Modeling regeneration responses of big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) to abiotic conditions
Daniel R. Schlaepfer, William K. Lauenroth, John B. Bradford
2014, Ecological Modelling (286) 66-77
Ecosystems dominated by big sagebrush, Artemisia tridentata Nuttall (Asteraceae), which are the most widespread ecosystems in semiarid western North America, have been affected by land use practices and invasive species. Loss of big sagebrush and the decline of associated species, such as greater sage-grouse, are a concern to land managers...
Dissolved-solids sources, loads, yields, and concentrations in streams of the conterminous United States
David W. Anning, Marilyn E. Flynn
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5012
Recent studies have shown that excessive dissolved-solids concentrations in water can have adverse effects on the environment and on agricultural, domestic, municipal, and industrial water users. Such effects motivated the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Water Quality Assessment Program to develop a SPAtially-Referenced Regression on Watershed Attributes (SPARROW) model that has...
Arsenic, iron, lead, manganese, and uranium concentrations in private bedrock wells in southeastern New Hampshire, 2012-2013
Sarah M. Flanagan, Marcel Belaval, Joseph D. Ayotte
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3042
Trace metals, such as arsenic, iron, lead, manganese, and uranium, in groundwater used for drinking have long been a concern because of the potential adverse effects on human health and the aesthetic or nuisance problems that some present. Moderate to high concentrations of the trace metal arsenic have been identified...
Differentiating transpiration from evaporation in seasonal agricultural wetlands and the link to advective fluxes in the root zone
P.A.M. Bachand, S. Bachand, Jacob A. Fleck, Frank E. Anderson, Lisamarie Windham-Myers
2014, Science of the Total Environment (484) 232-248
The current state of science and engineering related to analyzing wetlands overlooks the importance of transpiration and risks data misinterpretation. In response, we developed hydrologic and mass budgets for agricultural wetlands using electrical conductivity (EC) as a natural conservative tracer. We developed simple differential equations that quantify evaporation and transpiration...
Concurrent photolytic degradation of aqueous methylmercury and dissolved organic matter
Jacob A. Fleck, Gary W. Gill, Brian A. Bergamaschi, Tamara E.C. Kraus, Bryan D. Downing, Charles N. Alpers
2014, Science of the Total Environment (484) 263-275
Monomethyl mercury (MeHg) is a potent neurotoxin that threatens ecosystem viability and human health. In aquatic systems, the photolytic degradation of MeHg (photodemethylation) is an important component of the MeHg cycle. Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is also affected by exposure to solar radiation (light exposure) leading to changes in DOM...
Determination of human-use pharmaceuticals in filtered water by direct aqueous injection: high-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry
Edward T. Furlong, Mary C. Noriega, Christopher J. Kanagy, Leslie K. Kanagy, Laura J. Coffey, Mark R. Burkhardt
2014, Techniques and Methods 5-B10
This report describes a method for the determination of 110 human-use pharmaceuticals using a 100-microliter aliquot of a filtered water sample directly injected into a high-performance liquid chromatograph coupled to a triple-quadrupole tandem mass spectrometer using an electrospray ionization source operated in the positive ion mode. The pharmaceuticals were separated...
Water withdrawals, use, and trends in Florida, 2010
Richard L. Marella
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5088
In 2010, the total amount of water withdrawn in Florida was estimated to be 14,988 million gallons per day (Mgal/d). Saline water accounted for 8,589 Mgal/d (57 percent) and freshwater accounted for 6,399 Mgal/d (43 percent). Groundwater accounted for 4,166 Mgal/d (65 percent) of freshwater withdrawals, and surface water accounted...
Past, present, and future of water data delivery from the U.S. Geological Survey
Robert M. Hirsch, Gary T. Fisher
2014, Journal of Contemporary Water Research and Education 4-15
We present an overview of national water databases managed by the U.S. Geological Survey, including surface-water, groundwater, water-quality, and water-use data. These are readily accessible to users through web interfaces and data services. Multiple perspectives of data are provided, including search and retrieval of real-time data and historical data, on-demand...
Sensor data as a measure of native freshwater mussel impact on nitrate formation and food digestion in continuous-flow mesocosms
Jeremy S. Bril, Jonathan J. Durst, Brion M. Hurley, Craig L. Just, Teresa J. Newton
2014, Freshwater Science (33) 417-424
Native freshwater mussels can influence the aquatic N cycle, but the mechanisms and magnitude of this effect are not fully understood. We assessed the effects of Amblema plicata and Lampsilis cardium on N transformations over 72 d in 4 continuous-flow mesocosms, with 2 replicates of 2 treatments (mesocosms with and...
Three-dimensional imaging, change detection, and stability assessment during the centerline trench levee seepage experiment using terrestrial light detection and ranging technology, Twitchell Island, California, 2012
Gerald W. Bawden, James Howle, Sandra Bond, Michelle Shriro, Peter Buck
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1092
A full scale field seepage test was conducted on a north-south trending levee segment of a now bypassed old meander belt on Twitchell Island, California, to understand the effects of live and decaying root systems on levee seepage and slope stability. The field test in May 2012 was centered on...
Geologic framework for the national assessment of carbon dioxide storage resources: Alaska North Slope and Kandik Basin, Alaska
William H. Craddock, Marc L. Buursink, Jacob A. Covault, Sean T. Brennan, Colin A. Doolan, Ronald M. Drake II, Matthew D. Merrill, Tina L. Roberts-Ashby, Ernie R. Slucher, Peter D. Warwick, Madalyn S. Blondes, P.A. Freeman, Steven M. Cahan, Christina A. DeVera, Celeste D. Lohr
Peter D. Warwick, M.D. Corum, editor(s)
2014, Open-File Report 2012-1024-I
This report presents fourteen storage assessment units (SAUs) from the Alaska North Slope and two SAUs from the Kandik Basin of Alaska. The Alaska North Slope is a broad, north-dipping coastal plain that is underlain by a thick succession of sedimentary rocks that accumulated steadily throughout much of the Phanerozoic...
Flood inundation maps for the Wabash and Eel Rivers at Logansport, Indiana
Kathleen K. Fowler
2014, Scientific Investigations Map 3293
Digital flood-inundation maps for an 8.3-mile reach of the Wabash River and a 7.6-mile reach of the Eel River at Logansport, Indiana (Ind.), were created by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs. The inundation maps, which can be accessed through...
Hydrogeologic framework, groundwater movement, and water budget of the Kitsap Peninsula, west-central Washington
Wendy B. Welch, Lonna M. Frans, Theresa D. Olsen
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5106
This report presents information used to characterize the groundwater-flow system on the Kitsap Peninsula, and includes descriptions of the geology and hydrogeologic framework, groundwater recharge and discharge, groundwater levels and flow directions, seasonal groundwater-level fluctuations, interactions between aquifers and the surface‑water system, and a water budget. The Kitsap Peninsula is...
Karst geomorphology and hydrology of the Shenandoah Valley near Harrisonburg, Virginia
Daniel H. Doctor, Wil Orndorff, Joel Maynard, Matthew J. Heller, Gerolamo C. Casile
2014, GSA Field Guides (35) 161-213
The karst of the central Shenandoah Valley has characteristics of both shallow and deep phreatic formation. This field guide focuses on the region around Harrisonburg, Virginia, where a number of these karst features and their associated geologic context can be examined. Ancient, widespread alluvial deposits cover much of the carbonate...
Completion summary for boreholes USGS 140 and USGS 141 near the Advanced Test Reactor Complex, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho
Brian V. Twining, Roy C. Bartholomay, Mary K.V. Hodges
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5098
In 2013, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, drilled and constructed boreholes USGS 140 and USGS 141 for stratigraphic framework analyses and long-term groundwater monitoring of the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer at the Idaho National Laboratory in southeast Idaho. Borehole USGS 140 initially...
Land subsidence, groundwater levels, and geology in the Coachella Valley, California, 1993-2010
Michelle Sneed, Justin T. Brandt, Mike Solt
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5075
Land subsidence associated with groundwater-level declines has been investigated by the U.S. Geological Survey in the Coachella Valley, California, since 1996. Groundwater has been a major source of agricultural, municipal, and domestic supply in the valley since the early 1920s. Pumping of groundwater resulted in water-level declines as much as...
Pluvial lakes in the Great Basin of the western United States: a view from the outcrop
Marith C. Reheis, Kenneth D. Adams, Charles G. Oviatt, Steven N. Bacon
2014, Quaternary Science Reviews (97) 33-57
Paleo-lakes in the western United States provide geomorphic and hydrologic records of climate and drainage-basin change at multiple time scales extending back to the Miocene. Recent reviews and studies of paleo-lake records have focused on interpretations of proxies in lake sediment cores from the northern and central parts of the...
Landscape consequences of natural gas extraction in Bedford, Blair, Cambria, Centre, Clearfield, Clinton, Columbia, Huntingdon, and Luzerne counties, Pennsylvania, 2004-2010
E.T. Slonecker, L.E. Milheim, C.M. Roig-Silva, S.G. Winters
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1089
Increased demands for cleaner burning energy, coupled with the relatively recent technological advances in accessing unconventional hydrocarbon-rich geologic formations, have led to an intense effort to find and extract natural gas from various underground sources around the country. One of these sources, the Marcellus Shale, located in the Allegheny Plateau,...
Water resources of Acadia Parish, Louisiana
Larry B. Prakken, Vincent E. White
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3043
Information concerning the availability, use, and quality of water in Acadia Parish, Louisiana, is critical for proper water-supply management. The purpose of this fact sheet is to present information that can be used by water managers, parish residents, and others for stewardship of this vital resource. Information on the availability,...
Quality-assurance and data management plan for groundwater activities by the U.S. Geological Survey in Kansas, 2014
James E. Putnam, Cristi V. Hansen
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1060
As the Nation’s principle earth-science information agency, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is depended on to collect data of the highest quality. This document is a quality-assurance plan for groundwater activities (GWQAP) of the Kansas Water Science Center. The purpose of this GWQAP is to establish a minimum set of...
Natural uranium and strontium isotope tracers of water sources and surface water-groundwater interactions in arid wetlands: Pahranagat Valley, Nevada, USA
James B. Paces, Frederic C. Wurster
2014, Journal of Hydrology (517) 213-225
Near-surface physical and chemical process can strongly affect dissolved-ion concentrations and stable isotope compositions of water in wetland settings, especially under arid climate conditions. In contrast, heavy radiogenic isotopes of strontium (87Sr/86Sr) and uranium (234U/238U) remain largely unaffected and can be used to help identify unique signatures from different...
Concentrations, loads, and yields of total nitrogen and total phosphorus in the Barnegat Bay-Little Egg Harbor watershed, New Jersey, 1989-2011, at multiple spatial scales
Ronald J. Baker, Christine M. Wieben, Richard G. Lathrop, Robert S. Nicholson
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5072
Concentrations, loads, and yields of nutrients (total nitrogen and total phosphorus) were calculated for the Barnegat Bay-Little Egg Harbor (BB-LEH) watershed for 1989–2011 at annual and seasonal (growing and nongrowing) time scales. Concentrations, loads, and yields were calculated at three spatial scales: for each of the 81 subbasins specified by...
Continuous water-quality monitoring and regression analysis to estimate constituent concentrations and loads in the Red River of the North at Fargo and Grand Forks, North Dakota, 2003-12
Joel M. Galloway
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5064
The Red River of the North (hereafter referred to as “Red River”) Basin is an important hydrologic region where water is a valuable resource for the region’s economy. Continuous water-quality monitors have been operated by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the North Dakota Department of Health, Minnesota Pollution...
Monitoring recharge in areas of seasonally frozen ground in the Columbia Plateau and Snake River Plain, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington
Mark Mastin, Edward Josberger
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5083
Seasonally frozen ground occurs over approximately one‑third of the contiguous United States, causing increased winter runoff. Frozen ground generally rejects potential groundwater recharge. Nearly all recharge from precipitation in semi-arid regions such as the Columbia Plateau and the Snake River Plain in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington, occurs between October and...
Investigation of methods for successful installation and operation of Juvenile Salmon Acoustic Telemetry System (JSATS) hydrophones in the Willamette River, Oregon, 2012
Gary L. Rutz, Matthew D. Sholtis, Noah S. Adams, John W. Beeman
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1112
Acoustic telemetry equipment was installed at three sites in the Willamette River during October 2012 to test the effectiveness of using the Juvenile Salmon Acoustic Telemetry System to monitor the movements of fish in a high-flow, high-velocity riverine environment. Hydrophones installed on concrete blocks were placed on the bottom of...
