Geochemical characterization of groundwater discharging from springs north of the Grand Canyon, Arizona, 2009–2016
Kimberly R. Beisner, Fred D. Tillman, Jessica R. Anderson, Ronald C. Antweiler, Donald J. Bills
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5068
A geochemical study was conducted on 37 springs discharging from the Toroweap Formation, Coconino Sandstone, Hermit Formation, Supai Group, and Redwall Limestone north of the Grand Canyon near areas of breccia-pipe uranium mining. Baseline concentrations were established for the elements As, B, Li, Se, SiO2, Sr, Tl, U, and V....
Field-trip guide to a volcanic transect of the Pacific Northwest
Dennis Geist, John A. Wolff, Karen Harpp
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5022-M
The Pacific Northwest region of the United States provides world-class and historically important examples of a wide variety of volcanic features. This guide is designed to give a broad overview of the region’s diverse volcanism rather than focusing on the results of detailed studies; the reader should consult the...
Temporal changes in nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations with comparisons to conservation practices and agricultural activities in the Lower Grand River, Missouri and Iowa, and selected watersheds, 1969–2015
Heather M. Krempa, Allison K. Flickinger
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5067
This report presents the results of a cooperative study by the U.S. Geological Survey and Missouri Department of Natural Resources to estimate total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) concentrations at monitoring sites within and near the Lower Grand River hydrological unit. The primary objectives of the study were to...
Simulated groundwater flow paths, travel time, and advective transport of nitrogen in the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system, Barnegat Bay–Little Egg Harbor Watershed, New Jersey
Lois M. Voronin, Stephen J. Cauller
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5169
Elevated concentrations of nitrogen in groundwater that discharges to surface-water bodies can degrade surface-water quality and habitats in the New Jersey Coastal Plain. An analysis of groundwater flow in the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system and deeper confined aquifers that underlie the Barnegat Bay–Little Egg Harbor (BB-LEH) watershed and estuary was conducted...
Water quality in the surficial aquifer near agricultural areas in the Delaware Coastal Plain, 2014
Brandon J. Fleming, Laura L. Mensch, Judith M. Denver, Roberto M. Cruz, Mark R. Nardi
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5054
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Delaware Department of Agriculture, developed a network of wells to monitor groundwater quality in the surficial aquifer of the Delaware Coastal Plain. Well-drained soils, a flat landscape, and accessible water in the Delaware Coastal Plain make for a productive agricultural setting. As...
Geologic field-trip guide to Long Valley Caldera, California
Wes Hildreth, Judy Fierstein
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5022-L
This guide to the geology of Long Valley Caldera is presented in four parts: (1) An overview of the volcanic geology; (2) a chronological summary of the principal geologic events; (3) a road log with directions and descriptions for 38 field-trip stops; and (4) a summary of the geophysical unrest...
The saltiest springs in the Sierra Nevada, California
James G. Moore, Michael F. Diggles, William C. Evans, Karin Klemic
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5053
The five saltiest springs in the Sierra Nevada in California are found between 38.5° and 38.8° N. latitude, on the South Fork American River; on Caples Creek, a tributary of the Silver Fork American River; and on the North Fork Mokelumne River. The springs issue from Cretaceous granitic rocks in...
Water-quality models to assess algal community dynamics, water quality, and fish habitat suitability for two agricultural land-use dominated lakes in Minnesota, 2014
Erik A. Smith, Richard L. Kiesling, Jeffrey R. Ziegeweid
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5056
Fish habitat can degrade in many lakes due to summer blue-green algal blooms. Predictive models are needed to better manage and mitigate loss of fish habitat due to these changes. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, developed predictive water-quality models for two...
Emplacement of Holocene silicic lava flows and domes at Newberry, South Sister, and Medicine Lake volcanoes, California and Oregon
Jonathan H. Fink, Steve W. Anderson
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5022-I
This field guide for the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth’s Interior (IAVCEI) Scientific Assembly 2017 focuses on Holocene glassy silicic lava flows and domes on three volcanoes in the Cascade Range in Oregon and California: Newberry, South Sister, and Medicine Lake volcanoes. Although obsidian-rich lava flows...
Physical characteristics of the lower San Joaquin River, California, in relation to white sturgeon spawning habitat, 2011–14
Mathieu D. Marineau, Scott Wright, Daniel R. Whealdon-Haught, Paul J. Kinzel
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5069
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service confirmed that white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) recently spawned in the lower San Joaquin River, California. Decreases in the San Francisco Bay estuary white sturgeon population have led to an increased effort to understand their migration behavior and habitat preferences. The preferred spawning habitat of...
Preliminary hydrogeologic assessment near the boundary of the Antelope Valley and El Mirage Valley groundwater basins, California
Christina L. Stamos, Allen H. Christensen, Victoria E. Langenheim
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5065
The increasing demands on groundwater for water supply in desert areas in California and the western United States have resulted in the need to better understand groundwater sources, availability, and sustainability. This is true for a 650-square-mile area that encompasses the Antelope Valley, El Mirage Valley, and Upper Mojave River...
General introduction and recovery factors
Mahendra K. Verma
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5062-A
IntroductionThe U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) compared methods for estimating an incremental recovery factor (RF) for the carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery (CO2-EOR) process involving the injection of CO2 into oil reservoirs. This chapter first provides some basic information on the RF, including its dependence on various reservoir and operational parameters,...
Carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery performance according to the literature
Ricardo A. Olea
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5062-D
IntroductionThe need to increase the efficiency of oil recovery and environmental concerns are bringing to prominence the use of carbon dioxide (CO2) as a tertiary recovery agent. Assessment of the impact of flooding with CO2 all eligible reservoirs in the United States not yet undergoing enhanced oil recovery (EOR) requires...
Three approaches for estimating recovery factors in carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery
Mahendra K. Verma, editor(s)
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5062
PrefaceThe Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 authorized the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to conduct a national assessment of geologic storage resources for carbon dioxide (CO2) and requested the USGS to estimate the “potential volumes of oil and gas recoverable by injection and sequestration of industrial carbon dioxide in...
Summary of the analyses for recovery factors
Mahendra K. Verma
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5062-E
IntroductionIn order to determine the hydrocarbon potential of oil reservoirs within the U.S. sedimentary basins for which the carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery (CO2-EOR) process has been considered suitable, the CO2 Prophet model was chosen by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to be the primary source for estimating recovery-factor values...
Using CO2 Prophet to estimate recovery factors for carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery
Emil D. Attanasi
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5062-B
IntroductionThe Oil and Gas Journal’s enhanced oil recovery (EOR) survey for 2014 (Koottungal, 2014) showed that gas injection is the most frequently applied method of EOR in the United States and that carbon dioxide (CO2 ) is the most commonly used injection fluid for miscible operations. The CO2-EOR process typically...
Application of decline curve analysis to estimate recovery factors for carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery
Hossein Jahediesfanjani
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5062-C
IntroductionIn the decline curve analysis (DCA) method of estimating recoverable hydrocarbon volumes, the analyst uses historical production data from a well, lease, group of wells (or pattern), or reservoir and plots production rates against time or cumulative production for the analysis. The DCA of an individual well is founded on...
Application of at-site peak-streamflow frequency analyses for very low annual exceedance probabilities
William H. Asquith, Julie E. Kiang, Timothy A. Cohn
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5038
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, has investigated statistical methods for probabilistic flood hazard assessment to provide guidance on very low annual exceedance probability (AEP) estimation of peak-streamflow frequency and the quantification of corresponding uncertainties using streamgage-specific data. The term “very low AEP”...
Estimation of salt loads for the Dolores River in the Paradox Valley, Colorado, 1980–2015
M. Alisa Mast
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5059
Regression models that relate total dissolved solids (TDS) concentrations to specific conductance were used to estimate salt loads for two sites on the Dolores River in the Paradox Valley in western Colorado. The salt-load estimates will be used by the Bureau of Reclamation to evaluate salt loading to the river...
An introduction to high-frequency nutrient and biogeochemical monitoring for the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, northern California
Tamara E.C. Kraus, Brian A. Bergamaschi, Bryan D. Downing
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5071
Executive SummaryThis report is the first in a series of three reports that provide information about high-frequency (HF) nutrient and biogeochemical monitoring in the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta of northern California (Delta). This first report provides an introduction to the reasons for and fundamental concepts behind collecting HF measurements, and...
Synthesis of data from high-frequency nutrient and associated biogeochemical monitoring for the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, northern California
Bryan D. Downing, Brian A. Bergamaschi, Tamara E.C. Kraus
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5066
Executive SummaryThis report is the second in a series of three reports that provide information about high-frequency (HF) nutrient and biogeochemical monitoring in the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta of northern California (Delta). The purpose of this report is to synthesize the data available from a nutrient and water-quality HF (about...
Designing a high-frequency nutrient and biogeochemical monitoring network for the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, northern California
Brian A. Bergamaschi, Bryan D. Downing, Tamara E.C. Kraus, Brian A. Pellerin
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5058
Executive SummaryThis report is the third in a series of three reports that provide information about how high-frequency (HF) nutrient monitoring may be used to assess nutrient inputs and dynamics in the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, California (Delta). The purpose of this report is to provide the background, principles, and...
Water quality and quantity and simulated surface-water and groundwater flow in the Laurel Hill Creek Basin, southwestern Pennsylvania, 1991–2007
Daniel G. Galeone, Dennis W. Risser, Lee W. Eicholtz, Scott A. Hoffman
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2016-5082
Laurel Hill Creek is considered one of the most pristine waterways in southwestern Pennsylvania and has high recreational value as a high-quality cold-water fishery; however, the upper parts of the basin have documented water-quality impairments. Groundwater and surface water are withdrawn for public water supply and the basin has been...
Field-trip guide for exploring pyroclastic density current deposits from the May 18, 1980, eruption of Mount St. Helens, Washington
Brittany D. Brand, Nicholas Pollock, Damiano Sarocchi, Josef Dufek, Michael A. Clynne
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5022-C
Pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) are one of the most dangerous phenomena associated with explosive volcanism. To help constrain damage potential, a combination of field studies, laboratory experiments, and numerical modeling are used to establish conditions that influence PDC dynamics and depositional processes, including runout distance. The objective of this field...
Field-trip guide to subaqueous volcaniclastic facies in the Ancestral Cascades arc in southern Washington State—The Ohanapecosh Formation and Wildcat Creek beds
Martin Jutzeler, Jocelyn McPhie
2017, Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5022-B
Partly situated in the idyllic Mount Rainier National Park, this field trip visits exceptional examples of Oligocene subaqueous volcaniclastic successions in continental basins adjacent to the Ancestral Cascades arc. The >800-m-thick Ohanapecosh Formation (32–26 Ma) and the >300-m-thick Wildcat Creek (27 Ma) beds record similar sedimentation processes from various volcanic...
