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Project Details

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Project Information Sheet

Ground water in aquifer systems of LaGrange County: Baseline water chemistry, nitrate contamination, and aquifer sensitivity

Funding Source:	Indiana Department of Environmental Management and Indiana Geological Survey
Period of Contract:	29 Jun 2001 to 26 Oct 2004
Status:	completed — Definition of status type
Project Director:	Nancy R. Hasenmueller and Tracy D. Branam

Issue

Ground water is the source of 75 percent of the water withdrawn in the St. Joseph River Basin in LaGrange County. Agriculture is the primary land use in the basin and nearly 78 percent of the acreage in the county is in farms.

Objective

The study was conducted to determine the baseline water chemistry and the levels of naturally occurring and man-made contaminants in the ground water of LaGrange County.

Approach

A project was initiated to evaluate the chemistry and relative age of ground water in LaGrange County in northeastern Indiana. The intent of sampling in 2002 was to acquire baseline data by analyzing for selected ions, trace elements, and isotopes in ground water from 50 public and private wells. Some of the sampled wells draw water from a sand and gravel deposit known as the Topeka fan glacial sequence. Other sampled wells draw water from sand and gravel in the Oliver Lake glacial sequence, which contains more clay and silt than the Topeka fan sequence. During a second phase of the project in 2003, water samples were collected from 18 additional wells that produce ground water known to have high concentrations of nitrate nitrogen. The 2003 wells draw water from either sand and gravel deposits in the Topeka fan, Lima plain, and interlobate glacial sequences or localized sand and gravel deposits in the lacustrine Oliver Lake glacial sequence. The Topeka fan, Lima plain, and interlobate sequences are areas of ground-water recharge; the Oliver Lake basin is an area of ground-water discharge with areas of local recharge.

Products

Final products include: 1) A final report and educational poster to the funding agency, Indiana Department of Environmental Management; 2) Copies of the educational poster for display in public facilities in the county--the LaGrange County Public Library and LaGrange County Health Department; and 3) Copies of the individual water-well analyses to the property owners.

Benefits

This work results in a better definition of the rate of recharge to ground-water aquifers and the potential sources of nitrate contamination in selected areas of LaGrange County.

Locations Affected:

Lagrange

Indiana House Districts Affected:

18

52

Indiana Senate Districts Affected:

13

Indiana Congressional Districts Affected:

Information Updated February 1, 2007

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