The aquatic real-time monitoring network; in-situ optical sensors for monitoring the nation's water quality
Brian A. Pellerin, Brian A. Bergamaschi, Peter S. Murdoch, Bryan D. Downing, John Franco Saraceno, George R. Aiken, Robert G. Striegl
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3061
Floods, hurricanes, and longer-term changes in climate and land use can have profound effects on water quality due to shifts in hydrologic flow paths, water residence time, precipitation patterns, connectivity between rivers and uplands, and many other factors. In order to understand and respond to changes in hydrology and water...
Soil physical, chemical, and gas-flux characterization from Picea mariana stands near Erickson Creek, Alaska
Jonathan A. O’Donnell, Jennifer W. Harden, Kristen L. Manies
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1153
Fire is a particularly important control on the carbon (C) balance of the boreal forest, and fire-return intervals and fire severity appear to have increased since the late 1900s in North America. In addition to the immediate release of stored C to the atmosphere through organic-matter combustion, fire also modifies...
Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources of the Cook Inlet region, south-central Alaska, 2011
Richard G. Stanley, Ronald R. Charpentier, Troy A. Cook, David W. Houseknecht, Timothy R. Klett, Kristen A. Lewis, Paul G. Lillis, Philip H. Nelson, Jeffrey D. Phillips, Richard M. Pollastro, Christopher J. Potter, William A. Rouse, Richard W. Saltus, Christopher J. Schenk, Anjana K. Shah, Zenon C. Valin
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3068
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) recently completed a new assessment of undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas resources in the Cook Inlet region of south-central Alaska. Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the USGS estimates that mean undiscovered volumes of nearly 600 million barrels of oil, about 19 trillion cubic feet...
Potential effects of roadside dry wells on groundwater quality on the Island of Hawai'i — Assessment using numerical groundwater models
Scot K. Izuka
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5072
Widespread use of dry wells to dispose of roadside runoff has raised concern about the potential effects on the quality of groundwater on the Island of Hawai‘i. This study used semi-generic numerical models of groundwater flow and contaminant transport to assess the potential effect of dry wells on groundwater quality...
Surficial geology of the sea floor in Central Rhode Island Sound Southeast of Point Judith, Rhode Island
K.Y. McMullen, L.J. Poppe, S.D. Ackerman, D.S. Blackwood, J.D. Schaer, M.A. Nadeau, D.A. Wood
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1005
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) are working together to study sea-floor environments off the northeast coast of the United States. During 2008, NOAA survey H11996 collected multibeam echosounder data in a 65-square kilometer area in central Rhode Island Sound, southeast of Point...
Sea-Floor geology and character of Eastern Rhode Island Sound West of Gay Head, Massachusetts
L.J. Poppe, K.Y. McMullen, S.D. Ackerman, D.S. Blackwood, B.J. Irwin, J.D. Schaer, M.R. Forrest
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1004
Gridded multibeam bathymetry covers approximately 102 square kilometers of sea floor in eastern Rhode Island Sound west of Gay Head, Massachusetts. Although originally collected for charting purposes during National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration hydrographic survey H11922, these acoustic data and the sea-floor stations subsequently occupied to verify them (1) show...
Coral diversity and the severity of disease outbreaks: a cross-regional comparison of Acropora white syndrome in a species-rich region (American Samoa) with a species-poor region (Northwestern Hawaiian Islands).
G.S. Aeby, D.G. Bourne, B. Wilson, Thierry M. Work
2011, Journal of Marine Biology (2011) 1-8
The dynamics of the coral disease, Acropora white syndrome (AWS), was directly compared on reefs in the species-poor region of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI) and the species-rich region of American Samoa (AS) with results suggesting that biodiversity, which can affect the abundance of susceptible hosts, is important in influencing...
USGS science for the Nation's changing coasts; shoreline change assessment
E. Robert Thieler, Cheryl J. Hapke
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3074
The coastline of the United States features some of the most popular tourist and recreational destinations in the world and is the site of intense residential, commercial, and industrial development. The coastal zone also has extensive and pristine natural areas, with diverse ecosystems providing essential habitat and resources that support...
Comparing the role of fuel breaks across southern California national forests
Alexandra D. Syphard, Jon E. Keeley, Teresa J. Brennan
2011, Forest Ecology and Management (261) 2038-2048
Fuel treatment of wildland vegetation is the primary approach advocated for mitigating fire risk at the wildland–urban interface (WUI), but little systematic research has been conducted to understand what role fuel treatments play in controlling large fires, which factors influence this role, or how the role of fuel treatments may...
Preliminary assessment of channel stability and bed-material transport along Hunter Creek, southwestern Oregon
Krista L. Jones, J. Rose Wallick, Jim E. O'Connor, Mackenzie K. Keith, Joseph F. Mangano, John C. Risley
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1160
This preliminary assessment of (1) bed-material transport in the Hunter Creek basin, (2) historical changes in channel condition, and (3) supplementary data needed to inform permitting decisions regarding instream gravel extraction revealed the following: Along the lower 12.4 km (kilometers) of Hunter Creek from its confluence with the Little South...
The constraints of connecting children with nature--A research literature review
Phadrea D. Ponds, Rudy M. Schuster
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1139
Reports or research investigations studying children in nature are rapidly expanding and increasingly diverse. This document reports a review of a particular part of this field-studies of constraints to recreation and participation in environmental and outdoor recreation programs. The findings result from a review of more than 125 journal articles,...
Counting India's wild tigers reliably
K. Ullas Karanth, Arjun M. Gopalaswamy, N. Samba Kumar, Mohan Delampady, James D. Nichols, John Seidensticker, Barry R. Noon, Stuart L. Pimm
2011, Science (332) 791-791
Biosolids, crop, and groundwater data for a biosolids-application area near Deer Trail, Colorado, 2007 and 2008
Tracy J.B. Yager, David B. Smith, James G. Crock
2011, Data Series 589
During 2007 and 2008, the U.S. Geological Survey monitored the chemical composition of biosolids, crops, and groundwater related to biosolids applications near Deer Trail, Colorado, in cooperation with the Metro Wastewater Reclamation District. This monitoring effort was a continuation of the monitoring program begun in 1999 in cooperation with the...
Copper mines may affect lichens of two Southern Arizona national protected areas
James P. Bennett
2011, Book chapter, Bibliotheca Lichenologica
No abstract available....
Coastal subsidence in Oregon, USA during the giant Cascadia earthquake of AD 1700
A. D. Hawkes, B. P. Horton, A.R. Nelson, C. H. Vane, Y. Sawai
2011, Quaternary Science Reviews (30) 364-376
Quantitative estimates of land-level change during the giant AD 1700 Cascadia earthquake along the Oregon coast are inferred from relative sea-level changes reconstructed from fossil foraminiferal assemblages preserved within the stratigraphic record. A transfer function, based upon a regional training set of modern sediment samples from Oregon estuaries, is calibrated...
Abundance of introduced species at home predicts abundance away in herbaceous communities
Jennifer Firn, Joslin L. Moore, Andrew S. MacDougall, Elizabeth T. Borer, Eric W. Seabloom, Janneke HilleRisLambers, W. Stanley Harpole, Elsa E. Cleland, Cynthia S. Brown, Johannes M.H. Knops, Suzanne M. Prober, David A. Pyke, Kelly A. Farrell, John D. Bakker, Lydia R. O’Halloran, Peter B. Adler, Scott L. Collins, Carla M. D'Antonio, Michael J. Crawley, Elizabeth M. Wolkovich, Kimberly J. La Pierre, Brett A. Melbourne, Yann Hautier, John W. Morgan, Andrew D.B. Leakey, Adam Kay, Rebecca McCulley, Kendi F. Davies, Carly J. Stevens, Cheng-Jin Chu, Karen D. Holl, Julia A. Klein, Phillip A. Fay, Nicole Hagenah, Kevin P. Kirkman, Yvonne M. Buckley
2011, Ecology Letters (14) 274-281
Many ecosystems worldwide are dominated by introduced plant species, leading to loss of biodiversity and ecosystem function. A common but rarely tested assumption is that these plants are more abundant in introduced vs. native communities, because ecological or evolutionary-based shifts in populations underlie invasion success. Here, data for 26 herbaceous...
USGS Emergency Response Resources
Robert D. Bewley
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3079
Every day, emergency responders are confronted with worldwide natural and manmade disasters, including earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, landslides, tsunami, volcanoes, wildfires, terrorist attacks, and accidental oil spills.The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is ready to coordinate the provisioning and deployment of USGS staff, equipment, geospatial data, products, and services in support of...
Forecast Mekong: 2011 update
D. Phil Turnipseed
2011, General Information Product 130
In 2009, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary R. Clinton joined with the Foreign Ministers of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam in launching the Lower Mekong Initiative to enhance U.S. engagement with the Lower Mekong countries in the areas of environment, health, education, and infrastructure. Part of the Lower Mekong Initiative,...
Computer programs for forward and inverse modeling of acoustic and electromagnetic data
Karl J. Ellefsen
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1124
A suite of computer programs was developed by U.S. Geological Survey personnel for forward and inverse modeling of acoustic and electromagnetic data. This report describes the computer resources that are needed to execute the programs, the installation of the programs, the program designs, some tests of their accuracy, and some...
Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources of the Upper Cretaceous Austin Chalk and Tokio and Eutaw Formations, Gulf Coast, 2010
Krystal Pearson, R. F. Dubiel, O.N. Pearson, Janet K. Pitman
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3046
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated means of 957 million barrels of undiscovered oil, 3.6 trillion cubic feet of undiscovered natural gas, and 363 million barrels of undiscovered natural gas liquids in the Austin Chalk and Tokio and Eutaw Formations in onshore lands and State waters...
Analysis of dam-passage survival of yearling and subyearling Chinook salmon and juvenile steelhead at The Dalles Dam, Oregon, 2010
John W. Beeman, Tobias J. Kock, Russell W. Perry, Steven G. Smith
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1162
We performed a series of analyses of mark-recapture data from a study at The Dalles Dam during 2010 to determine if model assumptions for estimation of juvenile salmonid dam-passage survival were met and if results were similar to those using the University of Washington's newly developed ATLAS software. The study...
Estimated 2008 groundwater potentiometric surface and predevelopment to 2008 water-level change in the Santa Fe Group aquifer system in the Albuquerque area, central New Mexico
Sarah E. Falk, Laura M. Bexfield, Scott K. Anderholm
2011, Scientific Investigations Map 3162
The water-supply requirements of the Albuquerque metropolitan area of central New Mexico have historically been met almost exclusively by groundwater withdrawal from the Santa Fe Group aquifer system. Previous studies have indicated that the large quantity of groundwater withdrawal relative to recharge has resulted in water-level declines in the aquifer...
Coastal habitat degradation and green sea turtle diets in Southeastern Brazil
Robson G. Santos, Agnaldo Silva Martins, Julyana da Nobrega Farias, Antunes Paulo Horta, Hudson Tercio Pinheiro, Cecilia Baptistotte, Jeffrey A. Seminoff, George H. Balazs, Thierry M. Work
2011, Marine Pollution Bulletin (62) 1297-1302
To show the influence of coastal habitat degradation on the availability of food for green turtles (Chelonia mydas), we assessed the dietary preferences and macroalgae community at a feeding area in a highly urbanized region. The area showed low species richness and was classified as degraded. We examined stomach contents...
National Geospatial Program
William J. Carswell Jr.
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3078
The National Geospatial Program (NGP; http://www.usgs.gov/ngpo/) satisfies the needs of customers by providing geospatial products and services that customers incorporate into their decisionmaking and operational activities. These products and services provide geospatial data that are organized and maintained in cost-effective ways and developed by working with partners and organizations whose activities...
Loch Vale watershed long-term ecological research and monitoring program quality assurance report, 2003-09
Eric E. Richer, Jill S. Baron
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1137
The Loch Vale watershed project is a long-term research and monitoring program located in Rocky Mountain National Park that addresses watershed-scale ecosystem processes, particularly as they respond to atmospheric deposition and climate variability. Measurements of precipitation depth, precipitation chemistry, discharge, and surface-water quality are made within the watershed and elsewhere...
