Groundwater-quality samples and water-level data were collected from 36 wells in the Jerome/Gooding County area of the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer during June 2017. The wells included 30 wells sampled for the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Water-Quality Assessment project, plus an additional 6 wells were selected to increase spatial distribution. The data provide water managers with the ability for an improved understanding of groundwater quality and flow directions in the area. Groundwater-quality samples were analyzed for nutrients, major ions, trace elements, and stable isotopes of water. Quality-assurance and quality-control measures consisted of multiple blank samples and a sequential replicate sample. All data are available online at the USGS National Water Information System.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/ds1085","collaboration":"Prepared in cooperation with the Idaho Department of Water Resources and Idaho Power Company","usgsCitation":"Skinner, K.D., 2018, Groundwater-quality data from the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer, Jerome and Gooding Counties, south-central Idaho, 2017: U.S. Geological Survey Data Series 1085, 20 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ds1085.","productDescription":"iv, 20 p.","numberOfPages":"28","onlineOnly":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-093930","costCenters":[{"id":343,"text":"Idaho Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":354092,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/1085/ds1085.pdf","text":"Report","size":"1.6 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"DS 1085"},{"id":354091,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/1085/coverthb.jpg"}],"country":"United States","state":"Idaho","county":"Gooding County, Jerome County","otherGeospatial":"Snake River Plain Aquifer","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -114.33,\n 42.56218435232186\n ],\n [\n -114.33,\n 42.917212160086194\n ],\n [\n -115,\n 42.917212160086194\n ],\n [\n -115,\n 42.56218435232186\n ],\n [\n -114.33,\n 42.56218435232186\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, Idaho Water Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
230 Collins Road
Boise, Idaho 83702
This report documents the methods for peak-flow frequency (hereinafter “frequency”) analysis and reporting for streamgages in and near Montana following implementation of the Bulletin 17C guidelines. The methods are used to provide estimates of peak-flow quantiles for 50-, 42.9-, 20-, 10-, 4-, 2-, 1-, 0.5-, and 0.2-percent annual exceedance probabilities for selected streamgages operated by the U.S. Geological Survey Wyoming-Montana Water Science Center (WY–MT WSC). These annual exceedance probabilities correspond to 2-, 2.33-, 5-, 10-, 25-, 50-, 100-, 200-, and 500-year recurrence intervals, respectively.
Standard procedures specific to the WY–MT WSC for implementing the Bulletin 17C guidelines include (1) the use of the Expected Moments Algorithm analysis for fitting the log-Pearson Type III distribution, incorporating historical information where applicable; (2) the use of weighted skew coefficients (based on weighting at-site station skew coefficients with generalized skew coefficients from the Bulletin 17B national skew map); and (3) the use of the Multiple Grubbs-Beck Test for identifying potentially influential low flows. For some streamgages, the peak-flow records are not well represented by the standard procedures and require user-specified adjustments informed by hydrologic judgement. The specific characteristics of peak-flow records addressed by the informed-user adjustments include (1) regulated peak-flow records, (2) atypical upper-tail peak-flow records, and (3) atypical lower-tail peak-flow records. In all cases, the informed-user adjustments use the Expected Moments Algorithm fit of the log-Pearson Type III distribution using the at-site station skew coefficient, a manual potentially influential low flow threshold, or both.
Appropriate methods can be applied to at-site frequency estimates to provide improved representation of long-term hydroclimatic conditions. The methods for improving at-site frequency estimates by weighting with regional regression equations and by Maintenance of Variance Extension Type III record extension are described.
Frequency analyses were conducted for 99 example streamgages to indicate various aspects of the frequency-
analysis methods described in this report. The frequency analyses and results for the example streamgages are presented in a separate data release associated with this report consisting of tables and graphical plots that are structured to include information concerning the interpretive decisions involved in the frequency analyses. Further, the separate data release includes the input files to the PeakFQ program, version 7.1, including the peak-flow data file and the analysis specification file that were used in the peak-flow frequency analyses. Peak-flow frequencies are also reported in separate data releases for selected streamgages in the Beaverhead River and Clark Fork Basins and also for selected streamgages in the Ruby, Jefferson, and Madison River Basins.
Director, Wyoming-Montana Water Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
3162 Bozeman Avenue
Helena, MT 59601
The hydrogeologic setting and groundwater flow system in Florida and parts of Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina is dominated by the highly transmissive Floridan aquifer system. This principal aquifer is a vital source of freshwater for public and domestic supply, as well as for industrial and agricultural uses throughout the southeastern United States. Population growth, increased tourism, and increased agricultural production have led to increased demand on groundwater from the Floridan aquifer system, particularly since 1950. The response of the Floridan aquifer system to these stresses often poses regional challenges for water-resource management that commonly transcend political or jurisdictional boundaries. To help water-resource managers address these regional challenges, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Water Availability and Use Science Program began assessing groundwater availability of the Floridan aquifer system in 2009.
The current conceptual groundwater flow system was developed for the Floridan aquifer system and adjacent systems partly on the basis of previously published USGS Regional Aquifer-System Analysis (RASA) studies, specifically many of the potentiometric maps and the modeling efforts in these studies. The Floridan aquifer system extent was divided into eight hydrogeologically distinct subregional groundwater basins delineated on the basis of the estimated predevelopment (circa 1880s) potentiometric surface: (1) Panhandle, (2) Dougherty Plain-Apalachicola, (3) Thomasville-Tallahassee, (4) Southeast Georgia-Northeast Florida-South South Carolina, (5) Suwannee, (6) West-central Florida, (7) East-central Florida, and (8) South Florida. The use of these subregions allows for a more detailed analysis of the individual basins and the groundwater flow system as a whole.
The hydrologic conditions and associated groundwater budget were updated relative to previous RASA studies to include additional data collected since the 1980s and to reflect the entire groundwater flow system, including the surficial, intermediate, and Floridan aquifer systems for a contemporary period (1995–2010). Inflow to the groundwater flow system of 33,700 million gallons per day (Mgal/d) was assumed to be exclusively from net recharge (precipitation minus evapotranspiration and surface runoff). Outflow from the groundwater flow system included spring discharge (7,700 Mgal/d) and groundwater withdrawals (5,200 Mgal/d). Estimates for all components of the groundwater system were not possible because of large uncertainties associated with internal leakage, coastal discharge, and discharge to streams and lakes. A numerical modeling analysis is required to improve this hydrologic budget calculation and to forecast future changes in groundwater levels and aquifer storage caused by groundwater withdrawals, land-use change, and the effects of climate variability and change.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/sir20185030","collaboration":"Water Availability and Use Science Program","usgsCitation":"Bellino, J.C., Kuniansky, E.L., O’Reilly, A.M., and Dixon, J.F., 2018, Hydrogeologic setting, conceptual groundwater flow system, and hydrologic conditions 1995–2010 in Florida and parts of Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2018–5030, 103 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20185030.","productDescription":"Report: viii, 103 p.; Plate: 36.0 x 49.0 inches; Data Releases","numberOfPages":"115","onlineOnly":"Y","additionalOnlineFiles":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-056534","costCenters":[{"id":270,"text":"FLWSC-Tampa","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":353934,"rank":3,"type":{"id":17,"text":"Plate"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2018/5030/sir20185030_plate.pdf","text":"Plate 1","size":"3.02 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIR 2018–5030 Plate 1"},{"id":353936,"rank":5,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F7CJ8BMS","text":"USGS data release","description":"USGS Data Release","linkHelpText":" Soil-Water-Balance model datasets used to estimate mean groundwater recharge in Florida and parts of Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina, 1995–2010"},{"id":353933,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2018/5030/sir20185030.pdf","text":"Report","size":"46.3 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIR 2018–5030"},{"id":353932,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2018/5030/coverthb2.jpg"},{"id":353937,"rank":6,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F75Q4TZD","text":"USGS data release","description":"USGS Data Release","linkHelpText":"Potentiometric Surface Contours, Wells, and Groundwater Basin Divides for the Upper Floridan Aquifer in Florida and Parts of Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama, May–June 2010—Updated"},{"id":353935,"rank":4,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F78K7749","text":"USGS data release","description":"USGS Data Release","linkHelpText":"Groundwater Withdrawals in Florida and parts of Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina, 1995–2010"}],"country":"United States","state":"Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -88.17626953125,\n 24.467150664739002\n ],\n [\n -79.6728515625,\n 24.467150664739002\n ],\n [\n -79.6728515625,\n 32.85190345738802\n ],\n [\n -88.17626953125,\n 32.85190345738802\n ],\n [\n -88.17626953125,\n 24.467150664739002\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, Caribbean-Florida Water Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
4446 Pet Lane
Lutz, FL 33559
Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs), wastewater indicators (WWIs), and pesticides (herein, Contaminants of Emerging Concern [CECs]) have been documented in surface waters throughout the world and have associated risks to aquatic life. While much research has focused on temperate and urbanized watersheds, less is known about CEC presence in semi-arid landscapes, where water availability is limited and populations are low. CEC presence in water and sediment is reported for 21 sites in eight U.S. national parks in the northern Colorado Plateau region. From 2012 to 2016, at least one PPCP and/or WWI was detected at most sites on over half of sampling visits, indicating that CECs are not uncommon even in isolated areas. CEC detections were generally fewer and at lower concentrations than in urbanized or agricultural watersheds. Consistent with studies from other U.S. regions, the most frequently detected CECs in this study include DEET, caffeine, organophosphorus flame retardants, and bisphenol A in water and fecal indicators and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in sediment. Maximum concentrations in this study were generally below available water quality benchmarks, sediment quality guidelines, and risk assessment thresholds associated with vertebrates. Additional work is needed to assess the potential activity of hormones, which had high reporting limits in our study, and potential bioactivity of environmental concentrations for invertebrates, microbial communities, and algae. Potential sources of CEC contamination include upstream wastewater effluent discharges and National Park Service invasive-plant-control herbicide applications. CEC occurrence patterns and similarities between continuous and isolated flow locations suggest that direct contamination from individual visitors may also occur. While our data indicate there is little aquatic health risk associated with CECs at our sites, our results demonstrate the ubiquity of CECs on the landscape and a continued need for public outreach concerning resource-use ethics and the potential effects of upstream development.
","language":"English","publisher":"Elsevier","doi":"10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.04.332","usgsCitation":"Weissinger, R.H., Blackwell, B., Keteles, K., Battaglin, W., and Bradley, P.M., 2018, Bioactive contaminants of emerging concern in National Park waters of the northern Colorado Plateau, USA: Science of the Total Environment, v. 636, p. 910-918, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.04.332.","productDescription":"9 p.","startPage":"910","endPage":"918","ipdsId":"IP-095083","costCenters":[{"id":13634,"text":"South Atlantic Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":460929,"rank":1,"type":{"id":40,"text":"Open Access Publisher Index Page"},"url":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/6794149","text":"Publisher Index Page"},{"id":437924,"rank":0,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F7NP23PC","text":"USGS data release","linkHelpText":"Bioactive Contaminants of Emerging Concern in National Park Waters of the Northern Colorado Plateau, USA, 2012-2016"},{"id":353916,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/thumbnails/outside_thumb.jpg"}],"country":"United States","otherGeospatial":"Colorado Plateau","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -113.2965087890625,\n 37.17344871200958\n ],\n [\n -108.48999023437499,\n 37.17344871200958\n ],\n [\n -108.48999023437499,\n 40.63479884404164\n ],\n [\n -113.2965087890625,\n 40.63479884404164\n ],\n [\n -113.2965087890625,\n 37.17344871200958\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","volume":"636","publishingServiceCenter":{"id":9,"text":"Reston PSC"},"noUsgsAuthors":false,"publicationStatus":"PW","scienceBaseUri":"5afee6c3e4b0da30c1bfbdea","contributors":{"authors":[{"text":"Weissinger, Rebecca H","contributorId":204637,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Weissinger","given":"Rebecca","email":"","middleInitial":"H","affiliations":[{"id":36968,"text":"US National Parks Service","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":734538,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":1},{"text":"Blackwell, Brett R.","contributorId":173601,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Blackwell","given":"Brett R.","affiliations":[{"id":6914,"text":"U.S. Environmental Protection Agency","active":true,"usgs":false}],"preferred":false,"id":734539,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":2},{"text":"Keteles, Kristen","contributorId":200072,"corporation":false,"usgs":false,"family":"Keteles","given":"Kristen","email":"","affiliations":[],"preferred":false,"id":734540,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":3},{"text":"Battaglin, William A. 0000-0001-7287-7096","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7287-7096","contributorId":204638,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Battaglin","given":"William A.","affiliations":[{"id":191,"text":"Colorado Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":734541,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":4},{"text":"Bradley, Paul M. 0000-0001-7522-8606 pbradley@usgs.gov","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7522-8606","contributorId":204639,"corporation":false,"usgs":true,"family":"Bradley","given":"Paul","email":"pbradley@usgs.gov","middleInitial":"M.","affiliations":[{"id":13634,"text":"South Atlantic Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"preferred":true,"id":734542,"contributorType":{"id":1,"text":"Authors"},"rank":5}]}} ,{"id":70194712,"text":"ds1075 - 2018 - Groundwater-level data from an earthen dam site in southern Westchester County, New York","interactions":[],"lastModifiedDate":"2018-05-01T16:08:23","indexId":"ds1075","displayToPublicDate":"2018-05-01T13:45:00","publicationYear":"2018","noYear":false,"publicationType":{"id":18,"text":"Report"},"publicationSubtype":{"id":5,"text":"USGS Numbered Series"},"seriesTitle":{"id":310,"text":"Data Series","code":"DS","onlineIssn":"2327-638X","printIssn":"2327-0271","active":false,"publicationSubtype":{"id":5}},"seriesNumber":"1075","title":"Groundwater-level data from an earthen dam site in southern Westchester County, New York","docAbstract":"In 2005, the U.S. Geological Survey began a cooperative study with New York City Department of Environmental Protection to characterize the local groundwater-flow system and identify potential sources of seeps on the southern embankment of the Hillview Reservoir in Westchester County, New York. Groundwater levels were collected at 49 wells at Hillview Reservoir, and 1 well in northern Bronx County, from April 2005 through November 2016. Groundwater levels were measured discretely with a chalked steel or electric tape, or continuously with a digital pressure transducer, or both, in accordance with U.S. Geological Survey groundwatermeasurement standards. These groundwater-level data were plotted as time series and are presented in this report as hydrographs. Twenty-eight of the 50 hydrographs have continuous record and discrete field groundwater-level measurements, 22 of the hydrographs contain only discrete measurements.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/ds1075","isbn":"978-1-4113-4200-2","collaboration":"Prepared in cooperation with the New York City Department of Environmental Protection","usgsCitation":"Noll, M.L., and Chu, Anthony, 2018, Groundwater-level data from an earthen dam site in southern Westchester County, New York: U.S. Geological Survey Data Series 1075, 35 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ds1075.","productDescription":"Report: vii, 35 p.; Appendix 1","onlineOnly":"N","additionalOnlineFiles":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-084388","costCenters":[{"id":474,"text":"New York Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":351582,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/1075/ds1075.pdf","text":"Report","size":"15.7 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"DS 1075"},{"id":351583,"rank":3,"type":{"id":3,"text":"Appendix"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/1075/ds1075_app1.zip","text":"Appendix 1","size":"8.55 MB","linkHelpText":"- Groundwater-level measurements"},{"id":351581,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/1075/coverthb.jpg"}],"country":"United States","state":"New York","county":"Westchester County","otherGeospatial":"Hillview Reservoir","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -73.87460231781006,\n 40.90598813645525\n ],\n [\n -73.86430263519287,\n 40.90598813645525\n ],\n [\n -73.86430263519287,\n 40.917760911653126\n ],\n [\n -73.87460231781006,\n 40.917760911653126\n ],\n [\n -73.87460231781006,\n 40.90598813645525\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, New York Water Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
2045 Route 112, Building 4
Coram, NY 11727
Clear Creek is a small stream that drains the eastern Carson Range near Lake Tahoe, flows roughly parallel to the Highway 50 corridor, and discharges to the Carson River near Carson City, Nevada. Historical and ongoing development in the drainage basin is thought to be affecting Clear Creek and its sediment-transport characteristics. Previous studies from water years (WYs) 2004 to 2007 and from 2010 to 2012 evaluated discharge, selected water-quality parameters, and suspended-sediment concentrations, loads, and yields at three Clear Creek sampling sites. This report serves as a continuation of the data collection and analyses of the Clear Creek discharge regime and associated water-chemistry and sediment concentrations and loads during WYs 2013–16.
Total annual sediment loads ranged from 870 to 5,300 tons during WYs 2004–07, from 320 to 1,770 tons during WYs 2010–12, and from 50 to 200 tons during WYs 2013–16. Ranges in annual loads during the three study periods were not significantly different; however, total loads were greater during 2004–07 than they were during 2013–16. Annual suspended-sediment loads in WYs 2013–16 showed no significant change since WYs 2010–12 at sites 1 (U.S. Geological Survey reference site 10310485; Clear Creek above Highway 50, near Spooner Summit, Nevada) or 2 (U.S. Geological Survey streamgage 10310500; Clear Creek above Highway 50, near Spooner Summit, Nevada), but significantly lower loads at site 3 (U.S. Geological Survey site 10310518; Clear Creek at Fuji Park, at Carson City, Nevada), supporting the theory of sediment deposition between sites 2 and 3 where the stream gradient becomes more gradual. Currently, a threshold discharge of about 3.3 cubic feet per second is required to mobilize streambed sediment (bedload) from site 2 in Clear Creek. Mean daily discharge was significantly lower in 2010–12 than in 2004–07 and also significantly lower in 2013–16 than in 2010–12. During this study, lower bedload, and therefore lower total sediment load in Clear Creek was primarily due to significantly lower discharge and cannot be directly attributed to sediment mitigation work in the basin.
Water chemistry in Clear Creek shows that the general water type of the creek under base-flow conditions in autumn is a dilute calcium bicarbonate. During winter and spring, the chemistry shifts toward a slightly more sodium and chloride character. Though the chemical characteristics show seasonal change, the water chemistries examined as part of this investigation remain within ecological criteria as adopted by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection. There was no evidence of aqueous polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) present in Clear Creek water during this study. Concentrations of PAHs, as determined in one bed-sediment sample and multiple semi-permeable membrane device extracts, were either less than quantifiable limits of analysis or were found at similar concentrations as blank samples.
In July 2014, a 250–300-acre fire burned in the Clear Creek drainage basin. One day after the fire was extinguished, a thunderstorm washed sediment into the creek. A water chemistry sample collected as part of the post-fire storm event showed that the stormwater entering the creek had increased the concentrations of ammonium and organic nitrogen, phosphorus, manganese, and potassium; a similar finding of many other studies evaluating the effects of fires in small drainage basins. Subsequent chemical analyses of Clear Creek water in August 2014 (one month later) showed that these constituents had returned to pre-fire concentrations.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/sir20185050","collaboration":"Prepared in cooperation with the Nevada Department of Transportation","usgsCitation":"Huntington, J.M., Riddle, D.J., and Paul, A.P., 2018, Discharge, sediment, and water chemistry in Clear Creek, western Nevada, water years 2013–16: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific-Investigations Report 2018–5050, 55 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20185050.","productDescription":"vii, 55 p.","onlineOnly":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-067971","costCenters":[{"id":465,"text":"Nevada Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":353895,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2018/5050/sir20185050.pdf","text":"Report","size":"6.4 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIR 2018-5050"},{"id":353894,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2018/5050/coverthb.jpg"}],"country":"United States","state":"Nevada","city":"Carson City","otherGeospatial":"Clear Creek","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -119.9,\n 39.19\n ],\n [\n -119.7,\n 39.19\n ],\n [\n -119.7,\n 39.06\n ],\n [\n -119.9,\n 39.06\n ],\n [\n -119.9,\n 39.19\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, Nevada Water Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
2730 N. Deer Run Rd.
Carson City, Nevada 89701
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the International Joint Commission, compiled historical data on regulated streamflows and lake levels and estimated unregulated streamflows and lake levels on Forest City Stream at Forest City, Maine, and East Grand Lake on the United States-Canada border between Maine and New Brunswick to study the effects on streamflows and lake levels if two or all three dam gates are left open. Historical regulated monthly mean streamflows in Forest City Stream at the outlet of East Grand Lake (referred to as Grand Lake by Environment Canada) fluctuated between 114 cubic feet per second (ft3 /s) (3.23 cubic meters per second [m3 /s]) in November and 318 ft3 /s (9.01 m3 /s) in September from 1975 to 2015 according to Environment Canada streamgaging data. Unregulated monthly mean streamflows at this location estimated from regression equations for unregulated sites range from 59.2 ft3 /s (1.68 m3 /s) in September to 653 ft3 /s (18.5 m3 /s) in April. Historical lake levels in East Grand Lake fluctuated between 431.3 feet (ft) (131.5 meters [m]) in October and 434.0 ft (132.3 m) in May from 1969 to 2016 according to Environment Canada lake level data for East Grand Lake. Average monthly lake levels modeled by using the estimated hydrology for unregulated flows, and an outflow rating built from a hydraulic model with all gates at the dam open, range from 427.7 ft (130.4 m) in September to 431.1 ft (131.4 m) in April. Average monthly lake levels would likely be from 1.8 to 5.4 ft (0.55 to 1.6 m) lower with the gates at the dam opened than they have been historically. The greatest lake level changes would be from June through September.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/sir20185044","collaboration":"Prepared in cooperation with the International Joint Commission","usgsCitation":"Lombard, P.J., 2018, Estimation of unregulated monthly, annual, and peak streamflows in Forest City Stream and lake levels in East Grand Lake, United States-Canada border between Maine and New Brunswick: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2018–5044, 8 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20185044.","productDescription":"Report: iv, 8 p.; Data release","numberOfPages":"16","onlineOnly":"Y","additionalOnlineFiles":"N","ipdsId":"IP-092951","costCenters":[{"id":466,"text":"New England Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":353763,"rank":3,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F7PN94VN","text":"USGS data release","description":"USGS data release","linkHelpText":"Bathymetric data for St. Croix River at outlet to East Grand Lake and Forest City Dam Survey, United States-Canadian border between Maine and New Brunswick"},{"id":353745,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2018/5044/sir20185044.pdf","text":"Report","size":"873 KB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIR 2018-5044"},{"id":353744,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2018/5044/coverthb.jpg"}],"country":"Canada, United States","state":"Maine, New Brunswick","otherGeospatial":"East Grand Lake, Forest City Stream","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -67.884521484375,\n 45.60587170876381\n ],\n [\n -67.68951416015625,\n 45.60587170876381\n ],\n [\n -67.68951416015625,\n 45.82066487514085\n ],\n [\n -67.884521484375,\n 45.82066487514085\n ],\n [\n -67.884521484375,\n 45.60587170876381\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, New England Water Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
196 Whitten Road
Augusta, ME 04330
Sand and oil agglomerates (SOAs) form when weathered oil reaches the surf zone and combines with suspended sediments. The presence of large SOAs in the form of thick mats (up to 10 centimeters [cm] in height and up to 10 square meters [m2] in area) and smaller SOAs, sometimes referred to as surface residual balls (SRBs), may lead to the re-oiling of beaches previously affected by an oil spill. A limited number of numerical modeling and field studies exist on the transport and dynamics of centimeter-scale SOAs and their interaction with the sea floor. Numerical models used to study SOAs have relied on shear-stress formulations to predict incipient motion. However, uncertainty exists as to the accuracy of applying these formulations, originally developed for sand grains in a uniformly sorted sediment bed, to larger, nonspherical SOAs. In the current effort, artificial sand and oil agglomerates (aSOAs) created with the size, density, and shape characteristics of SOAs were studied in a small-oscillatory flow tunnel. These experiments expanded the available data on SOA motion and interaction with the sea floor and were used to examine the applicability of shear-stress formulations to predict SOA mobility. Data collected during these two sets of experiments, including photographs, video, and flow velocity, are presented in this report, along with an analysis of shear-stress-based formulations for incipient motion. The results showed that shear-stress thresholds for typical quartz sand predicted the incipient motion of aSOAs with 0.5–1.0-cm diameters, but were inaccurate for aSOAs with larger diameters (>2.5 cm). This finding implies that modified parameterizations of incipient motion may be necessary under certain combinations of aSOA characteristics and environmental conditions.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/ofr20181010","usgsCitation":"Jenkins, R.L., Dalyander, P.S., Penko, Allison, and Long, J.W., 2018, Laboratory observations of artificial sand and oil agglomerates: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2018–1010, https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20181010.","productDescription":"HTML","onlineOnly":"Y","additionalOnlineFiles":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-079703","costCenters":[{"id":574,"text":"St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":353721,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1010","text":"Report HTML"},{"id":353720,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1010/coverthb2.jpg"}],"contact":"Director, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
600 4th Street South
St. Petersburg, FL 33701
Director,
California Water Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
6000 J Street, Placer Hall
Sacramento, CA 95819
In 2007, the California Ocean Protection Council initiated the California Seafloor Mapping Program (CSMP), designed to create a comprehensive seafloor map of high-resolution bathymetry, marine benthic habitats, and geology within the 3-nautical-mile limit of California’s State Waters. The CSMP approach is to create highly detailed seafloor maps through collection, integration, interpretation, and visualization of swath sonar data, acoustic backscatter, seafloor video, seafloor photography, high-resolution seismic-reflection profiles, and bottom-sediment sampling data. The map products display seafloor morphology and character, identify potential marine benthic habitats, and illustrate both the surficial seafloor geology and shallow subsurface geology.
The Offshore of Point Conception map area is in the westernmost part of the Western Transverse Ranges geologic province, which is north of the California Continental Borderland. Significant clockwise rotation—at least 90°—since the early Miocene has been proposed for the Western Transverse Ranges province, and this region is presently undergoing north-south shortening. The offshore part of the map area lies south of the steep south and west flanks of the Santa Ynez Mountains. The crest of the range, which has a maximum elevation of about 340 m in the map area, lies about 5 km north and east of the arcuate shoreline.
The onland part of the coastal zone is remote and sparsely populated. The road to Jalama Beach County Park provides the only public coastal access in the entire map area. North of this county park, the coastal zone is part of Vandenberg Air Force Base. South of Jalama Beach County Park, most of the coastal zone is part of the Cojo-Jalama Ranch, purchased by the Nature Conservancy in December 2017. A relatively small part of the coastal zone in the eastern part of the map area lies within the privately owned Hollister Ranch. The nearest significant commercial centers are Lompoc (population, about 42,000), about 10 km north of the map area, and Goleta (population, about 30,000), about 50 km east of the map area. The Union Pacific railroad tracks run west and northwest along the coast through the entire map area, within a few hundred meters of the shoreline. The map area has a long history of petroleum exploration, and the seafloor notably includes large asphalt mounds and pockmarks that result from petroleum seepage. Several offshore gas and oil fields were discovered, and some were developed, in and on the margin of California’s State Waters.
Much of the shoreline in the Offshore of Point Conception map area is characterized by narrow beaches that have thin sediment cover above bedrock platforms, backed by low (10- to 20-m-high) cliffs that are capped by a coastal terrace. Beaches are subject to wave erosion during winter storms, followed by gradual sediment recovery or accretion in the late spring, summer, and fall months during the gentler wave climate. The map area lies in the west-central part of the Santa Barbara littoral cell, which is characterized by west-to-east transport of sediment from Point Arguello on the northwest to Hueneme and Mugu Canyons on the southeast. Sediment supply to the map area is mainly from relatively small coastal watersheds, including the Jalama Creek–Espada Creek drainage basin (about 63 km2), as well as Cañada del Jolloru, Black Canyon, Wood Canyon, Cañada del Cojo, and Barranca Honda. Coastal-watershed discharge and sediment load are highly variable, characterized by brief large events during major winter storms and long periods of low (or no) flow and minimal sediment load between storms. In recent (recorded) history, the majority of high-discharge, high-sediment-flux events have been associated with El Niño phases of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation climatic pattern.
Following the coastline, the shelf bends to the north and northwest around Point Conception, and the trend of the shelf break changes from about 298° to 241° azimuth. Shelf width ranges from about 5 km south of Point Conception to about 11 km northwest of it; the slope ranges from about 1.0° to 1.2° to about 0.7° south and northwest of Point Conception, respectively. Southwest of Point Conception, the shelf break and upper slope are incised by a 600-m-wide, 20- to 30-m-deep, south-facing trough, one of five heads of the informally named Arguello submarine canyon.
The map area is located at a major biogeographic transition zone between the east-west-trending Santa Barbara Channel region of the Southern California Bight and the northwest-trending central California coast. North of Point Conception, the coast is subjected to high wave exposure from the north, west, and south, as well as consistently strong upwelling that brings cold, nutrient-rich waters to the surface. Southeast of Point Conception, the Santa Barbara Channel is largely protected from strong north swells by Point Conception and from south swells by the Channel Islands; surface waters are warmer, and upwelling is weak and seasonal.
Seafloor habitats in the broad Santa Barbara Channel region consist of significant amounts of soft, unconsolidated sediment interspersed with isolated areas of rocky habitat that support kelp-forest communities in the nearshore and rocky-reef communities in deeper water. The potential marine benthic habitat types mapped in the Offshore of Point Conception map area are directly related to its Quaternary geologic history, geomorphology, and active sedimentary processes. These potential habitats lie primarily within the Shelf (continental shelf) but also partly within the Flank (basin flank or continental slope) megahabitats. The fairly homogeneous seafloor of sediment and low-relief bedrock provides characteristic habitat for rockfish, groundfish, crabs, shrimp, and other marine benthic organisms. Several areas of smooth sediment form nearshore terraces that have relatively steep, smooth fronts, which are attractive to groundfish. Below the steep shelf break, soft, unconsolidated sediment is interrupted by the heads of several submarine canyons, gullies, and rills, also good potential habitat for rockfish. The map area includes the large (58.3 km2) Point Conception State Marine Reserve.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/ofr20181024","usgsCitation":"Johnson, S.Y., Dartnell, P., Cochrane, G.R., Hartwell, S.R., Golden, N.E., Kvitek, R.G., and Davenport, C.W. (S.Y. Johnson and S.A. Cochran, eds.), 2018, California State Waters Map Series— Offshore of Point Conception, California: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2018–1024, pamphlet 36 p., 9 sheets, scale 1:24,000, https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20181024.","productDescription":"Pamphlet: iv, 36 p.; 9 Sheets: 55.0 x 36.0 inches or smaller; Dataset; Metadata","additionalOnlineFiles":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-082855","costCenters":[{"id":520,"text":"Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":437940,"rank":23,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F7QN64XQ","text":"USGS data release","linkHelpText":"California State Waters Map Series Data Catalog--Offshore of Point Conception, California"},{"id":353525,"rank":9,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1024/ofr20181024_sheet8.pdf","text":"Sheet 8","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1024 Sheet 8","linkHelpText":"Local (Offshore of Point Conception Map Area) and Regional (Offshore from Point Conception to Hueneme Canyon) Shallow-Subsurface Geology and Structure, Santa Barbara Channel, California By Samuel Y. Johnson and Stephen R. Hartwell"},{"id":353524,"rank":8,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1024/ofr20181024_sheet7.pdf","text":"Sheet 7","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1024 Sheet 7","linkHelpText":"Seismic-Reflection Profiles, Offshore of Point Conception Map Area, California By Samuel Y. Johnson and Stephen R. Hartwell"},{"id":353532,"rank":16,"type":{"id":22,"text":"Related Work"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.3133/sim3302","text":"Scientific Investigations Map 3302","description":"Scientific Investigations Map 3302","linkHelpText":"California State Waters Map Series—Offshore of Coal Oil Point, California, by Sam Y. Johnson and others."},{"id":353531,"rank":15,"type":{"id":22,"text":"Related Work"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.3133/sim3319","text":"Scientific Investigations Map 3319","description":"Scientific Investigations Map 3319","linkHelpText":"California State Waters Map Series—Offshore of Refugio Beach, California, by Sam Y. Johnson and others."},{"id":353530,"rank":14,"type":{"id":22,"text":"Related Work"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20181023","text":"Open-File Report 2018–1023","description":"Open-File Report 2018–1023","linkHelpText":"California State Waters Map Series—Offshore of Gaviota, California, by Sam Y. Johnson and others."},{"id":353528,"rank":12,"type":{"id":28,"text":"Dataset"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F7QN64XQ","text":"Data Catalog","linkFileType":{"id":5,"text":"html"},"description":"OFR 2018-1024 Data Catalog","linkHelpText":"The GIS data layers for this map are accessible from “California State Waters Map Series—Offshore of Point Conception, California” which is part of California State Waters Map Series Data Catalog. Each GIS data file is listed with a brief description, a small image, and links to the metadata files and the downloadable data files."},{"id":353526,"rank":10,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1024/ofr20181024_sheet9.pdf","text":"Sheet 9","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1024 Sheet 9","linkHelpText":"Offshore and Onshore Geology and Geomorphology, Offshore of Point Conception Map Area, California By Samuel Y. Johnson, Stephen R. Hartwell, and Clifton W. Davenport"},{"id":353529,"rank":13,"type":{"id":22,"text":"Related Work"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/781/","text":"Data Series 781","description":"Data Series 781","linkHelpText":"California State Waters Map Series Data Catalog"},{"id":353523,"rank":7,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1024/ofr20181024_sheet6.pdf","text":"Sheet 6","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1024 Sheet 6","linkHelpText":"Marine Benthic Habitats from the Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard, Offshore of Point Conception Map Area, California By Guy R. Cochrane, Stephen R. Hartwell, and Samuel Y. Johnson"},{"id":353535,"rank":19,"type":{"id":22,"text":"Related Work"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3254/","text":"Scientific Investigations Map 3254","description":"Scientific Investigations Map 3254","linkHelpText":"California State Waters Map Series—Offshore of Ventura, California, by Sam Y. Johnson and others."},{"id":353534,"rank":18,"type":{"id":22,"text":"Related Work"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3261/","text":"Scientific Investigations Map 3261","description":"Scientific Investigations Map 3261","linkHelpText":"California State Waters Map Series—Offshore of Carpinteria, California, by Sam Y. Johnson and others."},{"id":353533,"rank":17,"type":{"id":22,"text":"Related Work"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.3133/sim3281","text":"Scientific Investigations Map 3281","description":"Scientific Investigations Map 3281","linkHelpText":"California State Waters Map Series—Offshore of Santa Barbara, California, by Sam Y. Johnson and others."},{"id":399118,"rank":22,"type":{"id":36,"text":"NGMDB Index Page"},"url":"https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/Prodesc/proddesc_107162.htm"},{"id":353555,"rank":21,"type":{"id":16,"text":"Metadata"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1024/ofr20181024_metadata.html","text":"Metadata","description":"OFR 2018-1024 Metadata"},{"id":353536,"rank":20,"type":{"id":22,"text":"Related Work"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3225/","text":"Scientific Investigations Map 3225","description":"Scientific Investigations Map 3225","linkHelpText":"California State Waters Map Series—Hueneme Canyon and Vicinity, California, by Sam Y. Johnson and others."},{"id":353527,"rank":11,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1024/ofr20181024_pamphlet.pdf","text":"Pamphlet","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1024 Pamphlet"},{"id":353522,"rank":6,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1024/ofr20181024_sheet5.pdf","text":"Sheet 5","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1024 Sheet 5","linkHelpText":"Seafloor Character, Offshore of Point Conception Map Area, California By Stephen R. Hartwell and Guy R. Cochrane"},{"id":353521,"rank":5,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1024/ofr20181024_sheet4.pdf","text":"Sheet 4","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1024 Sheet 4","linkHelpText":"Data Integration and Visualization, Offshore of Point Conception Map Area, California By Peter Dartnell"},{"id":353520,"rank":4,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1024/ofr20181024_sheet3.pdf","text":"Sheet 3","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1024 Sheet 3","linkHelpText":"Acoustic Backscatter, Offshore of Point Conception Map Area, California By Peter Dartnell and Rikk G. Kvitek"},{"id":353519,"rank":3,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1024/ofr20181024_sheet2.pdf","text":"Sheet 2","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1024 Sheet 2","linkHelpText":"Shaded-Relief Bathymetry, Offshore of Point Conception Map Area, California By Peter Dartnell and Rikk G. Kvitek"},{"id":353518,"rank":2,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1024/ofr20181024_sheet1.pdf","text":"Sheet 1","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1024 Sheet 1","linkHelpText":"Colored Shaded-Relief Bathymetry, Offshore of Point Conception Map Area, California By Peter Dartnell and Rikk G. Kvitek"},{"id":353517,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1024/coverthb.jpg"}],"scale":"24000","country":"United States","state":"California","otherGeospatial":"Point Conception","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -120.5636,\n 34.3917\n ],\n [\n -120.3717,\n 34.3917\n ],\n [\n -120.3717,\n 34.5422\n ],\n [\n -120.5636,\n 34.5422\n ],\n [\n -120.5636,\n 34.3917\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Contact Information
Pacific Coastal & Marine Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
Pacific Science Center
2885 Mission St.
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
http://walrus.wr.usgs.gov/
In 2007, the California Ocean Protection Council initiated the California Seafloor Mapping Program (CSMP), designed to create a comprehensive seafloor map of high-resolution bathymetry, marine benthic habitats, and geology within the 3-nautical-mile limit of California’s State Waters. The CSMP approach is to create highly detailed seafloor maps through collection, integration, interpretation, and visualization of swath sonar data, acoustic backscatter, seafloor video, seafloor photography, high-resolution seismic-reflection profiles, and bottom-sediment sampling data. The map products display seafloor morphology and character, identify potential marine benthic habitats, and illustrate both the surficial seafloor geology and shallow subsurface geology.
The map area is in the southern part of the Western Transverse Ranges geologic province, which is north of the California Continental Borderland. Significant clockwise rotation—at least 90°—since the early Miocene has been proposed for the Western Transverse Ranges province, and the region is presently undergoing north-south shortening. The offshore part of the map area lies south of the steep south flank of the Santa Ynez Mountains. The crest of the range, which has a maximum elevation of about 760 m in the map area, lies about 4 km north of the shoreline.
Gaviota is an unincorporated community that has a sparse population (less than 100), and the coastal zone is largely open space that is locally used for cattle grazing. The Union Pacific railroad tracks extend westward along the coast through the entire map area, within a few hundred meters of the shoreline. Highway 101 crosses the eastern part of the map area, also along the coast, then turns north (inland) and travels through Cañada de la Gaviota and Gaviota Pass en route to Buellton. Gaviota State Park lies at the mouth of Cañada de la Gaviota. West of Gaviota, the onland coastal zone is occupied by the Hollister Ranch, a privately owned, gated community that has no public access.
The map area has a long history of petroleum exploration and development. Several offshore gas fields were discovered and were developed by onshore directional drilling in the 1950s and 1960s. Three offshore petroleum platforms were installed in adjacent federal waters in 1976 (platform “Honda”) and 1989 (platforms “Heritage” and “Harmony”). Local offshore and onshore operations were serviced for more than a century by the Gaviota marine terminal, which is currently being decommissioned and will be abandoned in an intended transition to public open space.
The Offshore of Gaviota map area lies within the western Santa Barbara Channel region of the Southern California Bight, and it is somewhat protected from large Pacific swells from the north and northwest by Point Conception and from south and southwest swells by offshore islands and banks. Much of the shoreline in the map area is characterized by narrow beaches that have thin sediment cover, backed by low (10- to 20-m-high) cliffs that are capped by a narrow coastal terrace. Beaches are subject to wave erosion during winter storms, followed by gradual sediment recovery or accretion in the late spring, summer, and fall months during the gentler wave climate.
The map area lies in the western-central part of the Santa Barbara littoral cell, which is characterized by west-to-east transport of sediment from Point Arguello on the northwest to Hueneme and Mugu Canyons on the southeast. Sediment supply to the western and central part of the littoral cell is mainly from relatively small coastal watersheds. In the map area, sediment sources include Cañada de la Gaviota (52 km2), as well as Cañada de la Llegua, Arroyo el Bulito, Cañada de Santa Anita, Cañada de Alegria, Cañada del Agua Caliente, Cañada del Barro, Cañada del Leon, Cañada San Onofre, and many others. Coastal-watershed discharge and sediment load are highly variable, characterized by brief large events during major winter storms and long periods of low (or no) flow and minimal sediment load between storms. In recent (recorded) history, the majority of high-discharge, high-sediment-flux events have been associated with El Niño phases of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation climatic pattern.
Shelf width in the Offshore of Gaviota map area ranges from about 4.3 to 4.7 km, and shelf slopes average about 1.0° to 1.2° but are highly variable because of the presence of the large Gaviota sediment bar. This bar extends southwestward for about 9 km from the mouth of Cañada de la Gaviota to the shelf break, is as wide as 2 km, and is by far the largest shore-attached sediment bar in the Santa Barbara Channel. The shelf is underlain by bedrock and variable amounts (0 to as much as 36 m in the Gaviota bar) of upper Quaternary sediments deposited as sea level fluctuated in the late Pleistocene. The trend of the shelf break changes from about 276° to 236° azimuth over a distance of about 12 km, and it ranges in depth from about 91 m to as shallow as 62 to 73 m where significant shelf-break and upper-slope failure and landsliding has apparently occurred. The shelf break in the western part of the map area is notably embayed by the heads of three large (150- to 300-m-wide) channels that have been referred to as “the Gaviota Canyons” or as “Drake Canyon,” “Sacate Canyon,” and “Alegria Canyon.”
Seafloor habitats in the broad Santa Barbara Channel region consist of significant amounts of soft, unconsolidated sediment interspersed with isolated areas of rocky habitat that support kelp-forest communities in the nearshore and rocky-reef communities in deeper water. The potential marine benthic habitat types mapped in the Offshore of Gaviota map area are directly related to its Quaternary geologic history, geomorphology, and active sedimentary processes. These potential habitats lie primarily within the Shelf (continental shelf) but also partly within the Flank (basin flank or continental slope) megahabitats. The fairly homogeneous seafloor of sediment and low-relief bedrock provides characteristic habitat for rockfish, groundfish, crabs, shrimp, and other marine benthic organisms. Several areas of smooth sediment form nearshore terraces that have relatively steep, smooth fronts, which may be attractive to groundfish. Below the steep shelf break, soft, unconsolidated sediment is interrupted by the heads of several submarine canyons and rills, some bedrock exposures, and small carbonate mounds associated with asphalt mounds and pockmarks, also good potential habitat for rockfish. The map area includes the relatively small (5.2 km2) Kashtayit State Marine Conservation Area, which largely occupies the inner part of the Gaviota sediment bar.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/ofr20181023","usgsCitation":"Johnson, S.Y., Dartnell, P., Cochrane, G.R., Hartwell, S.R., Golden, N.E., Kvitek, R.G., and Davenport, C.W. (S.Y. Johnson and S.A. 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Cochrane"},{"id":353500,"rank":4,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1023/ofr20181023_sheet4.pdf","text":"Sheet 4","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1023 Sheet 4","linkHelpText":"Data Integration and Visualization, Offshore of Gaviota Map Area, California By Peter Dartnell"},{"id":353499,"rank":3,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1023/ofr20181023_sheet3.pdf","text":"Sheet 3","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1023 Sheet 3","linkHelpText":"Acoustic Backscatter, Offshore of Gaviota Map Area, California By Peter Dartnell and Rikk G. Kvitek"},{"id":353498,"rank":2,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1023/ofr20181023_sheet2.pdf","text":"Sheet 2","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1023 Sheet 2","linkHelpText":"Shaded-Relief Bathymetry, Offshore of Gaviota Map Area, California By Peter Dartnell and Rikk G. Kvitek"},{"id":353497,"rank":1,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1023/ofr20181023_sheet1.pdf","text":"Sheet 1","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1023 Sheet 1","linkHelpText":"Colored Shaded-Relief Bathymetry, Offshore of Gaviota Map Area, California By Peter Dartnell and Rikk G. Kvitek"},{"id":353512,"rank":16,"type":{"id":22,"text":"Related Work"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3261/","text":"Scientific Investigations Map 3261","description":"Scientific Investigations Map 3261","linkHelpText":"California State Waters Map Series—Offshore of Carpinteria, California, by Sam Y. Johnson and others."},{"id":353509,"rank":13,"type":{"id":22,"text":"Related Work"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.3133/sim3319","text":"Scientific Investigations Map 3319","description":"Scientific Investigations Map 3319","linkHelpText":"California State Waters Map Series—Offshore of Refugio Beach, California, by Sam Y. Johnson and others."},{"id":353508,"rank":12,"type":{"id":22,"text":"Related Work"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20181024","text":"Open-File Report 2018–1024","description":"Open-File Report 2018–1024","linkHelpText":"California State Waters Map Series—Offshore of Point Conception, California, by Sam Y. Johnson and others."},{"id":353507,"rank":11,"type":{"id":22,"text":"Related Work"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/781/","text":"Data Series 781","description":"Data Series 781","linkHelpText":"California State Waters Map Series Data Catalog"},{"id":353505,"rank":9,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1023/ofr20181023_sheet9.pdf","text":"Sheet 9","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1023 Sheet 9","linkHelpText":"Offshore and Onshore Geology and Geomorphology, Offshore of Gaviota Map Area, California By Stephen R. Hartwell, Samuel Y. Johnson, and Clifton W. Davenport"},{"id":353504,"rank":8,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1023/ofr20181023_sheet8.pdf","text":"Sheet 8","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1023 Sheet 8","linkHelpText":"Local (Offshore of Gaviota Map Area) and Regional (Offshore from Point Conception to Hueneme Canyon) Shallow-Subsurface Geology and Structure, Santa Barbara Channel, California By Samuel Y. Johnson and Stephen R. Hartwell"},{"id":353503,"rank":7,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1023/ofr20181023_sheet7.pdf","text":"Sheet 7","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1023 Sheet 7","linkHelpText":"Seismic-Reflection Profiles, Offshore of Gaviota Map Area, California By Samuel Y. Johnson and Stephen R. Hartwell"},{"id":353502,"rank":6,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1023/ofr20181023_sheet6.pdf","text":"Sheet 6","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1023 Sheet 6","linkHelpText":"Marine Benthic Habitats from the Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard, Offshore of Gaviota Map Area, California By Guy R. Cochrane, Stephen R. Hartwell, and Samuel Y. Johnson"},{"id":353506,"rank":10,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1023/coverthb.jpg"}],"scale":"24000","country":"United States","state":"California","city":"Gaviota","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -120.3753,\n 34.4056\n ],\n [\n -120.1833,\n 34.4056\n ],\n [\n -120.1833,\n 34.5425\n ],\n [\n -120.3753,\n 34.5425\n ],\n [\n -120.3753,\n 34.4056\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Contact Information
Pacific Coastal & Marine Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
Pacific Science Center
2885 Mission St.
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
http://walrus.wr.usgs.gov/
The Department of the Interior (DOI) is a Federal agency with over 90,000 employees across 10 bureaus and 8 agency offices. Its primary mission is to protect and manage the Nation’s natural resources and cultural heritage; provide scientific and other information about those resources; and honor its trust responsibilities or special commitments to American Indians, Alaska Natives, and affiliated island communities. Data and information are critical in day-to-day operational decision making and scientific research. DOI is committed to creating, documenting, managing, and sharing high-quality data and metadata in and across its various programs that support its mission. Documenting data through metadata is essential in realizing the value of data as an enterprise asset. The completeness, consistency, and timeliness of metadata affect users’ ability to search for and discover the most relevant data for the intended purpose; and facilitates the interoperability and usability of these data among DOI bureaus and offices. Fully documented metadata describe data usability, quality, accuracy, provenance, and meaning.
Across DOI, there are different maturity levels and phases of information and metadata management implementations. The Department has organized a committee consisting of bureau-level points-of-contacts to collaborate on the development of more consistent, standardized, and more effective metadata management practices and guidance to support this shared mission and the information needs of the Department. DOI’s metadata implementation plans establish key roles and responsibilities associated with metadata management processes, procedures, and a series of actions defined in three major metadata implementation phases including: (1) Getting started—Planning Phase, (2) Implementing and Maintaining Operational Metadata Management Phase, and (3) the Next Steps towards Improving Metadata Management Phase. DOI’s phased approach for metadata management addresses some of the major data and metadata management challenges that exist across the diverse missions of the bureaus and offices. All employees who create, modify, or use data are involved with data and metadata management. Identifying, establishing, and formalizing the roles and responsibilities associated with metadata management are key to institutionalizing a framework of best practices, methodologies, processes, and common approaches throughout all levels of the organization; these are the foundation for effective data resource management. For executives and managers, metadata management strengthens their overarching views of data assets, holdings, and data interoperability; and clarifies how metadata management can help accelerate the compliance of multiple policy mandates. For employees, data stewards, and data professionals, formalized metadata management will help with the consistency of definitions, and approaches addressing data discoverability, data quality, and data lineage. In addition to data professionals and others associated with information technology; data stewards and program subject matter experts take on important metadata management roles and responsibilities as data flow through their respective business and science-related workflows. The responsibilities of establishing, practicing, and governing the actions associated with their specific metadata management roles are critical to successful metadata implementation.
","largerWorkType":{"id":18,"text":"Report"},"largerWorkTitle":"Section A: Metadata in Book 16: Data resource management","largerWorkSubtype":{"id":5,"text":"USGS Numbered Series"},"language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/tm16A1","collaboration":"Prepared in collaboration with Department of the Interior Data Resource Management in Support of the Department of the Interior Metadata Approach","usgsCitation":"Obuch, R.C., Carlino, Jennifer, Zhang, Lin, Blythe, Jonathan, Dietrich, Chris, Hawkinson, Christine, 2018, Department of the Interior metadata implementation guide—Framework for developing the metadata component for data resource management: U.S. Geological Survey Techniques and Methods, book 16, chap. A1, 14 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/tm16A1.","productDescription":"vi, 14 p.","numberOfPages":"24","onlineOnly":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-087710","costCenters":[{"id":164,"text":"Central Energy Resources Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":353340,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/tm/16/a1/tm16a1.pdf","text":"Report","size":"2.11 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"T&M 16-A1"},{"id":353339,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/tm/16/a1/coverthb.jpg"}],"publicComments":"This report is Chapter 1 of Section A: Metadata in Book 16: Data resource management.","contact":"Director, Central Energy Resources Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
Box 25046, MS-939
Denver, CO 80225-0046
Coal combustion byproducts (CCBs), which are composed of fly ash, bottom ash, and flue gas desulfurization material, produced at the coal-fired San Juan Generating Station (SJGS), located in San Juan County, New Mexico, have been buried in former surface-mine pits at the San Juan Mine, also referred to as the San Juan Coal Mine, since operations began in the early 1970s. This report, prepared by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Mining and Minerals Division of the New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department, describes results of a hydrogeologic assessment, including numerical groundwater modeling, to identify the timing of groundwater recovery and potential pathways for groundwater transport of metals that may be leached from stored CCBs and reach hydrologic receptors after operations cease. Data collected for the hydrologic assessment indicate that groundwater in at least one centrally located reclaimed surface-mining pit has already begun to recover.
The U.S. Geological Survey numerical modeling package MODFLOW–NWT was used with MODPATH particle-tracking software to identify advective flow paths from CCB storage areas toward potential hydrologic receptors. Results indicate that groundwater at CCB storage areas will recover to the former steady state, or in some locations, groundwater may recover to a new steady state in 6,600 to 10,600 years at variable rates depending on the proximity to a residual cone-of-groundwater depression caused by mine dewatering and regional oil and gas pumping as well as on actual, rather than estimated, groundwater recharge and evapotranspirational losses. Advective particle-track modeling indicates that the number of particles and rates of advective transport will vary depending on hydraulic properties of the mine spoil, particularly hydraulic conductivity and porosity. Modeling results from the most conservative scenario indicate that particles can migrate from CCB repositories to either the Shumway Arroyo alluvium after 1,320 years and from there to the San Juan River alluvium after 1,520 years or from southernmost CCB repositories directly to the San Juan River alluvium after 2,400 years after the cessation of mining.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/sir20175155","collaboration":"Prepared in cooperation with the Mining and Minerals Division of the State of New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department","usgsCitation":"Stewart, A.M., 2018, Hydrologic assessment and numerical simulation of groundwater flow, San Juan Mine, San Juan County, New Mexico, 2010–13: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2017–5155, 94 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20175155.","productDescription":"Report: xi, 94 p.; Data Releases","numberOfPages":"110","onlineOnly":"Y","additionalOnlineFiles":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-080017","costCenters":[{"id":472,"text":"New Mexico Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":352877,"rank":3,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F7Q81BJK","text":"USGS data release","description":"USGS Data Release","linkHelpText":"Chemical analyses for arsenic, calcium, chloride, sodium, sulfate, sulfide and dissolved solids, August 2011 through December 2013, from groundwater sampled at or in the vicinity of the San Juan Coal Mine, New Mexico"},{"id":353249,"rank":4,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F75719JV","text":"USGS data release","description":"USGS Data Release","linkHelpText":"MODFLOW–NWT and MODPATH5 models used to identify potential flow paths from San Juan Mine to hydrologic receptors, San Juan County, New Mexico"},{"id":352876,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2017/5155/sir20175155.pdf","text":"Report","size":"6.00 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIR 2017–5155"},{"id":352875,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2017/5155/coverthb.jpg"}],"country":"United States","state":"New Mexico","county":"San Juan County","otherGeospatial":"San Juan Mine","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -108.5,\n 36.7167\n ],\n [\n -108.1,\n 36.72099868793134\n ],\n [\n -108.1,\n 37\n ],\n [\n -108.5,\n 37\n ],\n [\n -108.5,\n 36.7167\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, New Mexico Water Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
6700 Edith Blvd NE
Albuquerque, NM 87113
Time–composition relationships in eruptive sequences at composite volcanoes can show how the ongoing intrusion of magmas progressively affects the lithosphere at continental convergent margins. Here, new whole-rock and microanalytical major and trace element data from andesite-dacite lava flows are integrated with previous studies and existing isotopic data, and placed within the framework of a high-resolution chronostratigraphy for Ruapehu volcano (southern Taupo Volcanic Zone, New Zealand). The geochemical evolution of lavas erupted over the ∼200 kyr lifetime of the exposed edifice reflects variable degrees of fractionation and systematic changes in the type of crustal assimilation in the Ruapehu magma system. Lavas erupted from ∼200–150 ka have previously been distinguished from those erupted <150 ka based on Sr-Nd isotopic characteristics, which indicate that the oldest lavas were sourced from magmas that assimilated oceanic crust. Such source rocks underlie the regionally widespread Mesozoic meta-sedimentary greywacke-argillite basement, which was conversely assimilated by <150 ka magmas. New results from this work reveal that since 150 ka, an upper limit of magma differentiation occurred from ∼50–35 ka. High K2O (∼6 wt%) and Rb contents (∼270 ppm) in melt inclusions, interstitial glass, and glass from in situ quenched melts of partially fused crustal xenoliths are reported for andesite-dacite lavas erupted during this period. In addition to crystal fractionation, selective partial melting and assimilation of K- and Rb-rich mineral phases (e.g., biotite, K-feldspar) that are significant components of the meta-sedimentary basement rocks is inferred to explain these geochemical characteristics. These processes coincided also with the effusion of high-MgO andesitedacite lavas that display petrological evidence for mixing between andesite-dacite and more mafic magmas. An influx of hotter mafic magma into the system explains why the extent of crustal assimilation recorded by Ruapehu lavas peaked during the ∼50–35 ka eruptive period. From 26 ka to the present, andesite lavas have reverted to more mafic compositions with less potassic melt inclusion and whole-rock compositions when compared to the ∼50–35 ka lavas. We suggest that the younger lavas assimilated less-enriched melts because fertile phases had been preferentially extracted from the crustal column during earlier magmatism. This scenario of bottom-up heating of the lithosphere and exhaustion of fertile phases due to the progressive intrusion of magma explains the geochemical evolution of Ruapehu lavas. This model may be applicable to other long-lived composite volcanoes of the circum-Pacific continental arcs.
Recent short-term drought conditions have emphasized the need to better understand the delicate balance between abundance, sustainability, and scarcity of groundwater in the Ozark Plateaus aquifer system. In 2014, the U.S. Geological Survey began construction of a groundwater-flow model as a tool for the assessment of groundwater availability in the Ozark Plateaus aquifer system. The model was developed to benefit concurrent and future investigations involving groundwater-pumping scenarios, optimization, particle transport, and groundwater-monitoring network analysis.
The groundwater model simulates 116 years (1900–2015) of hydrologic conditions and the response of the groundwater system to changes in stress including changes in recharge and groundwater pumping for water supply. Semiseasonal stress periods were simulated from the later part of 1991 to 2015 and represent higher demand and lower recharge in the spring and summer months and lower demand and higher recharge in the fall and winter months. Groundwater pumping increases throughout the simulation period with a maximum rate of about 600 million gallons per day (Mgal/d).
The process of matching historical hydrologic data for the Ozark Plateaus aquifer system model was accomplished by a combination of manual changes to parameter values and automated calibration methods. Observation data used in the development and evaluation of the model included 19,045 hydraulic-head observations from 6,683 wells within the model area. Observation data also included stream leakage estimates summed to calculate a net gain or net loss value for approximately 81 named streams.
The majority (mean of over 95 percent) of the recharge component is discharged through streams simulated in the model. The total simulated discharge to streams fluctuates seasonally between 7,500 and 17,500 Mgal/d with a mean outflow of 11,500 Mgal/d. Much of the remaining balance between modeled recharge inflows and stream outflows is made up by water moving into or out of storage in the aquifer system resulting in changes in modeled groundwater levels.
The goal of the model was to develop a model capable of suitable accuracy at regional scales. The intent was not to reproduce individual local-scale details, which are typically not possible given the uniform cell size of 1 square mile. Although the model may not represent each local-scale detail, the model can be applied for a better understanding of the regional flow system and to evaluate responses to changes in climate and groundwater pumping.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/sir20185035","collaboration":"Water Availability and Use Science Program","usgsCitation":"Clark, B.R., Richards, J.M., and Knierim, K.J., 2018, The Ozark Plateaus Regional Aquifer Study—Documentation of a groundwater-flow model constructed to assess water availability in the Ozark Plateaus: U.S. Geological Survey Report 2018–5035, 33 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20185035.","productDescription":"Report: v, 33 p.; Data Release","numberOfPages":"44","onlineOnly":"Y","additionalOnlineFiles":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-079993","costCenters":[{"id":24708,"text":"Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":352956,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2018/5035/coverthb2.jpg"},{"id":352962,"rank":4,"type":{"id":18,"text":"Project Site"},"url":"https://water.usgs.gov/wausp/","text":"Water Availability and Use Science Program"},{"id":352957,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2018/5035/sir20185035.pdf","text":"Report","size":"15.6 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIR 2018–5035"},{"id":352958,"rank":3,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F718350W","text":"USGS data release","description":"USGS Data Release","linkHelpText":"MODFLOW-NWT model of groundwater flow in the Ozark Plateaus aquifer system"}],"country":"United States","otherGeospatial":" Ozark Plateaus aquifer system","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -95.3,\n 35.0333\n ],\n [\n -89.25,\n 35.0333\n ],\n [\n -89.25,\n 39.0667\n ],\n [\n -95.3,\n 39.0667\n ],\n [\n -95.3,\n 35.0333\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center
700 W. Research Blvd.
Fayetteville, AR 72701
Few studies exist on the long-term geomorphic effects of floods. However, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) was able to begin such a study after a 50-year recurrence interval flood in 1978 because 20 channel cross sections along a 100-kilometer reach of river were established in 1975 and 1977 as part of a study for a proposed dam on Powder River in southeastern Montana. These cross-section measurements (data for each channel cross section are available at the USGS ScienceBase website) have been repeated about 30 times during four decades (1975–2016) and provide a unique dataset for understanding long-term changes in channel morphology caused by an extreme flood and a spectrum of annual floods.
Changes in channel morphology of a 100-kilometer reach of Powder River are documented in a series of narratives for each channel cross section that include a time series of photographs as a record of these changes. The primary change during the first decade (1975–85) was the rapid vertical growth of a new inset flood plain within the flood-widened channel. Changes during the second decade (1985–95) were characterized by slower growth of the flood plain, and the effects of ice-jam floods typical of a northward-flowing river. Changes during the third decade (1995–2005) showed little vertical growth of the inset flood plain, which had reached a height that limited overbank deposition. And changes during the final decade (2005–16) covered in this report showed that, because the new inset flood plain had reached a limiting height, the effects of the large annual flood of 2008 (largest flood since 1978) were relatively small compared to smaller floods in previous decades. Throughout these four decades, the riparian vegetation, which interacts with the river, has undergone a gradual but substantial change that may have lasting effects on the channel morphology.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/ofr20181012","usgsCitation":"Moody, J.A., and Meade, R.H., 2018, Decadal changes in channel morphology of a freely meandering river—Powder River, Montana, 1975–2016: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2018–1012, 143 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20181012.","productDescription":"Report: viii, 143 p.; Data Release","numberOfPages":"152","onlineOnly":"Y","additionalOnlineFiles":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-090628","costCenters":[{"id":5044,"text":"National Research Program - Central Branch","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":352547,"rank":3,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F7TQ5ZRN","text":"USGS Data Release","description":"USGS Data Release","linkHelpText":"Channel Cross-section Data for Powder River between Moorhead and Broadus, Montana from 1975 to 2016"},{"id":352545,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1012/coverthb2.jpg"},{"id":352546,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1012/ofr20181012.pdf","text":"Report","size":"35.6 MB"}],"country":"United States","state":"Montana","otherGeospatial":"Powder River","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -105.25,\n 45\n ],\n [\n -106,\n 45\n ],\n [\n -106,\n 45.5\n ],\n [\n -105.25,\n 45.5\n ],\n [\n -105.25,\n 45\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the city of West Branch and the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site of the National Park Service assessed flood-mitigation scenarios within the West Branch Wapsinonoc Creek watershed. The scenarios are intended to demonstrate several means of decreasing peak streamflows and improving the conveyance of overbank flows from the West Branch Wapsinonoc Creek and its tributary Hoover Creek where they flow through the city and the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site located within the city.
Hydrologic and hydraulic models of the watershed were constructed to assess the flood-mitigation scenarios. To accomplish this, the models used the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Hydrologic Engineering Center-Hydrologic Modeling System (HEC–HMS) version 4.2 to simulate the amount of runoff and streamflow produced from single rain events. The Hydrologic Engineering Center-River Analysis System (HEC–RAS) version 5.0 was then used to construct an unsteady-state model that may be used for routing streamflows, mapping areas that may be inundated during floods, and simulating the effects of different measures taken to decrease the effects of floods on people and infrastructure.
Both models were calibrated to three historic rainfall events that produced peak streamflows ranging between the 2-year and 10-year flood-frequency recurrence intervals at the USGS streamgage (05464942) on Hoover Creek. The historic rainfall events were calibrated by using data from two USGS streamgages along with surveyed high-water marks from one of the events. The calibrated HEC–HMS model was then used to simulate streamflows from design rainfall events of 24-hour duration ranging from a 20-percent to a 1-percent annual exceedance probability. These simulated streamflows were incorporated into the HEC–RAS model.
The unsteady-state HEC–RAS model was calibrated to represent existing conditions within the watershed. HEC–RAS model simulations with the existing conditions and streamflows from the design rainfall events were then done to serve as a baseline for evaluating flood-mitigation scenarios. After these simulations were completed, three different flood-mitigation scenarios were developed with HEC–RAS: a detention-storage scenario, a conveyance improvement scenario, and a combination of both. In the detention-storage scenario, four in-channel detention structures were placed upstream from the city of West Branch to attenuate peak streamflows. To investigate possible improvements to conveying floodwaters through the city of West Branch, a section of abandoned railroad embankment and an old truss bridge were removed in the model, because these structures were producing backwater areas during flooding events. The third scenario combines the detention and conveyance scenarios so their joint efficiency could be evaluated. The scenarios with the design rainfall events were run in the HEC–RAS model so their flood-mitigation effects could be analyzed across a wide range of flood magnitudes.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/sir20185002","collaboration":"Prepared in cooperation with the city of West Branch and the National Park Service","usgsCitation":"Cigrand, C.V., 2018, Flood-inundation and flood-mitigation modeling of the West Branch Wapsinonoc Creek Watershed in West Branch, Iowa: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2018–5002, 36 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20185002.","productDescription":"viii, 36 p.","onlineOnly":"Y","additionalOnlineFiles":"N","ipdsId":"IP-090129","costCenters":[{"id":351,"text":"Iowa Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":352733,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2018/5002/sir20185002.pdf","text":"Report","size":"3.24 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIR 2018-5002"},{"id":352732,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2018/5002/coverthb.jpg"}],"country":"United States","state":"Iowa","city":"West Branch","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -91.40693664550781,\n 41.64264409952472\n ],\n [\n -91.32488250732422,\n 41.64264409952472\n ],\n [\n -91.32488250732422,\n 41.72289932945416\n ],\n [\n -91.40693664550781,\n 41.72289932945416\n ],\n [\n -91.40693664550781,\n 41.64264409952472\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, Central Midwest Water Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
400 S. Clinton Street
Iowa City, IA 52240
This map product contains a map sheet at 1:1,506,000 scale that shows the geology of the Nepenthes Planum region of Mars, which is located between the cratered highlands that dominate the southern hemisphere and the less-cratered sedimentary plains that dominate the northern hemisphere. The map region contains cone- and mound-shaped landforms as well as lobate materials that are morphologically similar to terrestrial igneous or mud vents and flows. This map is part of an informal series of small-scale (large-area) maps aimed at refining current understanding of the geologic units and structures that make up the highland-to-lowland transition zone. The map base consists of a controlled Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) daytime infrared image mosaic (100 meters per pixel resolution) supplemented by a Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) digital elevation model (463 meters per pixel resolution). The map includes a Description of Map Units and a Correlation of Map Units that describes and correlates units identified across the entire map region. The geologic map was assembled using ArcGIS software by Environmental Systems Research Institute (http://www.esri.com). The ArcGIS project, geodatabase, base map, and all map components are included online as supplemental data.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/sim3389","usgsCitation":"Skinner, J.A., Jr., and Tanaka, K.L., 2018, Geologic map of the Nepenthes Planum Region, Mars: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Map 3389, pamphlet 11 p., scale 1:1,506,000, https://doi.org/10.3133/sim3389.","productDescription":"Map: 45.60 x 38.82 inches; Pamphlet: i, 11 p.; Metadata, Spatial Data; Read Me","onlineOnly":"Y","additionalOnlineFiles":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-078987","costCenters":[{"id":131,"text":"Astrogeology Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":437979,"rank":8,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/P95837GN","text":"USGS data release","linkHelpText":"Interactive Map: USGS SIM 3389 Geologic Map of the Nepenthes Planum Region, Mars"},{"id":352459,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3389/coverthb.jpg"},{"id":352467,"rank":6,"type":{"id":23,"text":"Spatial Data"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3389/sim3389_gis.zip","text":"GIS Files","linkFileType":{"id":6,"text":"zip"},"description":"SIM 3389"},{"id":352463,"rank":5,"type":{"id":20,"text":"Read Me"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3389/sim3389_readme.txt","text":"Read Me","size":"4 KB","linkFileType":{"id":2,"text":"txt"},"description":"SIM 3389"},{"id":352462,"rank":4,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3389/sim3389_pamphlet.pdf","text":"Pamphlet","size":"1.4 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIM 3389"},{"id":352461,"rank":3,"type":{"id":26,"text":"Sheet"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3389/sim3389_mapsheet.pdf","text":"Map","size":"74 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIM 3389"},{"id":352460,"rank":2,"type":{"id":16,"text":"Metadata"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3389/sim3389_geomap_metadata.xml","size":"7 KB","description":"SIM 3389 Metadata"},{"id":400823,"rank":7,"type":{"id":2,"text":"Additional Report Piece"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/P95837GN","text":"Interactive map","linkHelpText":"- Geologic map of the Nepenthes Planum Region, Mars, 1:1,506,000, Skinner et al. (2018)"}],"contact":"Astrogeology Research Program staff
Astrogeology Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
2255 N. Gemini Dr.
Flagstaff, AZ 86001
This report describes a new methodology for using sparse (weekly or less frequent observations) and potentially highly censored pesticide monitoring data to simulate daily pesticide concentrations and associated quantities used for acute and chronic exposure assessments, such as the annual maximum daily concentration. The new methodology is based on a statistical model that expresses log-transformed daily pesticide concentration in terms of a seasonal wave, flow-related variability, long-term trend, and serially correlated errors. Methods are described for estimating the model parameters, generating conditional simulations of daily pesticide concentration given sparse (weekly or less frequent) and potentially highly censored observations, and estimating concentration extremes based on the conditional simulations. The model can be applied to datasets with as few as 3 years of record, as few as 30 total observations, and as few as 10 uncensored observations. The model was applied to atrazine, carbaryl, chlorpyrifos, and fipronil data for U.S. Geological Survey pesticide sampling sites with sufficient data for applying the model. A total of 112 sites were analyzed for atrazine, 38 for carbaryl, 34 for chlorpyrifos, and 33 for fipronil. The results are summarized in this report; and, R functions, described in this report and provided in an accompanying model archive, can be used to fit the model parameters and generate conditional simulations of daily concentrations for use in investigations involving pesticide exposure risk and uncertainty.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/sir20175159","collaboration":"National Water Quality Program","usgsCitation":"Vecchia, A.V., 2018, Model methodology for estimating pesticide concentration extremes based on sparse monitoring data: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2017–5159, 47 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20175159.","productDescription":"Report: viii, 47 p.; Appendix; Data release","numberOfPages":"60","onlineOnly":"Y","additionalOnlineFiles":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-090885","costCenters":[{"id":478,"text":"North Dakota Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true},{"id":34685,"text":"Dakota Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":352536,"rank":5,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F7NV9H50","text":"USGS data release","description":"USGS Data Release","linkHelpText":"Data Files to Support SEAWAVE-QEX Model for Simulating Concentrations of Selected Pesticides in the Continental United States, 1992–2012"},{"id":352529,"rank":4,"type":{"id":18,"text":"Project Site"},"url":"https://www.usgs.gov/science/mission-areas/water/national-water-quality-program?qt-programs_l2_landing_page=0#qt-programs_l2_landing_page","text":"National Water Quality Program"},{"id":352528,"rank":3,"type":{"id":3,"text":"Appendix"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2017/5159/downloads/","text":"Model Archive","description":"SIR 2017–5159 Model Archive"},{"id":352526,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2017/5159/coverthb.jpg"},{"id":352527,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2017/5159/sir20175159.pdf","text":"Report","size":"2.73 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIR 2017–5159"}],"contact":"Director, Dakota Water Science Center, North Dakota Office
U.S. Geological Survey
821 East Interstate Avenue
Bismarck, ND 58503
This report describes (1) work done between January 2015 and May 2017 as part of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI), background study and (2) the summative-scale approach to be used to estimate the extent of anthropogenic (man-made) Cr(VI) and background Cr(VI) concentrations near the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) natural gas compressor station in Hinkley, California. Most of the field work for the study was completed by May 2017. The summative-scale approach and calculation of Cr(VI) background were not well-defined at the time the USGS proposal for the background Cr(VI) study was prepared but have since been refined as a result of data collected as part of this study. The proposed summative scale consists of multiple items, formulated as questions to be answered at each sampled well. Questions that compose the summative scale were developed to address geologic, hydrologic, and geochemical constraints on Cr(VI) within the study area. Each question requires a binary (yes or no) answer. A score of 1 will be assigned for an answer that represents data consistent with anthropogenic Cr(VI); a score of –1 will be assigned for an answer that represents data inconsistent with anthropogenic Cr(VI). The areal extent of anthropogenic Cr(VI) estimated from the summative-scale analyses will be compared with the areal extent of anthropogenic Cr(VI) estimated on the basis of numerical groundwater flow model results, along with particle-tracking analyses. On the basis of these combined results, background Cr(VI) values will be estimated for “Mojave-type” deposits, and other deposits, in different parts of the study area outside the summative-scale mapped extent of anthropogenic Cr(VI).
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/ofr20181045","collaboration":"Prepared in cooperation with the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board and the State Water Resources Control Board","usgsCitation":"Izbicki, J.A., and Groover, K., 2018, Natural and man-made hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI), in groundwater near a mapped plume, Hinkley, California—study progress as of May 2017, and a summative-scale approach to estimate background Cr(VI) concentrations: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2018–1045, 28 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20181045.","productDescription":"vi, 28 p.","numberOfPages":"38","onlineOnly":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-095489","costCenters":[{"id":154,"text":"California Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":352720,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1045/ofr20181045.pdf","text":"Report","size":"1.4 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"OFR 2018-1045"},{"id":352719,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2018/1045/coverthb.jpg"}],"country":"United States","state":"California","city":"Hinkley","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -117.2333,\n 34.8667\n ],\n [\n -117.0667,\n 34.8667\n ],\n [\n -117.0667,\n 35.0333\n ],\n [\n -117.2333,\n 35.0333\n ],\n [\n -117.2333,\n 34.8667\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, California Water Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
6000 J Street, Placer Hall
Sacramento, CA 95819
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the City of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, began developing a groundwater-flow model of the Big Sioux aquifer in 2014 that will enable the City to make more informed water management decisions, such as delineation of areas of the greatest specific yield, which is crucial for locating municipal wells. Innovative tools are being evaluated as part of this study that can improve the delineation of the hydrogeologic framework of the aquifer for use in development of a groundwater-flow model, and the approach could have transfer value for similar hydrogeologic settings. The first step in developing a groundwater-flow model is determining the hydrogeologic framework (vertical and horizontal extents of the aquifer), which typically is determined by interpreting geologic information from drillers’ logs and surficial geology maps. However, well and borehole data only provide hydrogeologic information for a single location; conversely, nearly continuous geophysical data are collected along flight lines using airborne electromagnetic (AEM) surveys. These electromagnetic data are collected every 3 meters along a flight line (on average) and subsequently can be related to hydrogeologic properties. AEM data, coupled with and constrained by well and borehole data, can substantially improve the accuracy of aquifer hydrogeologic framework delineations and result in better groundwater-flow models.
AEM data were acquired using the Resolve frequency-domain AEM system to map the Big Sioux aquifer in the region of the city of Sioux Falls. The survey acquired more than 870 line-kilometers of AEM data over a total area of about 145 square kilometers, primarily over the flood plain of the Big Sioux River between the cities of Dell Rapids and Sioux Falls. The U.S. Geological Survey inverted the survey data to generate resistivity-depth sections that were used in two-dimensional maps and in three-dimensional volumetric visualizations of the Earth resistivity distribution. Contact lines were drawn using a geographic information system to delineate interpreted geologic stratigraphy. The contact lines were converted to points and then interpolated into a raster surface. The methods used to develop elevation and depth maps of the hydrogeologic framework of the Big Sioux aquifer are described herein.
The final AEM interpreted aquifer thickness ranged from 0 to 31 meters with an average thickness of 12.8 meters. The estimated total volume of the aquifer was 1,060,000,000 cubic meters based on the assumption that the top of the aquifer is the land-surface elevation. A simple calculation of the volume (length times width times height) of a previous delineation of the aquifer estimated the aquifer volume at 378,000,000 cubic meters; thus, the estimation based on AEM data is more than twice the previous estimate. The depth to top of Sioux Quartzite, which ranged in depth from 0 to 90 meters, also was delineated from the AEM data.
Director, Dakota Water Science Center, South Dakota Office
U.S. Geological Survey
1608 Mountain View Road
Rapid City, SD 57702
The daily and annual loads of nitrate plus nitrite and total nitrogen for the Connecticut River at Middle Haddam, Connecticut, were determined for water years 2009 to 2014. The analysis was done with a combination of methods, which included a predefined rating curve method for nitrate plus nitrite and total nitrogen for water years 2009 to 2011 and a custom rating curve method that included sensor measurements of nitrate plus nitrite nitrogen concentration and turbidity along with mean daily flow to determine total nitrogen loads for water years 2011 to 2014. Instantaneous concentrations of total nitrogen were estimated through the use of a regression model based on sensor measurements at 15-minute intervals of nitrate plus nitrite nitrogen and turbidity for water years 2011 to 2014.
Annual total nitrogen loads at the Connecticut River at Middle Haddam ranged from 12,900 to 19,200 metric tons, of which about 42 to 49 percent was in the form of nitrate plus nitrite. The mean 95-percent prediction intervals on daily total nitrogen load estimates were smaller from the custom model, which used sensor data, than those calculated by the predefined model.
Annual total nitrogen load estimates at the Connecticut River at Middle Haddam were compared with the upstream load estimates at the Connecticut River at Thompsonville, Conn. Annual gains in total nitrogen loads between the two stations ranged from 3,430 to 6,660 metric tons. These increases between the two stations were attributed to the effects of increased urbanization and to combined annual discharges of 1,540 to 2,090 metric tons of nitrogen from 24 wastewater treatment facilities in the drainage area between the two stations. The contribution of total nitrogen from wastewater discharge between the two stations had declined substantially before the beginning of this study and accounted for from 31 to 52 percent of the gain in nitrogen load between the Thompsonville and Middle Haddam sites.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/sir20185006","collaboration":"Prepared in cooperation with the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection","usgsCitation":"Mullaney, J.R., Martin, J.W., and Morrison, J., 2018, Nitrogen concentrations and loads for the Connecticut River at Middle Haddam, Connecticut, computed with the use of autosampling and continuous measurements of water quality for water years 2009 to 2014: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2018–5006, 22 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20185006.","productDescription":"Report: vii, 22 p.; Data release","numberOfPages":"34","onlineOnly":"Y","additionalOnlineFiles":"N","ipdsId":"IP-091217","costCenters":[{"id":466,"text":"New England Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":352399,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2018/5006/sir20185006.pdf","text":"Report","size":"4.79 MB ","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIR 2018-5006"},{"id":352631,"rank":3,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F7VQ31WT","text":"USGS data release","description":"USGS data release","linkHelpText":"Nitrogen Concentrations and Loads for the Connecticut River at Middle Haddam, Connecticut, Computed With the Use of Autosampling and Continuous Measurements of Water Quality for Water Years 2009 to 2014"},{"id":352409,"rank":0,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2018/5006/coverthb.jpg"}],"country":"United States","state":"Connecticut","otherGeospatial":"Connecticut River","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -72.94097900390625,\n 41.34691753986531\n ],\n [\n -72.18154907226562,\n 41.34691753986531\n ],\n [\n -72.18154907226562,\n 42.04011410708205\n ],\n [\n -72.94097900390625,\n 42.04011410708205\n ],\n [\n -72.94097900390625,\n 41.34691753986531\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, New England Water Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
101 Pitkin Street
East Hartford, CT 06108
The Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge (hereafter Forsythe refuge or the refuge) is situated along the central New Jersey coast and provides a mixture of freshwater and saltwater habitats for numerous bird, wildlife, and plant species. Little data and information were previously available regarding the freshwater dynamics that support the refuge’s ecosystems. In cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Geological Survey conducted an assessment of the hydrologic resources and processes in the refuge and surrounding areas to provide baseline information for evaluating restoration projects and future changes in the hydrologic system associated with climate change and other anthropogenic stressors.
During spring 2015, water levels were measured at groundwater and surface-water sites in and near the Forsythe refuge. These water-level measurements, along with surface-water elevations obtained from digital elevation models, were used to construct water-table-elevation and depth-to-water maps of the refuge and surrounding areas. Water-table elevations in the refuge ranged from sea level to approximately 65 feet above sea level; in most of the refuge, the water-table elevation was within 3 feet of sea level. The water-table-elevation map indicates that the direction of shallow groundwater flow at the regional scale is generally from west to east (much of it from the northwest to the southeast), and groundwater moves downgradient from the uplands toward major groundwater discharge areas consisting of coastal streams and wetlands. The depth to water is estimated to be less than 2 feet for approximately 86 percent of the refuge, which coincides closely with the percentage of wetland area in the refuge. Depth to water in excess of 20 feet below land surface is limited to higher elevation areas of the refuge.
Streamflow data collected at continuous-record streamgages and partial-record stations within the Mullica-Toms Basin were summarized. Hydrograph separation of streamflow data for eight streamgages (2004–13) reveals that base flow accounts for 68–94 percent of streamflow in basins upstream from the refuge. The high base-flow inputs underscore the importance of groundwater as a source of freshwater that supports both the streams that flow into the refuge and the hydroecology of the contributing basins. Mean annual flow typically ranged from 1.7 to 2.1 cubic feet per second per square mile at the streamgages (2004–13) and between 1.2 and 2.3 cubic feet per second per square mile at the partial-record stations (1965–2015) but was notably greater or lower than these ranges at several stations.
Mean annual water budgets were estimated for multiple regions of the refuge for 2004–13 using data compiled from nearby meteorological stations and groundwater flows derived from previously calibrated groundwater-flow models. Precipitation, groundwater recharge, and evapotranspiration were estimated from available data; direct runoff was calculated as the residual component of the water balance. Groundwater recharge rates were greatest in the upland-dominated areas of the refuge with estimates of 14.4 to 18.9 inches per year, which are equivalent to 30 to 40 percent of precipitation. Groundwater recharge rates were nearly zero in the central coastal areas because these areas are major groundwater discharge zones, the water table is near land surface, the subsurface is close to saturation and cannot accept much recharge, and much of the area is underlain by thick marsh deposits likely with low permeability. Estimates of evapotranspiration varied from about 26 inches per year in the upland-dominated areas to more than 35 inches per year in the coastal wetlands, equivalent to 55–79 percent of mean annual precipitation, indicating that it is a major component of the hydrodynamics of the Forsythe refuge.
On the basis of output from previously calibrated groundwater-flow models, nearly all of the groundwater exiting the surficial aquifer system in the central coastal areas of the refuge is discharged to wetlands, which highlights the importance of groundwater discharge in supporting the ecosystems of the Forsythe refuge. In the central coastal areas, horizontal flow contributes more than 90 percent of the groundwater flow to the surficial system, indicating that the upbasin areas are a substantial source of water that ultimately discharges to streams and wetlands in the refuge.
","language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/sir20175088","collaboration":"Prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service","usgsCitation":"Wieben, C.M., and Chepiga, M.M., 2018, Hydrologic assessment of the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, New Jersey: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2017–5088, 38 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20175088.\n","productDescription":"Report: viii, 38 p.; 2 Plates: 24.0 x 36.0 inches; Data release","onlineOnly":"Y","additionalOnlineFiles":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-079840","costCenters":[{"id":470,"text":"New Jersey Water Science Center","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":352411,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2017/5088/sir20175088.pdf","text":"Report","size":"25.3 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"SIR 2017-5088"},{"id":352410,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2017/5088/coverthb.jpg"},{"id":352412,"rank":3,"type":{"id":30,"text":"Data Release"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.5066/F78G8JMN","text":"USGS data release","description":"USGS data release","linkHelpText":"Water-table elevation contours and depth-to-water grid for the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, New Jersey, and vicinity, spring 2015"},{"id":352535,"rank":6,"type":{"id":17,"text":"Plate"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2017/5088/sir20175088_plate02.pdf","text":"Plate 2","size":"4.15 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"linkHelpText":"- Water-Table Elevation in and near the Southern Part of the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, New Jersey, Spring 2015"},{"id":352426,"rank":4,"type":{"id":7,"text":"Companion Files"},"url":"https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20175135","text":"Scientific Investigations Report 2017–5135","linkHelpText":"- Hydrogeology of, Simulation of Groundwater Flow in, and Potential Effects of Sea-Level Rise on the Kirkwood-Cohansey Aquifer System in the Vicinity of Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, New Jersey"},{"id":352534,"rank":5,"type":{"id":17,"text":"Plate"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2017/5088/sir20175088_plate01.pdf","text":"Plate 1 ","size":"12.1 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"linkHelpText":"- Water-Table Elevation in and near the Northern Part of the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, New Jersey, Spring 2015"}],"country":"United States","state":"New Jersey","otherGeospatial":"Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge","geographicExtents":"{\n \"type\": \"FeatureCollection\",\n \"features\": [\n {\n \"type\": \"Feature\",\n \"properties\": {},\n \"geometry\": {\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\n \"coordinates\": [\n [\n [\n -74,\n 39.4167\n ],\n [\n -74,\n 40.07807142745009\n ],\n [\n -74.5,\n 40.07807142745009\n ],\n [\n -74.5,\n 39.4167\n ],\n [\n -74,\n 39.4167\n ]\n ]\n ]\n }\n }\n ]\n}","contact":"Director, New Jersey Water Science Center
U.S. Geological Survey
3450 Princeton Pike, Suite 110
Lawrenceville, NJ 08648
This report is a user guide for the low-flow analysis methods provided with version 1.0 of the Surface Water Toolbox (SWToolbox) computer program. The software combines functionality from two software programs—U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) SWSTAT and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) DFLOW. Both of these programs have been used primarily for computation of critical low-flow statistics. The main analysis methods are the computation of hydrologic frequency statistics such as the 7-day minimum flow that occurs on average only once every 10 years (7Q10), computation of design flows including biologically based flows, and computation of flow-duration curves and duration hydrographs. Other annual, monthly, and seasonal statistics can also be computed. The interface facilitates retrieval of streamflow discharge data from the USGS National Water Information System and outputs text reports for a record of the analysis. Tools for graphing data and screening tests are available to assist the analyst in conducting the analysis.
","largerWorkType":{"id":18,"text":"Report"},"largerWorkTitle":"Section A: Statistical analysis in Book 4: Hydrologic analysis and interpretation","largerWorkSubtype":{"id":5,"text":"USGS Numbered Series"},"language":"English","publisher":"U.S. Geological Survey","publisherLocation":"Reston, VA","doi":"10.3133/tm4A11","collaboration":"Prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Environment Protection Agency","usgsCitation":"Kiang, J.E., Flynn, K.M., Zhai, Tong, Hummel, Paul, and Granato, Gregory, 2018, SWToolbox: A surface-water tool-box for statistical analysis of streamflow time series: U.S. Geological Survey Techniques and Methods, book 4, chap. A–11, 33 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/tm4A11.","productDescription":"Report: vii, 34 p.; Software Download and Release Notes","numberOfPages":"44","onlineOnly":"Y","additionalOnlineFiles":"Y","ipdsId":"IP-086817","costCenters":[{"id":502,"text":"Office of Surface Water","active":true,"usgs":true}],"links":[{"id":352238,"rank":1,"type":{"id":24,"text":"Thumbnail"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/tm/04/a11/coverthb.jpg"},{"id":352239,"rank":2,"type":{"id":11,"text":"Document"},"url":"https://pubs.usgs.gov/tm/04/a11/tm4a11.pdf","text":"Report","size":"5.08 MB","linkFileType":{"id":1,"text":"pdf"},"description":"TM 4-A11"},{"id":352240,"rank":3,"type":{"id":2,"text":"Additional Report Piece"},"url":"https://water.usgs.gov/osw/swtoolbox/","text":"Software Download and Release Notes","linkHelpText":"- SWToolbox Software Information"}],"publicComments":"This report is Chapter 11 of Section A: Statistical analysis in Book 4: Hydrologic analysis and interpretation.","contact":"Chief, Analysis and Prediction Branch
Water Mission Area
U.S. Geological Survey
12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, MS 415
Reston, VA 20192