U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

Scientific Investigations Map 3132

Prepared in cooperation with the

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

Hydrogeologic and Geospatial Data for the Assessment 

of Focused Recharge to the Carbonate-Rock Aquifer in 

Genesee County, New York
Cover.  Sinkhole located near Quinlan Road in southeastern Genesee County, New York. Photograph on the left shows water entering

the sinkhole during the fall. Photograph on the right shows the same sinkhole in the spring when the water level rose during snowmelt

runoff, then froze and was followed by water draining into the sink and the subsequent collapse of the ice sheet. Photographs from

Richards, P.L., Libby, Jill, Kuhl, Alex, Daniluk, T.L., and Lyzwa, Mike, 2010, Prediction of areas sensitive to the fertilizer application in

thinly-soiled karst—final report: Brockport, NY, State University of New York at Brockport, 27 p. (courtesy of Dr. Richards).
Hydrogeologic and Geospatial Data for 

the Assessment of Focused Recharge to 

the Carbonate-Rock Aquifer in Genesee 

County, New York

By James E. Reddy and William M. Kappel 

Prepared in cooperation with the 

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

Scientific Investigations Map 3132

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey
U.S. Department of the Interior

KEN SALAZAR, Secretary

U.S. Geological Survey

Suzette M. Kimball, Acting Director

U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2010

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reproduce any copyrighted materials contained within this report.

Suggested citation:

Reddy, J.E., and Kappel, W.M., 2010, Compilation of existing hydrogeologic and geospatial data for the assessment 

of focused recharge to the carbonate-rock aquifer in Genesee County, New York: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific 

Investigations Map 3132, 17 p., 20 sheets, at http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/.
iii

Contents

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

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

Purpose and Scope ..............................................................................................................................2

Limitations of this Report.....................................................................................................................2

Sources of Data and Methods.....................................................................................................................2

Hydrogeologic Information ................................................................................................................5

Geographic Information System (GIS) Data.....................................................................................5

Karst Features Inventory ....................................................................................................................5

Bedrock and Water-Table Data Development and Surfaces Modeling......................................6

Agricultural Land and Shallow Soils Data Development ...............................................................6

Interpretation of Derived Datasets .............................................................................................................6

Description of the Unconsolidated Deposits ...................................................................................7

Description of the Soils........................................................................................................................7

Description of the Carbonate Rocks .................................................................................................7

Description of the Carbonate-Rock Aquifer and Groundwater Contamination ......................10

Maps and Geologic Sections............................................................................................................10

Genesee County Maps..............................................................................................................10

Geologic Sections .....................................................................................................................11

Topographic Quadrangle Maps ..............................................................................................11

Summary........................................................................................................................................................14

References Cited..........................................................................................................................................14

Appendix 1. Ten quadrangle plates of Genesee County, which overlie the carbonate-rock 

study area........................................................................................................................................17

Figures

1. Map showing location of carbonate-rock study area, wells, karst features, major

basins, and smaller subbasins of several karst features that receive

surface-water flow in Genesee County, New York .................................................................3

2. Map showing location of carbonate-rock study area, bedrock units,

bedrock-surface contours, major faults, and geologic sections in Genesee 

County, New York..........................................................................................................................4

3. Diagram showing geologic sections A–A’, east of Batavia; B–B’, west of Batavia;

C–C’, west side of Genesee County parallel to State Route 77; and D–D’, roughly

parallel to the New York State Thruway, Genesee County, New York.................................8

4. Map showing location of carbonate-rock study area, mines, quarries, and gravel

pits, generalized water-table contours, and thickness of overburden deposits in

Genesee County, New York.......................................................................................................12

5. Map showing location, name, and plate number of the ten 7.5-minute topographic

quadrangles that encompass the carbonate-rock study area in Genesee County,

New York ......................................................................................................................................13
iv

Conversion Factors, Datum, and Acronyms

Multiply By To obtain

Length

inch (in.) 2.54 centimeter (cm)

foot (ft) 0.3048 meter (m)

mile (mi) 1.609 kilometer (km)

Area

acre 0.4047 hectare (ha)

inch per hour (in/h) 0.0254 meter per hour (m/h)

Vertical coordinate information is referenced to the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 

(NAVD 88) on figures 1,2,4,and 5.

Vertical coordinate information is referenced to the National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 

(NGVD 29) on figure 3.

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

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

List of Acronyms

CLFC Clarendon-Linden Fault Complex 

DEM Digital Elevation Models 

GWSI Ground Water Site Inventory

IDW Inverse distance weighting 

LiDAR Light Detection And Ranging 

NED National Elevation Dataset 

NHD National Hydrography Dataset 

NLCD National Land Cover Data 

NRCS Natural Resources Conservation Service 

NYSDEC New York State Department of Environmental Conservation 

NYSDOH New York State Department of Health

NYSDOT New York State Department of Transportation 

SSURGO Soil Survey Geographic

SWCD Soil-Water Conservation District 

SUNY State University of New York

TCE Trichloroethylene 

USDA U.S. Department of Agriculture 

USEPA U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

USGS U.S. Geological Survey
Hydrogeologic and Geospatial Data for the Assessment 

of Focused Recharge to the Carbonate-Rock Aquifer in 

Genesee County, New York

By James E. Reddy and William M. Kappel

openings in soil and solution-widened fractures in carbonate 

bedrock. The watery nature of liquid manure enhances 

movement of contaminants associated with the manure, 

especially when surface water mixes with the manure and 

flows into the carbonate bedrock. Carbonate-rock aquifers in 

western and central New York also have been contaminated 

by septic waste and improper chemical disposal and spills, 

such as the trichloroethylene (TCE) spill in eastern Genesee 

County (USEPA-http://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund/

npl/0203481c.pdf, accessed March 2009). 

Relatively large amounts of recharge can rapidly 

enter carbonate-rock aquifers as focused recharge where 

the overlying soils are thin or permeable (sand and gravel) 

and where some karst features such as swallets (sinkholes 

that have water flowing into them) receive large amounts 

of surface water that enter the groundwater system. Where 

carbonate rocks crop out at or close to land surface, they 

are typically highly weathered, which allows precipitation 

and runoff to readily enter the bedrock aquifer. Where the 

aquifer is karstic, this flow is similar to flow in a pipe. Once 

contaminants enter the carbonate-rock aquifers in these 

areas of focused recharge, they can be transported by the 

groundwater for long distances and affect large parts of the 

aquifer. The groundwater contamination will persist in a 

downgradient direction after the source has been removed. If 

drinking-water wells tap contaminated zones in the aquifer, the 

groundwater can pose a major and persistent health threat.

Carbonate bedrock is quarried as a mineral resource 

in numerous locations across the State. Large volumes of 

groundwater may be pumped locally to dewater quarries to 

facilitate mining. The dewatering of a quarry can locally lower 

the water table and may cause nearby water-supply wells to 

go dry. Additionally, lowering the water table can potentially 

change the direction of groundwater flow and affect the 

movement of contaminants in the aquifer. In such cases, 

water-supply wells either have been deepened or replaced 

with new wells drilled to an alternate source of water (Staubitz 

and Miller, 1987). Lowering the water table can substantially 

affect the water levels in wells within 1,000 feet of Onondaga 

Limestone quarries in this region and may have some effect on 

water levels in wells up to a mile or more away (Staubitz and 

Miller, 1987). 

Abstract

Existing hydrogeologic and geospatial data useful for the 

assessment of focused recharge to the carbonate-rock aquifer 

in the central part of Genesee County, NY, were compiled 

from numerous local, State, and Federal agency sources. Data 

sources utilized in this pilot study include available geospatial 

datasets from Federal and State agencies, interviews with 

local highway departments and the Genesee County Soil 

and Water Conservation District, and an initial assessment 

of karst features through the analysis of ortho-photographs, 

with minimal field verification. The compiled information is 

presented in a series of county-wide and quadrangle maps. 

The county-wide maps present generalized hydrogeologic 

conditions including distribution of geologic units, major 

faults, and karst features, and bedrock-surface and water-table 

configurations. Ten sets of quadrangle maps of the area that 

overlies the carbonate-rock aquifer present more detailed 

and additional information including distribution of bedrock 

outcrops, thin and (or) permeable soils, and karst features 

such as sinkholes and swallets. Water-resource managers can 

utilize the information summarized in this report as a guide to 

their assessment of focused recharge to, and the potential for 

surface contaminants to reach the carbonate-rock aquifer.

Introduction

The New York State Department of Environmental 

Conservation (NYSDEC), New York State Department 

of Health (NYSDOH) and the Genesee County Health 

Department have become increasingly concerned about 

chemical and bacteriological contamination in carbonaterock aquifers. Fecal coliform bacteria, including Escherichia 

coli (E. coli), and nitrate contamination of groundwater from 

surface application of liquid manure has occurred several 

times over the past few years in Genesee County—most 

recently in early spring of 2010. Nitrate is soluble in water 

and as such can move readily through thin or permeable soils 

and enter a carbonate-rock aquifer. Because of their small 

size, E. coli bacteria can move readily through large pore 
2 Hydrogeologic and Geospatial Data for the Assessment of Recharge to the Carbonate-Rock Aquifer in Genesee County, New York

In Genesee County, carbonate bedrock of the Onondaga 

Limestone, Akron Dolostone, and Bertie Formation (for 

simplicity, the last two carbonate units are titled the AkronBertie Formation in this report) crops out along a 2- to 5-mile 

wide band that trends east-west through the middle of the 

county (fig. 1). This bedrock sequence is about 180 feet thick 

and dips gently to the south at about 40 to 50 feet per mile. 

These units form an extensive and high-yielding carbonaterock aquifer that transmits water through solution-enlarged 

fractures, bedding planes, and other openings (Olcott, 1995). 

Furthermore, the Akron-Bertie Formation is stratigraphically 

below, and crops out north of, the Onondaga Formation and 

contains thin seams of gypsum (3-to-5 feet thick) that were 

mined in the past. The abandoned mines contain mineralized 

water that is sometimes used for industrial purposes such as 

cooling water. Abandoned mines also are reportedly used to 

dispose of surface-water runoff (for example, from parking 

lots) or for dewatering of a locally high water table in an 

overlying aquifer. These activities can affect the quality and 

quantity of water in the carbonate-rock aquifer.

Hydrogeologic information on the carbonate-rock 

aquifer is needed for the management and protection of this 

important groundwater resource in Genesee County and 

elsewhere across New York State. The NYSDEC and other 

State and local agencies, and educational organizations need 

information in an easy-to-use, accessible product for planning 

purposes. To meet this need, the U.S. Geological Survey 

(USGS), in cooperation with the NYSDEC, conducted a 

study to determine the location of focused recharge, primarily 

related to karst features in the bedrock. This pilot study was 

conducted in Genesee County, NY, where carbonate bedrock is 

found at or near the land surface (fig. 2). One of the first steps 

in understanding this resource is to determine the character 

and extent of the carbonate bedrock and compile information 

on the geology and hydrology of carbonate-rock aquifers 

where recharge is focused and has the highest potential for 

rapidly entering the aquifer system. Areas where the carbonate 

bedrock is at the surface or covered only by thin, permeable 

soils, and karst settings with sinkholes, swallets, and solution 

channels and cavities are likely areas of focused, high-volume 

and rapid recharge and need to be identified to protect the 

carbonate-rock aquifer. 

Purpose and Scope

This report (1) describes the general characteristics 

of the carbonate-bedrock aquifer and overlying soils 

and unconsolidated deposits and (2) presents geospatial 

information on factors that affect where focused recharge and 

surface contaminants have the highest potential to enter the 

carbonate-rock aquifer. The field- and office-based methods 

used to compile and interpret the data and create the maps 

in this study are evaluated to improve similar studies in 

the future. 

County-wide maps in this report display hydrogeologic 

data and include generalized conditions including well 

locations, bedrock-surface configuration, location of streams, 

water-table configuration, and location of interpreted 

bedrock faults. Individual quadrangle maps provided with 

the report display more-detailed hydrogeologic, soils, and 

karst information in areas that overlie the carbonate-rock 

aquifer in Genesee County. Also included are four geologic 

sections that depict sectional views of soil and bedrock 

characteristics, including location of water-bearing zones in 

the carbonate bedrock

Limitations of this Report

Although the information in this report can be used 

for planning purposes, it is not a substitute for site-specific 

hydrogeologic investigation. The presence of any karst 

feature—a sinkhole, a surface depression, or a losing or 

gaining stream channel—depends on numerous factors 

including—(1) the bedrock type, (2) bedrock geologic 

structure (fractures, joints, faults), (3) the surface and subsurface hydrology (preferential-flow pathways formed by the 

dissolution of the carbonate bedrock along existing geologic 

structures), (4) thickness and permeability of soils overlying 

the carbonate bedrock, and (5) land use (urbanized, farmed, 

or unused). Urbanization can mask the surface expression 

of karst features when the land surface is modified. Though 

reports of such features will be recorded when they become 

apparent in populated areas, similar features on a farm or 

rural land may only be known by the person(s) familiar 

with that particular area. (The information provided in this 

paragraph was adapted from the Pennsylvania Department 

of Conservation and Natural Resources, Map 68—Density 

of Mapped Karst Features in South-Central and Southeastern 

Pennsylvania (accessed February 2009 at, http://www.dcnr.

state.pa.us/topogeo/map68/map68txt.aspx.)

Sources of Data and Methods

This pilot study was designed to utilize existing data from 

multiple sources to compile information on hydrogeology, 

soils, and land use overlying the carbonate-rock aquifer and to 

display this information in a visual form for use by land- and 

water-resource managers. The data sources include local, State 

and Federal agencies, and several water-resource studies for 

Genesee County.
Sources of Data and Methods 3

04120104

Tonawanda Creek Basin

04130003070

Oatka Creek Basin

04130003080

Black Creek Basin

04130001070

Oak Orchard Creek Basin

ERIE

GENESEE

LIVINGSTON

MONROE

NIAGARA

ORLEANS

WYOMING

Batavia

Corfu

Alden

Oakfield

Le Roy

Caledonia

Attica

19

19

63

63

63

33

33A

33

262

77

77

5

5

98

98 237

238

246

20 20

90

90

490

NYS Thruway

Genesee

River

East Branch

Sandy Creek

Salmon Creek

Ellicott Creek

Brockport Creek

Murder Creek

Oatka Creek

Oak Orchard Creek

Black Creek

Tonawanda

Creek

77°52'30" 78° 78°07'30" 78°15' 78°22'30" 78°30'

43°07'30"

43°

42°52'30"

NEW YORK

CANADA

Location Map

Lake Ontario

LakeErie Genesee

County

Vermont

Massachusetts

Connecticut

New

Jersey

Pennsylvania

0 5 MILES 2.50 5 KILOMETERS 2.5

EXPLANATION

Genesee County

City/villageWell or test boring used to interpret bedrock or water table surface Karst featureKarst feature sub-basinBasin boundary, hydrologic unit code, and name 04120104 Tonawanda Creek BasinCarbonate-rock aquifer study area boundaryCounty boundary line

Base from U.S. Geological Survey, Seamless Data Distribution System,accessed in 2009 at http://seamless.usgs.gov Universal Transverse Mercator projection, Zone 18

Figure 1. Location of carbonate-rock study area, wells, karst features, major basins, and smaller subbasins of several karst features that receive surface-water flow in 

Genesee County, New York.
4 Hydrogeologic and Geospatial Data for the Assessment of Recharge to the Carbonate-Rock Aquifer in Genesee County, New York U D U D D U U D U D U D D U U D A’

A

B’

B

C’

C

D

D’

ERIE

GENESEE

MONROE

LIVINGSTON

NIAGARA

ORLEANS

WYOMING

Batavia

Corfu

Alden

Oakfield

Le Roy Caledonia

Attica

1,200

1,200

1,100

600

1,100

600

700

1,000

900

800

900

LeRoy fault

Retsof fault 0 5 MILES 2.5

0 5 KILOMETERS 2.5

Altitude of bedrock surface, in feet (NAVD 88); intermediate contours are 25-foot intervals

City/village

600

Clarendon-Linden faults(U-upthrown side, D-downthrown side)

UD

Geologic section

A A’

Other interpreted faultsCarbonate-rock aquifer study area boundary

Bedrock Geology

UndifferentiatedLudlowville FormationSkaneateles FormationMarcellus FormationOnondaga LimestoneAkron-Bertie FormationCamillus ShaleGuelph Dolostone (Lockport Group)

Upper DevonianMiddle DevonianUpper Silurian

EXPLANATION

Base from U.S. Geological Survey, Seamless Data Distribution System,accessed in 2009 at http://seamless.usgs.gov Universal Transverse Mercator projection, Zone 18Bedrock Geology from New York State Museum, 1:250,000

77°52'30" 78° 78°07'30" 78°15' 78°22'30" 78°30'

43°07'30"

43°

42°52'30"

NEW YORK

CANADA

Location Map

Lake Ontario

LakeErie Genesee

County

Vermont

Massachusetts

Connecticut

New

Jersey

Pennsylvania

Figure 2. Location of carbonate-rock study area, bedrock units, bedrock-surface contours, major faults, and geologic sections in Genesee County, New York. 

Sections are shown in figure 3.
Sources of Data and Methods 5

Hydrogeologic Information 

Water-well information was provided through the 

NYSDEC Water Well Reporting Program (2000–2008) and the 

USGS Ground Water Site Inventory (GWSI) databases. Only 

a limited amount of field work was performed for this study 

to confirm that well locations stored in the NYSDEC Water 

Well Reporting Program database were correct. Foundationboring logs were obtained from the files of the New York State 

Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) and the New York 

State Thruway Authority for roadway and bridge construction 

sites (1950s-2008). Additional geologic logs were obtained 

from the files of the NYSDEC Divisions of Water, Hazardous 

Waste, and Mineral Resources. Other hydrogeologic data were 

obtained from a literature review of water-resource reports for 

Genesee County.

Geographic Information System (GIS) Data

One of the objectives of this study was to develop 

procedures for GIS assessment of diverse data sets in order to 

characterize the carbonate-rock aquifer in regard to focused 

recharge of surface water to the groundwater system. ESRI 

ArcMap 9.3.1 GIS software (Environmental Systems Research 

Institute, 2009) was used throughout this pilot study. The 

following geospatial data were identified as relevant to the 

study and were acquired for use in this analysis:

● Orthoimage map data (geometrically corrected 

aerial photographs)

● Land-surface data from the USGS National Elevation 

Dataset (NED)

● Surface-water data from the USGS National 

Hydrography Dataset (NHD)

● Land-cover data from the 2001 National Land Cover 

Data (NLCD)

● Soil-map data from the U.S. Department of 

Agriculture (USDA), Soil Survey Geographic 

(SSURGO) Database

● Mine, quarry, and other anthropogenic data from:

○ NYSDEC Mining Database

○ Dr. Paul Richards and students from the Department 

of Earth Sciences, State University of New York 

(SUNY) at Brockport (Richards and others, 2010)

○ Jim Craft–NYSDEC, Avon, NY

● Well and borehole data from:

○ NYSDEC Water Well Reporting Program

○ USGS Ground Water Site Inventory 

(GWSI) database

○ NYS Department of Transportation (NYSDOT)

○ NYS Thruway Authority

● Locations for known spills and other environmental 

events from:

○ Genesee County, Department of Health

○ NYSDOH

○ NYSDEC Environmental Remediation 

Sites database

● Locations of known karst features from:

○ Survey responses from the Genesee County SoilWater Conservation District (SWCD) and the 

Highway Departments from the Towns of Batavia, 

Elba, Le Roy, and Stafford

○ Dr. Paul Richards, Department of Earth Sciences, 

SUNY at Brockport (Richards and others, 2010)

Karst Features Inventory 

USGS personnel met with representatives of the Genesee 

County SWCD and Genesee County and town highway 

departments that were within and adjacent to the carbonaterock study area to solicit the assistance of these stakeholders in 

creating an inventory of known karst features. Representatives 

were provided with ortho-photographs of their respective 

jurisdiction, and a karst feature key was provided to aid in 

the identification of these features. The participants were 

asked to record their findings on the maps and return them to 

USGS for further processing. The Genesee County SWCD 

and the highway departments from the towns of Batavia, Elba, 

Le Roy, and Stafford participated in the survey, and their 

findings were converted to a GIS-compatible format.

These karst features were supplemented with a GIS 

coverage provided by Dr. Paul Richards, Department of Earth 

Sciences, SUNY at Brockport, NY (Richards and others, 

2010). Dr. Richards and students had identified karst features 

as part of a study aimed at identifying areas sensitive to 

fertilizer application in thin soil and karst terrain (Richards 

and others, 2010). They initially used topographic maps 

and 10-meter Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) to locate 

depressions in the land surface; the depressions were later 

field verified to determine whether each feature was actually 

a karst feature. LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) data, 

which would have enhanced the inventory process and might 

have made field verification more efficient, were not available 

for Genesee County. The available karst data are represented 

by the karst “point features” identified within the carbonaterock study area. Bedrock outcrops, identified in the SSURGO 

database, were included with the karst feature dataset because 

they too represent potential preferential pathways into the 

carbonate-rock aquifer.
6 Hydrogeologic and Geospatial Data for the Assessment of Recharge to the Carbonate-Rock Aquifer in Genesee County, New York

The USGS StreamStats GIS application (Reis and 

others, 2008) was used to delineate drainage basins of streams 

associated with karst features. In cases where the StreamStatsderived basin for a karst feature was negligible, such as those 

associated with SSURGO-identified bedrock outcrops, ArcGIS 

was used to assign an arbitrary 500-foot-radius buffer zone 

around the feature in lieu of a drainage basin. The ArcGIS 

Spatial Analyst extension was used to convert the drainage 

basins and buffer zones to a 10-meter-resolution raster (a cell 

or area represented by one value) dataset for ease of analysis.

Bedrock and Water-Table Data Development 

and Surfaces Modeling

Raster and vector (a polygon, line, or point representing 

a particular feature) geospatial datasets representing bedrock 

surface and water table were created for this study. A number 

of different altitude data sources were used to model these 

surfaces. Values for depth to bedrock and the water table were 

primarily estimated from well completion reports submitted 

by drillers to the NYSDEC Water Well Reporting Program. 

Other sources of bedrock thickness and depth to the water 

table were borehole data obtained from the NYSDOT and 

the NYS Thruway Authority, bedrock outcrop data from the 

USDA SSURGO database, and well data from the USGS 

Groundwater Site Inventory (GWSI) database. Combined 

data from these various sources produced a depth to bedrock 

dataset consisting of 1,180 points and a depth to the watertable dataset consisting of 390 points. These data points 

are distributed throughout Genesee County and extend into 

the neighboring counties of Niagara, Orleans, Monroe, 

Livingston, Wyoming, and Erie to negate map “edge effects.”

Land-surface-altitude data from the NED were obtained 

for the purpose of estimating bedrock surface and water table 

for this study. NED land-surface DEM data in resolutions 

of 1 arc-second (about 30 meters) and 1/3 arc-second (about 

10 meters) were acquired. The ArcGIS Spatial Analyst 

extension was used to assign DEM land-surface altitudes to 

each of the points in the bedrock and water-table datasets. 

Bedrock-surface and water-table altitudes were calculated for 

each of the data points by subtracting their respective depth 

values from the DEM land-surface altitudes.

Three surface-interpolation methods were attempted for 

this study—inverse distance weighting (IDW), spline, and 

kriging. Surface-interpolation is the creation of a continuous 

surface from measured point locations. IDW and spline are 

deterministic methods that create surfaces from measured 

points using an established mathematical model. Kriging also 

uses a mathematical model but differs from the IDW and 

spline methods in that it also incorporates a statistical model 

when creating a surface. Kriging, therefore, yields not only a 

surface, but a measure of the accuracy of the surface. Of the 

three surface-interpolation methods attempted, the kriging 

tools within the ArcGIS Geostatistical Analyst extension 

yielded the best results. The surface-prediction outputs from 

this exercise were stored as both raster (ESRI GRID) and 

vector (contour) datasets.

An overburden thickness dataset was created by 

subtracting the bedrock-surface raster from the land-surface 

DEM. Initially, the 10-meter resolution NED land-surface 

DEM was used, but the resulting overburden grid and contours 

were misleadingly detailed when compared to the number and 

distribution of bedrock-surface data points. A less complex 

result was achieved by using the lower-resolution 30-meter 

NED land-surface DEM. 

Agricultural Land and Shallow Soils 

Data Development

Agricultural activity is one of the key land-use factors 

to consider when assessing the vulnerability of karst areas 

to groundwater contamination. The 2001 National Land 

Cover Data (NLCD) dataset was used to identify areas in the 

carbonate-rock study area where various agricultural activities 

are likely to occur. The ArcGIS Spatial Analyst extension was 

used to derive a 10-meter resolution raster dataset comprised 

of areas with an NLCD land-cover classification of pasture, 

hay, or cultivated crops.

The presence of shallow soils is another critical 

consideration when identifying karst-sensitive areas. The 

USDA SSURGO database represents the best source of 

large-scale, comprehensive soils data available. SSURGO 

data for Genesee County and the neighboring counties were 

acquired. On the basis of a review of the data, 12 soil types 

were identified as “shallow-to-bedrock” (0-40 inches of soil) 

for the purposes of this study. The soil types are Allis, Angola, 

Aurora, Benson, Honeoye, Hornell, Kanona, Lima, Manlius, 

Newstead, Palatine, and Wassaic.

Initially, only those soils assigned as shallow-to-bedrock 

with moderate to high infiltration rates were considered in 

this study. Within the SSURGO database, infiltration rates 

are represented by the Hydrologic Group classification. 

Therefore, the initial selection consisted of shallow soils with 

a hydrologic group classification of “A” (high infiltration 

rates) or “B” (moderate infiltration rates). Four additional 

shallow-to-bedrock soil types were added—Aurora, Benson, 

Wassaic, and Rubbleland soils—after discussions with 

researchers at Cornell University (Czymmek and others, 

2004). These additional soils have been associated with 

previous groundwater contamination problems in Genesee 

County, even though these soils have a low infiltration rate. 

ArcGIS Spatial Analyst extension was used to derive a 

10-meter-resolution raster dataset that met the aforementioned 

soil classification criteria

Interpretation of Derived Datasets

Analysis of multiple, existing GIS datasets (thematic 

data layers) provided substantial information to begin 
Interpretation of Derived Datasets 7

characterization of the carbonate-rock aquifer in Genesee 

County. The integration of selected data layers then helped to 

focus the study on that information that would be most useful 

in the assessment of focused recharge areas to the carbonaterock aquifer. Interpretations of focused recharge were made 

using seven thematic data layers: (1) land surface altitude, 

(2) surface water, (3) land cover, (4) soils, (5) anthropogenic 

features—mines, quarries, contamination sites, (6) well 

and borehole data, and (7) karst features were used in the 

formulation of the study area maps

Description of the Unconsolidated Deposits

The type and thickness of unconsolidated deposits (soil) 

found in the study area is the result of multiple glaciations, 

with the first beginning about 2.6 million years ago and 

the last ending about 12,000 years ago (Fullerton, 1980). 

Each period of glaciation effectively obliterated most of 

the previously deposited sediments; therefore, presentday sediments were deposited during and after the last 

glacial episode, the late Wisconsinan glaciation. The glacial 

sediments in the study area consist mostly of unstratified 

deposits (till) and stratified deposits—glaciolacustrine (lake) 

and glaciofluvial (stream) sediment. Post-glacial stratified 

sediments include peat and muck formed in wetlands and 

alluvium deposited by recent streams. In the study area, till 

was deposited mostly in the form of drumlin hills and as a thin 

sheet in the interdrumlin areas. In some places, glaciofluvial 

sediments consisting mostly of coarse sand and gravel were 

deposited as hummocky kames (ridges) and possibly as 

subglacial outwash (fans). As the ice retreated northward 

across New York, proglacial lakes formed in basins in front 

of the retreating ice. Stratified fine-grained glaciolacustrine 

sediments (fine sand, silt, and clay) were deposited mostly in 

the interdrumlin areas. The soils derived from these glacial 

and post-glacial deposits are described further on in the report.

Description of the Soils

The 1969 Genesee County Natural Resources 

Conservation Service (NRCS) Soil Survey identified 11 soil 

associations; a soil association is comprised of a general 

landscape type and one or more major soil types with one 

or more minor soil types. Eight of the 11 associations were 

formed from till, while the remaining 3 associations were 

formed from (1) glaciolacustrine silt and clay, (2) glaciofluvial 

deposits, and (3) post-glacial muck and peat (Wulforst and 

others, 1969). 

The preponderance of till and glaciolacustrine soils 

indicates the presence of a variably thick, low-permeability 

layer of soil over bedrock throughout much of the county. The 

soils overlying the carbonate bedrock generally have high 

carbonate content. These soils are derived from the erosion of 

(1) carbonate bedrock including the Lockport Group that crops 

out in the northeastern corner of the county, (2) carbonate-rich 

Camillus Shale that crops out in the northern part of the 

county above the Lockport Dolomite, and (3) Bertie-AkronOnondaga carbonate-rock sequence above the Camillus Shale, 

found along the north side of the study area (fig. 2). 

The NRCS soil classification for Genesee County was 

used to identify 10 soil units that are mapped as “shallow-tobedrock” (0-40 inches of soil over bedrock). While most of 

these shallow soils have shale parent material, four (Aurora, 

Benson, Newstead, and Wassaic) are primarily derived from 

carbonate bedrock, and one shallow soil (Palatine) is derived 

from calcareous shale. Where these particular “shallow-tobedrock” soils are present, the potential for contaminants 

to migrate into the carbonate-rock aquifer with focused 

recharge is greater because of the relatively small soil-water 

retention and filtering capacity of the shallow soil and the 

short pathways between the land surface and the groundwater 

system in the carbonate bedrock. Similarly, consideration 

of potential interaction between the surface-water and 

groundwater systems is needed where carbonate bedrock is 

exposed at land surface near identified karst features, or where 

surface water flows on, and accumulates over thin soils to a 

karst feature such as a sinkhole, a swallet, or a losing stream 

channel. Descriptions of soils, streams, and geologic features 

are provided on the 10 sets of quadrangle maps for Genesee 

County (Plates 1 through 10) at the end of the report.

Description of the Carbonate Rocks 

In Genesee County, the Akron-Bertie Formation of Upper 

Silurian age is overlain by the Onondaga Limestone of Lower 

Devonian age. The stratigraphic log of a corehole from the 

Stafford stone quarry, located southeast of Batavia, provides 

a local example of the bedrock sequence that is common for 

that part of New York State (fig. 3, line of section A–A′). The 

Bertie Formation consists mostly of dolomite and dolomitic 

limestone with interbedded shale, anhydrite, and gypsum 

seams particularly in the lower part; the formation is about 

45 feet thick. The Akron Dolostone is a fine-grained dolomite 

with a thickness of about 5 feet. The Onondaga Limestone, 

with a thickness of about 130 feet, forms the upper two-thirds 

of the carbonate-rock sequence. The Onondaga Limestone 

consists of three lithologies: a lower coarse-textured, crinoidal 

limestone that is about 7 feet thick (Edgecliff member); a 

middle cherty limestone that is about 80 feet thick (Nedrow 

and Clarence members); and an upper limestone that is about 

45 feet thick (Moorehouse and Seneca members). Together 

the Akron-Bertie Formation through the Onondaga Limestone 

sequence forms an approximately 180-foot-thick sequence 

of carbonate rocks in Genesee County. The Onondaga 

Limestone is overlain by the Marcellus Shale to the south, 

and the Camillus Shale is present below the Akron-Bertie 

Formation carbonate bedrock further to the north. The 

Onondaga Limestone is resistant to erosion and generally 

forms an escarpment or cliff-like feature at the land surface 

along the north side of the study area. The major structural 
8 Hydrogeologic and Geospatial Data for the Assessment of Recharge to the Carbonate-Rock Aquifer in Genesee County, New York

650

750

850

950

 Overburden

(60.5 ft)

 Limestone,

weathered

 NYS Route 77

over Thruway

Overburden

(38.5 ft)

 Limestone,

 weathered

 GS-271

Alt. 855 ft

(projected)

NYS Route 77

over Murder Creek (Corfu)

Overburden

(18 ft)

 Limestone,

weathered

Onondaga

Escarpment

Overburden

(35 ft)

 Limestone,

weathered

 GS-434

 Alt. 876 ft

(projected)

Limestone,

water-bearing

zones 22-26 

and 68-72

?

NYS Route 77

 over Tonawanda Creek

near Indian Falls

Overburden

 GS-239

Alt. 859 ft

 GS-321

Alt. 856 ft

(17 ft)

 GS-269

Alt. 802 ft

(projected)

?

C C’

FEET

FEET

750

850

950

Overburden

(34 ft)

Limestone, waterbearing zones at

43, 50, and 70 ft

GS-453

Alt. 894 ft

(projected)

Overburden

(20 ft)

Limestone, waterbearing zone, 32 ft.

GS-386

Alt. 898 ft

Onondaga 

Escarpment

GS-505

Alt. 885 ft

(projected)

Overburden

(20 ft)

Shale,

weathered

GS-565

(projected)

 Alt. 850 ft

Overburden

(100 ft)

?

?

?

?

B B’

FEET

550

650

750

850

950

Overburden

(5 ft)

Onondaga

Limestone

(132 ft)

Akron/Bertie

Formation

(49 ft)

Camillus 

Shale

(84 ft)

Syracuse 

Shale

(87+ ft)

Seneca member (10 ft)

Moorehouse member (36 ft)

Nedrow member (43 ft)

Clarence member (36 ft)

Edgecliff member (7 ft)

South North

Overburden

(77 ft)

Shaley 

Limestone

GS-285

Alt. 920 ft

Stafford Quarry

 GS-1005

Alt. 902 ft

 E. Saile Dr. at Bank St.

Overburden

(8 ft)

Limestone,

weathered

 GS-231 

Alt. 768 ft

(projected)

NYS Rte 33 

over Thruway

Average dip of bedrock

~ 45 feet per mile to the south

Batavia Airport

NYS-DEC and USGS

Drought monitor well 

 GS-217

Alt. 905 ft

Overburden

(25 ft)

Overburden

(53 ft)

Limestone,

weathered

 GS-585

Alt. 809 ft

?

?

?

?

Onondaga 

Escarpment

Clarendon-Linden Fault Complex

A A’

Overburden—glacial clay, silt, sand, and gravel

Bedrock (limestone and shale)—weathered

near bedrock surface, competent at depth

Water-bearing zone in bedrock well

EXPLANATION

Land-surface profile along section

Approximate contact between overburden 

and bedrock

?

GS-235 

Alt. 913 ft Well or test boring—upper number is Genesee 

County well number assigned by U.S. Geological

Survey, and lower number is land-surface altitude

at well, in feet (NGVD 1929).

1

1 2 MILES

2 KILOMETERS

0

0

VERTICAL EXAGERATION X42

DATUM IS NGVD 1929

Figure 3. Geologic sections A–A’, east of Batavia; B–B’, west of Batavia; C–C’, west side of Genesee County parallel to State 

Route 77; and D–D’, roughly parallel to the New York State Thruway, Genesee County, New York. Lines of section are shown in 

figure 2.
Interpretation of Derived Datasets 9

Vertical Exageration X145

Datum is NGVD 1929

650

750

850

950

West East

Overburden

(15ft)

Shaley Limestone

GS-228 

Alt. 719 ft

LeRoy-Bergen Rd

over Thruway

 Limestone,

very weathered

GS-229

Alt. 807 ft

NYS Route 237

over Thruway

Overburden

(77 ft)

Shaley Limestone,

very weathered

 GS-231

Alt. 768 ft

NYS Route 33

over Thruway

Overburden

(7ft)

Limestone,

very weathered

GS-233 

Alt. 899 ft

Bank St.

over Thruway

Overburden

(7ft)

Limestone,

very weathered

to semi-competent

 GS-235 

Alt. 913 ft

NYS Route 63

over Thruway

Overburden

(32 ft)

 Limestone,

weathered

 GS-237

Alt. 879 ft

Slusser Rd.

over Thruway

Overburden

(60.5 ft)

 Limestone,

weathered

GS-239

Alt. 859 ft

(projected)

NYS Route 77

over Thruway

Clarendon-Linden Fault Complex

Overburden

(24 ft)

Limestone, waterbearing zone

90 ft.

 GS-507

Overburden Alt. 863 ft

(34 ft)

Limestone, waterbearing zones at

43, 50, and 70 ft.

 GS-453

Alt. 908 ft

Overburden

(75 ft)

Limestone, heavily

weathered 75-88 ft,

competent 88-95 ft

 GS-684

Alt. 922 ft

(projected)

Overburden

(22 ft)

22-43 soft grey shale,

43-68 competent shale

GS-460

Alt. 785 ft

(projected)

Overburden

(73 ft)

Limestone, waterbearing zone 79 ft

Overburden

(41.5ft)

 GS-618

Alt. 782 ft

(projected)

D D’

FEET

Overburden—glacial clay, silt, sand, and gravel

Bedrock (limestone and shale)—weathered

near bedrock surface, competent at depth

Water-bearing zone in bedrock well

EXPLANATION

Land-surface profile along section

Approximate contact between overburden 

and bedrock

?

GS-239 

Alt. 913 ft Well or test boring—upper number is Genesee 

County well number assigned by U.S. Geological

Survey, and lower number is land-surface altitude

at well, in feet (NGVD 1929).

1

1 2 MILES

2 KILOMETERS

0

0

Figure 3. Geologic sections A–A’, east of Batavia; B–B’, west of Batavia; C–C’, west side of Genesee County parallel to State 

Route 77; and D–D’, roughly parallel to the New York State Thruway, Genesee County, New York. Lines of section are shown in 

figure 2.—Continued
10 Hydrogeologic and Geospatial Data for the Assessment of Recharge to the Carbonate-Rock Aquifer in Genesee County, New York

feature in this part of New York State is the ClarendonLinden Fault Complex (CLFC), which forms a southwest to 

northeast series of en echelon faults throughout the bedrock 

sequence (fig. 2). According to Fakundiny and Pomeroy 

(2002), the CLFC is a broad zone of small faults with small 

displacements in the lower Paleozoic bedrock section that is at 

least 48 mi (77 km) long and 4.3 to 7.5 mi (7 to 17 km) wide 

and is spatially coincident with a north-trending lineament 

within the Precambrian basement rock. The relative vertical 

offset across the fault complex near Attica (southwest of 

the study area) is more than 300 ft (91 m) (Fakundiny and 

Pomeroy, 2002); a smaller, unspecified offset is present near 

Batavia, NY. Other, smaller faults are located just to the east 

of the CLFC according to Jacobi (2002). Jacobi identified 

two north-striking fault systems called the Leroy and Retsof 

faults based on work done by Rickard (1973) who identified a 

down-on-the-east offset in bedrock stratigraphy that is based 

on well logs, Landsat imagery for identifying linear features 

(EARTHSAT, 1997), and other geologic information collected 

over the past two decades (Jacobi, 2002, p. 82)

The CLFC is partly responsible for the surface-water 

drainage pattern in Genesee County. Black and Oatka Creeks 

(fig. 1) drain to the north and east, whereas Tonawanda 

and Oak Orchard Creeks drain to the north and west of the 

CLFC (fig. 1). Groundwater flow patterns also follow this 

alignment, and the Onondaga Escarpment affects groundwater 

flow near the escarpment. The Leroy and Retsof faults and 

any parallel structures between them may have caused the 

development of “more mature” karst (a well-developed flow 

system with the carbonate bedrock) in the southeastern part of 

Genesee County.

Description of the Carbonate-Rock Aquifer and 

Groundwater Contamination 

The potential for focused recharge to the carbonaterock aquifer is greatest where the rocks crop out at or near 

land surface and where surface depressions accumulate and 

focus surface recharge to underlying karst features. Sources 

of potential recharge include (1) precipitation that falls 

over the aquifer and infiltrates into fractures in the bedrock; 

(2) channelized surface runoff that seeps into the bedrock 

through sinkholes, swallets, and fractures; and (3) runoff 

derived from adjacent till- or glaciolacustrine-mantled shale 

uplands (to the south of the Onondaga Limestone, fig. 2), 

which lose water where flow is northward to the carbonaterock aquifer. Under these conditions, contaminants are of 

particular concern where focused recharge from the surface 

can readily infiltrate into the carbonate-rock aquifer.

A number of cases of surface contamination entering the 

carbonate-rock aquifer over the past two decades in Genesee 

County indicate an inter-relation between the surfacewater and groundwater systems (Ralph Van Houten, New 

York State Department of Health, oral commun., 2009, and 

Nancy Rice, New York State Department of Environmental 

Conservation, written commun., 2010). In 1986, a buried 

residential fuel oil tank was found to be leaking when 

water from neighboring wells had a petroleum odor and 

taste. In 1998, at a location nearby to the leaking oil tank, 

leachate from a field of unharvested and decomposing beets 

infiltrated the underlying soil and entered the weathered 

and fractured carbonate bedrock causing a drinking-water 

well about 100 feet east of the field to become contaminated 

with beet leachate. In three separate cases, the application of 

manure to different fields in the Batavia, NY, area resulted in 

complaints of discolored and foul-smelling water in private 

water wells. In each case, the manure application was made 

in late winter, on thin soils over carbonate bedrock. Soon 

after the manure application, warming temperatures caused 

the residual snowpack to melt, and in one case, a rain-onsnow event apparently routed manure or manure leachate 

from the soil surface into the groundwater system. Manure 

applications during spring 2001 and spring 2007 resulted in 

the detection of total coliform and E. coli in a number of wells 

at various distances (hundreds of feet) from each manure 

application. Differentiation of ruminant (cow) and human 

coliform species was not performed in these two cases. In the 

spring 2010 case, advanced coliform testing revealed that the 

E. coli contamination tested positive for ruminant-specific 

bacteroridale in water from the three affected wells that were a 

few hundred feet from the field where the manure was applied. 

One of the three private water wells and a number of private 

wells further to the east tested positive for human-specific 

bacteroridales, unrelated to the manure application. The water 

that tested positive for human septic waste was suspected to 

come from individual home septic systems constructed in thin 

soils over carbonate rock.

Maps and Geologic Sections

The maps in this report provide an overview of the 

hydrogeologic conditions across the entire county (well 

locations, generalized bedrock-surface configuration, 

location of streams, generalized water-table configuration, 

and location of CLFC and other nearby fault structures). 

The 7.5-minute topographic quadrangles provide detailed 

hydrogeologic information about the carbonate-rock aquifer. 

The four geologic sections depict sectional views of the soil 

and carbonate-bedrock characteristics, including the location 

of water-bearing zones in the carbonate bedrock sequence, as 

they were noted in the drillers’ logs. 

Genesee County Maps

Maps of Genesee County depict the general topography 

of the bedrock surface and water table, and should be used 

with caution, especially the water-table contour map. The 

water-level information reflects water levels in widely 

dispersed wells completed in unconsolidated and bedrock 

deposits, and water-level information was collected at 
Interpretation of Derived Datasets 11

various times of the year over a period of several decades 

(1950s-2000s). Therefore, the water-table map represents only 

a generalized configuration of the regional groundwater table. 

Figure 1 presents the location of wells used to obtain 

water-level measurements, karst features, and basin boundaries 

for the major streams in Genesee County as well as subbasins 

that drain to several karst features in the southeastern part 

of the county where karst development appears to be mature 

versus the rest of the County. These data points were used in 

the creation of the generalized bedrock surface (fig. 2) and 

water-table configuration (fig. 4). 

Figure 2 presents the locations of (1) the surficial-bedrock 

units, (2) the major faults (CLFC and at least two others to the 

east), and (3) four geologic sections that cross the carbonaterock aquifer. Figure 4 displays the location of (1) mines, 

bedrock quarries, and large gravel pits, (2) generalized watertable configuration, and (3) generalized overburden thickness.

Geologic Sections 

The thickness of overburden, the bedrock surface, and the 

location of water-bearing zones in the Onondaga Limestone 

where indicated on drillers logs, are shown in figures 3A-C, 

with similar information shown on one east-west geologic 

section (fig. 3D). In areas where the geologic sections cross 

the CLFC, there is greater diversity in overburden thickness 

and where carbonate and shale bedrock horizons are present.

Topographic Quadrangle Maps 

The ten pairs of 7.5 minute topographic maps cover 

the central part of Genesee County. (The locations of the 

quadrangles are shown in figure 5.) The maps provide 

detailed information on areas where the carbonate bedrock 

is the uppermost bedrock unit, where shale bedrock overlies 

the carbonate rock within a buffer that is approximately 

7,000 ft wide, and where the shale (Marcellus and Skaneateles 

Shales) are as much as 50 ft thick south of the carbonate/

shale contact (Map 1 of each set). The buffer area includes 

additional surface drainage from the shale bedrock that could 

contribute surface water or groundwater as focused recharge 

to the carbonate-rock aquifer immediately below the shale 

or from surface water that might flow north from the shale 

buffer area onto the carbonate bedrock. See the Batavia South 

quadrangle (Plate 8, Map 1) in the southeast corner of the 

study area for an example of a karst-feature subbasin that 

overlies shale bedrock, drains to the north over carbonate 

bedrock, and then flows to a point of focused recharge into a 

swallet feature.

Data depicted on Quadrangle Map 1 of each pair include 

the surficial bedrock units, location of agricultural landuse areas (cropland, hay, and pasture), location of thin soils 

over bedrock, and location of documented spill or manure 

applications, which have compromised local water quality. 

Also shown are the locations of identified karst features 

with either a contributing area to a point of focused recharge 

defined by the StreamStats program (Reis and others, 2008) 

or an arbitrary 500-ft radius around a karst or bedrock outcrop 

feature where no clear indication of a stream was found when 

aerial photographs and topographic maps were reviewed. 

The explanation box for Map 1 of each pair lists features that 

appear in the map series. However, not all of the features 

appear on each Map 1 of a pair.

 Data depicted on the Map 2 of each topographic 

quadrangle pair include the location (1) of wells used to 

develop the generalized water-table and the bedrock-surface 

contour maps, (2) anthropogenic features including mines, 

quarries, gravel pits, that might affect the direction and rate of 

groundwater flow, (3) agricultural land-use areas (cropland, 

hay, and pasture), and (4) shallow-to-bedrock soils over 

bedrock. The explanation box for each Map 2 lists features 

that appear in the map series. However, not all of the features 

appear on each Map 2 of a pair.
12 Hydrogeologic and Geospatial Data for the Assessment of Recharge to the Carbonate-Rock Aquifer in Genesee County, New York ERIE GENESEE LIVINGSTON MONROE NIAGARA ORLEANS WYOMING Batavia Corfu Alden Oakfield Le Roy Caledonia Attica

600

1,300

1,200

1,200

1,000

1,100

1,200

900

1,100

1,100

600

1,000 1,000

700

800

900

0 5 MILES 2.50 5 KILOMETERS 2.5

Thickness of overburden, in feet

0 – 1011 – 2021 – 3031 – 4041 – 5051 – 7071 – 9091 – 110111 – 150151 – 235

EXPLANATION

City/village

Quarry or gravel pit

%

Altitude of water table,in feet (NAVD 88)

—

intermediate contoursare 25-foot intervalsCarbonate study area

Gypsum mine(approximate location)

600

Base from U.S. Geological Survey, Seamless Data Distribution System,accessed in 2009 at http://seamless.usgs.gov Universal Transverse Mercator projection, Zone 18

77°52'30" 78° 78°07'30" 78°15' 78°22'30" 78°30'

43°07'30"

43°

42°52'30"

NEW YORK

CANADA

Location Map

Lake Ontario

LakeErie Genesee

County

Vermont

Massachusetts

Connecticut

New

Jersey

Pennsylvania

Figure 4. Location of carbonate-rock study area, mines, quarries, and gravel pits, generalized water-table contours, and thickness of overburden deposits in Genesee 

County, New York.
Interpretation of Derived Datasets 13 Figure 5. Location, name, and plate number of the ten 7.5-minute topographic quadrangles that encompass the carbonate-rock study area in Genesee County, New York.

AKRON OAKFIELD BATAVIA NORTH BYRON CHURCHVILLE

CORFU ALEXANDER BATAVIA SOUTH STAFFORD LE ROY

Batavia

Corfu

Alden

Oakfield

Le Roy

Caledonia ERIE

GENESEE

LIVINGSTON

MONROE

NIAGARA ORLEANS

WYOMING

Carbonate-rock aquifer

study area 

Plate 1

Plate 10 Plate 9 Plate 8 Plate 7 Plate 6

Plate 5 Plate 4 Plate 3 Plate 2 City/village Carbonate-rock aquifer

study area

STAFFORD7.5-minute topographic quadrangle and name

EXPLANATION

77°52'30" 78° 78°07'30" 78°15' 78°22'30" 78°30'

43°07'30"

43°

42°52'30"

Base from U.S. Geological Survey, Seamless Data Distribution System,accessed in 2009 at http://seamless.usgs.gov Universal Transverse Mercator projection, Zone 18

0 5 MILES 2.50 5 KILOMETERS 2.5

NEW YORK

CANADA

Location Map

Lake Ontario

LakeErie Genesee

County

Vermont

Massachusetts

Connecticut

New

Jersey

Pennsylvania
14 Hydrogeologic and Geospatial Data for the Assessment of Recharge to the Carbonate-Rock Aquifer in Genesee County, New York

Summary

Existing hydrogeologic and geospatial data useful for 

the assessment of focused recharge to the carbonate-rock 

aquifer in the central part of Genesee County, NY, were 

compiled from numerous local, State, and Federal agency 

sources. County-wide maps developed for the study present 

generalized hydrogeologic conditions including distribution of 

geologic units, major faults, and karst features, and bedrocksurface and water-table configurations. Quadrangle maps were 

developed for the area that overlies the carbonate-rock aquifer 

and present more detailed and additional hydrogeologic 

information including distribution of bedrock outcrops, thin 

and (or) permeable soils, and karst features such as sinkholes 

and swallets. 

Water-resource managers can utilize the information 

summarized in this report as a guide to their assessment of 

focused recharge in carbonate bedrock and the potential for 

surface contaminants to reach the carbonate-rock aquifer. Not 

all karst features were identified in Genesee County because 

there were limited resources for field verification allotted 

for this pilot study. As a result, it is assumed that resource 

managers will make themselves familiar with the area they 

are assessing, utilize the procedures outlined above to make 

the best determination regarding the potential vulnerability 

of a site to an area of focused recharge to the carbonate-rock 

aquifer and how it might affect the resources being assessed, 

and then finalize their assessment with field verification. 

In areas where focused recharge is suspected, site visits by 

trained personnel are needed to determine the vulnerability of 

a particular site of focused recharge in relation to an aquifer or 

an activity or contaminant source of concern.

If additional similar carbonate-rock aquifer studies are 

conducted elsewhere in New York State, allocating more 

field time to locate karst features would help enhance and 

verify the geospatial interpretive processes described above. 

Verification of water wells identified in the NYSDEC Water 

Well Reporting Program database is required, and while office 

verification is possible if tax maps, ortho-photographs, and 

positional information on the water-well forms coincide, there 

is a need for actual field verification when these data sources 

do not agree. 

Similarly, the location of karst features cannot be 

easily discerned in many cases just by review of orthophotographs, topographic maps, or even from the memory 

of local individuals who might locate karst features on a 

map. These sources serve as a good first level of analysis, 

but field verification would provide more definitive location 

information and hydrogeologic attributes for each particular 

karst feature. 

High resolution, land-surface elevation data, such 

as LiDAR, would be most useful in helping to enhance 

identification of karst. Subtle geographic features 

(inch-to-foot scale resolution) can be identified and would be 

useful in interpreting the location of karst features, making 

identification easier and more reliable. LiDAR is not presently 

available in many counties in upstate New York where 

carbonate bedrock is present, but where it is available, LiDAR 

may provide an additional tool and more-precise procedures to 

characterize surficial expressions of karst features.

References Cited

Cadwell, D.H., 1988, Surficial Geologic Map of New York 

—Niagara Sheet: Albany, New York, New York State 

Museum, Map and Chart Series Number 40, 1 sheet, 

1:250,000 scale. 

Czymmek, Karl, van Es, Harold, and Geohring, Larry, 2004, 

Manure and groundwater—the case for protective measures 

and supporting guidelines: Ithaca, NY, Cornell University, 

Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, and Department of 

Biological and Environmental Engineering, 10 p.

EARTHSAT, 1997, Remote sensing and fracture analysis for 

petroleum exploration of Ordovician to Devonian fracture 

reservoirs in New York State: Albany, NY, New York State 

Energy Research Development Authority, 35 p.

Environmental Systems Research Institute, 2009, ArcGIS 

Version 9.3.1: Redlands, California, Environmental 

Systems Research Institute, unpaginated (available at 

(http://www.esri.com/software/arcgis/eval-help/index.html).

Fakundiny, R.H., and Pomeroy, P.W., 2002, Seismic-reflection 

profiles of the central part of the Clarendon–Linden 

fault system of western New York in relation to regional 

seismicity: Tectonophysics, v. 353, Issues 1–4, p. 173–213.

Fullerton, D.S., 1980, Preliminary correlation of post-Erie 

interstadial events (16,000–10,000 radiocarbon years 

before present), central and eastern Great Lakes region, and 

Hudson, Champlain, and St. Lawrence lowlands, United 

States and Canada: U.S. Geological Survey Professional 

Paper 1089, 52 p.

Jacobi, R.D., 2002, Basement faults and seismicity in the 

Appalachian Basin of New York State: Tectnophysics, 

v. 353, p. 75–113.

Olcott, P.G., 1995, Ground water atlas of the United StatesConnecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New 

York, Rhode Island, Vermont: U.S. Geological Survey 

Hydrologic Atlas 730–M.

Reis, K.G., Guthrie, J.D., Rea, A.H., Steeves, P.A., and 

Stewart, D.W., 2008, Streamstats: a water resources web 

application: U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 2008–3067, 

6 p.
References Cited 15

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application in thinly-soiled karst—final report: Brockport, 

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Rickard, L.V., 1973, Stratigraphy and the structure of the 

subsurface Cambrian and carbonates of New York: New 

York State Museum Map and Chart Series, no. 12, 55 p., 

12 pl.

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of the Onondaga aquifer in eastern Erie County, New York, 

with emphasis on ground-water-level declines since 1982: 

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Appendix 1

Ten quadrangle plates of Genesee County, which overlie the carbonate-rock study area:

Northern Tier Quadrangles:

Akron (Plate1, map 1) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate1_map1_Akron.pdf

Akron (Plate1, map 2) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate1_map2_Akron.pdf

Oakfield (Plate 2, map 1) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate2_map1_Oakfield.pdf

Oakfield (Plate 2, map 2) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate2_map2_Oakfield.pdf

Batavia North (Plate 3, map 1) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate3_map1_BataviaNorth.pdf

Batavia North (Plate 3, map 2) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate3_map2_BataviaNorth.pdf

Byron (Plate 4, map 1) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate4_map1_Byron.pdf

Byron (Plate 4, map 2) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate4vmap2_Byron.pdf

Churchville (Plate 5, map 1) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate5_map1_Churchville.pdf

Churchville (Plate 5, map 2) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate5_map2_Churchville.pdf

Southern Tier Quadrangles:

Corfu (Plate 6, map 1) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate6_map1_Corfu.pdf

Corfu (Plate 6, map 2) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate6_map2_Corfu.pdf

Alexander (Plate 7, map 1) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate7 _map1_Alexander.pdf

Alexander (Plate 7, map 2) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate7_map2_Alexander.pdf

Batavia South (Plate 8, map 1) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate8_map1_BataviaSouth.pdf

Batavia South (Plate 8, map 2) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate8_map2_BataviaSouth.pdf

Stafford (Plate 9, map 1) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate9_map1_Stafford.pdf

Stafford (Plate 9, map 2) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate9_map2_Stafford.pdf

LeRoy (Plate 10, map 1) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate10_map1_LeRoy.pdf

LeRoy (Plate 10, map 2) http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3132/Plate10_map2_LeRoy.pdf

Quadrangle Plate 1-10 Map 1—Surficial bedrock units, location of agricultural land-use areas and thin soils, karst 

features and associated bounding areas or watersheds, and location of documented contaminant spills.

Quadrangle Plate 1-10 Map 2—Location of wells used in the study, bedrock surface contours, anthropogenic features, 

agricultural land-use areas and thin soils.
Prepared by the Pembroke Publishing Service Center

For additional information write to:

New York Water Science Center

U.S. Geological Survey

30 Brown Rd.

Ithaca, NY 14850

Information requests:

(518) 285-5602

or visit our Web site at:

http://ny.water.usgs.gov
Reddy and Kappel— Assessment of Focused Recharge to the Carbonate-Rock Aquifer in Genesee County, New York—Scientific Investigations Map 3132