Hydrogeologic framework and selected components of the groundwater budget for the upper Umatilla River Basin, Oregon
Nora B. Herrera, Kate Ely, Smita Mehta, Adam J. Stonewall, John C. Risley, Stephen R. Hinkle, Terrence D. Conlon
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5020
Executive SummaryThis report presents a summary of the hydrogeology of the upper Umatilla River Basin, Oregon, based on characterization of the hydrogeologic framework, horizontal and vertical directions of groundwater flow, trends in groundwater levels, and components of the groundwater budget. The conceptual model of the groundwater flow system integrates available...
Spectral matching techniques (SMTs) and automated cropland classification algorithms (ACCAs) for mapping croplands of Australia using MODIS 250-m time-series (2000–2015) data
Pardhasaradhi G. Teluguntla, Prasad S. Thenkabail, Jun Xiong, Murali Krishna Gumma, Russell G. Congalton, Adam Oliphant, Justin Poehnelt, Kamini Yadav, Mahesh N. Rao, Richard Massey
2017, International Journal of Digital Earth (10) 944-977
Mapping croplands, including fallow areas, are an important measure to determine the quantity of food that is produced, where they are produced, and when they are produced (e.g. seasonality). Furthermore, croplands are known as water guzzlers by consuming anywhere between 70% and 90% of all human water use globally. Given...
Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources in the Spraberry Formation of the Midland Basin, Permian Basin Province, Texas, 2017
Kristen R. Marra, Stephanie B. Gaswirth, Christopher J. Schenk, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Timothy R. Klett, Tracey J. Mercier, Phuong A. Le, Marilyn E. Tennyson, Thomas M. Finn, Sarah J. Hawkins, Michael E. Brownfield
2017, Fact Sheet 2017-3029
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated mean resources of 4.2 billion barrels of oil and 3.1 trillion cubic feet of gas in the Spraberry Formation of the Midland Basin, Permian Basin Province, Texas....
A long-term copper exposure in a freshwater ecosystem using lotic mesocosms: Invertebrate community responses
Sandrine Joachim, Helene Roussel, Jean-Marc Bonzom, Eric Thybaud, Christopher A. Mebane, Paul Van den Brink, Laury Gauthier
2017, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (36) 2698-2714
A lotic mesocosm study was carried out in 20-m-long channels, under continuous, environmentally realistic concentrations of copper (Cu) in low, medium, and high exposures (nominally 0, 5, 25, and 75 μg L−1; average effective concentrations <0.5, 4, 20, and 57 μg L−1 respectively) for 18 mo. Total abundance, taxa richness, and community structure of zooplankton, macroinvertebrates,...
Relationships between gas field development and the presence and abundance of pygmy rabbits in southwestern Wyoming
Stephen S. Germaine, Sarah K. Carter, Drew A. Ignizio, Aaron T. Freeman
2017, Ecosphere (8)
More than 5957 km2 in southwestern Wyoming is currently covered by operational gas fields, and further development is projected through 2030. Gas fields fragment landscapes through conversion of native vegetation to roads, well pads, pipeline corridors, and other infrastructure elements. The sagebrush steppe landscape where most of this development is occurring...
Steady state fractionation of heavy noble gas isotopes in a deep unsaturated zone
Alan M. Seltzer, Jeffrey P. Severinghaus, Brian J. Andraski, David A. Stonestrom
2017, Water Resources Research (53) 2716-2732
To explore steady state fractionation processes in the unsaturated zone (UZ), we measured argon, krypton, and xenon isotope ratios throughout a ∼110 m deep UZ at the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) in Nevada, USA. Prior work has suggested that gravitational settling should create a...
Measuring surface-water loss in Honouliuli Stream near the ‘Ewa Shaft, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i
Sarah N. Rosa
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5042
The Honolulu Board of Water Supply is currently concerned with the possibility of bacteria in the pumped water of the ‘Ewa Shaft (State well 3-2202-21). Groundwater from the ‘Ewa Shaft could potentially be used to meet future potable water needs in the ‘Ewa area on the island of O‘ahu. The...
Delineation of marsh types and marsh-type change in coastal Louisiana for 2007 and 2013
Stephen B. Hartley, Brady R. Couvillion, Nicholas M. Enwright
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5044
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management researchers often require detailed information regarding emergent marsh vegetation types (such as fresh, intermediate, brackish, and saline) for modeling habitat capacities and mitigation. In response, the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management produced a detailed change classification of...
An accurate method for measuring triploidy of larval fish spawns
Jill A. Jenkins, Rassa O. Draugelis-Dale, Robert Glennon, Anita M. Kelly, Bonnie L. Brown, John Morrison
2017, North American Journal of Aquaculture (79) 224-237
A standard flow cytometric protocol was developed for estimating triploid induction in batches of larval fish. Polyploid induction treatments are not guaranteed to be 100% efficient, thus the ability to quantify the proportion of triploid larvae generated by a particular treatment helps managers to stock high-percentage spawns and researchers to...
Sedimentological and petrographic analysis of drill core FC77-1 from the flank of the central uplift, Flynn Creek impact structure, Tennessee
D. R. Adrian, D. T. King, S. J. Jaret, J. Ormo, L. W. Petruny, Justin Hagerty, Tenielle Gaither
2017, Meteoritics & Planetary Science (MAPS) (53) 857-873
Drill core FC 77‐1 on the flank of the central uplift, Flynn Creek impact structure, Tennessee, contains 175 m of impact breccia lying upon uplifted Lower Paleozoic carbonate target stratigraphy. Sedimentological analysis of this 175‐m interval carbonate breccia shows that there are three distinct sedimentological units. In stratigraphic...
Avian influenza virus RNA in groundwater wells supplying poultry farms affected by the 2015 influenza outbreak
Mark A. Borchardt, Susan K. Spencer, Laura E. Hubbard, Aaron D. Firnstahl, Joel P. Stokdyk, Dana W. Kolpin
2017, Environmental Science & Technology Letters (4) 268-272
During the 2015 outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAI) on poultry farms in the midwestern United States, concern was raised about the potential for HPAI to contaminate groundwater. Our study objective was to evaluate the occurrence of HPAI in the groundwater supply wells on 13 outbreak-affected poultry farms in Iowa...
Formation of Fe-Mn crusts within a continental margin environment
Tracey A. Conrad, James R. Hein, Adina Paytan, David A. Clague
2017, Ore Geology Reviews (87) 25-40
This study examines Fe-Mn crusts that form on seamounts along the California continental-margin (CCM), within the United States 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone. The study area extends from approximately 30° to 38° North latitudes and from 117° to 126° West longitudes. The area of study is a tectonically...
Deleterious effects of net clogging on the quantification of stream drift
Jeffrey D. Muehlbauer, Theodore A. Kennedy, Adam J. Copp, Thomas A. Sabol
2017, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (74) 1041-1048
Drift studies are central to stream and river ecological research. However, a fundamental aspect of quantifying drift — how net clogging affects the accuracy of results — has been widely ignored. Utilizing approaches from plankton and suspended sediment studies in oceanography and hydrology, we examined the rate and dynamics of...
Can beaches survive climate change?
Sean Vitousek, Patrick L. Barnard, Patrick W. Limber
2017, Journal of Geophysical Research F: Earth Surface (122) 1060-1067
Anthropogenic climate change is driving sea level rise, leading to numerous impacts on the coastal zone, such as increased coastal flooding, beach erosion, cliff failure, saltwater intrusion in aquifers, and groundwater inundation. Many beaches around the world are currently experiencing chronic erosion as a result of gradual, present-day rates of...
Declines in low-elevation subalpine tree populations outpace growth in high-elevation populations with warming
Erin Conlisk, Cristina Castanha, Matthew J. Germino, Thomas T. Veblen, Jeremy M. Smith, Lara M. Kueppers
2017, Journal of Ecology (105) 1347-1357
Species distribution shifts in response to climate change require that recruitment increase beyond current range boundaries. For trees with long life spans, the importance of climate-sensitive seedling establishment to the pace of range shifts has not been demonstrated quantitatively.Using spatially explicit, stochastic population models combined with data...
Land use history and population dynamics of free-standing figs in a maturing forest
Larissa Albrecht, Robert F. Stallard, Elisabeth Kalko
2017, PLoS ONE (12) 1-18
Figs (Ficus sp.) are often considered as keystone resources which strongly influence tropical forest ecosystems. We used long-term tree-census data to track the population dynamics of two abundant free-standing fig species, Ficus insipida and F. yoponensis, on Barro Colorado Island (BCI), a 15.6-km2 island in Lake Gatún, Panama. Vegetation cover...
Doubling of coastal flooding frequency within decades due to sea-level rise
Sean Vitousek, Patrick L. Barnard, Charles H. Fletcher, Neil Frazer, Li H. Erikson, Curt D. Storlazzi
2017, Scientific Reports (7) 1-9
Global climate change drives sea-level rise, increasing the frequency of coastal flooding. In most coastal regions, the amount of sea-level rise occurring over years to decades is significantly smaller than normal ocean-level fluctuations caused by tides, waves, and storm surge. However, even gradual sea-level rise can rapidly increase the frequency...
Trends in Rainbow Trout recruitment, abundance, survival, and growth during a boom-and-bust cycle in a tailwater fishery
Josh Korman, Micheal D. Yard, Theodore A. Kennedy
2017, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society (146) 1043-1057
Data from a large-scale mark-recapture study was used in an open population model to determine the cause for long-term trends in growth and abundance of a Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus mykiss population in the tailwater of Glen Canyon Dam, AZ. Reduced growth affected multiple life stages and processes causing negative feedbacks...
Water-quality and lake-stage data for Wisconsin lakes, water year 2014
S. Bridgett Manteufel, Dale M. Robertson
2017, Open-File Report 2016-1131
IntroductionThe U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with local and other agencies, collects data at selected lakes throughout Wisconsin. These data, accumulated over many years, provide a database for developing an improved understanding of the water quality of lakes. To make these data available to interested parties outside the USGS,...
Water-quality and lake-stage data for Wisconsin lakes, water years 2012–2013
S. Bridgett Manteufel, Dale M. Robertson
2017, Open-File Report 2016-1050
IntroductionThe U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with local and other agencies, collects data at selected lakes throughout Wisconsin. These data, accumulated over many years, provide a data base for developing an improved understanding of the water quality of lakes. To make these data available to interested parties outside the...
Summary of oceanographic and water-quality measurements in Chincoteague Bay, Maryland and Virginia, 2014–15
Steven E. Suttles, Neil K. Ganju, Sandra M. Brosnahan, Ellyn T. Montgomery, Patrick J. Dickhudt, Alexis Beudin, Daniel J. Nowacki, Marinna A. Martini
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1032
U.S. Geological Survey scientists and technical support staff measured oceanographic, waterquality, seabed-elevation-change, and meteorological parameters in Chincoteague Bay, Maryland and Virginia, during the period of August 13, 2014, to July 14, 2015, as part of the Estuarine Physical Response to Storms project (GS2–2D) supported by the Department of the Interior...
Advanced National Seismic System—Current status, development opportunities, and priorities for 2017–2027
U.S. Geological Survey
2017, Circular 1429
SummaryEarthquakes pose a threat to the safety of over 143 million people living in the United States. Earthquake impacts can be significantly reduced if communities understand their risk and take proactive steps to mitigate that risk. The Advanced National Seismic System (ANSS) is a cooperative effort to collect and analyze...
Assessment of continuous gas resources in the Khorat Plateau Province, Thailand and Laos, 2016
Christopher J. Schenk, Timothy R. Klett, Tracey J. Mercier, Thomas M. Finn, Marilyn E. Tennyson, Stephanie B. Gaswirth, Kristen R. Marra, Phuong A. Le, Ronald M. Drake II
2017, Fact Sheet 2017-3023
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey assessed mean undiscovered, technically recoverable resources of 2.3 trillion cubic feet of continuous gas in the Khorat Plateau Province of Thailand and Laos....
Conversing with Pelehonuamea: A workshop combining 1,000+ years of traditional Hawaiian knowledge with 200 years of scientific thought on Kīlauea volcanism
James P. Kauahikaua, Janet L. Babb, editor(s)
2017, Open-File Report 2017-1043
The events surrounding volcanic eruptions and damaging earthquakes in Hawai‘i have often been described in journals, letters, and newspapers articles in the English language; however, the Hawaiian nation was among the most literate of countries in the 19th century, and many Hawaiian-language newspapers were in circulation through all but...
Response of currents and water quality to changes in dam operations in Hoover Reservoir, Columbus, Ohio, August 24–28, 2015
Branden L. VonIns, P. Ryan Jackson
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5027
Hoover Reservoir, an important drinking water supply for the City of Columbus, Ohio, has been the source of a series of taste and odor problems in treated drinking water during the past few years. These taste and odor problems were caused by the compounds geosmin and 2-methylisoborneol, which are thought...
