ABSTRACT

Sediments of Pleistocene age form the principal groundwater reservoir in southwestern Louisiana. In the central and northern part of the area the sediments consist of massive beds of sand and gravel which are among the thickest deposits of their kind in the United States. It is estimated that during the rice-irrigation season the daily pumpage from this ground-water reservoir is as great as 1.3 billion gallons. The regional decline in water level caused by this pumpage has not been of a large magnitude and does not indicate regional overdevelopment. Local declines in yield from wells are generally caused by inadequate spacing of wells or by a type of well construction that limits the depth from which water can be pumped. Contamination by salt water from tidal streams constitutes a serious danger to the source of supply; however, studies are now being made to determine the proper corrective measures.

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