1,400 

3,000 

310 

1140,000

750

700 

1 140, 000

Minimum

427 

1 

280

300 

120 

150 

960 

310 

100

70

.005 

.005

Median

750 

6C 

280

300 

480 

513 

2,800 

310 

570

380

180 

460

Transmissib

Number 

of tests

4

1 

1 

6 

2 

4

2

20

Maxi

mum

314, 0

20,0

18,0

121,0

45,0

185,0

1 360,0

.......

1360,0

1 Disturbed sample with fines removed during jetting of well.
22 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO EIVER VALLEY, KY.

is probably due to the presence of glacially fed tributaries during various periods of the ice age.

In some localities clay and silt deposits may be of such extent that 

they effectively hinder the movement of water within the alluvium. 

Areally extensive clay lenses at any depth effectively reduce the vertical 

passage of water that would otherwise move downward to recharge 

the more permeable basal material. Thick deposits of silt are also 

found locally, often near the mouths of sluggish tributary streams 

that empty into the Ohio River. In a few places they constitute almost 

the full thickness of the alluvial fill. Even where these fine-grained 

deposits are within the zone of saturation and are highly porous, they 

transmit water very slowly and are poor aquifers.

EFFECT OF PAVING OR FIUL

The recharge of an alluvial aquifer by rainfall requires that the land 

surface be porous and permeable. In cities and heavily industrialized 

areas, much water available for aquifer recharge is rejected. Buildings, paved surfaces, and areas of dense artificial-fill material effectively block the downward passage of water and divert it to stormsewer 

systems which carry it to the streams. In the Louisville area, for 

example about 3.5 feet of rain falls yearly. This amounts to over 800 

million gallons of water in a square-mile area. The los^ of water by 

runoff in an urban area like Louisville would be at least £0-60 percent, 

as compared with 15-20 percent runoff in a rural area,

DEVELOPMENT OF GROUND-WATER SUPPLIES 

TYPES OF WELLS

Water wells vary greatly in size and complexity of construction. 

The type used depends upon the water requirements, the characteristics 

of the aquifer, and the cost of installation and maintenance. A water 

well of modern design is constructed with a screen at the lower end 

which allows water to enter but filters out sand and silt from the water 

supply.

Many wells in the Ohio River valley are either dug or driven. They 

are simple in design (fig. 10) and are relatively inexpensive. Dug 

wells are constructed with no screen. The water flow? through the 

bottom of the well, which is (most of the time) below th°> static water 

level of the area. Because these wells have relatively large storage 

capacities, they are especially useful for drawing water from aquifers 

of low permeability. The wells are, however, subject to contamination 

by surface seepage unless the well casings completely seal off the 

alluvium above the aquifer. With the exception of the Jackson Purchase region, most dug wells in the Ohio River valley have been sup-
CONTROLLING FACTORS IN WATER-SUPPLY DEVELOPMENT 23

£ . .a

Concrete or clay 

tile pipe

y

Concrete 

/seal

Sand

/Steel casing

Screen'

Topsoil 

or clay

. Drive po'nt

V

Dug or bored Drilled Driven 

FIGURE 10. Types of wells commonly constructed in alluvium.
24 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

planted by 114- or 2-inch-diameter driven wells. A driven well consists of a point and well screen that are driven down into the zone of 

saturation.

Both dug and driven wells generally furnish enough water for 

modern domestic supplies by use of power pump and pressure systems; 

however, many of these wells are restricted to pumping water from 

relatively shallow depths. Yields are normally less than 10 gpm (gallons per minute) primarily because of well depth and pump type 

rather than because of any deficiency in the aquifer. These low yields 

are exceeded in irrigated areas where two or more larger diameter 

(3- or 4-in.) driven wells are usually coupled or ganged together. 

Such systems commonly yield 200-500 gpm.

Most industrial- and municipal-supply wells in the Ohio River 

valley are drilled (fig. 10). Most of these wells are 6-18 inches in 

diameter, screened, and, where properly constructed, usually penetrate 

the entire thickness of the aquifer. Discharges of 1,000 gpm from 

such wells are not uncommon.

Radial-collector wells are more complex in construction (fig. 11) 

than the wells just described. The radial-collector wellr are large in 

diameter and pump water through horizontal screened pipes that 

radiate outward, generally parallel to or beneath the river. The pipes 

extend as far as 200 feet into the surrounding alluvium. These wells 

are designed for large yields and withdraw water from the aquifer 

close to and below the river by induced infiltration. One of these 

wells can supply as much as 5,000 gpm if it is properly constructed in 

permeable material.

SPECIFIC CAPACITY

Specific capacity is the measurement commonly used for rating the 

yield of a well. Quantitatively, it is the discharge rate of a well per 

unit of drawdown, generally expressed as gallons per minute per foot 

of drawdown. It depends on the permeability of the p.quifer, but it 

is also affected by the type and size of the well, the decree of screen 

incrustation, the size of the well-screen slots, and the duration of the 

pumping tests. Theoretically, doubling the discharge of a well doubles 

the drawdown; however, such a ratio applies only to the first few feet 

of water drawdown and does not make adjustment for the fact that 

such drawdown may expose some of the screen slots, thus reducing 

intake area.

Specific capacities of selected wells along the Ohio River valley 

(table 2) range from 1 to 500 gpm per ft and average f 1 gpm per ft. 

The large range of values is primarily due to variations in the controlling factors mentioned above.
CONTROLLING FACTORS IN WATER-SUPPLY DEVELOPMENT 25

FIGURE 11. Typical radial-collector well shown in 

section and plan.

CONES OF DEPRESSION

Under water-table conditions the water is an unpumped well stands 

at the height of the static level of the surrounding aquifer. The water 

in the formation moves through and around the well, followirg its 

normal path toward the point of discharge.

When pump ing begins, however, the water level inside the well drops 

rapidly, and the water table near the well approximates the shape of 

a broad funnel with the well near its center (fig. 12). This funnel, 

or cone of depression, forms because of the difference in pressure between the water in the well and that in the aquifer. Water within the
26 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

aquifer moves radially inward and downward along and beneath the 

slope of this newly created water 'surface toward the level of the water 

in the well. Water-level observation wells at various distances from 

the pumped well (fig. 12) show that the lowering of the water level in 

the aquifer decreases with distance from the discharging well. The

.Observation well 

600

Cone of depression 

Discharging well

o o

Observation well

Cone of depression

Discharging well

bservation well

FIGURE 12. The expansion of cone of depression when well is pumped, shown 

pumping. B, Cone forms when discharge exceeds rate at which water 

at which water enters area of influence of well.
CONTROLLING FACTORS IN WATER-SUPPLY DEVELOPMENT 27

volume of alluvium between the original static level and the n«,w depressed level is dewatered according to the amount of well discharge. 

The water level in a well drops and the cone of depression, or influence, expands outward and downward until the rate at which water 

moves through the aquifer toward the well is virtually equal to the

Land surface^

 

 >-

 - ^

-Static water level

/

Aquifer

Land surface Well discharge

Static water level

^Static water level

Aquifer

in plans and sections. Arrows indicate direction of waterflow. A, Before 

enters area of influence of well. C, Cone stabilizes when discharge equals rate

782-611 O - 66 - 5
28 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

rate of well discharge. If the pumping rate is steady and does not 

exceed the available recharge, the system reaches an equilibrium. An 

increase in the pumping rate causes the lowering of water in the well 

and the lowering of the cone of depression until recharge (to the well's 

area of influence again virtually equals the discharge of the well.

In many areas the cone of depression cannot extend indefinitely in 

all directions. If the discharging well is near a bedrock area or an 

impermeable layer of alluvium, as in figure 13, the expansion of the 

cone in that direction may be stopped. The cone must then develop 

in other directions to dewater an area that has enough recharge to 

balance the discharge. When pumpage exceeds recharge to the same 

area for prolonged periods and the cone of depression cannot expand 

farther, the water levels continue to decline, and the well "goes dry."

Where pumping wells are too closely spaced, (fig. 14) the cones of 

depression overlap and wells compete for the supply of available water. 

Drawdowns may then be excessive, and none of the w^lls yield as 

much as they could without the interference from adjoining wells.

Extensive cones of depression exist in some areas along the Ohio 

River valley, such as Ashland, southwestern Louisville, and Owensboro, where there is much competition for available grounc1 water from 

relatively confined areas. In some locations the wells 8-re too close 

together, and the rate of withdrawal of water greatly exceeds the natural recharge of the aquifer. The result is a spreading and lowering 

of the cones of depression and, consequently, a great reduction in 

thickness of the zone of saturation.

Static water level

FIGURE 13 Increased drawdowns and spread of cones of depression resulting 

from increased or prolonged pumpage near an impermeable barrier. Arrows 

show direction of ground-water movement.
CONTROLLING FACTORS IN WATER-SUPPLY DEVELOPMENT 29

B C D E

Land surface. A

\

.Static water level

\

\

FIGURE 14. Effect of too-close spacing of wells. Dashed line represents th? cones 

of depression that resulted When alternate wells (B and D) were not pumped.

INDUCED INFILTRATION

When a cone of depression reaches the water of a perennial stream 

(fig. 15), the normal ground-water gradient is reversed, water moves 

from the stream into the alluvium, and conditions result thp.t are 

favorable for large yields. When this happens the pumping level 

and the cone of depression soon become stabilized and remain sc until 

the rate of discharge is changed. This principle, known as induced 

infiltration, is used to advantage in many areas of heavy punpage

Static water level

<^/-.Cones of depression as 

drawdown is increased

BedrockFIGURE 15. Cones of depression where recharge is induced from a perennial 

stream. Arrows indicate direction of waterflow.
30 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

along the Ohio River valley, as at Ashland, Louisville, Frandenburg, 

and Owensboro.

Wells are placed in permeable material close to the river, and infiltration of the river water into the alluvium is thereby induced. 

Such wells yield a mixture of ground water and river water; however, 

passage through the intervening alluvium also provides a filtering 

action to the stream water and removes suspended material, color, and 

bacteria to a degree that makes the water suitable for many uses. 

Sustained yields of nearly 1,000 gpm from these wells are not unusual.

Two conditions (fig. 16) reduce induced infiltration of river water 

in some areas. In one condition, once-horizontal clay layers are 

undercut by the stream so that the clay collapses over the surface of 

the more permeable alluvium. In the other condition, the floor of 

the river channel is covered with fine-grained silt, by either the 

natural cut-and-fill processes of the river currents or disturbances such 

as dredging. The results for both are the same. The fine-grained 

materials of low permeability effectively slow the passage of water 

into the more permeable deposits and greatly reduce the rate of 

recharge to the aquifer.

WEUL LOCATION

One major problem in water-supply development is tl <> lack of detailed information regarding the geology and hydrology of certain 

areas in the Ohio Valley. Hence, for many areas only generalities 

or comparisons with similar or nearby sites can be mad°s.

Relatively 

impermeable clay.

Original position of clay layer 

before undercut by river

Relatively impermeable silt //'/.'

Permeable sand and gravel v .-. .-.

FIGURE 16. Relatively impermeable layers that reduce the rate at which Ohio 

River water moves into the more permeable sand and gravel.
CONTROLLING FACTORS IN WATER-SUPPLY DEVELOPMENT 31

Drilling for industrial and municipal water supplies should therefore be preceded by a carefully planned test-well program when economically feasible. Properly spaced exploration holes will help to 

determine the location of the permeable parts of the aquifer in the 

proposed area. Preliminary pumping tests of the more promising 

sections of the aquifer will furnish data on the transmissibility, drawdowns, and yields that can be expected. The spacing of wells c^n be 

predetermined to avoid overlap of the cones of depression within the 

well field. In general, large overall yields along the Ohio Kiver 

valley can be expected from well fields that extend in a line parallel to 

the Ohio Eiver (fig. 17) and, thus, are perpendicular to the direction 

of underground water movement. Positioning of wells in this manner 

exposes the entire well field to recharge and helps to reduce drawdown 

in the aquifer.

WUUL CONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT

Certain conditions are conducive to high yields regardless of well 

type. The deeper the well, the farther it penetrates into the vatersaturated zone and the greater will be its allowable drawdown and 

yield. In most places along the Ohio Valley, the aquifer is more permeable at greater depths and will transmit water more readily to the 

well system. Wells in the valley area, ideally, should penetrate the 

full thickness of permeable alluvium. This, of course, is not generally 

practicable for dug or driven wells.

Proper development upon completion of a well is also essential. 

A certain amount of fine material is generally present in the coarser 

alluvium surrounding the well; this material reduces the permeability 

of the aquifer and is objectionable if it is pumped into the watersupply system. During well development much of the fine material 

adjacent to the well is removed by surging, backwashing, or overpumping (fig. 18). An alternate method of removal is to place a layer 

of specially graded gravel (fig. 19) between the well screen and the 

aquifer. All these methods increase the effective diameter of the 

well, help prevent the entrance of fine sand particles, and provide a 

more uniform and permeable material surrounding the well. Drawdown is reduced, specific capacity is increased, and there is less sand 

in the water from the well. The effectiveness of proper development 

can be noted from the results of the permeability analyses of alluvial 

samples collected from a well in Owensboro. This well was drilled 

by a jetting process which removed most of the fine material from the 

borehole in a manner similar to that used to remove fines from the 

aquifer close to the well during development. Laboratory analyses 

of these samples showed permeabilities as high as 140,000 gpd per
32 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

Wells

Direction of groundwater movement -

O

B

\\\

FIGURE 17. The advantage of placing line of wells perpendicular to 

direction of ground-water movement. Wells in line B-C intercept 

more ground water than wells in line A-B.

sq ft as opposed to the average of 544 gpd per sq ft for th°- Ohio River 

valley.
CONTROLLING FACTORS IN WATER-SUPPLY DEVELOPMEN 33

Well screen Well screen

0 0 . 0

 *o 0~0~'° °o 

'Ooo- o o

oT-^o^.o

. b° - o ° 

op. o o 

 . o . o o o o

b-o00^

O ' O

 0-

. 'O ?

n^-o

o o 

-^" ^_V

o °-

 o '

f °

'OX

o° c

°^>-

O O . 

1 O Oo

Before After

FIGUBE 18. EfEect of well development on the aquifer.

QUALITY OF WATER 

RANGE AND GENERAL, CHARACTER

The quality of available water governs its usefulness. In watersuppy development along the Ohio River valley, quality is a far more 

critical factor than quantity.

The chemical and physical character of ground water varies widely 

throughout the length of the valley. Quality is related to depth, 

composition of alluvium, type and amount of mineralization derived 

from the bedrock container, and effects of man's activities. Bar 

diagrams of chemical analyses on sheet 1 of the 14 hydrologic atlases 

describing the ground-water resources of the Ohio River valley in 

Kentucky show hardness, in parts per million, and major chemical 

constituents, in equivalents per million. The water ranges from the 

more common calcium bicarbonate type to the calcium magnesium 

bicarbonate type; varying amounts of sulfate are present.

Figure 20 shows the average hardness and sulfate content of both 

the Ohio River water and the ground water at numerous locations 

along the river. The noticeable buildup in concentration of thes^ (and 

other) substances in the areas of industrial and municipal development 

is undoubtedly due to man's effect upon these two water environments.

EXISTING WATER-QUALirTY CONDITIONS

In areas that have not been affected by man's activities, the ground 

water is hard to very hard and contains large amounts of calcium, 

bicarbonate, and iron. Large amounts of sulfate and magnesium may
34 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

FIQTTEE 19. Construction of a gravel-packed woU.

also be present. Water is clear and colorless owing to the natural 

filtering action of the fine-grained particles, which, together with the 

oxygen present in the upper, unsaturated zone of alluvium, removes or 

destroys most harmful bacteria before they can move c1 own ward to 

the water table.
600

-- 

EXPLANATION 

Water in alluvium Ohio River (1955 average)

O A

Hardness Hardness

 

Sulfate

40 MILES

Sulfate 

INDIANA

BLUE 

Predo

WESTERN COAL

FIELD

Predominantly 

andstone and 

shale

MISSISSIPPIAN PLATEAU 

Predominantly limestone

\)(_ _Sand and gravel\

T'ENN'ESS'5'E

FIGUBB 20. Average hardness and sulfate content of water in 

area of report.
36 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

The chemical quality and temperature (55°-58°F) of ground water 

are very stable. Most changes in quality are the result, of r^avy withdrawal or contamination due to poor waste-handling practices, either 

of which may upset the natural chemical balance of the wa ter supply.

EFFECTS OF RECHARGE

Water enters the alluvial aquifer by precipitation, seepage from 

the bedrock, and addition of used water. Used water may be in the 

form of industrial waste, sewage, heated waste water, or waste with a 

high iron content.

As previously stated (p. 14), precipitation is relatively dilute but 

takes minerals into solution as it moves through the alluvium. The 

type and degree of water mineralization depend primarily on the 

chemical composition of the alluvium and on the depth, rate of movement, and temperature of the ground water.

Seepage from bedrock. Ground water moves between the alluvium 

and the underlying or adjacent bedrock. The water from bedrock is, 

in many places, more highly mineralized than is the water from alluvium, and it contains objectionable amounts of iron, chloride, and 

sulfates and carbonates of calcium and magnesium. The type of 

mineralization varies with the rock type. Most limeston?. and dolomite, for example, yield water that is high in calcium, magnesium, 

bicarbonate, and carbonate (table 1).

Water movement is mainly from the bedrock into the basal alluvium, 

and the effects of this movement are very noticeable in soTie areas of 

the valley. In Louisville, for example, the water from alluvium 

overlying soluble limestone is much higher in hardness and sulfate 

content than is water from nearby alluvium which overlies a relatively 

dense chemically inactive shale. This condition is greatly intensified 

in areas where the water table has been lowered by excessive pumping, 

causing the more highly mineralized bedrock water to be drawn into 

the alluvial aquifer.

Industrial waste. Industrial waste is composed of many types of 

organic or mineral compounds. Most waste is treated and discharged 

into the Ohio River, where it is rapidly diluted. Waste discharged 

onto the land surface, however, may reach the water table and affect 

the ground-water supply. Waste in liquid form may percolate downward to become part of the aquifer recharge. This is often a potential source of pollution in oil-field areas, where brines are pumped onto 

the ground or into poorly constructed disposal pits. Waste in a solid 

or semisolid state is subject to leaching and solution by rainwater that 

may transport the minerals downward to the saturated zon?. Because 

water moves very slowly through the aquifer, early detection of pol-
CONTROLLING FACTORS IN WATER-SUPPLY DEVELOPMENT 37

lutants is necessary to avert cumulative, long-term damage to the 

water supply.

Sewage disposal ~by septic tanks and cesspools. Most sewage containing both bacterial and chemical pollutants is disposed of at or 

fairly near to the land surface. Bacteria are largely destroyed by 

oxidation or removed by the filtering action of fine-grained materials 

in the zone of aeration above the water table. Therefore, if the point 

of sewage discharge is well above the water table, little bacterial contamination of the ground water is likely to occur. The chemical part 

of the sewage, however, such as sodium, potassium, magnesium, calcium, nitrogen, chloride, and synthetic detergents, migrates farther 

and tends to accumulate and cause a gradual increase in the mineral 

content of the ground-water supply. Such accumulation is probably 

the cause of the locally high mineralization shown in figure 20.

Heated waste water. A large and increasing percentage of ground 

water is used for air conditioning and industrial cooling. Little, if 

any, chemical change is involved in the process, but the temperature 

of the water is raised considerably. Most of the water so used is 

currently discharged into streams which dilute the water and c^rry it 

from the area. In Louisville, however, much of the heated water is 

pumped back into the aquifer, either to stabilize the water tabl°. or to 

avoid payment of the sewer-use tax. This practice raises the temperature of the ground water locally and makes the water less suitable 

for cooling purposes by subsequent users. In practice an effort should 

be made to return heated water to the aquifer downgradient, and at 

a considerable distance, from the discharge wells.

EFFECTS OF FLOODING

Flooding has a far greater effect on the quality of surface water 

than on the quality of ground-water supplies. The peak volume of 

riverflow ranges from about 20 to 90 times the low-flow volume; 

hence, the dilution is very great. During floods this dilution causes 

a diminishing of concentration of many constituents calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, bicarbonate, sulfate, chloride, hardness, 

and total dissolved solids. There is, however, an increase in color, 

turbidity, silica, iron, organic compounds, and coliform bacteria. The 

greatest increase is in the number of coliform bacteria, probably because of the flushing out of surface or near-surface sewerage systems.

Though the floodwaters penetrate the alluvium, the overall effect on 

the quality of the ground-water supply appears minimal. Ccliform 

bacteria, color, and turbidity disappear naturally soon after the 

recession of floodwaters. The other constituents are present in less 

concentration than is normally found in alluvium, so they do not constitute a means of degarding the ground-water supply.
38 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY. 

SCREEN INCRUSTATION

Incrustation is the formation by precipitation of cerr^ntlike deposits on well screens and in the surrounding aquifer material. Most 

of these deposits consist of carbonates of calcium and magnesium 

the same minerals that cause temporary hardness of water. The 

amounts present in ground water are variable and depend on carbon 

dioxide content, temperature, and water pressure. Water that enters 

the area of influence of a pumping well loses pressure. The pressure 

loss causes some of the carbon dioxide to be released from the water. 

Reduction of the carbon dioxide content causes the precipitation of 

hard carbonate minerals, both on the well screen and in the surrounding aquifer. These deposits may eventually accumulate, to such a 

degree that the intake area of the well is effectively blocked.

Nothing completely halts this process, but it can be retarded by the 

use of screens whose openings are large enough to permit the entrance 

of water into the well while offering the least possible resistance, and 

also by reduction of the pumping rate, which decreases the drawdown and the resulting pressure change. It also diminishes the yield 

of individual wells and necessitates the use of a greater number of 

smaller diameter wells.

AVAILABILITY AND QUALITY OF GROUND WATER IN 

DEVELOPED AREAS

Ground-water conditions are generally good throughout the length 

of the Ohio River valley. Ground water has been extensively developed in some areas, and has good potential for future development 

in many other areas; ground-water development in a few areas, however, has little potential, mainly because of problems of yirM, quality, 

or susceptibility to flooding.

The occurrence and availability of ground water is summarized 

for areas of extensive ground-water development. Arear that have 

good potential for future development or that have poor potential 

or special problems are discussed in later sections.

ASHLAND AREA 

LOCATION

The Ashland area, included in Hydrologic Investigations Atlas 75 

(Price, 1964), lies at the extreme east end of the Ohio River valley 

in Kentucky and has the heaviest concentration of industry in the 

eastern part of the State. The city of Ashland occupies the entire 

large southeast-northwest-trending bottom in the central part of the 

area. The southern part of the area is a narrow alluviel plain on
GROUND WATER IN DEVELOPED AREAS 39

which lies the community of Normal, and the northwestern section 

is a small bottom occupied almost entirely by the extensive plants of 

the Armco Steel Corp.

GEOLOGY AND SATURATED THICKNESS

The ancient bedrock valley of the Ashland area has steep, sloping 

sides and a very flat bottom. Alluvium fills most of the valley to a 

depth of about 70 feet, except .along the northeast margin of the area 

where the river has cut a deep trench in the alluvium. There the river 

either removed the alluvium entirely or has left only a few feet of sand 

and gravel on top of the bedrock. (See Price, 1964, HA-75, sheet 2, 

section O-O1 .)

The alluvium is in two layers: a fine-grained upper layer and a 

coarse-grained lower layer that generally comprises more than half the 

total thickness. The upper layer, which consists of clay, silt, and fine 

sand, is irregular in thickness owing to surface erosion. The lower 

layer consists of lenses and beds of sand, gravel, or both in varying proportions. However, silt and clay may be mixed with the sand and 

gravel in significant amounts. Boulders are present just above the 

bedrock in a few places, as near the southeast end of the Armco plant. 

In other places there is a gravelly layer 5-10 feet thick, distinctly 

coarser than the sand and gravel below, immediately beneath the finegrained alluvium, as in the test wells drilled on the property cf the 

old Ashland water plant near Normal. Near the riverbanks the coarse 

alluvium thins abruptly and, in a few places, only a few feet is present 

beneath the river. Charts of the Ohio River, prepared by the U.S. 

Army Corps of Engineers before the locks and dams were constructed, 

indicate several places where the coarse alluvium is absent and the river 

flows over bare rock.

Along the riverbank a layer of fine-grained alluvium cover? the 

lower sand and gravel. This fine-grained layer extends belov7 the 

river level and, except for a relatively thin zone just above the bedrock, 

seals the sand and gravel off from the river. In places, as at the north 

end of the bottom occupied by the Armco Steel Corp. plants, a layer of 

silt several feet thick covers the sand and gravel that lies beneath the 

riverbed. Both of these fine-grained layers are relatively impermeable 

and reduce the rate at which pumping of wells near the river will 

induce infiltration from the river into the alluvium (fig. 16). In most 

places along the Ohio River near Ashland, however, water can move 

freely between the river and exposures of sand and gravel in the river 

bottom. For this reason, the surface of the water in the river and in 

the ground near the river are at about the same level.

The water levels of the area, both in the Ohio River and in the 

alluvium, have recently changed. Until 1961 dam 29, across the Ohio
40 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

River near Normal, kept the minimum water level in the river above 

the dam at an altitude of 498 feet. Below dam 29 the river level was 

maintained at a minimum altitude of 490 feet by dam 30, some distance 

down river at Lloyd. Because the floor of the old bedrock channel 

beneath the Ashland area is about 470-480 feet above mean sea level, 

10-20 feet of the basal sand and gravel was saturated.

The new Greenup Dam was put into operation in 1961 to eliminate 

bottlenecks in river traffic caused by inadequate lockage and to improve flood control. It now replaces dams 29 and 30. Greenup Dam 

keeps the upstream river level at a minimum altitude of 515 feet; thus, 

it has raised the water level in the alluvium of the area below former 

dam 29 an additional 25 feet and above it, 17 feet. In most parts of 

the area about 35-45 feet of the alluvium is probably new saturated. 

The material newly filled with water is mostly the lower cc arse-grained 

layer of alluvium. The newly saturated part is probably less permeable than the material in the original zone of saturation, but it 

extends over a slightly larger area.

YIELDS OP WELLS

Cable-tool rigs are used in the Ashland area to drill wells for public, 

commercial, or industrial purposes. The holes are kept open by 6- to 

12-inch casing, and most holes are drilled through the entire thickness 

of alluvium to bedrock. Well screens 4-15 feet long are placed directly 

on or a short distance above the bedrock in beds of sand and gravel.

Of the 63 wells inventoried in the area, most were drilled for water 

to be used in the manufacture of ice, leather goods, and chemicals. 

Water is also pumped for air conditioning and for milk processing. 

Sixteen of these wells are test wells that were drilled at the site of the 

old city of Ashland waterworks near Normal and at the Armco plant 

northwest of Ashland.

The reported yields of 28 of the wells, inventoried before Greenup 

Dam was put into operation, ranged from 20 to 300 gpm vnth a median 

of 140 gpm. Only a few reports of yield were based on careful 

measurements, however. Some of the low yields were due to small 

demands; others were possibly the result of screen incrustation. The 

low yield of the test wells drilled on the riverbank at the Armco plant, 

on the other hand, was due to the thinness and low permeability of the 

aquifer. The low yields of the old, now abandoned, wells at the 

northwest end of the plant were due to excessive withdrawals of water 

from a small area and (or) incrustation of the well screers. A well in 

the basement of the Second National Bank Building was also reportedly abandoned because it supplied insufficient water after a new well 

nearby was pumped heavily.
GROUND WATER IN DEVELOPED AREAS 41

Four wells in the area reportedly yielded 200 gpm or more. One 

well, at the Kentucky Power Co. in the central part of Ashland, 

reportedly yielded 300 gpm. Two wells south of Ashland at the 

Semet-Solvay Division of Allied Chemical and Dye Corp. reportedly 

yielded 275 and 200-220 gpm. A well at the Ashland Home Ice Co. 

plant near the southeast end of the Ashland bottom reportedly yielded 

200 gpm.

A more accurate evaluation of the quantity of water that wells are 

capable of yielding can be obtained from tests of specific capacity and 

of aquifer performance. A specific-capacity test made on one of the 

Semet-Solvay Division wells indicated 38 gpm per foot of drawdown 

after pumping for 2 hours. If the water level in the well were pumped 

down to the top of the screen, a distance of 10 feet, the well should 

have yielded about 380 gpm. However, the test was short, and under 

sustained pumping the well was probably not capable of yieldin g this 

much.

Aquifer- performance tests on two groups of wells at the Armco 

plant were conducted (1958) by Ranney, Inc., to determine whether 

a ground-water supply utilizing induced river infiltration could be 

developed at the plant site. The yields of the test wells drilled on the 

riverbank were very low : 25 and 47 gpm. Transmissibilities also were 

low : 12,000 gpd per ft in the first test, and 6,800 gpd per ft in tl Q. second. The corresponding permeabilities also were rather low : 7f 0 and 

427 gpd per sq ft, respectively.

When Greenup Dam was finished (1961) and the water level in the 

river was raised, the thickness of the saturated part of the alluvium 

in the deepest part of the old bedrock channel was more than doubled 

in the area below former dam 29 and approximately doubled above. 

As a result, the transmissibility of the alluvium was doubled in most 

parts of the area, thereby roughly doubling the potential yield of wells.

OF WATER

Most water in the alluvium of the Ashland area is of the calcium 

magnesium bicarbonate or sulf ate type. Chloride, however, is present 

in relatively large amounts in some of the water. Analyses of four 

water samples from the Ohio River showed that the river water is 

also of the calcium magnesium sulfate type, contains significant 

amounts of chloride, and is similar in most respects to the water in 

the alluvium of the Ashland area. Analyses of water from wells in 

bedrock near the Ashland area indicated that the water from the bedrock is generally of different character than that from either tH alluvium or the river. This evidence suggests that the Ohio River may 

be a prime source of recharge to the ground water in the alluvium 

of the Ashland area.
42 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

Chemical analyses of water from 11 representative v^ells showed 

that the ground water is suitable for most domestic and industrial 

purposes but is generally hard to very hard and contains noticeable 

amounts of iron. Bicarbonate content of the water ranged from 54 

to 270 ppm; sulfate, from 42 to 160 ppm; chloride, from 17 to 128 

ppm; and nitrate, from negligible amounts to 27 ppm. The water 

in almost all the wells sampled at Ashland contained more than 10 

ppm nitrate, but water from wells in the small alluvial areas just 

upstream and downstream contained only very small amounts of nitrate. Hardness of the water sample ranged from 144 to 332 ppm.

The iron content of the water ranged from 0.04 to 6.3 ppm. However, highly mineralized water from two other wells, not included in 

the representative group, contained 47 and 206 ppm iron. These wells, 

now abandoned, are at the northwest end of the Armco plant. W. F. 

Guyton and D. K. Hamilton (written comniun., 1944) suggested that 

the high iron content and high mineralization may have been due to 

slag and other iron-waste material that had been dumped at or near 

the well sites. The highest iron contents were found ir water from 

wells drilled through this material; the lowest iron contents in wells 

farthest from it.

Temperatures of the water in 15 drilled wells, measured at different 

times of the year, ranged from 57° to 62°F. The average temperature was 59°F.

CONCLUSIONS

All data pertaining to the water wells of the area were collected prior 

to 1961 when the new Greenup Dam was put into operation. Before 

this dam was built, the yield of most large wells in the area was about 

150 gpm, and the maximum possible sustained yield was about 350 

gpm. Since then, the water level in the river has raised, and the 

maximum possible yield may be doubled.

The poorest area for the development of ground-water supplies is 

close to the valley wall, where nearly all the alluvium i? fine grained 

and the saturated zone is thin. Also, wells close to the valley wall will 

yield less when the cones of depression intersect the valley wall.

A relatively unfavorable area for the development cf infiltration 

supplies is along the riverbank to the northwest of Ashland. Exploratory drilling and aquifer tests showed that the deposits next to 

the river generally have low permeability and a small saturated thickness. Little information is available on the character of the alluvial 

deposits along the riverbank southeast of Ashland; however, there 

are indications that conditions may be more favorable ir this area.

Probably the best areas for ground-water development are the 

central riverward part of the Ashland bottom and the area imme-
GROUND WATER IN DEVELOPED AREAS 43

diately to the south as far upstream as Normal. The saturated thickness probably diminishes both upstream and downstream from this 

section.

The quality of ground water is satisfactory for most uses and is 

generally similar to that of river water; however, the range in temperature fluctuation of the ground water is much less. Ground-water 

quality may be poor in areas where wells are drilled through or near 

industrial-waste fill.

COVINGTON-NEWPOKT AREA 

LOCATION

The Covington-Newport area, shown in Hydrologic Investigations 

Atlas 98 (Price, 1964), is made up of two alluvial areas acrors the 

Ohio River from metropolitan Cincinnati, Ohio. The larger of the 

two areas, which is divided into two parts by the Licking River, is 

occupied by the cities of Covington, Newport, Bellevue, and Dayton. 

The smaller valley flat is about a mile downstream in the LudlowBromley area. E. H. Walker (1953) described the ground-water 

resources of the area.

Because the cities of Covington and Newport obtain water from the 

Ohio River for their own use and for supply to other nearby towns, 

little well water is used for public purposes in the area. However, 

two wells in alluvium provide the Bromley Sanitary Water District 

No. 1 with water for washing in their sewage-treatment plant. Approximately three-fourths of the ground water pumped for industrial 

purposes in the area is used in the brewing and distilling induf fries. 

Lesser quantities of ground water are pumped for use in air conditioning, food processing, and other industrial purposes.

GEOLOGY AND SATURATED THICKNESS

The maximum known thickness of alluvium in the area overlios the 

ancient deep channel of the Ohio River, which passes beneath parts 

of the cities of Bellevue, Newport, and Covington. Alluvium above 

this channel is about 150 feet thick.

The upper part of the alluvium is, for the most part, silt and clay; 

the lower part, sand and gravel. The upper silt and clay section of 

the alluvium is exposed in cuts and banks in the area and has been 

noted in nearly all well logs. It consists mainly of fine silt and varying 

quantities of clay, generally enough to make the material somewhat 

plastic in character. Some well logs indicate layers of sand within the 

silt or clay, but these beds are probably lenses of limited areal ertent.

The change from the overlying silt and clay to the sand and gravel 

is fairly abrupt. The basal deposits are coarser from top to bottom;
44 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

sand is generally penetrated first, then sand with increasing quantities 

of gravel. Just above bedrock much of the gravel is vei7 coarse and 

some contains small boulders. These coarser basal deposits rise gradually in places toward the bedrock valley wall but wedge out beneath 

the silt and clay. In the southern part of the area, these deposits 

merge with the fine-grained alluvial deposits of the Lickirg River and 

thin to a few feet in thickness immediately above the bedrock floor. 

Beneath the Ohio River the coarse deposits form all (or nearly all) 

of the alluvium.

As a rule the water-deposited sands are clean and sharp edged and 

consist mainly of quartz grains. Most sand of the old c^ep channel 

is coarse, the grains ranging in diameter from 0.5 to 1.0 mm. The 

gravel is well rounded and consists mostly of hard ro^ks, such as 

sandstone, granite, and quartzite, although fragments of limestone are 

common. Toward the edge of the Ohio River valley, especially at the 

junction with the Licking River valley, silt and clay make up a larger 

percentage of the gravel beds, and drillers have reported finding dirty 

or muddy gravel.

In the Covington-Newport area, water probably moves between the 

Ohio River and the lower sand and gravel layer in most places. However, as E. H. Walker (1953) pointed out, water movement is slow, 

which may indicate the presence of a relatively impermeable mud or 

clay "lip" that extends down the bank and over part of the riverbed 

(fig. 16). This fine-grained blanket partially seals off the river water 

from the underlying coarse deposits.

Until 1963 the minimum water level of the Ohio River in this area 

was 441 feet above mean sea level; the level was controlled by dam 37 

about 12 miles downstream. The ground-water table was at approximately the same altitude as the top of the basal sand anc1 gravel, and 

in most places this layer was entirely saturated with water. In the 

thicker deposits overlying the old deep channel, as much as 75 feet of 

coarse alluvium was saturated. The thickness of the water-filled sand 

and gravel is less in areas outside the deep channel, either because 

the buried bedrock is higher or because the glacial deposits of the 

Ohio River valley were replaced by fine-grained tributary sediments, 

as in the southern part of the area near the Licking River valley.

The level of the river in the Covington-Newport are<r was raised 

14 feet when the new, higher Markland Dam, about 60 miles downstream, was completed. Because the ground-water level was already 

near the top of the coarse alluvium, the ground-water buildup resulting 

from this increase is mostly in the upper, fine-grained alluvium.
GROUND WATER IN DEVELOPED AREAS 45 

YIHU>S OF WEIjLS

Cable-tool rigs are used in the Covington-Newport area to drill wells 

for public, commercial, and industrial purposes. Most holQ-s are 

drilled through the entire thickness of alluvium to bedrock and are 

kept open by 6- to 12-inch casing. Well screens, most of whi^h are 

10-20 feet in length, are placed in the sand and gravel just above the 

bedrock.

Eecords were obtained of 56 wells drilled into the Ohio Eiver 

alluvium in the Covington-Newport area. Most records were from the 

previous study by E. H. Walker (1953). The yields of 40 of these 

wells, reported by the owners or well drillers, ranged from 30 to 666 

gpm, with a median yield of 180 gpm. The yields were carefully 

measured for only a few wells, however. Some of the low yields 

merely indicate small water demands; others are the result of screen 

incrustation. Wells drilled near the valley walls generally yield only 

small amounts of water because the sand and gravel layer there is thin. 

Small yields are also reported from wells in the southern part of the 

area, near or in the tributary alluvium of the Licking Eiver; there the 

yields of five drilled wells were 8,16,33,40, and 60 gpm.

Four wells in the area reportedly yield 400 gpm or more. These 

wells are in the northern part of Newport and Covington and in 

Bromley. Three of these wells penetrate the thick sand and gravel 

deposits of the old deep channel, and the fourth is in sand and 

gravel near the river.

A more accurate idea of the quantity of water that wells in the 

area are capable of yielding can be obtained from specific-capacity and 

aquifer-performance tests. Specific capacities reported by owners of 

eight wells in the area ranged from 1.2 to 39 gpm per ft, with a median 

value of 19 gpm per ft somewhat below average for the Ohio Eiver 

valley. The yield of the sand and gravel aquifer at the site of the 

old City Ice & Fuel Co. well, at Second Street and Scott Boulevard in 

Covington, was estimated by use of hydrographs, pumpage data, and 

the results of pumping tests. The transmissibility of the aquifer was 

computed from these data to be about 20,000 gpd per ft (F. E. Hall, 

oral commun., 1957).

When the water level above Markland Dam was raised 14 feet, to 

a new altitude of 455 feet above mean sea-level, the alluvium above 

the original water table was newly saturated. In coarse-grained sections the transmissibility of the aquifer and the yields of wells increase by an amount dependent upon the permeability of the newly 

saturated sand and gravel. In sections where the alluvium is very 

fine grained and clayey, the principal result is an increase in head 

available for drawdown.
46 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

QUALITY OF WATER

Most water in the alluvium in the Covington-Newport area is of the 

calcium magnesium bicarbonate type. Analyses showed that water 

from the Ohio Eiver is of the calcium magnesium sulfate type and is 

much less mineralized than the water in the alluvium. Analyses of 

water from wells in the bedrock south of Covington ard Newport 

indicated that the water is generally of poor quality; the water is 

about as hard as is water from the alluvium and also may contain high 

concentrations of chloride, sulfate, nitrate, or iron. E. H. Walker 

(1953) found that the hardness and dissolved-solids content of water 

in the alluvium decreased from the valley wall toward the Ohio River. 

Evidently much water in the alluvium at the edge of the valley comes 

from the soil that overlies the bedrock of the valley wall. Most 

dilution of the dissolved constituents is by water seeping down from 

the land surface during ground-water movement toward the river; 

near the river there is further dilution by river-water infiltration.

Chemical analyses of water from 11 wells showed that the ground 

water is suitable for most domestic and industrial purposes, but that 

it is very hard and generally contains noticeable amounts of iron. 

Bicarbonate content ranged from 246 to 683 ppm; sulfate from 37 to 

388 ppm; chloride, from 35 to 204 ppm; and nitrate, from a trace to 

61 ppm. Hardness ranged from 252 to 862 ppm; and iron content, 

from 0.18 to 11 ppm.

An analysis of water from a well in the alluvium of the Licking 

River valley suggests that the quality of ground water in the tributary 

alluvium may differ from that of water in the Ohio River alluvium. 

The analysis revealed that the water has more calcium and bicarbonate 

and less sodium, sulfate, and chloride than does the average well 

water in the Covington-Newport area. Dissolved solid- and total 

hardness concentrations are also lower in the Licking Fiver valley 

well. Another well in the Licking River valley alluvium contains 

1,520 ppm dissolved solids. The sum of its sodium and potassium 

contents is 527 ppm, and the chloride concentration is 630 ppm. These 

concentrations were the highest found in any well in alluvium in the 

Covington-Newport area. E. H. Walker (1953) suggested that the 

character of the water and the high concentration of dissolved solids 

may indicate local ground-water pollution by industrial waste.

The temperature of water in 15 drilled wells, measured at different 

times of the year, ranged from 56° to 59°F, with an avers ^e of 57°F.

CONCLUSIONS

Most large wells in the area yield about 200 gpm, but th^ maximum 

possible sustained yields probably exceed 1,000 gpm.
GROUND WATER IN DEVELOPED AREAS 47

The least favorable areas for the development of ground-water 

supplies are in the valley of the Licking River and near the walls of 

the Ohio River valley. The alluvium of the Licking River valley is 

fine grained and yields only small quantities of water to wells; the 

highest reported yield is 60 gpm. The chances of obtaining large 

supplies of water become progressively less closer to the valley walls, 

because the section of saturated alluvium becomes thinner and generally finer grained.

Probably the best areas for obtaining large ground-water supplies 

are where thick deposits of sand and gravel are present in the old deep 

channel of the Ohio River beneath the cities of Ludlow, Covington, 

Newport, and Bellevue.

In terms of water quality, the poorest areas for development are 

those close to the valley walls and near areas of known industrial contamination of water. The most favorable sites are near the bank of 

the Ohio River. Here the river water enters the sand and gravel and 

dilutes the hardness and dissolved solids of the ground water to lessthan-average concentrations. Ground water in the Licking Riv^r valley seems to be less mineralized than that in most places in the Ohio 

Valley alluvium, but more analyses are needed to substantiate this 

conclusion.

LOUISVILLE AREA

LOCATION

The Louisville area is in a large alluvial bottom near the midpoint 

of the Ohio River valley in Kentucky. For convenience of discussion, 

the authors have divided the Louisville area into subareas (fig. 21) on 

the basis of ground-water pumpage and industrial usage.

More detailed study has been made of the geology, hydrology and 

quality of water in this area than at any other place in the Ohic River 

valley. To date more than 25 atlases and written reports have been 

published concerning the area. The latest of these reports are Hydrologic Investigations Atlases 130 and 111 ("Geology and Hydrology 

of Alluvial Deposits along the Ohio River between Prospect and 

Southwestern Louisville, Kentucky," and "Geology and Hydrology of 

Alluvial Deposits along the Ohio River between Southwestern Louisville and West Point, Kentucky" (Price, 1964)) and Water-f-upply 

Paper 1819-C ("Summary of Hydrologic Conditions of the Louisville 

Area, Kentucky" (E. A. Bell, 1966)). Other pertinent repoHs are 

included in the list of references at the end of this report. Because of 

the amount of detailed coverage, this section is intended to ser^e only 

as a brief summary of the hydrologic system of the area.
48 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

= 55' 50' 45'

38°15

FIGURE 21. Distribution of ground-water pumping in the Louisville area, 1962.

GEOLOGY AND SATURATED THICKNESS

The bedrock underlying the Ohio River alluvium of the area is 

made up primarily of limestones and shales of Silurian, Devonian, and 

Mississippian ages. The old deep channel, cut into these rocks down 

to an altitude of about 335 feet, trends southwest across the area from 

Towhead Island to a point south of the Rubbertown industrial subarea. 

Upstream and downstream from these points, the old channel approximately follows the present river channel.
GROUND WATER IN DEVELOPED AREAS 49

The alluvial deposits in the Louisville area are mostly of glacial 

origin. Their thickness ranges from 0 to 150 feet, depending upon the 

altitude of the erosional surface of the underlying bedrock formations. 

The upper part of the unconsolidated deposits consists of 5-40 feet of 

relatively impermeable clay, silt, and fine sand. Beneath this layer 

are thick deposits of permeable sand and gravel. The general distribution of the alluvial deposits is shown in figure 22.

The saturated thickness of alluvium varies widely with local pnmpage, but ranges from 0 to 80 feet. The water table (fig. 22), generally slopes toward the river, but heavy pumpage has created local cones 

of depression. Close to the river, pumping levels have been lowered 

to such a degree locally that the normal water-level gradient is 

reversed, and the water flows from the river toward pumped wells

WATER SOURCE ANI> USB

More than 40 billion gallons of water is used annually (Kulp and 

Hopkins, 1960) in the Louisville area. Three-fourths of this is taken 

from the Ohio River for public supply; most of the remainder of the 

water comes from alluvium and is used by the Louisville Extension 

Water District for public supply and by most of the industries for 

manufacturing, air conditioning, and cooling purposes. Supplies of

FIGURE 22. Water-level contours in the Louisville area, December 1960 (from 

Whitesides and Nichols, 1961). Altitude given in feet above mean see level. 

Contour interval, 5 feet. Arrows indicate direction of ground-water movement.
50 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER V/LLEY, KY.

ground water in this area are obtained primarily from large-diameter 

drilled wells that penetrate the full thickness of the aquifer; exceptions 

are two radial-collector wells within a few hundred feet of the Ohio 

River. Some water used by local distilleries is pumped from the 

limestone aquifer underlying the alluvium.

Much water, especially that which has been used for cooling purposes, is returned to the aquifer by means of recharge we?ls. Though 

primarily a means of avoiding payment of sewer-rente I taxes, this 

method of disposal helps to maintain an overall balance between the 

total withdrawal and the total recharge of the aquifer. From 1944 to 

1960 the amount of water returned to the aquifer by artificial recharge 

ranged from 0.6 to 1.6 mgd (million gallons per day). Tl ^re has been 

an apparent decline in this practice within the past several years, 

however, and the recharge amount reported by industry for 1962 was 

only 0.517 mgd.

WBLii YUSLDS AND AQTJIFEK TESTS

The average yield for all drilled wells in alluvium is probably about 

200 gpm, but each of the better wells of the area produces 400-500 gpm, 

and a few yield 800-1,000 gpm. The two radial-collector wells reportedly pump 2,600 and 3,500 gpm. Specific capacities for wells in 

alluvium range from 6 to 500 gpm per ft, with a median of 38 gpm 

per ft. Permeabilities, determined on the basis of laboratory studies 

of alluvial samples, ranged from 120 to 1,700 gpd per sq ft, with a 

median of 500 gpd per sq ft. Transmissibilities, determir°,d by pumping tests, ranged from 18,000 to 121,000 gpd per ft, with a median of 

68,500 gpd per ft.

QUALITY OF WATER

Ground-water quality varies widely throughout the area; it 

changes according to location, type of underlying bedrock, and rate 

of withdrawal.

Water from wells in limestone is very highly mineralized Hardness 

as CaCO3 averages about 580 ppm, and sulfates average about 450 

ppm.

Water in alluvium varies in quality but is generally very hard, high 

in bicarbonate and iron, and, in many places, high in sulf r.te. Average 

hardness of water from wells in alluvium in the part of Louisville 

included in Hydrologic Investigations Atlas 130 is 422 ppm and in 

Hydrologic Investigations Atlas 111, is 296 ppm. Sulf ate content of 

water in these atlas areas averaged 162 and 26 ppm. The alluvium in 

the upstream part (HA-130) overlies limestone bedrock, from which 

it derives its high mineralization. Downstream, the underlying impermeable shale effectively prevents much of the mineralized limestone water from entering the alluvium.
GROUND WATER IN DEVELOPED AREAS 51

There is also considerable variation in the quality of water, owing 

to variation in distance of wells from the Ohio Eiver. Water in wells 

within a few hundred feet of the river is less mineralized thar that 

in wells that are farther away. This reflects the diluting effect of river 

water that enters the alluvium during flood stage or is induced into the 

formation by infiltration.

A notable change in water quality has occurred in areas of heavy 

pumping. Large withdrawals have lowered the water table in some 

areas and thereby induced infiltration from the river; the pumped 

water is softer and of lower overall mineral content. Where heavy 

pumpage has not induced infiltration from the river, however, as in 

the West-Central subarea, wells in alluvium overlying the limestone 

bedrock are pumping increasing amounts of hard, highly mineralized 

water.

Average ground-water temperature in the area is 58°F. The range, 

from 47° to 66° F, depends largely on the temperature and quantity of 

river water induced by infiltration.

CONCLUSIONS

The most favorable areas for future development of large quantities 

of good-quality water are near the river, where induced infiltration 

makes perennially large supplies possible. This condition exists in 

southwestern Louisville, and in northeastern Louisville from the 

Louisville Gas & Electric plant to Harrods Creek. In the Rubbertown 

subarea, however, the opportunity for further development if very 

limited because the cone of depression there (fig. 22) has already been 

lowered to the maximum allowable for sustained yields. Wells near 

the river and in alluvium overlying shale bedrock produce the least 

mineralized water.

BRANDENBURG AREA 

LOCATION

The alluvial area near Brandenburg, included in Hydrologic Investigations Atlas 95, is typical in size to many river bottoms along 

the Ohio Valley. It is a crescent-shaped bottom G1/^ miles long about 

37 river miles downstream from Louisville. Though narrow (about 

half a mile wide) it occupies the width of the Ohio River valley at 

this point. The land surface has been dissected by Doe Run and 

Flipping Creek and ranges in altitude from 400 feet above me^.n sea 

level at the riverbank to more than 460 feet along the valley wgil and 

at the upstream and downstream ends of the bottom. Most of the 

land, however, is between 440 and 450 feet above mean sea level.
52 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, Kr.

Present water usage is confined to municipal supplies at Brandenburg and to public and industrial supplies at the Olin-Mathieson 

chemical plant. Total daily ground-water use for the area averages 

in excess of 17 million gallons per day.

GEOLOGY AND SATURATED THICKNESS

The bedrock of the area is limestone of Mississippian age. It slopes 

beneath the alluvial fill from 350 feet above mean sea level at the 

valley wall to approximately 305 feet in the old deep channel, which is 

near the present Ohio River channel.

The thickness of alluvium varies widely in the area because of the 

land-surface relief and the steep slope of the underlying bedrock. 

Most of the alluvium is from 50 to 100 feet thick, but where the old 

deep channel crosses beneath the higher, western part of the bottom, 

the alluvium probably approaches 150 feet in thickness.

Texturally, the alluvial fill is in two layers. The upper layer is 

composed of fine-grained deposits of silt, clay, and sand and ranges 

from 0 to 60 feet in depth. The coarse basal layer of sand and gravel 

is in excess of 50 feet thick and, where the upper layer has been eroded, 

occupies the full thickness of the aquifer.

Static water levels in the area near the river range from 30 to 40 

feet in depth below the land surface. No wells are known to have 

been drilled in the valley-wall area, but water levels there r re probably 

considerably higher. The saturated thickness of alluvium depends 

on the altitude of the bedrock surface and ranges from about 50 to 70 

feet along the river.

YEBLJ>S OP WELJLS

Water for the area is produced in two ways. The city of Brandenburg is supplied by two wells drilled to depths of 90 and 95 feet in 

alluvium and producing 200 and 265 gpm, respectively. Wells in the 

industrial area of the Olin-Mathieson plant are the radial-collector 

type and are 97 feet deep. They are rated at 5,000 gpm, and have 

pumping levels 85 feet below land surface. This indicates that much 

of their yield is the result of induced infiltration of Ohio River water. 

Test wells drilled prior to the construction of the collector wells 

yielded 300-500 gpm.

Aquifer-performance tests in the area showed permeabilities and 

transmissibilities that averaged 2,390 and 120,500 gpd per ft, both of 

which greatly exceed other averages for the Ohio River valley.

QUALITY OF WATER

Only three analyses were made of the water from the alluvium : one 

of a sample from a Brandenburg city well, and two of samples from 

wells at the Olin-Mathieson plant. The results were considerably
GROUND WATER IN DEVELOPED AREAS 53

different. One industrial well has relatively soft water of low mineralization ; the other, about half a mile downstream and at the same 

depth, has a concentration of nearly 500 ppm hardness as CaCO3 and 

a chloride content of 180 ppm. The water from the city well at Brandenburg is moderately hard (300 ppm hardness as CaCO3 ) and 

heavily mineralized.

CONCLUSIONS

This area, like most other relatively small alluvial bottoms along the 

Ohio Valley, might have been bypassed or overlooked had it no* been 

for exploratory drilling which revealed its potential. Most smaller 

bottoms are somewhat isolated and reportedly subject to excessive 

flood damage.

Transportation to the chemical plant was solved by the addition of 

a railroad spur that leads to the main line. Water supplies ar>, protected from potential flood damage by setting the caissons of the wells 

so that they extend far above the land surface. The height of the 

greatest recorded flood (1937) was 446 feet above mean sea level, and 

much of the Brandenburg area is higher than this. Flood-control 

structures that have been built since 1937 have greatly reduced th*^ likelihood of extremely high water, and additional structures ar°, still 

being constructed or are in the planning stage.

OWENSBORO AREA 

LOCATION

Owensboro is in the western part of Kentucky about 110 miler from 

Louisville. The municipal-industrial area extends 61/2 river miles 

from the Dewey and Almy plant downstream to Bon Harbor Hills. 

The upstream half of this stretch is comparatively narrow; it ranges 

from about 1 to 2 miles in width. The downstream part of tlie bottom abruptly broadens to nearly 10 miles in width and include? part 

of the drainage system of Panther Creek. The geoloy and hydrology 

of the area are described in Hydrologic Investigations Atlas 74.

The flood-plain is relatively flat and ranges in altitude from 380 to 

400 feet above mean sea level. Its evenness is interrupted by a northeast-southwest-trending natural levee which stands 25-30 feet above 

the surrounding valley and extends from one end of the area to the 

other. This feature is from 500 to 800 feet wide and has a maximum 

altitude of slightly more than 430 feet.

Owensboro is a progressive, industrialized city that ranks second 

in the State in its use of ground water. Ground-water usage averages 

about 10.7 mgd. Of this quantity 1.4 mgd is for domestic suppl;T , and 

the balance, derived from both municipal and privately owned wells, 

is used by industry. Slightly more than half of the gross pumpage
54 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

is used by five industries, which include three distilleries, a steel mill, 

and a meat-processing company. Municipal pumpage, f ~om 22 deep 

wells, is 4.6 mgd.

GEOLOGY AND SATURATED THICKNESS

The bedrock underlying the alluvium of the area is nainly shale 

of Pennsylvanian age. In the 2-mile-wide strip adjoining the river, 

the bedrock surface is quite uneven as a result of dissection prior to 

deposition of the alluvial fill. Buried cusp-like remnants, separated 

by channels of ancient streams, rise to an -altitude of 300 feet above 

mean sea level and project outward into the valley. (See HA-74.)

Less is known of the subsurface geology of the wide flood plain 

inland from the river, but much of it is probably dissected in a manner 

similar to the strip along the river. Logs of scattered wells indicate 

that the altitude of the bedrock floor averages about 280 feet in the 

middle of the valley and more than 350 feet near the valley wall.

The lowest points of the bedrock floor are on the west side of the 

city, where a branch of the old deep channel of the Ohio River passes 

southwest around Bon Harbor Hills at an altitude of 240 feet above 

mean sea level. Ancient tributaries to the deep channel eroded deeply 

into the bedrock and cut their valleys to between 240 and 2£0 feet above 

mean sea level.

The land surface is relatively smooth; hence, the variation in thickness of the alluvium is controlled primarily by the altitude of the concealed bedrock surface. An exception occurs, however, ir the area of 

the natural levee, where the alluvium is thicker by 20-30 feet. In the 

area along the Ohio River, the thinnest alluvium overlies the buried 

bedrock highs and generally ranges from 90 to 110 feet in thickness. 

The deposits above the old deep channel west of town are nearly 150 

feet thick. Most alluvium in the area, however, ranges from about 120 

to 130 feet in thickness.

In the broad inland flood plain, most of the bedrock lies between 

90 and 130 feet below the land surface; however, near the valley wall, 

the alluvium thins rapidly to only a few feet in thickness.

The texture of the alluvium gradually changes across the valley 

from mostly coarse deposits near the river to fine-grained deposits on 

the inland flood plain.

In the riverward part of the area, the thickness of the upper, finegrained deposits is generally 30-50 feet. These deposits are underlain 

by a basal layer that ranges in texture from boulder-sized material, 

found in the municipal well field, to sand or sand and gravel, found 

throughout most of the area. An exception is in downtown Owensboro, 

where two extensive clay layers about 10 feet thick occur. One layer
GROUND WATER IN DEVELOPED AREAS 55

is at a depth of 35-65 feet; the other is deeper and lies immediately 

above the bedrock in most places.

Farther from the river the fine-grained layer thickens and be-comes 

a mixture of Ohio River alluvium with increasing amounts of tributary alluvium. Here the coarse basal section is reduced in thickness 

to a few feet or may be missing entirely.

The thickness of the saturated zone is governed by the water level 

and the depth of the alluvium. In the heavily pumped area nerr the 

Ohio River, the water level ranges from 30 to 50 feet below land 

surface. The saturated thickness of alluvium ranges from 60 to TO feet 

over the buried bedrock hills to 80 to 90 feet over most of the bedrock 

lows; however, in the area of the old deep channel, the saturated zone 

is about 100 feet thick.

Inland the water table is noticeably higher from 10 to 15 feet 

below land surface and the saturated zone ranges from 80 to more 

than 120 feet in thickness.

YIELDS OF WEIJLS

In the 2-mile-wide strip along the Ohio River, almost all the wells 

are drilled and are designed for high yields. The outward exppnsion 

of the municipal water system has eliminated much of the need for 

domestic wells except in rural areas.

All the municipal, industrial, and air-conditioning supply wells 

are in the heavily pumped section along the river. The most favorable 

depth for large yields in this area corresponds to the depth to bedrock, 

as this permits setting of well screens in the coarsest material and 

gives access to the greatest saturated thickness. Many older wells 

of the area are comparatively shallow; they range from 80-10°) feet 

deep. Experience has proved the value of complete penetration of the 

water-bearing formation, however, and in the past 10 years most wells 

have been drilled down to bedrock. The depths of these wellp vary 

with location and range from about 120 to 130 feet.

Well yields along the river generally range from 400 to 1,000 gpm; 

most wells are pumped at rates between 700 and 800 gpm. Drawdown 

at these pumping rates is not excessive. The specific capacities of 

26 wells in this part of the Owensboro area range from 13 to 75 gpm 

per ft, with a median of 45 gpm per ft, which is well above the rr^dian 

(32 gpm per ft) for the entire Ohio River valley in Kentucky. Infiltration of surface water is apparently being induced in the areas of 

heavy pumping near the river. Most water from deep wells close to 

the riverbank is less mineralized than the ground water in th°. rest 

of the area; this indicates dilution by surface water of lower mineral 

content.
56 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

In the more rural areas, both along the river and on the inland flood 

plain, most water supplies are derived from small-diameter driven 

wells. These wells range from 50 to 105 feet in depth, and the low 

yields generally reflect th.e water needs rather than the potential of 

the aquifer. Where larger supplies are needed, drilled wells are 

customarily used. For example, the yield of a drilled veil, 123 feet 

deep, at the Owensboro Country Club south of the city limits, has been 

measured at 725 gpm.

Very few tests have been made of the hydrologic properties of the 

aquifer underlying the Owensboro area. A single transmissibility 

test, conducted at the municipal well field, showed a transmissibility 

coefficient of 55,300 gpd per ft. This is slightly more than the median 

for the entire Ohio River valley.

The permeability of alluvial samples from two sites near the river 

was tested in the laboratory. Three undisturbed samples of sand, 

silt, and clay collected from various depths on the riverb^nk had permeability coefficients that averaged 525 gpd per sq. ft. Four disturbed 

samples of alluvium were collected at depths of 86-128 feet from a 

well jetted in the new municipal well field. Laboratory analyses of 

the samples showed permeabilities that ranged from 570 to 140,000 

gpd per sq ft, which indicates that much of the fine-grained material 

was probably removed during the jetting process. Though these 

figures are, in part excessively high, they do indicate the potential 

that can be expected from properly developed wells in this area.

Logs of wells in the alluvium of tributary valleys indicate that low 

permeabilities and transmissibilities can be expected. The subsurface 

material is, in general, very fine grained, ranging from dense clay 

to mixtures of silt and fine-grained sand. Yields are not known, but 

the fact that wrells in this area are either dug in alluvium or drilled 

into the underlying bedrock indicates the probability that the watertransmitting capacity of the alluvium is poor.

QUALITY OF WATER

The overall quality of ground water in this area equals or exceeds 

that of the valley as a whole, and the degree of mineralization is 

less than the average for the entire valley. There is, however, a noticeable difference between the quality of water from the alluvium within 

a few hundred feet of the river and that from the area fa rther inland. 

Water from the heavily pumped zone along the river is les^ mineralized 

and is of the calcium bicarbonate or calcium bicarbonate sulfate type, 

with a hardness of about 200 ppm. This may be the result of induced 

infiltration (as previously noted) which would cause the wells to 

yield a mixture of hard ground water and soft river water. Ground
GROUND WATER IN RELATIVELY UNDEVELOPED AREAS 57

water inland from the river is much harder (300-400 ppm hardr ess as 

CaCO3 ), and most is more mineralized.

Excessive iron content in the water is a problem throughoiit the 

area. The iron content generally ranges from 2 to 8 ppm, and only a 

very few of the wells that were sampled had water containing less 

than 0.5 ppm. The U.S. Public Health Service standards indicate 

that over 0.3 ppm of iron causes objectionable staining.

CONCLUSlbNS

High yields of good water can be obtained throughout the 2-milewide strip adjoining the river. Deep wells within a few hundred feet 

of the riverbank produce the largest yields and the least mineralized 

water; however, part of this water is probably induced from the river 

by infiltration.

The alluvium farther inland is generally finer grained but may 

contain basal lenses of coarse sand or sand and gravel that could 

yield more than 500 gpm of water to drilled wells. Most water in this 

area is much harder than that from wells which are closer to the Ohio 

Elver.

AVAILABILITY AND QUALITY OF GROUND WATER IN 

RELATIVELY UNDEVELOPED AREAS

AREA BETWEEN OWENSBOBO AND THE HAWESVILLE VICINITY

LOCATION

The alluvial area upstream from Owensboro (HA-74, HA-72) 

follows a winding course for about 35 miles from Yellow Creek, near 

the Dewey and Almy plant, to the Skillman bottoms. The valley 

wall closely parallels the present Ohio River channel and borders an 

alluvial bottom which averages iy2 miles in width. At Hawesville 

and upstream from Skillman, however, the valley narrows to less than 

1,000 feet in width.

The area is sparsely populated, and water resources are relatively 

undeveloped. Land use is devoted mainly to farming and oil production. The development of large water supplies has been confined to 

the municipal well systems at Lewisport and Hawesville. The only 

manufacturer currently (1964) using ground water is the Murray 

Tile Co. at Lewisport; however, the Harvey Aluminum Co. is constructing a rolling mill near Lewisport and anticipates an eventual 

need of a 15,000-gpm water supply. Water is also being used for irrigation of high-cash-yield crops and for secondary recovery of oil by 

waterflood methods.
58 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY. 

GEOLOGY AND SATURATED THICKNESS

Oil production is concentrated mostly in the Maceo part of the area, 

but much oil is also produced throughout the rest of this alluvial 

bottom. Drillers' well logs give a good picture of the subsurface 

geology. The bedrock immediately underlying the alluvium is shale 

of Pennsylvanian age, which generally lies 350 feet above mean sea 

level near the valley wall but only 240 feet above mean sea level in the 

old deep channel. Concealed cusp-shaped remnants of the original 

bedrock protrude into the valley as subsurface extensions of the existing valley wall. These remnants are separated by valleys that were 

eroded by ice-age tributary streams.

Most of the lowest points of the bedrock floor are in the old deep 

channel, which lies at an altitude of about 250 feet in the upstream 

segment of this area and at an altitude of about 240 feet between Lewisport and Owensboro. This buried channel follows a wirding course 

but is on the Kentucky side of the valley throughout most of this 

reach of the Ohio Kiver (sheet 1 of HA-72 and of HA-74). The bedrock surface near Maceo is at a relatively lower altitude, however. 

Drillers' well logs of this area show bedrock altitudes of 217-235 feet 

above mean sea level (HA-74, sheet 2, section B-B'). Th«,se altitudes 

are several feet below the known altitude of the old deep channel.

The valley surface is relatively flat; hence, variations in the thickness of alluvium are primarily governed by the altitude of the underlying bedrock floor. This thickness generally increases toward the 

river because of the general slope of the bedrock surface. The alluvial deposits overlying the old deep channel are nearly 155 feet thick; 

and in the area of the bedrock low near Maceo, the deposits are more 

than 160 feet thick. The alluvium is thinnest, ranging from 90 to 

100 feet in thickness, near the valley wall and over the buried bedrock 

highs. In the Lewisport area, for example, these highs r,re extensive 

and cover most of the bottom area; thus, the thickness of the overlying 

sand and gravel is not as great as elsewhere.

Texture of most alluvium throughout the area ranges from coarse 

sand to sand and gravel. In many places the generally fine-grained 

upper layer is missing or is very thin, and only a coarse basal section 

more than 130 feet thick is present.

Clay is present mostly as lenses that range from. 5 to 15 feet in thickness. These clay layers, though sparse throughout most of this 35- 

mile-long stretch, are mentioned in many drillers' logs of wells in the 

valley bottom northeast of Lewisport. These lenses are also mentioned 

in a few logs of wells in the Skillman area.

The coarse basal layer of alluvium is generally a mixture of sand and 

gravel. In some areas, however, as in the river bottom between Hawes-
GROUND WATER IN RELATIVELY UNDEVELOPED AREAS 59

ville and Lewisport, this material is predominantly sand, and gravel 

is absent or very sparse.

There appears to be no noticeable change in texture of the alluvium 

across the valley except in areas near the mouths of tributary valleys. 

In such places the material is a fine-grained heterogeneous mixture of 

tributary and Ohio River alluvium.

In general the water table of the area slopes rather steeply across 

the valley. It is highest (often within 10-15 ft of the surface) in the 

valley-wall area and lowest at the river, where it ranges from 360 to 

370 feet in altitude. At the river the altitude of the water table is 

influenced by the pool stage of the Ohio River, as well as by seasonal 

conditions.

In terms of depth, the water levels in the Skillman bottom, upstream from Hawesville, are farthest from the surface and rang?, from 

45 to 62 feet below land surface. This is primarily because of the generally higher land surface in the area. Water nearest the surface 

occurs close to the valley wall where water levels in shallow alluvial 

wells are within 10 feet of the land surface.

The saturated zone, mostly composed of coarse-grained material, 

is thick throughout the area. It is thinnest (less than 40 ft) in the 

area near the valley wall, where the buried bedrock slopes rapidly 

upward. Throughout most of the bottom, however, this saturated 

zone ranges from about 100 to 140 feet in thickness. An exception to 

this is in the Lewisport area, where thinner alluvial deposits reduce 

the average thickness of the water-bearing zone to less than 80 feet.

After the completion of the dam at Cannelton, Ind., the pool stage 

of the Ohio River in the Skillman area will be raised 25 feet to an 

altitude of 383 feet above mean sea level. A similar rise in the gr-oundwater table will result from this, and the saturated thickness ir parts 

of the Skillman bottom will increase to more than 150 feet.

YIELDS OF WELLS

More than half of the water supplies in the area is derivec1 from 

li/4-inch-diameter driven wells. The depth of most of these wells 

ranges from 45 to 60 feet, but many in use are more than 85 feet deep. 

The multiple systems of large-diameter driven wells used for irrigation in the Maceo-Waitman area are generally only 30-40 feet deep.

Drilled wells are used in nearly half of the water systems. Depths 

are generally 60-100 feet, but two wells have been drilled to 110 feet, 

and another is 144 feet deep.

There are only a few dug wells, most of which are in the areas of 

tributary alluvium. The large-diameter wells allow greater storage 

for the slow-moving ground water.
60 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

Nearly all wells in the area yield less than 10 gpm. Most wells, 

however, supply only domestic needs or water for livestock; hence the 

yields generally indicate the users' demands rather than the potential 

of the aquifer. The only large-yield well systems in the ?,rea are used 

for public supply or irrigation. The public-supply wells at Hawesville are 110 feet deep and yield 350 gpm. The valley is less than 800 

feet wide at that point, and the saturated thickness is only 75 feet; 

therefore, these wells are probably inducing infiltration from the Ohio 

River, which is about 200 feet away. The municipal supply well at 

Lewisport was drilled to a depth of only 83 feet and yields 300 gpm. 

The shallow multiple-well systems commonly used for irrigation in 

the area have yields ranging from 300 to 400 gpm.

Few aquifer-performance tests have been made in this part of the 

valley bottom. One permeability test was performed in tl ^ Geological 

Survey Hydrologic Laboratory on an undisturbed sample of fine sand. 

This sample, taken at 10-foot depth near the mouth of a tributary 

valley, had a permeability of 310 gpd per sq ft.

The only transmissibility and specific-capacity data available are 

from the analysis of pumpage and drawdown measurements taken 

during a well test near Maceo. The well, pumped for only 1 hour, had 

a specific capacity of 200 gpm per ft. Transmissibility, from the 

same test, was computed at 360,000 gpd per ft.

A general comparison of the saturated thickness and texture of the 

alluvium in this section of the valley with similar sections of known 

performance indicates that yields in excess of 500 gpm may be obtained 

here from properly constructed wells.

Little is known about the water-bearing potential of the tributary 

alluvium. The authors noted, however, that most well" in or near 

the tributary valleys are dug wells in alluvium or are drilled wells 

penetrating the underlying bedrock aquifer. This suggests that low 

yields can be expected from the tributary alluvium in these areas.

QUAJjITY OF WATER

Ground water of the area is of the calcium bicarbonate type and is, 

in many respects, of about average quality for water in iha. Ohio River 

valley. In chemical analyses of most samples, the hardness as CaCO3 

ranged from 250 to 350 ppm, and two extremes, 55 and 570 ppm, were 

noted. Significant amounts of magnesium and sulfate were recorded 

in some water samples on which complete analyses were made.

Iron is present in large amounts in water throughout the area. Its 

presence is a troublesome factor to users. Water from many wells 

contains less than the U.S. Public Health Service's maximum recommended standard of 0.3 ppm iron, and nearly all has less than 1.0
GROUND WATER IN RELATIVELY UNDEVELOPED AREAS 61

ppm; but the iron content of water from some wells ranged from 5 

to 10 ppm.

Most chloride and nitrate contents were less than the amounts 

considered unsafe for drinking purposes. Where the chloride and 

nitrate contents were high, the cause could generally be attributed to 

localized contamination by oil-well brine or by barnyard and fertilizer seepage moving into the alluvial water supply. An example of 

this was water from a well near the mouth of a tributary stream. 

Analysis of this water showed nitrate and chloride contents in excess 

of 100 ppm. The well is located in a barnyard and is only 200 feet 

from an oil well; consequently, these high concentrations are probably 

due to surface contaminants rather than to natural causes.

CONCLUSIONS

The availability and quality of ground water are such that the area 

seems to have good potential for industrial or municipal growth. 

The largest yields can be expected from wells that penetrate the full 

thickness of saturated alluvium near the river and in the area cf the 

old deep channel.

Seasonal flooding is not likely to be a danger, except in the area of 

the minor tributary streams. Most land surface is above an altitude 

of 390 feet and therefore safely above the waters of even extreme 

floods.

The Skillman bottom, though virtually undeveloped, has certain 

geologic and hydrologic assets. The alluvium is generally coarse, and 

the old deep channel is present throughout the length of the bottom. 

Upon completion of the dam at Cannelton, Ind., the thickness cf the 

saturated zone will increase from 130 feet to more than 150 feet; thus, 

the ground-water potential for the area will be greatly increased.

AREA FROM OWENSBORO TO SPOTTSVILLE 

LOCATION

Downstream from Owensboro and terminating near the confluence 

of the Green and Ohio Rivers is one of the most extensive and least 

developed alluvial areas in the Ohio River valley. It is about 25 river 

miles in length and includes the Green River and Panther Creek 

drainage systems. In the Stanley-Bon Harbor Hills area the alluvium 

is approximately 11 miles wide. Downstream it gradually narrows to 

a few miles in width in the Spottsville area, at which point it wedges 

out abruptly to 1 mile in width at the mouth of the Green River. Most 

of this area is described in Hydrologic Investigations Atlases 9° and 

110.
62 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

Throughout most of the area there is relatively little topographic 

relief; the land surface ranges in altitude from 370 feet above mean 

sea level near the Ohio River to 400 feet several miles inland. Two 

notable exceptions exist. One, the westward extension of the natural 

levee in the city of Owensboro, stands above the alluvial plain at an 

altitude of about 420 feet above mean sea level. The other is an 

outcropping remnant of rocks of Pennsylvanian age west of Owensboro. The largest of these outcrops is the Bon Harbor Hills area, 

which covers several square miles and rises more than 150 feet above 

the surrounding plain. Smaller bedrock remnants lie to the southwest 

of Bon Harbor Hills and rise to altitudes of 460-490 feet above mean 

sea level.

Development of water supplies is minimal. There are no public 

water systems; daily needs are supplied by private wells. The recently 

established Old Stanley Distillery is the only industry in the area.

Present land use is primarily for farming and oil production, but 

these activities are becoming progressively larger users of ground 

water. Irrigation of high-cash-yield crops, such as tobacco, vegetables, 

and berries, has increased rapidly during the past 15 years. This 

highly consumptive use is practiced most heavily during the season of 

fairly low ground-water levels, and most of the water thus used is 

lost from the ground-water system by evapotranspiration.

Use of waterflood methods for secondary oil recovery has also greatly increased in the area. Henderson and Daviess Counties rank first 

and second in Kentucky oil production, and, as previously noted, in 

1962 one-fourth to one-half of this production was by waterflood 

methods. Thus far, most of the water used is from the deeper bedrock aquifers and is recirculated in closed systems. Preeent use from 

the alluvial supply thus is somewhat limited. In one of the larger 

flood projects near Reed, 25,600 gpd is used. This is the quantity 

pumped in 24 hours by a well yielding only 18 gpm. As natural pressure is lost in the oil pools, more and more production will be by waterflood methods, and part of this water will be derived from wells that 

terminate in the alluvium.

GEOLOGY AND SATURATED THICKNESS

More is known about the subsurface geologic condition? here than in 

any other area of comparable size along the Ohio River valley. Much 

of the area, especially that near Reed and Stanley, has been extensively 

drilled and logged by companies in search of oil. This has provided 

much information on both the thickness and texture of the alluvium 

and on the composition of the underlying bedrock.

The bedrock immediately underlying the alluvium is si ale of Pennsylvanian age. In contrast with the flat land surface of the area, the
GROUND WATER IN RELATIVELY UNDEVELOPED AREAS 63

bedrock surface displays many erosional features and considerable relief. The erosion, which occurred prior to the deposition of the present valley fill, left a surface composed of benches, cusps, and terraced 

hills separated by glacial-age stream channels. The highest parts of 

the alluvial-covered bedrock in the area are at an altitude of 300 feet.

Less is known about the altitude of the bedrock surface in the area 

5-11 miles from the river. However, logs from scattered wells indicate 

that the bedrock surface has less relief and rises gradually toward the 

valley wall.

The lowest bedrock altitudes in the area are found in the old deep 

channels. (See sheet 1 of HA-96 and of HA-110.) East of Bon 

Harbor Hills the deep channel is at an altitude of 240 feet above 

mean sea level. The channel forks at this point; one branch continues to follow the path of the present Ohio River, and the other 

branch passes south and then west around Bon Harbor Hills and then 

curves northwest to the Birk City area. The deep channel then takes 

a northerly course, passes just east of Newman, and rejoins the main 

branch. At this point the channels are at an altitude of 230 feet 

above mean sea level. Ancient streams tributary to the deep channel 

were entrenched to altitudes of 250 feet above mean sea level.

The land surface is relatively flat; hence, the thickness of th«s alluvium is governed primarily by the altitude of the surface of the 

underlying bedrock. This thickness averages 120 feet or less throughout the bottom.

The alluvium is 90 to 100 feet thick where the valley fill overlies 

the bedrock highs. Greatest depths of alluvium are found in the area 

of the old deep channel. Here the alluvium averages 140 feet in thickness and may be as much as 180 feet deep in the area of topographic 

highs, as on those points where the channel passes beneath the natural 

levee.

The size and texture of most alluvium readily allow movement of 

water to a well. The upper fine-grained layer is 30 feet deep or less, 

and the thick basal layer is predominantly gravel or sand and gravel 

and apparently lacks extensive clay layers. (See sheet 2 of HA-96 

and of HA-110.)

The basal material is coarse throughout more than half the width 

of the valley. At an indefinite point inland from the river (5-7 miles 

inland in the wider parts of the valley), however, the basal material 

becomes progressively finer in texture and consists mostly of sandsized material. Still farther from the river the material is largely a 

mixture of silt, clay, and fine sand, and little or no gravel is present. 

This is mostly tributary alluvium of Green River and Panther Oeek.
64 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

Two other areas of fine-textured alluvium are found rear the Ohio 

River. In the proximity of Bon Harbor Hills much alluvium is not 

only thin but very fine grained and includes may layers of clay or 

silt and clay mixtures. The other area of alluvium of poor texture is 

near the confluence of the Green and Ohio Rivers. Her 1}, though the 

alluvium is thick, it is mostly sand, silt, and clay, and represents a 

mixture of the deposits of the two river systems.

Textures of alluvium in the Green River valley, inland several miles 

from its mouth, are somewhat unpredictable. Though much of the 

alluvium is fine grained, many extensive lenses of coarse gravel are 

found in the zone immediately overlying the bedrock.

The water table of the area slopes very gradually toward the river 

across the main part of the valley. The water-table is highest early 

in the growing season and lowest at the end of summer but is always 

above the Ohio River pool level. In the coarser more productive area 

within a few miles of the river, the water table is 15-25 feet below land 

surface. The water is generally 8-15 feet below land surface in the 

area of fine-grained alluvium away from the main stream. The thickness of the saturated zone ranges from 90 to 120 feet; it is determined 

primarily by the altitude of the underlying bedrock.

Tamos OP wEidus

In this area wells are predominantly driven welk l^-inch in 

diameter which penetrate 25-35 feet of alluvium. Wells within a 

few hundred feet of the Ohio River, however, must be 45-50 feet deep, 

because the water table slopes steeply down to the low-pool stage in 

late summer. These small-diameter wells are primarily for domestic 

use and for watering livestock, for which purposes thsy are quite 

adequate. Reported or measured yields are normally 10 gpm or less, 

but this reflects user needs or the pump type rather than the potential 

of the aquifer.

Driven wells of larger diameter (4-6 in.) are used for irrigation. 

Yields of from 300 to 800 gpm are obtained by combinirg as many as 

four such wells into one system. The depth of these wells varies 

greatly; it depends on the owner, his needs, and the local conditions. 

The general range of depth is from 30 to TO feet below land surface.

There are relatively few drilled wells in the area, mostly because of 

initial cost and lack of widespread need for large yields. Most are 

fairly shallow. They range from 35 to 80 feet in depth and do not 

penetrate the full thickness of the water-bearing formation. The 

deepest known wells in the area are two recently drilled 12-inchdiameter wells at the Old Stanley Distillery. These are about 122 

feet deep and probably draw from the entire saturated thickness of the
GROUND WATER IN RELATIVELY UNDEVELOPED AREAS 65

aquifer. Yields, when tested, were 200 and 394 gpm as compared with 

about 90 gpm for most of the area's shallower drilled wells.

^The permeabilities of four undisturbed samples of fine-grained 

alluvium taken from shallow depths at one site on the bank of the 

Ohio River ranged from 70 to 750 gpd per sq ft. Specific capacities of 

six wells ranged from 9 to 160 gpm per ft and averaged 92 gpm p^r ft, 

which is nearly double the average for wells in the Ohio Valley in 

Kentucky.

The hydrology of the tributary alluvium in the area is largely unknown. Though most of the alluvium is fine grained, a few basal 

layers of gravel or sand and gravel are present which supply good 

yields. This is true along the Green River, where yields sufficient 

for use in waterflooding are being obtained from basal gravels.

The smallest yields in the area are obtained where the fine-grlned 

tributary alluvium has mixed with coarser Ohio River valley alluvium, 

as near the mouth of the Green River and along the flood plain of 

Panther Creek, deep in the valley.

QTJAJUTY OF WATER

The area's overall ground-water quality is about average for the 

Ohio River valley. The water is of the calcium bicarbonate typ°>; it 

ranges from 100 to 350 ppm in hardness as CaCO3 slightly less hard 

than the average along the valley.

Iron content in water tends to be a problem in many wells. Some 

wells tested had water that contained less than the U.S. Public Health 

Service recommended maximum limit of 0.3 ppm, but most wells 

yielded water that had an iron content ranging from 0.5 to 10 ppm.

Despite the large number of oil wells in the area, there is little 

chloride contamination from brine disposal. In one sample, from 

a water well near Carlingburg, the chloride content was about 200 

ppm, which is well below U.S. Public Health Service recommended 

maximum limits.

Only one water sample tested showed nitrate as NO3 in quantities 

above the U.S. Public Health Service recommended maximum limit 

of 45 ppm. This water had 60 ppm nitrate, probably owing to barnyard contamination.

CONCLUSIONS

The area seems entirely adequate for industrial expansion, es^ecially for users who need large quantities of water. The largest yields 

are to be obtained in the area close to the Ohio River from deep wells 

that terminate in the basal gravel just above the bedrock floor. Where 

such wells also penetrate to the floor of the deep channel, the increase 

in saturated thickness will permit greater drawdowns in individual
66 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

wells. Potential yields from properly constructed deep wells in this 

bottom should easily exceed 500 gpm.

The water is hard and is high in iron content, but the overall quality 

is better than the average for water in the Ohio River valley.

AREAS OF POOR POTENTIAL OR WITH FPECIAL

PROBLEMS

Despite the good ground-water potential of the Ohio Eiver valley 

as a whole, there are areas where quality or quantity of the alluvial 

water supply is substandard. In the Henderson area (HA-91), for 

example, most alluvium is so fine grained that even modest well yields 

are uncommon, and water supplies must be obtained from the Ohio 

Eiver or from the bedrock aquifers. There are exceptions to this 

both upstream and downstream, but parts of these areas are residential 

or are subject to yearly flooding by the Ohio Eiver and its tributary, 

Canoe Creek. The large bottom that extends downstream to Uniontown is underlain mainly by very permeable formations. Only one 

part of this area, a topographic high north of the community of 

Geneva, lies above the altitude of known flood waters, however.

The quality of ground water in the alluvium of the abandoned Ohio 

River meander in the Wolf Creek area of Meade County, Ky., is a 

potential problem. The nitrate content of water from domesticsupply wells is as much as 160 ppm over four times the maximum 

recommended limit established by the U.S. Public Health Service. 

Contamination may stem from several sources, but becarse the greatest 

nitrate concentrations are all found in water from shallow dug wells, 

poor well construction coupled with barnyard seepage or leaching of 

nitrate fertilizers are seemingly the most probable causes

Frequent flooding by the Ohio Eiver or its tributaries is a limiting 

factor in the development of many alluvial areas. Overflow of the 

riverbank seems more severe in the downstream part of the State. 

The volume of the river in this area is greater owing to the addition 

of water from many tributaries; also, land-surface altitudes are lower 

in comparison to the heights of flood crests than are the bottoms 

upstream. Flooding by the Ohio Eiver may eventually be alleviated 

by the flood-control reservoirs that are being built or planned for 

many tributary streams.

Flooding also occurs near the mouths of tributary streams and often 

causes more property damage than the waters of the overflowing Ohio 

River. These smaller streams become clogged easily, and in the 

spring the melting snow and heavy precipitation cause them to overflow their banks.
FUTURE GROUND-WATER QUALITY AND QUANTITY 67

FACTORS AFFECTING FUTURE GROUND-WATEP 

QUALITY AND QUANTITY

The future quality and quantity of ground water in the Ohio Piver 

alluvium will be affected by a number of factors. Among thes^ are 

increased withdrawal, changes in the chemistry, temperature, and 

radioactivity of Ohio River water, drainage problems associated with 

increased urbanization, new dams that create changes in pool stage, 

and changes in the amount or character of river sediment.

INCREASED WITHDRAWAL

Increase in withdrawal will come as the natural result of population 

increase, greater water use per capita, and industrial growth. Growth 

in the Ohio River valley during the next 15 years will probably be 

rapid. In the Evansville (Ind.)-Henderson-Owensboro (Ky.) area, 

for example, both population and employment are expected to double 

by 1980. 1 Modern plumbing, swimming pools, kitchen appliances, 

and greater use of ground water for industrial cooling and air conditioning will create greater demands. Local problems of quantity 

will probably arise, but as a whole, the area can supply many times 

the expected growth increase.

Irrigation is a consumptive water use that is, almost all the T^ater 

used is returned to the atmosphere by evaporation and transpirr.tion. 

The practice of irrigation in the Ohio River valley is somewhat limited 

at present (1964), but it is profitable and is expected to increase 

greatly in the future. Most irrigation is done during the time of low 

ground-water levels; however, there is no other major water use in 

the rural areas, and no serious shortages are likely to occur there.

Use of waterflooding as a means of secondary recovery of oil also 

is rapidly increasing. The total pumpage of fresh water for oil recovery is, at the present time, moderate (generally averaging less than 

100 gpm in a waterfloocl project), and even the expected increase in use 

will not noticeably affect the ground-water supply. Contamination 

of the fresh ground-water supply is a potential problem, but closed 

systems are generally used. These systems recirculate the waters of 

high chloride content and prevent their escape into the alluvial aquifer.

CHANGES IN CHEMISTRY, TEMPERATURE, AND RADIOACTIVITY 

OF OHIO RIVER WATER

Water moves rather freely between its surface and subsurface environments; therefore, that which affects the water at the surface also

1 Bramlett, G. A., and Pratt, W. J., 1964, Economic development in the Ohio River 

valley region : Spindletop Research, Inc., Lexington, Ky.
68 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

affects the water in the subsurface environment. The reverse is also 

true. This interrelation is most apparent in heavily industrialized 

areas close to the river, where much river water is induced into alluvial 

wells by infiltration. Elver-water contamination, highest during the 

time of greatest pumpage, could adversely affect the quality of water 

yielded by these wells.

Man's activities have caused numerous changes in the quality of the 

Ohio River water. Prior to the inception in 1948 of ar eight-state 

organization, the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission 

(ORSANCO), the Ohio River was much like a cesspool in nature. 

Less than one-half percent of the population of the Ohio River valley 

lived in communities where sewage-treatment plants were in operation. By 1963, 98.5 percent of the valley's population lived where 

sewage treatment was practiced, and 85.6 percent of the industries that 

discharged waste directly into the Ohio River and tributaries met the 

minimum ORSANCO requirements. Only 12 plants did not treat 

their waste products at that time.

Dumping of oil-field brines onto the land surface and into tributary 

streams was a problem until recently. The practice made both surface- and ground-water supplies unfit for man's use and killed much 

of the fish population. Legislation has almost entirely eliminated this 

problem.

A large percentage of the ground water used by industry is for cooling purposes. After use this water is often returned tc streams or 

pumped into the aquifer. It is chemically unchanged but much 

warmer. The increase in temperature makes the water less suitable 

for similar use in downstream areas.

Other problems are the pollution of the water by household detergents and by waste materials from plants that handle radioactive 

materials. Modifications are being made in the composition of detergents which will promote their decomposition and reduce the contaminating effect on surface- and ground-water supplies. High-level 

radioactive wastes, such as spent reactor-fuel elements and discarded 

radioisotopes, are presently stored and, except for human error, are 

not a potential source of ground-water contamination. Low-level 

wastes, including cooling and wash water used near reactors, may be 

stored at such depths that fresh-water supplies will not be affected.

The Ohio River water is reused many times before it discharges into 

the Mississippi. With the increase in number of ground-water users, 

greater quantities of river water will be induced into the alluvial aquifer by infiltration, and it may become necessary to develop new and 

more effective methods of water treatment and both increase and 

tighten the existing water-pollution controls.
CONCLUSIONS 69

DRAINAGE PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH INCREASED 

URBANIZATION

Drainage problems will increase with the growth of citier and 

industry. Additional buildings and areas of asphalt will increase 

the amount of water carried off overland and 'by storm sewers and 

will reduce the amount of ground-water recharge. Increased runoff 

will create a greater peak load that must be borne by smaller streams 

of the area during high water, thereby causing local flooding in low 

areas. The increased runoff will reduce both recharge and the amount 

of ground water available to the streams during times of low

HIGHER DAMS AND RESULTING CHANGES IN POOL STAGE

Larger navigation locks and dams are being constructed along the 

Ohio Kiver to replace the present structures. New pool stages above 

these dams will be considerably higher than before, and a corres^onding rise of the ground-water table in the adjacent alluvium will result. 

Thus, the amount of ground water in storage will be increased and 

more water will be available for use. This rise may, however, put the 

water table at or above the level of existing septic tanks and cesspools 

in some areas, and cause contamination of both ground- and surfacewater supplies. Also, some water logging of the upper part of the 

alluvium is expected during the period of excess water, as in the 

spring of the year.

CHANGES IN AMOUNT OR CHARACTER OF RIVER-BOTTOM

SEDIMENT

Changes are also expected to occur in the amount and character of 

the sediment on the river bottom. Both dredging and the change in 

ponding created by the new dams will cause shifting of silt and clay 

deposits in the streambed. In some areas this may effectively reduce 

the amount of river water available to wells that formerly derived 

much of their water by induced infiltration ; in other areas infiltration 

may be improved.

CONCLUSIONS

The alluvium and the ground water that is stored in and moves 

through the alluvium are parts of the whole hydrologic system of the 

Ohio River basin. Water in the ground, on the surface, and in the 

atmosphere are interrelated and interdependent parts of the system, 

and that which affects the quantity or quality of water in one environment can affect the whole system.

The quantity of water in the alluvial part of this system is large, 

and there is no problem of an "overall" shortage of supply in the fore-
70 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO BIVER VALLEY, KY.

seeable future. Yields of several hundred gallons per minute are 

available from properly constructed wells in permeable materials 

near the river, and amounts large enough for domestic needs, or for 

the requirements of small industries, are available in mort areas along 

the valley.

Expansion of areas of industrial or municipal withdrawal or the 

development of new industrial sites should not create problems of 

quantity if care and intelligent management are used in the spacing 

and construction of wells. However, where industrial and publicsupply wells already are heavily concentrated in relatively small 

areas, as in Ashland, southwestern Louisville, and Owenrboro, greater 

caution must be exercised in the development of new supplies. In 

such areas withdrawal equals or exceeds the amount of water available 

by natural recharge. Extended periods of drought would cause further depression of the water table, thereby necessitating artificial 

recharge of the aquifer or the reduction of pumpage.

The problem of greatest concern in the area is the present and future 

quality of water. Water from the alluvium, though generally very 

hard and high in iron content, offers several advantages over that 

from other sources of supply because of its low temperature and constant quality. Increased growth and expansion in the Ohio River 

valley will, however, multiply the problems of waste disposal, water 

purification, and pollution of ground-water supplies. Because water 

may move in either direction between the surface streams and aquifers, 

the quality of all water in the basin must be safeguarded, and new 

methods of treatment must be developed.

Floods are a problem, especially in the development cf new industrial sites, but the danger of flood damage may be lesser Q,d by future 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers structures. A workable solution to 

the problem of industrial flooding is to elevate all facilities above the 

possible flood stage. An alternative might be to construct plant sites 

in the high bedrock area of the valley wall and pump ground water up 

to the factory from alluvial wells in the bottoms.

Such methods could involve the use of cheaper land fcr the factory 

site, access to better transportation, and less potential flood danger 

than exists in many areas now considered prime industrial sites.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE ST^TDY

DETAILED STUDIES OF PROBLEM AREAS

Additional detailed investigations are needed regarding the quality 

and quantity of available ground-water supplies throughout the Ohio 

River valley. Studies should include specific areas, such as Henderson and Wolf Creek, and the general problem areas of the entire valley.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE STUDY 71

Solution of problems must keep pace with the anticipated, as well as 

the existing, demands of industrial and municipal growth.

STUDY OF THE GEOLOGY AND HYDEOLOGY OF SMALL BOTTOMS 

AND TEIBUTAEY VALLEYS

Little or no information is available about the material underlying 

many of the smaller bottoms along the Ohio River valley. Exploratory-drilling programs should be conducted in such areas, especially 

in bottoms where the land surface is above flood stage and where 

transportation and labor requirements can be satisfied.

Studies should also be made of the alluvium and the ground water in 

tributary valleys, especially in areas near or adjacent to the Ohio 

Valley. Well yields from basal alluvium along the Green River, for 

example, range from 100 to 300 gpm enough for many types of s*nall 

industries. More detailed information concerning the extent and 

yield of such deposits and the quality of the contained water could be 

an economic asset to the entire Ohio River valley.

MONITOEING STATIONS FOE GEOUND-WATEE QUALITY

As mentioned, control of water quality is expected to be the greatest 

problem in the future. Surface-water quality is now monitored at 

many points in the valley, both on the Ohio River and its tributaries. 

The quality of ground water, however, is monitored only in the hefr.vily 

pumped Rubbertown subarea of Louisville. In the future a system 

of stations should be set up to periodically monitor the quality of 

ground water in and around cities, industrial sites, unpopulated areas, 

and tributary valleys.

GEOCHEMICAL STUDIES

More detailed geochemical s< udies should be made concerning specific 

areas or specific problems. Studies are already underway to determine 

how ground water is affected by acid mine drainage. Additional investigation should be made on the heating effect of recharge w>ter, 

the high sulfate and hardness of ground water near cities (as ir the 

Louisville and Covington-NewT port areas), excessive nitrate (as in the 

Wolf Creek area), possible ground-water contamination resulting 

from the higher pool stages above the new dams, and many ether 

existing or potential problems.

PERIODIC INVENTORY OF WATER USE

The U.S. Geological Survey periodically inventories the amourt of 

water used for public, industrial, and municipal supplies. The time
72 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

lapse between present inventorying periods is, however, sufficiently 

long to allow increased withdrawal to cause overdraft of the aquifer 

and lead to local water shortages. More frequent inventories and (or) 

better liaison with the State and municipal agencies in close contact 

with industrial development would provide early warning of major 

changes in pumpage and allow time to recommend and execute 

measures that might protect the aquifer.

Two relatively new water uses, irrigation and oil-field waterflooding, 

are rapidly increasing, and they should also be inventoried carefully. 

These withdrawals are normally from sparsely settled areas, so there 

is no conflict with other water users; such information, however, would 

add greatly to existing knowledge concerning the potential of the 

alluvial aquifer.

WATER-TABLE MAPS

Water-table maps show contours on the top of the zone of saturation. 

When such maps are made and periodically revised, it ie possible to see 

the shift or development of cones of depression and to foresee overdraft of the aquifer. Water-table maps are available only for the 

Rubbertown subarea of southwestern Louisville, but sroh maps could 

provide valuable information in other heavily pumped areas in the 

Ohio River valley, such as Ashland and Owensboro.

These maps should also be made of the water levels in alluvial bottoms upstream from some of the proposed larger Ohio River dams. 

The higher pool stages of the river in these areas will raise the water 

table and may have both good and bad effects on the alluvial bottoms 

involved. For example, some benefit may be derived from the increase in saturated thickness, and some damage may result from waterlogging. Information obtained by observing the rate and degree of 

this ground-water buildup can be used to predict the effects of new 

pool stages in other areas. Such a project should be combined with an 

investigation of the changes in water quality, as mentioned in "Geochemical Studies" (p. 71).

ARTIFICIAL RECHARGE

Artificial recharge is the introduction of water into an aquifer by 

means of water spreading or by recharge wells. Both methods have 

been tested in Louisville, but only the latter has been successful. The 

practice of artificial recharge allows replenishment of the aquifer 

during times of surface-water excess and has also been used as a means 

for disposing of warmed water that had been used for cooling 

purposes.

Continued industrial and municipal growth will cau-^e artificial recharge to become standard practice in heavily pumped areas. Before
SELECTED REFERENCES 73

such time arrives, research should be done on the details of proper use 

of this method and on the effects that such use would have upon the 

aquifer.

SELECTED REFERENCES

Bell, E. A., 1962, The ground-water situation in the Louisville area, Kentucky, 

1945-61: Kentucky Geol. Survey, ser. 10, Inf. Circ. 10,24 p.

 1966, Summary of hydrologic conditions of the Louisville area, Kentucky:

U.S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 1819-C (in press). 

Bell, E. A., Kellogg, R. W., and Kulp, W. K., 1963, Progress report on the grorndwater resources of the Louisville area, Kentucky, 1949-55: U.S. Geol. Survey

Water-Supply Paper 1579,49 p. 

Bennison, E. W., 1947, Ground water Its development, uses, and conservation:

St. Paul, Minn., Edward E. Johnson, Inc., 509 p. 

Flint, R. F., 1947, Glacial geology and the Pleistocene epoch: New York, John

Wiley & Sons, 589 p. 

Gallaher, John T., 1963, Geology and hydrology of alluvial deposits along the

Ohio River in the Hawesville and Cloverport areas, Kentucky: U.S. Geol.

Survey Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-72.

 1963, Geology and hydrology of the alluvial deposits along the Ohio 

River in the Lewisport and Owensboro areas, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Surrey 

Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-74.

 1963, Geology and hydrology of alluvial deposits along the Ohio Rive" in 

the Spottsville and Reed areas, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey Hydrol. Inv. 

Atlas HA-96.

 1964, Geology and hydrology of alluvial deposits along the Ohio Rive" in 

the Henderson area, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-91.

 1964, Geology and hydrology of alluvial deposits along the Ohio R'ver 

between the Wolf Creek and West Point areas, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey 

Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-95.

 1964, Geology and hydrology of alluvial deposits along the Ohio R'ver 

in the Stanley area, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-110. 

1964, Geology and hydrology of alluvial deposits along the Ohio R'ver

between the Uniontown area and Wickliffe, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey

Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-129. 

Grover, N. C., 1938, Floods of Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, January-Febrr^ry

1937, with a section on the flood deposits of the Ohio River, JanuaryFebruary 1937, by G. R. Mansfield: U.S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Prper

838, p. 693-736 [1939]. 

Guyton, W. F., 1944, Artificial recharge of ground-water resources with wter

from city's surface supply at Louisville, Ky.: U.S. Geol. Survey oper-file

report, 6 p. 

Hamilton, D. K., 1944, Ground water in the bedrock beneath the glacial outvash

in the Louisville area, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey open-file report, 2° p. 

Harvey, E. J., 1956, Geology and ground-water resources of the Henderson srea,

Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 1356, 227 p. 

Hem, J. D., 1959, Study and interpretation of the chemical characteristic1' of

natural water: U.S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 1473, 269 p. 

Hendrickson, G. E., 1958, Summary of occurrence of ground water in Kentucky:

U.S. Geol. Survey Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-10, 3 p. 

Jones, D. J., 1956, Index list of early western Kentucky well records: Kentucky

Geol. Survey, Inf. Circ. 5, 277 p.
74 HYDROLOGY, ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS, OHIO RIVER VALLEY, KY.

Kazmann, R. G., 1948, River infiltration as a source of ground-water supply: 

Am. Soc. Civil Engineers Trans., v. 113, p. 404-420.

Kulp, W. K. and Hopkins, H. T., 1960, Public and Industrial water supplies of 

Kentucky: Kentucky Geol. Survey, ser. 10, Inf. Circ. 4, 1C2 p.

Leopold, L. B., and Langbein, W. B., 1960, A primer on water: U.S: Geol. Survey, 

spec, pub., 50 p.

Leverett, Frank, 1929, Pleistocene of northern Kentucky: Kentucky Geol. Survey, ser. 6, v. 31, p. 1-80.

MacCary, L. M., 1955, Map of the Louisville area, Kentucky, showing contours 

on the bedrock surface: U.S. Geol. Survey Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-5.

 1956, Availability of ground water for domestic use in Jefferson County,

Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-8, 5 p. 

MacCary, L. M., and Lambert, T. W., 1962, Reconnaissance of ground-water

resources of the Jackson Purchase region, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey

Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-13, 9 p. 

Maier, F. J., 1950, Fluoridation of public water supplies: Am. Waterworks

Assoc. Jour., vol. 42, pt. 1, p. 1120-1132. 

Maxcy, K. F., 1950, Report on the relation of nitrate concentrations in well waters

to the occurrence of methemeglobinemia in infants : Natl. Research Council,

Bull. Sanitary Eng. and Environment, App. D. 

Maxwell, B. W., and Devaul, R. W., 1962, Reconnaissance cf ground-water

resources in the Western Coal Field region, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey

Water-Supply Paper 1599,34 p. 

Meinzer, O. E., 1923, Outline of ground-water hydrology: U.S. Geol. Survey

Water-Supply Paper 494, 71 p. 

Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission, 1950, Pollution patterns in

the Ohio River: Cincinnati, Ohio, Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation

Comm., 30 p.

 1957, Water quality and flow variations in the Ohio River 1951-55: Cincinnati, Ohio, Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Comm., 112 p.

Free, H. L., Jr., Walker, W. H., and MacCary, L. M., 1957, Geology and groundwater resources of the Paducah area, Kentucky: U.S. Geol Survey WaterSupply Paper 1417, 214 p.

Price, W. E., Jr., 1963, Geology and hydrology of alluvial deposits along the 

Ohio River between South Portsmouth and the Manchester Islands, 

Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey Hydrol, Inv. Atlas HA-73.

 1964, Geology and hydrology of alluvial deposits along the Ohio River 

between Catlettsburg and South Portsmouth, Kentucky: U.S. Gelo. Survey 

Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-75.

 1964, Geology and hydrology of alluvial deposits along the Ohio River 

between the Manchester Islands and Silver Grove, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. 

Survey Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-94.

 1964, Geology and hydrology of alluvial deposits along the Ohio River 

between Ethridge and the Twelvemile Island, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey 

Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-97.

 1964, Geology and hydrology of alluvial deposits along the Ohio River 

between Newport and Warsaw, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey Hydrol. Inv. 

Atlas HA-98.

 1964, Geology and hydrology of alluvial deposits along the Ohio River 

between southwestern Louisville and West Point, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. 

Survey Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-111.
SELECTED REFERENCES 75

Price, W. E., Jr., 1964, Geology and hydrology of alluvial deposits along the Ohio

River between Prospect and southwestern Louisville, Kentucky: U.S. Geol.

Survey Hydrol. Inv. Atlas HA-130. 

Price, W. E., Jr., Mull, D. S., and Kilburn, Chabot, 1962, Reconnaissance of

ground-water resources in the Eastern Coal Field region, Kentucky: U.S.

Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 1607, 56 p. 

Rorabaugh, M. I., 1946, Ground-water resources of the southwestern part of

the Louisville area, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey open-file report, 39 p.

 1956a, Predication of ground-water levels on basis of rainfall and 

temperature correlations : Am. Geophys. Union Trans., v. 37, no. 4, p. 436-441.

 1956b; Ground water in northeastern Louisville, Kentucky, with reference to induced infiltration: U.S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 1360-B,

p. 101-169. 

Rorabaugh, M. I., Schrader, F. F., and Laird, L. B., 1953, Water resources cf the

Louisville area, Kentucky and Indiana: U.S. Geol. Survey Circ. 276, 49 p. 

Thornthwaite, C. W., 1941, Evaporation and transpiration : U.S. Dept. Agriculture

Yearbook, p. 545-550.

 1948, An approach toward a rational classification of climate: Geog. Rev.,

v. 38, p. 55-94. 

U.S. Geological Survey, issued annually through 1959 and on a 5-year basis

thereafter, Quality of surface waters of the United States, pts. 1-4, North

Atlantic slope basins to St. Lawrence River basin: U.S. Geol. Survey WaterSupply Papers,

 issued annually through I960 and on a 5-year basis thereafter, Surfacewater supply of the United States, pt. 3-A, Ohio River basin, except 

Cumberland and Tennessee River basins: U.S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply 

Papers.

U.S. Public Health Service, 1962, Drinking water standards: Fed Register, 

Mar. 6, p. 2152-2155.

Walker. E. H., 1953, Geology and ground-water resources of the CovinrtonNewport alluvial area, Kentucky: U.S. Geol. Survey Circ. 240, 26 p.

 1957, The deep channel and alluvial deposits of the Ohio Valle^r in

Kentucky : U.S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 1411,25 p. 

Walker, W. H., 1957, An aquifer test in the southwestern part of the Louisville

area, Kentucky : U.S. Geol. Survey open-file report, 41 p. 

Whitesides, D. V., and Nichols, Edith S., 1961, Water levels in observation

wells in Jefferson County, Kentucky, 1935 through 1960: Kentucky Geol.

Survey, ser. 10, Inf. Circ. 6, 75 p.
INDEX

[Italic page numbers indicate major references]

Acknowledgments 6

Alluvial aquifer, development.--.- 2

Alluvium, Ashland area S9

average porosity 19

Brandenburg area . ... .. 5t

Covington-Newport area. .- -- 43,44

ground-water occurrence 10,19

Licking River valley. 46

Louisville area. 49

Owensboro area 64,55

Owensboro to Hawesville 58, 59

Owensboro to Spottsville. ~6t, 6S, 64

recharge from precipitation 11

saturated thickness 17

saturated zone, depletion - 28

method for determination of thickness. 19

thickness - 18

Skillman bottom. 61

Aquifer tests, Ashland area.. - . 41

Brandenburg area 52

Covington-Newport area 45

Louisville area... 50

Owensboro area.. 55,56

Owensboro to Hawesville.. 60

Owensboro to Spottsville. - 65

Aquifers, relation to streams . it

Artesian water, definition.... 12

Ashland area, aquifer tests_....- 41

character of alluvium . 39 

conclusions from study. - 42 

cones of depression . - 28 

geology.....-.---- - --..-.- .... 39

heavy pumping.... . .. 4

location....--- 38

quality of water... . 41 

recharge from Ohio River....... . .. 41

saturated thickness of alluvium..... _ 40

water level_ _____.. ___ 39 

yields of wells.. ... .... 40,41

Ashland Oil Co., well-log files.._---_---- 6

B

Back washing, wells, removal of fine material.. 31

Bedrock channel, meanders.__ 7

scouring of ---------__________ 7

Bedrock features, buried__________ 7,8,64,68 

Bon Harbor Hills region, buried bedrock features.. . . 7 

Brandenburg area, aquifer tests -- 52 

character of alluvium.__________ 52 

conclusions from study......____-_ 63

Brandenburg area Continued

flood-control structures. 63

location.... 51

quality of water.. 52

saturated thickness of alluvium_ 52

use of water.... 52

water level... - 52

Chemistry of Ohio River water, changes in. 67, 68

Clay deposits, effect on water movement. 22

Conclusions from study, Ashland area 42

Brandenburg area 63

Covington-Newport area 46

future ground water .. . 69,70

Louisville area. 51

Owensboro area... 57

Owensboro to Hawesville .. 61

Owensboro to Spottsville 65

Cone of depression, definition 25

expansion.... 27

induced infiltration 29

Louisville area 49,61

near bedrock area 28

near impermeable layer.. 28

pressure difference 25

Construction, well si

Covington-Newport area, aquifer tests... 45

cable-tool drilling 45

character of alluvium .. 43,44

conclusions from study. 46

location...... .. .. 43

quality of water.. 46

saturated thickness of alluvium.. ..._ 44

water level__ ... .._ 44

water movement.. 44

yields of wells... . 45

Development, well.___ _______ si 

Diehl Pump & Supply Co., data provided. 6 

Discharge, well, relation to water movement

through aquifer. . __.. 27,28 

Dissolved constituents, changes through system .. - 14

source and significance-__._____ 15

E

Evaporation.

Farming, flood plain77
78 INDEX

Page

Floods, damage caused by tributary streams... 

deterrent to area development-._____

Q

Geochemical studies, need for 71

Qlaclation. ..-..-.-.--. .. .. 7,8

Qreenup Dam........ ... . 40,41

Ground water, Ashland area... as

availability............. . ..._. 17

Brandenburg area . 51

chemical quality...-- - 2

concentration of dissolved solids. ig

contamination problem.. . 67,68

Covlngton-Newport area . 43

development... eg

controlling factors... n

future, conclusions from study.. 69

factors affecting . 67

Henderson area.... ... . 66

increased consumptive use... 67

industrial use..-.--- --- 68

losses in excess of recharge.. 18

Louisville area..--.--.. ------ .... 47

movement, factors essential to -.-. go 

natural conditions descriued. ... 17 

need for monitoring quality..- -... 71 

Owensboro area... -- 53,56,57 

Owensboro to Hawesville-.-- . -. 57 

Owensboro to Spottsville.--- 61 

quality, effect of floods... -- -- 37 

range of chemical and physical characteristics... --.. ... ... 33 

sources, Central States... 2 

storage, future Increase... . 69 

temperature.. 16

Ashland area. .. 42

Louisville area. 51

use as process water.... ..-. 17

Qutenson, Otto, data provided- _----- 6

H

Hardness of water.. 33 

Ashland area.. . . - -- 42 

Brandenburg area - - 53 

Covington-Newport area 46 

Licking River valley... 46 

Louisville area..- --___ ... 36,50,51 

Owensboro area.... .--- - 56,57 

Owensboro to Hawesville.... 60,61 

Owensboro to Spottsville. - 65

Henderson area, character of alluvium. 66 

need for future study. 73 

saturated zone, maximum thickness.. 18

Hydrologic system.... .---.-. 6 

source of water..-..---..- - - 9

Illinois Central Railroad, test-hole logs. _ 6

Incrustation of well screens.. 38

Induced infiltration, definition.... 29

factors that reduce 30

Industrial waste r~ -- 36

Industry, need for dependable water supply.. 2

Inventory, periodic, use of water... 71

Investigations, previous, 

this report...........

Irrigation................

Page

6

6

67

Kentucky Department of Commerce, cooperation given. __._ ___ 6

Kentucky Geological Survey, cooperation

given.. __......___ 6

well-log files___....._________ 6

Kentucky State Highway Department, testhole logs.. . 6

Klaer, Fred, Jr., & Associates, data provided 6

Licking River valley, alluvium_______ 46 

Loess, porosity and permeability._...___ 20 

Louisville and Nashville Railroad, test-hole

logs...... 6

Louisville area, aquifer tests___ __... 50 

artificial recharge. ...... ....... 50

average annual precipitation......____ 22

character of alluvium.-._________ 49 

conclusions from study.____ ___ 51 

hardness of water_ ____. ____ 36 

heavy pumping.... _______._. 4

location....____ ____..__.. 47

previous investigations._________ 47 

quality of water..__._______...- 50,51 

recharge from Ohio River . . 49,51 

runoff.. ...__- ..._________. 22 

saturated thickness of all ivium _.... 49

southwestern, cones of depression . 28 

use of water..______________ 49,50 

water level... .... __.. ....... 49

yields of wells.._____________ 50

M

Maceo, oil production.. ... 58 

Maps, water-table- . 72 

Markland Dam.._____._________ 44,45 

Melt water, glacial, action of..... 7 

Movement of water.... . «

N

Natural waters, composition and physical

properties.... ... _ It 

Navigation dams, Ohio River._ £

O

Ohio River, ancient, deposition from tributaries_-.__-__ .... J

ancient, meanders.. f 

chemistry of water, chancres in. 67, 6t' 

floods . ------ ---- -- - 66

increase in flow, Ashlar d to Mississippi

River 10

radioactivity of water, el anges in 67, 68 

reuse of water from. -------------__ 68

source of recharge to Ashland area... 41 

source of recharge to Louisville area_.... 49,51

source of water supply.. --- 9 

temperature of water, changes In..... 67, 68
INDEX 79

Page

Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission (ORSANCO) - ,- 68 

Oil production ....... . - 4,6,58,62

ORSANCO (Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission). -- 68 

Overpumping, wells, removal of fine material. 31 

Owensboro area, aquifer tests 55,56 

bedrock features - 54 

character of alluvium - - - - 54,55 

conclusions from study.---- 57

cones of depression.. - 28 

location....______ 53

physiography__..-.. -. 53 

quality of water.. 56 

recharge from Ohio River... 55 

saturated thickness of alluvium.. 55 

saturated zone, maximum thickness.. 18 

surface-water infiltration..... 55

use of water....... ---- 53

water level... . 55 

yields of wells....---.-------- ----- 55,56

Owensboro to Hawesville, aquifer tests. . 60 

bedrock features. - 58 

character of alluvium -.- 58,59 

conclusions from study. 61 

location...._______.- 57

quality of water. . 60 

saturated thickness of alluvium.. 59,60 

use of water...... - 57

water level..___--__---___------ 59,60

yields of wells.------___---__--__- 59,60

Owensboro to Spottsville, aquifer tests.....-- 65

character of alluvium._----- _.-- 62,63,64

conclusions from study.-.-- ----- -- 65

location.... -. ... . -.. -... 61

quality of water.--.---. .---.-.-.-.---. 65 

saturated thickness of alluvium... -- _. 64 

use of water.......____ 62

water level...__-___-. - -- 64 

yields of wells.......__.. __..._.. 64

Permeability, aquifer, fine materials. . 31

---------. 20

Permeability coefficient, definition ... __ ... 20

Permeability tests, results __ .. . _ 21

Physiography of region.... _ .---.. _ . 6

Piezometric surface, definition..- __ ---.-..._ 12

Porosity, defined. ___ . _ . . . __ 19

Precipitation, annual.. __ __ ........._... 9

annual crop need. _ ... ... . _ ...... 4

average monthly...... ____ ... __ ... 18

recharge to alluvium.... .. _ . __ . __ 11

Previous investigations, Louisville area. - .. .. 47

Problem areas, need tor future study... ... _ 70

Purpose and scope of report... ------------ _ /

Quality control, ground-water supply.....__ 4

Quality of water...........__...._........ 2,83

Ashland area... ._...._........_ 41

Brandenburg area....__-_-.-......_ 52

Covington-Newport area.__.......__ 46

Louisville area.......__....__ ...._ 50,51

Quality of water Continued

Owensboro area.... 56 

Owensboro to Hawesville .. 60 

Owensboro to Spottsville. .. 65 

Wolf Creek area-- - -. .- 66

R

Radioactivity, changes in, Ohio River water.. 67,65

Ranney Construction Co., data provided 6

Recharge, artificial... . ... 72

effects.. . S6

from Ohio River,. Ashland area. 41

Louisville area 49,51

Owensboro area.... 55

from precipitation. - 9 

from surface-water infiltration... 55 

natural. . 17 

pollution by industrial waste. - 36 

rejection ....__- ... ....-- 22

seasonal..... . 18

Recommendations for future study. - --- 70 

Replacement structures, navigation dams

Ohio River.... .... . .. 5

River water, composition variances... 17 

Runoff... .--__------- . .. 9

S

Saturated thickness, definition... 17

Sediment, river-bottom, changes in amount or

character._.. - 69 

Seepage from bedrock.... ... 36

Sewage disposal.. ..__.. . 37 

Silt deposits, effect on water movement- . 22 

Skillman bottom, ground-water potential_ 61 

Specific capacity, definition 24

Stream deposits.......___________.. 6

Streams, relation to aquifers-___._____ it 

Surface water, quality, effect of floods...... 37

Surging, wells, removal of fine material...._ 31

T

Temperature, air, average annual...__.__ 17

changes in, Ohio River water....__.... 67,68

ground water, Ashland area....--------- 42

Covington-Newport area-....-__... 46

Louisville area.-..-...__....._.... 51

river water, annual range- -- 17

Test-well program, where needed------_... 31

Transmissibility, definition. .__.__.._ _ 20

tests, results...__...__.....__._ 21

U

Uniontown area, floods.------__..__...

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, test-hole logs. 

Urbanization, associated drainage problems.. 

Utilization of water..._____...___._..

Valley fill.

W 

Waste water, heated____.....__..__ 37

Water level, in wells, effects of pumping--... 25

Water problems...__.___._____._ 3,4

demand for suitable water supply..... . 4
80 INDEX

Page

Water quality. See Quality of water.

Water rights, protection... 4

Water storage, Ohio River valley 6

Water table, definition...- -- --- 11

variance of level.. - 12,17

Waterflooding. secondary oil recovery. 4,62,67

Wells, cone of depression... 25

construction Si

contamination 22

development Si

driven 24

fine material present 31 

induced infiltration.. 29 

industrial-supply . . - .... 24

location....---.---- ---- --- 30

municipal-supply 24 

observation - - - 26

Wells Continued

pumping, too closely spacel.. 28 

radial-collector_ 24

screen incrustation.... 38

specific capacities - .. 21,24 

types . 22

yields....... 24,30

Ashland area.----- ..... 40,41

Brandenburg area.. ...... 52

Co vlngton-Newport area... 45 

factors conducive to...... - .. 31

Louisville area_-. 60 

Owensboro area.._ . 55,56 

Owensboro to Hawesville....-------- 59,60

Owensboro to Spottsv'lle. 64

Wolf Creek area, need for futu'e study- 70

quality-of-water problem.... . -... 66

o