InSAR detects increase in surface subsidence caused by an Arctic tundra fire
Lin Liu, Elchin E. Jafarov, Kevin M. Schaefer, Benjamin M. Jones, Howard A. Zebker, Christopher A. Williams, John Rogan, Tingjun Zhang
2014, Geophysical Research Letters (41) 3906-3913
Wildfire is a major disturbance in the Arctic tundra and boreal forests, having a significant impact on soil hydrology, carbon cycling, and permafrost dynamics. This study explores the use of the microwave Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) technique to map and quantify ground surface subsidence caused by the Anaktuvuk River...
Hydrostratigraphic interpretation of test-hole and borehole geophysical data, Kimball, Cheyenne, and Deuel Counties, Nebraska, 2011-12
Christopher M. Hobza, Steven S. Sibray
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1103
Recently (2004) adopted legislation in Nebraska requires a sustainable balance between long-term supplies and uses of surface-water and groundwater and requires Natural Resources Districts to understand the effect of groundwater use on surface-water systems when developing a groundwater-management plan. The South Platte Natural Resources District (SPNRD) is located in the...
Hydrogeologic aspects of the Knippa Gap area in eastern Uvalde and western Medina counties, Texas
Rebecca B. Lambert, Allan K. Clark, Diana E. Pedraza, Robert R. Morris
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3045
The Edwards aquifer is the primary source of potable water for the San Antonio area in south-central Texas. The Knippa Gap area is a structural low (trough) postulated to channel or restrict flow in the Edwards aquifer in eastern Uvalde and western Medina Counties, Tex. To better understand the function...
Hydrologic data for the Obed River watershed, Tennessee
Rodney R. Knight, William J. Wolfe, George S. Law
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1102
The Obed River watershed drains a 520-square-mile area of the Cumberland Plateau physiographic region in the Tennessee River basin. The watershed is underlain by conglomerate, sandstone, and shale of Pennsylvanian age, which overlie Mississippian-age limestone. The larger creeks and rivers of the Obed River system have eroded gorges through the...
Geologic map of the Granite 7.5' quadrangle, Lake and Chaffee Counties, Colorado
Ralph R. Shroba, Karl S. Kellogg, Theodore R. Brandt
2014, Scientific Investigations Map 3294
The geologic map of the Granite 7.5' quadrangle, Lake and Chaffee Counties, Colorado, portrays the geology in the upper Arkansas valley and along the lower flanks of the Sawatch Range and Mosquito Range near the town of Granite. The oldest rocks, exposed in the southern and eastern parts of the...
Evaluation of groundwater and surface-water interactions in the Caddo Nation Tribal Jurisdictional Area, Caddo County, Oklahoma, 2010-13
Shana L. Mashburn, S. Jerrod Smith
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5082
Streamflows, springs, and wetlands are important natural and cultural resources to the Caddo Nation. Consequently, the Caddo Nation is concerned about the vulnerability of the Rush Springs aquifer to overdrafting and whether the aquifer will continue to be a viable source of water to tribal members and other local residents...
Spatial variability in nutrient transport by HUC8, state, and subbasin based on Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin SPARROW models
Dale M. Robertson, David A. Saad, Gregory E. Schwarz
2014, Journal of the American Water Resources Association (50) 988-1009
Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) loading from the Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin (MARB) has been linked to hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico. With geospatial datasets for 2002, including inputs from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), and monitored loads throughout the MARB, SPAtially Referenced Regression On Watershed attributes (SPARROW) watershed models were...
Effects of lakes and reservoirs on annual river nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment export in agricultural and forested landscapes
Stephen M. Powers, Dale M. Robertson, Emily H. Stanley
2014, Hydrological Processes (28) 5919-5937
Recently, effects of lakes and reservoirs on river nutrient export have been incorporated into landscape biogeochemical models. Because annual export varies with precipitation, there is a need to examine the biogeochemical role of lakes and reservoirs over time frames that incorporate interannual variability in precipitation. We examined long-term (~20 years) time...
Modeling low-temperature geochemical processes:
D. Kirk Nordstrom, Kate M. Campbell
2014, Book chapter, Reference module in earth systems and environmental sciences: Treatise on geochemistry
This chapter provides an overview of geochemical modeling that applies to water–rock interactions under ambient conditions of temperature and pressure. Topics include modeling definitions, historical background, issues of activity coefficients, popular codes and databases, examples of modeling common types of water–rock interactions, and issues of model reliability. Examples include speciation,...
Streamflow, water quality, and aquatic macroinvertebrates of selected streams in Fairfax County, Virginia, 2007-12
John D. Jastram
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5073
Efforts to mitigate the effects of urbanization on streams rely on best management practices (BMPs) that are implemented with the intent of reducing and retaining stormwater runoff. A cooperative monitoring effort between the U.S. Geological Survey and Fairfax County, Virginia, was initiated in 2007 to assess the condition of county...
Methylmercury production in sediment from agricultural and non-agricultural wetlands in the Yolo Bypass, California, USA
Mark Marvin-DiPasquale, Lisamarie Windham-Myers, Jennifer L. Agee, Evangelos Kakouros, Le H. Kieu, Jacob A. Fleck, Charles N. Alpers, Craig A. Stricker
2014, Science of the Total Environment (484) 288-299
As part of a larger study of mercury (Hg) biogeochemistry and bioaccumulation in agricultural (rice growing) and non-agricultural wetlands in California's Central Valley, USA, seasonal and spatial controls on methylmercury (MeHg) production were examined in surface sediment. Three types of shallowly-flooded agricultural wetlands (white rice, wild rice, and fallow fields)...
Simulation of the effects of rainfall and groundwater use on historical lake water levels, groundwater levels, and spring flows in central Florida
Andrew M. O’Reilly, Edwin A. Roehl Jr., Paul Conrads, Ruby C. Daamen, Matthew D. Petkewich
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5032
The urbanization of central Florida has progressed substantially in recent decades, and the total population in Lake, Orange, Osceola, Polk, and Seminole Counties more than quadrupled from 1960 to 2010. The Floridan aquifer system is the primary source of water for potable, industrial, and agricultural purposes in central Florida. Despite...
California Groundwater Units
Tyler D. Johnson, Kenneth Belitz
2014, Data Series 796
The California Groundwater Units dataset classifies and delineates areas within the State of California into one of three groundwater-based polygon units: (1) those areas previously defined as alluvial groundwater basins or subbasins, (2) highland areas that are adjacent to and topographically upgradient of groundwater basins, and (3) highland areas not...
The hydrogeology of the Tully Valley, Onondaga County, New York: an overview of research, 1992-2012
William M. Kappel
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1076
Onondaga Creek begins approximately 15 miles south of Syracuse, New York, and flows north through the Onondaga Indian Nation, then through Syracuse, and finally into Onondaga Lake in central New York. Tully Valley is in the upper part of the Onondaga Creek watershed between U.S. Route 20 and the Valley...
Dissolved-solids sources, loads, yields, and concentrations in streams of the conterminous United States
David W. Anning, Marilyn E. Flynn
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5012
Recent studies have shown that excessive dissolved-solids concentrations in water can have adverse effects on the environment and on agricultural, domestic, municipal, and industrial water users. Such effects motivated the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Water Quality Assessment Program to develop a SPAtially-Referenced Regression on Watershed Attributes (SPARROW) model that has...
Differentiating transpiration from evaporation in seasonal agricultural wetlands and the link to advective fluxes in the root zone
P.A.M. Bachand, S. Bachand, Jacob A. Fleck, Frank E. Anderson, Lisamarie Windham-Myers
2014, Science of the Total Environment (484) 232-248
The current state of science and engineering related to analyzing wetlands overlooks the importance of transpiration and risks data misinterpretation. In response, we developed hydrologic and mass budgets for agricultural wetlands using electrical conductivity (EC) as a natural conservative tracer. We developed simple differential equations that quantify evaporation and transpiration...
Concurrent photolytic degradation of aqueous methylmercury and dissolved organic matter
Jacob A. Fleck, Gary W. Gill, Brian A. Bergamaschi, Tamara E.C. Kraus, Bryan D. Downing, Charles N. Alpers
2014, Science of the Total Environment (484) 263-275
Monomethyl mercury (MeHg) is a potent neurotoxin that threatens ecosystem viability and human health. In aquatic systems, the photolytic degradation of MeHg (photodemethylation) is an important component of the MeHg cycle. Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is also affected by exposure to solar radiation (light exposure) leading to changes in DOM...
Water withdrawals, use, and trends in Florida, 2010
Richard L. Marella
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5088
In 2010, the total amount of water withdrawn in Florida was estimated to be 14,988 million gallons per day (Mgal/d). Saline water accounted for 8,589 Mgal/d (57 percent) and freshwater accounted for 6,399 Mgal/d (43 percent). Groundwater accounted for 4,166 Mgal/d (65 percent) of freshwater withdrawals, and surface water accounted...
Flood inundation maps for the Wabash and Eel Rivers at Logansport, Indiana
Kathleen K. Fowler
2014, Scientific Investigations Map 3293
Digital flood-inundation maps for an 8.3-mile reach of the Wabash River and a 7.6-mile reach of the Eel River at Logansport, Indiana (Ind.), were created by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs. The inundation maps, which can be accessed through...
Hydrogeologic framework, groundwater movement, and water budget of the Kitsap Peninsula, west-central Washington
Wendy B. Welch, Lonna M. Frans, Theresa D. Olsen
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5106
This report presents information used to characterize the groundwater-flow system on the Kitsap Peninsula, and includes descriptions of the geology and hydrogeologic framework, groundwater recharge and discharge, groundwater levels and flow directions, seasonal groundwater-level fluctuations, interactions between aquifers and the surface‑water system, and a water budget. The Kitsap Peninsula is...
Karst geomorphology and hydrology of the Shenandoah Valley near Harrisonburg, Virginia
Daniel H. Doctor, Wil Orndorff, Joel Maynard, Matthew J. Heller, Gerolamo C. Casile
2014, GSA Field Guides (35) 161-213
The karst of the central Shenandoah Valley has characteristics of both shallow and deep phreatic formation. This field guide focuses on the region around Harrisonburg, Virginia, where a number of these karst features and their associated geologic context can be examined. Ancient, widespread alluvial deposits cover much of the carbonate...
Completion summary for boreholes USGS 140 and USGS 141 near the Advanced Test Reactor Complex, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho
Brian V. Twining, Roy C. Bartholomay, Mary K.V. Hodges
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5098
In 2013, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, drilled and constructed boreholes USGS 140 and USGS 141 for stratigraphic framework analyses and long-term groundwater monitoring of the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer at the Idaho National Laboratory in southeast Idaho. Borehole USGS 140 initially...
Pluvial lakes in the Great Basin of the western United States: a view from the outcrop
Marith C. Reheis, Kenneth D. Adams, Charles G. Oviatt, Steven N. Bacon
2014, Quaternary Science Reviews (97) 33-57
Paleo-lakes in the western United States provide geomorphic and hydrologic records of climate and drainage-basin change at multiple time scales extending back to the Miocene. Recent reviews and studies of paleo-lake records have focused on interpretations of proxies in lake sediment cores from the northern and central parts of the...
Natural uranium and strontium isotope tracers of water sources and surface water-groundwater interactions in arid wetlands: Pahranagat Valley, Nevada, USA
James B. Paces, Frederic C. Wurster
2014, Journal of Hydrology (517) 213-225
Near-surface physical and chemical process can strongly affect dissolved-ion concentrations and stable isotope compositions of water in wetland settings, especially under arid climate conditions. In contrast, heavy radiogenic isotopes of strontium (87Sr/86Sr) and uranium (234U/238U) remain largely unaffected and can be used to help identify unique signatures from different...
Concentrations, loads, and yields of total nitrogen and total phosphorus in the Barnegat Bay-Little Egg Harbor watershed, New Jersey, 1989-2011, at multiple spatial scales
Ronald J. Baker, Christine M. Wieben, Richard G. Lathrop, Robert S. Nicholson
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5072
Concentrations, loads, and yields of nutrients (total nitrogen and total phosphorus) were calculated for the Barnegat Bay-Little Egg Harbor (BB-LEH) watershed for 1989–2011 at annual and seasonal (growing and nongrowing) time scales. Concentrations, loads, and yields were calculated at three spatial scales: for each of the 81 subbasins specified by...
