Fluvial Sediment and 

Chemical Quality of 

Water in the Little 

Blue River Basin 

Nebraska and Kansas

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1819-H

Prepared as part of a program of the 

Department of the Interior for development of the Missouri River basin
Fluvial Sediment and 

Chemical Quality of 

Water in the Little 

Blue River Basin 

Nebraska and Kansas

By JAMES C. MUNDORFF and KIDD M. WADDELL

CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES 

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1819-H

Prepared as part of a program of the 

Department of the Interior for development of the Missouri River basin

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

STEWART L. UDALL, Secretary

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

William T. Pecora, Director

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

Washington, D.C. 20402 - Price 25 cents (paper cover)
CONTENTS

Page

_________--__-___-__---_-_______---__-----------_---_--- v

Abstract. -____-----__-____-__-_______-_-__--___------_-_____-----_ HI

Introduction. _____________________________________________________ 3

Settlement and economy _______________________________________ 3

Geology and topography.______________________________________ 6

Soils-._...._....______....____-.__._.._._.__.____.__-_-__._-_ 12

Climate _______________________________________________________ 12

Runoff and evaporation.________-_-__-______-_-_--_-_____---_-_ 14

Fluvial sediment._________________________________________________ 18

Suspended-sediment concentrations-__________-_-_-__-___-__--_-- 18

Suspended-sediment discharge...-___-_____-_--_-_____--_-__-_-_- 25

Particle-size distribution of the sediment. ________________________ 29

Suspended sediment.______________________________________ 29

Bed material..-----_--__-____-__-_-_-__---_-_____-___-_-_- 33

Total sediment discharge.______________________________________ 34

Chemical quality of the water-______-____________-----________---___ 35

Chemical characteristics___-__-_____--_--____---___________--_-- 35

Suitability for use_____________________________________________ 43

Irrigation __________________-_______--__----_-______-__-_-_ 43

Domestic. ________________________________________________ 44

Conclusions _______________________________________________________ 44

References cited_____.________________________-_--_---______------_ 45

ILLUSTRATIONS

Page 

FIGURES 1. Map showing location of stations at which water-quality

data were obtained._______________________________ H4

2. Graph showing period of operation, type of data, and frequency of sampling at water-quality stations._________ 5

3. Photograph showing outcrop of Dakota Sandstone____-__ 6

4. Map showing generalized surficial geology______________ 8

5. Photograph showing poorly drained area in loess plains.__ 9

6. Longitudinal profiles of the Little Blue River and selected

tributaries ________________________________________ 10

7. Photograph showing meander in the Little Blue River. __ 11

8. Map showing soil associations.------------------------ 13
IV CONTENTS

FIGUBES 9-17. Graphs: Page 

9. Annual precipitation, annual runoff, and departures from normals at selected sites.___________ H16

10. Flow-duration curves, near Deweese, near Fairbury

(Endicott), and at Waterville__________________ 17

11. Daily suspended-sediment-concentration-duration 

curves, near Deweese (1957-61) and at Waterville (1960-62)__-_-_--__---__----_-_-______- 19

12. Daily and hourly mean-concentration-duration 

curves for 120 days of high concentration near 

Deweese ___________________________________ 20

13. Concentration-duration curves, near Deweese and

at Waterville, 1960-61_______--_____---_.___- 22

14. Relation of average suspended-sediment concentrations to flow frequency in percentage of time__ 23

15. Monthly water discharges and discharge-weighted 

monthly mean suspended-sediment concentrations, 1957-61______________________________ 24

16. Relation of sediment discharge to water discharge. 26

17. Relation of percentage of clay in suspended sediment to water discharge. ____________________ 31

18. Diagram showing percentage of sand, silt, and clay in suspended sediment. ________________________j________ 32

19. Diagram showing percentages of selected size ranges of bed

material._________________________________________ 34

20-23. Graphs:

20. Quality of ground water in selected wells and of surface water at high and low discharges._________ 37

21. Relation of selected chemical constituents and

hardness to water discharge.____-_________ __ 38

22. Relation of weighted-average concentrations of 

chemical constituents to different proportions of 

base and overland, flow ______________________ 39

23. Relation of dissolved solids to water discharge____ 42

TABLES

Page 

TABLE 1. Summary of streamflow and suspended-sediment c'ata____ H29

2. Results of particle-size analyses of selected suspendedsediment samples__________________________________ 33

3. Average concentrations of selected chemical constituents

and of hardness ___________________________________ 40
CONTENTS

GLOSSARY

Base flow (base runoff). Sustained or fair-weather runoff. In most streams, 

base flow is composed largely of ground-water effluent.

Equivalents per million. A unit for expressing the concentration of chemical 

constituents in terms of the interreacting values of the electrically charged 

particles, or ions, in solution.

Fluvial sediment. Material originating mostly from the disintegration of rocks 

and transported by, suspended in, or deposited from water; it includes the 

chemical and biochemical precipitates and the organic material, such as 

humus, which has reached such an advanced stage of disintegration and 

decomposition that the original structure and characteristics of the living 

organic unit are not recognizable.

Hardness. The water property attributable to the presence of alkaline earths, 

mainly calcium and magnesium.

Overland flow. The flow of rainwater or snowmelt over the land surface toward 

stream channels.

Particle-size classification. The classification recommended by the American 

Geophysical Union Subcommittee on sediment terminology (Lane and others, 

1947, p. 937). According to this classification, clay-size particles have diameters between 0.0002 and 0.004 mm, silt-size particles have diameters between 

0.004 and 0.062 mm, and sand-size particles have diameters between 0.062 

and 2.0 mm.

Parts per million (ppm). A unit for expressing the concentration of dissolved 

chemical constituents by weight, usually as grams of constituents per million 

grams of solution.

Percent sodium. The ratio, expressed in percentage, of sodium to the sum of 

the positively charged ions (calcium, magnesium, sodium, and potassium) 

all ions in equivalents per million.

Residual sodium carbonate (as defined by Eaton, 1950, p. 123-124). The amount 

of carbonate plus bicarbonate, expressed in equivalents per million, that 

would remain in solution if all the calcium and magnesium were precipitated 

as the carbonate.

Salinity. The dissolved mineral content or total concentration of solids in 

solution.

Suspended sediment. Sediment maintained in suspension by the upwarl components of turbulent currents or as a colloid.

Total sediment discharge. The weight of all the sediment passing a stream 

section in a unit time.

Water discharge. The rate of flow of a stream ; includes dissolved solids and 

suspended sediment transported in the water.

Water type. The character of the water with respect to its dissolved mineral 

composition. It indicates the anion and cation present in the highest concentrations in equivalents per million.
CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATS

FLUVIAL SEDIMENT AND CHEMICAL QUALITY OF WATER 

IN THE LITTLE BLUE RIVER BASIN, NEBRASKA AND

KANSAS

By JAMES C. MUNDORFF and KIDD M. WADDELL

ABSTRACT

The Little Blue River drains about 3,350 square miles in south-central 

Nebraska and north-central Kansas. The uppermost bedrock in the basin is 

limestone and shale of Permian age and sandstone, shale, and limestone of 

Cretaceous age. Bedrock is exposed in many places in the lower one-third of the 

basin but elsewhere is buried beneath a thin to thick mantle of younger sediments, mostly of Quaternary age. These younger sediments are largely fluvial 

and eolian deposits but also include some glacial till. Consisting in lar?e part 

of sand and gravel, the fluvial deposits are an important source of ground-water 

supplies throughout much of the upper two-thirds of the basin. Loess, an eolian 

deposit of clayey silt, is by far the most widespread surficial deposit.

The climate is continental. Temperatures ranging from 38° F to 118° F have 

been recorded in the basin. Average annual precipitation as low as 10 31 and 

as high as 49.32 inches has been recorded. During most years in the period 

1956-62, when nearly all the water-quality data were obtained, annual precipitation and annual runoff were greater than normal. Flow-duration data indicate, 

however, that the flow distribution for the period was near normal.

The Little Blue River has the same suspended-sediment characteristics as 

nearly all unregulated streams in the Great Plains a wide range in corcentrations, low concentrations during low-flow periods, and high concentrations during 

almost all periods of significant overland runoff. The maximum instantaneous 

concentration normally occurs many hours before maximum water discharge 

during any given rise in stage; the maximum daily mean concentration during 

any given year normally occurs at a moderate stream stage, not during a 

major flood.

Suspended-sediment data for Little Blue River near Deweese, Nebr., which 

receives drainage from the upstream third of the basin, approximately, show 

that during the 1957-61 water years concentrations of 100 ppm (parts per 

million) or less prevailed about 42 percent of the time and concentrations of 

1,000 ppm or less prevailed about 85 percent of the time. Observed concentrations ranged from 2 to 21,000 ppm ; daily mean concentrations ranged from 

2 to 13,800 ppm.

HI
H2 CONTRIBUTION'S TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

The discharge-weighted suspended-sediment concentration was computed as 

about 2.800 ppm at Little Blue River near Deweese, about 3,300 ppm near 

Fairbury (Endicott), and about 3,000 ppm at Waterville. These stations receive 

drainage from about one-third, two-thirds, and nearly all the basin, respectively. 

Water-utilization problems resulting from high concentrations are not significant 

in the basin ; use of water from the Little Blue River is quantitatively negligible.

Concentrations and, consequently, discharges of sediment are greater at a 

given water discharge on a rising stage than at, the same discharge on the 

falling stage of the same runoff event. Also, a wide range in sediment discharge 

occurs at similar water discharges during different runoff events. Daily sediment discharges at Little Blue River near Deweese ranged from about 1,400 to 

16,000 tons at daily mean water discharges of about 500 cfs (cubic feet per 

second) and from about 7,500 to 28,000 tons at water discharges of about 

1,000 cfs.

The estimated long-term sediment discharge at Little Blue River near 

Deweese is about 400,000 tons per year; near Fairbury, about 1,200,000 tons 

per year: and at Waterville, about 1.000,000 tons per year. The high sediment 

discharge from the downstream part, of the basin is due to greater precipitation 

and runoff not to higher concentrations of suspended sediment in the downstream parts of the basin.

Nearly all the suspended sediment is silt and clay. The strermbed material 

is mainly medium sand to gravel. The median particle size of bed material 

observed was about 0.73 mm near Deweese and about 0.77 mm near Fairbury.

A few computations of total sediment discharge of Little Blue River near 

Deweese indicate that suspended-sediment discharge is 95 percent or more of 

the total sediment discharge over a wide range of water discharge. Suspended 

silt and clay generally are 90 percent or more of the total sediment discharge.

The chemical quality of the water during base flow of the Little Blue River 

is determined mainly by ground-water effluent from the uncon solidated sediments that mantle the bedrock in the upper two-thirds of basin. Cretaceous 

rocks, which are exposed only in the lower one-third of the basin, have a significant effect upon the chemical quality in the lower basin.

Throughout the Little Blue River basin both the overland flow and the base 

flow are of the calcium bicarbonate tyi>e. The dissolved solids for flows representative of base flow near Deweese, near Endicott, and at Waterville were 

273, 319, and 433 ppm. respectively, and for overland flow, 73, 84. and 101 ppm. 

Streamflow throughout the upper two-thirds of the basin is uniform in chemical 

composition. In the lower one-third of the basin the chemical composition 

of the streamflow varies with the proportions of base and overland flow belowr 

Endicott. Increased dissolved-solids content of the ground-water effluent downstream from Endicott between 1956 and 1960 caused the dissolve"! solids during 

low flows at Waterville to increase from 328 to 433 ppm.

A main-stem reservoir near Deweese could result in a dissolved-solids increase 

of about 90 ppm during low flow between Deweese and Endicott. The impounded 

water would be of lower dissolved-solids content, however, than the present 

low flow at Deweese. Sufficient releases of the more dilute water would improve 

the chemical quality during low flow in downstream reaches.

The chemical quality of both base flow and overland flow upstream from Endicott is suitable for irrigation.

Sewage effluents from Hebrou and Fairbury could have an adverse effect on 

the chemical quality in the downstream reaches during period' of low flow. 

Increased urban or industrial growth could have a similar effect.
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUE RIVER H3 

INTRODUCTION

The Little Blue River drains an area of about 2,475 square miles 

in south-central Nebraska and 875 square miles in north-central Kansas. Extending from Mindeii, Nebr., to Blue Rapids, Kans., the 

drainage basin is 137 miles long and has an average width of about 

24 miles. (See fig. 1.) Data on the quantity and quality of fluvial 

sediment and on the chemical quality of streamflow have been collected 

by the U.S. Geological Survey at four main-stem sites in Nebraska, 

and by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the State of Kansas 

at one site in Kansas. The location of the data-collection sites is 

shown in figure 1, and the types of data and periods of record for 

each site are shown in figure 2.

The purpose of this report is to describe and analyze the results of 

the site investigations and to evaluate present and potential problems 

related to the quality of water in the basin. The available data on 

water quality were not obtained as part of an integrated basin-wide 

investigation but were a response to an immediate need for information 

at a specific stream site. The data description and analysis in this 

report complements that necessary for utilization of the data in reservoir design and water project planning by other Federal agencies.

SETTLEMENT AND ECONOMY

The main settlement and the establishment of the present general 

pattern of human occupancy in the basin occurred between 1865 and 

1880, although a few homesteads were established before 1865. During the past 80 years, there have been great changes in transportation, 

farming methods, sources and magnitude of income, average size of 

farms, amount of investment in equipment and land, and trade and 

marketing habits; nevertheless, the economy and culture have remained agrarian in outlook.

Hastings, Nebr., which had an estimated population of 23,219 in 

1964, is partly within the basin. The only towns that are wholly 

within the. basin and had populations exceeding 1,000 in 1960 are Fairbury, Nebr. (5,572), Minden, Nebr. (2,383), Hebron, Nebr. (1,920), and 

Washington. Kans. (1,506). Of the 50 towns and villages in the basin, 

all that have municipal water systems use ground water as a source 

of supply.

Industrial development is minor and is mainly concentrated in 

Hastings, where manufacture of agricultural equipment and processing of agricultural products are important to the local economy.

Livestock, wheat, corn, and grain sorghums are the major sources 

of agricultural income. During the past 20 years, agricultural production and the average size of farms have markedly increased while 

the labor required per unit of production has decreased.
EXPLANATION

A

Water-quality station

10 15 MILES

FIGURE 1. Location of stations at which water-quality 
Site

1 2 3 

4 

5

Type of data

Sediment 

Chemical QualitySediment

Sediment

Sediment Chemical QualitySediment * Chemical Quality**

1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963

V/////7//////s^^^^^^^ \ \ ^Y///////////////////////////////

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Y/////////////A t////////////////\

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i i i i i i i i

Station operated by:* U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Kansas City District);** State of Kansas; all others by U.S. Geological Survey 

EXPLANATION

FREQUENCY OF SAMPLING

^m ^^^ i V//////////////////A l\\\\\\\\\l

^ ,

WATER QUALITY, LFI

£> t?

Wr1 

d

a

1

Daily Periodic Infrequent

1 Near Deweese, Nebraska 4 Near Endicott, Nebraska

2 At Angus, Nebraska 5 At Waterville, Kansas3 Near Fairbury, Nebraska

FIGURE ,2. Period of operation, type of data, and frequency of sampling at water-quaiity stations.

tf01
H6 CONTRIBUTION'S TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES 

GEOLOGY AND TOPOGRAPHY

Throughout the upper and central parts of the Little Blue River 

basin, the uppermost bedrock is of Cretaceous age; in the lower part 

of the basin, it is partly of Cretaceous age and partly of Permian 

age. The Dakota Sandstone of Cretaceous age crops out in several 

places below Fairbury (fig. 3). Some beds in this formation are 

sufficiently permeable to transmit significant quantities of water, 

most of which is somewhat saline. In the upper part of the basin the

FIGURE 3. Outcrop of Dakota Sandstone several hundred feet downstream from 

the water-quality station near Endicott, Xebr. Sandstone overlies weathered 

shale at this section. Small springs and seeps are common at the contact of 

the sandstone and shale.
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUE RIVER H7

bedrock is overlain in places by imconsolidated to poorly consolidated 

deposits of Tertiary age as much as 125 feet thick. Although th°, bedrock is exposed or is only thinly mantled by glacial or eolian deposits 

in much of the basin below Fairbury, elsewhere the bedrock and the 

Tertiary deposits as well are thinly to thickly mantled by a complex 

of glacial till and water- and wind-deposited sediments of Quaternary 

age.

The water-laid deposits of Quaternary age extend into the basin 

from the west. They consist in large part of fluvial sand and gravel 

but also include extensive deposits of silt and clay. The Quaternary 

deposits form an almost continuous sheet over a large part of the basin 

above Fairbury; they are thickest where they fill broad east-trending 

valleys that were eroded by streams in late Tertiary and early Pleistocene time, and thinnest on the divides between those valleys. Along 

a northwest-trending line through Fairbury, the fluvial deposits give 

way to glacial till, which extends into the basin from the northeast. 

The till was deposited during the Nebraskaii and Kansan Glaciations 

of the Pleistocene, and the fluvial material was deposited during the 

same time and also during the Illinoian. Most of the fluvial deposits 

are both highly permeable and saturated and are therefore a major 

source of ground water for irrigation and municipal use.

A thin to thick mantle of loess, or wind-deposited clayey silt, overlies the fluvial deposits, and where these are absent, rests on tl x °, till 

or bedrock. Three different loess sheets the Loveland (Illinoian), 

the Peorian (Wisconsin), and the Bignell (Wisconsin) are recognized. The reddish tint of the Loveland and, where preserved, the 

fossil soils at the top of both the Loveland and the Peorian help to 

distinguish the loess sheets. According to Lugn (1935) the Loveland 

is as much as 80 feet thick and the Peorian as much as 100 feet. The 

Bignell is much thinner than either of the other two and less 

widespread.

The flood plains of the Little Blue River and its principal tributaries 

are underlain by alluvium of Recent age. The alluvium consists wholly 

of reworked Pleistocene sediments, and where it rests on Pleistocene 

sediments it cannot be distinguished from them. Only where alluvium 

rests directly on bedrock can its thickness be determined exactly.

An area of a few square miles in the upper part of the basin is 

underlain by wind-deposited sand.

Figure 4 shows the distribution of the surficial unconsolidated sediments and the areas where bedrock is exposed or only thinly m&ntled 

by unconsolidated sediments.
H8 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUE RIVER H9

The topography of the basin ranges from nearly level loess plains 

having hundreds of small poorly drained depressions or "lagoons" 

(fig. 5) to severely eroded, dissected, steeply sloping areas of loess, 

sandstone, and shale. Except for narrow areas along the stream 

valleys, much of the area upstream from about Fairbury is level to 

gently rolling. Especially in southeastern Kearney County, central 

Adams and Clay Counties, and southwestern Fillmore County, level 

loessial uplands and wet depressions are common. In much of the 

downstream third of the basin, steep slopes and bedrock outcrops are 

common, the surface is rolling to intricately dissected, and an appreciable part of the land is in native vegetation.

The gradient of the Little Blue River averages about 5.2 feet per 

mile (fig. 6). Gradients for some principal tributaries range from 

an average of 6.0 feet per mile for Big Sandy and Rose Creeks to 11.2 

feet per mile for Coon Creek.

FIGURE 5. Poorly drained area in loess plains about 3 miles south of Clay Center,

Nebr.
H10 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

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WATER QUALITY, LITTLE, BLUE RIVER Hll

The Little Blue River characteristically has a meandering channel 

(fig. 7) and unstable banks. A few field observations indicate that 

the migration of channel meanders is gradual during a wide range of 

stages from slightly more than base flow to bank-full stage. Major 

changes in the channel occur during the infrequent large floods, 

during which the banks are overtopped and new cutoff channels are 

sometimes established.

Valley length from the mouth to the headwaters of the Little Blue 

River is about 160 miles; channel length is about 205 miles. The ratio 

of channel length to valley length (1.28) suggests that meanders are 

common. Some reaches several miles long, however, have no welldeveloped meanders, whereas other reaches have numerous tight

FIGURE 7. Meander in the Little Blue River near Endicott, Nebr. 

water-quality station is at bridge.

223-557 O - 66 - 3

Former
H12 CONTRIBUTION'S TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNTTED STATES

meanders. For example, six different reaches having valley lengths 

ranging from about 1.5 to 7.5 miles have ratios of channel length to 

valley length ranging from 1.15 to 2.15. Tributary channels generally 

are more sinuous than the main stem. Reaches about 4 and 6 miles 

long on two randomly selected tributaries have ratios of channel 

length to valley length of 2.39 and 1.97.

SOILS

Soil characteristics reflect the geologic, topographic, climatic, and 

vegetation conditions under which the soils have developed during 

long periods of time. The basin is mainly within the zone of Chernozem soils, which are dark-colored soils developed in semiarid grasslands. Many different soil series, types, and phases have been mapped 

in the basin. No soil surveys have been published since 1927 for any 

counties in the basin, and only soil associations are shown in figure 8 

A soil association is a group of defined and named soils associated in 

a characteristic geographic pattern; generally, only the two or three 

predominant soils within an association area are listed in the association name. Much of the land that is irrigated with ground water, 

and that may be irrigated with water from the planned Angus Reservoir on the Little Blue River, is of the Crete or Hastings soil series. 

These soils have been successfully irrigated for many years in central 

Nebraska, and under continuing intelligent agronomic and irrigation 

practices, they can continue to be irrigated successfully with either 

ground water from deposits of Pleistocene age or with surface water 

from the Little Blue River.

CLIMATE

The climate of the basin is continental; a wide annual range in 

temperature and precipitation, and great variability in weather from 

day to day and from year to year, are characteristic. Records of the 

U.S. Weather Bureau show that temperatures as low as 38°F and as 

high as 118°F have been recorded in the basin. Average annual 

precipitation has been as low as 10.31 inches at Clay Center and as 

high as 49.32 inches at Minden.

Precipitation decreases significantly between the mouth and the 

headwaters of the stream. At Blue Rapids, which is near the mouth 

of the Little Blue River, the average annual precipitation is about 

28.8 inches. At Minden, which is at the headwaters about 130 miles 

northwest of the mouth, the average annual precipitation is about 22.2 

inches.
EXPLANATION 

SOIL ASSOCIATIONS

CHERNOZEM

1. Holdrege-Colby

2. Hastings-Holdrege

3. Crete-Hastings-Nuckolls

4. Hastings-Crete

5. Crete-Butler

6. Crete-Hastings-Kipp 

REGOSOL, LITHOSOL, RENDZINA

7. Hedville-Lancaster

8. Sogn-Florence 

ALLUVIAL

9. Bottomlands, undifferentiated

15 MILES

FIGURE 8. Soil associations in the Little Blue River basin. Adapted from 
H14 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNTTE'D STATES 

RUNOFF AND EVAPORATION

The intensity of runoff is affected by the intensity and amount of 

precipitation and by the infiltration capacity of the soil. Information 

on maximum rate of runoff, in inches per hour, and on maximum 

volume of runoff, in inches of average depth over the watershed, is 

available for several small watersheds in the vicinity of Rosemont, 

Nebr. (U.S. Dept. Agriculture, 1958, 1963). The data are for 23 

watersheds that range in size from about 3 to 3,490 acres, and for 

periods of record ranging from 13 to 20 years. Types and quality of 

vegetation varied from year to year in a single M'atershed and from 

watershed to watershed during a single year. Maximurr rate of runoff was 7.67 inches per hour from a watershed of 3.8 acres. Maximum 

volume of runoff, in inches of average depth over the watershed, was 

2.21, 3.49, and 3.62 for periods of 1, 12, and 24 hours from watersheds 

of 3 to 4.5 acres; maximum volume for an 8-day period was 4.99 

inches from a watershed of 2,086 acres.

The maximum rate of runoff from watersheds of a few acres generally exceeds greatly the maximum rate from a basin of several 

hundred square miles of which the small watershed is a part. For 

example, the maximum rate of runoff during an 8-ye°vr period of 

record at Little Blue River near Deweese was 13,000 cfs (cubic feet 

per second), which is equivalent to a discharge rate of only about 0.012 

inch per hour from the drainage area of 1,140 square milee; in contrast, 

the maximum rate of runoff was 7.67 inches per hour from a watershed 

of 3.8 acres. Further, runoff data from small adjacent watersheds and 

from different locations within a single small watershed indicate 

extreme variability of precipitation within short, distances.

Erosion is probably as variable as runoff, and most of the sediment 

transported during a flood on such streams as the Little Blue River 

may be derived from a small percentage of the land surface of the 

basin. The intensity and amount of erosion are affected by the intensity of runoff and the credibility of the soil. Greatest erosion does 

not necessarily occur as a result of the greatest rainfall intensity but 

rather as a result of high intensity of rainfall and runof, high credibility of the soil, and low infiltration capacity resulting either from 

natural soil characteristics or from antecedent moisture conditions.

Evaporation losses within the basin are fairly high. Average 

annual lake evaporation, computed from data obtained during 1946- 

55, ranges from about 48 inches in the east to 52 inches in the west; 

about 75 percent of this evaporation occurs during May to October 

(Kohler and others, 1959). Reliable data on evapotranspiration in the 

basin are not available. Only a small part of the precipitation recharges the ground-water reservoir. Keech and Dre^szen (1959)
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUE RIVER HI5

estimated that the average annual rate of recharge, in an area considered to be typical of the upland areas of the Little Blue River basin 

in Clay County, is about 1.6 inches. Average evapotranspiration is 

probably about half the average annual lake evaporation, measured 

in inches per year per unit area of free water surface. A very small 

part of the basin, however, is occupied by free water surface. Evaporation from free water surfaces is probably equal to evapotranrmration from less than 1 percent of the land surface of the basin.

During most years in the period 1956-62, when most of the waterquality data were obtained, precipitation and runoff were greater 

than normal (fig. 9). The exceptionally large amount of runoff 

from the basin in 1960 was due mainly to extremely high flowr that 

resulted from rapid melting of a deep accumulation of snow. For 

example, nearly 30 percent of the discharge at Little Blue River near 

Fairbury for the 1960 water year occurred during March 26-31.

Streamflow records have been obtained at Little Blue River near 

Deweese only since the 1954 water year. For the 8-year period 1954-61, 

mean discharge near Deweese was 146 cf s; near Fairbury, 367 cf s; and 

at Waterville, 585 cfs. The drainage area upstream from Deweese is 

49 percent of the drainage area upstream from Fairbury and 34 

percent of the drainage area upstream from Waterville. However, 

the mean discharge near Deweese was only 40 percent of that near 

Fairbury and 25 percent of that at Waterville. During 1954-61, the 

annual mean discharge near Deweese ranged from 18 percent (1958) 

to 35 percent (1956) of that at Waterville.

Although the mean discharge near Deweese is disproportionately 

low relative to the percentage of the Little Blue River basin drainage 

area upstream from Deweese, the low flow (excluding post-flood bank 

storage and delayed overland flow) is disproportionately high. During extended periods of no overland flow from storms, the water discharge near Deweese commonly is 35 to 45 percent of the discharge at 

Waterville. The flow is then maintained principally by ground water 

from the thick deposits of sand and gravel of Pleistocene age in 

central Nebraska. These deposits become thinner downstream from 

the station near Deweese and are much thinner and discontinuous 

downstream from Fairbury. Therefore, the ground-water contribution to the Little Blue River from sand and gravel of Pleistocene 

age apparently decreases in the downstream third of the basin.

Flow-duration data presented by Furness (1959) suggest that 

channel losses through evaporation and seepage may be significant 

during prolonged low-flow periods in the reach between Endicott and 

Waterville (fig. 10). At Little Blue River near Fairbury (Endicott),
H16 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

350- EXPLANATION

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8 300

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FIGURE 9. Annual precipitation, annual runoff, and departures from normals

at selected sites.

drainage area 2,320 square miles, discharges of about 115, £3,85, and 61 

cfs are equaled or exceeded 80, 90, 95, and 99 percent of the time, 

respectively. At Wa/terville, drainage area 3,330 square miles, discharges of 130,105, 83, and 52 cfs are exceeded 80, 90, 95, ar d 99 percent 

of the time. Although 61 cfs is equaled or exceeded 99 percent of the 

time near Fairbury (Endicott), only about 52 cfs is equaled or 

exceeded 99 percent of the time at Waterville.
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUB RIVER H17

100,000

10,000

2 1000

CO

100

\l / At Waterville, regional curve 

\/ for base period 1921-56

\

\ \

y \ xNear Fairbury (En dicott) 1954-62

10

0.01 0.1 0.5 1 2 5 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 95 98 99 99.8 99.99

PERCENTAGE OF TIME DISCHARGE EQUALED OR EXCEEDED THAT SHOWN

FIGURE 10. Flow-duration curves for Little Blue River near Dewees*1 , near 

Fairbury (Endieott), and at Waterville.

Comparison of the flow-duration curve for near Fairbury (Endieott) for the base period 1921-56 with the curve prepared from s^reamflow data for 1954-62 (fig. 10) indicates that flow distribution at that 

station was near normal for the main period of water-quality investigations. ~ Further, / the 1954-62 flow-duration curves for near Fairbury (Endieott) and near Deweese suggest that flow distribution at
HIS CONTRIBUTION'S TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNTIED STATES

Deweese was near normal for the period, although the total water discharge for any specific year may have been appreciably greater than or 

less than the long-term mean.

FLUVIAL SEDIMENT

Investigations of fluvial sediment in the Little Blue River basin were 

restricted to collection of routine data on suspended-sediment concentrations and discharges and on particle-size distribution of bed material. Fluvial-sediment data are not available for any tributaries of 

the Little Blue River. Data obtained by the Geological Survey at 

Little Blue River near Deweese and near Fairbury (Endicott) have 

been published in the annual series of water-supply papers entitled 

"Quality of Surface Waters of the United States.'' Daily suspendedsediment discharge data obtained by the Corps of Engineers (Kansas 

City District) for Little Blue River at Waterville during 1960-62 were 

used in preparing this report and are the only daily data available for 

the downstream two-thirds of the basin.

Both the Geological Survey and the Corps of Engineers used standard equipment and similar methods for collecting and analyzing the 

sediment samples. They also used similar methods to prepare the 

sediment-discharge records.

SUSPENDED-SEDIMENT CONCENTEATIONS

The Little Blue River has the suspended-sediment characteristics of 

nearly all unregulated streams in the Great Plains a wide range in 

concentrations, low concentrations during low-flow period", and high 

concentrations during almost all periods of significant overT and runoff, 

regardless of the total amount of the runoff. Precipitation intensity, 

antecedent moisture conditions, and physical characteristic? of the area 

of runoff mainly control the magnitude of suspended-sediment concentrations. During the period of observation, the maximum concentration during any rise in stream stage commonly occurred many hours 

before the maximum water discharge, not during the maximum water 

discharge or highest stage of the rise. For example, the annual maximum observed concentrations near Deweese ranged from 9,670 to 

21,000 ppm (parts per million) during the period 1957-61, and each 

annual maximum occurred during the early part of a moderate rise in 

stage. During1 the same period the annual maximum daily mean concentration ranged from 5,740 ppm in 1957 to 13,800 ppm in 1960 at 

daily mean water discharges of 625 and 1,580 cfs, respectively. Thus, 

the annual maximum daily mean concentration is normally reached at 

a moderate stream stage, not during a major flood.

Daily mean concentrations as low as 2 ppm have been determined 

for Little Blue River near Deweese. Data for the 1957-61 water
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUE RIVER H19

years show concentrations of 100 ppm or less about 42 percent of the 

time and concentrations of 1,000 ppm or less about 85 percent of the 

time (fig. 11). The concentration-duration curve for Deweese in 

figure 11 was prepared from data on daily mean concentratic ns and 

gives no indication of the frequency of hourly concentrations greater

100,000

10,000

1000

100 -

001 0.1 0.5 1 2 5 10 20 30405060 70 80 90 95 9899 99.8 99.99 

PERCENTAGE OF TIME CONCENTRATION EQUALED OR EXCEEDED THAT SHOWN

 FIGURE 11. Daily suspended-sediment-com-entration-duratioii curves for Little 

Blue River near Deweese (1957-61) and at Waterville (1960^62).

223-557 O - 66 - 4
H20 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

than or less than daily means. For example, on June 28, 1959, the 

daily mean concentration was 9,890 ppm, although concentrations 

as high as 21,000 ppm were observed during part of the day. To determine the magnitude of the difference between a part of a concentration-duration curve based on daily mean concentrations and a 

curve based on hourly data, such a curve was constructed for seven 

periods that ranged in length from 11 to 30 days. During thQ,se periods 

daily mean concentrations were rarely less than 500 ppm. Comparison 

of the daily and hourly curves (fig. 12) shows that the significant 

difference between the curves is in their upper parts; for example, a 

daily mean concentration of 12,000 ppm \vas equaled or exceeded only 

0.8 percent of the time, whereas a concentration of 12,000 ppm was 

exceeded 2 percent of the time according to the hourly curve. Concentration-duration curves prepared from data on daily mean con50,000

10,000

1000

100

0.051 0.2

Hourly mean con

mean concentration

995 99.9

0.01 0.1 0.5 1 2 5 10 20 3040506070 80 90 95 9899 99.8 99.99 

PERCENTAGE OF TIME CONCENTRATION EQUALED OR EXCEEDED THAT SHOWN

FIGURE 12. Concentration-duration curves based on daily mean concentrations 

and hourly mean concentrations for 120 days of high concentration at Little 

Blue River near Deweese.
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUE RIVER H21

centrations do not indicate short-term recurrence intervals, seasonal 

or long-term trends in concentration, or frequency or magnitude of 

high concentrations that exceed the mean concentration for a given 

day.

Records obtained concurrently near Deweese and at Watervilta during 1960-61 show that in 1960 water discharge was much above normal 

at both sites; in 1961 it was near normal near Deweese and slightly 

greater than normal at Waterville. Concentration-duration curves 

for the two sites for 1960-61 (fig. 13) show significant differences, 

however. A concentration of 200 ppm, for example, was equaled or 

exceeded at Waterville about 55 percent of the time but near Deweese 

only about 30 percent of the time. Discharge-weighted concentrations 

during 1960-61 were 3,100 ppm near Deweese and 3,580 ppm at TT aterville; if the 10-day period March 27-April 5, 1960, is excluded from 

the record, the weighted concentrations are 3,170 ppm near Deweese 

and 3,250 ppm at Waterville. Thus, although the concentrationduration curves are significantly different, the discharge-weighted 

concentrations, which can be affected markedly by a few days of very 

high sediment discharge, are similar for the two sites.

Concentration curves shown in figure 11 for the complete period of 

daily record near Deweese (1957-61) and at Waterville (19CO-62) 

are similar to those shown in figure 13 for the period of concurrent 

records (1960-61). The intersection of curves in each figure is at 

about the same point, and the curves are similar except for the distribution of concentrations below about 30 ppm.

Curves showing the average relation of suspended-sediment concentrations to water discharges that are equaled or exceeded for different 

percentages of time (fig. 14) indicate that the highest concentrations 

do not occur during the greatest water discharges. Near Deweese, near 

Fairbury (Endicott), and at Waterville, the concentrations tend to 

increase during increases in water discharge up to those discharges 

equaled or exceeded about 98-99 percent of the time. Average concentrations decrease sharply at the extremely high discharges that 

are equaled or exceeded 1-2 percent of the time.

Seasonal trends in concentrations and in water discharges at Little 

Blue River near Deweese are apparent in figure 15. Low concentrations and low water discharges prevail during October to March; high 

concentrations and water discharges usually occur during April to 

September. The seasonal trend shown for the station near Deweese 

prevails throughout the basin for streams that have perennial flow.

Water utilization problems resulting from high suspended-sediment 

concentrations during some periods are not significant in the basin. 

Use of water from the Little Blue River is almost negligible. Small
H22 CONTRIBUTION'S TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

100,000

10,000

1000

100

0.05, 0.2

At Waterville 1960-61

Near Deweese 1960-61'

99.5 199-9 10

0.01 0.1 0.5 1 2 5 10 20 30 405060 70 80 90 95 98 99 99.8 99.99

PERCENTAGE OF TIME CONCENTRATION EQUALED OR EXCEEDED THAT SHOWN

FIGURE 13. Concentration-duration curves for Little Blue River n°ar Deweese 

and at Waterville, 1960-61.

quantities of water are pumped from the stream for irrigation of valley 

land, and there is one small on-channel powerplant at Fairbury. Thus, 

suspended-sediment concentration problems associated with water 

treatment for municipal, industrial, and domestic uses obviously do 

not exist in the basin. If the water in the Little Blue Eiver eventually
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUE RIVER H23

10,000

< H

Z uo o

1000

10

100

At WatervilleN 

Near Fairbury (EndicottK

s Near Deweese

80 60 40 20 

FLOW FREQUENCY, IN PERCENTAGE OF TIME

FIGURE 14. Relation of average suspended-sediment concentrations to flow 

frequency in percentage of time.

is used by industries and municipalities, removal of sediment may be 

required during the 10-25 percent of the time when concentrations may 

range from 1,000 ppm for periods of several days to 20,000 ppm or 

more for periods of a few hours. Off-channel desilting basins and 

storage of sufficient water to satisfy needs during periods of high suspended-sediment concentration would probably be preferable tc direct 

treatment for removal of large amounts of sediment.

The effect of major reservoirs, such as the proposed Angus Reservoir (total initial capacity 140,000 acre-ft), on the concentration of 

suspended sediment in the Little Blue River is not known. Similar 

reservoirs in the Great Plains have trap efficiencies of about 95 percent. 

Therefore, nearly all the sediment from the upstream third of the 

basin would be deposited in the reservoir, and concentrations in downstream reaches would be reduced markedly during periods when storm
Id

SUSPENDED-SEDIMENT MEAN MONTHLY DISCHARGE-WEIGHTED 

MILLION PER PARTS IN CONCENTRATION, 

 ft 

w P 

B M 

I I I I I I I I I I 1 I I I I I I I I I I 

CFS-DAYS IN DISCHARGE, WATER MONTHLY 

___* ;-________ ______ 

01 SHX AOoioaaAH ,10 ani, 
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUE RitVER H25

runoff was restricted to the upstream third of the basin. During some 

periods, however, concentrations could be higher than they would have 

been under natural, unregulated conditions. For example, during 

periods of significant release of flood storage from such a reservoir, 

streamflow several times greater than natural base flow might be maintained for several days or weeks after a major flood; durirg such 

periods, concentrations might be expected to remain several times 

greater than they would have been during unregulated base flow. 

Thus, the general effects of regulation by such a reservoir would be to 

reduce sharply the annual discharge-weighted concentration and narrow sharply the concentration range for some distance downstream 

from the reservoir; to reduce the duration of high concentrations in 

downstream reaches; and, because of the effects of reservoir releases, 

possibly to increase the duration of moderate concentrations in downstream reaches. The effect of regulation by a major reservoir may be 

to improve markedly the quality of water, as to sediment content, 

during periods when floods would have occurred in the absence of 

regulation; conversely, regulation may result in poorer quality of 

water, as to sediment content, during periods when natural base flow 

is augmented by release of flood storage from a reservoir.

SUSPENDED-SEDIMENT DISCHARGE

Suspended-sediment discharge characteristics of a stream as a whole 

and at a particular section are affected by many conditions tiH geology and soils of the drainage area, amount and distribution of precipitation, land use, land slopes, erodibility of bank and bed material of 

the channels, stream slope, and main-stem and tributary dams Suspended-sediment data were obtained in the Little Blue River basin to 

provide information for reservoir design purposes, not to evaluate the 

effects of conservation programs or to determine the sources of 

sediment and the predominant erosional process.

Suspended-sediment discharge of the Little Blue River varies with 

time and shows a general tendency to increase with water discharge. 

Furthermore, sediment concentration and discharge vary widely at 

any given water discharge. Sediment concentration and, consequently, sediment discharge are greater at a given water discharge 

during a rising stage than they are at the same discharge during the 

falling stage of the same runoff event. Also, sediment discharge at 

a given water discharge during one rising stage may differ greatly from 

that at the same water discharge during another rising stage. The 

curve in figure 16 shows the relation of sediment discharge to water 

discharge near Deweese. It represents only average conditions and 

does not indicate the wide range of values observed. For example,
H26 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

100,000

10,000

Near Deweese, 1957-61 (daily)^ / /

100 1000 10,000 30,000 

WATER DISCHARGE, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

FIGURE 16. Relation of sediment discharge to water discharge at Little Blue 

River near Deweese, near Fairbury (Endicott), and at Waterville.

daily sediment discharges ranged from about 2 to 300 tons at daily 

mean water discharges of about 70 cfs, from about 1,400 to 16,000 tons 

at daily mean water discharges of about 500 cfs, and from about 

7,500 to 28,000 tons at daily mean water discharges of abouf, 1,000 cfs. 

The solution of reservoir design problems does not require detailed 

analysis of short-term variations in sediment load. Data obtained
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE, BLUE RIVER H27

over a period of time sufficient to be representative of a wid°, range 

of climatic and runoff conditions allow for reliable predictions of 

the quantity of sediment that wT ill be deposited in a reservoir. Computations are based on flow-duration data, on the relation of daily 

mean and instantaneous sediment discharges to daily mean and instantaneous water discharges, and on an evaluation of the representativeness of the short periods of streamflow and sediment investigations. Such computations indicate that the probable long-term average suspended-sediment discharge at Little Blue Eiver near Deweese 

(drainage area 1,140 sq mi) is about 400,000 tons per year. The 

probable volume occupied by the sediment deposited in a main-stem 

reservoir near Deweese is between 250 and 275 acre-feet per year, 

depending on methods of reservoir operation and on probable trap 

efficiency of the reservoir. Trap efficiency of such a main-stem 

reservoir probably would be at least 93 percent and could be as high 

as 98 percent.

In most of the drainage area upstream from Deweese, precipitation 

wr as above normal during each year of sediment investigations' (1957- 

61). Mean water discharge for 1960 was much greater than th°, mean 

for 1954-61, was significantly greater than the means for 1957 and 

1959, and was slightly less than the means for 1958 and 1961 (fig. 9). 

Thus, although the mean annual sediment discharge (510,000 tons 

during the period of sediment investigations) probably significantly 

exceeded the long-term mean sediment discharge, the annual discharge-weighted sediment concentration (2,970 ppm) probably differed only slightly from the long-term weighted concentration. The 

high annual sediment discharge resulted from abnormally high wrater 

discharge, not from abnormally high sediment concentrations.

The annual sediment yield from the drainage area upstream from 

Deweese averaged about 450 tons per square mile during 1957-61. 

The actual source areas of the sediment obviously are not known. 

Large parts of the level loess plains contributed very little sediment to 

the Little Blue Eiver, and some of the large poorly drained lagoons 

contributed no sediment to the stream. Some of the highly dissected 

valley-breaks areas and some areas of severe erosion probably contributed sediment at a rate of thousands of tons per square mile per 

year. Data on average annual sediment yield per square mile give 

no indication of the extreme variations with time and area that may 

be included in the computation of the average. In Little Blue Eiver 

near Deweese, as in the entire Little Blue Eiver basin, mos^ of the 

suspended sediment is probably derived from a minor part of the 

total area during 10 percent or less of each year.
H28 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

At Little Blue River near Fairbury (Endicott), sediment data were 

obtained only periodically (fig. 2). To supplement the data obtained 

by standard methods, stationary automatic samplers were used during 

many rises in stage during 1956-57. Computations were made of the 

average relation of sediment discharge to water discharge for the 

period of record and the average relation of sediment discharge (computed from data obtained by automatic samplers) to water discharge 

during major rises in stage during 1956-57 (fig. 16). The data show 

that for a given water discharge sediment discharge was markedly 

higher during the rising stage than during the entire period of high 

stage. Because suspended-sediment concentrations are commonly 

much higher during the rising stage than during the falling stage, 

most of the suspended-sediment during any given rise may be discharged before peak stage, although most of the water is discharged 

after peak stage.

Estimates based on a long-term flow-duration curve and on a "sediment rating curve" prepared from periodic data indicate that the 

long-term average annual sediment discharge at the Little Blue River 

near Fairbury is about 1.2 million tons. Thus, the estimates of sediment discharge for the sites near Deweese and near Fairbury indicate 

that although the drainage area near Fairbury is only about twice that 

near Deweese, the sediment discharge near Fairbury is about triple 

that near Deweese. Computations indicate that the annual dischargeweighted suspended-sediment concentrations are similar for both 

sites. Thus, the disproportionately high sediment disci arge near 

Fairbury is caused mainly by the greater runoff from the middle third 

of the basin than from the upstream third of the basin. A main-stem 

reservoir that regulated flow and trapped 95 percent of the sediment 

from the upstream third of the basin probably would cause a reduction 

in the sediment discharge near Fairbury. This reductior, however, 

could be significantly less than the amount of sediment trapped in the 

reservoir if the regulation of flow resulted in net degradation in the 

channel between the reservoir and Fairbury.

Suspended-sediment discharge data were obtained at "Vaterville, 

Kans., by the Corps of Engineers (Kansas City District) during the 

1960-62 water years. Although runoff from snow melt during March 

1960 caused main-stem streamflow to be much greater than normal 

during 1960, precipitation and runoff data (fig. 9) suggest that the 

sediment data obtained at Waterville during 1960-62 ma^ be fairly 

representative of long-term conditions. For example, during 1961, 

streamflow was slightly less than normal from Deweese, was about 

normal near Fairbury, and was appreciably greater than normal at 

Waterville; and during 1962, streamflow was appreciably greater than
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE, BLUE BIVE:R H29

normal near Deweese, was slightly greater than normal near Fairbury, 

and was slightly less than normal at Waterville. If the relation of 

sediment discharge to water discharge at Waterville (fig. 16) is assumed to be representative of long-term conditions, the average annual 

sediment discharge at Waterville, computed from this relation and 

from flow-duration data (fig. 10), is about 1.9 million tons.

The part of each sediment rating curve (fig. 16) that represents 

water discharges equaled or exceeded less than 3 percent of tl°> time 

is of unknown reliability. Few data are available to define this part, 

which represents a small percentage of the time but which has a 

significant effect on the computed long-term sediment discharge. The 

values in table 1 were computed mainly from sediment rating curves 

and flow-duration data and are a reasonable approximation of the 

sediment-discharge characteristics of the Little Blue Kiver; the values 

are reliable to the extent that the sediment data obtained during the 

short periods of investigation are representative.

TABLE 1. Summary of stream flow and suspended-sediment data for the 

Little Blue River

Drainage area:

Suspended sediment:

Percentage of long-term average discharge at ^ 

Yield... _________________________ ...... .......

Discharge-weighte d concentration. . . . . _ 

Streamflow:

Percentage of long-term average at Waterville

iVaterville ..._._

__________ppm__

Near 

Deweese

1,140 

34

400,000 

21 

350 

2,800

53,000 

24

Near 

Fairbury 1

2,320 

70

1,200,000 

63 

520 

3,300

135,000 

63

At 

Vaterville 2

3,330

1,900,000

570 

3,000

236, 000

1 Station location changed Sept. 25,1957, from "near Endicott"; drainage area 2,340 sq mi.

2 Station location changed Apr. 29,1958; previous drainage area 3,440 sq mi.

PARTICLE-SIZE DISTRIBUTION OF THE SEDIMENT 

SUSPENDED SEDIMENT

The size distribution of suspended-sediment particles in streams 

depends on the material available for transport and the flow characteristics of the stream. Although the particle-size distributions determined in the laboratory for sand and coarser particles represent fairly 

accurately the sizes actually transported by streams, the dete-rminations for silt and clay are not necessarily representative. The dispersion by chemical (hydrogen peroxide and sodium hexametaphofDhate) 

and mechanical means to which the silt and clay are subjected during 

preparation for analysis results in a suspension of discrete inorganic 

particles. In the natural stream, some of the silt and clay may be 

transported as aggregates of sand, and a significant part of the clay
H30 CONTRIBUTTOCNiS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

may be transported as aggregates of silt. The difference between the 

particle-size distribution of silt and clay that is determined in the 

laboratory and the particle-size distribution of the material in the 

natural stream depends on stream turbulence, chemical quality of the 

water, distance of transport, mineralogy of the sediment, pnd size and 

stability of the original aggregates; the difference cannot be evaluated 

quantitatively by present analytical methods. The percent of sand 

in suspension in the stream cannot be less than that shown by the 

analysis, the silt could be less or greater than that shown, pnd the clay 

is almost certainly less.

Particle-size analyses show that about 95 percent of the total annual 

suspended-sediment discharge of the Little Blue Elver near Deweese 

and near Fairbury is silt and clay. The percentage of each of the size 

fractions sand, silt, and clay is unrelated to sediment discharge 

or to water discharge. The percentage of clay, for example, generally was between 55 and 80 at water discharges that ranged from 

about 50 to 13,000 cfs (fig. 17).

The concentrations of sand, silt, and clay tend to increase with water 

discharge. The percentage of sand may decrease, however, while the 

concentration of sand increases; during periods of overland runoff, 

the quantities of silt and clay that enter the stream are much greater 

than the quantity of sand that enters the stream and remains in suspension. Percentages of sand, silt, and clay in suspended-sedimet 

samples obtained at discharges that ranged from about 50 to 12,500 

cfs near Deweese and from about 100 to 13,000 cfs near Fairbury are 

shown in figure 18.

The chemical characteristics of the water in which the silt and clay 

are suspended has a significant effect on the results of a particle-size 

analysis. To investigate this effect, selected suspended-sediment 

samples were split; part of each sample was analyzed in distilled 

water to which chemical dispersants were added, anc1 part was 

analyzed in untreated stream water. Such analyses of suspended sediment from the Little Blue River (table 2) typically show that under 

laboratory conditions, the percentage of clay is much less in stream 

water than in a dispersed suspension. The large differences in percentages for the 0.002 and for the 0.004 mm sizes are not due entirely to the 

flocculating power of the stream water. The dispersed suspension 

contains little or no organic matter, which was largely destroyed by 

treatment of the sediment with hydrogen peroxide; the stream-water 

suspension contains an unknown percentage of organic matter. The 

particle-size distribution in the stream-water suspension does not necessarily represent the particle-size distribution of the sediment in 

turbulent streamflow of identical chemical characteristics; and it does
1UU

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X 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

x xx.

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xx x * 

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X X

x 

x 

1 1 1 1 1 i 1 1

 

X 0 

*X» %? 

y 

X 

10 

40 100 1000 

WATER DISCHARGE, IN CUBIC FEET PER 

FIGURE 17. Relation of percentage of clay in suspended sediment to water disch

Fairbury ( Endicott ) .
H32 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

100

-SAND

FIGURE 18. Percentage of sand, silt, and clay in suspended seiiment, Little 

Blue River near Deweese and near Fairbury (Endicott).

not necessarily represent the distribution under settling conditions 

that might exist in a large reservoir. The differences between the 

untreated and dispersed suspensions are only an indication that significant flocculation of sediment would occur in a reservoir if the inflowing 

sediment-water mixture were impounded for a period of time. Such 

flocculation would be expected, of course, in impounded water of the 

Little Blue Eiver; the weighted-average dissolved-solids concentration 

for Little Blue River near Deweese is about 180 ppm, and calcium and 

magnesium are about 80 percent of the total cations. Nearly all the 

sediment that might be transported into a large reservoir on the Little 

Blue River would be deposited in the reservoir. The particle sizes of 

the deposited sediment would probably be different from the sizes 

determined by analysis in either a dispersed or an untreated suspension 

of sediment.
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUE RIVER H33

TABLE 2. Results of particle-size analyses of selected suspended-sediment samples

from the Little Blue River

Date

Water discharge 

(cfs)

Suspended sediment

Concentration 

(ppm)

Percent finer than indicated 

size (mm)

0.002 0.004 0.062

Methods

of 

analysis

Near Deweese

May 14, 1957 

Mar. 28, I960 ----------------------

818

7,030

4,270

2,400

f 52

I 34

f 52

1. £O

60

49

58

44

93

93 

89

89

0)( 2) 

0)( 2)

Near Endicott

Apr. 24, 1957 -- - 

May 17, 1957 

442

1,540

3,680

4,420

1 39

I 17 

! 55

I 35

53

30

62

50

98

98 

98

C 1) (2)

(')

00

1 Pipet method, distilled water, chemical and mechanical dispersion.

2 Pipet method, stream water.

BED MATERIAL,

Streambed material in the Little Blue River averages slightly 

finer near Deweese than near Fairbury (Endicott); the median particle size was about 0.73 mm near Deweese and about 0.77 mm near 

Fairbury (Endicott). During 1955-61, bed material samples were 

obtained near Deweese at a total of about 460 points in the bei on 48 

different days, and near Fairbury (Endicott) at a total of about 360 

points on 34 different days. Average particle size of the material was 

similar for each size range at both sites. For example, near Deweese 

8 percent of the material was finer than 0.25 mm, 38 percent fin?,r than 

0.50 mm, and 81 percent finer than 2.0 mm; near Fairbury (Endicott), 

7 percent was finer than 0.25, 36 percent finer than 0.50, and 79 percent 

finer than 2.0 mm.

The similarity in particle size of bed material (fig. 19) probably 

is due to the similarity in the source of the material in long reaches 

of the river. Much of the material probably is from the fluvial sand 

and gravel of Pleistocene age, which are exposed in many places in the 

channel and are the main source of the ground water that maintains 

the perennial flow in the Little Blue River.

Study of the particle-size data on suspended sediment and bed 

material indicates that very little material of the bed-material sizes 

is present in suspended sediment. About, 98 percent of the total 

annual suspended-sediment discharge is finer than 0.125 mm near 

Deweese and near Fairbury (Endicott). The average particle-size 

distributions of all bed material samples collected show that none of 

the bed material is finer than 0.125 mm.
H34 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED 'STATES

100

FIGURE 19. Percentages of selected size ranges of bed material. Little Blue 

River near Deweese and near Fairbury (Endicott).

TOTAL SEDIMENT DISCHARGE

Total sediment discharge consists of the measured suspended-sediment discharge and the unmeasured discharge. The latter includes 

all sediment that moves along the streambed; it may also include some 

suspended sediment near the streambed. The hydraulic conditions 

prevailing in the Little Blue River result in minor movement of the 

coarse streambed material and in suspension of almost none of the 

particles of the streambed.

Total sediment discharge of a stream can be computed from data 

on concentration and particle size of suspended sediment, particle size 

of bed material, hydraulic measurements, and water temperature 

(Colby and Hubbell, 1961). Reliable results are obtained only if one 

or more of the size ranges of suspended sand also are present in the 

bed sand. The necessary overlap of sizes of suspended sediment and 

of bed material is not common in the Little Blue River. A few computations of the total sediment discharge near Deweese indicate that
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUE RIVER H35

suspended-sediment discharge is 95 percent or more of the total sediment discharge over a wide range of water discharge. Also, the suspended silt and clay generally is 90 percent or more of the total 

sediment discharge.

CHEMICAL QUALITY OF THE WATER

The types and concentrations of dissolved minerals in water at a 

given time and place are governed by the chemical composition of any 

material with which the waiter has come into contact. WhilQ condensing and falling, atmospheric precipitation dissolves not only 

atmospheric gases (nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide) but also 

airborne minerals such as chlorides and sulfates of sodium anc1 magnesium derived from the earth. These dissolved atmospheric constituents and the type and solubility of the minerals in soil and rocks 

determine the reactions that occur when rain touches the earth's 

surface. The dissolved-solids content of water is affected also by the 

length of time that water is in contact with the minerals, by evapotranspiration, and by industrial, agricultural, and municipal effuents. 

Water that travels overland commonly has less contact with eoluble 

minerals and contains less dissolved solids than water that infiltrates 

to the zone of saturation below the earth's surface and then slowly 

percolates laterally toward places of exit at the land surface. If 

overland runoff is impounded for long periods, however, evaporation 

of the water may result in substantial increases in dissolvecl-solids 

c oncentrati ons.

Water samples from the Little Blue River near Deweese and near 

Enclicott were analyzed by the methods described by Rainwater and 

Thatcher (1960). Similar methods were used by the Kansas State 

Board of Health for analysis of samples collected at Waterville.

CHEMICAL CHARACTERISTICS

The chemical characteristics of the streamflow are determined 

largely by the proportion of ground water that enters the streams of 

the drainage basin. The base flow of the Little Blue River is sustained 

by the discharge of ground water into the river channel and into the 

channels of the creeks tributary to it. Such discharge occurs only 

where channels are incised below the water table, or upper surface of 

the zone of saturation. According to Johnson (1960, p. 1), part of the 

ground water that is discharged into the Little Blue drainage system 

is derived from underflow that originates outside the drainage basin 

and part from precipitation within the basin area.

In the upstream half of the basin, large amounts of ground water 

from deposits of Pleistocene age are used for irrigation. Because most
H36 CONTRIBUTIONS' TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

of the irrigated soils are permeable, the excess applied water either 

evaporates or percolates back to the zone of saturation. Very little 

irrigation runoff enters the Little Blue River directly.

Owing to the calcareous nature of both the soils and the thick loess 

that overlie the aquifers in much of the basin, most ground water and 

surface water is of the calcium bicarbonate type. A typical analysis of 

ground water from fluvial deposits of Pleistocene age near the headwaters of the Little Blue River indicates a chemical composition similar to that of the base flow of Little Blue River near Dewees^ (fig. 20); 

both are of the calcium bicarbonate type. Nearly all ground water in 

the basin above Fairbury has a low and uniform dissolved-solids content. A few analyses, however, show waters that have a dissolvedsolids content of 700 to 1200 ppm and that are of the calcium sulfate 

type; such analyses probably represent water from Cretaceous bedrock 

or mixed waters from aquifers of Pleistocene and Cretaceous age.

The relation of concentrations of some constituents, and hardness, 

to water discharges at Little Blue River near Deweese is shown in 

figure 21. The vertical distance from one curve to a succeeding one 

represents the concentration, in parts per million, of the indicated 

constituent, or the hardness, for a particular discharge. The concentrations of the chemical constituents for low discharges (<100 cfs) 

are generally representative of the base flow, and those for high discharges (> 1,000 cfs) are representative of flows consisting mostly of 

overland runoff.

Although the overland flow has only one-third the dissclved-solids 

content of the base flow at Deweese, brief but intense thunderstorms 

cause a large percentage of the total annual water and salt discharge 

to occur during relatively short periods. Flows less than 100 cfs occur 

80 percent of the time but account for only 38 percent of the total 

water discharge and 55 percent of the total salt discharge; flows from 

100 to 1,000 cfs occur 18 percent of the time and account for 31 percent 

of the water discharge and 30 percent of the salt discharge; and flows 

greater than 1,000 cfs occur 2 percent of the time and account for 31 

percent of the water discharge and 15 percent of the salt discharge.

Calcium and bicarbonate are the predominant chemical constituents 

of both the base flow and the overland flow near Deweese. Potassium, 

chloride, and sulfate account for most of the small chemical differences 

between the base and the overland flow. The concentration of potassium is higher in the overland runoff, and chloride is ner,rly absent 

(<1 ppm) from the overland runoff. The sulfate concentration is 

higher, in percentage of equivalents per million, in the overland than 

in the base flow. The observed silica concentration ranges from 39 

ppm in the base flow to 10 ppm in the overland runoff.
CONCENTRATION, IN EQUIVALENTS PER 

98 H> Hj ~

S » JS J£
50-i100 

INSTANTANEOUS 

FIGUKE 21. Relation of selected chemical constituents and hardness to water 

following example of interpretation of graph is illustrated at the left of the 

tions (in parts per million) of some constituents and the hardness are Cl, 1 

165.
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUE RIVER H39

Figure 22 shows the relation of weighted-average concentrations of 

different ions to different proportions of base and overland flow near 

Deweese for years of low (1956) and high (1960) runoff and for the 

period of record (1954-62). The weighted averages were computed

280 r20 40 60 80 

BASE FLOW, IN PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL FLOW

100

FIGURE 22. Relation of weighted-average concentrations of chemical constituents 

to different proportions of base and overland flow, Little Blue River near 

Deweese, 1956, 1960, 1954-62.
H40 coNTRiBunoosns TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

from figure 21 and flow-duration data. As the percentage of base 

flow increases or decreases, the weighted-average concentrations 

increase or decrease respectively. The weighted averages represent 

the theoretical chemical composition of the water if the entire flow for 

the period were impounded in a reservoir. Although evaporation 

from a reservoir can be significant and thereby alter the composition 

of the water, releases and seepage from the reservoir probably would 

prevent an appreciable increase in dissolved solids except during a 

prolonged drought. During a year of high runoff, such as 1960, not 

all the water would be impounded; nevertheless, any combined proportions of base and overland flow would be suitable for irrigation.

Return flows from lands irrigated with the reservoir water would 

be small, if any, and should not have a significant effect upon the 

chemical quality of the Little Blue River.

The Little Blue River near Endicott is near the western boundary 

of the glacial till area. Most, of the base flow at Endicott is from the 

fluvial deposits of Pleistocene age in the upstream two-thirds of the 

basin. Outflow of water from the Dakota Sandstone, however, influences the chemical quality of the stream near Fairbury. Analysis of 

the chemical quality of the ground water in the alluvial deposits along 

Big Sandy Creek and the Little Blue River above Fairbury suggests 

that the greater dissolved-solids content of the base flow near Endicott 

probably is due to the effect of the Dakota Sandstone in the reach from 

Fairbury to Endicott. The chemical composition of the water from 

a flowing well in the alluvium near Fairbury (fig. 20) is almost the 

same as the base flow near Endicott. Both are the calcium bicarbonate 

type, and their dissolved-solids content is similar.

The average dissolved solids of the base flow was approximately 

70 ppm higher near Endicott than near Deweese (table ?). Sodium 

and chloride accounted for most of the increase, whereas the concentrations of calcium, magnesium, bicarbonate and sulfate remained 

about the same. The overland flow near Endicott has slightly higher 

dissolved-solids content than that near Deweese. Silica ranged from 

28 ppm in low flow to 11 ppm in high flow.

TABLE 3. Average concentrations of selected chemical constituents and of hardness 

in the Little Blue River, in parts per million

Bicarbonate (HCOs) __ _______ _-__ _______ _ _ ______

Sulfate (SO4 ) -

Chloride (Cl )___._____________________________________

Dissolved solids (residue on evaporation at 180°C) ______

Near Deweese

Base flow

22 

220 

33 

9 

280 

185

Overland 

flow

9 

40 

8 

0 

80 

30

N3ar Endicott

Base flow

38 

220 

36 

38 

350 

185

Overland 

flow

9 

60 

9 

2 

90 

45
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE, BLUE RIVER H41

Calculations based on the dissolved-solids concentratior s for 

Deweese and Endicott indicate that the dissolved solids in th°, base 

flow probably would increase at Endicott if a reservoir wer? constructed near Deweese and all upstream base flow were withheld. The 

mean annual base flow and dissolved-solids concentration for the 

period 1954-62 were 89,150 acre-feet and 350 ppm at Endicott and 

49,380 acre-feet and 280 ppm at Deweese. If it is assumed that no 

releases were made from the dam and that the chemical quality of 

the ground-water effluent between Deweese and Endicott was unaffected by the reservoir water, the dissolved-solids concentration of 

the base flow will be

(89,150) (350) - (49,380) (280) 39^70 

Thus, a main-stem reservoir near Deweese could result in a disrolvedsolids increase of about 90 ppm near Endicott. However, sufficient 

releases of the impounded water could improve the chemical cuality 

of the low flow in downstream reaches.

The mineral content of ground water in the lower third of the 

basin is considerably higher than in the upper two-thirds and varies 

with the water-bearing formation. Most of the ground water is of 

the calcium bicarbonate type, but high concentrations of sodium, 

chloride, and sulfate are common. An analysis of water from the 

alluvium near Waterville shows that it is the calcium bicarbonate 

type and has a dissolved-solids concentration of 469 ppm (fig. 20).

During periods of prolonged drought most of the base f ow at 

Waterville is derived from the Pleistocene aquifers upstream from 

Endicott; during periods of normal or above-normal precipitation 

there is a higher percentage of base runoff in the reach from Endicott 

to Waterville. Owing to the drought conditions existing prior to 

1958, the dissolved solids and chemical composition of the lov flows 

at Waterville were nearly the same as at Endicott. Beginning in 

1958, there was a higher percentage of gain in low flow in this reach 

and the dissolved solids increased (fig. 23).

During November 1956, the mean daily flow was 117 cfs at Endicott 

and 104 cfs at Waterville. The depletion indicates there war little, 

if any, ground-water discharge between Fairbury and Waterville 

during that month. The dissolved-solids concentration at Waterville 

for a low flowT (102 cfs) on November 19 was 328 ppm (fig. 20), and 

the chemical quality was similar to the chemical quality during low 

flow at Endicott. The discharge at Endicott on the same day was 

129 cfs, or 27 cfs more than at Waterville.
H42 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED 'STATES

100

50 

500

100

50 

2

500

100

l l i 1 1 l i

i i i i i i i

1 ! 1 I 1 1 1 1

" ^"" *

1 I 1 1 [ 1 1 1

1 1 I I I 1 I 1 

Near Deweese

 _ 

1 1 1 1 1 1 ! !

-

-

" :

i i i [ i i i

i 1 l I 1 1 1

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

! ! 1 1 1 1

x Near Endicott

i i i l i i i

-

_

0 100 1000 10,000 20,000 

INSTANTANEOUS DISCHARGE, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

l 1 l 1 1 1 J_

-

______ . 1. . 1 1 1. 1 I 1 1

^

EXPLANATION

Before March 1958

After March 19

1 1 ! i 1 1 1

58

1 1 1 1 1 I 1 1

i i i l I 1 i I

" v. At Waterville

>\___

i i i i i i l i

_

H

-

-

20 100 1000 10,000 20,000 

DAILY MEAN DISCHARGE, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

FIGURE 23. Relation of dissolved solids to water discharge for Little Blue 

River near Deweese, near Endicott, and at Waterville.

After 3 years of normal or above-normal precipitation, the dissolved-solids concentration for a low flow (160 cfs) at Waterville 

was 433 ppm. The discharge at Endicott on the same day was 112 

cfs, or 48 cfs less than at Waterville. The increase of about 80 ppm in 

dissolved-solids content was due to the higher concentrations of calcium, bicarbonate, and sulfate in the ground-water effluent between 

Endicott and Waterville.

Before the closing of Tuttle Creek Dam on the Big Blue River in 

1961, the mean annual discharge of the Little Blue River at Waterville 

(drainage area 3,440 sq mi) was 38 percent of the mean annual discharge of the Big Blue River at Randolph (drainage ar*a, 9,100 sq 

mi) ; Randolph is a few miles downstream from the confluence of the
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUE RIVER H43

Big and Little Blue Rivers. The chemical quality of the Big Blue 

River at Schroyer, a few miles upstream from the confluence, is similar 

to that of the Little Blue River at Waterville. For the Big Blue 

River, the dissolved solids ranged from 52 ppm at high discharge 

to 479 ppm at low discharge; and for the Little Blue River, from 101 

ppm at high discharge to 469 ppm at low discharge. Inflow to the 

Tuttle Creek Reservoir from the Little Blue River probably has a 

somewhat higher average dissolved-solids content than that from the 

Big Blue River because a larger percentage of the mean annurl discharge of the Little Blue River is due to ground-water effluent. T Vater 

in the reservoir should be low in dissolved solids because the dilute 

overland flow contributes 70-90 percent of the mean annual discharges 

of both rivers.

SUITABILITY FOR USE 

IKRIGATION

Most of the irrigable land in the Little Blue River basin is upstream 

from Endicott. Currently (1965), ground water is used for nearly 

all irrigation within the basin, but the Little Blue River could be a 

dependable water supply for irrigation of the bottom lands along the 

river. If a reservoir is constructed near Deweese, it could supply water 

for some of the uplands near Ruskin and Gladstone where suficient 

ground water for irrigation is not available.

The suitability of water for irrigation depends primarily upon the 

total salt concentration (salinity), the relative proportion and concentration of some of the constituents, and the characteristics of the 

soil upon which it is to be applied. Continued use of water having a 

high dissolved-solids content can cause soils to become saline. Although calcium and magnesium help maintain favorable soil stricture 

and permeability, relatively high concentrations of sodium CPU adversely affect the soils by replacing calcium and magnesium on the 

exchange complex and thereby causing a loss of permeability and 

productivity. Residual sodium carbonate and alkali soils may result 

when concentrations of bicarbonate appreciably exceed that of crlcium 

and magnesium. Boron, a minor constituent of most waters, is essential to plant growth but can be harmful if the concentration exceeds 

the limits of tolerance of the plant.

During low flow, the dissolved-solids content of Little Blue River 

water is about 280 ppm near Deweese and 350 ppm near Endicott. 

Although the greater dissolved solids content near Endicott is caused 

mainly by an increase in sodium, the water remains suitable for irrigation. The percent sodium generally ranges from 13 to 15 at Dew^eese 

and from 29 to 31 near Endicott. Near Deweese and near Endicott,
H44 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

equivalents per million of calcium and magnesium either equal or exceed that of bicarbonate and as a result residual sodium carbonate 

should not be a hazard. Boron does not exceed the limits of tolerance 

of the most sensitive crops; the maximum observed boron concentration was 0.13 ppm at Deweese.

The weighted averages for the period of record (1954 62) (fig. 22) 

indicate that the dissolved-solids concentration of water impounded 

in a reservoir near Deweese would be approximately 180 ppm, which 

would be less than that of most of the ground water now used successfully for irrigation in the basin. Generally, the larger the proportion 

of reservoir water the more suitable the water would be f o^ irrigation.

Most of the irrigable lands near Ruskin and Gladstone that would 

be supplied water from a reservoir near Deweese are of the Crete soil 

series. They have good drainage characteristics and, if proper irrigation practices are observed, harmful concentrations of salts or alkali 

conditions should not develop.

DOMESTIC

Although water from the Little Blue River is not currently used for 

domestic or industrial purposes, increased urban or industrial growth 

of towns and communities along the river could result in a use for such 

purposes. Upstream from Endicott the chemical quality is suitable 

for domestic and industrial use, but near Waterville, treatment may 

be needed for excessive iron, manganese, and hardness. At this downstream point, observed concentrations of iron plus manganese exceeded 

the recommended maximum of 0.3 ppm; such concentrations of iron 

a,nd manganese may cause staining of laundry and give an objectionable taste to the water. Downstream from Endicott the water may 

also need softening for some purposes; the observed hardness generally 

ranged from 200 to 300 ppm at Waterville.

Sewage effluent at Hebron and Fairbury is discharged into the Little 

Blue Kiver. During normal flow, the effluent is insufficient to affect 

significantly the chemical quality downstream from these towns. Extremely low flow and increased sewage discharge could cau >e pollution 

between Hebron and the confluence with Big Sandy Creek and below 

Fairbury. Because the Big Sandy contributes appreciable flow to the 

Little Blue Kiver, pollution should not be a problem between the confluence and Fairbury.

CONCLUSIONS

Water-quality investigations made discontinuously during 1951-63 

at five different sites on the Little Blue River have resulted in the 

following conclusions:
WATER QUALITY, LITTLE BLUE RIVER H45

1. The estimated long-term sediment discharge at Little Blue River 

near Deweese is about 400,000 tons per year; near Fairbary, 

about 1,200,000 tons per year; and at Waterville, about 1,900,000 

tons per year.

2. Nearly all the suspended sediment is silt and clay. The stre^mbed 

material is mainly medium sand to gravel.

3. Suspended-sediment discharge is 95 percent or more of the total 

sediment discharge over a wide range of water discharge.

4. Water-utilization problems resulting from high suspended-sediment concentrations are not significant in the basin; use of water 

directly from the Little Blue River is quantitatively negligible.

5. The overland runoff and the base runoff throughout the Little Blue 

River basin are of the calcium bicarbonate type.

6. During flows representative of base runoff, the dissolved solids 

near Deweese, near Endicott, and at Waterville were 273,319, 

and 433 ppm, respectively; during flows representative of overland runoff, the dissolved solids were 73, 84, and 101 ppir.

7. The chemical quality of both base runoff and overland runoff is 

suitable for irrigation.

REFERENCES CITED

Colby, B. R., and Hubbell. D. W., 1961, Simplified methods for computing total

sediment discharge with the modified Einstein procedure: U.S. Geol. Survey

Water-Supply Paper 1593,17 p. 

Eaton, F. M., 1950, Significance of carbonates in irrigation waters: Science, v.

69, no. 2, p. 123-133. 

Furness, L. W., 1959, Flow duration, pt. 1 of Kansas streamflow characteristics:

Kansas Water Resources Board Tech. Rept. 1. 

Johnson, C. R., 1960, Geology and ground water in the Platte-Republican Rivers

watershed and the Little Blue River basin above Angus, Nebr.: U.S. Geol.

Survey Water-Supply Paper 1489,142 p. 

Keech, C. F., and Dreeszen, V. H., 1959, Geology and ground-water resources of

Clay County, Nebr.: U.S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 1468, 157 p. 

Kohler, M. A., Nordenson, T. J., and Baker, D. R., 1959, Evaporation maps for

the United States: U.S. Weather Bur. Tech. Paper 37, 13 p. 

Lane, E. W., and others, 1947, Report of the subcommittee on sediment terminology : Am. Geophys. Union Trans., v. 28, no. 6, p. 936-938. 

Lugn, A. L., 1935, The Pleistocene geology of Nebraska: Nebraska Geol. Survey

Bull. 10, 2d ser., 223 p. 

Rainwater, F. H., and Thatcher, L. L., 1960, Methods for collection and analysis

of water samples: U.S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 1454, 301 p. 

U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1957, Major soils of the North Central region,

U.S.A.: North Central Regional Pub. 76.

 1958, Annual maximum flows from small agricultural watersheds in the 

United States: Agr. Research Service rept.

 1963, Hydrologic data for experimental agricultural watershed? in the

United States 1956-59: Agr. Research Service Misc. Pub. 945.

U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1966 O - 223-557