OFR 97-492: Washington Quadrangle NURE HSSR Study
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[See History of NURE HSSR Program for a summary of the entire program.]
Virginia
Subcontractors for the Savannah River Laboratory (SRL) collected at least 5,667 stream-sediment, 2,598 surface-water, and 4,834 ground-water samples within 96 counties from Virginia as part of the NURE Hydrogeochemical and Stream Sediment Reconnaissance (HSSR) program. The sediment samples were collected during July - October 1976; August - September 1977; and April - November 1978, and water samples were collected during December 1976 - September 1977; April - October 1978; and June - August 1979. Sample coverage included portions of the Baltimore, Bluefield, Charlottesville, Chincoteague, Cumberland, Currituck Sound, Greensboro, Jenkins, Johnson City, Norfolk, Richmond, Roanoke, Salisbury, Washington, and Winston-Salem 1:250,000-scale quadrangles. (A total of 443 stream-sediment, 160 surface-water, and 371 ground-water samples were collected within the Washington quadrangle.) These samples were sent to SRL for analysis of uranium and additional elements (16 in sediments and 9 in waters). SRL was able to analyze 5,522 sediments and 7,416 waters from Virginia; this includes 441 sediment and 531 water samples from the Washington quadrangle. The analytical and site location data for all Virginia samples were released in the Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia Data Report [GJBX-103(82)].
SRL sent 2,719 sediment samples from Virginia to an unnamed contract laboratory for "Supplemental Analyses." Supplemental analytical determinations for up to 23 elements were reported for 2,711 of these samples in the Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia Data Report [GJBX-103(82)]. The digital data file accompanying this report includes Supplemental Analyses for 26 Virginia sediment samples within the Washington quadrangle.
Maryland
Subcontractors for the Savannah River Laboratory (SRL) collected at least 1,322 stream-sediment, 837 surface-water, and 1,188 ground-water samples within 23 counties from Maryland as part of the NURE Hydrogeochemical and Stream Sediment Reconnaissance (HSSR) program. The sediment samples were collected during May - August 1978, and water samples were collected during May - June 1977; December 1977; and July - October 1978. Sample coverage included portions of the Baltimore, Chincoteague, Cumberland, Salisbury, Washington, and Wilmington 1:250,000-scale quadrangles. (A total of 298 stream-sediment, 87 surface-water, and 318 ground-water samples were collected within the Washington quadrangle.) These samples were sent to SRL for analysis of uranium and additional elements (16 in sediments and 9 in waters). SRL was able to analyze 1,286 sediments and 2,023 waters from Maryland; this includes 294 sediment and 405 water samples from the Washington quadrangle. The analytical and site location data for all Maryland samples were released in the Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia Data Report [GJBX-103(82)].
SRL: Washington Quadrangle
SRL released a separate quadrangle report for the Washington NTMS quadrangle, which includes data for 729 stream-sediment and 681 ground-water samples. SRL released the analytical data as the Washington Quadrangle GJBX-284(81) Abbreviated Data Report. Although these data are given on microfiche that accompanies the report, no digital data files were found for this reformatting effort. A cursory comparison of the [GJBX-284(81)] data suggests that there are some differences between this set of HSSR data and that found for corresponding samples in the Virginia and Maryland State reports. One minor difference is that analytical data values found in the digital state files are slightly different from the hard copy tables. These variations are apparently due only to differences in rounding versus truncation of reported values or to differences in the number of recorded significant digits.
Gold Analyses
Data for gold analyses of sediments by SRL neutron activation were released in the GJBX-135(82) summary report. The introduction of that report states:
"This report contains previously unreported neutron-activation analyses of gold in sediment samples determined at SRL. These data were not included in the standard SRL NURE data reports because the gold spectrum was not measured in the original analytical procedure and the report format was designed without the gold analyses being included. Gold analyses became available as the analytical procedure was refined, but the report format was not modified to incorporate these data."
Only those sediment samples that had detectable concentrations of gold by neutron activation analysis were given in the GJBX-135(82) report. Sediment samples with concentrations below detection limits were not reported and can only be ascertained by identifying which samples were actually analyzed by neutron activation at SRL.
Summary Tables
Because of the various laboratories and analytical methods used, some SRL samples may have been analyzed once, twice, or not at all. The following table summarizes the analysis of Washington quadrangle samples.
Laboratory Analysis | Sediments | Waters |
---|---|---|
Only SRL | 709 | 936 |
Both SRL and Supplemental Labs | 26 | 0 |
None | 6 | 0 |
Total Samples | 741 | 936 |
Total Data Records | 741 | 936 |
The following is a list of all sample types collected and reported for NURE studies in the Washington quadrangle.
Sediment Sample Type | Number of Samples | Water Sample Type | Number of Samples |
---|---|---|---|
Wet Streams | 741 | Streams | 247 |
Wells | 666 | ||
Springs | 23 | ||
Total Sediments | 741 | Total Waters | 936 |
These Washington quadrangle samples were analyzed by one or more of the following methods:
Sediment Samples
Water Samples
Sediment Records
The Washington quadrangle sediment data consist of reformatted records from the Maryland and Virginia portions of the Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia [GJBX-103(82)] Data Report. The following problems were found and addressed during the comparison and reformatting stages for the Washington quadrangle sediment data:
Water Records
The Washington quadrangle water data consist of reformatted records from the Maryland and Virginia portions of the Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia [GJBX-103(82)] Data Report. The following problems were found and addressed during the comparison and reformatting stages for the Washington quadrangle water data:
The NURE HSSR data are now available online in two databases: The sediment database (also includes data for soils and some rocks) at http://tin.er.usgs.gov/nure/sediment/ and the water database at http://tin.er.usgs.gov/nure/water/. From these two web sites, NURE HSSR data can be selected, examined, summarized, and downloaded by political boundaries (State and County), by quadrangle (1:250,000-scale, 1:100,000-scale, and 1:63,360-scale for Alaska or 1:24,000-scale for the Lower 48 States), and by hydrologic unit (drainage region, subregion, river basin, or sub-basin). Selected data can be downloaded as a dBase file, a shapefile, an HTML table, or ASCII text (tab- or comma-delimited).
Washington Quadrangle Sediment Data - 736 records
Washington Quadrangle Water Data - 929 records
In the eastern United States, SRL collected samples primarily by county. Often, not all counties within a quadrangle were completely sampled. Sample coverage in the Washington quadrangle is complete and includes samples from Anne Arundel, Calvert, Charles, Dorchester, Montgomery, Prince Georges, Queen Annes, St. Marys, and Talbot Counties in Maryland; and Arlington, Caroline, Culpeper, Essex, Fairfax, Fauquier, King George, Loudoun, Louisa, Northumberland, Orange, Prince William, Richmond, Spotsylvania, Stafford, and Westmoreland Counties in Virginia. The laboratory and analytical methods used also may vary by county such that adjacent counties often have very different analytical coverage.
Six stream-sediment samples within the Washington quadrangle were not analyzed by any of the various laboratories. The following table summarizes the locations of those unanalyzed samples.
State | County | Unanalyzed Samples | Total Samples |
---|---|---|---|
Maryland | Calvert | 1 | 30 |
Maryland | Talbot | 3 | 26 |
Virginia | Caroline | 2 | 29 |
None found.
Back to Maryland NURE data
Back to Virginia NURE data
Frequently Asked Questions Concerning NURE Data
Home Page: USGS National Geochemical Database - NURE HSSR data
Page written by Bryan G. Moravec and Steven M. Smith.
Contact: Steven M. Smith (smsmith@usgs.gov)
Version 1.41: February 23, 2006
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