Regional Study of the Dakota Aquifer (Darton's Dakota Revisited)

ABSTRACT In 1905, N. H. Darton described the geology and underground‐water resources of the central Great Plains in his classic report that emphasized the importance of the Dakota aquifer to this region of the United States. Since Darton's work, many investigators have studied Dakota‐aquifer hydrology with regard to development of local or statewide resources. Preliminary mapping of relatively recent fluid‐level data by the U.S. Geological Survey indicates regional potentiometric trends similar to those interpreted by Darton, but altitudes substantially lower in part of the area. The classic artesian‐system concept of the Dakota aquifer is not consistent with some of the data and observations of the past several decades. The simple aquifer geometry and effective lateral hydraulic continuity normally associated with that concept do not appear to characterize the Dakota aquifer regionally.