88
Assessment of water resources availability for Kane County - The ISGS shares responsibility
with ISWS for this project. The ISGS completed the preliminary geologic mapping in 2004 and
published Kane County Water Resources Investigations: Interim Report on Geologic
Investigations by William S. Dey, B. Brandon Curry, John C. Sieving, Alec M. Davis, and Curt
C. Abert, 75 p. ISGS Open file series 2004-9. This publication is available on CD-ROM for
$13.00 or online at http://www.isgs.uiuc.edu/servs/pubs/new-pdfs/ofs/2004/ofs2004_09.pdf.
Several of the large-scale maps are available separately. Hydraulic conductivity values of
Quaternary sediments in Kane County were obtained from the Illinois EPA. These values were
derived at a total of 108 sites in Kane County. These values, which are being matched to their
respective lithostratigraphic units, will be useful in characterizing hydraulic properties for the
groundwater flow model.
Mahomet aquifer and the Mahomet Aquifer Consortium - The ISGS, ISWS, USGS/Urbana,
and DNR/Office of Water Resources continued to serve as technical advisors for the MAC
(http://www.mahometaquiferconsortium.org/), which has sought funding and support to study
the aquifer underlying east-central Illinois. Studying the Mahomet aquifer remains a high
priority. Mehnert et al. (2004) described the results of continued investigations of the Mahomet
aquifer. Groundwater flow within the aquifer and both the rates and locations of groundwater
recharge are not well understood. Studies being conducted at the ISGS are focused on using
geochemical techniques to determine the age of the groundwater in Mahomet aquifer, locate
major recharge areas, examine the evolution of groundwater geochemistry, and develop a
conceptual model to help explain the current geochemical characteristics of water in the
Mahomet aquifer.
The ISGS continues to study the effects of the use of agricultural chemicals on groundwater
quality, including nitrogen and phosphorous in the shallow groundwater within an agricultural
watershed (Mehnert, 2004; Mehnert et al., 2005), the impacts from agriculture on karst terrains
(Panno and Kelly, 2004, Panno et al., 2004), and possible sources of ammonium in groundwater
(Roy et al., 2003).
Groundwater Resources and Peaker Power Plants in Illinois - The ISGS is assessing the
demand for water by peaker plants with respect to the occurrence of water resources and the
demands from domestic, municipal, commercial, industrial, and agricultural uses. The report
should be completed in 2005.
ISGS Statewide Education and Outreach
Geoscience Education Series publications - Two publications, Illinois Groundwater: A Vital
Geologic Resource and Land-Use Decisions and Geology; Getting Past “Out of Sight, Out of
Mind,” were developed as part of the ISGS Geoscience Education Series that provides the
citizens of Illinois with a better understanding of their state’s groundwater resources and the need
to protect them. Ordering information for these publications can be found at:.
http://www.isgs.uiuc.edu/isgshome/new_pubs/new-pubs.htm
