Fine-scale delineation of the location of and relative ground shaking within the San Andreas Fault zone at San Andreas Lake, San Mateo County, California
R. D. Catchings, M. J. Rymer, M. R. Goldman, C.S. Prentice, R.R. Sickler
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1041
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission is seismically retrofitting the water delivery system at San Andreas Lake, San Mateo County, California, where the reservoir intake system crosses the San Andreas Fault (SAF). The near-surface fault location and geometry are important considerations in the retrofit effort. Because the SAF trends through...
Wetland management reduces sediment and nutrient loading to the upper Mississippi River
Rebecca M. Kreiling, Joseph P. Schubauer-Berigan, William B. Richardson, Lynn Bartsch, Peter E. Hughes, Eric A. Strauss
2013, Journal of Environmental Quality (42) 573-583
Restored riparian wetlands in the Upper Mississippi River basin have potential to remove sediment and nutrients from tributaries before they flow into the Mississippi River. For 3 yr we calculated retention efficiencies of a marsh complex, which consisted of a restored marsh and an adjacent natural marsh that were connected...
Phenotypic plasticity in the spawning traits of bigheaded carp (Hypophthalmichthys spp.) in novel ecosystems
Alison A. Coulter, Doug Keller, Jon J. Amberg, Elizabeth J. Bailey, Reuben R. Goforth
2013, Freshwater Biology (58) 1029-1037
1. Bigheaded carp, including both silver (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) and bighead (H. nobilis) carp, are successful invasive fishes that threaten global freshwater biodiversity. High phenotypic plasticity probably contributes to their success in novel ecosystems, although evidence of plasticity in several spawning traits has hitherto been largely anecdotal or speculative. 2. We collected drifting eggs...
Effect of power plant emission reductions on a nearby wilderness area: a case study in northwestern Colorado
M. Alisa Mast, Daniel Ely
2013, Environmental Monitoring and Assessment (185) 7081-7095
This study evaluates the effect of emission reductions at two coal-fired power plants in northwestern Colorado on a nearby wilderness area. Control equipment was installed at both plants during 1999–2004 to reduce SO2 and NOx emissions. One challenge was separating the effects of local from regional emissions, which also declined...
Nutrient concentrations and loads and Escherichia coli densities in tributaries of the Niantic River estuary, southeastern Connecticut, 2005 and 2008–2011
John R. Mullaney
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5008
Nutrient concentrations and loads and Escherichia coli (E. coli) densities were studied in 2005 and from 2008 through 2011 in water-quality samples from tributaries of the Niantic River Estuary in southeastern Connecticut. Data from a water-quality survey of the base flow of subbasins in the watershed in June 2005 were...
Chemical and isotopic data collected from groundwater, surface-water, and atmospheric precipitation sites in Upper Kittitas County, Washington, 2010-12
Stephen R. Hinkle, D. Matthew Ely
2013, Data Series 751
As part of a multidisciplinary U.S. Geological Survey study of water resources in Upper Kittitas County, Washington, chemical and isotopic data were collected from groundwater, surface-water, and atmospheric precipitation sites from 2010 to 2012. These data are documented here so that interested parties can quickly and easily find those chemical...
Fish: Section 4.8 in Climate change and the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary: Interpreting potential futures.
Steve P. Rubin
Ian M. Miller, Caitlin Shishido, Liam Antrim, C. Edward Bowlby, editor(s)
2013, Report, Climate change and the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary: Interpreting potential futures. Marine Sanctuaries Conservation Series (ONMS-13-01)
Summary Decreased ocean survival of Chinook and coho salmon in the coastal waters of Washington, Oregon, and California is likely based on historical and present day observations during conditions of unusually high water temperatures and reduced or delayed upwelling. Based on observations during conditions of unusually high water temperatures and reduced or...
Evaluation of the groundwater-flow model for the Ohio River alluvial aquifer near Carrollton, Kentucky, updated to conditions in September 2010
Michael D. Unthank
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5032
The Ohio River alluvial aquifer near Carrollton, Ky., is an important water resource for the cities of Carrollton and Ghent, as well as for several industries in the area. The groundwater of the aquifer is the primary source of drinking water in the region and a highly valued natural resource...
Assessing total nitrogen in surface-water samples--precision and bias of analytical and computational methods
David L. Rus, Charles J. Patton, David K. Mueller, Charles G. Crawford
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2012-5281
The characterization of total-nitrogen (TN) concentrations is an important component of many surface-water-quality programs. However, three widely used methods for the determination of total nitrogen—(1) derived from the alkaline-persulfate digestion of whole-water samples (TN-A); (2) calculated as the sum of total Kjeldahl nitrogen and dissolved nitrate plus nitrite (TN-K); and...
Advanced and applied remote sensing of environmental conditions
E. Terrence Slonecker, Gary B. Fisher, David A. Marr, Lesley E. Milheim, Coral M. Roig-Silva
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3007
"Remote sensing” is a general term for monitoring techniques that collect information without being in physical contact with the object of study. Overhead imagery from aircraft and satellite sensors provides the most common form of remotely sensed data and records the interaction of electromagnetic energy (usually visible light) with matter,...
Assessment of undiscovered conventional oil and gas resources of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin, Canada, 2012
Debra K. Higley
2013, Fact Sheet 2012-3148
The U.S. Geological Survey recently completed a geoscience-based assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources of provinces within the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin. The Western Canada Sedimentary Basin primarily comprises the (1) Alberta Basin Province of Alberta, eastern British Columbia, and the southwestern Northwest Territories; (2) the Williston Basin Province...
Groundwater-quality data in the Cascade Range and Modoc Plateau study unit, 2010-Results from the California GAMA Program
Jennifer L. Shelton, Miranda S. Fram, Kenneth Belitz
2013, Data Series 688
Groundwater quality in the 39,000-square-kilometer Cascade Range and Modoc Plateau (CAMP) study unit was investigated by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) from July through October 2010, as part of the California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program’s Priority Basin Project (PBP). The GAMA...
Characterization of the Hosgri Fault Zone and adjacent structures in the offshore Santa Maria Basin, south-central California
C. Richard Willingham, Jan D. Rietman, Ronald G. Heck, William R. Lettis
2013, Bulletin 1995-CC
The Hosgri Fault Zone trends subparallel to the south-central California coast for 110 km from north of Point Estero to south of Purisima Point and forms the eastern margin of the present offshore Santa Maria Basin. Knowledge of the attributes of the Hosgri Fault Zone is important for petroleum development,...
Chapter A: Summary and findings
Morris L. Maslia, Rene J. Suarez-Soto, Jason B. Sautner, Barbara A. Anderson, L. Elliott Jones, Robert E. Faye, Mustafa M. Aral, Jiabao Guan, Wonyong Jang, Ilker T. Telci, Walter M. Grayman, Frank J. Bove, Perri Z. Ruckart, Susan M. Moore
2013, Report, Analyses and historical reconstruction of groundwater flow, contaminant fate and transport, and distribution of drinking water within the service areas of the Hadnot Point and Holcomb Boulevard water treatment plants and vicinities, U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) is conducting epidemiological studies to evaluate the potential for health effects from exposures to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in finished water supplied to family housing units at U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina (USMCB...
Simulation of three-dimensional groundwater flow
Rene J. Suarez-Soto, L. Elliott Jones, Morris L. Maslia
2013, Report, Analyses and historical reconstruction of groundwater flow, contaminant fate and transport, and distribution of drinking water within the service areas of the Hadnot Point and Holcomb Boulevard water treatment plants and vicinities, U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
The purpose of the study described in this supplement of Chapter A (Supplement 4) is to construct, simulate, and calibrate a groundwater-flow model that represents the hydro-geologic framework and related groundwater-flow conditions described by Faye (2012) and Faye et al. (2013) within the vicinity of the...
Geologic evidence for onshore sediment transport from the inner continental shelf: Fire Island, New York
William C. Schwab, Wayne E. Baldwin, Cheryl J. Hapke, Erika E. Lentz, Paul T. Gayes, Jane F. Denny, Jeffrey H. List, John C. Warner
2013, Journal of Coastal Research (29) 526-544
Sediment budget analyses along the south shore of Fire Island, New York, have been conducted and debated in the scientific and coastal engineering literature for decades. It is well documented that a primary component of sediment transport in this system is directed alongshore from E to W, but discrepancies in...
Groundwater hydrology and estimation of horizontal groundwater flux from the Rio Grande at selected locations in Albuquerque, New Mexico, 2003-9
Dale R. Rankin, Kurt J. McCoy, Geoff J.M. More, Jeffrey A. Worthington, Kimberly M. Bandy-Baldwin
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2012-5007
The Albuquerque, New Mexico, area has two principal sources of water: groundwater from the Santa Fe Group aquifer system and surface water from the San Juan-Chama Diversion Project. From 1960 to 2002, groundwater withdrawals from the Santa Fe Group aquifer system have caused water levels to decline more than 120...
Characterizing wave- and current- induced bottom shear stress: U.S. middle Atlantic continental shelf
P. Soupy Dalyander, Bradford Butman, Christopher R. Sherwood, Richard P. Signell, John L. Wilkin
2013, Continental Shelf Research (52) 73-86
Waves and currents create bottom shear stress, a force at the seabed that influences sediment texture distribution, micro-topography, habitat, and anthropogenic use. This paper presents a methodology for assessing the magnitude, variability, and driving mechanisms of bottom stress and resultant sediment mobility on regional scales using numerical model output. The...
Holocene sediment distribution on the inner continental shelf of northeastern South Carolina: implications for the regional sediment budget and long-term shoreline response
Jane F. Denny, William C. Schwab, Wayne E. Baldwin, Walter A. Barnhardt, Paul T. Gayes, R.A. Morton, John C. Warner, Neal W. Driscoll, George Voulgaris
2013, Continental Shelf Research (56) 56-70
High-resolution geophysical and sediment sampling surveys were conducted offshore of the Grand Strand, South Carolina to define the shallow geologic framework of the inner shelf. Results are used to identify and map Holocene sediment deposits, infer sediment transport pathways, and discuss implications for the regional coastal sediment budget. The thickest...
Introduction to the special issue on ‘Frontiers in gas geochemistry’
David R. Hilton, Tobias P. Fischer, Justin T. Kulongoski
2013, Chemical Geology (339) 1-3
The study of the geochemistry of gases pervades the Earth and Environmental Sciences. This is due in no small measure to the well-established thermodynamic properties of gases which allow their application to a variety of processes occurring over a wide spectrum of natural conditions. In this respect, both major and...
Metal prices in the United States through 2010
Water Resources Division, U.S. Geological Survey
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2012-5188
This report, which updates and revises the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) (1999) publication, “Metal Prices in the United States Through 1998,” presents an extended price history for a wide range of metals available in a single document. Such information can be useful for the analysis of mineral commodity issues, as...
The response of soil organic carbon of a rich fen peatland in interior Alaska to projected climate change
Zhaosheng Fan, Anthony David McGuire, Merritt R. Turetsky, Jennifer W. Harden, James Michael Waddington, Evan S. Kane
2013, Global Change Biology (19) 604-620
It is important to understand the fate of carbon in boreal peatland soils in response to climate change because a substantial change in release of this carbon as CO2 and CH4 could influence the climate system. The goal of this research was to synthesize the results of a field water...
Descriptive models, grade-tonnage relations, and databases for the assessment of sediment-hosted copper deposits: with emphasis on deposits in the Central Africa Copperbelt, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia: Chapter J in Global mineral resource assessment
Cliff D. Taylor, J. Douglas Causey, Paul Denning, Jane M. Hammarstrom, Timothy S. Hayes, John D. Horton, Michael J. Kirschbaum, Heather L. Parks, Anna B. Wilson, Niki E. Wintzer, Michael L. Zientek
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5090-J
The Central African Copperbelt (CACB) is one of the most important copper-producing regions of the world. The majority of copper produced in Africa comes from this region defined by the Neoproterozoic Katanga sedimentary basin of the southern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and northern Zambia. Copper in the CACB...
Mapping bedrock surface contours using the horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (HVSR) method near the middle quarter srea, Woodbury, Connecticut
Craig J. Brown, Emily B. Voytek, John W. Lane Jr., Janet Radway Stone
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1028
The bedrock surface contours in Woodbury, Connecticut, were determined downgradient of a commercial zone known as the Middle Quarter area (MQA) using the novel, noninvasive horizontal-to-vertical (H/V) spectral ratio (HVSR) passive seismic geophysical method. Boreholes and monitoring wells had been drilled in this area to characterize the shallow subsurface to...
Nutrient concentrations in surface water and groundwater, and nitrate source identification using stable isotope analysis, in the Barnegat Bay-Little Egg Harbor watershed, New Jersey, 2010–11
Christine M. Wieben, Ronald J. Baker, Robert S. Nicholson
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2012-5287
Five streams in the Barnegat Bay-Little Egg Harbor (BB-LEH) watershed in southern New Jersey were sampled for nutrient concentrations and stable isotope composition under base-flow and stormflow conditions, and during the growing and nongrowing seasons, to help quantify and identify sources of nutrient loading. Samples were analyzed for concentrations of...