GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CIRCULAR 27(} 

CHEMICAL QUALITY OF WATER AND 

SEDIMENTATION IN THE MOREAU RIVER 

DRAINAGE BASIN, SOUTH DAKOTA 

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Douglas McKay, Secretary 

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

W. E. Wrather, Director 

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CIRCULAR 270 

CHEMICAL QUALITY OF WATER AND SEDIMENTATION 

IN THE MOREAU. RIVER DRAINAGE BASIN, 

SOUTH DAKOTA 

By B. R. Colby, C. H. Hembree, and E. R. Jochens 

Prepared as part of a program 

of the Department of the Interior for 

Development of the Missouri River B~in 

Washington, D. C., 1953 

Free on application to the Geological Survey, Washington 25, D. C. 

CONTENTS 

Abstract-----------------------------------

Page 

1 Chemical quality of the water----------------

Geochemistry of water-------------------

Relation of the rocks to quality of water -

Page 

10 

12 

12 

12 

14 

14 

17 

17 

17 

17 

17 

24 

24 

Introduction--------------------------------

Purpose and scope of investigation---------

Previous investigations-------------------

Personnel and acknowledgn;tents -----------

1 

2 

2 

2 

2 

4 

4 

4 

Chemical quality records-----------------

Expression of results of analyses-------

Salinity study-------------------------

Moreau River at Bixby-----------------

Moreau River near Faith---------------

Moreau River near Eagle Butte---------

Moreau River at Promise--------------

Moreau River drainage basin ----------------

Location and extent ----------------------

Topography-----------------------------

Climate---------------------------------

Soils and vegetation----------------------

General geology of the Moreau River drainage Suitability of water for irrigation----------

Fluvial sediment ---------------------------

Definition of teril'ls-----------------------

Measurement of suspended-sediment 

discharge------------------------------

Suspended-sediment records--------------

Size composition of suspended sediment -

basin------------~-----------~----------- 4 

9 

10 

10 

Physical characteristics of streams----------

Moreau River---------------------------

South Fork Moreau River --------------

North Fork, Deep Creek, Rabbit Creek. 

24 

25 

26 

26 

34 

35 

37 

Flint Rock Creek. and Thunder Butte 

Creek------------------------------ 10 Specific weig~t of fluvial sediment---------

Little Moreau River. Bear Creek, and 

Virgin Creek------------------------ 10 

10 

Summary----------------------------------

Literature cited----------------------------

Runoff------------------------------------- Tables of base data-------------------------

Figure 1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

8. 

9. 

10. 

11. 

12. 

13. 

14. 

15. 

16. 

17. 

18. 

19. 

20. 

ILLUSTRATIONS 

Page 

Map showing location of sampling stations for chemical-quality and suspended-sediment 

investigations in the Moreau River drainage basin, South Dakota --------------------------- 3 

Map of the landforms of the Moreau River drainage basin of South Dakota and surrounding areas - 5 

Badlands near Fox Ridge----------------------------------------------------------------- 6 

Moreau River near Dupree---------------------------------------------------------------- 6 

Map showing average temperature and average annual precipitation in and near the Moreau River 

drainage basin------------------------------------------------------------------------ 7 

Geologic map of the Moreau River drainage basin ------------------------------------------- 8 

Discharge per square mile by water years at gaging stations in the Moreau River drainage basin- 11 

Salt deposits resulting from capillary action and evaporation, Moreau River drainage basin: 

A, Unnamed. tributary on Pierre shale uplands; B. Moreau River at Promise---------------- 13 

Priilcipal mineral constituents during periods of high and low flows at sampling stations, Moreau 

River drainage basin, 1945-51---------------------------------------------------------- 15 

Principal mineral constituents in surface waters. salinity survey, April 12 to 16, Moreau River 

drainage basin------------------------------------------------------------------------ 16 

Classification of surface water for irrigation, Moreau River drainage basin-------------------- 19 

Comparison to discharge of carbonate and bicarbonate in excess of calcium and magnesium. 

hydrogen ion concentration, and percent sodium, Moreau River at Bixby, water year 1949---- 21 

Comparison to discharge of carbonate and bicarbonate in excess of calcium and magnesium, 

hydrogen ion concentration, and percent sodium, Moreau River at Bixby, water year 1950---- 22 

Comparison to discharge of carbonate and bicarbonate in excess of calcium and magnesium, 

hydrogen ion concentration, and percent sodium, Moreau River at Bixby, water year 1951 -:--- 23 

Relation of suspended-sediment discharge to water discharge, Moreau River at Bixby, March 24, 

1949, to September 30, 1951 -------------------------------------------:--------------- 27 

Relation of suspended-sediment discharge to water discharge, Moreau River near Faith, 

August 15, 1946, to September 30, 1949 ------------------------------------------------- 28 

Average particle-size distributions of suspended-sediment samples. Moreau River at Bixby----- 29 

Average particle-size distributions of suspended-sediment samples, Moreau River near Faith--- 30 

Median particle size versus suspended-sediment discharge. Moreau River--------------------- 32 

Relation of specific weight of sediments deposited in reservoirs to median particle size--------- 33 

iii 
TABLES 

Page 

Table 1. Discharges for periods of sampling compared with calculated 21-year averages for stations on 

the Moreau River ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 18 

2. Summary of records of suspended-sediment discharge of the Moreau River--------------------- 25 

3. Specific weight based on median particle size for the Moreau River at Bixby-------------------- 31 

4. Specific weight based on median particle size for the Moreau River near Faith------------------ 34 

5. Volume of suspended-sediment discharge, Moreau River------------------------------------- 34 

6. Mineral constituents and related physical measurements, salinity survey, April 12 to 16, 1949--- 38 

7. Mineral constituents and related physical measurements, Moreau River at Bixby, March 1949 to 

September 1951------------------------------------------------------------------------ 39 

8. Mineral constituents and related physical measurements, Moreau River near Faith, April 1941 to 

September 1949------------------------------------------------------------------------ 43 

9. Mineral constituents and«elated physical measurements, Moreau River near Eagle Butte, April 

1941. to September 1951----------------------------------------------------------------- 47 

10. Mineral constituents and related physical measurements, Moreau River at Promise, October 1941 

to September 1951 --------------------------------------------------------------------- 48 

11. Monthly and annual summary of water and sediment discharges, Moreau River at Bixby---------- 50 

12. Monthly and annual summary of water and sediment discharges, Moreau River near Faith-------- 51 

13. Particle-size analyses of suspended sediment, Moreau River at Bixby------------------------- 52 

14. Particle-size analyses of suspended sediment, Moreau River near Faith ----------------------- 53 

iv 
CHEMICAL QUALITY OF WATER AND SEDIMENTATION 

IN THE MOREAU RIVER DRAINAGE BASIN, 

SOUTH DAKOTA 

By B. R. Colby, C. H. Hembree, and E. R. Jochens 

ABSTRACT 

This report gives the results of an investigation by 

the U. S. Geological Survey of the sediments and dissolved minerals that are transported by the Moreau 

River. 

The Moreau River drainage basin is a narrow basin 

in northwestern South Dakota that covers about 5, 360 

square miles ofrolli.Q.g, grassy plains, which are broken by buttes and by some small areas of badlands. It 

is underlain by shales, sandstones, siltstones, and 

limestones that are primarily of Cretaceous age. Precipitation averages about 16 inches per year. Average 

annual runoff is about 0. 7 inch but varies widely from 

year to year. 

The chemical quality of the water in the Moreau 

River is directly related to the geology of the area. 

Water affected by the Hell Creek formation and Fox 

Hills sandstone is predominantly a sodium bicarbonate type, whereas water affected by the Pierre shale 

is a sodium sulfate type. In general, water from 

streams that drain areas underlain by the Pierre shale 

is more mineralized than water that drains from areas 

underlain by the Fox Hills sandstone. Water that 

drains from areas underlain by the Hell Creek formation is least mineralized. 

The short-term chemical-quality records obtained 

during a wet climatic cycle are not representative of 

a long term. The average specific conductance and 

average percent sodium, each weighted with the '~(Vater 

discharge and adjusted to include estimates during unsampled periods of low flow, were computed for the 

3-year period at Bixby, S. Dak. The averages show 

that if all the water for the entire period were impounded without loss, the specific conductance would 

be 632 micromhos and the percent sodium would be 57. 

This water rates as good to permissible for irrigation. 

However, the estimated rating for a 21-year period is 

permissible to doubtful. In addition, water impounded 

during a dry climatic cycle would be conducive to the 

formation of black alkali if this water were applied to 

the soil. Therefore, the impounded water should be 

used only on land where adequate drainage facilities 

are provided and where infiltration rates are sufficient 

to provide low rates of evaporation and high rates of 

flushing. 

Suspended sediment transported by the Moreau River is mostly fine material, principally clay sizes. 

Median particle sizes not weighted with water discharge averaged about 0.0016 millimeter for the stations at Bixby and near Faith. 

1 

From April 28, 1949, to September 30, 1951, the 

MoreauRiveratBixbydischarged about 175,000 acrefeet of water and about 1, 080, 000 tons of suspended 

sediment. Approximately 90 percent of the water and 

the suspended sediment was discharged during the water year that ended September 30, 1950. During this 

water year the streamflow averaged about 2% to 3 times 

the normal flow. If deposited in a reservoir, the 

1, 080, 000 tons of sediment would occupy a computed 

space of about 980 acre-feet soon after deposition. 

From August 15, 1946, to September 30, 1949, the 

Moreau River near Faith discharged about 380,000 

acre-feet of water and nearly 2, 000, 000 tons of suspended sediment. If deposited in a reservoir, the 

sediment would occupy a computed space of about 1,820 

acre-feet soon after deposition. 

INTRODUCTION 

Purpose and Scope of Investigation 

The investigation by the Geological Survey of chemical quality of surface waters and of sedimentation in 

the Moreau River drainage basin is part of the program of the Department of the Interior for the development of the Missouri River basin. The overall plan 

includes regulation and control of flood waters, irrigation ofadditionalland, and productionof hydroelectric· power. One requirement for the planning of suecessful and economical projects for this overall plan 

is a knowledge both of the chemical quality of the surface waters and of the quantity and particle sizes of the 

sediment that is transported by the streams. 

Successful irrigation depends not only on the type 

of soils, drainage, and climate but also on the chemical quality of the water to be used. Data on the chemical quality of surface water in the Moreau River basin 

were collected and interpreted to show the variation 

in the quality of the water and the changes that may be 

expected in the chemical quality when the water is impounded in a reservoir. In this investigation the quality and quantity of dissolved constituents in the main 

stream were correlated insofar as possible with geologic, climatic, hydrologic, and cultural characteristics of the drainage basin. 

The samples analyzed for dissolved constituents 

were collected at four gaging stations that are operated by the Geological Survey. Samples were collected 

daily at stations at Bixby, March 1949 to September 

1951, and near Faith, April 1947 to September 1949, 

and infrequently at stations near Faith, November 1945 
co March 1947. and Eagle Butte and Promise, November 1945 to September 19 51. The analyses of these 

samples and, in addition, the analyses of samples that 

were collected from major tributaries for a special 

salinity study are the basis for the chemical-quality 

discussions of this report. Dissolved solids, specific 

conduct:;tnce, pH, silica, iron, calcium, magnesium, 

sodium, potassium, bicarbonate, sulfate, chloride, 

fluoride, nitrate, boron, percent sodium, total hardness, and noncarbonate hardness usually were determined. For some samples sodium and potassium were 

calculated .and reported as sodium; boron was not always determined. 

The investigation of sedimentation in the Moreau 

River basin was undertaken to determine (1) the quantity of sediment in transport in the Moreau River, 

(2) the initial specific weight of the suspended sediment after deposftion in a reservoir, and (3) the probable sources of the sediments. The Geological Survey 

operated daily sediment stations on the Moreau River 

near Faith from August 1946 to September 1949 and at 

Bixby from April 1949 to September 1951. Samples 

of suspended sediment were collected at these stations 

to be analyzed for particle size as well as for concentration of suspended sediment. 

Geologic studies were made during the investigation 

to provide a background of information that is essential to the understanding and interpretation of the base 

data, both on chemical quality and on sediment. Pertinent published reports were reviewed, and a reconnaissance of the basin was made to study the rocks of 

the area and their relationship to the dissolved minerals and to the sediment that is transported by the 

streams. The sediment and dissolved solids carried 

by the streams in solution, in suspension, or as bed 

load were originally derived from the rocks that underlie the basin. 

Previous Investigations 

From April 1941 to May 1945, employees of the 

Bureau of Reclamation collected and analyzed qualityof-water samples from stations on the Moreau River. 

They also collected and analyzed two samples from 

Rabbit Creek, a tributary above the gaging station 

near Faith. 

Measurements of suspended- sediment discharge 

were made by the Corps of Engineers, U. S. Army, 

on the Moreau River at Promise on 4 days. April13 to 

16, 1931. Surface samples were obtained at Promise 

during the period February 8 to July 31, 1931 (Congressional documents, 1934, p. 37). 1/ Suspendedsediment records were also obtained by the Corps of 

Engineers from June 1947 to September 1951. 

Many reports on the geology of the Moreau River 

basin have been published, but most of them were concerned principally with coal resources and structural 

geology. So far as is known, no one has used geology 

1 See p. 35 for literature cited. 

2 

to assist in solving the quality-of-water and sedimentation problems of the area. 

Personnel and Acknowledgments 

This investigation was made by the Geological Survey in cooperation with other agencies of the Department of the Interior. It was conducted by the Water 

Resources Division of the Geological Survey, C. G. 

Paulsen, chief hydraulic engineer, and S. K. Love, 

chief of the Quality of Water Branch, Washington, 

D. C., and was under the general supervision of 

P. C. Benedict, regional engineer, Lincoln, Nebr. 

Water samples for chemical analyses and for suspended- sediment determinations were collected by 

employees of the Bureau of Reclamation for the station 

at Bixby from March 1949 to September 1951. 

Chemical analyses of surface-water samples were 

made by personnel of the office at Lincoln, Nebr., 

under the supervision of H. A. Swenson. 

Records of suspended-sediment discharge of the 

Moreau River were obtained by personnel of the office 

at Dickinson, N. Dak., under the supervision of E. J. 

Tripp. 

Unpublished streamflow records were furnished by 

R. E. Marsh and H. M. Erskine, district engineers, 

Geoi.ogical Survey, Bismarck, N. Dak. 

An unpublished report in the open files of the Geological Survey by H. A. Swenson entitled ''A progress 

report on the chemical character of surface waters in 

the Moreau River basin, South Dakota,'' covered the 

chemical-quality data that had been collected before 

October 1, 1947. It was used as a basis for much of 

the discussion of chemical quality of water in this report. 

MOREAU RIVER DRAINAGE BASIN 

Location and Extent 

The Moreau River drainage basin is in northwestern 

South Dakota and covers an area of 5,360 square miles. 

(See fig. 1.) The drainage basin is bounded by low 

divides that separate it from the drainage basins of 

the Grand River to the north, the Cheyenne River to 

the south, and the Little Missouri River to the west. 

• 

The Moreau River is formed by the junction of the 

South Fork and the North Fork. The two forks head 

near the South Dakota-Montana State line and flow eastward to a junction in the southwest corner of T. 14 N., 

R. 11 E. From this confluence the Moreau River flows 

eastward to join the Missouri River in T. 16 N. , 

R. 31 E., about 18 miles south of Mobridge. The 

Moreau River drainage basin is about 180 miles long. 

The principal tributaries of the Moreau River are 

the No.rth and South Forks, Deep Creek, Flint Rock 
.103° 1020 101° 100° 

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u T H 

EXPLANATION 

l 

Basin salinity study 

@ 

Sediment and chemical quality-of-water station 

D A K 

• Scheduled chemical quality-of-water station 10 o 50 Miles 

Stations 10, 16, 20, and 2 2 ore stream-gaging stations 

104° 103° 102° 

0 

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

---=--- I 1 450 

T 

lngex map of South Do kota showing 

the Moreau River drainage basin 

101° 100° 

Figure 1. --Map showing location of sampling statir 1s for chemical-quality and suspended-sediment investigations in the Moreau River drainage basin. 

South Dakota. 
Creek, Rabbit Creek, Thunder Butte Creek, Bear 

Creek, and the Little Moreau River. 

Topography 

The Moreau River drainage basin is a part of the 

Missouri Plateau division of the Great Plains province. The general topography of the area is shown by 

figure 2. The basin is an area of rolling plains partly 

dissected by streams and broken in places by buttes 

and badlands. (See fig. 3.) Most of the badlands and 

associated buttes are in the western half of the basin. 

The stream valleys in this part of the basin are well 

below the general level of the land, but they do not 

have the canyonlike proportions of stream valleys in 

the eastern part. 

In general, the valleys are narrow and have a series of terraces that rise stairlike from the present 

flood plain up to and blend into the uplands. The 

stream channels, except where they impinge against 

high terraces, have low but steep banks. Like the 

valleys in which they flow, the streams have a meandering pattern. {See fig. 4.) Parts of the lowlands 

along the streams are used for growing hay, but most 

of the land of the stream valleys and the rolling uplands is used for grazing. Some small grains are 

grown in the eastern part of the basin. 

Buttes, which rise sharply from the plains, are 

scattered throughout the basin but are most numerous 

in the western part. They are so numerous in one 

county that it is called Butte County. The buttes were 

formed by weathering and erosion of sedimentary strata that have different degrees of resistance to erosion. 

The relatively soft rock beneath a more resistant cap 

rock erodes rapidly and produces the flat-topped hills 

with clifflike sides. Debris from the undermined cap 

rock forms a border of rubble at the base of the buttes 

or lies temporarily on the side slopes. 

Badlands are not extensively developed and occupy 

only a small part of the basin. Gumbo- producing 

shales, the most abundant rocks in the area, erode 

into rounded hills rather than into badlands. The badlands are associated principally with the buttes, but 

minor areas of badlands are found along the deeper 

stream valleys and at the heads of the tributaries. 

These tributaries head along the divides that separate 

the Moreau River drainage basin from basins to the 

north and to the south. 

Climate 

The Moreau River basin, owing to a small range in 

altitude (about 1, 500 to 3, 500 feet) and to the eastwest orientation of the basin, has a fairly uniform climate. Average annual precipitation and temperature 

increase slightly from west to east. (See fig. 5.) The 

annual precipitation for the entire area averages about 

16 inches and the temperature about 44. 8°F. 

The climate of the basin is semiarid and is characterized by low precipitation. Summers are hot, and 

winters are cold. The temperature ranges from about 

-35° to 115°F. Annual snowfall of the basin averages 

about 36 inches, which is equivalent to approximately 

3. 6 inches of precipitation or a little more than one4 

fifth of the average annual precipitation. Runoff from 

the basin is low, about 0. 7 inch per year. 

Soils and Vegetation 

The soils in the Moreau River drainage basin belong to one broad soil group, the Chestnut group. All 

the soils are similar except in texture, because the 

climate and geology are generally uniform throughout 

the basin. 

Most of the basin is underlain by rocks of Cretaceous age--the Pierre shale, Fox Hills sandstone, and 

Hell Creek formation. (See fig. 6.) 

Soils derived from the Pierre shale in the western 

part of the basin are known locally as black gumbo and 

have been classed as Pierre clay in an unpublished report of the Bureau of Land Management. The soils 

developed on the Pierre shale in the eastern part of 

the basin haye been classed as the Boyd series. The 

surface of these soils is dark brown to dark olive 

brown. Both the Boyd series and the Pierre clay are 

shallow, immature residual soils. The unaltered or 

partly weathered shale is usually within 3 feet of the 

surface of level land and is much closer under sloping 

surfaces. The shaeowness and immaturity of soils 

on the Pierre shale are due more to the imperviousness of the parent rock rather than to erosion or any 

other cause. Soils overlying the Pierre shale absorb 

water slowly and are readily eroded on the steeper 

slopes. 

Soils developed from the Fox Hills sandstone and 

Hell Creek formation belong to the Morton series and 

cover about half the basin. These soils have a 4- or 

5-inch surface layer of dark-brown friable loam or 

silt loam. Because they absorb and hold water, they 

sustain a dense stand of vegetation on the more level 

surfaces. 

Grassland is typical of the entire drainage basin. 

Cottonwoods and some boxelder, ash, buffaloberry, 

chokeberry, and other small trees grow along the 

streams. Juniper and pine are confined mainly to the 

buttes. The most common grasses are gramagrass, 

wheatgrass, buffalograss, bluegrass, niggerwool, 

green needlegrass, and needle- and- thread grass. 

Sagebrush grows only in a few small areas. 

GENERAL GEOLOGY OF THE MOREAU RIVER 

DRAINAGE BASIN 

The Moreau River drainage basin is underlain by 

sedimentary rocks, such as shales, sandstones, siltstones, and limestones. (See fig. 6.) Only rocks of 

Cretaceous and Tertiary age are exposed at the surface; rocks that represent nearly all periods of the 

Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras are below the surface. 

The area now drained by the Moreau River and its 

tributaries was once the scene of alternate encroachment and retreat of great inland or epicontinental seas. 

Erosion was active during periods of emergence but 

gave way to deposition as the seas advanced. Logs of 

deep wells and measurements of outcrops in and on 

the flanks of the Black Hills indicate that several thousand feet of sedimentary material was deposited over 
,, 

J · . .-, .. - 3. ·\1 , 

'··,, ~~ ... - , , , - .. r- ~ ,' ,-

5 

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Figure 3 . --Badlands near Fox Ridge, S. Dak. Note the small area of badlands and, in 

the background, the rolling plains and buttes. 

Figure 4 . --Moreau River near Dupree, S . Dak. In the background the meandering 

c hannel is indicated by scattered trees. 

6 
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1 : 1 N o 1 R T H 1 o A K o; T A 1 146° 

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0 Belle Fourche 

14.1 in. 

45.7°F 

103° 102° 

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

-.....- I I 45o 

Index map of South Dakota showing 

the Moreau River drainage ·basin 

101° 100° 

Figure 5. --Map ~bowing average temperature and average annual precipitation in and near the Moreau River drainage basin, South Dakota. 
1030 1020 101° 100° 

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EXPLANATION - l White River group 

- TERTIARY 

Ludlow member of Fort 

Union formation 

EE2l 

Hell Creek formation 

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

T H D A 0 T 

Geology after USGS Circ. 78, USGS Bull. 627, South Dakota 

Geol. Survey Repts. 3, 21, and 28 

-..- I I 45o 

~ CRETACEOUS 10 o 40Miles 

Fox Hills sandstone 

m 

Pierre shale 

103° 102° 

Figure 6. --Geologic map of the Moreau River drainage basin, South Dakota. 

Index mop of South Dakota showing 

the Moreau River dra inoge basin 

101° 100° 
the region during the Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras 

(Rothrock and Robinson, 1938, p. 4-28). 

The rocks of the Pierre shale are the oldest exposed in the drainage basin. The material composing 

them was deposited in the great inland sea that covered 

South Dakota, as well as most of central North America, during the Cretaceous period. The Pierre shale 

was formed from fine particles that were carried to 

the sea by the streams, carbonates that were precipitated when the fresh waters of the rivers mingled with 

the saline waters of the sea, and volcanic dust. The 

Pierre shale consists principally of very dark gray to 

black clays and shales. Beds of marl and impure 

chalk, as well as calcareous and gypsiferous concretions, are in the formation. Bentonite, an alteration 

product of volcanic dust, is characteristic of the Pierre 

shale. It occurs in thin beds and is interspersed in 

the shale itself: 

As the Cretaceous sea slowly retreated from the 

land, near-shore deposits of sand and sandyclay were 

laid down over the clays of the Pierre shale. These 

near-shore deposits became the brown to yellow sandstones and sandy shales of the Fox Hills sandstone. 

In some exposures of the contact of the two formations, a distinct difference in the color and lithology 

can be seen between the top of the Pierre shale and 

the bottom of the Fox Hills sandstone. However, in 

other exposures the change is gradual from the darkgray shale of the Pierre shale to the well-cemented 

sandstone of the Fox Hills sandstone. 

After the deposition of the near-shore deposits <Of 

the Fox Hills sandstone, the land was elevated above 

the sea long enough for 200 to 300 feet of continental 

sediments to be deposited. The continental deposits 

consist of alternating strata of sandstone, shale, bentonite, and thin beds .of coal. Plant fragments, coal, 

land vertebrate remains, and the lack of continuity of 

the beds indicate the continental origin of these deposits, which have been grouped together under the 

name Hell Creek formation. 

During the Paleocene epoch of the Tertiary period 

the seas covered part of the Moreau River basin. Marine deposits in the eastern part of the basin were laid 

down contemporaneously with continental deposits in 

the western partof the basin. The Cannonball formation consists of material that was deposited in the sea, 

and the Ludlow member of the Fort Union formation 

is composed of continental deposits. All the Cannonball formation has been removed from the basin by 

erosion but is still present farther north. Only a small 

area of the Ludlow member still remains. This member consists of sandstone, shale, coal, and clay and 

can be distinguished from the underlying Hell Creek 

formation mainly by color. The Ludlow member is 

characteristically yellowish, whereas the Hell Creek 

formation is dull brown to gray. 

Small remnants of the White River group of Oligocene age remain on the tops of several buttes in the 

western part of the basin. Rocks younger than the 

Ludlow member and older than the White River group 

probably were originally present over much of this 

area, but they were eroded away before the deposition 

of the White River group. The Chadron formation, 

9 

which is the basal formation of the White River group, 

consists of gravels, sandstone, clay, and silt and is 

a b.uff color. The overlying Brule clay is composed 

of silt, clay, volcanic ash, and minor amounts of sandstone. 

Rocks of Miocene and Pliocene age probably were 

once present in the area but have been removed by 

post-Pliocene erosion. 

Although the Moreau River basin was profoundly 

affected by Pleistocene glaciation, it was not covered 

by continental glaciers except in the extreme eastern 

part. Scattered erratic boulders along the lower 

reaches of the Moreau River are probably residuals 

left by erosion of drift. 

Before Pleistocene glaciation the Missouri River 

did not flow through South Dakota. In pre-Pleistocene 

time the present Moreau, Grand, and Cheyenne Rivers 

were the headwaters of the Red River of the North, 

which then, as now, flowed into the HusdonBay (Petsch, 

1946, p. 8). During the Pleistocene epoch the Moreau 

River and other streams parallel to it were blocked 

by the Kansan or Nebraskan ice sheets or both. The 

combined flow of these streams was diverted to the 

southeast along the front of the ice sheet and eroded 

the present channel of the Missouri River. The diversion of the Moreau River radically changed its gradient and caused rapid downcutting, especially in the 

lower reaches. 

Recent alluvial deposits are present along all 

streams in the drainage basin. Their lateral extent 

and depth depend on several variable factors) such as 

the relative erodibility of the rocks in the uplands, 

the area of the drainage basin, and the runoff. Recent alluvial deposits are probably the largest immediate source of sediment in the Moreau River basin. 

The depth and lateral extent of these deposits are partly 

dependent on the supply of material from the consolidated rocks. Therefore, areas of high sediment yield 

are directly related to areas of exposed rocks that 

have relatively low resistance to erosion. 

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF STREAMS 

Among the factors controlling the characteristics 

of a drainage area are climate, topography, and the 

rocks that underlie the area. The interaction of these 

and other factors determines the characteristics of 

the stream. The environmental factors are interdepen~ent. That is, if the environmental factors of two 

drainage areas are identical at the beginning of an 

erosion cycle, the soils, vegetation, and topography 

of the two areas will be similar at the end of a given 

time provided the climate does not change. If, however, the rocks of the two areas are different and the 

climate is the same, the vegetation and topography 

will gradually become dissimilar in the two areas. 

For example, the climate of the Moreau River basin 

and the climate of the lower part of the White River 

basin are much alike, yet badlands are characteristic 

of the White River basin and rolling hills are typical 

of the Moreau River basin. The different types of 

rocks that underlie the two basins account for this difference in topography. 
Moreau River 

The Moreau River is formed by the junction of its 

North and South Forks in the southeast corner of 

T. 14 N., R. 11 E. It falls about 4 feet per mile as 

it flows eastward to join the Missouri River at a point 

about 18 miles south of Mobridge. From the junction 

of its forks toT. 19 E., R. 14 N., northwest of Dupree, the river flows successively over outcrop areas 

of the Pierre shale, Fox Hills sandstone, Hell Creek 

formation, and again over an outcrop area of the Fox 

Hills sandstone. For most of the distance it flows 

over the outcroparea of the Fox Hills sandstone. After leaving the outcrop area of the Fox Hills sandstone, 

the river flows to the Missouri River over an area 

underlain by the Pierre shale. East of T. 19 E., in 

the section underlain by Pierre shale, the Moreau River has cut a meandering valley 200 to 300 feet below 

the uplands. 

Although the suspended-sediment load that is transported by the Moreau River is composed almost entirely of particles of clay and silt sizes, most of the 

bed material is sand size or larger. The velocity of 

the stream may be sufficient to prevent deposition of 

the smaller particles, but probably the dissolved mineral characteristics of the stream are also a factor. 

'T'he effect of sodium in preventing flocculation, toge,'ler with the capacity of the stream to transport 

clay- and silt-size particles, impedes the deposition 

of small partie les on the stream bed. 

South Fork Moreau River 

The South Fork Moreau River rises near the South 

Dakota-Montana State line in T. 14 N., R. 1 E. and 

flows eastward to join the North Fork at a point about 

6 miles northeast of Inland. The drainage basin of the 

South Fork is underlain by the Pierre shale except for 

a few areas that are underlain by the Fox Hills sandstone and the Hell Creek formation and are drained by 

tributaries. One of these tributaries, Sand Creek, 

whose upper reaches are underlain by the Hell Creek 

formation, has a very descriptive name. Above the 

junction with Sand Creek the South Fork flows between 

high banks of alluvium and on a bed of fine material. 

Below the junction with Sand Creek its bed is composed of sand and coarser material. 

North Fork, Deep Creek, Rabbit Creek, Flint Rock 

Creek, and Thunder Butte Creek 

The gumbo clays and sands of the Hell Creek formation underlie most of the drainage areas of the North 

Fork and Deep, Rabbit, Flint Rock, and Thunder Butte 

Creeks. In the upper reaches, all these streams are 

actively eroding their channels; but in the lower 

reaches, where the channel slopes are lower, they 

meander and have much the same characteristics as 

the Moreau River. 

Little Moreau River, Bear Creek, and Virgin Creek 

Pierre shale and the Fox Hills sandstone underlie 

the drainage areas of the Little Moreau River and Bear 

Creek. The drainage basin of Virgin Creek, which 

discharges into the Moreau River at Promise, is 

underlain by Pierre shale. All three streams have 

cut deep valleys; and, except for Bear Creek, they 

have steep gradients near their headwaters. 

RUNOFF 

Most tributaries of the Moreau River are intermittent. They flow after heavy rainfall and during the 

spring when the winter snow is melting. The Moreau 

River itself has no flow during parts of many years. 

Records of the flow of the Moreau River have been 

obtained at four gaging stations (fig. 1) . No continuous streamflow records have been obtained on the tributaries. 

Periods of streamflow records of the Moreau River before October 1, 1951 

No. on map Gaging station Drainage area Period of record (fig. 1) (square miles) 

10 At Bixby------------------------------------- 1, 570 May 1, 1948, to Sept. 30, 1951 

16 Near Faith----------------------------------- 2,660 Mar. 8, 1943, to Sept. 30, 1951 

20 Near Eagle Butte ----------------------------- 4,320 Mar. 6, 1943, to Sept. 30, 1951 

22 At Promise ---------------------------------- 5, 223 Aug. 28, 1928, to Sept. 30, 1951 

Flow of the Moreau River varies widely from year 

to year. (See fig. 7.) At Promise the water discharge for the 21-year period that ended September 30, 

1951, averaged 273 cfs. The minimum annual average discharge during the period was 20 cfs during water 

year 1934, and the maximum annual average discharge 

was 812 cfs during water year 1950. 

Diversions and storage for irrigation have no appreciable effect on the flow of the Moreau River. Small 

amounts of water are collected in stock ponds during 

periods of surface runoff. 

Runoff from the Moreau River drainage basin averaged about 0. 7 inch during the period of streamflow 

records at Promise. Some runoff comes from the 

10 

snowmelt, but most comes from rains during late 

spring and early summer. Ground -water inflow to 

the Moreau River is low during most years, and the 

river has no flow for many days in some years. As 

the climate, topography, and soils are nearlyuniform 

throughout the drainage basin, runoff is probably about 

the same from all parts of the basin. Figure 7 shows 

that the discharge per square mile by water years differs only a little from one gaging station to another. 

CHEMICAL QUALITY OF THE WATER 

Proposed reservoir construction for irrigation 

should be preceded by study and consideration of the 

chemical quality of the water. If the water from the 
w 

...J 

~ 

w 

a:: 

<( 

::::> 

0 

(/) 

a:: 

w 

a.. 

0 

z 

0 

u 

w 

C/) 

1-' 

1-' a:: 

w 

Q. 

..... 

w 

w 

La.. 

~ 

m 

:::> 

u 

z 

-

w 

(.!) 

a:: 

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J: 

u 

(/) 

0 

0.20 

0.16 

0.12 

0.08 

) 0.04 I 

v 

0 

1931 

• 

( 

A EXPLANATION (~ 

--- Moreau River at Bixby 

- -- Moreau River near Faith /~ ~~ --- Moreau River near Eagle Butte 1/ ~ ~~ ~~/ Moreau River at Promise 

,, J \ J 1\ V.J ~~ 

y v ~ I \\ II v ~ I 1\ I ~ I \~ ~/' 

\ I \ I \ I • 

1\ I).. ~ 

\ / ~ v )~ ......... ~ I 

1935 1940 1945 1950 

Figure 7. --Discharge per square mile by water years at gaging stations in the Moreau River drainage basin. 
Moreau River is to be impounded, salt concentrations 

during periods of low and normal flows and the effect 

of dilution by flood flows should be evaluated. A study 

of the relationship between the geology and the dissolved minerals in the water may help toward a better 

understanding of the changes in the quality of the water 

from one place to another. Therefore, places for collection of samples on the Moreau River were so selected as to obtain analytical data on composition and concentrationof the water in the upper, middle, and lower 

parts of the river. In addition, information on the 

chemical quality of the major tributaries and on the 

effect of tributary inflow on the Moreau River was obtained by a special salinity survey. The locations of 

sampling sites are shown in figure 1. 

Geochemistry of Water 

The mineral matter dissolved in natural waters is 

derived from the rocks and soils. Differences in the 

mineral composition of waters are due to many factors, some of which are (1) the availability of soluble 

minerals in the rocks and soils, which is decreased 

by leaching and is increased by exposure of fresh surfaces to erosion; (2) the rate of leaching of minerals, 

which depends on the solubility of the minerals, the 

length of time the water is in contact with these minerals, and the temperature of the water; and (3) the 

character of the rocks. 

Soluble minerals are abundant in the rocks and 

soils of the Moreau River basin, but they are more 

available in the upper reaches, where slumping has 

exposed more fresh surfaces. 

The length of time during which the water is in contact with the rocks and soils has a direct bearing on 

the salinity of many streams and rivers. However, 

in the Moreau River basin most of the water leaves 

the basin in a relatively short period of time, usually 

2 to 4 months. Nevertheless, the surface waters of 

the Moreau River basin are not especially low in mineralization during relatively high flows. The soluble 

salts deposited on the surface of the valley sides by 

capillary action and evaporation during the dry months 

of the year are immediately available for solution by 

rain or storm waters. (See fig. 8.) Thus, the concentration of minerals in the Moreau River water may 

be appreciable even during relatively high water discharges. 

The chemical character of a water is directly related to the lithology or composition of the rocks with 

which the water comes into contact. For the most 

part, the Moreau River basin is underlain by the nonmarine Hell Creek formation, the marine Fox Hills 

·sandstone, and the marine Pierre shale, all of which 

affect the water quality. 

Relation of the Rocks to Quality of Water 

Water draining·from the Hell Creek formation usuallyhas ahighpercent sodium. The sodiumis insolution primarily as sodium bicarbonate. The Hell Creek 

formation contains minerals that are necessary to 

produce a sodium bicarbonate or sulfate water. Several reactions are involved. For example: 

12 

1. A calcium bicarbonate water forms from thereactionof the carbon dioxide-charged meteoric waters 

with the calcareous sands, which are common in the 

Hell Creek formation. 

2. Calcium or magnesium is replaced with sodium 

from beidellite in the bentonitic clay in the formation. 

Ca++ + 2HC03- + beidellite· 2Na 

~ 2Na+ + 2HC03- + beidellite·Ca 

3. Gypsum in the formation changes the sodium bicarbonate water to a sodium sulfate water. Sodium 

sulfate usually is characteristic of certain formations 

of Cretaceous age in the west. (Lindgren, 1932.) 

2Na+ + 2HC03- + ca++ + S04 = 

~2Na+ + S04= + CaC03 + C02 + H20 

The oxidation of the pyrites and marcasites in the Hell 

Creek formation may also account for part of the sulfate. 

FeS2 + 70= + H20 ~Fe+++ 2H+ + 2S04 = 

2Na+ + 2HC03- + 2H+ + S04 = 

--7 2Na+ + so4= + 2H2o + 2co2 

Water that drains from the Fox Hills sandstone is 

very similar in type to water that drains from the Hell 

Creek formation. The gray glauconitic marine quartz 

sandstone, sometimes interbedded with greenish-gray 

· marine shales, produces a water ordinarily high in 

sodium and bicarbonate. The sodium bicarbonate in 

water is formed by the same processes as in the Hell 

Creek formation; however, the water that drains from 

the marine Fox Hills sandstone should be more saline. 

Water influenced by the Pierre shale is somewhat 

different in type than waters influenced by the Hell 

Creek formation and Fox Hills sandstone. Calcium 

sulfate in the form of gypsum, calcium carbonate as 

calcite or aragonite, sodium salts in the form of bentonite, and iron sulfide in the form of pyrite or marcasite are in the exposures. As a result of solution 

and other chemical reactions with these minerals, the 

water that drains from the Pierre shale is characteristically a sodium sulfate type. The water contains 

large quantities of dissolved constituents because soluble minerals are abundant and because constant 

slumping of exposed shale brings unweathered minerals to the surface. The percent sodium is somewhat lower in water that drains from the Pierre shale 

than in water that drains from the Hell Creek formation and Fox Hills sandstone. This is probably due to 

the presence of the alkaline earth minerals, rather 

than the absence of alkali metal minerals. 

Chemical Quality Records 

The general relationship between the quality of the 

water in the tributaries and the quality of the water in 

the main stem of the Moreau River can be seen from the 

special salinity study. More detailed records of the 

four stations on the main stem are listed separately. 
A . Unnamed tributary on Pierre shale uplands 

B . Moreau River at Promise 

Figure 8 . - -Salt deposits resulting from capillary action and evaporation, Moreau 

River dr-ainage basin. 

13 
The mineral concentrations during periods of high 

and low flows in the Moreau River for the years 1945-

51 are shown in figure 9. These concentrations do not 

represent weighted averages. They show the diluting 

action of snowmelt and heavy rains and the high concentrations of the water during low flows. The graphs 

for each station are for periods of sampling at that 

station; therefore, graphs for one station should not 

be compared with graphs for another station: 

Expression of Results of Analyses 

The expressions of results are in accordance with 

those listed in the U. S. Geological Survey WaterSupply Paper 1102 (1952, p. 5-6) as follows: 

The dissolved mineral constituents are reported in parts per million. A part per million 

is a unit weight of a constituent in a million unit 

weights of water. . . . An equivalent per million 

is a unit chemical combining weight of a constituent in a million unit weights of water and is 

calculated by dividing the concentration in parts 

per million by the .chemical combining weight of 

the constituents. For convenience in making 

this conversion the reciprocals of chemical combining weights of the most commonly reported 

constituents are given in the following table: 

Constituent 

/J3asic radical~7 

Factor 

Iron (Fe++)----------------------- 0. 0358 

Iron (Fe+++)---------------------- . 0537 

Calcium (Ca++) ------------------- . 0499 

Magnesium (Mg++) --------:-------- . 0822 

Sodium (Na+ )---------------------- . 0435 

Potassium (K+)-------------------- . 0256 

[Acid radical~7 

Carbonate (C03--) -----------------

Bicarbonate (HC03-) ---------------

Sulfate (S04--) --------------------

Chloride (Cl-) ---------------------

Fluoride (F-)----------------------

Nitrate (N03 -) ---------------------

.0333 

.0164 

.0208 

. 0282 

.0526 

. 016.1 

Results given in parts per million can be converted to grains per United States gallon by dividing by 17. 12. A calculated quantity of sodiurn and potassium is given in some analyses and 

is the quantity of sodium needed in addition to 

the calcium and magnesium to balance against 

the acid radicals • · 

The total hardness, as calcium carbonate 

(CaC03), is calculated from the equivalents of 

calcium and magnesium . . . The hardness 

caused by calcium and magnesium (and other ions 

if significant) equivalent to the carbonate and 

bicarbonate is called carbonate hardness; the 

hardness in excess of this quantity is called noncarbonate hardness. 

In the analyses of most waters used for irrigation, the quantity of dissolved solids is given 

in tons per acre-foot as well as in parts per 

million. Percent sodium has been computed for 

14 

those analyses where sodium and potassium are 

reported separately by dividing the equivalents 

per million of sodiumby the sum of the equiva- · 

lents· per million of calcium, magnesium, sodium, and potassium and multiplying the quotient 

by 100. In analyses where sodium and potassium were calculated and reported as a combined 

value, the value reported for percent sodium 

will include the equivalent quantity of potassium. 

In most waters of moderate to high concentration, the proportion of potassium is much smaller than that of sodium. . . . Hydrogen -ion concentration (pH) is given as the negative logarithm of the number of moles of ionized hydrogen per liter of water. 

A weighted-average analysis represents approximately the composition of water that would 

be found in a reservoir containing all of the water passing a given station during the year {Or 

period7 after thorough mixing in the reservoir. 

The weighted-average analysis is computed by 

multiplying the discharge for the sampling period by the quantities of the individual constituents 

for the corresponding period and dividing the 

sum of the products by the sum of the discharges. 

Specific conductance, expressed as micromhos, is 

an electrical measurement of the ionized salts in solution. 

Salinity Study 

Spot samples were taken from the major tributaries 

and main stem of the Moreau River April 12 to 16, 

1949, after the major part of the water from the spring 

thaw had run off. The following discussion is therefore not applicable for periods of flood or other high 

runoff. However, a correlation between geology and 

water quality during normal or low flow, when the 

percentage of ground water in the stream is greater, 

is more reliable than at times when storm or melt 

waters dilute the streamflow. The locations of sampling sites for this special salinity survey are shown 

in figure 1, and the analyses of 21 surface-water samples are given in table 6, The principal mineral constituents are expressed graphically in figure 10 . 

The concentrations of dissolved minerals are highest in samples from the South Fork, which drains an 

area that is underlain by the Pierre shale. The dissolved mineral matter in these samples is predominantly sodium sulfate and contains appreciable amounts 

of calcium and magnesium and a small amount of bicarbonate. Samples from allother tributaries represent waters that drain from areas underlain mostly by 

the Fox Hills sandstone and the Hell Creek formation. 

Sodium bicarbonate characterizes these waters. 

Waters from Deep, Rabbit, Antelope, and Sand 

Creeks and the North Fork Moreau River drain from 

areas underlain principally by the Hell Creek formation and have a higher percent sodium than other surface waters of the basin. However, the water from 

Sand Creek at Mason has been influenced by the Fox 

Hills sandstone and Pierre shale, as shown by high 

mineral content and high percentage of sulfate. Flint 

Rock, Thunder Butte, and Worthless Creeks drain 

areas underlain principally by the Hell Creek forma-
t 

0 

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~ j, 

ct 

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t 

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j 

7 

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0 

~ 

60 

!50 

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EXPLANATION 

D 

Sodium and potassium 

fZZI 

Magnesium 

Calcium 

~ 

Chloride, 

~ fluoride, 

and nitrate 

Sulfate 

~ 

Carbonate 

-

and 

bicarbonate 

Figure 9. --Principal mineral constituents during periods of high and low flows at sampling stations, Moreau 

River drainage basin, 1945-51. 

15 
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at;· 

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HARDNESS AS CaC0 3 IN PARTS PER MILLION 

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0 

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EQUIVALENTS PER MILLION 

-'> m m o 1\l -'> m 

Son~ Creek 

at Aloson 

I 

Cii 

South Fork 

at Hoover 

land 

I 

Fork near Redig 

I 

Fork near Zeona 

I 

at 

Creek at 

I 

~~~50<~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~d Aloreou River 

I ~~~88~~~~~~~~~~~~~~2¥~~~~~~~Aioreou 

near Imogene 

I I 

near Usia 

River at 

I 

e;xbl 

(J) 

0 

Q. 

c 

s: 3 

~~ ~~ !D 3 c 0 3 a fTI f/1 

f/1 X 

c \) 

3 r 

l> 

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near Faith () -I 

':y 

- 0 0 

(D .... z 0 Q. 

ill 

a H~ CD i~ 

I 

at mouth 

I ~~~~~~~~~~Q2~ Rabbit 

I ~~~~~~~Z~~ Antelope Creek 

Creek at Sorum 

I 

near Dote 

I 

Creek 

I ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Aloreou 

I 

Rock at mouth 

I I 

Creek at mouth 

of Ado 

I 

River 

CD ::I 

.... 

a 

CD 

I 

Creek of mouth 

I 

Moreau River near White Horse 

I I 

at Promise 

I 

I ~MoreouiR;ver 
tion ·except in the lower reaches, which are underlain 

by the Fox Hills sandstone. Therefore, the samples 

represent mixtures of two types of water. Waters 

that drain from the Fox Hills sandstone and Pierre 

shale are more mineralized than waters that drain 

frotn the Hell Creek formation. The difference in concentrations is probably related to the nonmarine origin of the HellCreek formation and to the marine origin of the Fox Hills sandstone and the Pierre shale. 

The percentage composition of the water in the South 

Fork and in the entire main stem of the Moreau River 

shows the effect of the outcrops of Pierre shale, and 

the percentage is not altered materially by the relatively dilute water .that drains from areas that are 

underlain by the Hell Creek formation. 

Moreau River at Bixby 

Samples were collected daily from the Moreau River at Bixby from March 6, 1949, to September 30, 

1951. The results of chemical analyses are given in 

table 7. 

Water passing the station at Bixby is a mixture of 

water from the North and South Forks. Consequently, 

the Hell Creek formation, Fox Hills sandstone, and 

Pierre shale jointly contribute to the mineralization 

of the water. (See fig. 6.) When the discharge is low, 

nearly base flow, the water is highly mineralized and 

predominantly sodium sulfate. This is chiefly due to 

the Pierre shale, which underlies most of the South 

Fork and part of the North Fork. 

Moreau River near Faith 

Analyses of seven samples that were collected from 

April 16, 1941, to May 7, 1945, were furnished by the 

Bureau of Reclamation. Seven additional spot samples 

were collected bythe GeologicalSurvey from November 29, 1945, to March 26, 1947. Samples were collected daily from April 9, 1947, through September 30, 

1949. Results of chemical analyses for all these samples are given in table 8. 

The water in the Moreau River near Faith is similar to the water at Bixby. However, water from Rabbit and Deep Creeks enters the main stem upstream 

from the station near Faith and causes a slight increase in percent sodium and a decrease in concentration. These changes are due to the fact that Rabbit 

a~!d Deep Creeks are underlain mostly by the Hell 

Creek formation. The water quality at Bixby can be 

compared approximately with the water quality near 

Faith from the weighted-average figures for the 1949 

water year (tables 7 and 8), as both stations were then 

sampled on a daily basis. 

Moreau River near Eagle Butte 

Analyses of 13 samples that were collected from 

April 17, 1941, to July 8, 1943, were furnished by the 

Bureau of Reclamation. Since November 30, 1945, 

the Geological Survey has collected samples at irregular intervals. The analytical results for all samples 

are given in table 9. In general, the water near Eagle 

Butte contains less sodium than the water at Bixby or 

17 

near Faith, but it is more highly mineralized. The 

change in lithology between Faith and Eagle Butte is 

the principal reason for the change in water quality. 

Moreau River at Promise 

Analyses of eight samples that were collected from 

October 10, 1941, to June 15, 1943, were furnished 

by the Bureau of Reclamation. Since November 30, 

1945, the Geological Survey has collected samples at 

irregular intervals. The analytical results for all 

samples are given in table 10. 

The composition of the water at Promise is somewhat similar to the composition of the water near Eagle 

Butte. However, the water at Promise has a higher 

ratio of calcium and magnesium to sodium. 

Suitability of Water for Irrigation 

The suitability of water for irrigation, as determined 

by water-quality criteria only, depends primarily on 

mineral concentration, percent sodium, and concentration of boron. All these factors may vary considerably with water discharge. Thus, weighted-average 

analyses by water years are helpful in determining 

concentrations to be expectedonly if the water is impounded. However, concentrations as shown by these 

analyses may be misleading because they will be lower 

or higher during a wet or dry climatic cycle than longterm average concentrations. 

For the Moreau River study, relatively short-term 

chemical-quality records are available. Weighted averages have been calculated from analyses of water 

samples from the river near Faith ( 1948 and 1949 water years) and at Bixby (1949, 1950, and 1951 water 

years) and are given in tables 7 and 8. No other daily 

chemical-quality stations in the basin have been operated. In order to determine whether the 3-year records for Bixby and the 2-year records for Faith are · 

representative of a wet, dry, or average climatic period, it is necessary to compare the discharge records 

of these years with a long-term average discharge. 

As a long-term average discharge is not available for 

the two stations, it must be calculated after consideration of certain factors, which are (1) the climate 

throughout the basin is fairly uniform and consequently 

has a very small variance in average annual precipitation, and (2) the geology and topography are fairly 

uniform; therefore, the runoff does not vary appreciably 'rom one place to another. As a result of these 

two factors, the discharge per square mile of drainage 

area is relatively constant for the entire length of the 

river's main stem, as shown in figure 7. A 21-year 

record of discharge is available for the station at 

Promise. Thus, the discharge per square mile at 

Bixby and Faith canbe calculated withreasonable accuracy for periods when no records of streamflow are 

available. 

The average annual discharge at the Promise station for the 21-year period that ended September 30, 

1951, was 273 cfs from the drainage area of 5, 223 

square miles. The calculated discharge per square 

mile equals 0. 052 cfs, which when multiplied by the 

drainage areas above the other stations gives the approximate 21-year average discharge for each of these 
areas. Thus, the 21-year average discharge at Bixby 

(drainage area, 1, 570 sq miles) is about 82 cfs; near 

Faith (2, 660 sq miles), about 138 cfs; and near Eagle 

Butte (4, 320 sq miles), about 225 cfs. Discharge for 

each year of sampling is compared with the 21-year 

average for each station in table 1. The discharges 

for several of the years are lower than the calculated 

21-year averages. However, the average discharge 

for the period of sampling is somewhat higher than 

the 21-year average. This indicates that the period 

of sampling was during a relatively wet climatic cycle. Consequently, an average discharge- weighted 

concentration of dissolved minerals for the period of 

sampling would be lower than normal, and the percentage composition would not be representative of a 

long-term average. 

Table 1. --Discharges for periods of sampling compared with calculated 21-year averages for stations on the 

Moreau River 

Station 

Bixby----------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Faith----------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Eagle Butte----------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Promise -------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

Do----------------------------------

1 Drainage area in square miles x 0. 052. 

Years of 

sampling 

(water 

years) 

1949 

1950 

1951 

1946 

1947 

1948 

1949 

1946 

1947 

1948 

1949 

1950 

1951 

1946 

1947 

1948 

1949 

1950 

1951 

Annual 

average 

discharge 

(cfs) 

97.0 

216 

21.9 

70.1 

270 

102 

152 

105 

454 

176 

350 

645 

92.4 

116 

575 

251 

446 

812 

126 

} 

} 

l 

l 

Average 

discharge 

for period 

of sampling 

(cfs) 

112 

149 

304 

388 

Calculated 

21-year 

average 

discharge 

(cfs) 1} 

82 

82 

82 

138 

138 

138 

138 

225 

225 

225 

225 

225 

225 

273 

273 

273 

273 

273 

273 

Note. --At Faith, infrequent samples included; at Eagle Butte and Promise, infrequent samples only. 

Weighted- average concentrations for incomplete 

years are not necessarily representative of the water 

that flows past a station during a full year. For example, there were days when the water was not sampled at the Bixby station during the 3-year period of 

record. The following table compares the estimated 

weighted averages of specific conductance and percent sodium for 3 complete years of record at Bixby 

with the weighted averages for the sampling periods 

only. From these estimated annual figures, the 3-

year weighted average for specific conductance would 

be 632 micromhos and the 3-year weighted average 

for percent sodium would be 57. The graphic method of rating a water for irrigation as proposed by 

Wilcox (1948) would rate the water as good to permissible. 

Weighted averages of specific conductance and percent sodium for water in the Moreau River at Bixby, 1949-51 

Percent Specific conductance Percent sodium 

Water year of flow (micromhos per em at 25°C) 

Period sampled sampled 

1949 94 698 

1950 81 544 

1951 98 1,300 

Weighted average 1949-51------------------------

The results of analyses of com posited samples for 

the stations at or near Bixby, Faith, Eagle Butte, and 

Promise have been used to classify graphically the 

water for irrigation (fig. 11) . In general, the water 

becomes less suitable as the streamflow decreases. 

Therefore, if the period of sampling is during a wet 

Estimated for Period Estimated for 

18 

water year sampled water year 

735 54 55 

518 56 56 

1,300 79 79 

632 --------------- 57 

cycle, the short-term weighted averages would imply 

that the water is of better quality than would actually 

be available over a long period of time. By correlation of the calculated 21-year average discharge at the 

Bixby station (82 cfs) with the data given in figure 11, 

it is estimated that water impounded at Bixby for an 
EXPLANATION 

100 

90 

80 

70 

~ 

:= 60 0 

0 

Ill 

1- 50 z 

w 

0 

0:: 

w 40 !L 

30 

20 

10 

~ 1---

\ "'-

60!:J 

6' (f>6 

<> 

~~ ~ o';. ~0 0 

a e. 6 6 ~~ 19:9• 

Lll.l, f r ~ 

'h 

-· 

1---

o~ 

~ 

Discharge, cubic feet per second 

0 

0-50 

<> 51-100 

6 More than 100 

Solid symbols refer to weighted 

average for year indicated 

I --1--- 0 

"Jcf!. 0 0 

~ 4140~ 

~430 

4140 

4730 

4370 

00 ~ 0 o8 0 

() 0 0 p 0 ~1951 .............. 00 

0 ~ u~ I<& c 0 1\ 

'ii'3 <> 0 0 5 0 0 0 

N ~"--... 4 

- 2 

Based on doily samples 0o 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 

SPECIFIC CONDUCTANCE IN MICROMHOS PER CM AT 25°C 

Moreau River at Bixby, S. Oak. 

100 

90 ~ 1---1---1------- \ "'-~ 

\~ ....._ u 

0 (> 0 

0 

80 4060 

Rating Grode 

100 

90 

80 

70 

~ 

~ 60 0 

0 

Ill 

1- 50 z 

w 

0 

0:: 

w40 

!L 

30 

20 

10 

Excellent to good 

2. Good to permissible 

3. Permissible to doubtful 

4. Doubtful to unsuitable 

5. Unsuitable 

~ ------p r--1---

\ "-.......... <> 0 

~ 6 N 0 c 0 8 ~~ 

~ ~ 6 --'"'o 0 u 

a o a 0 s B 

<> 

0~6 ~ 6 3 0 

A. "-~48 

;j '1:: 

~ 6 

~:9~9 ~6 <> 4 

a~ ~ - 2 0 

~ 6 

-· : 

~ .... 

Based on infrequent and doily samples 

0 0 

~ 

5 

I 

0~5 460 

4400 

0 o 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 

SPECIFIC CONDUCTANCE IN MICROMHOS PER CM AT 25°C 

Moreau River near Faith, S. Oak. 

100 

90 ~ 1------1----1---1---

\ ~ '-...... 

\ 6 

-- 80 

i <> /\.0 

~ ~0 °R "' 70 A 

\ 3 "V 4630 70 

~ 

::I so 0 

0 

Ill 

1- 50 z 

w 

0 

~40 

!L 

30 

20 

10 

pO 5 4650 

L.l CJ 

~ 9;:. 0 

66 4 t. .......... ... - a ( 

ll\. 2 

r--1 

t::. 

Based on infrequent samples 0

o 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 

SPECIFIC CONDUCTANCE IN MICROMHOS PER CM AT 25°C 

Moreau River near Eagle Butte, S. Oak. 

~ 

:= 60 

0 

0 

Ill 

1- 50 z 

w 

0 

0:: 

w40 

!L 

30 

20 

10 

~ 6 

6 <> ~ ........... 

~& /j 6 'ii'O""-

~ l:J 

<:6 

2 

-· 

Based on infrequent samples 

5 

ov 

4 0 

,.. 

~ 

0 q 4260 

0

o 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 

SPECIFIC CONDUCTANCE IN MICROMHOS PER CM AT 25°C 

Moreau River at Promise, S. Oak. 

Figure 11. --Classification of surface water for irrigation, Moreau River drainage basin (after Wilcox). 

19 
average year would be permissible to doubtful for irrigation. Of course, some years the water would be 

more suitable for irrigation and some years less suitable than the average would indicate. However, Wilcox states that the graphical classification of irrigation water is dependent on permeability, drainage, 

quantity of water used, climate, and crops, and that 

irregularities that relate to any of these would alter 

the intended use of the graph. Therefore, heavy soils, 

low permeability, inadequate drainage, high rates of 

evapotranspiration, the application of too little water, 

or the growing of crops with poor salt tolerance may 

alter the classification of the water. 

Other chemical-quality characteristics besides total concentration and percent sodium must be considered in rating the water for irrigation. Boron in irrigation water can be toxic to crops if the concentration 

exceeds the limits suggested by Scofield ( 1936, p. 286) . 

Water in the Moreau River usually contains low concentrations of boron, and the higher concentrations 

during certain low-flow periods would not cause quality-of-water problems if the water were impounded. 

Eaton (1949, p. 38) states: 

... if the water contains more HC03-C03 

than it does Ca plus Mg, then with evaporation 

the Ca and Mg carbonates are precipitated and 

there remains sodium carbonate, and Na is the 

only important base. Sincethe strongbase, Na, 

is present with the excess of carbonate, a weak 

acid, the solution becomes strongly alkaline. It 

is the presence or absence of this residual sodium carbonate that now appears to furnish a criterion of whether black alkali can or cannot develop in irrigated soils. 

Black-alkali soil is the descriptive name applied to a 

soil that has a pH of 8. 4 or more and contains organic 

matter. The organic matter is dissolved by the alkaline solution, and the soil becomes dark brown to black. 

During certain periods of time, low-flow water at the 

Bixby station contained amounts of carbonate and bicarbonate. in excess of calcium plus magnesium, as 

shown in figures 12, 13, and 14. The relation to discharge ofcarbonate and bicarbonate in excess of calcium and magnesium (shown by crosshatching), hydrogen ion concentration, and percent sodium indicates 

that the excess carbonate and bicarbonate, hydrogen 

ion concentration, and percent sodium vary inversely 

with the discharge. However. the decrease of the percent sodium, pH, and excess bicarbonate is not so 

rapid as the increase of the discharge. Consequently, 

the concentrations of the constituents may temporarily remain high when the discharge increases. Figures 12, 13, and 14 show that during low flows carbonate and bicarbonate are in excess of calcium and 

magnesium, and the weighted average for the 1951 

water year shows an excess because the ratio of flood 

flows to low flows is low. However, the weighted averages for the 1949 and 1950 wateryears show no excess because the ratio is high. During the 1951 water 

year the percent sodium was high, and the hydrogen 

ion concentration (pH} exceeded 8.0 much of the time. 

The chemical-quality data for the station at Bixby 

for the 1951 water year may be used to estimate the 

water qualityfor previous years. Figure 7 shows that 

from 1931 to 1940 the discharge per square mile for 

6 of the years was less than during 1951, and figure 12 

shows that excess carbonate, percent sodium, and pH 

are all high when water discharges are low. Therefore, during many years of a dry period, such as 

1931-40, the water would contain excess amounts of 

bicarbonate and high percent sodium, and the pH would 

probably exceed 8. 0. This water would be conducive 

to the formation of black alkali. 

Eaton (1949, 1950) has made an extensive study of 

the relations of residual carbonate and percent sodium 

to the occurrence of black alkali and the suitability for 

irrigation of water in the Nile River basin. His findings are applicable to any natural water that may be 

used for irrigation. He stated (1949, p. 38-39): 

During period of low water the Nile water has 

a pH well above 8.0. The water has such a large 

proportion of HC03-C03 that when it is greatly 

reduced in volume by evaporation it precipitates 

much of its Ca and Mg as carbonates and silicates, giving rise to an alkaline solution. with 

little else than sodium salts of carbonate, chloride, and sulfate. Such a solution washing onto 

a soil from neighboring land, or rising from below and moving ·through it, would bring about the 

replacement of exchangeable calcium and magnesium, produce a high pH, establish impermeability, and, in other words, create those conditions that are descriptive of black-alkali soils 

.... If the possibility of black-alkali formation can be anticipated by recognition of the ionic 

relations of the water supply, advantage can be 

taken of the facts, not necessarily as a basis for 

condemning a water, but rather as a means of 

establishing the need of precautionary measures. 

Productivity can be maintained by adequate water use and drainage at less expense than it can 

be restored by reclamation. 

In the following table, a comparison is shown between the composition of waters of the Moreau River 

during the 1951 water year and of the Nile River during 8 months of low flow. 

A comparison of waters from the Nile and·Moreau Rivers 

.[Results in equivalents per million except percent sodiu~7 

Excess Bicarbonate 

Source Calcium Magnesium bicarbonate and Percent sodium 

carbonate 

Nile River (8 months of low flow)]j--- 0.87 0. 72 1. 44 3.03 56 

Moreau River weighted average (1951 

water year}---------------------- 1. 65 1. 07 2.33 5.05 79 

1 Eaton, 1949, p. 37. 

20 
~ 

.... 

~0 

w~ 4000r------------r----------~~-----------r------------~----------~--------~~------------~----------~------------~-----------,-------------r----------~ wo I ~w 

0~ 

m~ 

~ 0~ w or------------r-----------~~------------t------------t--------~-t--~~--i_--~~~~:_---i------------~----------~------------~------------~--------__J 

~ 

z 

w 

0 

~ 

w 

~ 

40 

9 

8 :X: 

0. 

7 

6 

20 

z 16 0 

..J 

..J 

~ 

~ 12 w 

~ 

~ 

~ 

z 8 w 

..J 

ct 

> 

~ 

c 4 w 

0 

No samples were collected 

un ti I Mar. 6, 19 49 --------+----------+~ 

Crosshatching represents an exces 

of carbonate and bicarbonate 

over calcium and magnesium 

o samples 

• _, were collected 

CARBONAT 

Graph of mineral constituents 

based on composites of 

daily samples 

from Sept. I to 131 

30 

Figure 12. --Comparison to discharge of carbonate and bicarbonate in excess of calcium and magnesium, hydrogen ion concentration, and percent sodium, 

Moreau River at Bi~by, water year 1949. 
N 

N 

~ 12,000 

0 

(.) 

w 

(/) 

0:: 

w 

a.. 

1-

w 

w 

u. 

(.) 

co 

:::> 

(.) QL-100 

90 

~ 80 

w 70 

~ 60 

w 50 a.. 40 

30 

~ 81-- 28 

'I 24 

~ 20 

...J 

...J 

i 

0:: 

w 

a.. 

(/) 

1-

z 

w 

...J 

~ 

> 

:::> 

0 

w 

SO DIU 

HYDROGEN ION CONCENTRAT 

Crosshatching represents on excess 

of carbonate and bicarbonate 

over calcium and magnesium 

Figure 13. --Comparison to discharge of carbonate and bicarbonate in excess of calcium and magnesium, hydrogen ion concentration, and percent sodium, 

Moreau River at Bixby, water year 1950. 
N 

Co) 

t:; 

Wo 0 

~ 4000 r-

------------,----------~-------------r------------r-----------r-----------~------------r-----------~------------~----------~-------------r------------

~w l------------l-----------~----------~~-----------t-----------t----------~r===~~::~~:_----------t------------t------------~~---''-------r---------~ 0(/) 

mo:: 

=>w o Oa_ 

T J:a 

~ 7 20 

~ 16 

...J 

...J 

~ 

0:: 12 w 

a.. 

(/) 

1-

z 

w 8 

...J 

<:{ 

> 

::> 

0 

w 

0 

Figure 

Dashed line is based on 

infrequent samples Crosshatching represents an excess 

of carbonate and bicarbonate 

over calcium and magnesium 

Graph of mineral constituents based 

on composites of daily samples 

except as indicated 

30 

14. --Comparison to discharge of carbonate and bicarbonate in excess of calcium and magnesium, hydrogen ion concentration, and percent sodium, 

Moreau River.at Bixby, water year 1951. 
The quality of the water in the Moreau River at Bixby is so poor for irrigation that a complete evaluation 

of soil, permeability, drainage, climate, application 

rates, and crops is necessary. During the dry periods 

of the climatic cycle, when irrigation would be needed 

most, the water quality is very poor. 

The use of the water for irrigation is not precluded 

where adequate drainage is provided and where infiltration rates are sufficient to provide low rates of 

evaporation and good flushing. 

Downstream from Bixby the water becomes progressively better for irrigation. However, the improvement is not great by the time the water reaches 

the station near Faith. Data are inadequate to foretell satisfactorily the suitability for irrigation of the 

water at the stations near Eagle Butte and at Promise. 

Available data (tables 9 and 10) seem to indicate that 

the percent sodium is lower and amounts of carbonate 

and bicarbonate in excess of calcium and magnesium 

are much less likely to be troublesome than in the water at upstream stations. 

FLUVIAL SEDIMENT 

Information on the sediment yield of a drainage basin should include rates and quantities of discharge of 

all the sediment that is transported either in suspension or as bed load, the particle-size distribution of 

the suspended sediment and of the bed load, and the 

principal sources of the sediment. This report contains only the measured rates and quantities of suspended sediment and the results of particle-size analyses of suspended sediments. 

Stream slopes are low and the particle sizes of the 

suspended sediment are small, so bed-load discharge 

must be low. Also few data are available for computing rates and quantities of sediment that is discharged as bed load. For these reasons the bed-load 

discharge of the Moreau River was not computed. 

Definition of Terms 

As the definitions of terms that relate to fluvial 

sediments are not completely standardized, some of 

the terms in this report are defined as follows: 

Sediment is fragmental material that originates 

from weathering of rocks and is transported by, suspended in, or deposited by water or air or is accumulated in beds by other natural agencies. 

Fluvial sediment is sediment that is transported 

by, .suspended in, or deposited by water. 

Suspended sediment or suspended load is sediment 

that moves in suspension in water and is maintained 

in suspension by the upward components of turbulent 

currents or by colloidal suspension. 

Bed load or sediment discharged as bed load includes both the sediment that moves in essentially 

continuous contact with the stream bed (contact load) 

and the material that bounces along the bed in short 

skips or leaps (saltation load) . 

24 

Sediment sample is a quantity of water-sediment 

mixture that is collected to represent the average concentration of suspended sediment, the average size 

distribution of suspended or deposited sediment, or 

the specific weight of deposited sediment. 

Depth-integrated sediment sample is a sediment 

sample that is accumulated continuously in a sampler 

that moves vertically at a constant transit rate and 

that admits sediment-water mixture at a velocity about 

equal to the stream velocity at every point. Because 

depth-integrated sediment samplers are not designed 

to collect water-sediment mixture within about 0.3 foot 

of the stream bed, the suspended-sediment discharge 

based on such samples is less than the total suspendedsediment discharge. However, for sediment in the 

silt and clay sizes, the difference is usually negligible. As the suspended sediments of the Moreau River 

are nearlyall smaller than sand size, the term "suspended-sedimentdischarge" is applied to the sediment 

discharge that is computed from depth-integrated sediment samples. 

Sediment discharge is the rate at which dry weight 

of sediment passes a section of a stream or is the 

quantity of sediment, as measured by dry weight or 

by volume, that is discharged in a given time. 

Specific weight of sediment is weight of solids per 

unit volume of deposit in place. 

The size classification used in this report is the 

classification recommended by the American Geophysical Union Subcommittee on sediment terminology 

(Lane, 1947, p. 937). According to this classification, clay size particles have diameters between 

0. 0002 and 0. 004 millimeter, silt size particles have 

diameters between 0. 004 and 0. 062 millimeter, and 

sand size particles have diameters between 0. 062 and 

2. 0 millimeters. 

According to Twenhofel and Tyler (1941, p. 110): 

The median, or median diameter, is the midpoint in the size distribution of a sediment of 

which one-half of the weight is composed of particles larger in diameter than the median and 

one-half of smaller diameter. The median diameter may be read directly from the cumulative curve by noting the diameter value at the 

point of intersection of the 50 percent line and 

the curve. 

Water discharge is the discharge of natural water 

of a stream. The natural water contains both dissolved solids and suspended sediment. 

Measurement of Suspended-Sediment Discharge 

Discharge of suspended sediment is proportional 

to the product of water discharge and average concentration of suspended sediment. Procedures for gaging 

the flow of streams are fairly well standardized and are 

explained in Water-SupplyPaper 888 (Corbett, 1943). 

Concentration of suspended sediment in the Moreau 

River basin was determined usually from depth-integrated samples. These samples were collected either 
with the US DH-48 hand sampler or with the US D-43 

sampler. A bucket-type sampler was used when no 

better sampler was available or when the air temperatures were too low for a sampler with a nozzle. 

At each sediment sampling station, samples were 

collecte_d generally at one vertical in the stream cross 

section, called the daily sampling station, once or 

twice a day except during periods of high or rapidly 

changing concentration or discharge when samples 

were taken more frequently. Engineers collected additional samples periodically at the daily sampling stations. Usually they also sampled at a few verticals 

that were spaced to represent equal quantities of water discharge. The average concentration of the samples from these verticals was used as the average 

concentration of suspended sediment for the entire 

cross section. At some measuring stations, the average concentration for the cross section sometimes 

differed significantly from the simultaneous concentration at the daily sampling station. For such stations, corrections were applied to adjust concentrations.that were based on samples at the daily sampling 

station to average concentrations for the cross section. 

The concentration of suspended sediment in each 

sample was determined in the laboratory. First, each 

sample was weighed. Then, after the sediment had 

settled, the supernatant water was drawn off. The 

residue was filtered or evaporated, and the sediment 

was dried and weighed. Corrections were applied for 

any appreciable quantity of dissolved solids that remained with the sediment after the water was evaporated 

Daily mean concentrations of suspended sediment 

were computed by plotting the concentrations of samples from the daily sampling station on the gage-height 

graph, drawing a smooth curve through the plotted 

points, and picking the daily mean concentrations for 

the daily sampling station from this graph. If the concentrations at the daily sampling station were not representative of the concentration for the entire cross 

section of the stream, a coefficient was applied to 

compute the daily mean concentrations. 

Discharge of suspended sediment in tons per day 

usually was computed by multiplying daily concentration, in parts per million, by daily mean water discharge, in cubic feet per second, and by 0. 0027. On 

days when both concentration and water discharge were 

, 

changing rapidly, each day was subdivided, and sediment discharge was computed for parts of the day. 

For days when no samples were collected, the daily 

discharges of suspended sediment were estimated on 

the basis of water discharge, concentration for adjacent days, weather records, and records for other 

stations. 

Suspended -Sediment Records 

Daily records of suspended-sediment discharge of 

the Moreau River have been obtained and computed for 

the gaging station near Faith from August 15, 1946, 

to September 30, 1949, and for the gaging station at 

Bixby from April 28, 1949, to September 30, 1951. 

Sediment samples were also collected at Bixby on 

March 24 and April 13, 1949. The locations of the 

sediment stations at Bixby and near Faith are shown 

on figure 1 (map reference nos. 10 and 16). 

Table 2 is a summary of the more detailed record 

(tables 11 and 12) of suspended-sediment discharge for 

·the two stations. The average concentration weighted 

with water discharge was about 3, 700 ppm for the station near Faith and about 4, 600 ppm for the station at 

Bixby. The difference in average concentration at the 

two stations is due mostly to having sediment records 

during the water year of 1950 at Bixby but not at Faith. 

During the water year of 1950, the streamflow of the 

Moreau River was 2~ to 3 times normal. At the station near Faith the suspended-sediment discharge averaged about 650, 000 tons per year during the period 

of record or slightly less than 250 tons per square 

miles annually. Water discharge during this period 

averaged somewhat less than 130, 000 acre-feet annually. The Moreau River at Bixby discharged about 

1,000,000 tons of suspended sediment and about 160,000 

acre-feet of water during the water year of 1950 but 

only about 80,000 tons and 16,000 acre-feet during the 

water year of 1951. Sediment yield per square mile 

averaged nearly 350 tons per year. Available records 

are for too short a time to prove that the average sediment yield per square mile is appreciably different 

at the station at Bixby than at the station near Faith. 

As soils, topography, vegetation, precipitation, and 

runoff all seem to be about uniform throughout the 

Moreau River basin, the sediment yields per square 

mile are probably reasonably uniform within the basin 

except in small areas of badlands or active gullies. 

Table 2. --Summary of records of suspended-sediment discharge of the Moreau River 

Drainage Water Suspended- Average 

Gaging station area Period discharge sediment concentra-

(sq miles) (acre-ft) discharge tion 1/ 

(tons) (pprri) 

At Bixby-------------------- 1, 570. Apr. 28 to Sept. 30, 1949 2,440 3,940 1, 190 

Water year 1949-50 156,700 997, 100 4,670 

Water year 1950-51 15, 840 81,920 3, 800 

Near Faith------------------ 2,660 Aug. 15 to Sept. 30, 1946 4,050 32,120 5, 830 

Water year 1946-47 195, 500 1, 077,000 4, 050 

Water year 1947-48 74,380 353,600 3,490 

Water year 1948-49 110, 300 515,400 3, 430 

1 Weighted with water discharge. 

25 
Suspended- sediment discharge fluctuates with 

changes in any one of several interrelated variables, 

which include water discharge, turbulence and temperature of the flowing water, and availability of sediments of each size range. The fluctuations are large 

and frequent and have only a general relation to water 

discharge. Except, perhaps, at very high water discharges, the suspended-sediment discharge generally 

increases more rapidly than the water discharge because the concentration also tends to increase with 

water discharge. Throughout much of the range covered by the records, the suspended- sediment discharge increases approximately as the square of the 

water discharge. (See figs. 15 and 16, which show the 

relation of daily discharges of suspended sediment to 

water discharge.) In general, for a given water discharge, concentrations of suspended sediment are 

much lower during the spring than at other seasons of 

the year. 

Size Composition of Suspended Sediment 

At the sediment sampling stations at Bixby and near 

Faith, representative samples were collected periodically for particle-size analyses. (See tables 13 and 

14.) One or both of two general types ofparticle-size 

distributions were determined from a sample. One 

type showed partie le sizes according to settling velocities in native water in which the degree of flocculation may have been somewhat the same as might occur 

in a pool or reservoir. The other type of particlesize distribution was the classification of particles by 

their settling diameters when the particles were completely dispersed. For particle sizes smaller than 

0.031 millimeter, the difference between the two types 

of particle-size distributions is large. The difference 

is due to flocculation of the soil particles, which is 

caused by certain dissolved solids in the native water. 

A11erage size distributions of samples for which duplicate portions were analyzed in native water and in 

distilled water are plotted on figures 17 and 18. Also 

plotted on these figures are the curves of average particle-size distributions for all samples that were analyzed in distilled water. All average particle sizes 

are simply arithmetic averages of the size distributions of the particles; that is, particle sizes were not 

weighted with sediment discharge except that more 

samples were collected for particle-size analyses during periods of high flow than during periods of low 

flow. 

Particle sizes resulting from analyses in native 

water are helpful in estimating the rates and locations 

of sediment deposition in slowly moving parts of a 

stream and in reservoirs. However. the degree of 

flocculation in a reservoir may not be the sa,me as in 

the sedimentation cylinder in the laboratory. 

Absolute particle sizes, measured by settling velocities of dispersed particles in distilled water, are 

probably the most suitable size distributions for computing the specific weight of sediment after it is deposited in a reservoir. The specific weight of sediment increases as the absolute sizes of the sediment 

particles increase. Sediment particles, even though 

they may flocculate to a larger settling diameter in 

the process of deposition, will, after they are deposited in a reservoir, probably assume the same specific weight that they would have had if they had been 

26 

deposited while the particles were dispersed. Also 

the available data for defining the relation between 

median particle size of deposited sediments and specific weight were obtained from samples that were analyzed usually when the particles were dispersed. 

Until 1950 the particle-size analyses, both in native and in distilled water, were made with the bottomwithdrawal tube. During 1950 and 1951 many samples 

were analyzed for particle size by the sieve-pipette 

method (Twenhofel and Tyler, 1941, p. 54-55). In 

this method particles coarser than 0. 062 millimeter 

are separated from the finer particles by a combination of wet and dry sieving. The coarser portion is 

then weighed and discarded or is subdivided into different size classifications by dry sieving. The finer 

portion is analyzed according to sedimentation diameters by the pipette method. 

The suspended sediment transported by the Moreau 

River is mostly fine material. (See figs. 17 and 18.) 

The average percentage of particles in the sand range 

(0.062 to 2.0 mm) was 10 percent at Bixby and 6 percent for the station near Faith. The larger percentage of coarser particles at Bixby probably was due to 

the abnormally high water discharges during 1950. 

Median particle sizes as shown by the average sizes 

of the dispersed samples were, by extrapolation, about 

0. 0017 millimeter for the station at Bixby and about 

0. 0015 millimeter for the station near Faith (figs. 17 

and 18). The samples were not weighted with water 

discharge or sediment discharge. 

Specific ·weight of Fluvial Sediment 

One significant factor in the design of reservoirs 

is the rate of depletion of storage capacity by sediment 

deposits. Estimates of the rate of reservoir depletion 

should be based on a knowledge of the probable location and specific weight of the deposited sediments. 

The location of the deposited sediments is dependent 

on inflow-outflow relationships or elevation of water 

surface in the reservoir, sedimentation diameter of 

particles in transport, mineral constituents in solution, and effect of density currents. The specific 

weight of sediment deposits depends on the type of material in transport, absolute particle size, effect of 

change in concentration of the mineral constituents in 

solution, degree of sorting, and amount of consolidation. 

The rate of deposition of sediment in the upper 

reaches of a reservoir is a function of the stream velocity (turbulence) and the settling diameters of the 

material in transport. The coarsest material will be 

deposited where the backwater begins, but some of the 

finest material will eventually reach the downstream 

end of the reservoir because of density currents or 

reservoir drawdown or both. The reservoir operation 

may result in deposition of coarse and fine material 

in alternate lenses at the same location. 

The specific weight of material deposited in reservoirs increases with compaction. If all the sediment particles have about the same specific gravity, 

the specific weight of the deposits is determined solely 

by the porosity of the deposit. The porosity depends 

chiefly on (1) the shape and arrangement of the particles, (2) the degree of assortment of the particles, 
10 ,000 

. 

. . -·- . ... . 

. . . . . 000 1----- -- . .. . .. . . . . . . 0 

z 

§ 

<f) 

a:: 

w 

. . . . . . . .. . . . . .. . . . . 100 .. . . . 0.. . 1-

w . w 

... . u .. . . N iii 

-:J :::J 

u 

~ 

. . . I . . . .. . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . i 

~ 

~ 

. . . . . . . . . e ·.: e I 

~ 

. . 10 0 

a:: 

w 

1-

<I 

3: 

.. .. . 

I r_ . ~ 

1.0 

0.1 0.1 LO 10 I()() 1000 10.000 100_000 1.000 . . 000 

SUSPENDEb- SEDIMENT DISCHARGE, IN TONS PER DAY 

Figure 15. --Relation of suspended-sediment discharge to water discharge, Moreau River at Bixby, March 24, 1949, to September 30, 1951. 
IO,oool I I I II II I I I IIIII ·1 I I IIIII I I I II II I I I II II I I I II II I I IIIII 

JT. 

' • ~ 

1----t---l--l--t--t-t-+++-----+----J-+--+++--t--t--t---- +- --+ I I I I I I I- I I I I I I ~ I I I I I I • +---41"---1-1-t--t-\ -r\ -t-1 +I \1-----t----J---J-+-+--+-+-+-1 

--+-· - ·t--

. ,. ~-

• I• I I I I I~ 

! .1·~•1 I I• 

.1. I I• 

\~·~l~lt I ~ 

1---•-

• • 

-~.W~H=t+~- ~ 

, • • I ., •• • • . . .. . 

• • 

- - --+~ + 1--t--

O.IL-----~--~~~~LL~----~---L--L-~-LLL~----~--~-L-L-L~~~----L-~--~~~~-L----~---L~~~-L~~~--~--~-L-L-L~~~----~~--~~~~~ 

OJ 1.0 10 100 I 000 10,000 100,000 1,000,000 

SUSP.ENDED- SEDIMENT DISCHARGE, IN TONS PER DAY 

Figure 16. --Relation of suspended-sediment discharge to water discharge, Moreau River near Faith, August 15, 1946, to September 30, 1949. 
N 

co 

99.9 

99.8 

99.5 

99.0 

98 

95 

90 

a:: 

w eo 

z 

LL. 

70 .__ 

z 60 

LU 

(.) 

a:: 50 

w 

a.. 40 

30 

20 

10 

5 

2 

I 

0.001 

_L. ~ 

_... 1---" 

~ ~ &=: f=-- ~ 

I---' ~ 

--:::: ~ 

~ ,..,...--;:: o--...,.. / 

~ >--~-_. P"/ ~ _..,.- ....,.,..,. , ~ ~ ~' 

/' / f.' /,. 

/ ~- / 

cV -~....( 'f"" /fl 

c)"""""""""' / 

, 

~) '( 

,' EXPLANATION 

~ .. J 

-/ --'------ -

-Art'/ 

Average particle sizes of duplicate samples 

analyzed in not iv e water 

-- I,...... 

(1)'---- Average p-ort ic le sizes of duplicate samples 

analyzed in dispersion medium -1--

Average particle sizes ·of all samples 

I a naryzed in dispersion medium -I--

I I I I I I I I I I I 

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 2' ~ 4 5 ~ 7 8 9 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 

0.01 0.1 1.0 

DIAMETER, IN MILL.IMETERS 

Figure 17. --Average particle-size distributions of suspended-sediment samples, Moreau River at Bixby. 
t.:l 

0 

99.9 

99.8 

99.5 

99.0 

98 

95 

90 

a:: 

w eo 

2 

lL 

70 

1-

z 60 

w 

(.) 

a:: 50 

w 

a.. 40 

30 

20 

10 

5 

2 

I 

0.001 

~. i 

/__.... ~ ~ 

/ 

y-~ 

...... ~ 

-,.- -loAIII" , .. - ~ :e- ~ - ~ / 

~ ~ ,./ 

~ ~ ..- .a'/ ..-~ ~--- ... ,..... ~ .--

~ ::; ...,., 

~ // 

~ ~- ;' 

.:;,- v I 

v 

,.../ I 

- / 

./ 

v"' : 

_......,JJ EXPLANATION 

c~...- -· ------ +-

Average particle sizes of du pi icate samples 

analyzed in native water 

-f--

Average particle sizes of duplicate samples 

analyzed in dispersion medium -f--

Average particle sizes of all samples 

anal( zed in dis p ers ion medium 1-r-- I I I I I I I + I I I 

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 2 ~ 4 5 ~ 7 8 9 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 

0.01 0.1 1.0 

DIAMETER, IN MILLIMETERS 

Figure 18. --Average particle-size distributions of suspended-sediment samples, Moreau River near Faith. 
and (3) the cementation and compaction to which the 

deposit has been subjected since its deposition. The 

degree of assortment is particularly important in fixing porosity. Sediment ofcompletelyuniform particle 

size (perfectly graded sediment) will have the greatest porosity. If all particles were uniform spheres. 

the size of the particles would have no effect on the 

porosity of uniform deposits. However. deposits of 

silts and clays usually have greater porosity and smaller specific weight than deposits of coarser particles. 

partly because the range in particle size is usually 

greater in coarser deposits and partly because the 

smaller particles fill some pores between the larger 

particles. 

The specific weight is increased and the volume of 

a sediment deposit is decreased as part of the interstitial water is forced out and as the sediment particles become packedcloser together. The smaller the 

pore spaces. the greater are the friction and other 

forces that resist compaction of the sediment. Hence. 

fine-grained deposits usually compact at a much slower 

rate than coarse -grained deposits. The rate and 

amount of increase of specific weight depend not only 

on the particle size of the deposits but also on the 

method of operation of the reservoir and on the depth 

of the sediment deposits. The rate of compaction is 

probably relatively rapid during the first few years 

after deposition but decreases with time. 

An average figure for the specific weight of a deposit that might be formed from the sediment in transport is necessary to compute the space that a given 

tonnage of the sediment might occupy when first deposited in a reservoir. The accuracy of such a computed average figure is affected not only by reservoir 

operation but also by inaccuracies in measuring the 

total sediment discharge and the particle sizes. At 

present only the suspended sediment is measured; the 

bed load must be estimated. Hence, only an approximate figure can be computed for the average specific 

weight that the sediment deposit will have SQOn after 

it accumulates in a reservoir. 

The specific weight of suspended sediment was determined by a method that is based on the median particle size of the suspended sediment. This method is 

believed to be superior to others that apply specific 

weights to different size grades because it is simple and 

is based on actual measurements of specific weights. 

This method is as follows: The median particle 

size of each sample that was analyzed in a dispersed 

state was plotted against the instantaneous suspendedsediment discharge in tons per day. (See fig. 19.) 

For predetermined class intervals of suspended-sediment discharge. the corresponding median particle 

sizes were taken from the curve of figure 19 and were 

listed in tables 3 and 4. 

Figure 20 shows the relation between the median 

particle size and the specific weight of relatively uncompacted sediment deposits in reservoirs in the 

United States (Hembree and others. 1952, p. 83-85). 

The specific weights corresponding to the different 

median particle sizes that are listed in tables 3 and 4 

were determined from figure 20. The specific weight 

of reservoir deposits that might be formed from the 

suspended sediment in the Moreau River at Bixby and 

near Faith was then computed (tables 3 and 4) and was 

found to be 51 and 50 pounds per cubic foot. respectively. These specific weights. which are for sediment deposits that have not been compacted during a 

long period of time or under the weight of appreciable 

amounts of overlying deposits, were used to convert 

tons of suspended sediment to acre-feet of sediment. 

(See table 5.) The computed volumes of sediment indicate that the probable maximum space that would be 

occupied by the suspended sediment that was discharged by the Moreau River at Bixby from April 28, 

1949. to September 30, 1951, would be about 980 acrefeet and near Faith from August 15. 1946. to September 30, 1949. would be about 1. 820 acre-feet. Flow 

of the Moreau River was probably appreciably above 

normal during the period of sediment records for the 

station near Faith and probably averaged much above 

normal during the period of sediment records at Bixby. 

Table 3. --Specific weight based on median particle size for the Moreau River at Bixby 

Suspended-sediment discharge Median particle Middle of class interval Total tons in 

(tons per day) class interval size (mm) 

0.55 273 0.0012 

5.4 1. 183 . 0012 

60 3,600 . 0012 

344 13,416 . 0013 

1,002 28,056 .0015 

1, 900 15. 200 .0017 

3, 065 9, 195 . 0019 

4,940 34, 580 . 0022 

8,000 32,000 . 0025 

12.950 64,750 . 0029 

21,000 105,000 .0035 

34,_000 136,000 .0041 

54, 500 163, 500 .0049 

88,500 177,000 .0059 

161,000 322 000 .0073 

----------------------- 1. 105, 753 ------------------

Specific weight in pounds per cubic foot = 1• 105• 753 = 51. 3. 

21, 539 

31 

Specific weight Total tons divided 

(lb per cu ft) by specific weight 

42 6 

42 28 

42 86 

43 312 

44 638 

45 338 

46 200 

46 752 

47 681 

48 1,349 

49 2, 143 

51 2,667 

52 3, 144 

53 3, 340 

55 5 855 

------------------ 21, 539 
~ 0 

a: 

w 

Cl. 

(/) 

z 

0 

Iz 

w~ 

(.!) 

a: 

<( 

I 

u 

(/) 

0 

Iz 

w 

~ 

0 

w 

(/) 

I 

0 

w 

0 

z 

w 

Cl. 

(/) 

=> 

(/) 

1,000,000 

100,000 

10,000 

1000 

100 

0.0001 

EXPLANATION 

• 

Bixby, s. Oak. 

0 

Faith, S. oak. 

-

• 

• • 

0 

• o I 

I 

I 

I 

I 

I 

• 0 p 0 

• od, 

I 

I• I 0 

• I 

~ 

• I 

I 

/ n 

I 

I 

• 0 

. 

0.001 

DIAMETER, IN 

v 

I 

~ I 

1/ 

I 

I 

I 

I 

/. 

v 0 

I •• 

v • 

• 

4 

0.01 

MILLIMETERS 

0 

. 

• 

Figure 19. --Median particle size versus suspended-sediment discharge, Moreau River. 

32 

0.1 
I"() 

!'"': 

ru 

rr ~• ~~~ 

• ....J 

• ....J 

,'~~ 

1.0 r---~----~----~----~----~--~-----r----~----r---~----~----/,.----, 

0.1 

• 

• 

• 

-

• 

• I 

I 

1 

• L 

I • - - • I • • 

• . I 

• • • • • 

• 

• • 

.. • 

• • • 

• 

• • 

.. • ·I I -• • 

• uJ, • ' • .• ,. - • • }re • • • •• - .. 

.. 

•. i· ~ . . ... . 

·-- • 

• • 

• 

• 

• 

• 

. / . / 

/ 

• / 

j· • 

• 

• 

• 

• • • 

• 

• 

0001~----._----~----~----_.~ __ _. ____ ~----~~----._ ____ ._ ____ ~----~----_. ____ -J 

0 10 20 30 40 50 

POUNDS 

60 

PER 

70 

CUBIC 

80 90 

FOOT 

100 110 120 

Figure 20. --Relation of specific weight of sediments deposited in reservoirs to median particle size. 

33 

130 
Table 4, --Specific weight based on median particle size for the Moreau River near Faith 

Suspended-sediment discharge 

Middle Median particle Specific weight Total tons divided of class interval Total tons in 

(tons per day) class interval size (mm) (lb per cu ft) by specific weight 

0.5 188 0.0012 42 4 

5.5 1, 754 . 0012 42 42 

60 8,400 . 0012 42 200 

275 19, 525 .0013 43 454 

770 34,650 .0014 43 806 

1,425 37,050 . 0016 44 842 

2,275 68,250 0 0018 45 1, 517 

3, 625 54,375 . 0020 46 1,182 

5, 775 98, 175 0 0023 46 2, 134 

9, 200 156,400 .0026 48 3,258 

14,650 131,850 . 0031 49 2, 691 

23,400 187,200 . 0036 50 3,744 

37,400 374,000 . 0042 51 7,333 

59, 750 418,250 . 0051 52 8, 043 

94, 250 188,500 . 0060 54 3,488 

125,000 250,000 . 0068 54 4,627 

----------------------- 2,028,567 ------------------- ----------------- 40,365 

Specific weight in pounds per cubic foot = 2• 028• 567 = 50. 3. 

40, 365 

Table 5. --Volume of suspended-sediment discharge, Moreau River 

Station Period Suspended-sediment Volume of deposited 

dischar_ge (tons) sediment (acre-ft) 

At Bixby----------------------------- Apr. 28 to Sept. 30, 1949 3, 940 3 

Water year 1949-50 997,100 898 

Water year 1950-51 81, 920 74 

Total--------------------------- ------------------------ 1,082,960 975 

Near Faith--------------------------- Aug. 15 to Sept. 30, 1946 32, 120 29 

Water year 1946-47 1, 077, 000 989 

Water year 1947-48 353,600 325 

Water year 1948-49 515,400 473 

Total--------------------------- ------------------------ 1, 978, 120 1, 816 

SUMMARY 

Soils, climate, and vegetation are fairly uniform 

throughout the Moreau River basin. The exposed 

rocks are ofCretaceous and Tertiaryage. The Moreau River is a meandering intermittent stream that 

flows in a shifting, sandy-bottomed channel. 

Runoff from the basin averages about 0. 7 inch per 

year and has been about uniform over the basin during the period of streamflow records. Some of the 

runoff comes from melting of snow, but most of it 

probably comes from rains during late spring and 

early summer. 

The chemical quality of the water in the Moreau 

River and tributaries is dependent on and directly related to the lithologic character of the exposed rocks 

of the Pierre shale, Fox Hills sandstone, and the Hell 

Creek formation. Water that drains from areas underlain by the HellCreek formation and Fox Hills sandstone contains predominantly sodium bicarbonate, 

whereas water from areas underlain by Pierre shale 

contains predominantly sodium sulfate. 

34 

Samples collected daily or infrequently at four places on the main stem and single samples collected 

from the tributaries for a special salinity study show 

the relationship between quality of water and geology 

and also the effects of tributary flow on the water in 

the main stem. The complexity of the water quality is 

shown by extremes in concentration and rapid changes 

in composition. 

The suitability of the water for irrigation is determined from relatively short-term records by comparison with long-term discharge records, consideration of the significance of the calculated weighted 

averages, and consideration of certain ionic relationships. On the basis of concentration and percent soaium, the water in the Moreau River at Bixby is classed 

as permissible to doubtful for irrigation. On the basis 

of the ratio of bicarbonate to calcium plus magnesium, 

percent sodium, and hydrogen ion concentration, the 

water is conducive to the formation of black alkali on 

soils during dry periods. The quality of the water of 

the Moreau River is so poor that all other pertinent 

factors must be considered before t-he water is used 

for irrigation. 
During 3 complete water years immediately preceding October 1, 1949, the discharge of suspended 

sediment of the Moreau River averaged about 650,000 

tons annually at the gaging station near Faith and was 

transported by an annual water discharge of about 

130,000 acre-feet. During the water years of 1950 

and 1951, the Moreau River at Bixby discharged about 

1,080,000 tons of suspended sediment and 170,000 

acre-feet of water. About 90 percent of this discharge 

of sediment and water occurred during the water year 

of 1950 when the streamflow was nearly three times 

the normal. Sediment yields per square mile may be 

no greater at Bixby than at the station near Faith. 

Suspended sediment transportep by the Moreau River is mostly fine material. The averages of median 

particle sizes (not weighted with water discharge) 

were, by extrapolation, about 0. 0017 millimeter for 

the station at Bixby and. about 0. 0015 millimeter for 

the station near Faith. Only 6 percent of the suspended 

sediment for the station near Faith and only 10 percent of the suspended sediment for the station at Bixby 

were coarser than the lower limit of the sand sizes, 

0:062 millimeter. 

Low channel slopes and small particle sizes indicate that bed-load discharge would be only a small 

percentage of total sediment discharge, but bed-load 

discharge was not computed because too few data were 

available. 

Particle sizes of the suspended sediment of the 

Moreau River at Bixby and near Faith indicate specific weights of 51 and 50 pounds per cubic foot, respectively, for deposits that might form in a reservoir without being compacted over long periods of time 

or under the weight of appreciable quantities of overlying deposits. On the basis of these specific weights, 

the suspended sediment discharged at the station at 

Bixby from April 28, 1949, to September 30, 1951, 

would occupy a volume of about 980 acre-feet, and the 

suspended sediment discharged at the station near 

Faith from August 15, 1946, to September 30, 1949, 

would occupy about 1, 820 acre-feet of space. 

LITERATURE CITED 

Congressional Documents, 1934, 73d Cong., 1st sess., 

H. Doc. 76 (Cannonball, Grand, and Moreau Rivers, North Dakota and South Dakota) . 

35 

Corbett, D. M., andothers, 1943, Stream-gaging procedure, a manual describing methods and practices 

oftheGeologicalSurvey: U.S. Geol. SurveyWaterSupply Paper 888. 

Eaton, F. M., 1949, Irrigation agriculture along the 

Nile and the Euphrates: Sci. Monthly, v. 69, p. 35-

42. 

Eaton, F. M., 1950, Significance of carbonates in irrigation waters: Soil Science, v. 69, p. 123-133. 

Hembree, C, H., and others, 1952, Sedimentation and 

chemical quality of water in the Powder River drainage basin, Wyoming and Montana: U. S. Geol. Survey Circ. 170. 

Lane, E. W., and others, 1947, Report of the subcommittee on sediment terminology: Am. Geophys. 

Union Trans., v. 28, p. 936-938. 

Lindgren, Waldemar, 1932, Mineral depositsJ 4thed.: 

New York, McGraw-Hill Book Co., Inc. 

Petsch, B. C., 1946, Geology of the Missouri Valley 

in South.Dakota: South Dakota Geol. Survey Rept. 

Inv. 53. 

Raisz, Erwin, 1939, Map of the landforms of the 

United States, Inst. Geog. Expl., Harvard Univ., 

Cambridge, Mass. 

Rothrock, E. P., and Robinson, T. W., 1938, Artesian conditions in west central South Dakota: South 

Dakota Geol. Survey Rept. Inv. 26. 

Scofield, C. S. , 19 36, The salinity of irrigation water: 

Smithsonian Inst. Ann. Rept., p. 275-287. 

Twenhofel, W. H., and Tyler, S. A., 1941, Methods 

of study of sediments: New York, McGraw-Hill 

Book Co., Inc. 

U. S. Geol. Survey, 1952, Quality of surface waters 

of the United States, 1947: U.S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 1102. 

Wilcox, L. V., 1948, The quality of water for irrigation use: U. S. Dept. Agr. Tech. Bull. 962. 

TABLES OF BASE DATA 

37 
w 

co 

:-

..-4 

bil 

..... 

!:!:;!. 

~ 

8 

0 = 

0 

z 

l 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

21 

22 

Table 6.--Mineral constituents and related physical measurements, salinity survey, April 12 to 16, 1949 

/Analytical results in parts per million except as indicatedl 

--;; 

r;:- 0 [I) 

....... 0 ....... 'U [I) 0 'M ::X:: b' •rl 'H -...... ....... g ........, ....... rl rl (.) N ....... :::;;:: 0 --::t r;:- <"'"\ 0 ..__. Q) 0 Cl! ._... ~ ........, Q) -...... 0 0 0 [I) 

Source 8 ·rl 0 +> Cl) ......... - z Q) Cl) 

- ......... 3 :z: 3 ell Q) ._... -...... a;- 'U bD +" ......... Q) -...... ,:::: +" ~ .g) Q) 

r... ell f>o. 3 ·rl ·rl 0 ell Q) Q) ......., > ell r... ell ._... [I) s C/J 

~ ,:::: +" ·rl •rl ~ rl ..c: Q) (.) ·rl Q) [I) 0 ell r... r... ,:::: 0 0 ~ ·rl ,:::: (.) ,:::: :8 ell ell ~ 'H 0 0 r... 0 C/J (I) rl 0 rl bD +> (.) 3 rl ;:;s +" r... C/J 

•rl Q) ·rl r... ell ell 0 0 ·rl ell ..c: ~ ·n 0 ·n ~ E-< Cl) H 0 :::;;:: Cl) 11. I:Q 0 Cl) 0 :z: I:Q ~ 

Sand Creek at Mason--------------- 5.71 53 18 0.01 37 17 260 8.0 362 0 438 3.0 0.3 1.9 0.14 964 

South Fork Moreau River at Hoover- 108 46 17 ;01 69 58 193 8.0 109 0 712 ?.0 .4 1.3 .34 1,120 

South Fork Moreau River near 

Inland-------------------------- 196 51 14 .01 63 39 153 2.0 89 0 548 6.2 .3 .8 .17 911 

North Fork Moreau River near 

Redig--------------------------- 2.28 57 19 .01 12 6.0 85 6.0 238 0 54 2.0 .3 1.5 .27 318 

North Fork Moreau River near 

Zeona--------------------------- 64.9 48 11 .02 13 1.5 123 1.6 228 0 112 2.3 .l l.l .15 390 

Spring Creek at Zeona------------- 1.22 49 8.3 .05 10 2.0 33 2.4 98 0 27 .8 .4 1.5 .18 156 

Sheep Creek at mouth-------------- -------- 56 9.9 .40 19 ?.4 93 6.4 182 0 122 2.0 .4 1.3 ---- 378 

North Fork Moreau River at mouth-- 34.3 -- 16 .02 16 7-3 116 5.2 229 8 130 2.0 .2 1.6 .33 436 

Moreau River near Imogene--------- 318 51 9.4 .01 51 29 133 130 0 401 6.0 .4 2.5 .09 747 

Moreau River at Bixby------------- 298 48 11 .01 5o 30 140 I 2.8 107 0 442 5.0 ·3 .8 .22 784 

Deep Creek near Usta-------------- -------- 55 10 .05 17 3.3 44 2.4 117 0 52 .5 .3 1.7 .27 208 

Deep Creek at mouth--------------- 37.7 55 11 .62 18 7.4 37 ?.2 116 0 56 2.0 .4 1.8 ---- 212 

Rabbit Creek at Sorum------------- 13.5 51 14 .01 27 10 72 196 0 96 l.O .3 2.4 .05 351 

Antelope Creek near Date---------- 11.5 52 7.2 .04 14 3-8 77 180 0 63 l.O .5 1.0 ---- 252 

Rabbit Creek at Ada--------------- 6?.4 52 11 .04 21 4.8 102 11.2 218 0 106 3.0 .3 1.2 .18 378 

Moreau River near Faith----------- 594 5o 11 .01 33 14 104 4.0 113 0 262 3.6 .2 l.O .14 505 

Flint Rock Creek at mouth--------- 44.9 47 8.0 .01 25 9.8 43 153 0 61 3.5 .l 2.3 .07 255 

Thunder Butte Creek at mouth------ 11.0 46 14 .10 16 3.8 29 78 0 52 .l .2 .o ---- 180 

Worthless Creek at mouth---------- 18.9 49 7.9 .02 8.0 8.5 31 76 0 50 4.0 .3 2.2 .oo 176 

Little Moreau River near White 

Horse--------------------------- 27.4 53 ?.2 .01 27 7.6 27 98 0 69 2.0 .3 2.5 .02 209 

Moreau River at Promise----------- 1,630 53 8.3 .01 46 12 64 113 0 196 4.0 .3 1.9 .07 422 - L...-- -1...-. 

Hardness 0 

0 as caco3 IV\ 

s I ·gN 

;o :a ,::::..__...., 

s ~ 0 ell <1l 0 (.) Q) 

·rl ,:::: [I) (.) [I) 

"[I) 0 (.) ,:::: 0 

s ~ .0 r... 1:1 ~~11 ·rl bD ell Q) ·rl 0 0 (.) ell 0 (.) t.l ;::! r... ~ s ,:::: r... Q) '0 t.l 0 Q) 

~ ::X:: 0 z 11. 0.. 

163 0 77 1,490 8.0 

411 321 50 1,570 ?.? 

318 245 51 1,220 ?.4 

55 0 73 499 ?.8 

38 0 87 587 8.0 

33 0 67 ----- ?.1 

78 0 70 566 ?.5 

70 0 77 672 8.3 

247 140 54 988 7.5 

248 160 55 1,100 ?.5 

56 0 62 343 ?.4 

76 0 49 320 ?.2 

109 0 59 478 ?.5 

5o 0 74 416 ?.3 

72 0 75 559 ?.7 

140 47 61 735 ?.6 

103 0 48 382 ?.4 

56 0 -53 251 7-4 

55 0 55 237 7.2 

99 l? 38 305 ?.9 

165 72 46 575 ?.8 
tlo) 

CD 

Table ?.--Mineral constituents and related physical measurements, Moreau River at Bixby, March 1949 to September 1951 

LAnalytical results in parts per million except as indicateS{ 

C""\ 

0 

0 

::c: 

Dissolved solids Hardness 

Date of collection 

Q) 

bO 

~ ;:::: 

(.)....-. 

CIJ CIJ 

;g~ 

§ ........ 

~ 

'&:' 

0 

Q) 

~ 

~ ,_, 

Q) 

E-< 

~ 

_..._, 

N 

0 

·r-1 

U) 

C1l 

(.) 

·r-1 

~ 

·r-1 

U) 

........ Q) 

e 

§ 

~ 

--;; 

0 

-

s 

•r-1 

(.) 

r;;j 

0 

~ 

s 

·r-1 

CIJ 

Q) 

r;:: 

~ ::;:: 

~ 

-

s 

;g 

0 

U) 

Q 

s 

·r-1 

CIJ 

CIJ 

C1l 

+> 

£ 

........ 

Q) 

~ r;:: 

0 

~ (.) 

·r-1 

>0 

~ 0 

(.) 

Q) 

1il 

r;:: 

0 

,!:Y 

~ 0 

-::; 

0 

U) 

._, 

Q) 

~ 

"'"" 

~ 

~ (.) 

-

~ •r-1 ,_, 

0 

~ 

;:::: 

0 

'&:' 

-

~ •r-1 ,_, 

g 

~ 

!'« 

--;; 

3 

Q) 

~ ,_, 

+> 

·r-1 

z 

'i:Q 

-r;:: 

0 

,_, 

0 

>0 

I I b I I as C~CO) ,_, Q) 

+> 

C1l 

r;:: 

0 

~ ,_, r;:: Q) 0 O..·r-1 r-1 CIJ~ 

~ ·g C1l 

a.. 

(.) 

C1l 

,_, 

Q) 

0.+> 0 CIJ 0 C"H 

0 

E-< 

d 

,_, 

Q) 

0. 

CIJ 

r;:: 

0 

E-< 

s 

•r-1 .. (}) 

s ~ ·ri bO (.) C1l 

r;;j E 

(.) 

~ C1l 

(.) 

r;:: 

0 

z 

March to September 1949 

/Analyses for periods that exceed 1 uay were made of samples composited by equal volume7 

Mar. 6, 1949-------- so -- 12 0.02 19 6.8 107 5.2 172 0 160 4.0 0.2 2.1 0.11 426 o.ss 58 76 0 

Mar. 7-------------- 150 -- 14 .03 13 s.o 48 3.6 100 0 72 2.0 .1 1.2 ---- 224 .30 91 53 0 

Mar. 8-------------- 200 -- 14 .30 8.9 1.5 36 2.8 69 0 42 6.0 .2 2.0 .oo l6o .22 86 28 0 

Mar. 9-------------- 300 -- 28 .08 12 .9 64 4.0 96 0 84 7.6 .2 1.6 .02 258 .35 209 34 0 

Mar. 10------------- 500 -- 39 .o6 14 4.5 7l 2.0 44 0 85 ---- .2 1.4 .05 306 .42 413 54 18 

Mar. 11------------- 400 -- 21 .12 11 2.6 61 2.0 92 0 86 4.6 .2 1.4 .03 244 .33 264 38 0 

Mar. 12--------~---- 300 -- 24 .20 9.9 1.1 56 3.2 62 0 73 19 .2 1.3 .04 232 .32 188 29 0 

Mar. 13-14---------- 225 -- 71 .12 18 6.0 92 3.6 50 0 166 ----- .2 1.6 .04 446 .61 271 70 29 

Mar. 15-16---------- 140 -- 36 .02 20 8.6 78 5.6 106 0 16o 5.3 .4 1.3 ---- 366 .50 138 86 0 

Mar. 17------------- 120 -- 30 .o5 18 s.o 55 6.0 .104 0 98 2.9 .4 1.7 ---- 276 .38 89 66 0 

Mar. 18------------- 110 -- 46 .02 15 5.4 58 6.0 102 0 98 4.6 .4 1.1 .oo 278 .38 83 6o 0 

Mar. 19-20---------- 100 -- 29 .02 14 4.0 58 5.6 101 0 92 2.0 .4 1.4 ---- 244 -33 66 52 0 

Mar. 21------------- 100 -- 35 .02 14 s.o 52 7.6 96 0 90 2.7 .4 1.3 ---- 248 .34 67 56 0 

Mar. ·23, 11:00 a.m.- 3,280 -- 50 .02 11 3-3 39 6.4 100 0 46 1.5 .4 1.0 ---- 190 .26 y 2,290 41 0 

Mar. 23, 4:30 p.m.-- 3,280 -- 58 .05 19 6.4 55 7.6 83 0 104 18 .2 1.1 ---- 300 .41 -------- 74 6 

Mar. 24, 10:30 a.m.- 2,790 -- 74 .02 14 5.4 38 6.0 68 0 80 4.5 .2 1.0 .04 264 .36 !I 2,010 57 1 

Mar. 24, 1:30 p.m.-- 2,790 -- 80 .02 14 4.4 39 12 6o 0 94 2.5 .4 1.0 .oo 278 .38 -------- 53 4 

Mar. 24, 4:00 p.m.-- 2,790 -- 32 .02 20 8.3 40 4.4 64 0 114 2.9 .4 1.3 ---- 258 .35 -------- 84 32 

Mar. 25------------- 2,710 -- 12 .10 36 17 62 5.6 96 0 206 4.0 .4 1.6 ---- 414 .56 3,030 160 81 

Mar. 26------------- 1,780 -- 9.0 .20 34 13 49 5.6 108 0 148 3.0 .4 1.3 ---- 346 .47 1,660 139 5o 

Mar. 27, 11:45 a.m.- 1,780 36 10 ---- 8.0 1.5 31 80 0 22 1.8 .6 1.9 ---- 148 .20 !I 1,160 28 0 

Mar. 27, 4:55p.m.-- 1,780 -- 12 .10 33 12 4s I 4.8 92 0 144 2.2 .4 1.4 ---- 334 .45 -------- 132 57 

Mar. 28, 9:45 a.m.-- 2,190 -- 9.0 .02 29 13 68 .4 79 0 196 2.6 .2 1.2 .09 376 .51 y 2,580 126 61 

Mar. 28, 12:00 m.--- 2,190 -- 8.8 .10 45 21 81 106 0 270 3.2 .4 1.9 ---- 530 .72 -------- 199 112 

Mar. 28, 2:15 p.m.-- 2,190 -- 11 .01 37 15 66 89 0 207 3-5 .3 2.2 .os 404 .55 -------- 154 81 

Mar. 29, 10:00 a.m.- 1,910 -- 9.8 .01 25 13 79 I 3.6 72 0 218 3.0 .2 1.3 .10 411 .56 y 2,160 116 57 

Mar. 29, 3:45p.m.-- 1,910 -- 8.0 .01 37 17 64 80 0 218 4.5 -3 2.5 .oo 425 .sa -------- 163 97 

Mar. 30------------- 1,500 -- 15 .10 38 16 71 4.8 100 0 224 3.2 .3 .9 ---- 452 .61 1,830 161 79 

Mar. 31------------- 1,120 -- 12 .10 37 17 71 4.8 88 0 240 2.6 .4 .7 ---- 454 .62 1,370 163 91 

Apr. 1-2------------ 763 -- 15 .20 44 20 78 4.0 92 0 280 4.2 .2 1.4 ---- 526 .72 1,080 193 118 

Apr. 3-------------- 595 -- 10 .10 45 22 92 4.8 88 0 310 4.0 .4 .9 ---- 582 .79 935 203 131 

Apr. 4---~---------- 560 -- 15 .40 48 22 106 1.6 102 0 338 4.6 .2 1.0 ---- 618 .84 934 211 127 

Apr. 5-8------------ 741 -- 13 .02 50 23 107 4.8 99 0 364 3.4 .2 1.5 .20 648 .88 1,300 220 139 

Apr. 9-------------- 708 48 11 .10 so 21 100 111 0 320 2.2 .3 1.2 ---- 618 .84 1,180 212 121 

Apr. 10------·------- 550 -- 15 .01 39 18 1oo I 1.6 . 8& 0 300 3-7 .2 1.0 .06 559 • 76 830 172 100 

See fovtnotes at end of table, p. 42. 

s 

;g 

0 

CIJ 

+> r;:: 

Q) 

(.) 

,_, 

Q) 

a.. 

74 

64 

7l 

78 

73 

77 

79 

73 

65 

62 

65 

68 

63 

63 

59 

56 

55 

49 

45 

42 

60 

42 

54 

47 

48 

59 

46 

48 

48 

46 

49 

52 

51 

51 

56 

I 

+> (.) ......... ::lit.) do o C'-<V\ 

OON 

O·g +' 0..,.. C1l 

•ri 

'H Q) CIJ 

·riO 0 

l§"§l:a 

661 8.0 

333 7.6 

225 7.8 

362 8.1 

472 7.6 

364 7.9 

330 7.8 

567 6.9 

529 7.8 

401 7.6 

377 7.6 

352 7.6 

346 7-7 

256 7.9 

410 7.5 

300 7.5 

304 7.3 

377 7.3 

613 7-3 

530 6.9 

168 7.0 

504 7.1 

560 7-3 

762 7.2 

583 7.2 

607 7-3 

606 7.2 

657 7.3 

758 7.0 

821 7-5 

848 7.2 

908 7.5 

911 7.8 

858 7.1 

794 7-4 
""' 0 

Table ?.--Mineral constituents and related physical measuvements, Moreau River at Bixby, March 1949 to September 1951--Continued 

LAnalytical results in parts per million except as indicate~! 

-~ Dissolved solids Hardness ~ 0 

0 Q) as CaC03 0 'M p:: "' I 

bD .._.. ,....... Q .._, 0 --::; -.:; Q) 

.... N --.-; ::.::: 0 -&::' "' .... ~ Q) 

C1l Q) 0 .._.. ";;! .._.. Q) '-' 0 0 0 C) 

..c: § ~ ll ·rl 0 +> Cll .._.. .._.. z Cll d 

Date of collection C),.-... Cll .......... .._.. 3· z 3 Cll Q) .._.. .._.. .......... .... s::: ·rl s::: 

·~~ .._.. Q) .._.. s::: +> ~ Q) a:l (I) 0 .... H "'U) 0 

Cll IX. 3 ·rl ·rl 0 C1l Q) 'd Q) .._.. O.·rl Q) Q) 

.... C1l '-" U) s ~ ~ 3 U) .n s::: ~ ·rl ·rl ~ r-1 P.+> a. '-' Q) C) ·rl Q) Cll 1\1 0 .... H s::: U),-1 0 ·rl bD Cll 

@ if ·rl s::: C) s::: :a C1l ~ 'H 0 0 H 0 

~ ·~ U) 0 U) C) Cll C) r-1 0 r;d bD +> () r-1 :!:! ;:_j +> .... S:::'H s::: r;d"" s::: Q) Q) ·rl .... Cll 0 0 ·rl C1l ;:_j 

~ ·rl 0 0 0 0 

::.::: """" Cll H 0 ::.::: Cll __ -~-~ a:l 0 Cll 0 z a:l jl.. 

"""" """" 0 z 

March to September 1949--Continued 

/Analyses for periods that exceed l day were made of samples composited by equal volume7 

Apr. ll-12, 1949-- 417 55 ll 0.02 51 23 112 4.4 116 0 364 3.6 0.3 1.8 ---- 664 0.90 748 222 127 

Apr. 12 2/-------- 374 58 12 .02 37 12 88 .8 115 0 234 4.0 .o 1.6 ---- 476 .65 481 142 48 

Apr. 13-15-------- 305 51 14 .02 52 24 137 4.0 127 0 408 3.6 .l 1.3 ---- 770 1.05 634 229 125 

Apr. 13 2/-------- 305 48 11 .01 5o 30 140 2.8 107 0 442 5.0 .3 .8 0.22 784 1.07 645 248 l6o 

Apr. 16-=--------- 311 54 11 .02 6o 33 169 142 0 508 4.0 .l 1.5 ---- 924 1.26 776 285 169 

Apr. 17-18-------- 168 53 12 .02 73 43 187 3.2 134 0 640 6.4 .1 1.3 ---- 1,030 1.40 467 359 249 

Apr. 19-23-------- 77 60 12 .02 65 39 202 6.0 190 0 584 6.4 .) l.O ---- 1,010 1.37 210 323 167 

Apr. 24-May 2----- 46 -- 14 .02 75 40 266 5.6 297 0 660 7.6 .3 1.2 .37 1,220 1.66 152 352 108 

M~ 3-5----------- 93 -- 16 .02 65 33 294 6.4 331 0 646 5.6 .2 2.2 ---- 1,230 1.67 309 298 27 

M~ 6-9----------- 37 68 15 .02 88 5o 356 8.8 307 0 900 6.2 .4 1.8 ---- 1,580 2.15 158 425 173 

M~ 10-19--------- 15 68 13 .02 68 50 397 8.8 337 0 948 10 .4 .7 .31 1,66o 2.26 67 375 99 

M~ 20-31--------- 12 69 8.8 .02 42 49 459 7.6 442 0 904 12 .5 .9 .34 1,710 2.33 55 307 0 

June 1-10--------- 9.6 70 7.2 .02 55 48 498 10 362 31 976 12 .6 .7 .43 1,820 2.48 47 335 0 

June ll-19-------- 6.6 70 6.8 .02 40 48 535 13 435 28 1,050 14 .8 .9 .48 1,950 2.65 35 298 0 

June 20-23-------- 4.6 74 7.1 .08 55 59 585 7-2 382 28 1,260 15 .6 .8 ---- 2,210 3.01 27 380 20 

June 24-29-------- 3.2 74 8.8 .08 54 54 630 9.6 427 24 1,280 16 .6 l.O .45 2,290 3-11 20 357 0 

June 30-July 1---- 1.9 83 6.3 .12 41 5o 675 10 489 10 1,330 18 .7 .8 ---- 2,390 3-25 12 308 0 

July 2-3---------- 1.7 81 8.2 .o4 40 5o 699 16 456 26 1,320 17 l.O 1.9 .6o 2,410 3-28 11 306 0 

July 4-6---------- 4.4 -- 9.0 .04 39 44 717 12 488 47 1,280 18 1.2 1.9 .87 2,410 3.28 29 279 0 

July 7-31--------- 1.4 75 7-7 .02 25 42 828 15 701 25 1,340 21 l.O .8 .70 2,660 3.62 10 235 0 

Aug. 1-8---------- 2/.0 75 9.4 .10 16 5o 1,150 12 858 92 1, 720 32 1.4 3.8 l.O 3,520 4-79 0 246 0 

Aug. 9-31--------- 3/0 70 9.8 .16 19 54 1,360 14 954 126 2,050 38 1.2 3.5 l.l 4,16o 5.66 0 270 0 

Sept. 14-30------- - 1.4 58 7.0 .06 17 35 991 11 756 87 1,46o 30 .8 1.7 -79 3,020 4.11 11 187 0 

Weighted average ~---------- 2/171 -- 22 0.07 35 16 87 4.9 §! 105 --- 242 6.2 0.3 1.4 ---- 487 0.66 225 154 68 

Estimated weighted 

average 1/------ ------- -- ---- ---- 34 15 87 4.8 ------ --- ----- ---- --- --- ---- ----- ---- -------- --- --- --- --·-

..._ __ October 1949 to September 1950 

/Analyses for periods that exceed 1 d~ were made of samples composi ted by discharge7 - Oct. 1-3, 1949---- 3.2 58 7.0 0.06 17 35 991 11 756 87 1,460 30 0.8 1.7 0.79 3,020 4.11 26 187 0 

Oct. 4-12--------- 16 51 8.4 .06 14 14 708 5.6 824 79 76o 16 .6 2.0 .6o 2,020 2.75 87 .93 0 

Oct. 13-26-------- 7.0 46 15 .12 20 6.5 316 6.0 450 20 356 7-0 -3 2.6 .20 988 1.34 19 62 0 

Oct. 27-31-------- 8.0 48 14 .08 27 2.2 401 5.6 560 24 408 9.0 .3 1.3 .30 1,170 1.59 25 77 0 

Nov. 1-30--------- 4.1 42 13 .08 32 8.3 473 5.2 640 20 532 10 .4 l.O .30 1,410 1.92 16 114 0 

Dec. 1-21--------- 3.2 33 16 .08 51 34 1,030 13 1,390 45 1,200 24 .3 .9 .67 3,100 4.22 27 267 0 

I 

+> C) 10 3 ;:_j 

cJ 00 

·rl S:::HU\ 'd OC)N 0 

U) C) ·g +> C)'-'Cil 

+> ·rl s::: 'H Q) U) 

Q) 

() 

H 'g § ~ Q) 

~ p:: A.. Q.c 

52 934 7.5 

57 706 7.0 

56 1,070 7.2 

55 1,100 7-5 

56 1,250 7.1 

53 1,480 7-5 

57 1,460 7.4 

62 l, 720 7.7 

68 l, 720 7-7 

64 2,210 7.6 

69 2,390 8.0 

76 2,430 8.0 

76 2,640 8.3 

79 2,850 8.4 

77 3,070 8.7 

79 3,150 8.6 

82 3,280 8.3 

82 3,140 8.5 

84 3,290 8.8 

88 3,570 8.4 

91 4,730 8.8 

91 5,430 8.9 

91 4,140 8.9 

54 698 ---

55 7:35 ---

91 4,l.40 8.9 

94 2,930 8.9 

89 1,510 8.5 

91 1,76o 8.3 

90 2,080 8.4 

89 4,370 8.4 
~ 

..... 

Mar. 6-9, 1950---- 123 34 16 0.02 16 4.1 134 4.6 168 0 190 4.0 .4 2.1 .10 510 .69 

Mar. 10----------- 100 34 13 .04 39 12 208 6.8 174 0 415 17 .4 3.6 .10 844 1.1.5 

Mar. 14-Apr.· 1---- 126 -- 13 .04 20 5.7 87 4 • .5 130 0 140 3.0 .4 2.2 .lU 356 .48 

Apr. 3------------ 2,900 33 13 ---- 12 2.3 24 .5.2 56 0 40 4.0 .4 4.4 .10 HlO .24 

Apr. 4-6---------- 2,800 34 16 .04 23 7.1 41 3-9 83 0 95 J.O .2 2.0 .10 242 .33 

Apr. 7------------ 6,590 32 16 .08 30 7-7 33 ).8 146 0 55 2.0 .2 1.9 .10 222 .30 

Apr. 11-14-------- 1,260 36 17 .04 31 8.4 so 4.0 107 0 120 2 • .5 .2 2.1 .10 316 .43 

Apr. 15-17-------- 7,600 42 15 .04 22 5.6 41 3-3 98 0 78 2.5 .2 1.0 .10 220 .30 

Apr. 18-20-------- 1,3.50 43 12 .02 36 10 57 4.2 99 0 170 2.5 .2 2.6 .10 346 .47 

Apr. 21----------- 363 4.5 11 .04 46 17 83 4.!1 110 0 260 3.0 .2 1.4 .20 .508 .69 

Apr. 22-26-------- 280 43 13 ·.o2 41 1.5 114 .5.1 144 0 273 4.0 .2 1.7 .10 .558 • 76 

Apr. 27----------- 160 47 12 .04 59 20 148 5.2 172 0 3b8 s.o .2 1.1 .20 728 .99 

Apr. 28-M~ 15---- 470 -- 16 .02 .57 22 143 5.8 144 0 400 s.o .2 1.4 .10 754 1.03 

M~ 16-31--------.- 45 62 18 .02 66 30 234 7.0 264 0 .545 7.5 .2 1.7 .10 1,040 1.41 

June 1-30--------- 30 70 9.8 .04 75 43 440 8.9 380 0 985 11 .s 1.3 .20 1, 760 2.)9 

July 1-31--------- 14 72 8.8 .04 83 46 390 9.2 316 0 93.5 11 .s 1.1 .20 1,640 2.23 

Aug. 1-5---------- 4.1 67 12 .04 39 30 480 9.2 455 0 84.5 16 .7 1.3 .40 1,660 2.26 

Aug. 6-8---------- 7.5 .54 14 .16 20 4.4 160 -6.0 216 0 230 7.0 .s 3-.5 .40 .574 .78 

Aug. 9-31--------- 6.7 67 10 .06 26 12 377 7-3 456 8 52.5 10 .s 2.2 .40 1,200 1.63 

Sept. 1-19-------- 4.5 65 9.8 .06 24 19 472 7.4 514 14 680 .14 .5 1.4 • .55 1,.500 2.04 

Sept. 20-24------- 34 64 17 .so 20 3.4 234 6.4 306 0 318 8.0 .6 2.4 .40 802 1.09 

Sept. 25-30------- 5.2 57 10 .06 26 11 384 6.7 481 11 49.5 10 .s 1.2 .07 1,190 1.62 

Weighted average ~---------- §/ 234 -- 15 0.04 31 9.8 7.5 6.6 §/124 -- 166 3-4 0.2 1.7 0.11 380 0.52 

Estimated weighted 

average 1/------ -------- -- ---- ---- 30 9.5 70 6.3 ~----- --- ----- ---- --- --- ---- ----- ----

-

October 1950 to September 1951 

/Analyses for periods that exceed 1 day were made of samples composited by discharg~ 

Oct. 1-31, 1950--- 6.36 -- 10 o.o4 27 22 410 6.2 543 0 570 11 o.s 1.5 0.10 1,330 1.81 

Nov. 1-30--------- 5.27 12 .04 41 27 618 7.1 753 15 825 16 .s .7 .20 1,930 2.62 

Dec. 1-20--------- 2.00 14 .10 66 33 824 9.4 1,010 30 1,140 29 .6 1.3 .so 2,640 3.59 

Jan. 1-28, 1951--- 3.80 -- 10 .10 81 34 740 6.6 980 18 1,050 22 .6 1.0 .47 2,450 3-33 

Feb. 1-26--------- .85 -- 10 .10 85 35 636 6.2 7.58 16 1,020 22 .6 .8 .48 2,210 3.01 

Mar. 5------------ 1.5 -- 11 .10 89 38 656 6.1 820 14. 1,070 2) .6 .9 .40 2,320 3.16 

Mar. 12----------- 1.5 -- 11 .10 77 42 644 5-7 886 24 990 25 .6 1.1 .45 2,260 3.07 

Mar. 19-31-------- 116.7 -- 9.0 .10 34 9.5 196 4.8 262 0 330 7.5 .6 1.8 .1.5 772 1.05 

Apr. 1-8---------- 37.8 -- 9.8 .03 28 13 213 4.3 258 0 350 6.0 ·3 2.0 .26 754 1.03 

Apr. 9-May 8------ 10.7 -- 8.2 .04 40 19 366 s.o 458 0 58.5 11 .4 1.1 .29 1,260 1.71 

May 9-11---------- 24.0 -- 12 .12 34 11 374 6.6 452 0 568 4.5 .s 3.5 .31 1,240 1.69 M~ 12-27--------- 9-39 -- 6.9 .03 26 21 524 6.7 500 19 790 13 .6 1.0 .43 1,660 2.26 

May 28-31--------- 38.3 -- 21 .06 25 9.8 333 6.6 392 0 508 7.5 .6 4.1 .18 1,110 1.51 

June 2-5---------- 138.3 -- 16 .04 18 4.1 246 4.9 338 0 310 3 .. 5 .5 5.2 .16 782 1.06 

June 6------------ 102 -- 15 .06 91 47' 482 8.8 290 0 1,180 11 .4 3.4 .19 1,980 2.69 

June 7-9---------- 46.0 -- 15 .04 52 25 3.52 9.2 290 10 720 7.5 .s 6.4 .16 1,340 1.82 

June 10-13-------- 16.3 -- ---- ---- 59 31 387 7.2 386 --- 765 10 --- .1 ---- ----- ---- June 14-18-------- 14.6 -- 10 .os 32 19 333 6.3 393 0 553 7.0 .5 3.0 .21 1,160 1.58 

June 19----------- 31 -- 15 .10 31 7.2 240 6.6 258 0 378 4.0 .6 7.6 .13- 854 1.16 

June 20-30-------- 48.5 -- 14 .04 See- footnotes at end of· table, p. '42. 42 21 29.5 6.5 301 0 .570 6.0 .s 2.8 .17 1,110 1._5:1, 

169 57 0 82 701 7.3 

228 147 4 74 1,200 7.2 

121 74 0 70 .52.5 7.2 

1,410 40 0 53 176 7.1 

1,830 87 19 49 3.51 7.1 

3,9.50 107 0 39 3.50 7.4 

1,080 112 24 48 444 7.2 

4,510 78 0 .52 332 7.4 

1,260 131 so 48 .521 7.5 

498 18.5 9.5 49 736 7.1 

422 164 46 59 !:319 7-3 

314 229 88 58 1,0.50 7.5 

957 '233 115 56 1,0.50 7 • .5 

126 288 72 63 1,470 8.0 

143 363 .51 72 2,320 7.9 

62 398 139 67 2,140 7-9 

18 220 0 82 2,360 7-9 

116 68 0 82 838 7.9 

22 116 0 87 1,770 8.3 

18 137 0 88 2,160 8.3 

74 64 0 88 1,140 7.8 

17 110 0 88 1, 760 8.3 

240 118 16 56 .544 ---

-------- --- -- 56 .518 ---

22.8 160 0 84 1,910 8.1 

27.5 212 0 86 2,670 8.3 

14.3 300 0 85 3,900 8.3 

25.1 340 0 82 3,.540 8.3 

5.07 358 0 77 3,130 8.2 

9.40 378 0 78 3,260 8.2 

9.1.5 364 0 79 3,180 8.3 

243 124 0 76 1,130 8.1 

76.9 122 0 78 1,120 7.9 

36.4 178 0 81 1,820 8.1 

80.4 129 0 86 1,800 8.1 

42.1 1.53 0 88 2,3.50 8.4 

115 103 0 87 1,670 7-9 

292 62 0 89 1,190 8.2 

545 421 183 71 2,720 8.1 

166 231 0 76 1,920 8.3 

-------- 276 0 75 ----- --- 45-7 160 0 81 1,720 8.1 

71.5 107 0 82 1,260 8.0 

14.5 193 0 76 1,610 7.8 
~ 

t-.:1 

Table 7.--Mineral constituents and related physical measurements, Moreau River at Bixby, March 1949 to September 1951--Continued 

LAOalytical results in parts per million except as indicatectl -

,....... ~ Dissolved solids Hardness ~ ""' 0 ......... c co () ......... ~ ~ ,....... b'O _...... 5 6' ......... _...... ,....... J, as a 3 S .g bfs' ~ C\J ......... ::<:: ::.d 0 ~ r-1 ......... f'l"\ ~ :>. Q) ·r-1 i:: ~1.!\ <1l Ql 0 Cll ..__.. .,-.... ..__.. Q) ..__.. ~ 0 I%. 0 () (11 S +> '0 OOC\J 

. "§- ~ r}j .....-.. .:_:. S ~ S ~ Ql ..__.. '-"' .._.. 3 ..--. J:.o ~ <1l '0 -~ ~ g 0 ·g +> Date of collect~on !J) !Jl +> ._., OJ :::l ..__.. :::l ~ +> OJ OJ r:I:l Q) o ~ ~ .. !J) o o ..__.. m 

;g ~ ~ <1l e. s ·g s ·g .2 ~ $ ~ ~ $ '-" 0.~ ~+> Q) s ~ £ ~ ~ Q) !J) 

..__.. Q) () ·r-1 Q) ;::! !J) ~ 0 <1l ~ ~ <1l ~ !J) r-1 0 p.. ·r-1 tlO <1l Q) ·r-1 () 0 

~ 0.. ·r-1 i:: () ~ :a <1l <1l ..c Co-t 0 0 ~ 0 +>·r-1 !J) 0 !J) () <1l () () () i::..C: 

~ !il ~ ~ ~ ~ 0 t -~ ~ 'd ~ ,:j ~ 8 @"' §Co-t § ~ s § ~ ~ <1l s ::I:: 

... ~~ E-1 til H 0 :::<:! til P.. r:I:l 0 til 0 I%. :Z: r:I:l P., E-1 E-o 0 :Z: P., til P.. 

October 1950 to September 1951--Continued 

/Analyses for periods that exceed l day were made of samples composited by discharge! -

July l-2, 1951---- 10 -- ---- July 3-4---------- 112 • .5 -- 1.5 

July 5------------ 88 -- 1.5 

July 6-9---------- 81..5 -- 13 

July 10-26-------- 7.14 -- 9.4 

July 27-31-------- .54 -- 8.2 

Aug. 1-ll--------- 2.15 -- 8.4 

Aug. 12-16-------- 357.6 -- 14 

Aug. 17-31-------- 20.2 -- 12 

Sept. l-30-------- 14.6 -- 13 

Weighted average ~---------- 2/23.7 -- 12 

Estimated weighted 

average 7/------ -------- -- ---- --- --~ 

1 Mean for day. 

2 Not included in weighted average. 

3 Ponded--no flow. 

---- 46 

o.o4 21 

.20 15 

.03 46 

.03 39 

.04 22 

.04 25 

.20 27 

.04 34 

.04 22 

0.09 33 

---- 33 

4 Weighted average for period sampled only. 

5 Mean discharge for water year is 97.0 cfs. 

6 Includes carbonate as bicarbonate. 

7 On basis of complete water year. 

8 Mean discharge for water year is 216 cfs. 

9 Mean discharge for water year is 21.9 cfs. 

24 

6.7 

).6 

20 

27 

23 

19 

7o9 

13 

7 .. 1 

13 

14 

261 6.2 245 --- 555 8."0 --- 0.3 ---- ----- 174 5.3 249 0 246 3.0 0.4 ).2 0.11 614 

107 4.2 194 0 122 2.0 .6 2.3 .07 386 

208 7.0 197 0 488 .5.5 • .5 3.5 .13 902 

28.5 7.4 246 0 623 9.0 • .5 ).2 .24 1,120 

418 7.9 275 17 77.5 12 .2 1.9 .41 1,420 

408 8.6 280 10 770 12 .6 2.5 .36 1,400 

124 4.9 197 0 193 5.0 .4 5.0 ---- 490 

180 6.4 209 0 340 4.0 .2 2.0 .18 716 

237 .5.6 348 0 290 4 • .5 .4 2.6 .21 764 

246 5.2 §! 308 --- 402 6.8 0 • .5 6.5 0.19 88.5 

2.50 5.2 ----- --- ----- ---- --- --- ---- -----

---- -------- 214 13 72 ----- --- 0.84 187 80 0 81 930 7.8 

.52 91.7 .53 0 80 547 7 • .5 

1.23 198 196 3!~ 69 1,310 7.6 

1.52 21.6 207 .5 74 1,660 8.0 

1.93 2.07 151 0 85 2,090 8 • .5 

1.90 8.13 142 0 8.5 2,050 8.2 

.67 473 100 0 72 744 7.8 

.97 39.1 139 0 73 1,060 7.6 

1.04 30.1 '84 0 8.5 1,150 7.9 

1.20 56.6 136 0 79 1,300 ---

---- -------- --- -- 79 1,300 ---
~ 

"" 

Table 8.--Mineral constituents and related physical measurements, Moreau River near Faith, April 1941 to September 1949 

LAna~ytical results in parts per million except as indicatedl 

Hardness ......... 

b' Dissolved sol;nR 

Date of collection 

Apr. 16, 1941 1/---

Sept. 19, 1942-l/--

Nov. 6 !(------~--- Apr. 14, 1943 !;---

June 14~---------

July 9 l ----------

M~ 7, 1945 !(-----

Nov. 29------------

June ·5, 1946-------

June 26------------

July 16------------

Sept. 5------------

Q) 

bD 

~ ..c 

o ......... 

~~ § ........ 

Q) 

::;;: 

2/ 300 

/10 

-y4 

2/ 51 

?I 2, 74o v 219 

v 28 

l 

?:! 367 

y 192 

2/ 21.1 -v 1.31 -L---. 

~ 0 

........ 

Q) 

r.., 

;::$ 

~ r.., 

Q) 

E-< 

~ 

--

--

--

--

--

--

--

--

--

--

--

--

N 

0 

·.-I 

e 

ctl 

(.) 

•.-I 

r-l 

•.-I 

Cl) 

----

----

----

----

----

----

----

4.9 

----

----

----

----

& 

........ 

s:: 

0 

r.., 

H 

----

----

----

----

----

----

----

o.o4 

.os: 

.10 

.os 

.os 

~ 0 

........ 

§ 

·.-I 

(.) 

r-l 

cU 

0 

19 

52 

29 

46 

17 

27 

57 

32 

86 

35 

97 

4l 

'M 

c 

§ 

·.-I 

[/) 

Q) 

s:: 

~ ;:.:: 

5.2 

ll 

18 

23 

3.8 

10 

10 

25 

22 

14 

42 

37 

~ 

~ 

s 

:a 

0 

Cl) 

g 

9 

·.-I 

[/) 

[/) 

cU 

+> 

£ 

e 

4) 

+> 

~ 0 

~ 0 

•.-I 

II) 

......... 

6' 

0 

........ 

Q) 

+> cU 

§ 

0 

~ 

~ 0 

e 

Q) 

+> cU 

~ 

~ 

rl 

e 

~ 

·~ 

0 

§ 

April 1941 to September 1946 

168 ---- 304 -- 190 2.1 

200 ---- --- -- ----- ---- 439 ---- --- -- ----- ---- 138 ---- --- -- ----- ---- 102 ---- --- -- ----- ---- 104 ---- --- -- ----- ----

59 ---- 247 -- 107 12 

638 8.4 844 0 855 16 

211 l6o 0 598 7.0 

117 148 0 260 4.0 

225 200 9 685 lO 

586 408 0 1,130 10 

October 1946 to September 1947 

E 

~ •.-I 

r.., 

0 

~ 

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

o.s 

.3 

.3 

.s 

.6 

~ 

3 

Q) 

+> cU 

r.., 

+> 

·.-I 

z 

0.6 

---

---

---

---

---

.l 

.s 

.2 

.6 

.9 

3.2 

-;; 

.._, 

1=1 

0 

~ 

0 

II) 

----

----

----

----

----

----

----

----

----

----

----

----

I 1 1 1 --- las CaC03 Q) 

r.., 

(.) 

r.., !=! Q) 0 0.·.-1 r-l [1),.-l 

t ·g ~ 

542 

832 

1,410 

634 

270 

460 

432 

2,000 

1,010 

521 

1,170 

2,010 

cU 

r.., 

Q) 

0.+> 0 [/) 0 s::~ 

0 

E-< 

----

----

----

----

----

----

----

2. 72 

1.37 

.n 

1.59 

2.73 

~ 'd 

r.., 

Q) 

0. 

[/) 

s:: 

0 

E-< 

-------

-------

-------

-------

-------

-------

-------

-------

-------

-------

-------

-------

9 

•.-I ... [/) 

9 ~ ·.-1 bD (.) cU 

'-;d s 0 

68 

175 

148 

208 

26o 

no 

187 

183 

305 

145 

415 

254 

Q) 

~ $:! 

0 

,D 

~ (.) 

s:: 

0 

z 

0 

---

---

---

---

---

0 

0 

174 

24 

236 

0 

LAna1yses for periods that exceed l d~ were made of samples composited by equal volum~ 

Oct. 2, 1946------- 13 -- ---- o.oo 34 13 198 230 0 359 4.0 o.4 o.6 ---- 745 l.Ol 26 138 0 

Mar. 26, 1947------ 2,010 -- 12 l.O 24 10 51 7.4 92 0 126 8.0 .4 .8 0.09 287 .39 1,560 lOl 26 

Apr. 9-18---------- 424 41 7.0 .10 22 9.2 274 29 141 0 575 7.0 .2 2.0 .19 962 1.31 1,100 93 0 

Apr. 19-28--------- 90 43 6.0 .10 22 5.7 294 4.0 222 0 507 8.0 .2 2.0 .19 96o 1.31 233 78 0 

Apr. 29-M~ 9------ 44 52 s.o .07 24 10 448 18 355 0 756 12 .4 2.0 .37 1,450 1.97 274 101 0 

M~ 10-19---------- 23 56 4.0 .07 24 12 474 21 380 12 764 13 .4 2.0 o37 1,520 2.07 94 109 0 

M~ 20-31---------- 16 52 4.0 .os 20 ll 503 21 378 20 784 15 .s 2.0 .37 1,570 2.14 68 95 0 

June l-10---------- 39 60 4.0 .03 43 34 423 10 380 20 775 16 .s .4 ---- 1,520 2.07 l6o 247 0 

June ll-20--------- 56 61 22 .03 61 43 420 14 332 18 900 14 .6 .2 ---- 1,66o 2.26 251 329 27 

June 21------------ 2, 720 -- 9.0 .18 17 5.9 53 8.4 122 0 88 .s .1 .8 .13 283 .38 2,080 67 0 

June 21, 6:00 p.m. ----------- -- 7.0 .16 25 s.s so 7.2 130 0 90 2.0 .1 .8 .14 272 .37 ------- 85 0 

.June 25------------ 4,900 -- 9.0 .10 63 27 115 15 116 0 416 s.s .J 1.2 .15 713 .97 9,430 268 173 

July l-10---------- 126 69 19 .10 78 36 238 19 238 22 583 6.0 .3 .6 .23 1,120 1.52 381 343 lll 

July 11------------ 544 -- 6.0 .01 116 43 253 244 0 770 8.0 .4 4.0 .30 1,320 1.80 1,940 466 266 

July ll-20--------- 149 70 19 .01 40 17 193 17 200 28 365 4.0 .2 2.0 •16 755 1.03 304 170 0 

July 21-31--------- 21 70 21 .os 41 23 290 18 339 4 514 7.0 .3 .8 .34 1,090 1.48 62 . 197 0 

Aug. l-10---------- ?.9 73 14 .01 43 34 394 19 305 32 758 12 .4 .6 .47 1,46o 1.99 31 247 0 

Aug. ll-20--------- 9.7 66 10 .01 42 29 425 ll 291 28 760 ll .3 .8 .44 1,46o 1.99 38 224 0 

Aug. 21-31--------- 1.8 65 6.0 .os 46 36 453 18 312 32 912 14 .3 .8 .49 1,670 2.27 8.4 263 0 

Sept. l-10--------- 1.3 59 7.0 .oo so 45 586 22 308 32 1,210 18 .s .6 .57 2,120 2.88 8.5 310 5 

Sept. ll-30----~--- l.l so 7.6 .04 52 49 708 18 395 ll 1,46o 26 .9 .o .62 2,530 3.44 7.6 331 0 

See footnotes at end of table, p. 46. 

I 

+> 

(.) ......... El ~I 0 ::s 'd 0 0 •.-1 s:: ~l.r\ 

'd Ot.>N 

g o.g +> o._, <U 

+> ·.-1 s:: ~ Q) [/) 

Q) ·.-1 (.) 0 (.) t.>S::..C 

~ Q) 0. ::r:: Q) cU s I 0.. Cl) 0. 

82 850 7.4 

71 1,270 7.7 

87 2,100 8.3 

59 910 7.9 

79 560 7.5 

67 690 7.3 

41 1,690 8.4 

88 2,780 7.8 

6o 1,290 7.8 

64 755 7.4 

54 1,520 8.3 

83 2, 770 8.2 

76 987 7.4 

55 436 7.5 

82 1,300 7.4 

88 1,390 7.8 

89 1,880 8.1 

88 2,010 8.2 

90 2,130 8.3 

78 2,190 8.7 

72 2,380 8.6 

60 435 8.4 

54 449 8.1 

47 1,100 8.2 

58 1,550 8.3 

54 1,860 8.4 

69 1,140 8.2 

74 1,580 8.3 

76 2,070 8.3 

80 2,070 8.3 

78 2,360 8.3 

79 2,930 8.3 

81 3,090 8.3 
11>-

11>-

Table 8.--Mineral constituents and related physical measurements, Moreau River near Faith, April 1941 to September 1949--Continued 

;Analytical results in parts per million except as indicated7 

fV'I Dissolved solids Hardness 1 .......... 0 ...., 

J'r.< 0 c t> .......... 

~ 2..- .......... .......... e 6' .......... .......... .......... dJ as Ca OJ s B ~ ~ H N ..--.. .iff :><:: 0 ..::t r-l ...-. fV'\ ;.., I>,. Q> ·r-1 ~ ;.., l.J'\ m w o ttl '--" ...-. '--" w ._,_, o o l'r-< o o co e ...., ro ot>N ..C: ;.., ·r-1 0 ttl _.., CJ1 ...,... .._.. Z ttl '0 ;::l ttl o t> ·g Date of collection ~ "-;;)' .E e --;;;- '--" s e s ~ .3 ........ Q) Ql ........ a:;- ~ § H H "'cri § Ul t> ........ ~ 

:a 't! ~ ttl e s ·cri e ·cri 2 ~ .3 ~ ~ .3 ........ o. ~ 2i. ...., 2i. s ~ .o 1:1 r:1 Ql Ul '-' Q) t> ·r-1 Q> ;::l UJ ;.., 0 ttl H ;.., ttl ~ Ul r-l 0 ·r-1 M ~ Q) ·rl t> 0 

§ ~ ~ § t> ~ :a ~ ~ '£ ~ ,Q g b ~ 1:·g 2~ 2 ~ ~ g ~ ~ §i Q) Q) ·rl ;.., til ttl 0 0 ·rl ttl ;::j ..c: r-1 ·r-1 0 ttl 0 0 ttl 0 Ql 0. ;; ::E: E-i (/.) H 0 ::E: (/.) 0.. ti1 0 CJ1 0 P<.. Z ti1 0.. E-i E-i 0 Z 0.,(1') ._., 

October 1947 to September 1948 

LAnalyses for periods that exceed 1 day were made of samples composited by equal volume Oct. 1, 1947, to Mar. 13, 1948, and by discharge Mar. 18 to 

Sept. 30, 19487 

Oct. 1-11, 1947---- 4.5 51 7.6 0.04 52 49 708 18 395 11 1,460 26 0.9 o.o 0.62 2,530 3.44 31 331 0 81 3,090 

Oct. 12-18--------- 43 49 13 .07 42 21 492 7.2 409 8 872 17 .8 .9 .45 1,680 2.28 195 191 0 84 1,960 

Oct. 30-Nov. 30---- 18 34 12 .02 38 23 569 4.8 652 24 793 18 .7 .6 .48 1,810 2.46 88 189 0 86 2,600 

Dec. 1-31---------- 8.6 32 12 .02 56 33 642 3.2 806 12 942 19 .7 1.5 .45 2,130 2.90 49 275 0 83 2,880 

Dec. 16 l/----~---- 1.0 32 13 .24 65 34 695 904 28 960 18 .5 .8 ---- 2,270 3.09 6.1 302 0 83 3,070 

Jan. 1-7, 1948----- 1.9 32 18 .03 53 48 799 I 9.6 858 0 1,280 24 .8 2.0 .56 2,660 3.62 14 330 0 84 3,290 

Jan. 8-12---------- 7.4 33 18 .02 38 47 858 5.6 848 39 1,340 27 .9 1.5 .41 2,800 J.81 56 288 0 86 3, 760 

Jan. 13-Feb. 20---- 2.0 32 16 .03 86 40 718 10 824 22 1,200 26 .6 .9 .36 2,520 3-43 14 379 0 80 3,320 

Feb. 19 2/--------- 1.0 32 7.5 .30 13 3.5 39 87 0 ~0 1.0 .2 6.9 ---- 192 .26 .5 47 0 64 158 

Feb. 21-26--------- 137 32 9.6 .25 12 4.4 91 12 166 0 109 3.5 .4 4.9 .oo 370 .so 137 48 0 76 505 

Feb. 27-28--------- 380 33 9.4 .60 15 4.5 58 1.6 116 0 81 1.0 .6 2.9 ---- 300 .41 308 56 0 68 342 

Feb. 29-Mar. 2----- 250 32 9.3 .30 15 3.0 52 5.6 100 0 82 2.0 .4 2.1 .21 262 .36 177 50 0 66 238 

Mar. 3-6----------- 123 32 9.5 .15 28 6.3 59 2.4 124 0 117 2.5 .s 2.4 ---- 340 .46 113 96 0 56 470 

Mar. 7-13---------~ 36 32 12 .15 30 11 108 5.2 174 0 203 6.0 .1 3.0 .oo 490 .67 48 120 0 63 702 

Mar. 14------------ 900 34 7.0 .22 14 2.8 38 81 0 59 .o .o 1.4 ---- 202 .27 491 46 0 64 265 

Mar. iS------------ 1,400 32 7.5 .20 15 1.8 20 72 0 26 .o .o 1.5 ---- 138 .19 522 45 0 49 182 

Mar. 16, 8:15 a.m.- 1,800 32 7.5 .18 17 1.8 15 64 0 28 .o .o 1.3 ---- 142 .19 690 50 0 40 161 

Mar. 16, 6:00 p.m.- 1,800 32 12 .60 16 s.o 69 146 0 86 .o .o 2.0 .os 298 .41 1,450 60 0 71 396 

Mar. 17, 8:00 a.m.- 1,040 32 10 .28 14 4.5 48 104 0 70 .o .o 1.7 ---- 224 .30 629 53 0 66 304 

Mar. 17, 3:00p.m.- 1,040 32 7.0 .60 12 4.0 47 82 0 75 .o .o 2.9 .01 204 .28 573 46 0 68 252 

Mar. 18-21--------- 1,200 32 9.4 .34 33 6.7 5o 4.0 81 0 118 8.0 .2 2.6 .oo 284 .39 920 110 44 44 370 

Mar. 22-23--------- 925 32 10 1.1 43 13 71 6.0 94 0 219 8.0 .2 2.0 ---- 414 .56 1,030 161 84 48 590 

Mar. 24-25--------- 450 32 11 .82 64 26 135 6.0 98 0 415 28 .2 2.1 ---- 726 .99 882 267 187 52 1,010 

Mar. 26-31--------- 255 33 11 .oo 50 30 158 4.8 121 0 476 9.0 .3 l.O .oo 806 1.10 555 248 149 57 1,120 

Apr. 1-9----------- 83 36 9.2 .07 70 35 214 7.6 227 0 562 9.0 .3 1.4 .16 1,010 1.37 226 319 133 59 1,450 

Apr. 10-30--------- 139 47 22 .06 62 32 220 4.0 196 10 560 9.5 .3 2.6 .20 1,020 1.39 383 286 109 62 1,500 

May 1-31----------- 60 55 14 .06 95 71 330 2.8 236 12 1,010 14 .5 1.5 ---- 1,670 2.27 271 529 316 57 2,230 

May 24 21---------- 17 60 5.0 ~00 95 88 514 343 5 1,350 15 .7 .5 .03 2,240 3.05 103 599 310 65 2,650 

June 1-30---------- 314 63 22 .90 47 19 167 I 4.4 165 0 386 5.0 .5 2.1 .14 710 .97 602 195 60 64 1,130 

June 4 21---------- 372 61 10 .02 22 s.o 100 144 0 164 1.6 .1 2.1 ---- 395 .54 397 75 0 74 567 

June 8 21---------- 15 67 9.0 ---- 27 6.5 135 208 0 202 3.8 .1 1.9 ---- 505 .69 20 94 0 76 720 

July 1-31---------- 95 69 21 .30 47 19 166 I 4.0 199 0 364 5.0 .5 1.9 .14 708 .96 182 195 32 64 1,110 

July 19 21--------- 120 70 13 .14 28 6.0 154 197 0 246 6.0 .6 1.1 ---- 580 .79 188 94 0 78 841 

Aug. 1-31---------- 26 65 20 .20 27 11 286 I 4.4 344 12 406 8.0 .5 2.1 ---- 944 1.28 66 113 0 84 1,470 

Aug. 4 J/---------- 8.0 61 15 .oo 33 20 296 388 0 460 7.0 .6 .1 .34 1,030· 1.40 22 165 0 80 1,520 

Sept. 1-30--------- .04 56 7.8 .02 25 23 515 1 10 390 17 904 16 .8 l.O .43 1,710 2.33 .2 157 0 87 2,620 

8.3 

8.2 

8.3 

8.~ 

8.3 

8.1 

8.4 

8.2 

6.5 

7.4 

7.7 

7.6 

7.4 

7.0 

6.6 

6.7 

7.5 

7.0 

6.9 

7.3 

6.9 

7.4 

7.9 

8.1 

8.1 

8.5 

8.5 

8.2 

7.8 

7.6 

7.7 

8.1 

7.9 

8.4 

8.0 

8.5 
tlloo 

CJ1 

Weighted average ~ 

October 1948 to September 1949 

LAnalyses for periods that exceed l day were made of samples composited by dischargi7 

Oct. 8-31, 1948---- 4.0 41 7.8 0.02 35 26 628 8.4 567 26 944 22 0.8 1.1 0.65 1,980 2.69 

Nov. 1-30---------- 20 - 12 .02 25 13 456 6.0 582 22 518 13 .7 2.5 .09 1,360 1.85 

Dec. 1-31---------- ).1 33 14 .02 46 31 889 8.0 1,140 31 1,040 24 .6 2.7 .02 2,660 3. 62 

Jan. 1-20, 1949---- .5 32 25 .o1 22 ~ 1,350 10 1,620 0 1,820 36 1.2 .8 1.2 4,140 5.63 

Mar. 4------------- §/o -- 48 .02 25 17 296 8.0 336 14 452 11 .2 1.5 .18 1,040 1.41 

Mar. 5------------- 50 -- 51 .03 12 5.2 29 4.8 88 0 40 ).0 .2 1.6 .08 220 .)0 

Mar. 6, 10:00 a.m.- 300 - 44 .05 13 4.2 41 "4.0 96 0 6o 1.0 .2 1.4 .04 228 .)1 

Mar. 6, 12:00 m.--- 300 36 11 ---- 14 8.7 21 4.8 82 0 44 4.0 .8 2.0 ---- 182 .25 

Mar. 6, 5:00 p.m.-- 300 36 8.6 ---- 10 8.7 23 .8 86 0 34 1.0 .8 ).6 ---- 156 .21 

Mar. 7, 7:00 a.m.-- 1,500 33 8.7 ---- 14 9o2 35 1.6 106 0 58 1.0 .8 l.J ---- 188 .26 

Mar. 7, 12:00 m.--- 1,500 34 10 ---- 13 9.6 28 1.6 98 0 48 1.0 .8 .8 ---- 166 .23 

Mar. 7, 2:00p.m.-- 1,500 -- 49 .02 14 5.2 32 6.0 100 0 44 2.0 .2 1.5 .oo 218 .)0 

Mar. 8, 8:00 a.m.-- 2,200 32 9.1 ---- 13 9.2 8.0 74 0 20 2.0 .8 1.7 ---- 120 .16 

Mar. 8, 1:20 p.m.-- 2,200 -- 5.0 .07 4.0 4.8 21 53 0 25 2.0 .) 2.0 .oo 122 .17 

Mar. 8, 2:00 p.m.-- 2,200 -- 10 .04 9.9 1.7 19 5.2 61 0 24 1.8 .2 1.9 .14 112 .15 

Mar. 8, 5:00 p.m.-- 2,200 34 8.1 ---- 11 7.9 11 1.6 68 0 24 1.0 .8 1.0 ---- 116 .16 

Mar. 9, 9:00 a.m.- 1,700 34 7.8 ---- 9.2 9.2 8.) 65 0 20 1.0 .8 1.3 ---- 104 .14 

Mar. 9, 2:00 p.m.-- 1,700 -- 14 .02 7.9 ).2 21 4.4 45 0 23 15 .2 1.7 .oo 120 .16 

Mar. 9, 5:00 p.m.-- 1,700 34 7.0 ---- 10 7.9 8.7 60 0 22 1.0 .6 2.0 ---- 112 .15 

Mar. 10, 9:00 a.m.- 1,000 33 9.0 --- 9.0 9.6 10 4.8 65 0 26 .4 .6 1.1 ---- 106 .14 

Mar. 10, 2:00 p.m.- 1,000 -- 31 .04 13 4.0 16 5.6 72 0 2C 6.8 .2 1o5 .oo 136 .18 

Mar. 10, 5:00 p.m.- 1,ooo 34 9.2 ---- 12 7.9 12 5.6 76 0 22 1.0 .6 1.4 ---- 118 .16 

Mar. 11, 8:30 a.m.- 800 32 9.0 ---- 14 9.2 36 4.8 86 0 74 .o .6 1.7 ---- 204 .28 

Mar. 11, 2:00 p.m.- 800 -- 26 .16 16 2.8 83 4.0 113 0 129 5.4 .2 1.5 .06 326 .44 

Mar. 11, 5:00 p.m.- 800 34 9.7 ---- 16 7.4 53 5.6 114 0 94 .o .4 1.4 ---- 262 .36 

Mar. 12, 8:30 a.m.- 600 33 9.8 ---- 12 6.1 35 4.8 86 0 56 .o .6 1.5 ---- 170 .23 

Mar. 12, 5:00 p.m.- 600 36 10 ---- 16 6.6 28 2.4 98 0 48 .o .6 1.2 ---- 180 .24 

Mar. 13----------- sao 32 8.5 --· 13 6.6 29 2.4 80 0 56 .o .6 1.4 ---- 154 .21 

Mar. 14-·--------- 400 32 9.5 ---- 17 7.9 21 4.0 92 0 46 .o .6 1.6 ---- 182 .25 

Mar. 15-··--------· 350 32 9.1 ---- 14 7.4 25 4.8 90 0 44 .a .4 1.6 ---- 178 .24 

Mar. 16------------ 300 32 10 ---- 16 7.0 35 3.2 94 0 58 .o .6 1.5 ---- 186 .25 Mar~ 17------------ 270 32 9.2 ---- 16 8o3 32 4.0 90 0 66 .o .6 1.3 ---- 182 .25 

Mar. 18·----------- 240 32 8.) ---- 24 10 50 3.2 106 0 124 3.0 .4 1.2 ---- 308 .42 

Mar. 19------------ 220 32 11 ---- 20 9.0 57 2.4 110 0 126 .o .4 .8 ---- 297 .40 

Mar. 2o------------ 200 34 6.0 ---- 18 7.2 45 .8 108 0 86 1.0 .) ·9 ---- 234 .32 

Mar. 21------------ 200 34 11 __ .... 19 7.2 44 2.4 118 0 78 1.0 .2 .5 ---- 232 .32 

Mar. 22------------ 300 34 10 ---- 13 5.2 36 3.2 92 0 60 1.0 o) 1.1 ---- 174 .24 

Mar. 23------------ 2,120 36 11 ---- 16 6.1 20 4.0 94 0 34 .o .4 ·9 ---- 161 .22 

Mar. 24--------~--- 4,160 34 14 ---- 23 8.1 36 4.0 112 0 78 1.0 .4 ·7 ---- 222 .30 

Mar. 25, 8:30 a.m.- 3,810 -- 11 ---- 22 8.5 35 2.4 84 0 94 .o .2 .4 ---- 209 .28 

Mar. 25, 4:30 p.m ... 3,810 36 12 ---- 19 7.9 29 1.6 96 0 62 1.0 .5 .6 ---- 181 .25 

Mar. 26, 7:30 a.m.- 3,120 34 12 ---- 29 13 5o 4.8 84 0 160 .o .4 .2 ---- 312 .42 

Mar. 26, 12:30 p.m. 3,120 35 11 ---- 31 12 45 5.6 94 0 140 1.0 .3 .6 ---- 299 .41 

Mar. 26, 5:00 p.m.- 3,120 35 9.6 ---- 30 14 36 4.0 96 0 124 .o .4 ·9 ---- 288 .39 

Mar. 27, 8:00a.m.-. 2,720 34 9.4 ---- 22 12 36 5.6 88 0 114 .a .4 .6 ---- 262 .36 

See footnotes at end of table, p. 46. 

21 194 0 87 2,980 8.5 

73 116 0 89 2,100 8.5 

22 242 0 88 3,800 8.3 

6 318 0 90 5,460 7.9 

0 132 0 82 1,600 8.4 

30 52 0 52 248 7.8 

7/153 50 0 62 271 7.8 - 71 4 37 258 7.2 

------- 61 0 45 219 7.2 

Y774 73 0 51 276 7.2 

------- 72 0 45 242 7-3 ------- 56 0 52 248 7.9 

']/701 70 9 20 159 7.0 

------- 30 0 61 145 7.5 

------- 32 0 52 l~ 7.6 

------- 60 4 27 152 7.0 

y514 61 8 23 133 7.0 

32 0 55 172 7.4 ------- 58 9 25 130 6.8 

y324 62 9 24 130 7.0 

------- 49 0 38 179 7.9 

------- 63 1 27 158 7.2 

ys7o 73 2 50 315 7.0 

52 0 76 484 8.0 

------- 71 0 60 399 7.1 

']/284 55 0 55 . 260 7.0 

67 0 47 270 7.0 

208 60 0 50 226 7.0 1~7 75 0 37 264 7.0 

168 66 0 43 263 7.0 

151 69 0 51 276 7o0 

133 74 0 47 265 7o0 

200 101 14 51 463 7.1 

176 87 0 58 452 7.1 

126 75 0 56 362 7.1 

125 77 0 54 352 7.2 

141. 54 0 58 264 7.0 

922 65 0 39 246 7.2 

2,490 91 0 45 333 7.3 

ru:~~=~-- 90 21 45 327 7.1 

80 1 43 283 7.3 

7fl,530 126 57 45 484 7.3 

127 50 42 459 7.4 

------- 133 54 36 436 7.3 

J/!.,900 105 33 41 398 7.2 
~ 

Q) 

Table 8.--Mineral constituents and related physical measurements, Moreau River near Faith, April 1941 to September 1949--Continued 

~alytical results in parts per million except as indicate27 

~ Dissolved solids Hardness • ;:- 8 as CaC03 b ,....... ~ ~ ........ b:O ........ e 6' ........ ........ ........ b s .s 65' ~ C\J ,....... ::.:: ~ 0 ....::t r-f ,....... ""' ~ >.. Q) ·rl ~ ~1.1\ rd Q) 0 rd '-' ,....... '-' Q) '-' 0 0 r.;.:., 0 0 rd S +> '0 OON 

. . .g ......... s u.l ........ 2. s ~ s ~ Q) ~ ....... ....... e ......... ~ ~ rd ·j ·rl ~ g C) ·g +> Date of oollect1.on Ul Ul +> ....... a> ;:s ....... ;:s ~ +> a> a> ~ a> 0 ~ ~ ... Ul 0 0 ....... rd 

:a '(j ~ rd e 9 ·fri s ·fri ..8 ~ 2 ~ :;; 2 ....... p.~ ~+> 8. s ~ -£ "b c:: Q) Ul 

.......... Q) C) •rl Q) ::s Ul ~ 0 rd ~ ~ rd ~ Ul r-f 0 ·rl blJ rd Q) ·rl C) 0 

~ If ~ § C) ~ :g ~ ~ -e ~ 0 g b 2 -e·g 2.8 2 C)~ g ~ ~ ~~ Q) Q) •rl ~ nl rd 0 0 ·rl ctl ;:J :d rl ·rl 0 rd 0 0 nl 0 Q) p. ..c:: ::E! E-< Cll H 0 ::E: Cll ~ ~ 0 Cll 0 r.;.:., Z --L-~- _ ~ E-< E-< ._s>_ Z ~ Cll P. 

October 1948 to September 1949--Continued 

lAnalyses for periods that exceed 1 d~ were made of samples composited by discharg3! 

Mar. 27, 5:00p.m.- 2,720 36 11 ---- 24 11 32 4.0 

Mar. 28, 7:30 a.m.- 3,070 34 9.8 ---- 22 10 39 2.4 

Mar. 28, 5:00 p.m.- 3,070 36 11 ---- 27 10 41 5.6 

Mar. 29------------ 3,070 34 13 0.10 32 10 56 5.6 

Mar. 30------------ 2,470 36 11 .01 32 6.5 58 4.8 

Mar. 31-Apr. 1----- 1,480 38 10 .01 35 11 6.)1 4.8 

Apr. 2-lo---------- 1,010 41 12 .01 40 16 77 1.2 

Apr. 11-18--------- 462 47 14 .01 44 20 118 2.8 

Apr. 12 J/--------- 575 5o 11 .01 33 14 104 4.0 

Apr. 19-Jo-----~--- 108 51 14 .01 64 33 200 1.6 

M~ 1-12----------- 91 54 18 .10 50 20 274 3.2 M~ 13-June 2------ 27 59 11 .08 51 35 385 3.2 

June 3-30---------- 12 63 7.4 .10 28 28 466 4.0 

July 1-Aug. 9------ 1.1 67 12 .02 20 45 1,070 18 

Sept. 7-30--------- §/0 50 30 1.2 19 1.0 341 12 

Weighted average ~ 152- -- 12 ---- 29 12 72 3.4 

1 Samples collected and analyzed by the U. S. Bureau of Reclamation. 

2 Discharge at time of sampling. 

3 Not included in weighted average. 4 Weighted average for period sampled only. 

5 Includes carbonate as bicarbonate. 

6 Ponded--no flow. 

7 Mean for d~. 

104 0 94 .o 0.4 1.0 ----- 256 0.35 

100 0 96 .o .4 o7 ---- 258 .35 

114 0 106 .o .4 .9 ---- 266 .36 

100 0 154 .o .4 1.6 ---- 338 .46 

96 0 159 .o .o .9 ---- 347 .47 

102 0 174 1.0 .4 .8 ---- 368 .so 104 '0 232 3.0 .2 1.0 0.16 452 .61 

136 0 304 3.0 .3 1.6 .36 592 .80 

113 0 262 3.6 .2 1.0 .14 505 .69 

230 0 496 4.4 .4 1.3 .25 964 1.31 

308 18 504 6.5 .4 1.3 .41 1,050 1.43 

388 21 728 12 .4 1.1 .62 1,440 1.96 

418 37 760 14 .4 1.0 .22 1,56o 2.12 

770 49 1,680 34 1.1 .4 .90 3,320 4.52 

332 0 . 480 14 1.0 2.9 .30 1,070 1.46 

.2/122 -- 168 2.0 o.4 1.1 ---- 374 0.51 

------- 106 21 39 385 7.2 

1/2,170 96 14 46 389 7.2 

109 16 44 395 7.3 

2,800 121 39 49 489 7.4 

2,310 107 28 53 492 7.2 

1,470 133 49 50 543 7.3 

1,230 166 81 50 659 7.3 

738 193 81 57 851 7.8 

784 140 47 61 735 7.6 

281 295 106 59 1,340 7.8 

258 208 0 74 1,530 8.6 

105 272 0 75 2,080 8.5 

51 185 0 84 2,280 8.7 

10 235 0 90 4,400 8.7 

0 52 0 92 1,510 7.2 

153 122 22 55 546 ---
Table 9.--Mineral constituents and related physical measurements, Moreau River near Eagle Butte, April 1941 to September 1951 

/Analytical results in parts per million except as indicate~ 

Date of collection 

Apr. 17, 1941 ~-----­

Oct. 10 !1------------

Dec. 2 !1------------- Jan. 22, 1942 !(------

Mar. 18 !1------------

Apr. 9 !1-------------

June 3 1/------------- July 20-!/------------

Nov. 7 !7-------------

Apr. 4, 1943 !/-------

Apr. 20 !1------------

July 6 11.-------------

July 8 !!------------- ~ Nov. 30, 1945--------- ~ June 6, 1946----------

June 26---------------

July 16---------------

Aug. 6----------------

Aug. 28---------------

Sept. 17--------------

0ct• 8---------------- Mar. 24; 1947---------

Apr. 16---------------

M~ 5----------------- June 18---------------

Sept. 10--------------

July 1, 1948----------

July 20---------------

Aug. 10---------------

Aug. 31---------------

Mar. 8, 1949----------

Mar. 22---------------

Mar. 27---------------

M~ 4----------------- M~ 26----------------

July 14---------------

Apr. 7, 1950----------

Q) 

bO 

"" ..c:: "' 0...-.. 

[I) [I) 

:a~ 

~._.. 

Q) 

;IC 

300 

20 

20 

20 

10 

'20 

150 

i85 

8 

700 

66 

3,200 

1,580 

82 

626 

468 

46 

11.4 

39 

93.6 

57 

10,6oO 

701 

68 

132 

~ 1,680 

10 

2.4 

3,280 

610 

9,010 

366 

40 

8.0 

12,200 

........ 

8 

•rl 

U) 

._.. 

"' 0 

•rl 

ri 

·rl 

U) 

........ Q) 

e 

!=: 

f! 

H 

-;;s 

o 

......... 

s 

·rl 

0 

c;;1 

0 

32 

50 

116 

230 

33 

6o 

60 

18 

ill 

70 

---- ---- 76 ---- ---- 38 ---- ---- 32 

4.0 0.04 129 

--- .05 95 

11 

9.5 

9.0 

4.0 

).5 

12 

12 

8.2 

6.6 

7.6 

10 

10 

13 

12 

6.2 

20 

.as 70 

.05 97 

.as 102 

.as 4o .oo 23 

.oo 47 

.15 31 

.10 63 

.02 88 

.01 58 

.oo 

.oo 

.oo 

.oo 

.oo 

.as 

.OJ 

.02 

.02 

.01 

.02 

.02 

87 

41 

45 

57 

37 

34 

32 

6o 

28 

65 

120 

55 

See footnotes at end of table, p. 48. 

........ 

~ 

§ 

·ri 

I'll 

~ ~ "' 

7.7 

14 

31 

85 

11 

10 

18 

4.9 

32 

20 

23 

8.0 

6.4 

6o 

33 

22 

41 

44 

17 

9.0 

16 

6.) 

32 

36 

18 

20 

17 

12 

19 

16 

3.3 

3.5 

7.2 

15 

32 

41 

7.2 

-;;;-

3 

§ 

;g 

0 

U) 

202 

210 

288 

892 

258 

78 

155 

81 

366 

288 

;;; 

........ 

§ 

·rl 

[I) 

[I) 

+> "' 0 

-~ 

167~---- 78 --- 56 ---- 838 12 

174 

132 

250 

365 

180 

256 

........ 

OC""'\ 

!i1 

......... 

Q) 

~ !=: 

0 

i! 

"' 0 

•rl 

__l.'[;t 

359 

334 

280 

414 

350 

........ 

b' 

0 

........ 

Q) 

~ 

§ 

-2 

0 "' 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

6681 0 144 0 

145 

197 

186 

202 

400 

0 

0 

0 

0 

6 

223 202 0 

0 

0 

8 

7 

40 I 3.2 140 167 10 130 

217 20 237 

207 21 213 

510 

146 

81 

192 

354 

I 

38 

63 

27 

186 

331 

581 

53 

237 0 

155 0 

156 0 

228 0 

384 0 

118 

129 

119 

235 

326 

224 

154 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

~ 

§ 

Q) 

~ "-1 

,--i 

___tR 

259 

358 

8ll 

2,420 

409 

1,780 

596 

404 

745 

1,010 

367 

296 

474 

66 

514 

613 

477 

1,080 

332 

198 

422 

572 

78 

116 

130 

320 

696 

1,450 

143 

-:::i 

2-

Q) 

'"d 

·rl 

"" 0 

~ 0 

6.0 

11 

16 

58 

15 

34 

8.0 

5.0 

10 

16 

7.0 

2.0 

5.0 

6.0 

13 

12 

12 

62 

12 

1.0 

8.0 

11 

1.0 

1.0 

1.0 

5.0 

13 

26 

).0 

Dissolved solids Hardness I 

+> 

s 

~ ·rl 

1-( 

0 

_g 

0.5 

.4 

i 

Q) 

+> "' 

+> "" ·rl 

z 

1.2 

8.7 

6.2 

6.2 

5.0 

e 

§ 

"" 0 

r:Q 

o3 I ----

o6 

.4 6.0 ---- .5 1.2 ---- .5 .9 ---- .4 4.0 ---- .5 .o ----

.3 .2 ---- .8 1.0 0.17 

1.2 1.5 .14 

.4 • 7 .)2 

.4 2.0 .)0 

"" Q) !=: 0 P..·ri ri [1),--i 

~ ·g ~ 

754 

954 

1,46o 

4,190 

970 

496 

792 

366 

1,660 

1,180 

826 

382 

206 

3,190 

979 

725 

1,240 

1,630 

728 

829 

890 

239 

896 

1,120 

918 

.5 .8 .47 1,880 

.o 

.4 

.5 

.6 

.8 

.8 

.2 

.6 

.1 3.0 

.) 2.4 

.) 1.9 

.) 2.6 

.7 .8 

.5 1.2 

.) 1.0 

.18 642 

.11 460 

.06 876 

.34 1,190 

.06 

.o5 

234 

294 

304 

696 

1,310 

2,340 

376 

J, as ~aC03 s "" Q) ;g ~ § ~ ·rl !=: "" .. [I) 0 

~+> § ~ -2 0 ·rl bO "' [I) 0 0"' 0 l=:"-4 ril'! !=: 0 "' 0 E-1 0 z 

112 

183 

418 

930 

129 

0 

[I) 

~ Q) 

0 

"" Q) 

p.., 

0 78 

0 69 

0 57 

0 66 

0 76 

0 ........ 

;:I I 0 '"d 00 1=:'-<'U"\ 

OON 

0 ·g +> 

o ........ "' •rl 

"-- Q) [I) 

·rl 0 0 

~§~ 

J5' 

1,090 

1,340 

1,910 

4,650 

1,390 

193 

226 

63 

411 

26o 

47 710 

60 l,l6o 

73 . 510 

66 2,210 

71 1,690 

4.34 

1.3) 

.99 

1.69 

2.22 

.99 

1.13 

1.21 

.33 

1.22 

1.52 

1.25 

2.56 

.87 

.63 

1.19 

1.62 

.)2 

.40 

.41 

.95 

1.78 

3.18 

.51 

283 --- 54 

130 --- 59 

106 --- 53 

568 21 76 

373 255 50 

265 146 52 

411 249 57 

435 282 65 

170 4 70 .. 94 0 85 

183 17 72 

103 0 47 

288 181 57 

368 161 54 

219 32 65 

279 

172 

162 

220 

158 

99 

95 

179 

132 

294 

468 

167 

85 79 

45 65 

34 52 

33 66 

0 83 

2 46 

0 59 

81 24 

0 75 

27 71 

284 73 

41 41 

1,180 

570 

470 

4,060 

1,300 

975 

1,610 

2,o6o 

1,ooo 

1,090 

1,130 

372 

1,220 

l,66o 

1,420 

2,300 

896 

652 

1,200 

1,720 

349 

456 

481 

1,040 

1,890 

3,100 

539 

:::0 

p, 

7.2 

8.0 

7.9 

7.6 

7.9 

7.5 

7.3 

7.4 

8.1 

7.9 

7.9 

7.8 

7.7 

7.7 

7.3 

8.0 

7.9 

8.1 

8.0 

8.2 

8.2 

7.4 

7.7 

8.2 

8.5 

7.7 

7.5 

7.8 

7.5 

7.8 

7.6 

7.5 

7.6 

7.6 

8.0 

8.0 

7.9 
""" (X) 

Table 9.--Mineral constituents and related physical measurements, Moreau River near Eagle Butte, April 1941 to September 1951--Continued 

LAnalytical results in parts per million except as indicate~ 

Date of collection 

Apr. 20, 1950-----------

June 21-----------------

Aug. 9------------------

Sept. 19----------------

Dec. 21-----------------

Apr. 3, 1951------------

Apr. 25-----------------

June 19-----------------

Aug. 20-----------------

Sept. 10-------------·--

Q) 

b.O 

] 

C),.-.. 

Cll Cll 

•r-f "-! 

'"0~ 

~ Q) 

::>:: 

6,350 

99 

8 

31 

1.2 

356 

32 

447 

165 

112 

.......... 

N 

0 

•r-f 

e 

<tl 

0 

·r-f 

r-1 

·r-f 

tl) 

8.6 

9.9 

6.7 

16 

~ 

........ e Q) 

e. s 

·r-i ~ C) 0 r-1 

~ ~ 

0.041 38 

.10 64 

.02 I 85 

.04 237 

10 I .10 I 31 

11 I .02 I 57 

~ 

s 

•r-f 

Cll 

Q) 

~ 

~ 

4.4 

29 

3Z 

79 

6.5 

13 

~ 

3 

Q 

-

s s ,.@ 

:a E 0 0 Ul _Q,_ 

50 

387 

518 I 13 

511 

920 

104 

319 I -- 147 

-133 I -- 128 --

1 Samples collected and analyzed by the U. S. Bureau of Reclamation. 

2 Ponded--no flow. 

~ ::r: 

Q) 

~ 

~ 0 

·r-f 

__h!:L 

136 

305 

256 

743 

168 

360 

170 

213 

188 

,....., 

0 '"'"' 0 

-Q) 

~ ~ 

0 

_Q_ 

~ 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

8 

0 

~ 0 

e 

Q) 

+" <tl 

"-! 

1 

94 

810 

1,160 

2,150 

,....... 

8 

-

~ •r-f 

1-< 

0 

_a 

8.0 

18 

24 

47 

E 

Q) 

'"0 

·~ 

0 

::s 

&j 

0.2 

.4 

........ 

e""' 

Q) 

~ 1-< 

+" 

·r-i 

::2: 

0.1 

1.3 

.611.1 

.8 .8 

e 

~ 

0 

1-< 

0 

en 

180 3.0 --- 2.3 ---- 655 14 --- --- ---- 350 4.0 .4 5.3 0.16 

178 2.6 --- --- ---- 258 5.0 --- --- ----

Hardness 

Dissolved s:lid1 as C~C03 

s 1-< ~ Q) 0 A·r-f r-1 Cllr-1 

~ ·g __Q,_ 

270 

1,470 

2,280 

1,950 

3,820 

438 

682 

1-< 

0 

<tl 

1-< 

Q) 

A+" 0 Cll 0 

~"-! 

0 _E::!._ 

0.37 

2.00 

3.10 

2.65 

5.20 

.6o 

.93 

s 

·r-i .. Cil s :g ·r-f b.O C) <tl 

~"" 0 

113 

279 

480 

344 

917 

Q) 

~ 

§ 

i! 

<tl C) 

~ 

0 _Z_ 

•r-i 

'"0 

0 

Cll 

+" 

~ 

(!) 

C) 

1-< 

~ 

49 

75 --I 69 

76 

69 

l 

29 

134 

308 

104 0 69 

--- --- 70 

196 57 62 

--- --- 77 --- --- 65 

~able 10.--Mineral constituents and related physical measurements, Moreau River at Promise, October 1941 to September 1951 

(Analytical results in parts per million except as indicates! 

Date of collection 

Oct. 10, 1941 1/------

Dec. 2 !1-------------

Jan. 22, 1942 !!------

Q) 

j 

o...-.. 

[I) [I) 

;g~ 

~-(!) 

::&:: 

40 

40 

40 

........ N 

0 

•r-f 

tl) 

-

<tl 

0 

·r-f 

r-1 

•r-f 

ell 

Q) 

b 

§ 

~ 

~ 0 

-

s 

•r-f 

0 

~ 0 

66 

172 

372 

~ 

s 

·r-f 

Cll 

::.::: 

~ 16 

37 

87 

~ z 

-

s 

;g 

c8 

143 

283 

573 

g 

§ 

•r-f 

[I) 

[I) 

<tl 

+" 

d! 

~ 0 

c 

(!) 

~ ~ 

~ 0 

•r-f 

Ill 

151 

256 

364 

~ 0 

e 

(!) 

~ "-! 

~ 

414 

974 

2,220 

g 

........ 

~ •r-f 

1-< 

0 

~ 

10 

20 

41 

E 

~ •r-f 

1-< 

~ 

,....... 

[ 

Q) 

~ 1-< 

+" 

j£ 

8.7 

5.0 

4.3 

e 

~ 

0 

1-< 

0 

en 

Dissolved 

solids 

1-< ~ (!) 0 A·r-f r-1 Cllr-1 

~·g 

0.. 

794 

1, 730 

3,800 

+" 

0 

0 H"-1 

(!) I 

AO> 1-< [I) 0 ~ <tl 0 

1'-

Hardness 

as CaC03 Q) 

s ~ •r-f ~ 

.. Cll 0 

""(!) ..0 ::s ~ 1-< ·r-i b.O <tl C) <tl 0 

~ s § r'l """ 

2321 0 582 0 

1,290 0 

s 

;g 

0 

Cll 

~ 0 

~ 

54 

5o 

47 

J, 

0 ........ EIO 

v 0 0 ~1-<l.t\ 

OON 

0 ·e·+" o ........ <tl ·r-i "-! Q) Cll 

·r-iC) 0 o~..c:: 

a> rn !=! 

~ 

I 

+" 

409 

2,080 

3,000 

2,710 

4,630 

677 

1,860 

997 

731 

840 

C) ........ 

E•O 

v 00 

~1-<l.t\ 

OON 

0 ·g +" o ........ m ·r-f "-! Q) .Ill •r-f C) 0 

~~'§ 

~ 

1,110 

2,200 

4,200 

::r: 

a. 

7.5 

8.0 

7.7 

7.7 

8.1 

7.7 

7.2 

8.4 

7-4 

::r: 

A 

8.0 

7.8 

7.4 
ll:oo 

co 

Maro 16~------------ 10 ---- ---- 148 27 228 ---- Apr. 9 l ------------- 60 ---- ---- 41 7.8 81 ---- June 9 1/------------- 2,500 ---- ---- 49 9.4 67 ---- Aug. 4~------------- 170 ---- ---- 80 14 110 ---- June l , 1943 !/------ 7,880 ---- ---- 89 15 90 ---- Novo 30, 1945--------- 87 11 0.02 78 33 .87 J.O 

June 3, 1946---------- 448 ---- .oo 100 25 140 

Mar. 24, 1947--------- 5,160 8.8 .05 55 12 73 6.2 

Mar. 26--------------- 12,400 7.8 .10 32 6.2 49 5.0 

Apr. 17--------------- 689 12 .08 88 34 178 14 

M~ 6----------------- 93 5.0 .12 112 37 203 19 

June 18--------------- 503 19 .02 99 21 103 20 

Sept. 9--------------- 2.0 10 .ol 207 61 429 

June 10, 1948--------- 141 15 .08 27 9-7 160 

June 30--------------- 430 13 .oo 78 28 171 

July 22--------------- 870 11 .oo 43 11 63 

Aug. 11--------------- 21 12 .oo 97 26 194 

Aug. 31--------------- 6.7 9.1 .oo 83 31 363 

Mar. 8, 1949---------- 4,600 9.9 .02 48 7.7 49 

Mar. 22--------------- 1,070 8.0 .02 16 7.9 .39 

Apr. 12--------------- 1,620 8.3 .01 46 12 64 

Apr. 7, 1950---------- 13,400 22 ·.02 45 4.2 54 

June 22--------------- 86 13 .02 100 31 381 

Aug. 10--------------- 6 ---- ---- --- ---- 478 I 13 

Sept. 19-------------- 10 12 .02 204 53 442 

Jan. 15, 1951--------- 1.4 14 .10 376 78 527 

Apr. 2---------------- 600 6.6 .30 45 5.7 82 

July 6---------------- 223 11 .02 67 15 246 

Aug. 21--------------- 237 ---- ---- --- ---- 124 G_ Sept. 11-------------- 99 ---- ---- --- ---- 112 --

1 Samples collected and analyzed by the U. S. Bureau of Reclamation. 

158 840 

--- ----- --- ----- --- ----- --- ----- 250 290 

172 486 

152 210 

118 110 

146 593 

239 653 

146 433 

26o 1,400 

210 261 

110 540 

162 148 

222 554 

264 852 

108 158 

83 84 

113 196 

142 120 

273 915 

--- ----- 244 1,400 

505 1,840 

146 176 

249 525 

210 193 

155 248 

19 --- 16 ---- 1,520 ---- 484 0 49 1,810 7.5 

---- --- ---- ---- 430 ---- 136 --- 57 640 7-7 ---- --- ---- ---- 484 ---- 162 --- 47 640 7.6 

---- --- ---- ---- 650 ---- 257 --- 48 940 7.0 

---- --- ---- ---- 664 ---- 284 --- 41 950 7.8 

12 0.3 1.6 ---- 655 0.87 330 125 36 939 8.1 

4.0 .4 2.0 ---- 875 1.19 352 211 46 1,160 8.2 

5.5 .l 1.8 0.15 457 .62 187 62 45 695 8.0 

3.5 .l 2.5 .03 274 .37 105 9 49 435 8.0 

16 1.2 1.8 ---- 1,010 1.37 360 240 53 1,420 7.5 

14 .4 .8 .10 l,l6o 1.58 432 236 49 1,700 7-7 

7.0 .4 .6 .14 791 1.06 333 213 38 1,130 8.0 

19 .4 .8 .38 2,260 3.07 767 554 55 2,850 8.4 

6.2 .4 2.0 .21 598 .81 107 0 76 858 7.6 

19 .5 .6 .18 905 1.23 310 220 54 1,220 7.2 

.2 .4 1.3 .40 392 .53 152 19 47 579 7· 7 

8.0 .J 1.4 .19 1,000 1.36 349 167 55 1,440 7o3 

14 .6 .o .35 1,480 2.01 334 118 70 2,060 7.4 

1.5 .1 J.2 .o5 345 .47 152 63 41 503 7.6 

.2 .2 2.2 .oo 214 .29 73 5 54 321 7.5 

4.0 ,.3 1.9 .07 422 .57 165 72 46 575 7.8 

3.0 .2 1.0 .05 .320 .44 130 14 47 469 7.9 

19 .4 .9 ---- 1,590 2.16 377 153 69 2,110 7.9 

---- --- ---- ---- 2,460 . 3.35 716 --- 59 3,060 --- 20 .6 .5 .20 2,250 3.06 727 527 57 2,850 7.8 

53 .4 .5 .24 3,140 4.27 l,26o 846 47 3,580 7.7 

5.5 .3 3.1 .15 434 .59 136 16 58 636 7.3 

6.5 .4 2.1 ---- 996 1.35 228 24 70 1,440 7.4 

3.2 --- ---- ---- ----- ---- ----- --- 71 739 7.9 

4.3 --- ---- ---- ----- --- ----- --- 62 771 7o3 
Table 11.--Monthly and annual summar,y of water and sediment discharges, Moreau River at Bixby 

Water Runoff Month discharge (acre-ft) ( cfs-da;vs) 

Apr. 28-30, 1949------- 90 179 

Ma;v-------------------- 861 1,710 

June------------------- 194.7 386 

July---------------- 54.1 107 

August----------------- 0 0 

September-------------- 26.5 53 

Apr. 28 to Sept. 30---- 1,226.3 2,440 

October---------------- 291.8 519 

November--------------- 121.6 241 

December--------------- 66.4 132 

January 19 So---------- 0 0 

February--------------- 0 0 

March------------------ 3,035 6,020 

April------------------ 64,679 128,300 

Ma;v-------------------- 8,816 17,490 

June------------------- 888 l, 760 

July------------------- 435.8 864 

August----------------- 400 193 

September-------------- 286.9 569 

Water year 1949-50 19,020.5 156,748 

October---------------- 197.1 391 

November--------------- 158.2 314 

December--------------- 93 184 

January 1951----------- 108.3 215 

February--------------- 25.7 51 

March------------------ 1,543.5 3,060 

April------------------ 524.6 1,040 

Ma;v-------------------- 472.7 938 

June------------------- 1,534.0 3,040 

July------------------- 783.1 1,550 

August----------------- 2,114.5 4,190 

September-------------- 436.7 866 

Water year 1950-51 7,991.4 l5,84o· 

a Includes estimated loads for a few days. 

b Includes estimated loads for many da;vs. 

t Sediment discharge less than l ton. 

Load 

(tons) 

19.6 a 3,900 

11.4 

3·5 

0 

2.8 

a 3,940 

481 

30 

12 

0 

0 

3,190 

880,500 

102,400 

836 

51 

3,400 

5,630 

997,100 

110 

46 

a36 

b 28 

b4 a 5,437 

400 

7,625 

12,688 

7,687 

44,965 

2,893 

81,920 

50 

Suspended sediment 

Daily load Concentration 

(tons) (ppm) 

Mean Maximum Minimum Weighted Maximum mean daily 

-------- -------- ------- -------- ------ 126 1,300 0.5 1,680 4,970 

.4 .8 (t) 22 40 

.l .J 0 24 52 

0 0 0 -------- ------- .09 ·1 0 39 74 

25 1,300 0 1,190 4,970 

16 259 (t). 611 2,400 

l -------- ------ 91 ------- .4 -------- 0 67 ------- 0 0 0 -------- ------- 0 0 0 ------ ------- 122 763 0 463 1,300 

29,400 169,000 43 5,040 7,470 

3,300 24,000 a------ 4,300 7,120 

28 180 ------- 349 1,390 

1.6 --------- ------- 43 ------- 110 2,660 (t) 3,150 6,020 

188 4,o5o (t) 7,270 21,500 

2,730 169,000 0 4,670 21,500 

3.5 29 l 207 665 

1.5 --------- ------- 108 ------- 1.2 --------- ( t) 143 ------- .9 --------- ( t) 96 ------- .l -------- (t) 58 ------- 175 1,170 (t) 1,310 2,000 

13 102 ------- 282 758 

246 5,100 ------- 5,970 21,500 

423 2,150 ------- 3,060 5,870 

248 2,000 (t) 3,640 7,250 

1,450 18,600 (t) 7,880 10,100 

96 1,260 ------- 2,450 6,020 

224 18,600 ------- 3,800 21,500 
Table 12.--Monthly and annual summar,y of water and sediment discharges, Moreau River near Faith 

Water Runoff Month discharge (acre-ft) (cfs-days) 

August lS-31, 1946---- 112.8 224 

September------------- l,928.S 3,830 

Aug. 15 to Sept. 30--- 2,041.3 4,050 

October--------------- 7,135 14,150 

November-------------- 2, 72S 5,400 

December-------------- 269 534 

January 1947---------- 1,820 3,610 

February-------------- 16,975 33,670 

March----------------- 30,025 59,550 

April----------------- 10,043 19,920 M~------------------- 784 1,560 

June------------------ 2S,324 50,230 

July------------------ 3,241 6,430 

August---------------- 196.6 390 

September------------- 35.1 70 

Water year 1946-47---- 98,S72o7 l9S,Soo 

October--------------- So8.l 1,010 

November-------------- S49 1,090 

December-------------- 268 S32 

January 1948---------- 67 133 

February-------------- 1,940 3,8So 

March----------------- lS,42o 30,S90 

April----------------- 3,677 7,290 M~------------------- 1,868 3,710 

June------------------ 9,43S 18,710 

July------------------ 2,944 S,84o 

August---------------- 816o9 1,620 

September------------- 1.2 2.4 

Water year 1947-48---- 37,494.2 74,380 

October--------------- 97.0 192 

November-------------- 602 1,190 

December-------------- 9S 188 

January 1949---------- 10 20 

February-------------- 0 0 

March----------------- 37 ,4So 74,300 

April----------------- lS,274 30,300 M~------------------- 1,590 3,lSO 

June------------------ 4lOol 813 

July------------------ 4S.7 91 

August---------------- 0 0 

September------------- 6.7 13 

Water year 1948-49---- SS,S8o.S 110,300 

a Includes estimated loads for a few days. 

b Includes estimated loads for many d~so 

Load 

(tons) 

61S 

31,500 

32,120 

88,620 

13,530 

38 

990 

94,670 

216,000 

88,870 

104 

553,700 

20,460 

228 

l 

l,077;ooo 

2,7SO 

lSS 

88.4 

17.1 

Sl7 a 21,100 

73,3SO 

9,770 

214,700 

23,800 

7,380 

.l 

3S3,600 

101 

2,180 

b 20 

bl 

0 

389,800 

117,000 

6,180 

103 

6.1 

0 

b 10 

aSlS,4oo 

51 

Suspended sediment 

Daily load Concentration 

(tons) (ppm) 

Mean Maximum Minimum Weighted Maximum mean daily 

36 sso 0 2,020 S,660 

1,050 8,630 .l 6,050 13,000 

683 8,630 0 5,830 13,000 

2,860 25,300 2.8 4,600 10,600 

451 5,390 1.5 1,840 3,180 

1.2 2.3 .l 53 ill 

32 242 .l 201 308 

3,380 45,000 2.2 2,070 3,790 

6,970 65,500 1.2 2,660 3, 730 

2,960 21,600 ll 3,280 9,200 

3-3 17 .9 49 114 

18,500 131,000 1.7 8,100 11,700 

660 10,500 2.7 2,340 5,120 

7.4 100 .l 430 2,930 

.05 .3 a lS 278 

2,9SO 131,000 0 4,oso ll, 700 

89 l,2SO 0.2 2,000 5,860 

5.2 18 1.8 lOS 210 

2.8 i4 0 122 172 

.6 3.0 0 94 l3S 

18 97 0 99 610 

681 2,960 .4 S07 l,2So 

2,440 24,200 l.l 7,390 l6,SOO 

3lS 2,110 1.7 1,940 4,280 

7,160 S7,900 1.6 8,430 14,400 

768 3,lSO 1.0 2,990 S,930 

238 1,840 .3 3,350 8,700 

--------- .l 0 31 So 

966 S7,900 0 3,490 16,Soo 

3o3 77 0 382 2,370 

72.7 1,210 1.7 1,340 7,210 

.6 1.9 ------ 78 ------ .03 --------- 0 37 ------ 0 0 0 ------ ------ 12,600 60,900 0 3,86o 7,3SO 3,900 15,200 12 2,840 S,OlO 

199 2,200 1.0 1,440 S,l70 

3.4 So .s 93 439 

.2 1.7 0 49 229 

0 0 0 ------ ------ ·3 --------- 0 sso ------ 1,410 60,900 0 3,430 7,3SO 
(JI 

1:-.:l 

Table 13.--Particle-size analyses of suspended sediment, Moreatt-R±ver-ai-B~i~x*b~~~-----

~ethods of analyses: B, bottom-withdrawal tube; N, in native waters; W, in distilled water; P, pipette; C, chemically dispersed; S, sieve; 

M, mechanically disperse£1 

Suspended sediment 

Water 

dis- Concentration 

Date Time charge Concen- of Percent finer than indicated si'ze, in millimeters 

(cfs) tration of suspension sample analyzed 0.002 o.oo4 0.008 0.016 0.031 0.062 0.125 0.250 0.500 1.000 2.000 (ppm) (ppm) 

Mar. 24, 1949----- 1:00 p.m. 2,710 3,460 1,870 10 20 53 58· 70 79 86 95 97 ----- ----- Do-------------- 1:00 p.m. 2,710 3,46o 1,900 32 41 49 58 69 76 86 93 95 ----- ----- Apr. 13----------- 2:00 p.m. 298 1,740 2,06o 55 72 86 94 ----- 98 99 100 ----- ----- ----- Do-------------- 2:00 p.m. 298 1,740 2,100 ----- 5 15 ----- ----- 98 98 100 ----- ----- ----- M~ 4------------- 2:00 p.m. 85 5,130 1, 770 24 47 84 91 96 98 100 ----- ----- ----- -----

M~ 5------------- 2:15p.m. 79 1,150 780 48 74 ----- 99 99 99 99 100 ----- ----- ----- M~ 6------------- 2:15 p.m. 50 3,920 1,510 21 28 85 100 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- Do-------------- 2:15 p.m. 50 3,920 1,420 11 12 15 45 ----- 97 98 100 ----- ----- ----- Mar. 7, 1950------ 2:20 p.m. 212 1,16o 3,370 ----- 89 ----- 93 ----- 95 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- Apr. 3------------ 4:45 p.m. 2,370 6,120 l0,6oO ----- 29 ----- 39 ----- 67 88 99 100 ----- -----

Apr. 4------------ 3:10 p.m. 2,390 2,950 1, 76o 28 33 37 41 51 63 76 9l ----- ----- ----- Do-------------- 3:10 p.m. 2,390 2,950 1,690 21 22 26 34 45 59 75 95 ----- ----- ----- Apr. 5------------ 11:15 a.m. 2,460 3,870 7 ,26o ----- 45 -·--- 58 ----- 74 92 99 100 ----- ----- Apr. 7------------ 11:50 a.m. 7,540 6,060 11,000 ----- 44 ----- 60 ----- 78 ----- ----- -----. ----- ----- Apr. 8------------ 10:00 a.m. 5,720 3,890 7,740 ----- 55 ----- 68 ----- 80 ----- ----- ----- ----- -----

Apr. 12----------- 11:30 a.m. 702 2,520 7,330 ----- 64 ----- 78 ----- 85 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- Apr. 14----------- 2:45 pomo 2,520 5,630 3,590 38 44 50 56 64 73 83 94 ----- ----- ----- Do-------------- 2:45 p.m. 2,520 5,630 3,46o 5 8 40 46 60 74 86 95 ----- ----- ----- Apr. 15----------- 11:10 a.m. 8,860 7,400 14,000 ----- 44 ----- 62 ----- 77 89 99 100 ----- ----- Apr. 18----------- 10:00 a.m. 2,36o 6,370 n,ooo ----- 48 ----- 62 ----- 72 79 93 100 ----- ----- Apr. 19----------- 10:20 a.m. 1,200 4,820 8,880 ----- 45 ----- 57 ----- 64 69 77 85 96 100 

Apr. 20----------- 10:20 a.m. 605 3,350 6,840 ----- 65 ----- 79 ----- 86 89 92 93 97 100 

Apr. 21----------- 5:10 p.m. 336 2,380 1,380 72 81 89 94 97 98 99 100 ----- ----- ----- Do-------------- 5:10 p.m. 336 2,380 1,440 4 8 30 ----- 97 98 98 99 ----- ----- ----- Apro 27----------- 10:00 a.m. 165 564 1,390 ----- 87 ----- 95 ----- 100 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- M~ 11------------ 9:50 a.m. 1,380 6,100 13,400 ----- 57 ----- 74 ----- 87 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- Mar. 24, 1951----- 1:15 p.m. 69 1,470 3,36o ----- 91 ----- 97 ----- 99 ----- ----- ----- ----- -----

Mar. 27----------- 9:45 a.m. 163 1,780 2,100 80 88 91 95 97 99 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- Do-------------- 9:45 a.m. 163 1,780 2,100 1 4 80 94 95 98 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- Mar. 29----------- 5:00 p.m. 117 992 997 75 83 90 96 98 99 99 100 ----- ----- ----- Apr. 5------------ 1:00 p.m. 34 249 249 75 86 90 93 97 98 98 99 100 ----- ----- June 19----------- 8:00 p.m.' 61 u,ooo 8,26o ----- 93 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ---- June 22----------- 6:00 p.m. 108 7,170 4,430 ----- 96 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- July_4------------ 9:30 a.m. 128 2,940 2,100 ----- 90 ----- 96 ----- 98 ----- ----- ----- ----- -----

Aug. 12----------- 9:30 a.m. 590 8,520 . 4,670 ----- 73 ----- 85 ----- 94 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- Do-------------- 6;30 p.m. 680 17,800 7,030 ----- 82 ----- 96 ----- 100 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- Aug. 13----------- 1:30 p.m. 1,040 7,260 5,440 ----- 81 ----- 92 ----- 98 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- Aug. 14----------- 12:20 p.m. 151 8,900 3,500 ----- 94 ----- 98 ----- 100 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- Sept. 1----------- 1:00 p.m. 58 5,490 4,280 ----- 94 ----- 100 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- -----

Methods 

of 

analysis 

BN 

BW 

BW 

BN 

BW 

BW 

BW 

BN 

PWCM 

SPWCM 

BWCM 

BN 

BPWCM 

SPWCM 

SPWCM 

SPWCM 

BWCM 

BN 

SFWCM 

SPWCM 

SPWGM 

SPWCM 

BWCM 

BN 

PWCM 

SPWCM 

PWCM 

PWCM 

PN 

BWCM 

BWCM 

PWCM 

PWCM 

PWCM 

SPWCM 

SPWCM 

SPWCM 

SPWCM 

SPWCM 
U1 

t.:l 

~ 

~ 

w 

~ ... 

;,., 

r 

r 

0 

0 

r 

Sept. 2-----------

Sept. 3-----------

Date 

Feb. 17, 1947-----

Feb. 20-----------

Mar. 26-----------

June 25-----------

Mar. 17, 1948-----

Mar. 19-----------

Do--------------

Mar. 24-----------

Mar. 30-----------

Apr. 27-----------

M~ 11------------

June 18-----------

June 19-----------

Do--------------

June 23-----------

July 4------------

Do--------------

Do--------------

July 7------------

July 15-----------

Do--------------

July 19-----------

Nov. 5------------

Nov. 6------------

Nov. 9------------

Mar. 24, 1949-----

Do--------------

Apr. 12-----------

.Do--------------

Do--------------

M~ 1------------- M~ 2-------------

M~ ~------------- M~ ------------- Do--------------

9:00 a.m. 5:00 p.m. 

Time 

3:00 p.m. 

1:20 p.m. 

3:05 p.m. 

12:15 p.m. 

2:15 p.m. 

1:00 p.m. 

1:00 p.m. 

12:00 m. 11:45 a.m. 5:30 p.m. 

10:45 a.m. 6:00 a.m. 6:00 a.m. 12:30 p.m. 

3:45 p.m. 

5:00 a.m. 11:00 a.m. 6:00 p.m. 

9:30 a.m. 6:00 a.m. 

1:00 p.m. 

4:40 p.m. 

8:00 a.m. 8:0(} a.m. 4:40 p.m. 

12:00 m. 12:00 m. 11:40 a.m. 11:20 a.m. 11:20 a.m. 

7:00 a.m. 6:30 a.m. 6:00 a.m. 6:30 a.m. 6:30 a.m. 

5, 760 

2,6oo 

Table 14.--Particle-size analyses of suspended sediment, Moreau River near Faith 

/Methods of analyses: B, bottom-withdrawal tube; N, in native waters; W, in distilled wate~ 

Suspended sediment 

Water Concentration dis- Concen- of Percent finer than indicated size, in millimeters 

charge tration of suspension (cfs) sample analyzed o.oo4 0.016 0.062 0.125 0.250 o.soo (ppm) (ppm) 0.002 o.oo8 0.031 

4,320 5,200 8,810 34 38 48 58 68 82 94 99 100 

772 787 850 23 38 80 84 88 91 93 96 100 

1,610 2,190 4,500 36 40 49 58 65 74 81 89 100 

5,090 9,040 7,890 25 30 36 43 50 66 78 86 92 

926 494 1,390 77 87 92 95 97 98 98 99 100 

996 422 470 52 70 ----- 92 93 96 98 99 100 

996 422 450 74 84 90 95 96 97 98 99 100 

386 1,190 924 48 63 79 92 97 98 99 100 ----- 171 801 848 2 12 51 ----- ----- 98 99 100 ----- 101 2,120 1,580 2 5 16 ----- ----- 99 100 ----- -----

64 853 751 10 14 21 ----- ----- 99 ----- ----- ----- 628 8,180 1, 710 ----- 78 87 88 91 92 94 96 98 

870 9,420 1,540 ----- 5 15 ----- 76 82 88 95 98 

673 8,740 1,830 58 68 81 86 92 94 96 98 99 

602 3,86o 2,590 1 4 28 ----- ----- 94 96 98 100 

411 9,620 3,720 46 6o 71 78 82 86 93 96 99 

429 3,920 1,480 44 58 70 80. 86 89 94 97 99 

340 4,940 1,890 48 65 78 88 92 94 96 98 99 

194 5,120 4,530 ----- 1 2 22 ----- 98 100 ----- ----- 230 4,26o 3,420 3 9 ----- ----- 89 93 94 98 100 

276 3,840 3,000 6 11 ----- ----- 94 95 96 99 100 

188 8,720 6,030 54 71 87 93 99 99 100 ----- ----- 73 9,200 1,870 77 89 98 100 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- 35 3,56o 1,360 90 98 99 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- 24 575 550 86 93 96 97 100 ----- ----- ----- ----- 3,620 3,850 1,550 8 20 57 66 76 86 92 96 98 

3,620 3,850 1,750 36 45 55 66 77 86 93 98 99 

575 1,990 1,26o 52 69 79 87 91 94 95 99 100 

575 1,990 2,4&0 49 67 82 88 93 ~g 97 99 100 

575 1,990 2,3 0 2 5 14 ----- ----- 97 99 100 

171 6,800 1,450 60 81 91 97 100 ----- ----- ----- ----- 102 1,850 1,520 66 §~ 99 99 100 ----- ----- ----- ----- 10~ 1,170 963 57 96 98 100 ----- ----- ----- ---.-- 13 4,710 1,990 72 91 98 100 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- 136 4,710 1_1_880 3 4 4 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- -----

1.000 2.000 

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

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

----- -----

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

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

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

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

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

----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ·----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- -----

SFWCM 

BWCM 

Methods 

of 

analysis 

BN 

BN 

BN 

BW 

BW 

BN 

BW 

BW 

BN 

BN 

BN 

BW 

BN 

BW 

BN 

BW 

BW 

BW 

BN 

BN 

BN 

BW 

BW 

BW 

BW 

BN 

BW 

BW 

BW 

BN 

BW 

BW 

BW 

BW 

BN