Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Fresh-Water Aquifer In The Knox Group (Cambrian–Ordovician) Of Central Kentucky, James A. Kipp

Report of Investigations--KGS

Fresh water can be found in Cambrian and Ordovician carbonate rocks of the Knox Group in central Kentucky. The top of the aquifer is as much as 300 ft above mean sea level (m.s.l.) on the crest of the Cincinnati Arch, but descends off the flanks of the arch. Water is normally found in the upper 100 to 250 ft of the Knox, primarily in secondary porosity apparently associated with the unconformity at the top of the unit. Knox wells commonly exceed 750 ft in total depth, but because the aquifer is artesian, water rises to an elevation of about …

Hydrogeology, Hydrogeochemistry, And Spoil Settlement At A Large Mine-Spoil Area In Eastern Kentucky: Star Fire Tract, David R. Wunsch, James S. Dinger, Page B. Taylor, Daniel I. Carey, C. Douglas R. Graham

Report of Investigations--KGS

An applied research program at the Star Fire surface mine in eastern Kentucky, owned and operated by Cypress-AMAX Coal Co., defined spoil characteristics to develop and monitor water resources, which will help identify a reliable water supply for future property development. Water stored in the mine spoil may provide a usable ground-water supply, and the spoil could also be engineered to provide base flow to surfacewater reservoirs.

Ground-water recharge enters the spoil by way of sinking streams, ground-water flow from bedrock in contact with the mine spoil, and a specially designed infiltration basin. Ground water discharges predominantly from springs and …

Effects Of Longwall Mining On Hydrogeology, Leslie County, Kentucky Part 1: Pre-Mining Conditions, Shelley A. Minns, James A. Kipp, Daniel I. Carey, James S. Dinger, Lyle V. A. Sendlein

Report of Investigations--KGS

An investigation of the hydrologic effects of longwall coal mining is in progress in the Eastern Kentucky Coal Field. The study area is located in a first-order watershed in southern Leslie County over Shamrock Coal Company's Beech Fork Mine (Edd Fork Basin on the Helton 7.5-minute quadrangle). Longwall panels approximately 700 feet wide are separated by three-entry gateways 200 feet wide. The mine is operating in the Fire Clay coal (Hazard No. 4); overburden thickness ranges from 300 to 1,000 feet. Mining in the watershed began in late summer 1993. Undermining of the instrumented panel (panel 7) is anticipated for …

Sand And Gravel Resources Along The Ohio River Valley In Boone, Gallatin, And Carroll Counties, Kentucky, Eugene J. Amaral

Report of Investigations--KGS

Glacial outwash sand and gravel from three northern Kentucky counties in the Ohio River Valley have been analyzed in order to characterize their particle size, composition, morphology, and surface alteration and to determine the geologic significance of lateral and stratigraphic variations in these sediment properties. The late Wisconsinan-age deposits, actively mined in terraces along the Ohio River, are composed of moderately sorted sand and a poorly sorted, bimodal mixture of sand and gravel. A systematic pattern of regional grain-size variation was found to be associated with the confluence of the Great Miami River, a major meltwater sluiceway entering the Ohio …

Flooding Of The Sinking Creek Karst Area In Jessamine And Woodford Counties, Kentucky, James C. Currens, C. Douglas R. Graham

Report of Investigations--KGS

Tashamingo Subdivision in Sinking Creek Karst Valley, a tributary of the Garretts Spring Drainage Basin in Jessamine and Woodford Counties, Kentucky, was flooded in February 1989. To determine the cause of flooding, the boundary of the ground-water basin was mapped, discharge data were measured to determine intake capacity of swallow holes, and hydrologic modeling of the basin was conducted. Swallow-hole capacity was determined to be limited by the hydraulic parameters of the conduit, rather than by obstruction by trash. Flooding from a precipitation event is more likely, and will be higher, when antecedent soil moisture conditions in the watershed are …

Design, Construction, And Monitoring Of The Ground-Water Resources Of A Large Mine-Spoil Area: Star Fire Tract, Eastern Kentucky, David R. Wunsch, James S. Dinger, Page B. Taylor

Report of Investigations--KGS

By the year 2010, the Star Fire mining operation in Knott, Breathitt, and Perry Counties in eastern Kentucky, which uses mountaintop-removal and hollow-fill mining techniques, will have created approximately 5,000 acres of gently rolling terrain that could support alternative land uses. The present research is centered on approximately 1,000 acres of spoil created since mining began in 1981. An aquifer fed by both ground and surface water will be created within the spoil. Spoil-handling techniques such as cast blasting, dragline placement, end dumping by trucks, and surface grading have created porous coarse-rock zones within the spoil through which ground water …

Mineralization And Hydrocarbon Emplacement In The Cambrian-Ordovician Mascot Dolomite Of The Knox Group In South-Central Kentucky, Warren H. Anderson

Report of Investigations--KGS

The Mascot Dolomite, the upper unit of the Cambrian-Ordovician Knox Group, is a major host for Mississippi Valley-type ore deposits and petroleum in south-central Kentucky. The Mascot was deposited on a broad, shallow platform that exhibited unusually uniform conditions of deposition, ranging from supratidal to shallow subtidal environments. The formation has a complex diagenetic history, including several stages of dolomitization, silicification, solution, and brecciation. Diagenesis and, to some extent, deposition were influenced by Early Ordovician tectonic activity. Tectonic activity influenced development of a regional unconformity during Middle Ordovician time. Evidence of this tectonic activity includes up to 300 feet of …

Overview Of Sand And Gravel Resources Of Kentucky, Preston Mcgrain

Report of Investigations--KGS

Sand and gravel represent Kentucky's second-most important source of mineral construction material, being exceeded only by limestone. However, deposits which meet most requirements and specifications for aggregates are not evenly distributed. This report is an overview of the sand and gravel resources of Kentucky, summarizing data gathered from literature search and personal observations.

Principal production of sand and gravel in Kentucky is concentrated in the channels and valleys of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. Approximately two-thirds of Kentucky's current production is derived from floating dredge operations in the Ohio River itself and glacial outwash deposits of Wisconsin age along its …

Preliminary Report Of The Oil And Gas Possibilities Between Pine And Cumberland Mountains, Southeastern Kentucky, A J. Froelich

Report of Investigations--KGS

Elongate, low-amplitude flexures in strata of Pennsylvanian age have been delineated in recent mapping by the U. S. Geological Survey in co­operation with the Kentucky Geological Survey in a 600-square-mile (l ,536- square-kilometer) area between Pine and Cumberland Mountains in south­eastern Kentucky. Cresta! culminations on gentle anticlinal folds may indicate loci of subsurface closures for entrapment of oil and gas. The area studied is underlain by more than 15,000 feet (4,500 meters) of Paleozoic strata containing potential source-beds, reservoirs, and cap rocks. Faults, unconformities, abrupt facies changes, and regional thickness variations en­hance the geologic setting for possible oil and gas …