Edwards-Trinity (Plateau) aquifer: Structure and Brackish Groundwater

Study Summary:

The goals of the study are to (1) map and characterize the brackish parts of the Edwards-Trinity Plateau aquifer in greater detail using existing water well reports, geophysical well logs, and available aquifer data and (2) build datasets that can be used for groundwater exploration and replicable numerical groundwater models to estimate the volumes of groundwater in as many as five salinity classes. The study area includes all or parts of the following counties: Andrews, Bandera, Blanco, Brewster, Coke, Concho, Crane, Crockett, Culberson, Ector, Edwards, Gillespie, Glasscock, Howard, Irion, Jeff Davis, Kendall, Kerr, Kimble, Kinney, Martin, Mason, McCulloch, Menard, Midland, Mitchell, Nolan, Pecos, Reagan, Real, Reeves, Schleicher, Sterling, Sutton, Taylor, Terrell, Tom Green, Upton, Uvalde, Val Verde, and Winkler.

The objectives of the study are to:

  • collect, analyze, and interpret thousands of water well and geophysical well logs;
  • map the geological boundaries of the Edwards-Trinity Plateau aquifer;
  • map the distribution of total dissolved solids in the aquifer;
  • map the distribution of key chemical parameters of interest to desalination;
  • map the water bearing lithologic units in the aquifer;
  • estimate the volume of fresh and brackish water in the aquifers;
  • incorporate all information into the publicly available database and GIS datasets;
  • present study findings in a peer-reviewed TWDB report.
Study Manager:
Evan Strickland
Study Team Members:
Alysa Suydam and Juan Acevedo
Approximate Study Start Date:
Spring 2017
Estimated Study Completion Date:
Winter 2023
Benefits:
The team anticipates that the publicly available data and report produced by this study will aid researchers and decision-makers in the selection or elimination of locations for site specific studies on groundwater desalination and aquifer storage and recovery. As stipulated by the 84th Texas Legislature in House Bill 30, it will also enable the process of evaluating the Edwards-Trinity Plateau Aquifer for the designation of brackish groundwater production zones and submitting a report to the Texas Legislature by December 1, 2032.

Study Details

Participants

Study Investigators:

Texas Water Development Board
1700 N. Congress Avenue
Austin, TX 78711

Evan Strickland, P.G.
Evan.Strickland@twdb.texas.gov
512-463-6929

Alysa Suydam, P.G.
Alysa.Suydam@twdb.texas.gov
512-936-9488

Juan Acevedo
Juan.Acevedo@twdb.texas.gov
512-475-1557

Engaged Stakeholders:

This list is not yet available.

Stakeholder Meetings

Event Date
Presentation at the Groundwater Management Area 7 Joint Planning Meeting in Cleburne, Texas March 23, 2017
Presentation to the South Central Texas Water Research Interest Group at the 8th Bi-Annual Meeting in Austin, Texas June 23, 2017 at 10 a.m.
Stakeholder meeting held at the University of Texas of the Permian Basin, Center for Energy and Economic Diversification in Midland, Texas. August 16, 2017 at 10:00 a.m.
Presentation on preliminary data collection efforts at the Groundwater Management Area 7 Joint Planning Meeting in Fredericksburg, Texas. October 19, 2017 at 10 a.m.
Presentation called Mapping Carbonate and Evaporite Brackish Aquifers in Texas at the 17th International Congress of Speleology in Sydney, Australia July 24, 2017
Presentation on data collection efforts at the Plateau (Region J) Regional Water Planning Meeting in Leakey, Texas May 15, 2019 at 10:00 a.m.

Presentations

Meetings

Final Report

  • The final report is scheduled for completion in the winter of 2023.
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