Analysis of stable isotope ratios (δ18O and δ2H) in precipitation of the Verde River watershed, Arizona 2003 through 2014
Kimberly R. Beisner, Nicholas V. Paretti, Rachel S. Tucci
2016, Open-File Report 2016-1053
Stable isotope delta values (δ18O and δ2H) of precipitation can vary with elevation, and quantification of the precipitation elevation gradient can be used to predict recharge elevation within a watershed. Precipitation samples were analyzed for stable isotope delta values between 2003 and 2014 from the Verde River watershed of north-central...
Can the eastern red-backed salamander (Plethodon cinereus) persist in an acidified landscape?
Cheryl A Bondi, Colin M. Beier, Peter K Ducey, Gregory B. Lawrence, Scott W. Bailey
2016, Ecosphere (7)
Hardwood forests of eastern North America have experienced decades of acidic deposition, leading to soil acidification where base cation supply was insufficient to neutralize acid inputs. Negative impacts of soil acidity on amphibians include disrupted embryonic development, lower growth rates, and habitat loss. However, some amphibians exhibit intraspecific variation in...
A new look at liming as an approach to accelerate recovery from acidic deposition effects
Gregory B. Lawrence, Douglas A. Burns, Karen Riva-Murray
2016, Science of the Total Environment (562) 35-46
Acidic deposition caused by fossil fuel combustion has degraded aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems in North America for over four decades. The only management option other than emissions reductions for combating the effects of acidic deposition has been the application of lime to neutralize acidity after it has been deposited on...
Historical water-quality data from the Harlem River, New York
Shawn C. Fisher
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5044
Data specific to the Harlem River, New York, have been summarized and are presented in this report. The data illustrate improvements in the quality of water for the past 65 years and emphasize the importance of a continuous water-quality record for establishing trends in environmental conditions. Although there is a...
The Northeast Stream Quality Assessment
Peter C. Van Metre, Karen Riva-Murray, James F. Coles
2016, Fact Sheet 2016-3021
In 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) is assessing stream quality in the northeastern United States. The goal of the Northeast Stream Quality Assessment (NESQA) is to assess the quality of streams in the region by characterizing multiple water-quality factors that are stressors to aquatic life...
Modeling flow, sediment transport and morphodynamics in rivers
Jonathan M. Nelson, Richard R. McDonald, Yasuyuki Shimizu, Ichiro Kimura, Mohamed Nabi, Kazutake Asahi
2016, Book chapter
Predicting the response of natural or man-made channels to imposed supplies of water and sediment is one of the difficult practical problems commonly addressed by fluvial geomorphologists. This problem typically arises in three situations. In the first situation, geomorphologists are attempting to understand why a channel or class of channels...
The structure of genetic diversity in eelgrass (Zostera marina L.) along the North Pacific and Bering Sea coasts of Alaska
Sandra L. Talbot, George K. Sage, Jolene R. Rearick, Megan C. Fowler, Raquel Muñiz-Salazar, Bethany Baibak, Sandy Wyllie-Echeverria, Alehandro Cabello-Pasini, David H. Ward
2016, PLoS ONE (11)
Eelgrass (Zostera marina) populations occupying coastal waters of Alaska are separated by a peninsula and island archipelago into two Large Marine Ecosystems (LMEs). From populations in both LMEs, we characterize genetic diversity, population structure, and polarity in gene flow using nuclear microsatellite fragment and chloroplast and nuclear sequence data. An...
The source of groundwater and solutes to Many Devils Wash at a former uranium mill site in Shiprock, New Mexico
Andrew J. Robertson, Anthony J. Ranalli, Stephen A. Austin, Bryan R. Lawlis
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5031
The Shiprock Disposal Site is the location of the former Navajo Mill (Mill), a uranium ore-processing facility, located on a terrace overlooking the San Juan River in the town of Shiprock, New Mexico. Following the closure of the Mill, all tailings and associated materials were encapsulated in a disposal cell...
Assessing atmospheric concentration of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) by evergreen Rhododendron maximum next to a contaminated stream
Viet D. Dang, David Walters, Cindy M. Lee
2016, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (35) 2192-2198
Conifers are often used as an “air passive sampler”, but few studies have focused on the implication of broadleaf evergreens to monitor atmospheric semivolatile organic compounds such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). In this study, we used Rhododendron maximum (rhododendron) growing next to a contaminated stream to assess atmospheric PCB concentrations. The study...
Coal-tar-based pavement sealcoat—Potential concerns for human health and aquatic life
Barbara Mahler, Michael D. Woodside, Peter C. Van Metre
2016, Fact Sheet 2016-3017
Introduction Sealcoat is the black, viscous liquid sprayed or painted on many asphalt parking lots, driveways, and playgrounds to protect and enhance the appearance of the underlying asphalt. Studies by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), academic institutions, and State and local agencies have identified coal-tar-based pavement sealcoat as a major source...
Simulation of streamflow and the effects of brush management on water yields in the Double Mountain Fork Brazos River watershed, western Texas 1994–2013
Glenn R. Harwell, Victoria G. Stengel, Johnathan R. Bumgarner
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5032
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the City of Lubbock and the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board, developed and calibrated a Soil and Water Assessment Tool watershed model of the Double Mountain Fork Brazos River watershed in western Texas to simulate monthly mean streamflow and to evaluate...
A method for characterizing late-season low-flow regime in the upper Grand Ronde River Basin, Oregon
Valerie J. Kelly, Seth White
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5041
This report describes a method for estimating ecologically relevant low-flow metrics that quantify late‑season streamflow regime for ungaged sites in the upper Grande Ronde River Basin, Oregon. The analysis presented here focuses on sites sampled by the Columbia River Inter‑Tribal Fish Commission as part of their efforts to monitor habitat...
Tree island pattern formation in the Florida Everglades
Joel A. Carr, P. D’Odorico, Victor C. Engel, Jed Redwine
2016, Ecological Complexity (26) 37-44
The Florida Everglades freshwater landscape exhibits a distribution of islands covered by woody vegetation and bordered by marshes and wet prairies. Known as “tree islands”, these ecogeomorphic features can be found in few other low gradient, nutrient limited freshwater wetlands. In the last few decades, however, a large percentage of...
Total dissolved gas and water temperature in the lower Columbia River, Oregon and Washington, water year 2015
Heather M. Bragg, Matthew W. Johnston
2016, Open-File Report 2015-1212
Significant Findings An analysis of total-dissolved-gas (TDG) and water-temperature data collected at eight fixed monitoring stations on the lower Columbia River in Oregon and Washington in water year 2015 indicated the following: All but 1 of the 85 TDG sensor laboratory checks that were performed after field deployment were within ±0.5-percent saturation...
Dairy-impacted wastewater is a source of iodinated disinfection byproducts in the environment
Michelle Hladik, Laura E. Hubbard, Dana W. Kolpin, Michael J. Focazio
2016, Environmental Science & Technology (3) 190-193
Iodinated disinfection byproducts (DBPs) are among the most toxic DBPs, but they are not typically measured in treated water. Iodinated DBPs can be toxic to humans, and they also have the potential to affect aquatic communities. Because of the specific use of iodine and iodine-containing compounds in dairies, such livestock...
Using climate, energy, and spatial-based hypotheses to interpret macroecological patterns of North America chelonians
Joshua R. Ennen, Mickey Agha, Wilfredo A. Matamoros, Sarah C. Hazzard, Jeffrey E. Lovich
2016, Canadian Journal of Zoology (94) 453-461
Our study investigates how factors, such as latitude, productivity, and several environmental variables, influence contemporary patterns of the species richness in North American turtles. In particular, we test several hypotheses explaining broad-scale species richness patterns on several species richness data sets: (i) total turtles, (ii) freshwater turtles only, (iii) aquatic...
Perchlorate and selected metals in water and soil within Mount Rushmore National Memorial, South Dakota, 2011–15
Galen K. Hoogestraat, Barbara L. Rowe
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5030
Mount Rushmore National Memorial is located in the east-central part of the Black Hills area of South Dakota and is challenged to provide drinking water to about 3 million annual visitors and year-round park personnel. An environmental concern to water resources within Mount Rushmore National Memorial has been the annual...
Forest cover changes due to hydrocarbon extraction disturbance in central Pennsylvania (2004–2010)
Coral Roig-Silva, E. Terrence Slonecker, Lesley Milheim, Jesse R. Ballew, S. Gail Winters
2016, Journal of Maps (12) 131-138
The state of Pennsylvania has a long history of oil and gas extraction. In recent years with advances in technology such as hydraulic fracturing, hydrocarbon sources that were not profitable in the past are now being exploited. Here, we present an assessment of the cumulative impact of oil and gas...
Proposed Auxiliary Boundary Stratigraphic Section and Point (ASSP) for the base of the Ordovician System at Lawson Cove, Utah, USA
James F. Miller, Kevin R. Evans, Raymond L. Ethington, Rebecca Freeman, James D. Loch, John E. Repetski, Robert Ripperdan, John F. Taylor
2016, Stratigraphy (12) 219-236
The Global boundary Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) for the base of the Ordovician System is at the First Appearance Datum (FAD) of the conodont Iapetognathus fluctivagus at Green Point in Newfoundland, Canada. Strata there are typical graptolitic facies that were deposited near the base of the continental slope.We propose...
Flood-inundation maps for a 9.1-mile reach of the Coast Fork Willamette River near Creswell and Goshen, Lane County, Oregon
Glen W. Hess, Tana Haluska
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5029
Digital flood-inundation maps for a 9.1-mile reach of the Coast Fork Willamette River near Creswell and Goshen, Oregon, were developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). The inundation maps, which can be accessed through the USGS Flood Inundation Mapping Science...
Selected low-flow frequency statistics for continuous-record streamgages in Georgia, 2013
Anthony J. Gotvald
2016, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5037
This report presents the annual and monthly minimum 1- and 7-day average streamflows with the 10-year recurrence interval (1Q10 and 7Q10) for 197 continuous-record streamgages in Georgia. Streamgages used in the study included active and discontinued stations having a minimum of 10 complete climatic years of record as of September...
The Chahnaly low sulfidation epithermal gold deposit, western Makran volcanic arc, southeastern Iran
Ali Sholeh, Ebrahim Rastad, David L. Huston, J. Bruce Gemmell, Ryan D. Taylor
2016, Economic Geology (111) 619-639
The Chahnaly low-sulfidation epithermal Au deposit and nearby Au prospects are located northwest of the intermittently active Bazman stratovolcano on the western end of the Makran volcanic arc, which formed as the result of subduction of the remnant Neo-Tethyan oceanic crust beneath the Lut block. The arc hosts the...
Phosphorus removal from aquaculture effluents at the Northeast Fishery Center in Lamar, Pennsylvania using iron oxide sorption media
Philip Sibrell, Thomas Kehler
2016, Aquacultural Engineering (72-73) 45-52
Three different iron oxide-based sorption media samples were tested for removal of phosphorus (P) from fish hatchery effluents using fixed bed processing. Two of the media samples were derived from residuals produced by the treatment of acid mine drainage, which were then compared to granular ferric hydroxide (GFH), a commercially...
Estimating evapotranspiration and groundwater flow from water-table fluctuations for a general wetland scenario
Lisa C. Weber, Michael J. Wiley, Douglas Wilcox
2016, Ecohydrology (7) 378-390
The use of diurnal water-table fluctuation methods to calculate evapotranspiration (ET) and groundwater flow is of increasing interest in ecohydrological studies. Most studies of this type, however, have been located in riparian wetlands of semi-arid regions where groundwater levels are consistently below topographic surface elevations and precipitation events are infrequent....
Tree-ring-based estimates of long-term seasonal precipitation in the Souris River Region of Saskatchewan, North Dakota and Manitoba
Karen R. Ryberg, Aldo V. Vecchia, F. Adnan Akyuz, Wei Lin
2016, Canadian Water Resources Journal (41) 412-428
Historically unprecedented flooding occurred in the Souris River Basin of Saskatchewan, North Dakota and Manitoba in 2011, during a longer term period of wet conditions in the basin. In order to develop a model of future flows, there is a need to evaluate effects of past multidecadal climate variability and/or...
