A simple rubric for Stratigraphic Fidelity (β) of paleoenvironmental time series
Harry J. Dowsett, Marci M. Robinson, Kevin M. Foley
2016, Stratigraphy (13) 303-305
The Pliocene, specifically the late Pliocene, has been a focus of paleoclimate research formore than 25 years. Synoptic regional and global reconstructions along with high-resolution time-series have produced nuanced conceptual models of paleoenvironmental conditions and enhanced our understanding of climate variability and climate sensitivity from the Late Pliocene, the most recent interval of...
Use of lidar point cloud data to support estimation of residual trace metals stored in mine chat piles in the Old Lead Belt of southeastern, Missouri
Emitt C. Witt III
2016, AIMS Environmental Science (3) 509-524
Historic lead and zinc (Pb-Zn) mining in southeast Missouri’s ―Old Lead Belt‖ has left large chat piles dominating the landscape where prior to 1972 mining was the major industry of the region. As a result of variable beneficiation methods over the history of mining activity, these piles remain with large...
Participatory modeling and structured decision making
Kelly F. Robinson, Angela K. Fuller
2016, Book chapter, Environmental Modeling with Stakeholders
Structured decision making (SDM) provides a framework for making sound decisions even when faced with uncertainty, and is a transparent, defensible, and replicable method used to understand complex problems. A hallmark of SDM is the explicit incorporation of values and science, which often includes participation from multiple stakeholders, helping to...
Establishing links between streamflow and ecological integrity in the Sudbury River (Northeastern U.S.)
Allison H. Roy, Stephen F. Jane, Peter D. Hazelton, Todd A. Richards, John T. Finn, Timothy O. Randhir
2016, Cooperator Science Series 122-2016
With increased pressure from a growing human population, managers are challenged to understand how novel disturbances (e.g., climate change, increased water withdrawals, urbanization) may affect natural resources. The Sudbury River is a National Wild and Scenic River located in suburban Boston, Massachusetts (Northeastern US) with myriad impairments (e.g., mainstem impoundments,...
Hydrogeologic framework and characterization of the Truxton Aquifer on the Hualapai Reservation, Mohave County, Arizona
Donald J. Bills, Jamie P. Macy
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5171
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Bureau of Reclamation, developed this study to determine an estimate of groundwater in storage in the Truxton aquifer on the Hualapai Reservation in northwestern Arizona. For this study, the Truxton aquifer is defined as the unconfined, saturated groundwater in the unconsolidated to...
Applying downscaled Global Climate Model data to a groundwater model of the Suwannee River Basin, Florida, USA
Eric D. Swain, J. Hal Davis
2016, American Journal of Climate Change (5) 526-557
The application of Global Climate Model (GCM) output to a hydrologic model allows for comparisons between simulated recent and future conditions and provides insight into the dynamics of hydrology as it may be affected by climate change. A previously developed numerical model of the Suwannee River Basin, Florida, USA, was...
Improving the effectiveness of ecological site descriptions: General state-and-transition models and the Ecosystem Dynamics Interpretive Tool (EDIT)
Brandon T. Bestelmeyer, Jeb C. Williamson, Curtis J. Talbot, Greg W. Cates, Michael C. Duniway, Joel R. Brown
2016, Rangelands (38) 329-335
State-and-transition models (STMs) are useful tools for management, but they can be difficult to use and have limited content.STMs created for groups of related ecological sites could simplify and improve their utility. The amount of information linked to models can be increased using tables that communicate management interpretations and important...
Hydrologic connectivity: Quantitative assessments of hydrologic-enforced drainage structures in an elevation model
Sandra K. Poppenga, Bruce B. Worstell
2016, Journal of Coastal Research (Special Issue 76) 90-106
Elevation data derived from light detection and ranging present challenges for hydrologic modeling as the elevation surface includes bridge decks and elevated road features overlaying culvert drainage structures. In reality, water is carried through these structures; however, in the elevation surface these features impede modeled overland surface flow. Thus, a...
Topobathymetric elevation model development using a new methodology: Coastal National Elevation Database
Jeffrey J. Danielson, Sandra K. Poppenga, John Brock, Gayla A. Evans, Dean J. Tyler, Dean B. Gesch, Cindy A. Thatcher, John Barras
2016, Journal of Coastal Research (Special Issue 76) 75-89
During the coming decades, coastlines will respond to widely predicted sea-level rise, storm surge, and coastalinundation flooding from disastrous events. Because physical processes in coastal environments are controlled by the geomorphology of over-the-land topography and underwater bathymetry, many applications of geospatial data in coastal environments require detailed knowledge of the...
The 3D elevation program - Precision agriculture and other farm practices
Larry J. Sugarbaker, Carswell
2016, Fact Sheet 2016-3088
A founding motto of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), originally the Soil Conservation Service (SCS), explains that “If we take care of the land, it will take care of us.” Digital elevation models (DEMs; see fig. 1) are derived from light detection and ranging (lidar) data and can be...
Designing occupancy studies when false-positive detections occur
Matthew Clement
2016, Methods in Ecology and Evolution (7) 1529-1547
1.Recently, estimators have been developed to estimate occupancy probabilities when false-positive detections occur during presence-absence surveys. Some of these estimators combine different types of survey data to improve estimates of occupancy. With these estimators, there is a tradeoff between the number of sample units surveyed, and the number and type...
Comparing orbiter and rover image-based mapping of an ancient sedimentary environment, Aeolis Palus, Gale crater, Mars
Kathryn M. Stack, Christopher Edwards, J. P. Grotzinger, S. Gupta, D. Sumner, Lauren A. Edgar, A. Fraeman, S. Jacob, L. LeDeit, K.W. Lewis, M.S. Rice, D. Rubin, F. Calef, K. Edgett, R.M.E. Williams, K. H. Williford
2016, Icarus 3-21
This study provides the first systematic comparison of orbital facies maps with detailed ground-based geology observations from the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity rover to examine the validity of geologic interpretations derived from orbital image data. Orbital facies maps were constructed for the Darwin, Cooperstown, and Kimberley waypoints visited by...
Development of a study design and implementation plan to estimate juvenile salmon survival in Lookout Point Reservoir and other reservoirs of the Willamette Project, western Oregon
Tobias J. Kock, Russell W. Perry, Fred R. Monzyk, Adam C. Pope, John M. Plumb
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1211
Survival estimates for juvenile salmon and steelhead fry in reservoirs impounded by high head dams are coveted data by resource managers. However, this information is difficult to obtain because these fish are too small for tagging using conventional methods such as passive-integrated transponders or radio or acoustic transmitters. We developed...
Continuous-flow centrifugation to collect suspended sediment for chemical analysis
Kathleen E. Conn, Richard S. Dinicola, Robert W. Black, Stephen E. Cox, Richard W. Sheibley, James R. Foreman, Craig A. Senter, Norman T. Peterson
2016, Techniques and Methods 1-D6
Recent advances in suspended-sediment monitoring tools and surrogate technologies have greatly improved the ability to quantify suspended-sediment concentrations and to estimate daily, seasonal, and annual suspended-sediment fluxes from rivers to coastal waters. However, little is known about the chemical composition of suspended sediment, and how it may vary spatially between...
Evaluating external nutrient and suspended-sediment loads to Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, using surrogate regressions with real-time turbidity and acoustic backscatter data
Liam N. Schenk, Chauncey W. Anderson, Paul Diaz, Marc A. Stewart
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5167
Executive SummarySuspended-sediment and total phosphorus loads were computed for two sites in the Upper Klamath Basin on the Wood and Williamson Rivers, the two main tributaries to Upper Klamath Lake. High temporal resolution turbidity and acoustic backscatter data were used to develop surrogate regression models to compute instantaneous concentrations and...
Survival of juvenile chinook salmon and coho salmon in the Roza Dam fish bypass and in downstream reaches of the Yakima River, Washington, 2016
Tobias J. Kock, Russell W. Perry, Amy C. Hansen
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1210
Estimates of juvenile salmon survival are important data for fishery managers in the Yakima River Basin. Radiotelemetry studies during 2012–14 showed that tagged juvenile Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) that passed through the fish bypass at Roza Dam had lower survival than fish that passed through other routes at the dam....
Sources of groundwater and characteristics of surface-water recharge at Bell, White, and Suwannee Springs, Florida, 2012–13
John F. Stamm, W. Scott McBride
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1190
Discharge from springs in Florida is sourced from aquifers, such as the Upper Floridan aquifer, which is overlain by an upper confining unit that locally can have properties of an aquifer. Water levels in aquifers are affected by several factors, such as precipitation, recharge, and groundwater withdrawals, which in turn...
Concentration, flux, and trend estimates with uncertainty for nutrients, chloride, and total suspended solids in tributaries of Lake Champlain, 1990–2014
Laura Medalie
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1200
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission and the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation, estimated daily and 9-month concentrations and fluxes of total and dissolved phosphorus, total nitrogen, chloride, and total suspended solids from 1990 (or first available date) through 2014...
Suspended-sediment concentrations, bedload, particle sizes, surrogate measurements, and annual sediment loads for selected sites in the lower Minnesota River Basin, water years 2011 through 2016
Joel T. Groten, Christopher A. Ellison, Jon S. Hendrickson
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5174
Accurate measurements of fluvial sediment are important for assessing stream ecological health, calculating flood levels, computing sediment budgets, and managing and protecting water resources. Sediment-enriched rivers in Minnesota are a concern among Federal, State, and local governments because turbidity and sediment-laden waters are the leading impairments and affect more than...
Preliminary peak stage and streamflow data at selected streamgaging stations in North Carolina and South Carolina for flooding following Hurricane Matthew, October 2016
J. Curtis Weaver, Toby D. Feaster, Jeanne C. Robbins
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1205
The passage of Hurricane Matthew across the central and eastern regions of North Carolina and South Carolina during October 7–9, 2016, resulted in heavy rainfall that caused major flooding in parts of the eastern Piedmont in North Carolina and coastal regions of both States. Rainfall totals of 3 to 8...
Science to support the understanding of Ohio's water resources, 2016-17
Kimberly Shaffer, Stephanie P. Kula
2016, Fact Sheet 2016-3087
Ohio’s water resources support a complex web of human activities and nature—clean and abundant water is needed for drinking, recreation, farming, and industry, as well as for fish and wildlife needs. Although rainfall in normal years can support these activities and needs, occasional floods and droughts can disrupt streamflow, groundwater,...
Temporal segmentation of animal trajectories informed by habitat use
Marielle L. van Toor, Scott H. Newman, John Y. Takekawa, Martin Wegmann, Kamran Safi
2016, Ecosphere (7)
Most animals live in seasonal environments and experience very different conditions throughout the year. Behavioral strategies like migration, hibernation, and a life cycle adapted to the local seasonality help to cope with fluctuations in environmental conditions. Thus, how an individual utilizes the environment depends both on the current availability of...
Mechanisms of aquatic species invasions across the South Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative region
Amy J. Benson, Bradley Stith, Victor C. Engel
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5148
Invasive species are a global issue, and the southeastern United States is not immune to the problems they present. Therefore, various analyses using modeling and exploratory statistics were performed on the U.S. Geological Survey Nonindigenous Aquatic Species (NAS) Database with the primary objective of determining the most appropriate use of...
Plague cycles in two rodent species from China: Dry years might provide context for epizootics in wet years
David A. Eads, Dean E. Biggins, Lei Xu, Qiyong Liu
2016, Ecosphere (7)
Plague, a rodent-associated, flea-borne zoonosis, is one of the most notorious diseases in history. Rates of plague transmission can increase when fleas are abundant. Fleas commonly desiccate and die when reared under dry conditions in laboratories, suggesting fleas will be suppressed during droughts in the wild, thus reducing the rate...
Multireaction equilibrium geothermometry: A sensitivity analysis using data from the Lower Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park, USA
Jonathan M. King, Shaul Hurwitz, Jacob B. Lowenstern, D. Kirk Nordstrom, R. Blaine McCleskey
2016, Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (328) 105-114
A multireaction chemical equilibria geothermometry (MEG) model applicable to high-temperature geothermal systems has been developed over the past three decades. Given sufficient data, this model provides more constraint on calculated reservoir temperatures than classical chemical geothermometers that are based on either the concentration of silica (SiO2), or the ratios of...
