Platte River Basin
Between 2001 and 2006, the Wyoming Water Development Commission completed individual water plans for each of Wyoming’s seven major river basins. The last water plan completed during that period, for the Platte River Basin (Trihydro Corporation and others, 2006), included an available groundwater determination in Technical Memorandum 3.3 (Lidstone and Associates, 2005). The 2013 Available Groundwater Determination presented in this report updates and expands the previous technical memorandum with a new compilation of information and represents the most current assessment of the groundwater resources of the Platte River Basin.
This study updates, revises, and expands the groundwater report contained in the 2006 Platte River Basin Water Plan as the Available Groundwater Determination Technical Memorandum, dated May 2006 (Hahn and Jessen, 2001).
Platte River Basin Water Plan Update Groundwater Study
The Platte River Basin is among the most important river drainages in Wyoming in that it covers one quarter of the state’s surface area and contains more 40 percent of its population. This publication represents an intensive collaborative effort among water resource professionals from the WSGS, the WWDO, and the U.S. Geological Survey. Additional contributors include the Wyoming State Engineer’s Office, Water Resources Data System at the University of Wyoming, the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, and the Wyoming Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. The authors have worked to provide the people of Wyoming with the most current and complete compilation of groundwater information available in a format that is understandable to water professionals and citizens alike. Basic concepts of groundwater science are included in chapter 5.
The downloadable files containing the water plan, the Hahn and Jessen report, and this memorandum are available online at the WWDO Platte River Water Basin Plan website.
Contact:
Kurt Hinaman, kurt.hinaman@wyo.gov