Preliminary assessment of water quality in the alluvial aquifer of the Puerco River basin, northeastern Arizona
The quality of groundwater in the alluvial aquifer of the Puerco River basin northeastern Arizona, was evaluated in order to assess potential contamination from uranium mining and milling operations in New Mexico. A total of 14 wells and 1 spring were sampled to determine if a contaminant plume of radionuclides or trace elements is present. The water is characterized by high dissolved solids with a median of 698 mg/l and high concentrations of alkalinity, sodium, and sulfate. Except for iron, manganese, and strontium, the concentrations of trace elements generally are below the applicable EPA and State of Arizona maximum contaminant levels. Uranium, which accounts for most of the gross alpha activity, has a median concentration of 19 micrograms/l and ranges from 1 to 38 micrograms/l. 20% to 84% of the gross alpha activity was derived from other undetermined radionuclides. Other radionuclides, including radium-226 and radium-228, generally are not present in activities > 5 picocuries/l in the water. Statistical analysis of the water quality data suggest that no contaminant plume can be defined on the basis of samples from existing wells. The contamination in the alluvial aquifer apparently does not change in the downstream direction along the Puerco River. The geochemistry of radionuclides indicates that most radionuclides from the uranium-decay series are immobile or only slightly mobile, whereas uranium will not precipitate out of solution but may be removed by sorption in the alluvial aquifer. 49 refs., 15 figs., 6 tabs.
- OSTI ID:
- 6829925
- Resource Relation:
- Related Information: USGS Water Resources Investigations Report 87-4126
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
ARIZONA
WATER POLLUTION
GROUND WATER
CONTAMINATION
RADIUM 226
RADIOECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
RADIUM 228
URANIUM
URANIUM MINES
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
AQUIFERS
GEOCHEMISTRY
MILL TAILINGS
RADIATION MONITORING
RADIONUCLIDE MIGRATION
ACTINIDES
ALKALINE EARTH ISOTOPES
ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CARBON 14 DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CHEMISTRY
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
ELEMENTS
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
FEDERAL REGION IX
HEAVY ION DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
HEAVY NUCLEI
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
ISOTOPES
MASS TRANSFER
METALS
MINES
MONITORING
NORTH AMERICA
NUCLEI
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POLLUTION
RADIOISOTOPES
RADIUM ISOTOPES
SOLID WASTES
TAILINGS
UNDERGROUND FACILITIES
USA
WASTES
WATER
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
540330* - Environment
Aquatic- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport- (1990-)
540320 - Environment
Aquatic- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (1990-)