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Item Estimating Evapotranspiration for 2016 Growing Season Using Landsat 8 Data and Metric Model in Sussex County, Delaware(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2023-08) He, C.; Andres, A.S.; Brinson, K.R.; DeLiberty, T.L.Evapotranspiration (ET) is a major part of the water cycle. Reliable measurements or estimates of ET can greatly improve quantitative forecasts and hindcasts of water demand by crops, horticulture, and natural vegetation, and also help to manage and conserve water resources. Direct measurement of ET requires not only specific devices such as eddy covariance instruments, but also well-trained research personnel to collect accurate data. As a result, a variety of indirect methods for estimating ET have been developed in recent decades. Among them, remote sensing methods have proved cost-effective in providing accurate regional and global coverage of ET. In Sussex County, Delaware’s leading county in crop production, the ET distribution for the 2016 growing season was estimated using the Mapping Evapotranspiration at high Resolution with Internalized Calibration method, an energy-balance based ET mapping tool that utilizes satellite images and weather data. The estimated result was compared with field measurements using an eddy covariance instrument. The total estimated ET during Sussex County’s growing season (May-September) in 2016 accounts for 77 to 87 percent of historical-averaged annual ET in this region. The model-simulated seasonal ET for agricultural land is about 33 percent higher than urban/suburban areas and about 22 percent lower than forested areas. This study shows that when forestlands are converted to urban/suburban uses, significant amounts of water are diverted from ET and are then available to run off and/or infiltrate. Given that urban/suburban land has impervious surfaces in the forms of rooftops, roads, driveways, parking lots, sidewalks, etc., much of the water not lost to the atmosphere through ET presumably becomes part of the surface runoff portion of the water budget, thus underscoring the need for adequate storm-water management systems for urban/suburban lands. The results also imply that the practice of ET-based irrigation scheduling could be valuable in Sussex County and throughout the 20 percent of Delaware farmland that is irrigated.Item Evaluating Impacts of Sea-Level Rise on Groundwater Resources in The Delaware Coastal Plain(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2023-06) He, C.; McKenna, T.E.Due to low elevation and a shallow water table, the Delaware Bay coast is highly vulnerable to sea-level rise. Numerical simulations of rising sea levels, groundwater flow, and salt transport through year 2100 indicate significant impacts on land use due to a rising water table and localized impacts due to saltwater intrusion in the surficial aquifer. Impacts from changes in watertable depths were defined as the conditions where the water table rose above two critical depths: 0 meters (termed saturation, waterlogging, or inundation) and 0.5 meters (effective rooting depths of major local crops). Scenarios modeled were for 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 meters rise by year 2100. Simulations used SEAWAT4, a three-dimensional, variable-density groundwater flow model. We constructed synthetic conceptual and numerical models with a single rectangular-shaped watershed with an upland, one river, and bay-parallel and inland salt marshes. Parameters for the models were based on the characteristics of ten Delaware Bay watersheds. We transferred water-table depths from simulations to real-world watersheds by mapping model coordinates to a curvilinear grid system within each watershed, which allowed for comparison of areas adversely impacted by sea-level rise by comparing water-table depths to the critical depths. The simulation results predict that sea-level rise causes significant impacts from a rising water table by year 2100. Over 60 percent of the impacted area in all scenarios was cropland. The model results also indicate that the saltwater front under the riverbed migrates landward as far as 4.8 kilometers from its initial location, but is limited to a small area near and parallel to the river and marsh boundaries.Item Kent County Groundwater-Monitoring Project: Results Of Hydrogeological Studies(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2023-02) Andres, A.S.; McQuiggan, R.W.; He, C.; McKenna, T.E.In 2019, the Delaware Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, completed a groundwater-monitoring, infrastructure-construction, and data-collection project in Kent County, Delaware. This work, recommended by the Governor’s Water Supply Coordinating Council and funded by a capital appropriation from the state, addressed data gaps for the shallower aquifers commonly pumped by water-supply wells that serve domestic, public, irrigation, and commercial users and provided additional data to characterize the relationships between the aquifers and streamflow. The aquifers investigated in this study are, from shallowest (closest to the surface) to deepest, the Columbia, Milford, Frederica, Federalsburg, Cheswold, Piney Point, Rancocas, and Mt. Laurel. The groundwater-monitoring infrastructure and data created during this project will facilitate follow-up projects targeted to specific issues for the water resources of Delaware. The Piney Point aquifer has a characteristic uncommon among other aquifers in the Coastal Plain of Delaware, in that it receives recharge only through slow, diffuse leakage through overlying and underlying confining beds. As a result, pumping of the Piney Point aquifer in the Dover area has reduced water levels more than 80 feet over the past 50 years in several wells in the Dover area. Given current rates of decline, static water levels in long-term observation well Id55-01 will reach the top of the aquifer within 30 years. Pumping water levels in two supply wells operated by Dover Water are projected to reach the top of the aquifer within 10 years if current rates of decline continue. Given that the Piney Point aquifer matrix contains glauconite, a compressible clay pellet, there is significant risk for aquifer compaction and reductions in well yield should water levels continue to decline. Water-level and water-quality data from nested wells (e.g., multiple wells at the same site finished at different depths) in the Milford, Frederica, Federalsburg, and Cheswold aquifers are recharged primarily in areas where they are in close hydraulic connection with the overlying water table aquifer. Similarities in hydrographs, potentiometric surface maps from these aquifers, and time series of head differentials between the Frederica, Federalsburg, and Cheswold aquifers indicate that they function as a single, leaky, layered aquifer. Pumping has reduced water levels in the Frederica, Federalsburg, and Cheswold aquifers below sea level over large areas of Kent County, and has caused flow directions to change from a general southeasterly direction in pre-development times to flow directed toward pumping centers. Water quality data that show no significant correlation between dissolved solids and well depth support the interpretation that flow directions have changed in response to pumping. Long-term declines in annual minimum total flow and baseflow at streamflow gaging stations in the Beaverdam Branch and Marshyhope Creek watersheds and associated long-term increases in annual precipitation, number of growing days, irrigated acres, and number of irrigation wells in those basins are consistent with the interpretation that the combined effects of irrigation pumping and climate change are reducing groundwater discharge to those streams. Results of testing major groundwater constituents in the water-table portion of Columbia aquifer are consistent with previous studies in Delaware, with calcium and sodium the major cations, and different mixtures of the anions chloride, nitrate, and bicarbonate depending on land use and composition of the aquifer near each well. Major constituents of groundwater in the Milford, Frederica, Federalsburg, and Cheswold aquifers over most of Kent County are dominated by calcium, bicarbonate and sulfate.Item Southern New Castle – Northern Kent Counties Groundwater Monitoring Project: Results of Subsurface Exploration and Hydrogeological Studies(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2018-11) Andres, A.S.; Coppa, Z.J.; He, C.; McKenna, T.E.The Delaware Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, completed a groundwater-monitoring, infrastructure-construction, and data-collection project in southern New Castle and northern Kent Counties, Delaware. This work, recommended by the Water Supply Coordinating Council and funded by a capital appropriation from the state, addressed data gaps for the shallower aquifers commonly pumped by water-supply wells that serve domestic, public, irrigation, and commercial users and provided additional data to characterize the relationships between the aquifers and streamflow. The aquifers investigated in this study are, from top to bottom, the Columbia, Rancocas, Mt. Laurel, and Magothy. The groundwater-monitoring infrastructure and data created during this project will continue to serve the management and research needs for water resources of Delaware, and lead to additional follow-up projects and technical reports.Item Characterization of Tidal Wetland Inundation in the Murderkill Estuary(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2018-03) McKenna, T.E.A parameterization of tidal marsh inundation was developed for the 1,200 hectares of tidal marsh along the 12-km reach of the tidal Murderkill River between Frederica and Bowers Beach in Kent County, Delaware. A parsimonious modeling approach was used that bridges the gap between the simple and often used “bathtub model” (instantaneous inundation based on tides in Delaware Bay), and the more complex modeling of shallow overland that results in the wetting and drying of tidal marshes. For this project, and many other modeling studies that include large areas of marsh, a complex modeling approach of marsh inundation is not warranted due to the lack of data on the dynamics of wetting and drying. A simple parameterization of the wetland inundation process coupled with more complex hydrodynamic and water-quality models can provide sufficient results for estimating the extent of hydrologic and biogeochemical interactions between a marsh and a river. The parameterization can also be used to evaluate anomalies in conservation of water mass and tidal phase offsets that can result from hydrodynamic models that do not explicitly model the dynamic flow and storage of water in tidal wetlands. In the parameterization, the marsh was divided into marsh tracts (n=31) based on hydrologic character and position along the river. A cumulative probability distribution of wetland elevation was calculated for each marsh tract from a digital elevation model. These cumulative probability distributions served as a simplification of the critical information contained in the raster data sets of marsh tracts and elevation. Each marsh tract was related to an adjacent river reach; the area in the tract that was below the stage of its related river reach was instantaneously inundated. Marsh tracts were aggregated into two sets of marsh groups (n=22 and n=4) for analysis and visualization of elevation, hydroperiod, and hydraulic loading. The parameterization was successfully implemented in a collaborative modeling study that created a set of mass loading functions to represent the import and export of chemical species to and from the wetlands. The parameterization was also used to evaluate conservation of water mass and phase offsets in tidal discharge due to the dynamic storage of water in intertidal areas. Marsh elevations had a normal distribution with a mean elevation of 0.72 m and standard deviation of 0.19 m based on analysis of LiDAR data collected for this study. These values have a potential positive bias of 0.1 to 0.2 m resulting from the LiDAR beam not penetrating through the marsh vegetation. Nominal relief on the marsh at the scale of the study area was about 0.6 m (0.4 to 1 m absolute elevation using the NAVD88 datum). From Bowers Beach upstream to Frederica there was a decrease in marsh elevation with the mean elevation decreasing from 0.86 m to 0.60 m. This observation is consistent with measured accretion rates at four sites in the study area that document higher accretion rates upstream near Frederica (0.74 cm/yr) relative to downstream near Bowers (0.33 cm/yr). Upstream marshes are flooded more frequently and for longer duration than downstream marshes so there is more opportunity for accretion to occur.Item Investigation of Submarine Groundwater Discharge at Holts Landing State Park, Delaware: Hydrogeologic Framework, Groundwater Level and Salinity Observations(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2017-05) Andres, A.S.; Michael, H.A.; Russoniello, C.J.; Fernandez, C.; He, C.; Madsen, J.A.Monitoring wells and groundwater sensors were installed and monitored in and around Holts Landing State Park on the Indian River Bay, eastern Sussex County, Delaware, between October 2009 and August 2012. Data from test drilling, geophysical logging, geophysical surveys, and well testing characterized the hydrogeological framework and spatial and temporal patterns of water pressure, temperature, and salinity in the shallow, unconfined Columbia aquifer. The work revealed a plume of freshened groundwater extending more than 650 ft into the bay from the shoreline. Groundwater salinities intermediate between baywater and inland groundwater are present both offshore and on land adjacent to the bay and tidal tributaries. The fresh groundwater plume, as observed in wells and borehole geophysical logs, decreases in thickness from more than 40 ft nearest the shoreline to less than 20 ft farthest from the shoreline. Saline water is found above and below the plume and the freshwater-saltwater interface is spatially complex. Characterization of the hydrogeologic framework was critical to explaining the distribution of fresh groundwater. Fresh water is trapped near the bay bottom by an overlying confining bed composed of the low permeability sediments of a Holocene paleovalley fill sequence and the Beaverdam Formation. This complex, heterogeneous geological framework also causes multiple stacked interfaces in one location at the study site. Groundwater levels, temperatures, and specific conductivity respond to climatic, seasonal, and storm-related weather forcing patterns as well as to forces caused by astronomical tides. The relative importance of these forces to groundwater levels, the flux of fresh groundwater, and groundwater salinity varies with location. Ranges in groundwater levels are more than 6 ft at an inland location and are clearly controlled by seasonal recharge patterns. Extreme weather events have a secondary effect on groundwater levels. In comparison, ranges of groundwater levels are much smaller in near shore and offshore wells, and are more closely related to tidal forces. As a result of this difference in ranges of groundwater levels, seasonal variations in water levels at inland locations are the primary variable controlling bayward-directed groundwater gradients, fresh groundwater flux, and groundwater salinity distribution. Shorter duration weather and tidal events have a secondary role. The freshwater-saltwater interface and associated mixing zone moves upward and/or landward during extended periods of low freshwater flux into the bay, and downward and/or bayward during extended periods of higher freshwater flux.Item Investigation of Submarine Groundwater Discharge at Holts Landing State Park, Delaware: Hydrogeologic Framework, Groundwater Level and Salinity Observations(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2017-05) Andres, A.S.; Michael, H.A.; Russoniello, C.J.; Fernandez, C.; Madsen, J.A.Monitoring wells and groundwater sensors were installed and monitored in and around Holts Landing State Park on the Indian River Bay, eastern Sussex County, Delaware, between October 2009 and August 2012. Data from test drilling, geophysical logging, geophysical surveys, and well testing characterized the hydrogeological framework and spatial and temporal patterns of water pressure, temperature, and salinity in the shallow, unconfined Columbia aquifer. The work revealed a plume of freshened groundwater extending more than 650 ft into the bay from the shoreline. Groundwater salinities intermediate between baywater and inland groundwater are present both offshore and on land adjacent to the bay and tidal tributaries. The fresh groundwater plume, as observed in wells and borehole geophysical logs, decreases in thickness from more than 40 ft nearest the shoreline to less than 20 ft farthest from the shoreline. Saline water is found above and below the plume and the freshwater-saltwater interface is spatially complex. Characterization of the hydrogeologic framework was critical to explaining the distribution of fresh groundwater. Fresh water is trapped near the bay bottom by an overlying confining bed composed of the low permeability sediments of a Holocene paleovalley fill sequence and the Beaverdam Formation. This complex, heterogeneous geological framework also causes multiple stacked interfaces in one location at the study site. Groundwater levels, temperatures, and specific conductivity respond to climatic, seasonal, and storm-related weather forcing patterns as well as to forces caused by astronomical tides. The relative importance of these forces to groundwater levels, the flux of fresh groundwater, and groundwater salinity varies with location. Ranges in groundwater levels are more than 6 ft at an inland location and are clearly controlled by seasonal recharge patterns. Extreme weather events have a secondary effect on groundwater levels. In comparison, ranges of groundwater levels are much smaller in near shore and offshore wells, and are more closely related to tidal forces. As a result of this difference in ranges of groundwater levels, seasonal variations in water levels at inland locations are the primary variable controlling bayward-directed groundwater gradients, fresh groundwater flux, and groundwater salinity distribution. Shorter duration weather and tidal events have a secondary role. The freshwater-saltwater interface and associated mixing zone moves upward and/or landward during extended periods of low freshwater flux into the bay, and downward and/or bayward during extended periods of higher freshwater flux.Item Simulation of Groundwater Flow and Contaminant Transport in Eastern Sussex County, Delaware With Emphasis on Impacts of Spray Irrigation of Treated Wastewater(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2015-08) He, C.; Andres, A.S.This report presents a conceptual model of groundwater flow and the effects of nitrate (NO3-) loading and transport on shallow groundwater quality in a portion of the Indian River watershed, eastern Sussex County, Delaware. Three-dimensional, numerical simulations of groundwater flow, particle tracking, and contaminant transport were constructed and tested against data collected in previous hydrogeological and water-quality studies. The simulations show a bimodal distribution of groundwater residence time in the study area, with the largest grouping at less than 10 years, the second largest grouping at more than 100 years, and a median of approximately 29 years. Historically, the principal source of nitrate to the shallow groundwater in the study area has been from the chemical- and manure-based fertilizers used in agriculture. A total mass of NO3- -nitrogen (N) of about 169 kg/day is currently simulated to discharge to surface water. As the result of improved N-management practices, after 45 years a 20 percent decrease in the mass of NO3- -N reaching the water table would result in an approximately 4 percent decrease in the mass of simulated N discharge to streams. The disproportionally smaller decrease in N discharge reflects the large mass of N in the aquifer coupled with long groundwater residence times. Currently, there are two large wastewater spray irrigation facilities located in the study domain: the Mountaire Wastewater Treatment Facility and Inland Bays Wastewater Facility. The effects of wastewater application through spray irrigation were simulated with a two-step process. First, under different operations and soil conditions, evaporation and water flux, NO3- -N uptake by plants, and NO3- -N leaching were simulated using an unsaturated flow model, Hydrus-1D. Next, the range of simulated NO3- -N loads were input into the flow and transport model to study the impacts on groundwater elevation and NO3- -N conditions. Over the long term, the spray irrigation of wastewater may increase water-table elevations up to 2.5m and impact large volumes of groundwater with NO3-. Reducing the concentration of NO3- in effluent and increasing the irrigation rate may reduce the volumes of water impacted by high concentrations of NO3-, but may facilitate the lateral and vertical migration of NO3-. Simulations indicate that NO3- will eventually impact deeper aquifers. An optimal practice of wastewater irrigation can be achieved by adjusting irrigation rate and effluent concentration. Further work is needed to determine these optimum application rates and concentrations.Item Subsurface Geology of the Area Between Wrangle Hill and Delaware City, Delaware(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2013-03) Jengo, J.W.; McLaughlin, P.P.; Ramsey, K.W.The geology and hydrology of the area between Wrangle Hill and Delaware City, Delaware, have been the focus of numerous studies since the 1950s because of the importance of the local groundwater supply and the potential environmental impact of industrial activity. In this report, 490 boreholes from six decades of drilling provide dense coverage, allowing detailed characterization of the subsurface geologic framework that controls groundwater occurrence and flow. The region contains a lower section of tabular Cretaceous strata (Potomac, Merchantville, Englishtown, Marshalltown,and Mount Laurel Formations in ascending order) and a more stratigraphically complex upper section of Pleistocene-to-modern units (Columbia, Lynch Heights, and Scotts Corners Formations, latest Pleistocene and Holocene surficial sediments and estuarine deposits). The lowermost Potomac Formation is a mosaic of alluvial facies and includes fluvial channel sands that function as confined aquifer beds; however, the distribution of aquifer-quality sand within the formation is extremely heterogeneous. The Merchantville Formation serves as the most significant confining layer. The Columbia Formation is predominantly sand and functions as an unconfined aquifer over much of the study area. To delineate the distribution and character of the subsurface formations, densely spaced structural-stratigraphic cross sections were constructed and structural contour maps were created for the top of the Potomac Formation and base of the Columbia Formation. The Cretaceous formations form a series of relatively parallel strata that dip gently (0.4 degrees) to the southeast. These formations are progressively truncated to the north by more flatly dipping Quaternary sediments, except in a narrow north-south oriented belt on the east side of the study area where the deeply incised Reybold paleochannel eroded into the Potomac Formation. The Reybold paleochannel is one of the most significant geological features in the study area. It is a relatively narrow sandfilled trough defined by deep incision at the base of the Columbia Formation. It reaches depths of more than 110 ft below sea level with a width as narrow as 1,500 ft. It is interpreted to be the result of scour by the sudden release of powerful floodwaters from the north associated with one or more Pleistocene deglaciations. Where the Reybold paleochannel cuts through the Merchantville confining layer, a potential pathway exists for hydrological communication between Columbia and Potomac aquifer sands. East of the paleochannel, multiple cut-and-fill units within the Pleistocene to Holocene section create a complex geologic framework. The Lynch Heights and Scotts Corners Formations were deposited along the paleo-Delaware River in the late Pleistocene and are commonly eroded into the older Pleistocene Columbia Formation. They are associated with scarps and terraces that represent several generations of sea-level-driven Pleistocene cut-and-fill. They, in turn, have been locally eroded and covered by Holocene marsh and swamp deposits. The Lynch Heights and Scotts Corners Formations include sands that are unconfined aquifers but complicated geometries and short-distance facies changes make their configuration more complex than that of the Columbia Formation.Item Simulation of Groundwater Flow in Southern New Castle County, Delaware(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2011) He, C.; Andres, A.S.To understand the effects of projected increased demands on groundwater for water supply, a finite-difference, steady-state, groundwater flow model was used to simulate groundwater flow in the Coastal Plain sediments of southern New Castle County, Delaware. The model simulated flow in the Columbia (water table), Rancocas, Mt. Laurel, combined Magothy/Potomac A, Potomac B, and Potomac C aquifers, and intervening confining beds. Although the model domain extended north of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal, south into northern Kent County, east into New Jersey, and west into Maryland, the model focused on the area between the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal, the Delaware River, and the Maryland- Delaware border. Boundary conditions for these areas were derived from modeling studies completed by others over the past 10 years.Item Stratigraphy, Correlation, And Depositional Environments Of The Middle To Late Pleistocene Interglacial Deposits Of Southern Delaware(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2010) Ramsey, K.W.Rising and highstands of sea level during the middle to late Pleistocene deposited swamp to nearshore sediments along the margins of an ancestral Delaware Bay, Atlantic coastline, and tributaries to an ancestral Chesapeake Bay. These deposits are divided into three lithostratigraphic groups: the Delaware Bay Group, the Assawoman Bay Group (named herein), and the Nanticoke River Group (named herein). The Delaware Bay Group, mapped along the margins of Delaware Bay, is subdivided into the Lynch Heights Formation and the Scotts Corners Formation. The Assawoman Bay Group, recognized inland of Delaware’s Atlantic Coast, is subdivided into the Omar Formation, the Ironshire Formation, and the Sinepuxent Formation. The Nanticoke River Group, found along the margins of the Nanticoke River and its tributaries, is subdivided into the Turtle Branch Formation (named herein) and the Kent Island Formation.Item Stratigraphy And Correlation Of The Oligocene To Pleistocene Section At Bethany Beach, Delaware(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2008) McLaughlin, P.P.; Miller, K.G.; Browning, J.V.; Ramsey, K.W.; Benson, R.N.; Tomlinson, J.L.; Sugarman, P.J.The Bethany Beach borehole (Qj32-27) provides a nearly continuous record of the Oligocene to Pleistocene formations of eastern Sussex County, Delaware. This 1470-ft-deep, continuously cored hole penetrated Oligocene, Miocene, and Pleistocene stratigraphic units that contain important water-bearing intervals. The resulting detailed data on lithology, ages, and environments make this site an important reference section for the subsurface geology of the region.Item The Occurrence Of Saline Ground Water In Delaware Aquifers(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 1969-08) Woodruff, K.D.The location of the fresh-salt-water-boundary in the deeper aquifers of Delaware is related mainly to head values. Near coastal areas, dynamic conditions may prevail that affect the interface position within shallow aquifers open to the sea. Holocene and Columbia sands which form Delaware's shallow water-table aquifers contain brackish water in scattered coastal areas while brackish water in the artesian aquifers is found at various depths. Water from Chesapeake Group sediments (Miocene) is fresh in Kent County but is salty in poorly defined areas of Sussex County. The interface in the Piney Point Formation (Eocene) lies just north of Milford and extends in a northeast-southwesterly direction across the State. Brackish water exists in the Magothy and Potomac formations of Cretaceous age a few miles south of Middletown. Heavy pumping near sources of brackish water should be avoided for the present. Proper location of monitoring wells is necessary for detection of future chloride movement.Item Geology Of The Seaford Area, Delaware(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 1996) Andres, A.S.; Ramsey, K.W.; Groot, J.J.This report supplements the map "Geology of the Seaford Area, Delaware" (Andres and Ramsey, 1995). The map portrays surficial and shallow subsurface stratigraphy and geology in and around the Seaford East and Delaware portion of the Seaford West quadrangles. The Quaternary Nanticoke deposits and Pliocene Beaverdam Formation are the primary lithostratigraphic units covering upland surfaces in the map area. Recent swamp, alluvial, and marsh deposits cover most of the floodplains of modern streams and creeks. The Miocene Choptank, St. Marys, and Manokin formations occur in the shallow subsurface within 300 ft of land surface. The Choptank, St. Marys, and Manokin formations were deposited in progressively shallower water marine environments. The Beaverdam Formation records incision of underlying units and progradation of a fluvial-deltaic system into the map area. The geologic history of the Quaternary is marked by weathering and erosion of the surface of the Beaverdam and deposition of the Nanticoke deposits by the ancestral Nanticoke River. Depositional environments in the Nanticoke deposits include fresh water streams and ponds, estuarine streams and lagoons, and subaerial dunes.Item Locating Ground-Water Discharge Areas In Rehoboth And Indian River Bays And Indian River, Delaware Using Landsat 7 Imagery(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2008) Wang, L.T.; McKenna, T.E.; DeLiberty, T.L.Delaware’s Inland Bays in southeastern Sussex County are valuable natural resources that have been experiencing environmental degradation since the late 1960s. Stresses on the water resource include land use practices, modifications of surface drainage, ground-water pumping, and wastewater disposal. One of the primary environmental problems in the Inland Bays is nutrient over-enrichment. Nitrogen and phosphorous loads are delivered to the bays by ground water, surface water, and air. Nitrogen loading from ground-water discharge is one of the most difficult to quantify; therefore, locating these discharge areas is a critical step toward mitigating this load to the bays. Landsat 7 imagery was used to identify ground-water discharge areas in Indian River and Rehoboth and Indian River bays in Sussex County, Delaware. Panchromatic, near-infrared, and thermal bands were used to identify ice patterns and temperature differences in the surface water, which are indicative of ground-water discharge. Defining a shoreline specific to each image was critical in order to eliminate areas of the bays that were not representative of open water. Atmospheric correction was not necessary due to low humidity conditions during image acquisition. Ground-water discharge locations were identified on the north shore of Rehoboth Bay (west of the Lewes and Rehoboth Canal), Herring and Guinea creeks, the north shore of Indian River, and the north shore of Indian River Bay near Oak Orchard.Item Analysis And Summary Of Water-Table Maps For The Delaware Coastal Plain(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 2008) Martin, M.J.; Andres, A.S.A multiple linear regression method was used to estimate water-table elevations under dry, normal, and wet conditions for the Coastal Plain of Delaware. The variables used in the regression are elevation of an initial water table and depth to the initial water table from land surface. The initial water table is computed from a local polynomial regression of elevations of surface-water features. Correlation coefficients from the multiple linear regression estimation account for more than 90 percent of the variability observed in ground-water level data. The estimated water table is presented in raster format as GIS-ready grids with 30-m horizontal (~98 ft) and 0.305-m (1 ft) vertical resolutions. Water-table elevation and depth are key facets in many engineering, hydrogeologic, and environmental management and regulatory decisions. Depth to water is an important factor in risk assessments, site assessments, evaluation of permit compliance data, registration of pesticides, and determining acceptable pesticide application rates. Water-table elevations are used to compute ground-water flow directions and, along with information about aquifer properties (e.g., hydraulic conductivity and porosity), are used to compute ground-water flow velocities. Therefore, obtaining an accurate representation of the water table is also crucial to the success of many hydrologic modeling efforts. Water-table elevations can also be estimated from simple linear regression on elevations of either land surface or initial water table. The goodness-of-fits of elevations estimated from these surfaces are similar to that of multiple linear regression. Visual analysis of the distributions of the differences between observed and estimated water elevations (residuals) shows that the multiple linear regression-derived surfaces better fit observations than do surfaces estimated by simple linear regression.Item The Setters Formation In The Pleasant Hill Valley, Delaware: Metamorphism And Structure(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 1997) Plank, M.O.; Schenck, W.S.The Setters Formation, identified on the southeast side of Pleasant Hill valley in well Cb13-16, contains the prograde mineral assemblages (1) microcline, biotite, and sillimanite +/- garnet, and (2) microcline, biotite, sillimanite, and muscovite +/- garnet. These pelitic assemblages allow us to infer peak metamorphic conditions between 620° and 680°C and 4 to 6 kilobars pressure, if PH20/Pfluid is > 0.5. There is some evidence in the drill cuttings to indicate that partial melting accompanied the formation of sillimanite, thus constraining peak temperature to > 640°C.Item Geology Of The Milford And Mispillion River Quadrangles(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 1997) Ramsey, K.W.; Groot, J.J.Investigation of the Neogene and Quaternary geology of the Milford and Mispillion River quadrangles has identified six formations: the Calvert, Choptank, and St. Marys formations of the Chesapeake Group, the Columbia Formation, and the Lynch Heights and Scotts Comers formations of the Delaware Bay Group. Stream, swamp, marsh, shoreline, and estuarine and bay deposits of Holocene age are also recognized. The Calvert, Choptank, and St. Marys formations were deposited in inner shelf marine environments during the early to late Miocene. The Columbia Formation is of fluvial origin and was deposited during the middle Pleistocene prior to the erosion and deposition associated with the formation of the Lynch Heights Formation. The Lynch Heights Formation is of fluvial and estuarine origin and is of middle Pleistocene age. The Scotts Corners Formation was deposited in tidal, nearshore, and estuarine environments and is of late Pleistocene age. The Scotts Corners Formation and the Lynch Heights Formation are each interpreted to have been deposited during more than one cycle of sea-level rise and fall. Latest Pleistocene and Holocene deposition has occurred over the last 11,000 years.Item Radiocarbon Dates From Delaware: A Compilation(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 1996) Ramsey, K.W.; Baxter, S.J.Radiocarbon dates from 231 geologic samples from the offshore, coastal, and upland regions of Delaware have been compiled along with their corresponding locations and other supporting data. These data now form the Delaware Geological Survey Radiocarbon Database.Item Quality And Geochemistry Of Ground Water In Southern New Castle County, Delaware(Newark, DE: Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware, 1995) Bachman, L.J.; Ferrari, M.J.Water samples were collected from 63 wells in southern New Castle County to assess the occurrence and distribution of dissolved inorganic chemicals in ground water. Rapid growth is projected for the study area, and suitable sources of potable drinking water will need to be developed. The growth in the study area could also result in degradation of water quality. This report documents water quality during 1991-92 and provides evidence for the major geochemical processes that control the water quality.