Quantifying microplastics in Indiana’s Lake Michigan watershed and submerged aquatic vegetation
Julie R. Peller, Meredith B. Nevers, Muruleedhara Byappanahalli, Mary Anne Evans
2020, Newsletter
Environmental breakdown of plastics produces synthetic microfibers, a class of microplastics that are most prevalent in surface waters. A main source of these pollutants is wastewater treatment plants which discharge into surface waters, including those that flow into Lake Michigan. Microplastics can settle into aquatic sediment or exist for lengths...
Landsat surface reflectance validation site selection
Emily M. Maddox, Landon Douglas Zavesky
2020, Conference Paper, IGARSS 2020 - 2020 IEEE international geoscience and remote sensing symposium
An investigation was conducted to determine optimal locations within the continental United States for insitu measurements to validate the U.S. Landsat Analysis Ready Data (ARD) Surface Reflectance product. Site assessment involved analysis of aerosol optical depth, precipitable water vapor, land cover, cloud cover, and elevation models. Nineteen sites were selected...
2020 drought in New England
Pamela J. Lombard, Janet R. Barclay, Dee-Ann E. Crozier
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1148
Below average and infrequent rainfall from May through September 2020 led to an extreme hydrologic drought across much of New England, with some areas experiencing a flash drought, reflecting its quick onset. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) recorded record-low streamflow and groundwater levels throughout the region. In September, the U.S....
DGMETA (version 1)—Dissolved gas modeling and environmental tracer analysis computer program
Bryant C. Jurgens, J. K. Böhlke, Karl B. Haase, Eurybiades Busenberg, Andrew G. Hunt, Jeffrey A. Hansen
2020, Techniques and Methods 4-F5
DGMETA (Dissolved Gas Modeling and Environmental Tracer Analysis) is a Microsoft Excel-based computer program that is used for modeling air-water equilibrium conditions from measurements of dissolved gases and for computing concentrations of environmental tracers that rely on air-water equilibrium model results. DGMETA can solve for the temperature, salinity, excess...
Early warning pesticide monitoring in Nevada’s surface waters
Jena M. Huntington, Derek C. Entz, Carl E. Thodal
2020, Fact Sheet 2020-3070
A pesticide is a substance, or mixture of substances, used to kill or control insects, weeds, plant diseases, and other pest organisms. Commercial pesticide applicators, farmers, and homeowners apply about 1.1 billion pounds of pesticides annually to agricultural land, non-crop land, and urban areas throughout the United States. Although intended...
The response of streams to changes in atmospheric deposition of sulfur and nitrogen in the Adirondack Mountains
Charles T. Driscoll, Shuai Shao, Timothy J. Sullivan, Todd C. McDonnell, Barry P. Baldigo, Douglas A. Burns, Gregory B. Lawrence
2020, Final Report 20-19
Acidic deposition is the result of upwind sulfur (S) and nitrogen (N) emissions into the atmosphere from human activities. Environmental impacts from acidic deposition across forested landscapes include acidification of soil and drainage water, depletion of available soil nutrient bases, and impacts to and changes in forest and aquatic species...
Potentiometric surface maps of selected confined aquifers in southern Maryland and Maryland's eastern shore, 2019
Andrew W. Staley, David C. Andreasen, Elizabeth H. Marchand
2020, Open-File Report 20-02-01
This report presents potentiometric-surface maps of the Aquia and Magothy aquifers and the Upper Patapsco, Lower Patapsco, and Patuxent aquifer systems using water levels measured during the fall season of 2019. The potentiometric surface maps show water levels ranging from 56 feet above sea level to 163 feet below sea...
Council monitoring and assessment program (CMAP): Common monitoring program attributes and methodologies for the Gulf of Mexico Region
Julie Bosch, Heidi B Burkart, Bogdan Chivoiu, Randy Clark, Chris Clement, Nicholas Enwright, Steve Giordano, Chris Jeffrey, Ed Johnson, Rheannon Hart, Sarah D Hile, Jacob S Howell, Claudia Laurenzano, Michael Lee, Terrance McCloskey, Terry McTigue, Michelle B Meyers, Katie E Miller, Scott Mize, Mark E. Monaco, Kevin Owen, Richard Rebich, Samuel H. Rendon, Ali Robertson, Thomas Sample, Kelly Marie Sanks, Gregory Steyer, Kevin Suir, Christopher M. Swarzenski, Hana Rose Thurman
2020, NOAA Technical Memorandum 285
Executive Summary Under the Resources and Ecosystem Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012 (RESTORE Act), the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council (RESTORE Council or Council) is required to report on the progress of funded projects and programs. Systematic monitoring of restoration at...
Smallmouth buffalo (Ictiobus bubalus) growth across a 1200km human use and ecological disturbance gradient in the Upper Mississippi River System
Brian Ickes
2020, Report
Smallmouth buffalo (Ictiobus bubalus) is a common and widely distributed large-bodied species of the family Catostomidae. It inhabits large rivers and reservoirs of the eastern continental United States (east of the continental Divide) and is most abundant and common in the large rivers of the Midwest and Central Plains,...
Identifying and assessing priority transboundary aquifers along the United States- Mexico border
Nathaniel Kyle Pasley
2020, Report
Many of the 15 million inhabitants along the United States-Mexico border derive fresh water from transboundary aquifers straddling and extending far beyond the political boundary separating the two countries. The previous lack of a large-scale cooperative and structured data collection effort and groundwater management strategy for the region has left...
Assessing the state of water resource knowledge and tools for future planning in the lower Rio Grande-Rio Bravo Basin
Ilana Renae Casarez, Samuel Sandoval-Solis, Jose P. Ortiz-Partida
2020, Report
The Rio Grande/Rio Bravo Basin (hereinafter referred to as the Rio Grande) is a transboundary basin, with the Rio Grande forming the border between the United States and Mexico for approximately 2,034 km. The waters of the Rio Grande serve as a critical drinking source for 13 million people, connecting...
Biology characterization breakout report
Amanda Demopoulos, Daniel Wagner, Amy Baco-Taylor, David Itano, Diva Amon, Erik E. Cordes, Lisa Levin, Peter H. Edwards, Randall Kosaki, Shirley Pomponi, Steve Gittings
2020, Conference Paper, Report on the Workshop to Identify National Ocean Exploration Priorities in the Pacific
The primary goal of the biology characterization breakout group was to identify the strategies, tools, data priorities, and key partnerships needed to conduct baseline biological characterizations of deep-sea benthic environments across the U.S. EEZ in the Pacific. Discussions focused primarily on priorities for the characterization of deep-water (>200-meter depths) benthic biological...
Recent planform changes in the Upper Mississippi River
James T. Rogala, Faith A. Fitzpatrick, Jon S. Hendrickson
2020, Long Term Resource Monitoring Technical Report LTRM-2019GC8
Geomorphic changes in the Upper Mississippi River (UMR) have long been a concern of river agencies charged with maintaining and restoring river habitat (GREAT 1980; Jackson et al. 1981; USFWS 1992). Large meandering alluvial rivers like the UMR are expected to constantly change and adjust their fluvial landforms within their...
Yellowstone River Compact Commission sixty-ninth annual report 2020
Seth Davidson
2020, Report
No abstract available....
He-CO2-N2 isotope and relative abundance characterization of geothermal fluids from the Ethiopian Rift
S. A. Halldorsson, P. Scarsi, T. Abebe, T. Evans, Justin T. Kulongoski, P. R. Castillo, P. H. Barry
2020, Conference Paper, Proceedings World Geothermal Congress 2020+1
We report He-CO2-N2 isotopic and relative abundances in free gases and dissolved gas phase of geothermal fluids from the Ethiopian Rift. Fluid samples were collected from ~30 geothermal localities from three key regions throughout rifted and non-rifted areas of Ethiopia. The majority of samples, including off-rift samples, indicate a strong...
Mars Subsurface Water Ice Mapping 2.0 data products and results
Nathaniel E Putzig, Gareth A Morgan, Zachary M Bain, David M Hollibaugh Baker, Ali M Bramson, Samuel W Courville, Colin M. Dundas, Rachel H Hoover, Stefano Nerozzi, Asmin V Pathare, Matthew R Perry, Eric I Petersen, Hanna G Sizemore, Bruce A Campbell, Marco Mastrogiuseppe, Michael T. Mellon, Isaac B. Smith
2020, Report
This work describes the results of the Mars Subsurface Water Ice Mapping (SWIM) project, with results on the distribution of ice on Mars from geomorphic, radar, and thermal analyses....
Estuarine habitat use by White Sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus)
Oliver Patton, Veronica L. Violette, Matthew J. Young, Frederick V. Feyrer
2020, San Francisco Estuary & Watershed Science (18)
White Sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus), a species of concern in the San Francisco Estuary, is in relatively low abundance due to a variety of factors. The purpose of our study was to identify the estuarine habitat used by White Sturgeon to aid in the conservation and management of the species locally...
Occurrence of a suite of stream-obligate amphibians in timberlands of Mendocino County, California, examined using environmental DNA
Brian J. Halstead, Caren S. Goldberg, Robert B Douglas, Patrick M. Kleeman, David W Ulrich
2020, Northwestern Naturalist (101) 194-209
Stream-obligate amphibians are important indicators of ecosystem health in the Pacific Northwest, but distributional information to improve forest management is lacking in many regions. We analyzed archived DNA extracted from water samples in 60 pools in streams on private timberlands in Mendocino County, California, for...
Assessment of methods for soil monitoring in the Adirondack region of New York
Gregory B. Lawrence, Michael R. Antidormi
2020, Report
Repeated sampling to detect changes in forest soils was rarely used before 1990, but the value of soil monitoring in understanding environmental change is becoming well established. The growing number of resampling studies has shown that sampling designs and procedures must be adapted to the objectives of the monitoring...
The next frontier: Making research more reproducible
David E. Rosenberg, Yves Filion, Rebecca Teasley, Samuel Sandoval-Solis, Jory Seth Hecht, Jakobus E. van Zyl, George F. McMahon, J. S. Horsburgh, Joseph R. Kasprzyk, David G. Tarboton
2020, Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management (146)
Science and engineering rest on the concept of reproducibility. An important question for any study is: are the results reproducible? Can the results be recreated independently by other researchers or professionals? Research results need to be independently reproduced and validated before they are accepted as fact or theory. Across numerous...
Hydrogeology, numerical simulation of groundwater flow, and effects of future water use and drought for reach 1 of the Washita River alluvial aquifer, Roger Mills and Custer Counties, western Oklahoma, 1980–2015
John H. Ellis, Derek W. Ryter, Leland T. Fuhrig, Kyle W. Spears, Shana L. Mashburn, Ian M.J. Rogers
2020, Scientific Investigations Report 2020-5118
The Washita River alluvial aquifer is a valley-fill and terrace alluvial aquifer along the valley of the Washita River in western Oklahoma that provides a productive source of groundwater for agricultural irrigation and water supply. The Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) has designated the westernmost section of the aquifer in...
Outburst floods
Jim E. O'Connor, John J. Clague, Joseph S. Walder, Vernon Manville, Robin A. Beebee
2020, Book chapter, Reference Module in Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences
Outbursts from impounded water bodies produce large, hazardous, and geomorphically significant floods affecting the Earth as well as other planetary surfaces. Two broad classes of impoundments are: (1) valleys blocked by ice, landslides, constructed dams, and volcanic materials; and (2) closed basins such as tectonic depressions, calderas, meteor craters, and...
Introduction of the Oriental Weatherfish, Misgurnus anguillicaudatus (Cantor, 1842) in the United States
Amy J. Benson
2020, Newsletter, Invasive and Introduced Species Section Newsletter
Although this fish had been present in the then United States (US) territory of Hawaii since the late 19th century, a growing number of collections in the contiguous US over a century later in the 2000s is noteworthy. The Oriental Weatherfish, also often referred to as the weather loach...
Changing storm conditions in response to projected 21st century climate change and the potential impact on an arctic barrier island–lagoon system—A pilot study for Arey Island and Lagoon, eastern Arctic Alaska
Li H. Erikson, Ann E. Gibbs, Bruce M. Richmond, Curt D. Storlazzi, Benjamin M. Jones, Karin Ohman
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1142
Executive SummaryArey Lagoon, located in eastern Arctic Alaska, supports a highly productive ecosystem, where soft substrate and coastal wet sedge fringing the shores are feeding grounds and nurseries for a variety of marine fish and waterfowl. The lagoon is partially protected from the direct onslaught of Arctic Ocean waves by...
Geologic map of the Butte City 7.5' Quadrangle, Butte County, Idaho
Samuel Levi Helmuth, Evan Martin, Mary K. V. Hodges, Duane E. Champion
2020, Report
The geologic map of the Butte City 7.5’ quadrangle is based on mapping summarized in the 1:100,000 scale map of the Idaho National Laboratory, U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Investigations Map I-2330, by Kuntz and others, 1994. New surficial geologic mapping was completed by National Association of Geoscience Teachers (NAGT) interns,...
