Data from: Monitoring groundwater levels in Oasis Valley, NV, and evaluating potential drawdown during the North Bullfrog aquifer test
Data files
Nov 22, 2024 version files 22.99 MB
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OasisValley_DRI_Dataset_Aug2023_to_May2024.zip
22.98 MB
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README.md
7.30 KB
Abstract
The Nature Conservancy (TNC) owns ecologically rich properties that include groundwater-dependent ecosystems (GDEs) in Oasis Valley, Nevada. AngloGold Ashanti has acquired the rights to several gold mines in Oasis Valley, including the North Bullfrog Project, where the company conducted two multiday aquifer tests in 2023 and 2024 to assess aquifer hydraulics and evaluate water level drawdown. In partnership with TNC, Desert Research Institute (DRI) monitored groundwater levels at sites within Oasis Valley to identify potential hydrologic impacts that could be attributed to the aquifer tests. Combined water level and water temperature sensors were installed and activated with a five-minute measurement frequency between August 30, 2023, and March 20, 2024, at the NC-GWE-OV-2 well (in Parker Ranch), OVU Lower ET Well (in the Atwood Preserve), and Crystal Spring. DRI also operates systems for monitoring meteorology at Colson Pond (in the Atwood Preserve) and diverted flow from Crystal Spring. Water level modeling was performed using SeriesSEE to assess whether drawdown was detected at the three monitoring points that can be attributed to groundwater pumping during aquifer testing. The water level modeling approach isolates pumping effects from environmental fluctuations (i.e., background water levels and barometric pressure). The modeling analysis indicates that no measurable drawdown can be attributed to the aquifer tests, which is likely due to a combination of aquifer conditions and testing parameters. It is recommended that monitoring continues at the three established stations and expands to other monitoring points in Oasis Valley to establish a baseline of natural variability to identify future impacts from pumping and to better understand groundwater interactions that may affect water availability at GDEs.
https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.0zpc8676t
Description of the data and file structure
This data folder contains offloads from the following sensors:
| Site Name | Description | Latitude | Longitude | Date Range | Manufacturer | Sensor Type | Logging Frequency |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parker Ranch | Water Level in Monitoring Well (NC-GWE-OV-2) | 36.96457° | -116.72300° | 8/30/2023-5/15/2024 | Hobo | MX2001-04-SS | 5 minutes |
| Parker Ranch | Pump Electrical Current Meter | 36.964843° | -116.72412° | 10/11/2023-5/15/2024 | AcuAMP | ACT050 | 5 minutes/Event |
| Crystal Spring | Water Level in Spring Box | 36.98677° | -116.75394° | 8/30/2023-5/15/2024 | Hobo | MX2001-04-SS | 5 minutes |
| Crystal Spring | Barometric Pressure | 36.98647° | -116.75322° | 10/9/2023-5/15/2024 | Vaisala | PTB110 | Hourly |
| Crystal Spring | Rain Gage | 36.986469° | -116.75322° | 10/9/2023-5/15/2024 | Texas Ins. | TE525WS | 5 minutes |
| Crystal Spring | Flow Meter (spring outflow) | 36.986469° | -116.75322° | 10/9/2023-3/20/2024 | GPI | TM10 | 5 minutes |
| Atwood | Water Level in Monitoring Well (Lower ET) | 37.045086° | -116.70899° | 8/30/2023-5/15/2024 | Hobo | MX2001-04-SS | 5 minutes |
| Atwood | Meteorological Station | 37.073664° | -116.69112° | 8/30/2023-3/20/2024 | N/A | various A | 15 minutes |
A Atwood meteorological station uses the following sensors: 05106 wind monitor, TE525WS rain gage, PTB110 barometric pressure sensor, and CS215 temperature and relative humidity probe
Files and variables
File: OasisValley_DRI_Dataset_Aug2023_to_May2024.zip
Description:
Folder Contents:
o The following files contain quality-controlled water level data:
§ *Springbox_Crystal_21833098.csv *(Crystal Spring water level in spring box)
§ *Well_AtwoodLowerET_21833097.csv *(Atwood Monitoring Well)
§ Well_GWEOV2_21833099.csv (Parker Ranch Monitoring Well)
o Weather Data and Other
§ Atwood Met Station.xlsx
§ *Crystal_Flow_Met_Station.xlsx *(contains pressure, precipitation, and spring outflow)
o Data Visualization
§ Oasis Valley Data Visualization.xlsx: provides graphs of all data collected by DRI, both for individual sensors and comparisons between different sites.
Column Names for Water Level Data:
1. Timestamp: Date and time of measurement (Pacific Daylight Time Zone)
2. Water_Level_m: Depth of water above sensor, in meters
3. Water_Level_label: Quality control label for water level data (see list below)
4. Water_T_C: Water temperature in degrees Celsius
5. Water_T_label: Quality control label for water temperature data (see list below)
Quality control labels include:
a. Data Offload (used on the very last point in an offloaded time series to keep track of when data was collected)
b. Adjusting (Period soon after sensor placed in water when temperature and/or water level are still changing rapidly. These data points should be ignored)
c. Dry (e.g. water level below 0 or a field observation that sensor not below water)
d. Frozen (e.g. water T below 0 or observation of ice on water surface or sensor)
e. Spike (sudden rise then fall in the dataset, flagged for later investigation)
f. Dip (Sudden drop then return to previous value in the dataset, flagged for later investigation)
g. WideDip (A drop >2cm and then return to the same water level that spans multiple hours)
h. Step (Sudden step change in value of more than 2 cm)
i. Flatline (sensor readings remain the same for an unusually long time)
Column Names for Crystal_Flow_Met_Station Excel sheet:
1. Date
2. Flow_GPM: Flow from Crystal Spring in gallons per minute (through pipe exiting spring box)
3. Rain_mm_tot: Total rainfall in mm since last record
4. Note: Notes on unusual behavior in data
5. BP_mbar: Barometric pressure in millibars
6. BattV: Battery voltage
7. PTemp_C: Temperature of datalogger in degrees C (related to air temperature but not exactly the same).
Column Names for Atwood Met. Station:
A. TIMESTAMP (Date and time of measurement)
B. RECORD (Individual ID for each measurement)
C. Rain_mm_Tot (mm of rainfall falling in previous 15 minutes)
D. AirTemp_C_Max (Air temperature, degrees Celsius, maximum in past 15 minutes)
E. RH_pct_Max (Relative humidity, Percentage, maximum in past 15 minutes)
F. AirTemp_C_Min (Air temperature, degrees Celsius, minimum in past 15 minutes)
G. RH_pct_Min (Relative humidity, Percentage, minimum in past 15 minutes)
H. AirTemp_C_Avg (Air temperature, degrees Celsius, average over past 15 minutes)
I. WS_ms_Max (Maximum wind speed over past 15 minutes, meters/second)
J. VP_215 (Vapor pressure in kPa, sample of calculated current condition)
K. Batt_V_Max (Maximum battery voltage in last 15 minutes)
L. Batt_V_Min (Minimum battery voltage in last 15 minutes)
M. Batt_V_Avg (Average battery voltage in last 15 minutes)
N. PTemp_C (Internal datalogger temperature, degrees C, sample of current condition)
O. WindDir_Max (Maximum wind direction in last 15 minutes, degrees from north)
P. WindDir_Min (Minimum wind direction in last 15 minutes, degrees from north)
Q. WindDir_Avg (Average wind direction in last 15 minutes, degrees from north)
R. WS_ms_Min (Minimum wind speed in last 15 minutes, meters/second)
S. WS_ms_Avg (Average wind speed in last 15 minutes, meters/second)
T. WS_ms_Std (Standard deviation wind speed in last 15 minutes, meters/second)
U. BP_mbar_Max (Maximum barometric pressure in last 15 minutes, millibar)
V. BP_mbar_Min (Minimum barometric pressure in last 15 minutes, millibar)
W. BP_mbar_Avg (Average barometric pressure in last 15 minutes, millibar)
Code/software
Microsoft Excel Worksheet (.xlsx)
Microsoft Word Document (.docx)
Microsoft Excel Comma Separated Values File (.csv)
Access information
Other publicly accessible locations of the data:
- none
Data was derived from the following sources:
- none
Transducer water level data were post-processed after each field trip. Quality control is performed through the Trainset program (https://trainset.geocene.com/). This program allows for the visualization and labeling of large sets of data. The data from each well were analyzed and labeled with different indicators, such as data offloads, adjusting periods (time soon after the sensor was first installed, when readings may be less accurate), dry (transducer out of the water), frozen (if sensor temperature drops to freezing), spikes, dips, wide dips (drop > 1.0 inch [2.5 cm], and then return to the original water level multiple hours later), steps (sudden increase or decrease to a new fairly constant water level), and flatlines. These labels help to identify different trends and possible erroneous data.