GREAT SALT LAKE NAWQA

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The Great Salt Lake Basins (GRSL)
National Water-Quality Assessment

The Great Salt Lake Basins NAWQA is one of the 51 study units that are part of the U.S. Geological Survey's National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program. The long-term goals of this program are to describe the status and trends in the quality of a large, representative part of the Nation's surface- and ground-water resources, and to provide a sound, scientific understanding of the primary factors affecting the quality of these resources. The program will evaluate water quality at a wide range of spatial scales, from local to national, and will employ a multidisciplinary approach using physical, chemical and biological measurements to provide multiple lines of evidence with which to evaluate water quality.

Status and trends of surface-water-quality are assessed within eight large geographical regions, referred to as "major river basins" covering the U.S. Status and trends of ground-water-quality are assessed within about one-third of the Nation's 62 principal aquifer systems. Results are reported by major river basin and principal aquifer system, as well as compared across the regional systems for a national perspective. The reports highlight regional differences in land use, geology, and climate that lead to regional differences in water quality. Ground water sampled from GRSL is part of the Basin and Range, Rio Grande, Coastal Basins, and Central Valley Aquifer Systems regional assessment. An example of this regional analysis is a report on Dissolved Solids in Basin-Fill Aquifers and Streams in the Southwestern United States.

For More Information

Information on technical reports and hydrologic data related to the Great Salt Lake Basins NAWQA study can be obtained from:

Susan Thiros
Great Salt Lake Basins NAWQA
U.S. Geological Survey
2329 Orton Circle
Salt Lake City, UT 84119
Telephone: (801) 908-5063
FAX: (801) 908-5001