Vulnerability of shallow ground water and drinking-water wells to nitrate in the United States: Model of predicted nitrate concentration in shallow, recently recharged ground water -- Input data set for clay sediment (gwava-s_clay)

This data set represents the amount of clay sediment in the soil, in percent times 1000, in the conterminous United States.

The data set was used as an input data layer for a national model to predict nitrate concentration in shallow ground water.

Nolan and Hitt (2006) developed two national models to predict contamination of ground water by nonpoint sources of nitrate. The nonlinear approach to national-scale Ground-WAter Vulnerability Assessment (GWAVA) uses components representing nitrogen (N) sources, transport, and attenuation.

One model (GWAVA-S) predicts nitrate contamination of shallow (typically less than 5 meters deep), recently recharged ground water, which may or may not be used for drinking. The other (GWAVA-DW) predicts ambient nitrate concentration in deeper supplies used for drinking.

This data set is one of 17 data sets (1 output data set and 16 input data sets) associated with the GWAVA-S model. Full details of the model development are in Nolan and Hitt (2006).

For inputs to the model, spatial attributes representing 16 nitrogen loading and transport and attenuation factors were compiled as raster data sets (1-km by 1-km grid cell size) for the conterminous United States (see table 1).

>Table 1.-- Parameters of nonlinear regression model for nitrate in shallow > ground water (GWAVA-S) and corresponding input spatial data sets. > [kg, kilograms; km2, square kilometers.] > >Nitrogen Source Factors Data Set Name > 1 farm fertilizer (kg/hectare) gwava-s_ffer > 2 confined manure (kg/hectare) gwava-s_conf > 3 orchards/vineyards (percent) gwava-s_orvi > 4 population density (people/km2) gwava-s_popd > 5 cropland/pasture/fallow (percent) gwava-s_crpa > >Transport to Aquifer Factors > 6 water input (km2/cm) gwava-s_wtin > 7 carbonate rocks (yes/no) gwava-s_crox > 8 basalt and volcanic rocks (yes/no) gwava-s_vrox > 9 drainage ditch (km2) gwava-s_ddit > 10 slope (percent x 1000) gwava-s_slop > 11 glacial till (yes/no) gwava-s_gtil > 12 clay sediment (percent x 1000) gwava-s_clay > >Attenuation Factors > 13 fresh surface water withdrawal gwava-s_swus > for irrigation (megaliters/day) > 14 irrigation tailwater recovery (km2) gwava-s_twre > 15 histosol soil type (percent) gwava-s_hist > 16 wetlands (percent) gwava-s_wetl

"Farm fertilizer" is the average annual nitrogen input from commercial fertilizer applied to agricultural lands, 1992-2001, in kilograms per hectare.

"Confined manure" is the average annual nitrogen input from confined animal manure, 1992 and 1997, in kilograms per hectare.

"Orchards/vineyards" is the percent of orchards/vineyards land cover classification.

"Population density" is 1990 block group population density, in people per square kilometer.

"Cropland/pasture/fallow" is the percent of cropland/pasture/fallow land cover classifications.

"Water input" is the ratio of the total area of irrigated land to precipitation, in square kilometers per centimeter.

"Carbonate rocks" is the presence or absence of Valley and Ridge carbonate rocks.

"Basalt and volcanic rocks" is the presence or absence of basalt and volcanic rocks.

"Drainage ditch" is the area of National Resources Inventory surface drainage, field ditch conservation practice, in square kilometers.

"Slope" is the soil surface slope, in percent times 1000.

"Glacial till" is the presence or absence of poorly sorted glacial till east of the Rocky Mountains.

"Clay sediment" is the amount of clay sediment in the soil, in percent times 1000.

"Fresh surface water withdrawal for irrigation" is the amount of fresh surface water withdrawal for irrigation, in megaliters per day.

"Irrigation tailwater recovery" is the area of National Resources Inventory irrigation system, tailwater recovery conservation practice, in square kilometers.

"Histosol soil type" is the amount of histosols soil taxonomic order, in percent.

"Wetlands" is the percent of woody wetlands and emergent herbaceous wetlands land cover classifications.

Reference cited:

Nolan, B.T. and Hitt, K.J., 2006, Vulnerability of shallow ground water and drinking-water wells to nitrate in the United States: Environmental Science and Technology, vol. 40, no. 24, pages 7834-7840.