Analytical framework to estimate water use associated with continuous oil and gas development
Joshua F. Valder, Ryan R. McShane, Theodore B. Barnhart, Spencer L. Wheeling, Janet M. Carter, Kathleen M. Macek-Rowland, Gregory C. Delzer, Joanna N. Thamke
2019, Scientific Investigations Report 2019-5100
An analytical framework was designed to estimate water use associated with continuous oil and gas (COG) development in support of the U.S. Geological Survey Water Availability and Use Science Program. This framework was developed to better understand the relation between the production of COG resources for energy and the amount...
Linking sedimentation and erosion patterns with reservoir morphology and dam operations during streambed drawdowns in a flood-control reservoir in the Oregon Cascades
Mackenzie K. Keith, Laurel E. Stratton
2019, Conference Paper, Proceedings of SEDHYD 2019
Since water-year (WY) 2011, pool levels at Fall Creek Lake, Oregon, are temporarily lowered to an elevation near historical streambed each fall, creating free-flowing channel conditions that facilitate downstream passage of juvenile spring Chinook salmon. These drawdown operations have also mobilized substantial quantities of predominantly fine (<2 mm) reservoir sediment...
Anderson Ranch wetlands hydrologic characterization in Taos County, New Mexico
Amy E. Galanter, Zachary M. Shephard, Pamela Herrera-Olivas
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1100
The Anderson Ranch property (study area), located in Taos County, north-central New Mexico, was transferred from Chevron Mining, Inc. (CMI) to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) as part of a Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration (NRDAR) court-ordered settlement. The study area supports freshwater emergent wetlands and freshwater ponds....
Can geologic factors be predictive for distinguishing between productive and non-productive geothermal wells?
Drew L. Siler, Erick R. Burns, James E Faulds
2019, Geothermal Resources Council Transactions (43) 884-901
Geologic data are examined to evaluate whether certain geologic characteristics occur in higher abundance or higher magnitude along production geothermal wells relative to non-productive wells. We perform 3D geologic mapping, 3D stress modeling, and fault-slip modeling to estimate fourteen different geologic factors that are hypothesized to control or correlate with...
Integration of eDNA-based biological monitoring within the US Geological Survey’s national streamgage network
David S. Pilliod, Matthew Laramie, Dorene McCoy, Scott Maclean
2019, Journal of the American Water Resources Association (55) 1505-1518
This study explores the feasibility and utility of integrating environmental DNA (eDNA) assessments of species occurrences into the United States (U.S.) Geological Survey’s national streamgage network. We used an existing network of five gages in southwest Idaho to explore the type of information that could be gained as well as...
Water resources on Guam—Potential impacts of and adaptive response to climate change
Stephen B. Gingerich, Adam G. Johnson, Sarah N. Rosa, Mathieu D. Marineau, Scott Wright, Lauren E. Hay, Matthew J. Widlansky, John W. Jenson, Corinne I. Wong, Jay L. Banner, Melissa L. Finucane, Victoria W. Keener
2019, Scientific Investigations Report 2019-5095
The goals of this joint U.S. Geological Survey, University of Hawaiʻi, University of Guam, University of Texas, and East-West Center study were to (1) provide basic understanding about water resources for U.S. Department of Defense installations on Guam and (2) assess the resulting effect of sea-level rise and a changing...
A fuzzy logic approach for estimating recovery factors of miscible CO2-EOR projects in the United States
C. Ozgen Karacan
2019, Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering (184)
"Recovery factor (RF) is one of the most fundamental parameters that define engineering and economical success of any operational phase in oil and gas production. The effectiveness of the operation, e.g. CO2-EOR (enhanced oil recovery with carbon dioxide injection), is usually defined by multiplying the resultant recovery factor by the...
Finding the sweet spot: Shifting climate optima for maple syrup production in North America
Joshua M. Rapp, David A. Lutz, Ryan H. Huish, Boris Dufour, Selena Ahmed, Toni Lyn Morelli, Kristina A. Stinson
2019, Forest Ecology and Management (448) 187-197
Climate change is affecting the benefits society derives from forests. One such forest ecosystem service is maple syrup, which is primarily derived from Acer saccharum (sugar maple), currently an abundant and widespread tree species in eastern North America. Two climate sensitive components of sap affect syrup production: sugar content...
Using the stream salmonid simulator (S3) to assess juvenile Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) production under historical and proposed action flows in the Klamath River, California
John M. Plumb, Russell W. Perry, Nicholas A. Som, Julie Alexander, Nicholas J. Hetrick
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1099
Executive SummaryThe production of Klamath River fall Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) in northern California and southern Oregon is thought to be limited by poor survival during freshwater juvenile life stages, in part a result of Ceratonova shasta—a highly infectious disease that can lead to high fish mortality. Higher flushing...
Climatic variation drives growth potential of juvenile Chinook Salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) along a sub-Arctic boreal riverscape
Jeffrey A. Falke, Brock M. Huntsman, Erik R. Schoen
2019, Book chapter, Advances in understanding landscape influences on freshwater habitats and biological assemblages
Climatic variation is a key driver of freshwater physical processes that in turn control stream fish growth and population dynamics at fine spatial scales and species distributions across broad landscapes. A recent downturn in Chinook Salmon returns across the Yukon River basin, Alaska, USA, and Yukon Territories, Canada, has led...
Valid debris-flow models must avoid hot starts
Richard M. Iverson, David L. George
2019, Conference Paper, 7th International Conference on Debris-Flow Hazards Mitigation-Proceedings
Debris-flow experiments and models commonly use “hot-start” initial conditions in which downslope motion begins when a large force imbalance is abruptly imposed. By contrast, initiation of natural debris flows almost invariably results from small perturbations of static force balances that apply to debris masses poised in steep channels or...
Updates to USGS national seismic hazard model (NSHM) and design ground motion maps for 2020 NEHRP recommended provisions
Sanaz Rezaeian, Nico Luco
2019, Conference Paper, 2019 SEAOC convention proceedings
This presentation summarizes the proposed updates to earthquake design ground motions for the 2020 edition of the NEHRP Recommended Seismic Provisions, expected to be incorporated into the ASCE 7-22 Standard. The implications of these updates on the values of design ground motions for example locations in both conterminous and nonconterminous...
Application of the Stream Salmonid Simulator (S3) to Klamath River fall Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), California—Parameterization and calibration
Russell W. Perry, John M. Plumb, Edward C. Jones, Nicholas A. Som, Thomas B. Hardy, Nicholas J. Hetrick
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1107
Executive SummaryIn this report, we describe application of the Stream Salmonid Simulator (S3) to Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) in the Klamath River between Keno Dam in southern Oregon and the ocean in northern California. S3 is a deterministic life-stage-structured population model that tracks daily growth, movement, and survival...
Modeling long-term effects of fuel treatments on fuel loads and fire regimes in the Great Basin
Nancy F. Glenn, Alejandro N Flores, Douglas J. Shinneman, David S. Pilliod
2019, Report
The principal motivation for this study is that sagebrush-steppe ecosystems are undergoing significant state changes, and land managers are challenged with optimizing their resources for both short- and long-term use. Yet, limited knowledge is available regarding how the sagebrush-steppe will respond to environmental changes related to precipitation and temperature regimes,...
Migration routes, foraging behavior, and site fidelity of loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) satellite tracked from a globally important rookery
D.R. Evans, Raymond R. Carthy, S.A. Ceriani
2019, Marine Biology (166)
The Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge, Florida, USA (27.946°N, − 80.494°W) represents one of the largest loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) nesting sites in the Western Hemisphere. Surprisingly, little work has been conducted to determine females’ post-nesting migratory behavior and characteristics of their foraging areas. Between 2008 and 2017,...
Discovering blind geothermal systems in the Great Basin Region: An integrated geologic and geophysical approach for establishing geothermal play fairways: All phases
E. Faulds James, Nicholas H. Hinz, Mark Coolbaugh, Bridget Ayling, Jonathan M.G. Glen, Jason W. Craig, Emma McConnville, Drew L. Siler, John Queen, Jeff Witter, Christian Hardwick
2019, Report
Most geothermal resources in the Great Basin region of the western USA are blind, and thus the discovery of new commercial-grade systems requires synthesis of favorable characteristics for geothermal activity. The geothermal play fairway concept involves integration of multiple parameters indicative of geothermal activity to identify promising...
Scenarios of climate adaptation potential on protected working lands from management of soils
Kristin B. Byrd, P. Alvarez, Benjamin Sleeter, Lorraine E. Flint, D. Richard Cameron, J. Creque
2019, Environmental Research Letters (14)
Management of protected lands may enhance ecosystem services that conservation programs were designed to protect. Practices that build soil organic matter (SOM) on agricultural lands also increase soil water holding capacity, potentially reducing climatic water deficit (CWD), increasing actual evapotranspiration (AET) and increasing groundwater recharge (RCH). We developed nine...
Energy intake rate influences survival of Black Oystercatcher Haematopus bachmani broods
B.H. Robinson, L.M. Phillips, Abby Powell
2019, Journal of Seabird Science and Conservation (47) 277-283
Black Oystercatchers Haematopus bachmani, a species of conservation concern, depend on marine intertidal prey resources. We examined diet, feeding rates, growth, and survival of Black Oystercatcher broods in southcentral Alaska, 2013-2014. To determine the importance of diet on brood survival, we modeled daily survival rates of broods as a function...
Characterization and load estimation of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from selected Rio Grande tributary stormwater channels in the Albuquerque urbanized area, New Mexico, 2017–18
Zachary M. Shephard, Kathleen E. Conn, Kimberly R. Beisner, Alanna D. Jornigan, Christina F. Bryant
2019, Open-File Report 2019-1106
In cooperation with the New Mexico County of Bernalillo, the U.S. Geological Survey characterized potential polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) concentration and estimated loading into the Rio Grande from watersheds that are under the county’s jurisdiction. Water and sediment samples were collected in 2017–18 from six sites within four stormwater drainage basins...
Discoveries and novel insights in ecology using structural equation modeling
Daniel C. Laughlin, James Grace
2019, Ecology and Evolution (12) 28-34
As we enter the era of data science (Lortie 2018), quantitative analysis methodologies are proliferating rapidly, leaving ecologists with the task of choosing among many alternatives. The use of structural equation modeling (SEM) by ecologists has increased in recent years, prompting us to ask users a number of questions about...
Survival and movements of head‐started Mojave desert tortoises
J. A. Daly, K. A. Buhlmann, B. D. Todd, Clinton T. Moore, J. M. Peaden, T. D. Tuberville
2019, Journal of Wildlife Management (83) 1700-1710
Head‐starting is a conservation strategy in which young animals are protected in captivity temporarily before their release into the wild at a larger size, when their survival is presumably increased. The Mojave desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) is in decline, and head‐starting has been identified as one of several conservation measures...
The hydrologic system of the south Florida peninsula—Development and application of the Biscayne and Southern Everglades Coastal Transport (BISECT) model
Eric D. Swain, Melinda A. Lohmann, Carl R. Goodwin
2019, Scientific Investigations Report 2019-5045
The Biscayne and Southern Everglades Coastal Transport (BISECT) model was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey under the Greater Everglades Priority Ecosystem Studies Initiative to evaluate, both separately and in conjunction, the likely effects on surface-water stages and flows, hydroperiod, and groundwater levels and salinity in south Florida of (1)...
Climate-driven shifts in soil temperature and moisture regimes suggest opportunities to enhance assessments of dryland resilience and resistance
John B. Bradford, Daniel R. Schlaepfer, William K. Lauenroth, Kyle A. Palmquist, Jeanne C. Chambers, Jeremy D. Maestas, Steven B. Campbell
2019, Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution (7)
Assessing landscape patterns in climate vulnerability, as well as resilience and resistance to drought, disturbance, and invasive species, requires appropriate metrics of relevant environmental conditions. In dryland systems of western North America, soil temperature and moisture regimes have been widely utilized as an indicator of resilience to disturbance and resistance...
Comparison of physical to numerical mixing with different tracer advection schemes in estuarine environments
Tarandeep S. Kalra, Xiangyu Li, John C. Warner, W. R. Geyer, Hui Wu
2019, Journal of Marine Science and Engineering (10)
The numerical simulation of estuarine dynamics requires accurate prediction for the transport of tracers such as temperature and salinity. During the simulation of these processes, all numerical models introduce two kinds of tracer mixing: 1) by parameterizing the tracer eddy diffusivity through turbulence models leading to a source of physical...
Survival and recruitment dynamics of Black-legged Kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla at an Alaskan colony
Cyndy Loftin, Aly McKnight, Erik J. Blomberg, David B. Irons, Shawn T. McKinney
2019, Marine Ornithology: Journal of Seabird Research and Conservation (47) 209-222
The majority of seabirds breed colonially and exhibit considerable site fidelity over the course of their long lifespans. Initial colony selection can therefore have substantial fitness consequences; however, factors contributing to recruitment into colonies and subsequent fidelity remain unclear. We used multi-state capture-recapture models to test several hypotheses related to...
