Cooperator: Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin
Project Chief: Charles P. Dunning
Location: Menominee County
Project Number: 9KH12
Period of Project: October 1998–September 2005
Problem
The Menominee Indian Tribe is interested in increasing their understanding of regional ground-water flow across the reservation. Of specific interest is determining contributing areas and time of travel for water captured by wells for a number of community water systems. The Tribe’s interest in well-head protection is heightened over concern about the presence of elevated nitrate levels in several wells.
Objective
The objective of the study is to increase understanding of regional ground-water flow, and to determine the contributing areas and time of travel for water captured by community wells. This information will be used by the Menominee Indian Tribe for water resource and well-head protection planning in community areas.
Approach
The USGS will construct a simple one-layer, analytic element model to simulate regional ground-water flow across the reservation, and specificaly the hydrologic conditions in an appropriate area around community wells. The ground-water flow model will be used to delineate the zone of ground-water contribution to the wells for 5-, 10- and 100-year times of travel, and define the associated area of contribution. The results of these investigations will provide the Tribe with the necessary information to plan a well-head protection strategy for each community system.
Progress (October 2003–September 2004)
Calibration of the reservation-wide analytic element model has been completed. Model simulations and insight gained through the study have been instrumental in:
• identifying locations around Zoar that will avoid the elevated nitrate found in the current municipal wells.
• identifying locations around Keshena for new municipal wells whose contributing areas are undeveloped, do not include the Wolf River, and are on land controlled by the Tribe.
• evaluating the hydrologic setting of the community wells and the sewage treatment lagoons in Neopit.
• completing specific ground-water-flow modeling at five other communities on the Reservation—Zoar, Neopit, Middle Village, Onekewat, and Redwing.
Results of these investigations are being summarized in a Scientific Investigations Report.
Plans (October 2004–September 2005)
The Scientific Investigations Report will be printed and
distributed.
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