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Description and results of test-drilling program at Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey, 1982-84

January 1, 1986

Picatinny Arsenal, located in north-central New Jersey, has a long history of explosives manufacturing. Past industrial activities and past waste-disposal practices have caused some groundwater contamination problems. In 1982, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Army, began a water resources investigation of the Arsenal. The test drilling program is designed to define the hydrogeology and install observation wells. Twenty-two boreholes were drilled and 21 observation wells installed in these holes. All drilling was done in a glaciated valley. The report includes lithologic and gamma-ray logs, results of grain-size analyses, well-construction data, and some groundwater levels. The generalized stratigraphic sequence of geologic units penetrated from the test-drilling program are from lower to upper: (1) pre-dominantly dolomitic Leithsville Formation, (2) in the upper part of bedrock, a weathered dolomite zone, (3) a thin discontinuous mantle of till, and (4) stratified drift deposit up to 208 ft thick. (USGS)

Publication Year 1986
Title Description and results of test-drilling program at Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey, 1982-84
DOI 10.3133/ofr86316
Authors P. T. Harte, B. P. Sargent, E. F. Vowinkel
Publication Type Report
Publication Subtype USGS Numbered Series
Series Title Open-File Report
Series Number 86-316
Index ID ofr86316
Record Source USGS Publications Warehouse