Groundwater salinity in the Powder River Basin, Wyoming

WSGS used more than 2,400 spontaneous potential measurements from borehole geophysical logs and 200 USGS water quality analyses from qualified oil and gas wells to estimate groundwater salinity (TDS) in the Powder River Basin of northeastern Wyoming. Salinity estimates were made over a depth range of 1,000–7,000 ft. The incidence of industrial grade waters (TDS>5,000 mg/L) increases with depth and occurs with the greatest frequency at depths greater than 5,000 ft. This study suggests that industrial grade water can be obtained economically from repurposed oil and gas wells at depths greater than 5,000 ft.