Assessing water quality from highway runoff at selected sites in North Carolina with the Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model (SELDM)
J. Curtis Weaver, Gregory E. Granato, Sharon A. Fitzgerald
2019, Scientific Investigations Report 2019-5031
In 2015, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) entered into a cooperative agreement with the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) to develop a North Carolina-enhanced variation of the national Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model (SELDM) with available North Carolina-specific streamflow and water-quality data and to demonstrate use of the...
Preliminary stage and streamflow data at selected U.S. Geological Survey streamgages in New England for the floods of April 2019
Richard G. Kiah, Brianna A. Smith, Nicholas W. Stasulis
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1052
The combination of rainfall and snowmelt in northern New England and rainfall in southern New England resulted in minor to major flooding from April 15 to 24, 2019, according to stage and streamflow data collected at 63 selected U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) streamgages. A typical USGS streamgage measures and records...
Shining light on the storm: In-stream optics reveal hysteresis of dissolved organic matter character
Matthew C.H. Vaughan, William B. Bowden, James B. Shanley, Andrew W. Vermilyea, Andrew W. Schroth
2019, Biogeochemistry (143) 275-291
The quantity and character of dissolved organic matter (DOM) can change rapidly during storm events, affecting key biogeochemical processes, carbon bioavailability, metal pollutant transport, and disinfection byproduct formation during drinking water treatment. We used in situ ultraviolet–visible spectrophotometers to concurrently measure dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration...
Use of a Numerical Model to Simulate the Hydrologic System and Transport of Contaminants Near Joint Base Cape Cod, Western Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Donald A. Walter, Timothy D. McCobb, Michael N. Fienen
2019, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5139
Historical training and operational activities at Joint Base Cape Cod (JBCC) on western Cape Cod, Massachusetts, have resulted in the release of contaminants into an underlying glacial aquifer that is the sole source of water to the surrounding communities. Remedial systems have been installed to contain and remove contamination from...
Flood-inundation maps for Lake Champlain in Vermont and New York
Robert H. Flynn, Laura Hayes
2019, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5169
In 2016, digital flood-inundation maps along the shoreline of Lake Champlain in Addison, Chittenden, Franklin, and Grand Isle Counties in Vermont and northern Clinton County in New York were created by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the International Joint Commission (IJC). This report discusses the creation of...
Unprocessed atmospheric nitrate in waters of the Northern Forest Region in the USA and Canada
Stepen D Sebestyen, Donald D Ross, James B. Shanley, Emily M. Elliott, Carol Kendall, John L. Campbell, D Bryan Dail, Ivan J Fernandez, Christine L Goodale, Gregory B. Lawrence, Gary M. Lovett, Patrick J McHale, Myron J Mitchell, Sarah J. Nelson, Michelle D Shattuck, Trent R Wickman, Rebecca T. Barnes, Joel T. Bostic, Anthony R Buda, Douglas A Burns, Keith N. Eshleman, Jacques C. Finlay, David M. Nelson, Nobuhito Ohte, Linda H Pardo, Lucy A Rose, Robert J Sabo, Sherry L. Schiff, John Spoelstra, Karl W Williard
2019, Environmental Science and Technology (53) 3620-3633
Little is known about the regional extent and variability of nitrate from atmospheric deposition that is transported to streams without biological processing in forests. We measured water chemistry and isotopic tracers (δ18O and δ15N) of nitrate sources across the Northern Forest...
Design and methods of the U.S. Geological Survey Northeast Stream Quality Assessment (NESQA), 2016
James F. Coles, Karen Riva-Murray, Peter C. Van Metre, Daniel T. Button, Amanda H. Bell, Sharon L. Qi, Celeste A. Journey, Rich W. Sheibley
2019, Open-File Report 2018-1183
During 2016, as part of the National Water-Quality Assessment Project (NAWQA), the U.S. Geological Survey conducted the Northeast Stream Quality Assessment (NESQA) to investigate stream quality in the northeastern United States. The goal of the NESQA was to assess the health of wadeable streams in the region by characterizing multiple...
Factors affecting the occurrence of lead and manganese in untreated drinking water from Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain aquifers, eastern United States—Dissolved oxygen and pH framework for evaluating risk of elevated concentrations
Craig J. Brown, Jeannie R. B. Barlow, Charles A. Cravotta III, Bruce D. Lindsey
2019, Applied Geochemistry (101) 88-102
Groundwater samples collected during 2012 and 2013 from public-supply wells screened in the Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain aquifers of the eastern and southeastern U.S. rarely contained lead or manganese concentrations that exceeded drinking-water limits, despite having corrosive characteristics. Data indicate that the occurrence of dissolved lead and manganese in sampled groundwater, prior to...
Enhancement of primary production during drought in a temperate watershed is greater in larger rivers than headwater streams
Jacob D. Hosen, Kelly S. Aho, Alison P. Appling, E.C. Creech, Jennifer H Fair, Robert O Jr. Hall, Ethan Kyzivat, Rachel Lowenthal, Serena Matt, Jonathan Morrison, James E. Saiers, James B. Shanley, Lisa Weber, Bryan Yoon, Peter A. Raymond
2019, Limnology & Oceanography (64) 1458-1472
Drought is common in rivers, yet how this disturbance regulates metabolic activity across network scales is largely unknown. Drought often lowers gross primary production (GPP) and ecosystem respiration (ER) in small headwaters but by contrast can enhance GPP and cause algal blooms in downstream estuaries. We estimated ecosystem metabolism across...
Identifying natural and anthropogenic variability of uranium at the well scale, Homestake Superfund site, near Milan, New Mexico, USA
Philip T. Harte, Johanna M. Blake, Jonathan V. Thomas, Kent Becher
2019, Environmental Earth Sciences (78) 1-19
The San Mateo Creek Basin in New Mexico, USA is located within the Grants Mineral Belt-an area with numerous uranium (U) ore deposits, mines, and milling operations. Six monitoring wells set in an alluvial aquifer near the Homestake Mining Co. Superfund site in the lower San Mateo Creek Basin were...
Simulating runoff quality with the highway-runoff database and the Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model
Gregory E. Granato, Susan C. Jones
2019, Transportation Research Record (2673) 136-142
Stormwater practitioners need quantitative information about the quality and volume of highway runoff to assess and mitigate potential adverse effects of runoff on the Nation’s receiving waters. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the Highway Runoff Database (HRDB) in cooperation with the FHWA to provide practice-ready information to...
A new indicator framework for quantifying the intensity of the terrestrialwater cycle
Thomas G. Huntington, Peter Weiskel, David M. Wolock, Gregory J. McCabe
2019, Journal of Hydrology (559) 361-372
A quantitative framework for characterizing the intensity of the water cycle over land is presented, and illustrated using a spatially distributed water-balance model of the conterminous United States (CONUS). We approach water cycle intensity (WCI) from a landscape perspective; WCI is defined as the sum of precipitation (P) and actual...
Evidence for conservative transport of dissolved organic carbon in major river basins in the Gulf of Maine Watershed
Thomas G. Huntington, Collin S. Roesler, George R. Aiken
2019, Journal of Hydrology (573) 755-767
Transport and fate of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in rivers are important aspects of the carbon cycle and the critical linkage between terrestrial, aquatic, and marine systems. Recent studies have quantified fluvial export to the marine environment in many systems, but in-stream losses of DOC are poorly constrained. This study...
Establishment of a vertical control network along the St. Croix River in New Brunswick and Maine
Pamela J. Lombard
2019, Open-File Report 2013-1236
Consistent elevations at stable benchmarks, referenced to a common datum, are important for measuring and comparing water levels and for computing flows throughout a watershed. Elevations are presented for 38 control points within the St. Croix River watershed, mostly along the main stem of the St. Croix River. Vertical control...
Characterization of stormwater runoff from bridge decks in eastern Massachusetts, 2014–16
Kirk P. Smith, Jason R. Sorenson, Gregory E. Granato
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5033
The quality of stormwater runoff from bridge decks (hereafter referred to as “bridge-deck runoff”) was characterized in a field study from August 2014 through August 2016 in which concentrations of suspended sediment (SS) and total nutrients were monitored. These new data were collected to supplement existing highway-runoff data collected in...
User guide for the Massachusetts Sustainable-Yield Estimator (MA SYE—version 2.0) computer program
Gregory E. Granato, Sara B. Levin
2018, Open-File Report 2018-1169
This report is a user guide for the Massachusetts Sustainable-Yield Estimator (MA SYE) computer program (version 2.0). The MA SYE was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection to provide a planning-level decision-support tool designed to help decision makers estimate daily mean...
Methods used to estimate daily streamflow and water availability in the Massachusetts Sustainable-Yield Estimator version 2.0
Sara B. Levin, Gregory E. Granato
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5146
The Massachusetts Sustainable-Yield Estimator is a decision support tool that provides estimates of daily unaltered streamflow, water-use-adjusted streamflow, and water availability for ungaged, user-defined basins in Massachusetts. Daily streamflow at the ungaged site is estimated for unaltered (no water use) and water-use scenarios. The procedure for estimating streamflow was developed...
User guide for the Connecticut Streamflow and Sustainable Water Use Estimator (CT SSWUE—version 1.0) computer program
Gregory E. Granato, Sara B. Levin
2018, Open-File Report 2018-1163
This report is a user guide for the Connecticut Streamflow and Sustainable Water Use Estimator (CT SSWUE) computer program (version 1.0). The CT SSWUE was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection to provide a planning-level decision-support tool designed to...
The Connecticut Streamflow and Sustainable Water Use Estimator—A decision-support tool to estimate water availability at ungaged stream locations in Connecticut
Sara B. Levin, Scott A. Olson, Martha G. Nielsen, Gregory E. Granato
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5135
Freshwater streams in Connecticut are subject to many competing demands, including public water supply; agricultural, commercial, and industrial water use; and ecosystem and habitat needs. In recent years, drought has further stressed Connecticut’s water resources. To sustainably allocate and manage water resources among these competing uses, Federal, State, and local...
Satellite remote sensing estimation of river discharge: Application to the Yukon River Alaska
David M. Bjerklie, Charon M. Birkett, John Jones, Claudia C. Carabajal, Jennifer Rover, John Fulton, Pierre-Andre Garambois
2018, Journal of Hydrology (561) 1000-1018
A methodology based on general hydraulic relations for rivers has been developed to estimate the discharge (flow rate) of rivers using satellite remote sensing observations. The estimates of discharge, flow depth, and flow velocity are derived from remotely observed water...
Determination of representative uranium and selenium concentrations from groundwater, 2016, Homestake Mining Company Superfund site, Milan, New Mexico
Philip T. Harte, Johanna M. Blake, Kent Becher
2018, Open-File Report 2018-1055
In 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, collected data on isotopes, age dating, and geochemistry including aqueous uranium concentrations of samples from 20 locations in the vicinity of the Homestake Mining Company Superfund site near Milan, New Mexico. The 20 sampled locations include...
Flood-inundation maps for the lower Pawcatuck River in Westerly, Rhode Island, and Stonington and North Stonington, Connecticut
Gardner C. Bent, Pamela J. Lombard
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5112
A series of 11 digital flood-inundation maps was developed for a 5.5-mile reach of the lower Pawcatuck River in Westerly, Rhode Island, and Stonington and North Stonington, Connecticut, by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Town of Westerly, Rhode Island, and the Rhode Island Office of Housing...
Geochemical conditions and nitrogen transport in nearshore groundwater and the subterranean estuary at a Cape Cod embayment, East Falmouth, Massachusetts, 2013–14
John A. Colman, Denis R. LeBlanc, John K. Böhlke, Timothy D. McCobb, Kevin D. Kroeger, Marcel Belaval, Thomas C. Cambareri, Gillian F. Pirolli, T. Wallace Brooks, Mary E. Garren, Tobias B. Stover, Ann Keeley
2018, Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5095
Nitrogen transport and transformation were studied during 2013 to 2014 by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, in a subterranean estuary beneath onshore locations on the Seacoast Shores peninsula, a residential area in Falmouth, Massachusetts, served by septic systems and cesspools, and adjacent offshore...
High-water marks from Hurricane Sandy for coastal areas of Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts, October 2012
Lance J. Ostiguy, Timothy C. Sargent, Brittney Izbicki, Gardner C. Bent
2018, Data Series 1094
Because coastal areas in Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts were heavily affected by Hurricane Sandy in October 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), under a mission agreement with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, collected storm tide high-water marks in those coastal areas. This effort was undertaken to better understand the...
Evaluating long-term patterns of decreasing groundwater discharge through a lake-bottom permeable reactive barrier
Timothy D. McCobb, Martin A. Briggs, Denis R. LeBlanc, Frederick D. Day-Lewis, Carole D. Johnson
2018, Journal of Environmental Management (220) 233-245
Identifying and quantifying groundwater exchange is critical when considering contaminant fate and transport at the groundwater/surface-water interface. In this paper, areally distributed temperature and point seepage measurements are used to efficiently assess spatial and temporal groundwater discharge patterns through a glacial-kettle lakebed area containing a zero-valent iron permeable reactive barrier...
