In 2015, staff of the Water Supply Section of the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) informed the DGS of their concerns about overpumping of the unconfined Columbia aquifer in an area east of Dover (Figure 1). In this area, the City of Dover’s Long Point Road Wellfield (LPRW) and numerous irrigation systems pump water from the shallow Columbia aquifer.
In 2015, DGS became aware of a situation east of Dover where there is potential for overpumping of the Columbia aquifer by the City of Dover’s Long Point Road wellfield (LPRW) and numerous large-capacity irrigation wells in the surrounding area (Figure 1).
DGS staff member A. Scott Andres made a presentation “Results of selected UD nutrient monitoring projects in the Nanticoke River watershed” at the inter-agency meeting Chesapeake basin water quality data, trends, and interpretations held August 11, 2016 at the Delaware Department of Agriculture in Dover.
A recently released article “Hydrogeologic controls on groundwater discharge and nitrogen loads in a coastal watershed” by the Journal of Hydrology details the results of a joint groundwater simulation and water quality sampling study that focused on submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) to Indian River and Rehoboth Bays, part of Delaware Inland Bays.
Presentation on Groundwater to Clean Water Task Force by staff member Scott Andres
Sea-level rise, dissipating dunes and susceptibility to storm surges are a few of the factors that contribute to a vulnerable coast. A coast at risk means an increased potential for damage to coastal communities and ecosystems in the event of tropical systems, nor'easters or other damaging weather.
More than 40 experts representing state and federal agencies and regional universities gathered to discuss these and other important issues during the Coastal Flood Research, Modeling and Monitoring Workshop on Sept. 16.
This project will study the water level behavior throughout the Delaware Inland Bays, with a focus on populated areas, during times of both storm and non-storm events through analysis of observational data from tide gages. It will also support the inclusion of the Delaware Inland Bays into the Delaware CFMS by developing a statistical relationships between the water levels along the Atlantic Ocean coast near the mouth of the Inland B
The Delaware Environmental Observation System (DEOS) and the Delaware Geological Survey have recently acquired new instrumentation to measure evapotranspiration (ET). The purchase of an eddy covariance instrument, partially supported by the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, will improve the ability to quantify ET during agricultural and water supply drought periods and improve water availability estimates for resource managers.
