USGS Water-Year Summary 2024

450832094321201 LFO2-A Litchfield Near Nest 0000773056

Till

LOCATION - Lat 45°08'32", long 94°32'12" referenced to North American Datum of 1983, in sec.02, T.119 N., R.31 W., Meeker County, MN, Hydrologic Unit 07010204, The piezometer is located approximately 0.22 miles NNW of the City of Litchfield's Water Treatment Plant. The piezometer is located on top of a hill in the City of Litchfield's well-field. The piezometer is located approximately 0.45 miles NW of the intersection of MN HWY 12 and 270th street.

GROUNDWATER RECORDS

WELL CHARACTERISTICS - Depth 19.99 ft. Upper casing diameter 1.2 in; top of first opening 17.12 ft, bottom of last opening 19.78 ft. The hole for piezometer LFO2-A was drilled with an 8.25-inch-diameter, hollow stem auger drill rig to a depth of 20 feet. The piezometer is constructed of a 2.66-feet-long, 1.25-inch-diameter, schedule-80 PVC, 0.010-inch slotted Environmental Manufacturing Inc. well screen, attached with glued PVC couplings with length/s of 10.00 feet of 1.25-inch-diameter, schedule-80 PVC well casing. The well casing measuring point (stickup) was 2.38 feet (1141.83 ft. NAVD88, +/- 0.1 ft.) above land surface when measured on 29 June 2015. The open interval of the well is between 17.12 and 19.78 feet below land surface and the total well depth is 19.99 feet below land surface.

This piezometer is screened in a glacial till layer, which is the confining unit above where nearby city wells pump from a confined aquifer.

DATUM - Land-surface datum is 1,139.45 ft above North American Vertical Datum of 1988. Measuring point: Yellow mark on top of grey 1.25-inch PVC well casing, not top of steel protection post, 2.38 ft above land-surface datum, Jun. 24, 2015 to present. The measuring point is a yellow mark on the top of the grey PVC 1.25-inch well casing, which was 2.38 feet above land surface on 24 June 2015. Elevation of the measuring point is 1141.83 plus-or-minus 0.1 feet above sea level, North American Vertical Datum of 1988, based on differential GPS and optical survey on 28 September 2015.

PERIOD OF RECORD - Water levels were recorded periodically from 04 August 2015 to 24 April 2017. Water levels were recorded hourly from 09 December 2015 at 12:00 CST to 24 April 2017 at 14:00 CDT, except during the following periods:

09 Dec. 2015 - 12 Dec. 2015 at 20:00 CST: due to transducer deployment affecting water level.
25 Apr. 2016 at 11:00 CDT - 28 May 2016 at 13:00 CDT: due to well purging and water sampling.
29 Jun. 2016 at 12:00 & 13:00 CDT: due to moving transducer during site visit.

GAGE - Continuous water level, water temperature, and battery voltage are measured with an OTT Orpheus Mini 0-10m pressure transducer. These data are recorded hourly by the same OTT Orpheus Mini pressure transducer, which has a data logger built into it. The data logger is housed inside of the 1.25-inch PVC well casing, which has an aluminum locking well cap on top the 6-inch black steel protection post. The gage is powered by 3 AA lithium batteries that are inside of the data logger communications rod. Data is downloaded manually and no telemetry or phone line is wired into the gage.

An unheated Onset RG3 tipping-bucket rain gage was added to the station on 09 December 2015 at 11:00 CST. The rain gage is mounted on a green T-post, located approximately 3 ft. northeast of piezometer LFO2-A. The rain gage has a built-in data logger, which measures and records precipitation quarter-hourly. Rain gage is nominally accurate to 0.01 inches.

The pressure transducer and data logger were removed from the well on 24 April 2017 at 14:45 CDT. The rain gage was removed from the site on 24 April 2017 at 14:12 CDT. Data collection for the Confining Beds "phase 1" study have concluded and all data logging equipment have been removed from the sites.

COOPERATION - This site was operated (2015-2017) by the U.S. Geological Survey as a monitoring well for the Glacial Confining Beds Study. The well began to be used as part of the Glacial Confining Beds Study immediately after installation on 24 June 2015. The Confining Beds Study is a collaborative effort between the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund, Iowa State University, Minnesota Geological Survey, and the U.S. Geological Survey.

CLIMATOLOGICAL RECORDS

PERIOD OF RECORD - Precipitation were recorded quarter-hourly from 09 December 2015 at 11:00 CST to 24 April 2017 at 14:00 CDT, except during the following periods:

13 Jan. 2016 at 12:15-12:30 CST: due to re-programming and replacing battery on rain gage.
25 Apr. 2016 at 17:15-17:45 CDT: due to site inspection and calibration of rain gage.
12 Jul. 2016 at 17:00 CDT: due to site inspection of rain gage.
13 Oct. 2016 at 10:30 CDT: due to site inspection of rain gage.
28 Nov. 2016 at 00:00 CDT - 24 Apr. 2017 at 14:00 CDT: funnel blew off the rain gage.

INSTRUMENTATION - Precipitation is measured with an Onset RG3 tipping-bucket rain gage, which is accurate to 0.01 inches. The rain gage is unheated and uncovered during the winter. Thus precipitation data during freezing periods (about December through early April) result from melting of snow during warm periods and do NOT represent actual precipitation.

WATER-QUALITY RECORDS

WELL CHARACTERISTICS - Depth 19.99 ft. Upper casing diameter 1.2 in; top of first opening 17.12 ft, bottom of last opening 19.78 ft. The hole for piezometer LFO2-A was drilled with an 8.25-inch-diameter, hollow stem auger drill rig to a depth of 20 feet. The piezometer is constructed of a 2.66-feet-long, 1.25-inch-diameter, schedule-80 PVC, 0.010-inch slotted Environmental Manufacturing Inc. well screen, attached with glued PVC couplings with length/s of 10.00 feet of 1.25-inch-diameter, schedule-80 PVC well casing. The well casing measuring point (stickup) was 2.38 feet (1141.83 ft. NAVD88, +/- 0.1 ft.) above land surface when measured on 29 June 2015. The open interval of the well is between 17.12 and 19.78 feet below land surface and the total well depth is 19.99 feet below land surface.

This piezometer is screened in a glacial till layer, which is the confining unit above where nearby city wells pump from a confined aquifer.

DATUM - Land-surface datum is 1,139.45 ft above North American Vertical Datum of 1988. Measuring point: Yellow mark on top of grey 1.25-inch PVC well casing, not top of steel protection post, 2.38 ft above land-surface datum, Jun. 24, 2015 to present. The measuring point is a yellow mark on the top of the grey PVC 1.25-inch well casing, which was 2.38 feet above land surface on 24 June 2015. Elevation of the measuring point is 1141.83 plus-or-minus 0.1 feet above sea level, North American Vertical Datum of 1988, based on differential GPS and optical survey on 28 September 2015.

PERIOD OF RECORD - Water temperatures were recorded hourly from 09 December 2015 at 12:00 CST to 24 April 2017 at 14:00 CDT, except during the following periods:

25 Apr. 2016 at 11:00-17:00 CDT: due to removing the transducer during well purging.
11 May 2016 at 09:00-16:00 CDT: due to removing the transducer during water sampling.
29 Jun. 2016 at 12:00 CDT: due to moving the transducer during a site visit.
06 Sept. 2016 at 14:00 CDT: due to moving the transducer during a site visit.

COOPERATION - This site was operated (2015-2017) by the U.S. Geological Survey as a monitoring well for the Glacial Confining Beds Study. The well began to be used as part of the Glacial Confining Beds Study immediately after installation on 24 June 2015. The Confining Beds Study is a collaborative effort between the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund, Iowa State University, Minnesota Geological Survey, and the U.S. Geological Survey.

INSTRUMENTATION - Water temperature are measured with an OTT Orpheus Mini submersible pressure transducer accurate to +/- 0.1°C. Temperature differences are accurate to 0.1°C.