Changes in Flow in the Beaver-North Canadian River Basin Upstream from CantonLake, Western Oklahoma

摘要

The purpose of this report is to present the results of an evaluation of climaticand hydrologic data for the Beaver-North Canadian River basin upstream from Canton Lake in western Oklahoma. It examines the climatic and hydrologic data for evidence of trends. Monthly and annual average precipitation for 1895 to the present in the Oklahoma Climate Division 1, the panhandle area that extends eastward to the Woodward County line, were examined. All available streamflow-gaging station data in the study area, with at least 10 or more years of record, were examined. The hydrologic data analyzed includes total annual flow, base flow, and annual peak discharges. Methods of analysis included tests for trend, moving averages, and comparisons of central tendency statistics including median and average. Since depletion of the aquifer is suspected, ground-water development of the most extensive aquifer in the basin, the High Plains aquifer, is described.