Potentiometric surface, 2012, and water-level differences, 2005-12, of the Sparta Aquifer in north-central Louisiana
Benton D. McGee, Jeffrey A. Brantly
2015, Scientific Investigations Map 3313
The Sparta aquifer is used in 15 parishes in north-central Louisiana, primarily for public supply and industrial purposes. Of those parishes, eight (Bienville, Claiborne, Jackson, Lincoln, Ouachita, Union, Webster, and Winn) rely on the Sparta aquifer as their principal source of groundwater. In 2010, withdrawals from the Sparta aquifer in...
Composition, shell strength, and metabolizable energy of Mulinia lateralis and Ischadium recurvum as food for wintering surf scoters (Melanitta perspicillata)
Alicia Berlin, Matthew C. Perry, R.A. Kohn, K.T. Paynter Jr., Mary Ann Ottinger
2015, PLoS ONE (10) 1-17
Decline in surf scoter (Melanitta perspicillata) waterfowl populations wintering in the Chesapeake Bay has been associated with changes in the availability of benthic bivalves. The Bay has become more eutrophic, causing changes in the benthos available to surf scoters. The subsequent decline in oyster beds (Crassostrea virginica) has reduced the...
Water-quality characteristics of stormwater runoff in Rapid City, South Dakota, 2008-14
Galen K. Hoogestraat
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5069
The water quality of Rapid Creek is important because the reach that flows through Rapid City, South Dakota, is a valuable spawning area for a self-sustaining trout fishery, actively used for recreation, and a seasonal municipal water supply for the City of Rapid City. This report presents the current (2008–14)...
The effects of geomorphic changes during Hurricane Sandy on water levels in Great South Bay
Maarten van Ormondt, Cheryl Hapke, Dano Roelvink, Timothy R. Nelson
2015, Conference Paper, The proceedings of the coastal sediments 2015
Hurricane Sandy caused record coastal flooding along the south shore of Long Island, NY, and led to significant geomorphic changes. These included severe dune erosion along the length of Fire Island and the formation of the Wilderness Breach. This study attempts to use numerical models to quantify how these changes...
Effects of proposed sediment borrow pits on nearshore wave climate and longshore sediment transport rate along Breton Island, Louisiana
Patricia (Soupy) Dalyander, Rangley C. Mickey, Joseph W. Long, James G. Flocks
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1055
As part of a plan to preserve bird habitat on Breton Island, the southernmost extent of the Chandeleur Islands and part of the Breton National Wildlife Refuge in Louisiana, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans to increase island elevation with sand supplied from offshore resources. Proposed sand extraction sites include...
Reducing cross-sectional data using a genetic algorithm method and effects on cross-section geometry and steady-flow profiles
Charles E. Berenbrock
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5034
Reduction of cross-sectional data using a genetic algorithm method, and the effects of data reduction on channel geometry and steady-flow profiles, were analyzed. Two reduction methods─standard and genetic algorithms─were used to reduce cross-sectional data from the Kootenai River in northern Idaho. Cross sections that are representative of meander, straight, braided,...
Evapotranspiration trends over the eastern United States during the 20th century
Ryan J. Kramer, Lahouari Bounoua, Ping Zhang, Robert E. Wolfe, Thomas G. Huntington, Marc L. Imhoff, Kurt Thome, Genevieve L. Noyce
2015, Hydrology and Earth System Sciences (2) 93-111
Most models evaluated by the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate change estimate projected increases in temperature and precipitation with rising atmospheric CO2 levels. Researchers have suggested that increases in CO2 and associated increases in temperature and precipitation may stimulate vegetation growth and increase evapotranspiration (ET), which acts as a cooling mechanism, and on...
Assessing geomorphic change along the Trinity River downstream from Lewiston Dam, California, 1980-2011
Jennifer A. Curtis, Scott Wright, Justin Toby Minear, Lorraine E. Flint
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5046
The Trinity River Restoration Program, one of the nation’s largest adaptively managed river restoration programs, requires periodic assessment to determine the effectiveness of management actions in restoring channel dynamics and habitat features. This study documents riparian and channel changes along an intensively managed 65-kilometer reach of the Trinity River in...
High-resolution digital elevation model of lower Cowlitz and Toutle Rivers, adjacent to Mount St. Helens, Washington, based on an airborne lidar survey of October 2007
Adam R. Mosbrucker
2015, Data Series 936
The lateral blast, debris avalanche, and lahars of the May 18th, 1980, eruption of Mount St. Helens, Washington, dramatically altered the surrounding landscape. Lava domes were extruded during the subsequent eruptive periods of 1980–1986 and 2004–2008. More than three decades after the emplacement of the 1980 debris avalanche, high sediment...
Geomorphic mapping to support river restoration on the Trinity River downstream from Lewiston Dam, California, 1980-2011
Jennifer A. Curtis, Timothy M. Guerrero
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1047
Historic land use, dam construction, water storage, and flow diversions in the Trinity River watershed have resulted in downstream geomorphic change, loss of salmonid habitat, and declines in salmonid populations. The USGS in cooperation with the Trinity River Restoration Program, a multi-agency partnership tasked with implementing federally mandated restoration, completed...
Late Holocene flood probabilities in the Black Hills, South Dakota with emphasis on the Medieval Climate Anomaly
Tessa M. Harden, James E. O'Connor, Daniel G. Driscoll
2015, Catena (130) 62-68
A stratigraphic record of 35 large paleofloods and four large historical floods during the last 2000 years for four basins in the Black Hills of South Dakota reveals three long-term flooding episodes, identified using probability distributions, at A.D.: 120–395, 900–1290, and 1410 to present. During the Medieval Climate Anomaly (~ A.D. 900–1300)...
Identifying multiple timescale rainfall controls on Mojave Desert ecohydrology using an integrated data and modeling approach for Larrea tridentata
Gene-Hua Crystal Ng, David R. Bedford, David M. Miller
2015, Water Resources Research (51)-3884
The perennial shrub Larrea tridentata is widely successful in North American warm deserts but is also susceptible to climatic perturbations. Understanding its response to rainfall variability requires consideration of multiple timescales. We examine intra-annual to multi-year relationships using model simulations of soil moisture and vegetation growth over 50 years in...
Using biotic ligand models to predict metal toxicity in mineralized systems
Kathleen S. Smith, Laurie S. Balistrieri, Andrew S. Todd
2015, Applied Geochemistry (57) 55-72
The biotic ligand model (BLM) is a numerical approach that couples chemical speciation calculations with toxicological information to predict the toxicity of aquatic metals. This approach was proposed as an alternative to expensive toxicological testing, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency incorporated the BLM into the 2007 revised aquatic life...
The fate of cyanide in leach wastes at gold mines: an environmental perspective
Craig A. Johnson
2015, Applied Geochemistry (57) 194-205
This paper reviews the basic chemistry of cyanide, methods by which cyanide can be analyzed, and aspects of cyanide behavior that are most relevant to environmental considerations at mineral processing operations associated with gold mines. The emphasis is on research results reported since 1999 and on data gathered for...
Characteristics and environmental aspects of slag: a review
Nadine M. Piatak, Michael B. Parsons, Robert R. Seal II
2015, Applied Geochemistry (57) 236-266
Slag is a waste product from the pyrometallurgical processing of various ores. Based on over 150 published studies, this paper provides an overview of mineralogical and geochemical characteristics of different types of slag and their environmental consequences, particularly from the release of potentially toxic elements to water. This chapter...
Field observations of artificial sand and oil agglomerates
Patricia (Soupy) Dalyander, Joseph W. Long, Nathaniel G. Plant, Molly R. McLaughlin, Rangley C. Mickey
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1057
Oil that comes into the surf zone following spills, such as occurred during the 2010 Deepwater Horizon (DWH) blowout, can mix with local sediment to form heavier-than-water sand and oil agglomerates (SOAs), at times in the form of mats a few centimeters thick and...
Summary of urban stormwater quality in Albuquerque, New Mexico, 2003-12
Erik F. Storms, Gretchen P. Oelsner, Evan A. Locke, Michael R. Stevens, Orlando C. Romero
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5006
Urban stormwater in the Albuquerque metropolitan area was sampled by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the City of Albuquerque, the Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority, the New Mexico Department of Transportation, and the University of New Mexico. Stormwater was sampled from a network of monitoring stations from...
Bathymetric and velocimetric surveys at highway bridges crossing the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers on the periphery of Missouri, June 2014
Richard J. Huizinga
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5048
Bathymetric and velocimetric data were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Transportation, in the vicinity of 8 bridges at 7 highway crossings of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers on the periphery of Missouri from June 3 to 11, 2014. A multibeam echosounder mapping...
Temperature impacts on the water year 2014 drought in California
Shraddhanand Shukla, Mohammad Safeeq, Amir AghaKouchak, Kaiyu Guan, Christopher C. Funk
2015, Geophysical Research Letters (42) 4384-4393
California is experiencing one of the worst droughts on record. Here we use a hydrological model and risk assessment framework to understand the influence of temperature on the water year (WY) 2014 drought in California and examine the probability that this drought would have been less severe if temperatures resembled...
Analysis of regional rainfall-runoff parameters for the Lake Michigan Diversion hydrological modeling
David T. Soong, Thomas M. Over
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5053
The Lake Michigan Diversion Accounting (LMDA) system has been developed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Chicago District (USACE-Chicago) and the State of Illinois as a part of the interstate Great Lakes water regulatory program. The diverted Lake Michigan watershed is a 673-square-mile watershed that is comprised of the...
U.S. Geological Survey water-resources programs in New Mexico, FY 2015
David P. Mau
2015, Fact Sheet 2015-3039
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has collected hydrologic information in New Mexico since 1889, beginning with the first USGS streamflow-gaging station in the Nation, located on the Rio Grande near Embudo, New Mexico. Water-resources information provided by the USGS is used by many government agencies for issuing flood warnings to...
Results from laboratory and field testing of nitrate measuring spectrophotometers
Teri T. Snazelle
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1065
Five ultraviolet (UV) spectrophotometer nitrate analyzers were evaluated by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Hydrologic Instrumentation Facility (HIF) during a two-phase evaluation. In Phase I, the TriOS ProPs (10-millimeter (mm) path length), Hach NITRATAX plus sc (5-mm path length), Satlantic Submersible UV Nitrate Analyzer (SUNA, 10-mm path length), and S::CAN...
Evaluation of Xylem EXO water-quality sondes and sensors
Teri T. Snazelle
2015, Open-File Report 2015-1063
Two models of multiparameter sondes manufactured by Xylem, parent company of Yellow Springs Incorporated (YSI)—EXO1 and EXO2—equipped with EXO conductivity/temperature (C/T), pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), and turbidity sensors, were evaluated by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Hydrologic Instrumentation Facility. The sondes and sensors were evaluated in two phases for compliance with...
The source, discharge, and chemical characteristics of selected springs, and the abundance and health of associated endemic anuran species in the Mojave network parks
Roy A. Schroeder, Gregory A. Smith, Peter Martin, Alan L. Flint, Elizabeth Gallegos, Robert N. Fisher
2015, Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5027
Hydrological and biological investigations were done during 2005 and 2006 in cooperation with the U.S. National Park Service to investigate the source, discharge, and chemical characteristics of selected springs and the abundance and health of endemic anuran (frog and toad) species at Darwin Falls in Death Valley National Park, Piute...
Monitoring Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem wetlands: Can long-term monitoring help us understand their future?
Andrew M. Ray, Adam J. Sepulveda, Blake R. Hossack, Debra Patla, David Thoma, Robert K. Al-Chokhachy, Andrea R. Litt
2015, Yellowstone Science (23) 44-53
In the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), changes in the drying cycles of wetlands have been documented. Wetlands are areas where the water table is at or near the land surface and standing shallow water is present for much or all of the growing season. We discuss how monitoring data can...
