Groundwater
David A. Stonestrom
Ellen E. Wohl, editor(s)
2016, Book chapter, Oxford Bibliographies in Environmental Science
Introduction Groundwater represents the terrestrial subsurface component of the hydrologic cycle. As such, groundwater is generally in motion, moving from elevated areas of recharge to lower areas of discharge. Groundwater usually moves in accordance with Darcy’s law (Dalmont, Paris: Les Fontaines Publiques de la Ville de Dijon, 1856). Groundwater residence times...
A full annual cycle modeling framework for American black ducks
Orin J. Robinson, Conor P. McGowan, Patrick K. Devers, Rodney W. Brook, Min Huang, Malcom Jones, Daniel G. McAuley, Guthrie S. Zimmerman
2016, Natural Resource Modeling (29) 159-174
American black ducks (Anas rubripes) are a harvested, international migratory waterfowl species in eastern North America. Despite an extended period of restrictive harvest regulations, the black duck population is still below the population goal identified in the North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP). It has been hypothesized that density-dependent factors...
Stochastic model for simulating Souris River Basin precipitation, evapotranspiration, and natural streamflow
Kelsey A. Kolars, Aldo V. Vecchia, Karen R. Ryberg
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5185
The Souris River Basin is a 61,000-square-kilometer basin in the Provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba and the State of North Dakota. In May and June of 2011, record-setting rains were seen in the headwater areas of the basin. Emergency spillways of major reservoirs were discharging at full or nearly full...
Evaluation of downscaled, gridded climate data for the conterminous United States
Robert J. Behnke, Stephen J. Vavrus, Andrew Allstadt, Thomas P. Albright, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Volker C. Radeloff
2016, Ecological Applications (26) 1338-1351
Weather and climate affect many ecological processes, making spatially continuous yet fine-resolution weather data desirable for ecological research and predictions. Numerous downscaled weather data sets exist, but little attempt has been made to evaluate them systematically. Here we address this shortcoming by focusing on four major questions: (1) How accurate...
Reconnecting fragmented sturgeon populations in North American rivers
Henriette Jager, Michael J. Parsley, Joseph J. Cech, R. L. McLaughlin, Patrick S. Forsythe, Robert S. Elliott
2016, Fisheries (41) 140-148
The majority of large North American rivers are fragmented by dams that interrupt migrations of wide-ranging fishes like sturgeons. Reconnecting habitat is viewed as an important means of protecting sturgeon species in U.S. rivers because these species have lost between 5% and 60% of their historical ranges. Unfortunately, facilities designed...
Genetic diversity of Wolbachia endosymbionts in Culex quinquefasciatus from Hawai`i, Midway Atoll, and Samoa
Carter T. Atkinson, William Watcher-Weatherwax, Dennis Lapointe
2016, Technical Report HCSU-074
Incompatible insect techniques are potential methods for controlling Culex quinquefasciatus and avian disease transmission in Hawai‘i without the use of pesticides or genetically modified organisms. The approach is based on naturally occurring sperm-egg incompatibilities within the Culex pipiens complex that are controlled by different strains of the bacterial endosymbiont Wolbachia...
Are brown trout replacing or displacing bull trout populations in a changing climate?
Robert K. Al-Chokhachy, David A. Schmetterling, Chris Clancy, Pat Saffel, Ryan Kovach, Leslie Nyce, Brad Liermann, Wade A. Fredenberg, Ron Pierce
2016, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (73) 1395-1404
Understanding how climate change may facilitate species turnover is an important step in identifying potential conservation strategies. We used data from 33 sites in western Montana to quantify climate associations with native bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) and non-native brown trout (Salmo trutta) abundance and population growth rates (λ). We estimated...
Ecoregions of California
Glenn E. Griffith, James M. Omernik, David W. Smith, Terry D. Cook, Ed Tallyn, Kendra Moseley, Colleen B. Johnson
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1021
Ecoregions denote areas of general similarity in ecosystems and in the type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. They are designed to serve as a spatial framework for the research, assessment, management, and monitoring of ecosystems and ecosystem components. By recognizing the spatial differences in the capacities and potentials of...
Groundwater ages from the freshwater zone of the Edwards aquifer, Uvalde County, Texas—Insights into groundwater flow and recharge
Andrew G. Hunt, Gary P. Landis, Jason R. Faith
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5163
Tritium–helium-3 groundwater ages of the Edwards aquifer in south-central Texas were determined as part of a long-term study of groundwater flow and recharge in the Edwards and Trinity aquifers. These ages help to define groundwater residence times and to provide constraints for calibration of groundwater flow models. A suite of...
Geology and assessment of the undiscovered, technically recoverable petroleum resources of Armenia, 2013
T. R. Klett
2016, Data Series 69-PP
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) assessed the undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas resources of Armenia in 2013. A Paleozoic and a Cenozoic total petroleum system (TPS) were identified within the country of Armenia. The postulated petroleum system elements are uncertain, resulting in low geologic probabilities for significant oil an...
Arsenic in groundwater of Licking County, Ohio, 2012—Occurrence and relation to hydrogeology
Mary Ann Thomas
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5148
Arsenic concentrations were measured in samples from 168 domestic wells in Licking County, Ohio, to document arsenic concentrations in a wide variety of wells and to identify hydrogeologic factors associated with arsenic concentrations in groundwater. Elevated concentrations of arsenic (greater than 10.0 micrograms per liter [µg/L]) were detected in 12...
The effectiveness of water-treatment systems for arsenic used in 11 homes in Southwestern and Central Ohio, 2013
Mary Ann Thomas, Mike Ekberg
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5156
In 2013, the U.S. Geological Survey and the Miami Conservancy District investigated the effectiveness of methods used to remove arsenic from drinking water at 11 homes in southwestern and central Ohio. The untreated (raw) ground-water had arsenic concentrations of 7.7–382 micrograms per liter (µg/L), and the median concentration was 30...
Active tectonics within the NW and SE extensions of the Pambak-Sevan-Syunik fault: Implications for the present geodynamics of Armenia
Jeff Ritz, A. Avagyan, M. Mkrtchyan, H. Nazari, P. H. Blard, A. Karakhanian, H. Philip, Sanda Balescu, Shannon A. Mahan, Sebastien Huot, P. Munch, M. Lamothe
2016, Quaternary International (395) 61-78
This study analyzes the active tectonics within the northwestern and southeastern extensions of the Pambak-Sevan-Syunik fault (PSSF), a major right-lateral strike-slip fault cutting through Armenia. Quantifying the deformations in terms of geometry, kinematics, slip rates and earthquake activity, using cosmogenic 3He, OSL/IRSL and radiocarbon dating techniques, reveal different behaviors between...
Sediment accumulation in prairie wetlands under a changing climate: The relative roles of landscape and precipitation
Susan K. Skagen, Lucy E. Burris, Diane A. Granfors
2016, Wetlands (36) 383-395
Sediment accumulation threatens the viability and hydrologic functioning of many naturally formed depressional wetlands across the interior regions of North America. These wetlands provide many ecosystem services and vital habitats for diverse plant and animal communities. Climate change may further impact sediment accumulation rates in the context of current land...
Flood-Inundation Maps of Selected Areas Affected by the Flood of October 2015 in Central and Coastal South Carolina
Jonathan W. Musser, Kara M. Watson, Jaime A. Painter, Anthony J. Gotvald
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1019
Heavy rainfall occurred across South Carolina during October 1–5, 2015, as a result of an upper atmospheric low-pressure system that funneled tropical moisture from Hurricane Joaquin into the State. The storm caused major flooding in the central and coastal parts of South Carolina. Almost 27 inches of rain fell near...
Hydraulic and biochemical gradients limit wetland mercury supply to an Adirondack stream
Paul M. Bradley, Douglas A. Burns, Judson Harvey, Celeste A. Journey, Mark E. Brigham, Karen Riva-Murray
2016, SOJ Aquatic Research (1) 1-9
Net fluxes (change between upstream and downstream margins) for water, methylmercury (MeHg), total mercury (THg), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and chloride (Cl) were assessed twice in an Adirondack stream reach (Sixmile Brook, USA), to test the hypothesized importance of wetland-stream hydraulic and chemical gradients as fundamental controls on fluvial mercury...
Are the Columbia River Basalts, Columbia Plateau, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington, USA, a viable geothermal target? A preliminary analysis
Erick R. Burns, Colin F. Williams, Terry Tolan, Joern Ole Kaven
2016, Conference Paper, Proceedings, 41st Workshop on Geothermal Reservoir Engineering
The successful development of a geothermal electric power generation facility relies on (1) the identification of sufficiently high temperatures at an economically viable depth and (2) the existence of or potential to create and maintain a permeable zone (permeability >10-14 m2) of sufficient size to allow efficient long-term extraction of...
Efficiency of portable antennas for detecting passive integrated transponder tags in stream-dwelling salmonids
Nolan P. Banish, Summer M. Burdick, Katherine R. Moyer
2016, PLoS ONE (11)
Portable antennas have become an increasingly common technique for tracking fish marked with passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags. We used logistic regression to evaluate how species, fish length, and physical habitat characteristics influence portable antenna detection efficiency in stream-dwelling brown trout (Salmo trutta), bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus), and redband trout...
Toward a quantitative and empirical dissolved organic carbon budget for the Gulf of Maine, a semienclosed shelf sea
William Balch, Thomas G. Huntington, George R. Aiken, David Drapeau, Bruce Bowler, Laura Lubelczyk, Kenna D. Butler
2016, Global Biogeochemical Cycles (30) 268-292
A time series of organic carbon export from Gulf of Maine (GoM) watersheds was compared to a time series of biological, chemical, bio-optical, and hydrographic properties, measured across the GoM between Yarmouth, NS, Canada, and Portland, ME, U.S. Optical proxies were used to quantify the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and...
Potential foraging decisions by a desert ungulate to balance water and nutrient intake in a water-stressed environment
Jay V. Gedir, James W. Cain III, Paul R. Krausman, Jamison D. Allen, Glenn C. Duff, John R. Morgart
2016, PLoS ONE (11) 1-20
Arid climates have unpredictable precipitation patterns, and wildlife managers often provide supplemental water to help desert ungulates endure the hottest, driest periods. When surface water is unavailable, the only source of water for ungulates comes from the forage they consume, and they must make resourceful foraging decisions to meet their...
Terrestrial-based lidar beach topography of Fire Island, New York, June 2014
Owen T. Brenner, Cheryl J. Hapke, Kathryn G. Lee, Dustin R. Kimbrow
2016, Data Series 980
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center (SPCMSC) in Florida and the USGS Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center (LMG WSC) in Montgomery, Alabama, collaborated to gather alongshore terrestrial-based lidar beach elevation data at Fire Island, New York. This high-resolution elevation dataset was collected on June...
Regression equations to estimate seasonal flow duration, n-day high-flow frequency, and n-day low-flow frequency at sites in North Dakota using data through water year 2009
Tara Williams-Sether, Tara A. Gross
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5184
Seasonal mean daily flow data from 119 U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations in North Dakota; the surrounding states of Montana, Minnesota, and South Dakota; and the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan with 10 or more years of unregulated flow record were used to develop regression equations for flow duration,...
Experimental studies and model analysis of noble gas fractionation in porous media
Xin Ding, B. Mack. Kennedy, William C. Evans, David A. Stonestrom
2016, Vadose Zone Journal (15) 1-12
The noble gases, which are chemically inert under normal terrestrial conditions but vary systematically across a wide range of atomic mass and diffusivity, offer a multicomponent approach to investigating gas dynamics in unsaturated soil horizons, including transfer of gas between saturated zones, unsaturated zones, and the atmosphere. To evaluate the...
Structured heterogeneity in a marine terrace chronosequence: Upland mottling
Marjorie S. Schulz, David A. Stonestrom, Corey R. Lawrence, Thomas D. Bullen, John Fitzpatrick, Emily Kyker-Snowman, Jane Manning, Meagan Mnich
2016, Vadose Zone Journal (15)
Soil mottles generally are interpreted as a product of reducing conditions during periods of water saturation. The upland soils of the Santa Cruz, CA, marine terrace chronosequence display an evolving sequence of reticulate mottling from the youngest soil (65 ka) without mottles to the oldest soil (225 ka) with well-developed...
Bivalve grazing can shape phytoplankton communities
Lisa Lucas, James E. Cloern, Janet K. Thompson, Mark T. Stacey, Jeffrey K. Koseff
2016, Frontiers in Marine Science (3)
The ability of bivalve filter feeders to limit phytoplankton biomass in shallow waters is well-documented, but the role of bivalves in shaping phytoplankton communities is not. The coupled effect of bivalve grazing at the sediment-water interface and sinking of phytoplankton cells to that bottom filtration zone could influence the relative...
