Mapping aquifer salinity gradients and effects of oil field produced water disposal using geophysical logs: Elk Hills, Buena Vista and Coles Levee Oil Fields, San Joaquin Valley, California

PLOS | March 28th, 2022

The effects of oil and gas production on adjacent groundwater quality are becoming a concern in many areas of the United States. As a result, it has become increasingly i

The effects of oil and gas production on adjacent groundwater quality are becoming a concern in many areas of the United States. As a result, it has become increasingly important to identify which aquifers require monitoring and protection. In this study, we map the extent of groundwater with less than 10,000 mg/L TDS both laterally and vertically near the Elk Hills, Buena Vista and Coles Levee Oil Fields in the San Joaquin Valley, California and note evidence of effects of produced water disposal on salinity within the Tulare aquifer. Subsurface maps showing the depth at which groundwater salinity is less than 10,000 mg/L (or Base 10K) in the Tulare aquifer are generated using geophysical logs and verified by comparison to water sample analyses. The depth to Base 10K ranges from 240 m (800 ft) in Elk Hills to 800 m (2650 ft) in the adjacent Buena Vista syncline and is 670 m (2,200 ft) deep in the Coles Levee area to the east. Log-calculated salinities show a relatively smooth increase with depth prior to disposal activities whereas salinities calculated from logs collected near and after disposal activities show a more variable salinity profile with depth. The effect of produced water injection is represented by log resistivity profiles that change from low resistivity at the base of the sand to higher resistivity near the top due to density differences between the saline produced water and the brackish groundwater within each sand. Continued post-disposal logging in new wells in the 18G disposal area on the south flank of Elk Hills shows that injected water has migrated approximately 1,200 m (4,000 ft) downdip (south) over a period of 20 years since the inception of disposal activity.

Modeling California’s high-elevation hydropower systems in energy units

American Geophysical Union (AGU) | September 22nd, 2009

This paper presents a novel approach for modeling high-elevation hydropower systems. Conservation of energy and energy flows (rather than water volume or mass flows) is

This paper presents a novel approach for modeling high-elevation hydropower systems. Conservation of energy and energy flows (rather than water volume or mass flows) is used as the basis for modeling more than 135 high-elevation high-head hydropower sites throughout California. The unusual energy basis for reservoir modeling allows for development of hydropower operations models for a large number of plants to estimate large-scale system behavior without the expense and time needed to develop traditional streamflow and reservoir volume-based models in absence of storage and release capacity, penstock head, and efficiency information. Potential applications of the developed Energy-Based Hydropower Optimization Model (EBHOM) include examination of the effects of climate change and energy prices on system-wide generation and hydropower revenues. An extensive comparison of the EBHOM with a traditional hydropower optimization model used in California produced similar results and indicated good reliability of EBHOM’s predictions.

Multiple-well monitoring site adjacent to the Elk Hills Oil Field, Kern County, California

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | October 26th, 2023

Multiple-Well Monitoring Site Adjacent to the Lost Hills Oil Field, Kern County, California

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | February 20th, 2020

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the California State Water Resources Control Board, is evaluating several questions about oil and gas devel

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the California State Water Resources Control Board, is evaluating several questions about oil and gas development and groundwater resources in California, including (1) the location of groundwater resources; (2) the proximity of oil and gas operations and groundwater and the geologic materials between them; (3) evidence for or against fluids from oil and gas sources in groundwater; and (4) the pathways or processes responsible when fluids from oil and gas sources are present in groundwater (U.S. Geological Survey, 2019). As part of this evaluation, the USGS installed a multiple-well monitoring site in the southern San Joaquin Valley near Lost Hills, California, adjacent to the Lost Hills oil field. Data collected at the Lost Hills multiple-well monitoring site (LHSP) provide information about the geology, hydrology, geophysics, and geochemistry of the aquifer system, thus enhancing understanding of relations between adjacent groundwater and the Lost Hills oil field in an area where there is little groundwater data. This report presents construction information for the LHSP and initial geohydrologic data collected from the site.

Multiple-Well Monitoring Site Within the Poso Creek Oil Field, Kern County, California

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | July 18th, 2023

The Poso Creek Oil Field is one of the many fields selected for regional groundwater mapping and monitoring by the California State Water Resources Control Board as part

The Poso Creek Oil Field is one of the many fields selected for regional groundwater mapping and monitoring by the California State Water Resources Control Board as part of the Oil and Gas Regional Monitoring Program (RMP; California State Water Resources Control Board, 2015, 2022b; U.S. Geological Survey, 2022a). The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the California State Water Resources Control Board, is evaluating several questions about oil and gas development and groundwater resources in California, including (1) the location of groundwater resources; (2) the proximity of oil and gas operations to groundwater and the geologic materials between them; (3) evidence (or no evidence) of fluids from oil and gas sources in groundwater; and (4) the pathways or processes responsible when fluids from oil and gas sources are present in groundwater (U.S. Geological Survey, 2022a). As part of this evaluation, the USGS installed a multiple-well monitoring site within the administrative boundary of the Poso Creek Oil Field about 12 miles north of Bakersfield, California (fig. 1). Data collected at the Poso Creek multiple-well monitoring site (PCCT) provide information about the geology, hydrology, geophysical properties, and water quality of the aquifer system overlying the oil-bearing zone, thus enhancing understanding of relations between adjacent groundwater and the Poso Creek Oil Field in an area where groundwater data are limited, particularly at different depths in the aquifer. This report presents construction information for the PCCT and initial geohydrologic data collected from the site. Similar sites installed on the east side of the Lost Hills Oil Field and North and South Belridge Oil Fields were described by Everett and others (2020a, b).

NAWAPA North American Water and Power Alliance

North American Power and Water Alliance (NAWAPA) | July 1st, 1965

The document is undated and the given date of 1965 is a guess given the timeline on the project. For students of NAWAPA, the Smithsonian Institution has a collection

The document is undated and the given date of 1965 is a guess given the timeline on the project. For students of NAWAPA, the Smithsonian Institution has a collection of archival records

Near-term Colorado River Operations Revised Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) | October 26th, 2023

Reclamation is proposing to revise the 2007 Interim Guidelines for the operation of Glen Canyon and Hoover Dams beginning in the 2024 operating year to address the potent

Reclamation is proposing to revise the 2007 Interim Guidelines for the operation of Glen Canyon and Hoover Dams beginning in the 2024 operating year to address the potential for continued low-runoff conditions in the Colorado River Basin. The potential impacts of low runoff conditions in the remainder of the interim period (prior to January 1, 2027) pose unacceptable risks to routine operations of Glen Canyon and Hoover Dams; therefore, modified operating guidelines should be expeditiously developed. Due to size, this file has been divided. Part one, Part two.

Notes on Gold Milling in California

Scientific American | December 28th, 1895

Occurrence and sources of radium in groundwater associated with oil fields in the southern San Joaquin Valley, California

American Chemical Society (ACS) | August 7th, 2019

Geochemical data from 40 water wells were used to examine the occurrence and sources of radium (Ra) in groundwater associated with three oil fields in California (Fruitva

Geochemical data from 40 water wells were used to examine the occurrence and sources of radium (Ra) in groundwater associated with three oil fields in California (Fruitvale, Lost Hills, South Belridge). 226Ra+228Ra activities (range = 0.010–0.51 Bq/L) exceeded the 0.185 Bq/L drinking-water standard in 18% of the wells (not drinking-water wells). Radium activities were correlated with TDS concentrations (p < 0.001, ρ = 0.90, range = 145–15,900 mg/L), Mn + Fe concentrations (p < 0.001, ρ = 0.82, range = <0.005–18.5 mg/L), and pH (p < 0.001, ρ = −0.67, range = 6.2–9.2), indicating Ra in groundwater was influenced by salinity, redox, and pH. Ra-rich groundwater was mixed with up to 45% oil-field water at some locations, primarily infiltrating through unlined disposal ponds, based on Cl, Li, noble-gas, and other data. Yet 228Ra/226Ra ratios in pond-impacted groundwater (median = 3.1) differed from those in oil-field water (median = 0.51). PHREEQC mixing calculations and spatial geochemical variations suggest that the Ra in the oil-field water was removed by coprecipitation with secondary barite and adsorption on Mn–Fe precipitates in the near-pond environment. The saline, organic-rich oil-field water subsequently mobilized Ra from downgradient aquifer sediments via Ra-desorption and Mn/Fe-reduction processes. This study demonstrates that infiltration of oil-field water may leach Ra into groundwater by changing salinity and redox conditions in the subsurface rather than by mixing with a high-Ra source.

Occurrence of natural and anthropogenic hexavalent chromium (Cr VI) in groundwater near a mapped plume, Hinkley, CA

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | March 22nd, 2018

This report describes (1) work done between January 2015 and May 2017 as part of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI), background study and (2) t

This report describes (1) work done between January 2015 and May 2017 as part of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI), background study and (2) the summative-scale approach to be used to estimate the extent of anthropogenic (man-made) Cr(VI) and background Cr(VI) concentrations near the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) natural gas compressor station in Hinkley, California. Most of the field work for the study was completed by May 2017. The summative-scale approach and calculation of Cr(VI) background were not well-defined at the time the USGS proposal for the background Cr(VI) study was prepared but have since been refined as a result of data collected as part of this study. The proposed summative scale consists of multiple items, formulated as questions to be answered at each sampled well. Questions that compose the summative scale were developed to address geologic, hydrologic, and geochemical constraints on Cr(VI) within the study area. Each question requires a binary (yes or no) answer. A score of 1 will be assigned for an answer that represents data consistent with anthropogenic Cr(VI); a score of –1 will be assigned for an answer that represents data inconsistent with anthropogenic Cr(VI). The areal extent of anthropogenic Cr(VI) estimated from the summative-scale analyses will be compared with the areal extent of anthropogenic Cr(VI) estimated on the basis of numerical groundwater flow model results, along with particle-tracking analyses. On the basis of these combined results, background Cr(VI) values will be estimated for “Mojave-type” deposits, and other deposits, in different parts of the study area outside the summative-scale mapped extent of anthropogenic Cr(VI).