Geologic Control of Mineral 

Composition of Stream Waters 

of the Eastern Slope of the 

Southern Coast Ranges 

California

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1535-B

Geologic Control of Mineral 

Composition of Stream Waters 

of the Eastern Slope of the 

Southern Coast Ranges 

California

By G. H. DAVIS

GEOCHEMISTRY OF WATER

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1S3S-B

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1961
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

STEWART L. UDALL, Secretary

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

Thomas B. Nolan, Director

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office 

Washington 25, D.C. Price 20 cents (paper cover)
CONTENTS

	Page 

Abstract_________________-______.________-----_----_----------- B-1

Introduction______________________J_______-____--_---_-_---------- 1

Acknowledgments __________________________-___------_-----_----_- 2

Physiography and climate____________________-________--_--------_- 2

Rocks of the eastern slope of*the southern Coast Ranges___-_____-_---- 3

Geochemistry of the surface waters_--__---__----_------------------- 9

Relation of mineral content to discharge...___________________________ 10

Relation of chemical character to geology_____----_------------------- 14

Source of mineral constituents in the stream waters._________._-_------ 18

References cited.____-____________________._____--_----__---------- 23

ILLUSTRATIONS

Page 

FIGURE 1. Generalized geologic map of eastern slope of southern Coast

Ranges, Calif_-L________-____-_-__-_--_-----_---------- B-5

2. Relation of mineral content to discharge in several streams-___- 11

3. Chemical character of water from Orestimba, Los Banos, and

Little Panoche Creeks at different stages of flow.__________ 12

4. Relation of percentage of drainage basin underlain by rocks of 

Jurassic and Cretaceous age to the HCOs-SO4 ratio at low-flow 

stage of streams___-_________-_______--_--___---------- 15

5. Relation of flow per square mile to the HCO3-SO4 ratio at lowflow stage._______________________________-___-__--_-_- 16

6. Chemical character of samples from streams at low-flow stage. __ 17

TABLES

TABLE 1. Areas of generalized geologic units within stream basins.________ B-7

2. Chemical analyses of stream waters of the eastern slope of the

southern Coast Ranges___________________---_-----_-__-- 24

m

GEOCHEMISTRY OF WATER

GEOLOGIC CONTROL OF MINERAL COMPOSITION OF 

STREAM WATERS OF THE EASTERN SLOPE OF THE 

SOUTHERN COAST RANGES, CALIFORNIA

By G. H. DAVIS

ABSTRACT

Chemical analyses of waters of streams that drain the semiarid eastern slope of 

the southern Coast Ranges in California demonstrate that differences in the anion 

composition, especially in the ratio of bicarbonate to sulfate, are related chiefly 

to the lithologie character of the rocks exposed in the tributary drainage area.

Where more than half the drainage area of a typical eastern-slope stream is 

underlain by elastic marine sedimentary rocks of Jurassic and Cretaceous age, 

bicarbonate generally predominates over sulfate; the ratio of bicarbonate to 

sulfate, both expressed in equivalents per million, in samples of the streams at 

low-flow stage ranges from 0.8 to 6. Conversely, where more than half the drainage area is underlain by marine and continental deposits of Tertiary age and 

continental deposits of Quaternary age, sulfate predominates over bicarbonate, 

and the ratio of bicarbonate to sulfate in samples taken during the low-flow stage 

ranges from 0.02 to 0.7.

Organic siliceous marine shale of Tertiary age deposited in a reducing environment is probably the primary source of sulfate in the region. Secondary deposits 

of sulfate minerals, chiefly gypsum, which are abundant in the continental deposits of late Tertiary and Quaternary age, also contribute sulfate to the stream 

waters.

INTRODUCTION

Chemical analyses of waters of the streams that drain the semiarid 

eastern slope of the southern Coast Ranges of California indicate 

that, despite similarities of climate and distribution of precipitation 

in the several drainage basins, the chemical character of the stream 

waters differs greatly. Bicarbonate predominates over the other 

anions in many of the waters and sulfate predominates in other waters; 

chloride predominates only in the waters of two streams.

This paper shows that, contrary to an assumption commonly made 

for stream waters, the chemical character of the waters of typical 

streams in the southern Coast Ranges is determined less by climatic 

influences than by the lithologie character of the rocks exposed in the 

drainage basins.

Chemical analyses of samples from most of the principal streams 

and from many of the minor streams of the eastern slope of the southern Coast Ranges are presented in table 2. Determinations are given

B-l
B-2 GEOCHEMISTRY OF WATE.R

of the principal cations calcium, magnesium, and sodium and the 

principal anions bicarbonate, carbonate, sulfate, and chloride and 

for most samples of boron as well.

Silica, potassium, fluoride, nitrate, iron, and aluminum were determined also in many of the analyses. However, these constituents, 

which were generally present in relatively small concentration, and 

the pH were omitted from table 2 because they showed little relation 

to the geology of the drainage basin.

In figure 4, the analyses are compared to the percentages of different 

geologic units exposed in the respective drainage areas (table 1), 

which were determined b}^ planimeter from the "Geologic Map of 

California" (Jenkins, 1938; Kundert, 1955).

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The writer wishes to express his gratitude to his colleagues of the 

U.S. Geological Survey who have offered many helpful suggestions 

and criticisms. Special thanks are due Messrs. William Back and 

D. E. White for their constructive advice on the geochemical features. 

None of these men, however, should be held responsible for the author's 

interpretations and conclusions.

PHYSIOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE

The southern Coast Ranges comprise the coastal mountains of 

California extending from San Francisco Bay southward 250 miles 

where they are terminated by the Transverse Ranges. The southern 

Coast Ranges are characterized by longitudinal ranges rising 2,000 to 

6,000 feet above sea level, and by intervening valleys trending generally 

N. 30°-40° W. Folding and faulting control the trend of the ranges. 

The easternmost ranges, which include the area discussed in this 

report, are the Diablo Range, which extends from San Francisco Bay 

to Polonio Creek (fig. 1), and the Temblor Range, in echelon to the 

Diablo Range, which extends southward from Polonio Creek to the 

Transverse Ranges.

The topography of the Diablo and Temblor Ranges is controlled 

largely by faulting and folding in rocks of Cenozoic, Cretaceous, and 

Jurassic age. The drainage basins of the eastern slope of the ranges 

are characterized by rugged hills and steep stream gradients. Along 

the east border of the Coast Ranges the sediments dip steeply beneath 

the San Joaquin Valley, thus forming an abrupt boundary that virtually lacks transitional foothills.

Precipitation in the Coast Ranges and San Joaquin Valley generally 

decreases southward and with declining altitude in the eastern part 

of the mountains and adjoining valley areas. The average annual 

precipitation on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley ranges from
MINERAL COMPOSITION, STREAM WATERS, COAST RANGES B~3

about 5 inches at Buttonwillow near the south end of the valley to 

about 9% inches at Tracy at the north end. Precipitation in the 

mountains differs greatly with altitude. At Priest Valley (altitude 

2,400 feet) about 22 miles west of Coalinga, the average seasonal 

(October through September) precipitation is 19.56 inches, but at 

Buttonwillow (altitude 295 feet) on the floor of the San Joaquin 

Valley, the seasonal total is only 4.88 inches.

ROCKS OF THE EASTERN SLOPE OF THE SOUTHERN 

COAST RANGES

The drainage basins of the eastern slope of the southern Coast 

Ranges are underlain chiefly by sedimentary rocks ranging in age 

from Late Jurassic to Quaternary. Volcanic rocks are present, 

chiefly in the Franciscan formation of Jurassic and Cretaceous age; 

locally, ultramafic intrusive rocks, largely serpentinized, are closely 

associated with the Franciscan formation. Near the contacts of the 

intrusive rocks with the Franciscan formation, the Franciscan has 

been altered into many varieties of metamorphic rocks.

The rocks of the area may be conveniently subdivided into five 

generalized units as shown in the following table: the Franciscan formation of Jurassic and Cretaceous age, ultramafic rocks intrusive

Generalized geologic 

unit

Continental deposits 

of Tertiary and 

Quaternary age

Marine sedimentary 

rocks of Tertiary 

age

Marine sedimentary 

rocks of Cretaceous 

age

Ultramafic intrusive 

rocks

Franciscan formation

Formations and age

Older alluvium (Recent? and Pleistocene), terrace deposits (Pleistocene), Tulare formation (Pleistocene? 

and Pliocene), continental deposits of the McKittrick 

group.

San Joaquin, Etchegoin, and Jacalitos formations, 

(Pliocene); San Pablo formation, Neroly formation, 

Cierbo sandstone, Santa Margarita sandstone, Temblor formation, Reef Ridge shale, Monterey formation, and Vaqueros sandstone (Miocene); Kreyenhagen shale (Oligocene and Eocene); Domengine 

sandstone, A venal sandstone, and Tejon formation 

(Eocene); Lodo formation (Eocene and Paleocene; 

and Martinez formation (Paleocene).

Moreno shale (Paleocene? and Upper Cretaceous) and 

Panoche formation (Upper Cretaceous).

Serpentine (post-Eranciscan)

Franciscan formation (Cretaceous and Jurassic), locally 

includes small bodies of post-Franciscan ultramafic 

intrusive rocks
B-4 GEOCHEMISTRY OF WATE,B

into the Franciscan formation, marine sedimentary rocks of Cretaceous age, marine sedimentary rocks of Tertiary age, and continental deposits of late Tertiary and Quaternary age. The areal distribution of these simplified geologic units in the principal drainage 

basins is shown on figure 1 and the areas, determined by planimeter, 

are shown in table 1.

The Franciscan formation and sedimentary rocks of Cretaceous 

age predominate in the northern part of the area, but younger deposits 

underlie a greater part of the area from Panoche Creek southward. 

This distribution influences the geochemistry of the stream waters, 

determining not only the percentage composition but also the total 

mineral concentration of the waters.

The Franciscan formation consists of a heterogeneous but characteristic assemblage of shallow marine clastic, chemical, and organic 

sediments and mafic volcanic rocks. Although composed chiefly of 

sandstone, shale, and mafic volcanic rocks, it contains also minor 

amounts of chert, limestone, glaucophane schist, and actinolite schist. 

According to Taliaferro (1943, p. 123), the lower part of the Franciscan 

consists largely of arkosic sandstone, thin subordinate shale partings, 

a few basalt flows, and lenses of radiolarian chert; the upper part 

consists of the same type of sandstone, but it contains more shale 

partings, basalt flows, and lenses of chert. The bulk of the formation 

is sandstone that contains 30 to 60 percent orthoclase and plagioclase 

feldspar.

The ultramafic rocks intrusive into the Franciscan formation are 

commonly called serpentine, because they have been almost completely altered to minerals of the serpentine group. In outcrops 

where the primary textures and minerals are evident, Walker and 

Griggs (1953, p. 45) have identified peridotite, saxonite, dunite, 

Iherzolite, and pyroxenite among the parent rocks. As these rocks 

are composed chiefly of magnesium silicates, they constitute a major 

source of magnesium in the stream waters.

The Cretaceous rocks underlying the eastern slope of the southern 

Coast Ranges consist chiefly of shale and sandy shale, sandstone 

containing conglomerate members, and, locally, thin limestone beds 

most of which were referred to the Panoche formation by Anderson 

and Pack (1915, p. 39-46). According to Reed (1933, p. 98), the 

rocks of Cretaceous age are remarkably similar throughout the area. 

As in the sandstone of the Franciscan formation, the Cretaceous 

sandstone has a high proportion of feldspar. A notable exception 

to the general lithology of the rocks of Cretaceous age is the Moreno 

shale (Paleocene? in part), which is predominantly siliceous organic 

shale and partly diatomaceous. North of Coalinga it ranges in 

thickness from 1,000 to 2,000 feet and includes the uppermost Greta-
MINERAL COMPOSITION, STREAM WATERS, COAST RANGES B~5

121 °00' 120-00'

EXPLANATION

Continental deposits 

mof Quaternary and 

Tertiary age

D Marine sedimentary rocks of Tertiary age

Marine sedimentary rocks of Cretaceous

Ultramafic intrusive rocks

Franciscan formation (Cretaceous and 

Jurassic)

Sampling point 

Outline of drainage basins

KINGS.CO 

KERN CO

MONTEREY_CO

SAN'LUIS'OBISPO co

27

1 Corral Hollow Creek

2 Lonetree Creek

3 Hospital Creek

4 Ingram Creek

5 Del Puerto Creek

6 Salado Creek

7 Crow Creek

8 Orestimba Creek

9 Garzas Creek

10 Quinto Creek

11 Romero Creek

DRAINAGE BASINS

12 San Luis Creek

13 Los Banos Creek

14 Salt Creek

15 Ortigalita Creek

16 Little Panoche Creek

17 Panoche Creek

17A Silver Creek

18 Cantua Creek

19 Salt Creek

20 Domengine Creek

21 Los Gatos Creek

22 Warthan Creek

23 Jacalitos Creek

24 Zapato Creek

25 Canoas Creek

26 Avenal Creek

27 Polonio Creek

28 Bitterwater Creek

29 Media Agua Creek

30 Carneros Creek

FIGURE 1. Generalized geologic map of the eastern slope of the southern Coast Ranges, Calif. 

573502 61 2
B-6 GEOCHEMISTRY OF WATE.R

ceous strata that crop out along the east flank of the Diablo Kange. 

The Moreno shale includes clay shale of clastic origin, organic siliceous 

shale, diatomite, sandstone, and conglomerate.

Anderson and Pack (1915, p. 46), in discussing the Moreno, noted 

its typically organic character at the type section and in the area 

from Coalinga northward to Pacheco Pass near San Luis Creek, and 

concluded that the organic siliceous deposits were formed during a 

time when physical conditions were different from those prevailing 

during the rest of Cretaceous time. North of Pacheco Pass the 

Moreno comprises beds somewhat different lithologically from those 

south of the pass. Although the beds of the Moreno in the northern 

area consist of predominantly shaly materials, they contain less 

organic material, and are more like the argillaceous shale oi the 

Panoche formation. According to Anderson and Pack (1915, p. 55), 

the shale that appears to be of organic origin north of Pacheco Pass 

is predominantly carbonaceous clay shale, as distinguished from the 

typical siliceous organic shale of the Moreno to the south.

The marine sedimentary rocks of Tertiary age include deposits 

ranging in age from Paleocene to Pliocene. As compared to the 

older rocks, they are characterized by rapid changes in character 

over short distances and by a greater proportion, at least in parts 

of the section, of organic deposits. As shown in figure 1, the Tertiary 

marine sediments form a narrow discontinuous ribbon of outcrops 

flanking the east border of the Diablo Range from Little Panoche 

Creek northward. They are more widely exposed from Panoche 

Creek southward, and in the Temblor Range the total area in which 

the younger rocks crop out is greater than that of older rocks.

The marine sedimentary rocks of early Tertiary age are similar in 

many respects to the sedimentary rocks of Cretaceous age. Arkosic 

sandstone, commonly containing as much as 50 percent feldspar, and 

sandy or silty shale, commonly micaceous, make up most of the early 

Tertiary section. In parts of the area, however, distinctive organic 

siliceous sediments of the Kreyenhagen shale (Eocene and Oligocene), 

as much as 2,000 feet thick, constitute fully half the early Tertiary 

rocks. Von Estorff (1930, p. 1321-1336) reports that the Kreyenhagen, in addition to the preponderant siliceous shale, also contains 

feldspathic sandstone near the base and quartzitic sandstone interbedded with shale at higher horizons. The siliceous shale contains 

calcite, very fine quartz and feldspar grains, carbonized wood fragments, and scattered radiolarians. Remains of diatoms, not found at 

the type section south of Coalinga, are reportedly plentiful north of 

Coalinga. Foraminif eral tests make up a substantial part of the lower 

beds of the Kreyenhagen at the type locality; fish scales, mollusk 

shells, and, rarely, leaf imprints also are found.
TABLE 1. Areas l of generalized geologic units within s

Drainage 

basin 

(fig. 1)

Creek

Drainage

area (square

miles)

Area, in percen

Franciscan 

formation

Ultramaf

intrusiv

rocks

1 Corral Hollow.___ _________

2 Lonetree. __________________

3 Hospital____________________.

4 Ingram_____________________.

5 Del Puerto.___________.

6 Salado______________________.

7 Crow________________________

8 Orestimba__ ________________

9 Garzas_____________--________

10 Quinto_______________________

11 Romero______________________

12 San Luis___________-__-_____.

13 Los Banos___--_______________

14 Salt (Merced County) ___

15 Ortigalita. ___________________

16 Little Panoche________________

17 Panoche (includes Silver Creek).

17A Silver.___________________

18 Cantua______________________

19 Salt (Fresno County)_______

20 Domengine__________________.

21 Los Gatos____________________

22 Warthan.______________

23 Jacalitos _____________________

24 Zapato_____________________

25 Canoas__--__________________

26 Avenal____________.___

27 Polonio______________.

28 Bitterwater ___________.

29 Media Agua

30

59

20

33

20

69

26

21

125

51

29

22

85

132

26

60

103

298

102

48

25

11

127

110

60

47

20

45

12

95

12

15

59

69

81

69

67

5

0

74

51

35

51

67

81

26

43

41

17

2

0

0

0

0

3

34

5

0

12

0

0

0

0

i Areas and percentages based on them are approximate; determined by planlmeter from "Geologic Map of C
B-8 GEOCHEMISTRY OF WATE.R

Marked and abrupt lateral lithologic variations and a scarcity 

of megafossils have complicated the problems of mapping and correlating the Miocene sedimentary rocks of the southern Coast Ranges. 

In general the lower Miocene consists largely of clastic sediments; 

arkosic sandstone is dominant near the base, and the rocks decrease 

in average grain size and become mudstone in the upper part of the 

lower Miocene. Calcareous shale and mudstone are common in the 

lower part of the middle Miocene, and siliceous rocks become more 

common and widespread in the upper part of the middle Miocene and 

in the upper Miocene. These siliceous rocks, known in the past by 

local names, were grouped into a single unit, the Monterey formation, 

by Bramlette (1946, p. 3). The siliceous rocks locally include thick 

diatomaceous members, more widespread and generally thicker 

members of hard but not very dense silica-cemented rocks called 

porcelanite and porcelaneous shale, and larger amounts of hard, dense 

siliceous rocks classified as chert and cherty shale.

Bramlette (1946, p. 36) reports that strata which may be termed 

"bituminous shale" because of their high content of organic matter 

are common in several areas. Thin sections of dark unweathered 

siliceous rocks show many small areas of dark-brown organic matter 

either disseminated or concentrated in definite laminae. Black iron 

sulfide also has been recognized in thin sections, but it is usually less 

abundant than organic matter, although the two are likely to be 

associated.

Marine sediments commonly as much as 10,000 feet thick make up 

much of the Pliocene section in the southern Coast Ranges. The 

lower part of the Pliocene section consists chiefly of sandstone, conglomerate, and silt of the Jacalitos formation. The sand beds have 

been described by Bramlette (1934, p. 1570) as being largely of pyroclastic volcanic origin. They contain abundant fresh andesine, 

altered volcanic glass, and ferromagnesian minerals. Above the 

Jacalitos formation, the Etchegoin formation consists of sand, sandy 

silt, and some clay also rich in volcanic detritus. This unit is in turn 

overlain by the San Joaquin formation, which is generally finer 

grained than the earlier Pliocene deposits and consists of strata of 

silt and clay, generally lacking in marine fossils, alternating with 

strata of silt, sandstone, and conglomerate, commonly containing 

marine fossils.

No marine beds younger than the San Joaquin formation of late 

Pliocene age have been recognized. The youngest deposits of Pliocene 

age in the area are continental deposits in the lower part of the Tulare 

formation, which in the upper part includes sediments of probable 

Pleistocene age and exhibits no marked discontinuity of sedimentation 

(Woodring and others, 1940).
MINERAL COMPOSITION, STREAM WATERS, COAST RANGES B~9

The continental deposits of late Tertiary and Quaternary age include 

all the deposits above the youngest marine deposits of the eastern 

Coast Ranges. From Los Gatos Creek south to near Polonio Creek, 

late Pliocene marine deposits are present; therefore, the overlying 

continental deposits locally are chiefly of Quaternary age. Elsewhere 

along the flanks of the Coast Ranges, continental deposits may represent deposition during early Pliocene and even Miocene time. 

These deposits consist generally of poorly sorted silty materials enclosing lenses of poorly sorted sand and gravel. They are characterized by a high proportion of early Tertiary detritus. At Elk 

Hills the lower part of the continental sediments (Tulare formation) 

is characterized by deposits that indicate deposition under reducing 

conditions suggestive of a swampy or lacustrine environment. Elsewhere the exposed continental deposits usually indicate deposition 

under oxidizing conditions. Locally, Ijmy or marly beds are present 

in the nonmarine section, and in some areas the continental deposits 

contain much reworked gypsum and a few deposits of bedded gysum. 

Gypsum deposits found in Quaternary continental deposits have been 

described by Ver Planck (1952, p. 47-59). In most areas the gypsum 

appears to have been precipitated from lakes or swampy areas, but 

locally, deposition may have resulted from evaporation of rising ground 

water.

GEOCHEMISTRY OF THE SURFACE WATERS

The chemical quality of the surface waters of the eastern slope 

of the Coast Ranges can be closely, though not perfectly, correlated 

with the geologic units exposed in the drainage basins. Table 1 

shows the areal extent of 31 drainage basins and the percentage of 

the total area of each that is underlain by the 5 generalized rock 

units. The areas were determined by planimeter from the "Geologic 

Map of California" (Jenkins, 1938) in the area north of lat 36° N., 

and from the preliminary edition (Kundert, 1955) of the new "Geologic Map of California" in the area south of lat 36° N.

The writer recognizes that comparison of the chemistry of the 

stream waters to the areal extent of the simplified geologic units 

may involve considerable error because of lithologic differences 

within the generalized units. However, lacking detailed geologic 

maps of all the areas compared, the writer believes that this treatment gives a more uniform, less statistically biased approach than 

if detailed geologic information were used in some basins and generalized geologic units in others.

In general, sulfate is the predominant anion in runoff from terranes underlain by deposits of Tertiary and Quaternary age, and 

the water has a higher total mineral content than water from terranes
B-10 GEOCHEMISTRY OF WATE,R

underlain by Cretaceous and older rocks. The surface waters 

derived from areas underlain by rocks of Cretaceous age and by 

the Franciscan formation (Jurassic and Cretaceous) generally are 

characterized by a high proportion of bicarbonate as compared to 

sulfate. Where substantial bodies of serpentinized ultrabasic rocks 

are exposed, the stream waters are characterized by a high proportion of magnesium as compared to the other cations.

RELATION OF MINERAL CONTENT TO DISCHARGE

The waters of the streams of the eastern Coast Ranges are made 

up of varying proportions of direct runoff and ground-water discharge. 

At high flow much of the discharge consists of direct runoff, but 

at low flow the discharge consists chiefly of ground-water discharge.

Rainfall that runs off directly has relatively little opportunity 

to dissolve mineral matter, and thus to increase the slight chemical 

content of the rainwater itself. However, water that enters the 

soil and percolates to the ground-water reservoir reacts with mineral 

matter in the soil and the underlying rocks and may take much 

additional mineral matter into solution.

Many of the streams of the eastern slope of the Coast Ranges 

show a consistent relationship between discharge and the dissolvedsolids content of the water. Figure 2 shows semilogarithmic plots 

of dissolved-solids content, in parts per million (ppm), versus discharge, in cubic feet per second (cfs), for all the streams for which 

adequate analyses were available. The waters of Corral Hollow, 

Orestimba, Quinto, San Luis, and Los Banos Creeks contained less 

than about 800 ppm of dissolved solids and bicarbonate generally predominated over sulfate. The waters of Little Panoche and Panoche 

Creeks generally contained from 500 to 5,000 ppm of dissolved 

solids, and chloride and sulfate were the predominant anions, respectively.

The plots of the waters of the streams characterized by high bicarbonate (fig. 2) fell fairly close to the curve for each stream, and 

the type curves of most of the streams had about the same slope. 

The waters of Corral Hollow and Los Banos Creeks showed the 

steepest type curves; that is, the rate of decrease in concentration 

with increasing discharge was greater than for the other stream 

waters. In this connection it may be significant that these two 

streams both contain a higher percentage of sulfate at low flow than 

the other streams of the group.

The plots of the waters of Little Panoche and Panoche Creeks 

have a greater scatter and steeper slope than the bicarbonate waters. 

In general, the plots of the waters of both streams fall fairly close 

to a type curve, except for two points for each stream that repre-
MINERAL COMPOSITION, STREAM WATERS, COAST RANGES

5000

4000

< 3000

2 2000

600

200

X

EXPLANATION

Corral Hollow Creek

o 

Orestimba Creek

D

Qmnto Creek

A

San Lms Creek

 

Los Banos Creek

Little Panoche Creek

+ 

Panoche Creek

0.1 1.0 10.0 

DISCHARGE, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

1000.0

FIGURE 2. Relation of the mineral content of water to the discharge of several streams, eastern slope of

the southern Coast Ranges.

sented concentrations of dissolved solids much higher than the stage 

warranted. It is possible that these anomalous points represent 

errors in estimates of discharge; however, it is more likely that the 

waters were atypical initial flows sampled at the beginning of a 

period of increased flow when the water was enriched by solution 

of salts precipitated in the streambed during a previous period of
B-12 GEOCHEMISTRY OF WATER

low flow and extensive precipitation of salts by evaporation. Because all the other points for both streams plot fairly close to a straight 

line on the semilogarithmetic graph, the type curves were drawn 

without reference to the anomalous points described above.

The water analyses used to show the relationship between discharge and concentration (fig. 2) may be used also to illustrate the 

relationship between discharge and chemical character of the stream 

waters. Figure 3 is a geochemical graph that illustrates the chemical 

character of the waters of three typical streams, Orestimba, Los 

Banos, and Little Panoche Creeks, at various stages of flow. On 

these graphs are plotted the percentage of total equivalents per 

million (percentage reacting values) of the principal constituents 

of the water; the cations are in the lower left triangle and the anions 

are in the lower right triangle. The single-point plots in the diamond 

field indicate the general chemical character of the waters. The 

diagram is one utilized and described by Piper (1945).

EXPLANATION

Orestimba Creek

Los Banos Creek

Little Panoche Creek

Ca *° 

CATIONS

Cl 

ANIONS

PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL EQUIVALENTS PER MILLION

FIGCTEE 3. Chemical character of water from Orestimba, Los Banos, and Little Panoche Creeks at different stages of flow. See also table on following page.
MINERAL COMPOSITION, STREAM WATERS, COAST RANGES B~13

Sample Date

Dissolved 

solids (ppm)

Discharge

(cfs)

ORESTIMBA CREEK

1

2

3

4

5

6

4-21-54

1-27-53

1- 7-52

1-30-52

1-26-56

12-31-55

609

449

363

286

195

174

0.58

4. 2

11.0

82.0

800.0

253. 0

LOS BANGS CREEK

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

4-20-54

4-11-56

1-30-53

5- 3-55

1-30-52

1- 8-52

3-20-52

12-31-55

583

455

335

327

244

204

164

128

0. 72

. 5

3.5

20.0

6.0

8.0

450.0

LITTLE PANOCHE CREEK

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

4-10-56

1-27-54

5-22-30

2- 9-52

1- 7-52

3-19-52

1-26-56

3,020

3, 820

3, 790

2, 4SO

1, 170

541

422

1.0

. 81

.02

2

2'. o

6.0

30.0

The streams for which adequate analyses and discharge measurements of representative flows are available indicate significant changes 

in character as well as concentration with changes in flow. In most 

of the waters, as the discharge increases the percentage reacting values 

of bicarbonate and carbonate increase and those of sulfate and chloride decrease. This trend implies that the ground-water contribution 

to the streamflow has a higher sulfate and chloride content than the 

contributions of direct runoff. Generally, these systematic changes 

are more pronounced in the anion composition, but in some streams 

the cation composition also shows marked changes in proportion. 

Particularly good examples are the plots for Little Panoche Creek, in 

which increases in flow result in an increase in the proportion of bicarbonate and a relatively large decrease in the proportion of chloride 

and, among the cations, a relative increase in calcium and a large 

relative decrease in sodium.

573502 61 3
B-14 GEOCHEMISTRY OF WATE,R

RELATION OF CHEMICAL CHARACTER TO GEOLOGY

As described earlier, the streams contain a greater proportion of 

ground water at low flow than at high flow. The ground water reacts 

chemically with the rock minerals and is thereby altered in chemical 

character when it percolates through the ground. Hence, ground 

water is more influenced by the mineral content of the rocks than is 

water that runs off directly to the streams. Therefore, analyses of 

the water at low flow, as available, were used to illustrate the relation 

of chemical character of the stream waters to the geology of tributary drainage basins.

Table 1 lists the main streams along the east flank of the Coast 

Ranges and the percentage of the respective drainage areas underlain 

by the generalized geologic units in each basin. Figure 4, a semilogarithmic plot of 22 stream waters for which low-flow analyses are available, shows the relationship of the percentage of the respective drainage basins underlain by rocks of Jurassic and Cretaceous age to the 

ratio of bicarbonate (HCO3) to sulfate (SO4) in the waters of the 

streams.

The term "low flow" as used herein is arbitrarily defined as flow of 

less than 0.15 cfs per square mile of tributary drainage basin. Thus, 

the 22 plots of figures 4 and 6 include analyses from all streams sampled at flows below this limit. Where several samples were available in the low-flow range, the most concentrated sample was used in 

figures 4 and 6. Of the 22 plots, 19 are supported by discharge records; 

3 are inferred to represent low flows: Salt Creek (Merced County) 

and Domengine Creek because of their high concentration, and Quinto 

Creek because the next most concentrated sample nearly qualified as 

representing the low-flow stage. The 8 streams of table 1 that are not 

shown on figure 4 were omitted for the following reasons: Salado, Crow, 

and Ortigalita Creeks because no analyses were available; Jacalitos 

Creek because the sample was taken downstream from the Jacalitos 

oil field and therefore was probably contaminated by waste water; 

and Lonetree, Hospital, Ingram, and Garzas Creeks because the lowest 

flows sampled all exceeded 0.25 cfs per square mile.

On figure 5 the HCO3-SO4 ratios of the samples of figure 4 have been 

plotted against the yield of the drainage basins in cubic feet per 

second per square mile. Most of the points lie along the baseline 

indicating yields of less than 0.01 cfs per square mile; a few other 

points are scattered in random fashion. The graph indicates that 

the HCO3-SO4 ratio is virtually independent of the yield of the drainage 

basin.
Q

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

Domengine,

i i i i 

Salt 

(Merced_County)

x

xfPanoche

i l I i l 

0.01 0.1 

HC03 : S04 , IN EQUIVALENTS PER M

FIGUKE 4. Relation of percentage of drainage basin underlain by rocks of Jurassic and Cretaceous age 

stage, eastern slope of the southern Coast Ran
B-16

0.14

0.13

3 0.12

GEOCHEMISTRY OF WATER

0-0.10

a:

£ 0.09

| 0.08 

^ 0.07

OL

°~ 0.06

^ 0.05 

o

§0.04

-. 0.03

q

c! 0.02

0.01

0

] I I I 1 1 1 1

Bitterwater ciivf,,

i l i ,11 i i i

1 ! i ! 1 II 1

Corral Hollow

0 Potonio

Media Agua

Carneros

Zapato^ 

4 Cantua*

Salt (Fresno County)

-Warthan Little Panoche* 

 p'noche, , , , Av?nf'T

: ; 1*11111 Romero

Del Puerto

San Luls

-Los Gatos^Los Banos 

Orestimba i i i i i i i t

0.01 0.1 1.0 10.0

HC03 : S04 , IN EQUIVALENTS PER MILLION

FIGURE 6. Relation of flow per square mile to the HCOs-SOi ratio in samples from streams at low-flow 

stage, eastern slope of the southern Coast Ranges. See also table below.

Area 

on fig. 1

1

5

8

10

11

12

13

14

16

17

17A

18

19

90

21

22

24

26

27

28

29

30

Creek

Quinto ____ __ __

San Luis _ ______

Salt (Merced County). _ _

Panoche. _ _ ___ _______

Silver, _ _ ___ ____

A venal _ ___ ___ ___

Bitterwater ___ ____

Media Agua ___ _ _

Date 

sampled

2-4-56

1-7-52

4-21-54

1-7-52

1-23-52

4-21-54

4-20-54

3-20-52

1-27-54

1-27-54

9-9-31

5-2-55

1-21-52

3-19-52

1-28-53

1-28-53

1-26-54

1-26-54

1-25-52

1-25-52

1-25-52

1-25-52

Disolved 

solids (ppm)

720

580

609

635

410

468

583

5,600

3,820

5,250

9,000

1,250

2, 700

2,500

1,510

3,280

328

306

540

3,200

1,600

1,900

Discharge

(cfs)

7.0

4.0

. 58

3.0

4.2

.72

.81

1. 13

.03

1. 13

. 5

.7

. 5

1. 23

. 22

. 8

. 2

. 5

. 5

Figure 6, a geochemical graph similar to figure 3, shows the chemical 

character of typical samples from 22 streams at low-flow stage along 

the eastern flank of the Coast Ranges. In the diamond part of the 

graph, boxes outline the plots of waters derived from drainage basins 

in which more than and less than 50 percent of the basins are underlain by rocks of Jurassic and Cretaceous age. The plots of three
MINERAL COMPOSITION, STREAM WATERS, COAST RANGES B~17

waters strongly affected by contributions of saline marine connate 

water, as discussed later, are outlined by a separate box.

The relationship between the areal extent of the rocks of Jurassic 

and Cretaceous age and the HCO3 -SO4 ratio is evident from the plots 

on figure 4. Of the 22 samples, 12 (55 percent) lie within the 10- 

percent-deviation envelope, and 18 (about 80 percent) lie within 

the 20-percent-deviation envelope. All waters in which the HCO3- 

SO4 ratio is greater than 1.0 that is, HCO3 exceeds SO4 are from 

drainage basins in which more than 84 percent of the area is underlain by Jurassic and Cretaceous rocks. Conversely, waters in which 

the HCO3-SO4 ratio is less than 1.0 are from basins where less than 

81 percent of the area is underlain by the Jurassic and Cretaceous 

rocks.

The waters of Little Panoche Creek and Salt Creek (Merced 

County) are unique in that sodium and chloride are the predominant 

cation and anion, respectively (fig. 6). The general geology of the 

tributary drainage areas does not differ greatly from that of nearby

More than 50 percent of, drainage 

area underlain by Franciscan 

formation or rocks of Cretaceous age

.ess than 50 percent of drainage 

area underlain by Franciscan 

formation or rocks of Cretaceous age

Water strongly 

affected by 

connate marine 

contributions

CATIONS

Cl <§> 

AN IONS

PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL EQUIVALENTS PER MILLION

FIGVBB 6. Chamica] character of samples from streams at low-flow stage, eastern slope of the southern

Coast Ranges.
B-18 GEOCHEMISTRY OF WATE,B

basins, as indicated by table 1 and figure 1. Therefore, the source 

of the sodium chloride evidently is unique to these two basins. In 

this connection, the comparatively high boron content of the water 

of Little Panoche Creek (table 2), which ranges from 1.4 to 19 ppm, 

probably is significant. A marked similarity in chemical character 

exists between the waters of Little Panoche Creek and Mercy Hot 

Springs (Eaton, 1935, p. 61), a thermal spring in the drainage area 

that discharges a water with a high chloride and boron content; 

this fact may indicate a common source. The waters of Salt Creek 

(Merced County) likewise carry considerable boron, 25 parts of a 

total 5,600 ppm of dissolved solids (table 2), suggesting a similar 

source of the mineral content. In waters of several other streams, 

notably Salt Creek (Fresno County) but also Komero, Quinto, Los 

Banos, and Polonio Creeks, chloride makes up more than 30 percent 

of the total equivalent anions per million at low-flow stage (fig. 6). 

The ratio of boron to chloride in these stream waters corresponds 

generally to the boron-chloride ratio in Little Panoche Creek and 

Salt Creek (Merced County), suggesting that boron and chloride 

have a common source in all the streams. White (1957, p. 1674) 

considers the water of Mercy Springs to be connate, in part, but 

rather extensively diluted by meteoric water. A similar explanation 

seems quite appropriate for the other stream waters with a high boron 

and chloride content (p. B-22), this report).

The chief systematic differences in cation content are those related 

to the relative amount of magnesium. In the low-flow waters of Del 

Puerto, Orestimba, Cantua, and Los Gatos Creeks magnesium characteristically makes up more than 40 percent of the total equivalent 

cations per million. As shown on figure 1, ultrabasic intrusive rocks 

crop out in the drainage basins of all streams, ranging from about 2 

percent of the area of the drainage basin of Orestimba Creek to about 

13 percent in the basin of Cantua Creek (table 1).

Aside from the effect of ultrabasic rocks mentioned above, few 

systematic differences were found in the proportion of cations in the 

stream waters of the eastern slope of the Coast Ranges. Sodium 

slightly exceeds calcium or magnesium in most waters, although in 

the waters of Bitterwater and Media Agua Creeks calcium exceeds 

the other cations.

SOURCE OF MINERAL CONSTITUENTS IN THE 

STREAM WATERS

It has been shown that the relative amount of the mineral constituents in the stream waters along the eastern slope of the southern 

Coast Ranges is related to the distribution of geologic units in the 

drainage basins of the streams. The classification of these units, of
MINERAL COMPOSITION, STREAM WATERS, COAST RANGES B~19

necessity, is based chiefly on age and depositional environment of the 

sediments for example, continental deposits of late Tertiary and 

Quaternary age. However, the differences in chemical character are 

directly related to the lithologic features of the rocks, which, in turn, 

are related chiefly to their source rocks and to the environment in 

which they were deposited.

The constituents ordinarily reported in chemical analyses of waters 

.are the common cations calcium, magnesium, sodium, and potassium and the common anions carbonate, bicarbonate, sulfate, and 

chloride and, in more comprehensive analyses, nitrate, silica, boron, 

and fluoride. The cations and silica are abundant in the minerals of 

the sedimentary rocks. Moreover, calcium carbonate precipitated 

from sea water is a common cementing material in marine sediments. 

Calcium in the form of gypsum is abundant in many of the sediments 

of the area, especially the continental deposits of late Tertiary and 

 Quaternary age, presumably as a precipitate from ground or surface 

waters of an earlier time (p.B-9). The anions in the stream water, 

however, are not important constituents of igneous rocks but are 

derived from the atmosphere and the ocean, and where present in 

sedimentary rocks presumably were derived originally from those 

sources. The probable sources of some of the constituents of the 

stream waters are indicated in the following paragraphs.

Calcium is the most common of the alkaline-earth metals in most 

natural water. Rankama and Sahama (1950, p. 462) have calculated 

that in igneous rocks approximately half the calcium occurs in minerals of the pyroxene and amphibole groups and about half in minerals 

of the plagioclase feldspar group. As most of the sediments of the 

southern Coast Ranges are composed largely of only slightly altered 

arkosic materials (p. B-3-9), an abundant source of calcium is present 

in the feldspar and in the pyroxene and amphibole minerals, common 

constituents of most igneous rocks.

Magnesium is most abundant in the mafic silicate minerals in 

igneous rocks, characteristically in combination with iron. Locally 

it occurs abundantly in the ultramafic intrusive rocks (p. B-17), which 

are made up largely of olivine (magnesium iron silicate) and enstatite 

(magnesium silicate).

Sodium and potassium are the only alkali metals common in most 

natural water. In igneous rocks, sodium occurs chiefly in plagioclase 

feldspar; potassium occurs in microcline and orthoclase feldspar and 

in minerals of the mica group. In addition, sodium commonly is 

present in marine sediments in connate water, of which sodium is the 

principal cation. Potassium normally is found in stream waters only 

in small quantities, ranging from about 1 to 20 ppm, and for that 

reason has been omitted from table 2.
B-20 GEOCHEMISTRY OF WATEjR

The cations in the stream waters of the southern Coast Ranges do 

not occur in the same relative amounts as in igneous rocks or even 

roughly in the relative amounts observed in average river waters 

(Rankama and Sahama, 1950, table 6, 7, p. 274), in which calcium 

predominates over all the other cations. Instead, as shown on 

figure 6, most of the waters of the area are characterized by a generally intermediate cation composition, in which the alkaline earths 

calcium and magnesium together slightly exceed sodium and potassium. Magnesium exceeds calcium in most of the stream waters, 

and in the waters of Del Puerto, Orestimba, Cantua, and Los Gatos 

Creeks makes up more than 40 percent of the cations. Ultramafie 

intrusive rocks are exposed in the drainage areas of all four streams 

(see fig. 1 and table 1).

The waters with a relatively high magnesium content may be 

readily explained by the presence of ultramafic intrusive rocks in 

many of the drainage basins and by the abundance of basic igneous, 

rocks in the Franciscan formation of Jurassic and Cretaceous age.. 

The relative impoverishment of calcium in the stream waters of the 

area is difficult to account for because abundant sources of calcium 

are present in the drainage areas of most of the streams. Only in 

the waters of Bitterwater and Media Agua Creeks, which wereamong the most concentrated waters shown on figure 6, did calcium 

predominate strongly over the other cations. The outstanding 

feature of the distribution of geologic units in these drainage basins 

is the large proportion of the area underlain by rocks of late Tertiary 

and Quaternary age, suggesting a possible causal relationship. The 

gypsiferous sediments present in the continental deposits of this unit 

may supply sufficient calcium to the streams to obscure the characteristic composition of the waters of the region in which sodium and 

magnesium ordinarily would predominate.

Of the anions, bicarbonate and carbonate are among the most 

abundant constituents of natural waters. In normal stream watersmost of the carbon is in the form of bicarbonate (HCO3), although 

at high pH values carbonate may be present. Meteoric waters contain the typical gases of the atmosphere in solution, principally 

nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide. Upon entering the soil, they 

first incorporate soluble constituents from the soil. Additional cabbon dioxide is derived from organic substances in which it is fixed by 

bacteria. The ground water, thus charged with carbon dioxide, is a 

powerful weathering agent, able to break up nearly all minerals and 

form new compounds. It is especially effective in dissolving calcium 

carbonate, an important constituent of most marine sediments. The 

soil and ground waters eventually carry off much of the dissolved 

mineral matter to streams. The relation of the carbonates to sulfate
MINE.RAL COMPOSITION, STREAM WATERS, COAST RANIGES B~21

in the waters of the east flank of the Coast Ranges is of particular 

geochemical interest because of the control exercised by the lithologic 

over the chemical character of the waters.

During weathering, sulfide minerals are oxidized to sulfates. Sulfate also is dissolved during the decomposition of minerals containing 

sulfate ions. Although much sulfate is reprecipitated as poorly soluble 

compounds, such as gypsum, much is carried off in stream waters.

In the stream waters of the east flank of the southern Coast Ranges 

sulfate is the principal anion constituent of water derived chiefly from 

rocks of Tertiary and Quaternary age. It would appear that these 

rocks generally contain more readily available sulfur compounds than 

 do the rocks of Cretaceous and Jurassic age. The most notable 

differences between these major groupings is in the presence of organic 

shale sediments. In the rocks of Jurassic and Cretaceous age only 

the Moreno shale (of Late Cretaceous age in part) is known to be 

predominantly organic (p. B-4), and even this unit is predominantly 

sandy where exposed north of Ortigalita Creek, as indicated by 

Anderson and Pack (1915, p. 46-48) and Stewart, Poponoe, and 

Snavely (1944). In most of the area of this report, highly organic 

shale makes up only a small percentage of the total thickness of the 

rocks of Jurassic and Cretaceous age, but locally organic shale composes perhaps as much as a third of the rocks of Tertiary and 

Quaternary age.

In contrast, the marine sediments of Tertiary age are characterized 

by thick units of organic, siliceous, commonly diatomaceous shale, 

as, for example, the Kreyenhagen shale of Eocene and Oligocene age 

(p. B-6) and the Monterey formation of Miocene age (p. B-8). Moreover, the nonmarine deposits of late Tertiary and Quaternary age 

commonly contain much reworked gypsum and locally some deposits 

of bedded gypsum.

The organic marine shales are herein considered to be the primary 

source of sulfate in the area, supplying that sulfate found in solution 

in the stream waters and also that in the gypsum of younger nonmarine 

deposits.

The occurrence of sulfur compounds in shale and organic sediments 

often has been observed. Clark (1924) reported that the amount 

of sulfur removed from sea water by deposition was 2,600 grams 

per ton of shale as compared to 1,100 grams per ton of limestone and 

only 300 grams per ton of sandstone. Sulfate in sea water is reduced 

to hydrogen sulfide, probably largely by the action of bacteria in 

closed basins that have shallow outlets to the sea, in which lack of 

circulation results in a loss of oxygen. Under such conditions, mud 

rich in organic remains is deposited in stagnant water, and the presence
B-22 GEOCHEMISTRY OF WATEjR

of hydrogen sulfide causes the precipitation of sulfides of iron and 

other metals in the bottom sediments.

In a study of early diagenesis of Recent marine sediments from 

California basins, Emery and Rittenhouse (1952, p. 789) reported 

that sulfate had disappeared from water in cores taken from the sea 

floor within 87 inches below the surface. The sulfate reduction results in the formation of hydrogen sulfide and sedimentary iron 

sulfides. Grains of pyrite found as casts in shells of Foraminifera 

and Radiolaria and in tests of diatoms confirm the relation between 

organic remains and sulfate reduction.

Bramlette (1946, p. 36), in his comprehensive study of the Monterey 

formation, reported the presence of black iron sulfide in association 

with organic matter in dark shale and explained the dark color 

as being due to the presence of these two materials. Further evidence 

of sulfur compounds in the Monterey formation is the presence 

of jarosite (hydros sulfate of potassium and ferric iron) coatings and 

gypsum (hydrous calcium sulfate) in weathered mudstone and of 

gypsum crystals in weathered outcrops of bentonite (Bramlette, 

1946, p. 19, 26, respectively). Briggs (1951, p. 902) also noted the 

abundance of jarosite in exposures of Tertiary rocks along the western 

border of the San Joaquin Valley near Ortigalita Creek.

Chloride is a lesser anion of most of the stream waters of the area 

but is the predominant anion in Little Panoche Creek and Salt Creek 

(Merced County) at low-flow stage. It is also a substantial constituent of Salt Creek (Fresno County) and several other streams 

during low flow (fig. 6). Because of the abundance of marine sediments in the drainage basins of the eastern slope of the Coast Ranges, 

it is presumed that connate water trapped in marine sediments is 

the principal source of the chloride in the stream waters. However, 

simple weathering of the rocks cannot account for the high chloride 

content of streams like Little Panoche Creek and Salt Creek (Merced 

County). In fact, the geology of these two basins is substantially different despite the similarity of the waters. A more rational explanation 

would be that saline marine waters trapped in the sediments since 

deposition are being flushed out in areas where faults or other fractures permit easy access of the formation waters to the land surface.

In summary, the distribution of anions in the stream waters is 

consistent with the geologic features of the area. Where the clastic, 

typically arkose sediments of Cretaceous and Jurassic age underlie 

most of the drainage area the stream waters contain bicarbonate 

as the predominant anion. Conversely, where organic sediments, 

chiefly of Teritary age, or continental deposits derived from these 

organic sediments underlie most of the drainage area, sulfate generally 

predominates in the stream waters. The only radical departure
MINERAL COMPOSITION, STREAM WATERS, COAST RANGES B~2&

from this pattern is found in the high-chloride waters of several 

streams, which have been described (p. B-22) as connate marine waterspossibly discharged from springs.

REFERENCES CITED

Anderson, Robert, and Pack, R. W., 1915, Geology and oil resources of the west, 

border of the San Joaquin Valley north of Coalinga, Calif.: U.S. Geol. Survey Bull. 603, 220 p.

Bramlette, M. N,, 1934, Heavy mineral studies on correlation of sands at Kettleman Hills, California: Am. Assoc. Petroleum Geologists Bull., v. 18, p 1559- 

1576.

 1946, The Monterey formation of California and the origin of its siliceous rocks: U.S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 212, 57 p.

Briggs, L. I., Jr., 1951, Jarosite from the California Tertiary: Am. Mineralogist,, 

v. 36, p. 902-906.

Clarke, F. W., 1924, The data of geochemistry: U.S. Geol. Survey Bull. 770, 

841 p.

Eaton, F. M., 1935, Boron in soils and irrigation waters and its effpct on plants, 

with particular reference to the San Joaquin Valley of California: U.S. Dept~ 

Agriculture Tech. Bull. 448, 131 p.

Emery, K. O., and Rittenberg, S. C., 1952, Early diagenesis of California basin 

sediments in relation to origin of oil: Am. Assoc. Petroleum Geologists Bull.,, 

v. 36, no. 5, p. 735-806.

Jenkins, O. P., 1938, Geologic map of California: California Dept. Nat. Resources,. 

Div, Mines.

Kundert, C. J., 1955, Geologic map of California: California Dept. Nat. Resources, Div. Mines.

Piper, A. M., 1945, A graphic procedure in the geochemical interpretation of 

water analyses: Am. Geophys. Union Trans. 25th Ann. Mtg., pt. 6, p. 914- 

928.

Rankama, Kalervo, and Sahama, T. G., 1950, Geochemistry: Chicago Univ. 

Press, 912 p.

Reed, R. D., 1933, Geology of California: Am. Assoc. Petroleum Geologists,. 

328 p.

Stewart, Ralph, Poponoe, W. P., and Snavely, P. J., Jr., 1944, Tertiary and lateUpper Cretaceous stratigraphy of west border of San Joaquin Valley, north 

of Panoche Creek, Fresno, Merced, and Stanislaus Counties, California: 

U.S. Geol. Survey Oil and Gas Inv. Prelim. Chart 6.

Taliaferro, N. L., 1943, Geologic history and structure of the Central Coast. 

Ranges of Calfornia: California Dept. Nat. Resources, Div. Mines BulL 

118, p. 119-163.

Ver Planck, W. E., Jr., 1952, Gypsum in California: California Dept. Nat. Resources, Div. Bull. 163, 151 p.

Von Estorff, F. E., 1930, Kreyhagen shale at type locality, Fresno County, California: Am Assoc. Petroleum Geologists Bull., v. 14, p. 1321-1336.

Walker, G. W., and Griggs, A. B., 1953, Chromite deposits of the southern Coast. 

Ranges of California: California Dept. Nat. Resources, Div. Mines Bull. 

134, pt. 2, chap. 2, p. 39-88.

White, D. E., 1957, Magmatic, connate, and metamorphic waters: Geol. Soc~ 

America Bull., v. 68, no. 12, p. 1659-1682.

Woodring, W. P., Stewart, Ralph, and Richards, R. W., 1940 Geology of theKettleman Hills oil field, California; stratigraphy, paleontology, and structure: U.S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 195.
TABLE 2. Chemical analyses of stream waters of the eastern slope of 

Sampling point

Flow 

(cfs)

Date 

sampled

Dissolved 

solids 

(ppm)

Parts per million (up

number

Calcium 

(Ca)

Magnesium 

(Mg)

S

Corral Hollow Creek

SEJ^NEJi sec. 24, T. 3 S., R. 4 E_ ...................

NEJiNTWJi sec. 19, T. 3 S., E. 5 E.... .... .......

Sec. 25, T. 3 S., R. 5 E..... .-. -_ ............_

NEJiNWJf sec. 19, T. 3 S., R. 5 E... ....-._.__._....-.-..

14

100

200

7

12-28-55

1-25-56

1-27-56

2- 4-56

659

335

265

720

77

3.84 

45

2.25 

33

1.65 

83

4.14

26

2.13 

14

1.14 

13

1.07 

29

2.35

Lonetree Creek

Sec. 1, T. 4 S., R. 5 E.. .-...-...._. _.....____ _. __ 40 1-27-56 484 52

2.59

25

2.03

Hospital Creek

Sec. 25, T. 4 S., R. 5 E.......... ....... ....... .......... _ 50

1-27-56 309 39

1.95

18

1.51

Ingram Creek

NWJ^SWJisec. 5, T. 4 S., R. 6 E__. ...................... 24 1-27-56 396 33

1.65

21

1.70

Del Puerto Creek

NEJ^SEJi sec. 15, T. 5 S., R. 7 E.... .... -.............

SWJ^NWJi sec. 21, T. 5 S., R. 7 E. .......................

Sec. 31. T. 4 8., R. 8 E........ ..........................

4

21.6

ion

1- 7-52

12-29-55

1-25-56

580

512

314

29

1.45 

34

1.70 

24

1.20

91

7.48 

72

5.91

A R

3.70
MINERAL COMPOSITION, STREAM WATERS, COAST RANGES B~25

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2. Chemical analyses of stream vdaters of the eastern slope of the sou

Sampling point

Flow 

(cfs)

Date 

sampled

Dissolved 

solids 

(ppm)

Parts per million (up

numbe

Calcium 

(Oa)

Magnesium 

(Mg)

S

San Luis Creek

NEMSEJ4 sec. 15, T. 10 8., R. 8 E-.... 

SW}<SWMsec. 32, T. 9 S., R. 9 E. .

SEJiSEKsec. 31, T. 10 S., R. 8 E. ........ 

SEJiSEK sec. 15, T. 10 S., R. 8 E... _ 

SEJ^NEJi sec. 15, T. 10 S., R. 8 E.. _ . 

SE^SEJi sec. 31, T. 9 &., R. 9 E.. __ _

SEJ^SEK sec. 15, T. 10 8., R. 8 E. . -

25

3

4.2

250

3

1- 7-52

1-30-52

3-20-52

1- 27-53

4- 21-54

12-31-55

4- 11-56

267

283

181

293

468

122

342

28

1.40

28

1.40 

22

1.10 

32

1.60 

56

2.79 

14

.70 

36

1.81

16

1.32

20

1.64 

12

.99 

17

1.40 

25

2.06 

7.1

.58 

21

1.69

Los Banos Creek

NEJiNEJi sec. 7, T. 11 S., R. 10 E...... 

NEJ^NEJi sec. 7, T. 11 S., R. 10 E... 

NWJ^SWJi sec. 5, T. 11 8., R. 10 E .

SEJiSWM sec. 32, T. 10 8., R. 10 E...... ...... .... .

SEJiNEK sec. 12, T. 11 8., R. 9 E. _ 

SEJiNEK sec. 12, T. 11 S., R. 9 E...... ...................

SEJ^SWJi sec. 32, T. 10 S., R. 10 E...... ............... _

NWMSWJ^sec. 5, T. 11 8., R. 10 E.. ...._._ ........

6

20

8

.72

3.55

450

0.5

1-8-52

1-30-52

3-20-52

1-30-53

4-20-54

5-3-55

12-31-55

4-11-56

204

244

164

335

583

327

128

455

22

1.10 

27

1.35 

22

1.10 

40

2.00 

52

2.59 

43

2.15 

17

0.85 

56

2.81

14

1.15 

19

1.56 

12

.99 

23

1.89 

34

2.80 

24

1.98 

8.2

.67 

32

2.63
MINERAL COMPOSITION, STREAM WATERS, COAST RANGES B~27

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TABLE 2. Chemical analyses of stream waters of the eastern slope of the sou

Sampling point

Flow 

(cfs)

Date 

sampled

Dissolved 

solids 

(ppm)

Parts per million (up

numbe

Calcium 

(Ca)

Magnesium 

(Mg)

S

Silver Creek

NWJi sec. 32, T. 15 S., B. 12 E..~ ~~ . .. 

NWJi sec. 32, T. 15 S., B. 12 E.... __ _ __ 

SWJiSEJi sec. 20, T. 15 S., B. 12 E. . ... .

SWJiSEJi sec. 20, T. 15 S., B. 12 E... _ .. ... ... _ .

0.03 

.03 

4 

2

5-22-30 

9- 9-31 

3-19-52

1-28-53

6,970 

9,000 

1,820 

5,, 010

391 

19.51 

397 

19.83 

146 

7.29 

227 

11.33

515 

42.37 

494 

40.66 

135 

11.10 

397 

32.65

Cantua Creek 

SEKSEM sec. 34, T. 17 S., B. 14 E. ...... .. ..-.. .

SEMSEJ^sec. 34, T. 17 S., B. 14 E- .-. 

NWJiNWJi sec. 31, T. 17 S., K. 15 E....... .- ...-

NWMNWM sec. 31, T. 17 S., B. 15 E._. _ . __ ..........

1.13 

40 

100

1-26-54 

5- 2-55 

1-25-56 

3-17-58

957 

1,250 

286

772

79 

3.94 

103 

5.14 

26 

1.30 

55 

2.74

121 

9.95 

121 

9.94 

33 

2.74 

87 

7.18

Salt Creek (Fresno County)

Sec. 6, T. 18 S., B. 15 E...... .. .-...-. - 0.5 1-21-52 2,700 140 

6.99

100 

8.22

Domengine Creek

Sec. 23, T. 18 S., B. 15 E... ..............-....... . ...

Sec. 23, T. 18 S., B. 15 E.. ...... _ _ _ ... . ..... 5

3-19-52 

1-25-66

2,500 

1,430

370 

18.46 

137 

6.84

63 

5.18 

41 

3.36
MINERAL COMPOSITION, STREAM WATERS, COA&T RANGES B~29

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Cracalitos 

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B........... SWH R.16 T31, 20 S.sec. .................. R. 8., SEJiNEJ^ T. 2118 E........... 14, sec. ..... 

T. RES., 32,21 15Sec. ... .... ... 

M

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R. E............. SEJi., 16 27T.1sec. ,. . - 

R. E.............. SEJiNWJi T. S.,16217 sec. ........ 

R. E..... SEJ^NWJi S.,T. 21167, sec. .......... .
TABLE 2. Chemical analyses of stream waters of the eastern slope of the sout

Sampling point

Flow 

(cfs)

Date 

sampled

Dissolved 

solids 

(ppm)

Parts per million (upp

number) 

Calcium 

(Oa)

Magnesium 

(Mg)

So

(N

A venal Creek

NWMSWM sec. 10, T. 24 S., R. 17 B ......-_ _. 

NW^sec. 14, T. 24 S., R. 17 E. .............. .._ __.

18 

.22

1-28-52

1-26-64

530 

306

52 

2.60 

31 

1.55

38 

3.12 

21 

1.73

Polemic Creek 

Sec. 30, T. 25 S., R. 17 E... ____ . . . __ 0.8 1-25-52 540 50 

2.50

20 

1.64

Bitterwater Creek 

NEM sec. 13, T. 27 S., R. 18 E._.-...... ._ ... . 0.2 1-25-52 3,200 500 

24.95

64 

5.26

Media Agua Creek 

NEMsec. 11, T. 28 S., R. 19 E.. ... .... __ __ - <0.5

1-25-52 1,600 210 

10.48

52 

4.28

Carneros Creek

Sec. 29, T. 28 S., R. 20 E... ............ _ __.-... _. _.- <0.5 1-25-52 1,900 200 

9.98

81 

6.66