Groundwater Recharge from a Portion of the Santa Catalina Mountains

Abstract

The geohydrology of a portion of the Santa Catalina Mountains including the definition of aquifer systems in the foothills was studied in order to calculate groundwater recharge to the Tucson basin. This underlying groundwater aquifer is the only source of Tucson, Arizona's water supply. A well network, well logs, geologic profiles, and a water level contour map were used as source information. Recharge was found to occur in some sections of washes and close to the mountains where washes cross or coincide with faults. Significant recharge to sand and gravel aquifers occurs directly through faults and joints. Little of the surface runoff is thought to recharge local aquifers because of low permeability layers beneath the alluvium and the short duration of the flows. Recharge calculation using the Darcy equation was subject to considerable error; but flow net analysis showed the total recharge to be 336 acre-feet per year representing about 50 acre feet per mile of mountain front per year.