Water security-National and global issues
James A. Tindall, Andrew A. Campbell
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3106
Potable or clean freshwater availability is crucial to life and economic, environmental, and social systems. The amount of freshwater is finite and makes up approximately 2.5 percent of all water on the Earth. Freshwater supplies are small and randomly distributed, so water resources can become points of conflict. Freshwater availability...
Summary of Bed-Sediment Measurements Along the Platte River, Nebraska, 1931-2009
P.J. Kinzel, J.T. Runge
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3087
Rivers are conduits for water and sediment supplied from upstream sources. The sizes of the sediments that a river bed consists of typically decrease in a downstream direction because of natural sorting. However, other factors can affect the caliber of bed sediment including changes in upstream water-resource development, land use,...
Groundwater availability study for Guam; goals, approach, products, and schedule of activities
Stephen B. Gingerich, John W. Jenson
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3084
An expected significant population increase on Guam has raised concern about the sustainability of groundwater resources. In response, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in collaboration with the University of Guam's Water and Environmental Research Institute of the Western Pacific (WERI) and with funding from the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC), is...
Sustainability of natural attenuation of nitrate in agricultural aquifers
Christopher T. Green, Barbara A. Bekins
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3077
Increased concentrations of nitrate in groundwater in agricultural areas, coinciding with increased use of chemical and organic fertilizers, have raised concern because of risks to environmental and human health. At some sites, these problems are mitigated by natural attenuation of nitrate as a result of microbially mediated reactions. Results from...
2010 updated assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPRA)
D.W. Houseknecht, K. J. Bird, J.H. Schuenemeyer, E. D. Attanasi, C.P. Garrity, Christopher J. Schenk, Ronald R. Charpentier, R. M. Pollastro, T. A. Cook, T.R. and Klett
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3102
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated mean volumes of 896 million barrels of oil (MMBO) and about 53 trillion cubic feet (TCFG) of nonassociated natural gas in conventional, undiscovered accumulations within the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska and adjacent State waters. The estimated volume of undiscovered...
Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources of the Chad Basin Province, North-Central Africa
Michael E. Brownfield, Christopher J. Schenk, Ronald R. Charpentier, Timothy R. Klett, Troy A. Cook, Richard M. Pollastro, Marilyn E. Tennyson
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3096
The Chad Basin Province located in north-central Africa recently was assessed for undiscovered, technically recoverable oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids resources as part of the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) World Oil and Gas Assessment. Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the USGS estimated mean volumes of 2.32 billion barrels...
The Border Environmental Health Initiative: Investigating the transboundary Santa Cruz watershed
Laura M. Norman, James Callegary, Charles van Riper III, Floyd Gray
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3097
In 2004 the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) launched the Border Environmental Health Initiative (BEHI), a major project encompassing the entire U.S.-Mexico border region. In 2009, a study of the Santa Cruz River Watershed (SCW), located in the border region of Arizona and Sonora, Mexico, was initiated as part of the...
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Western Region: Coastal ecosystem responses to influences from land and sea, Coastal and Ocean Science
James L. Bodkin
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3099
Sea otters and the nearshore ecosystems they inhabit-from highly urbanized California to relatively pristine Alaska-are the focus of a new multidisciplinary study by scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and a suite of international, academic and government collaborators. The Coastal Ecosystem Responses to Influences from Land and Sea project...
Historical changes in annual peak flows in Maine and implications for flood-frequency analyses
Glenn A. Hodgkins
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3034
To safely and economically design bridges, culverts, and other structures that are in or near streams (fig. 1 for example), it is necessary to determine the magnitude of peak streamflows such as the 100-year flow. Flood-frequency analyses use statistical methods to compute peak flows for selected recurrence intervals (100 years,...
Summary of estimated water use in the United States in 2005
Nancy L. Barber
2010, Fact Sheet 2009-3098
About 410,000 million gallons per day (Mgal/d) of water was withdrawn for use in the United States during 2005. About 80 percent of the total (328,000 Mgal/d) withdrawal was from surface water, and about 82 percent of the surface water withdrawn was freshwater. The remaining 20 percent (82,600 Mgal/d) was...
Chromium-Makes stainless steel stainless
S.J. Kropschot, Jeff Doebrich
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3089
Chromium, a steely-gray, lustrous, hard metal that takes a high polish and has a high melting point, is a silvery white, hard, and bright metal plating on steel and other material. Commonly known as chrome, it is one of the most important and indispensable industrial metals because of its hardness...
U.S. Geological Survey disaster response and the International Charter for space and major disasters
Timothy S. Stryker, Brenda K. Jones
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3062
In 1999, an international consortium of space agencies conceived and approved a mechanism to provide satellite information in support of worldwide disaster relief. This group came to be known as the 'International Charter?Space and Major Disasters' and has become an important resource for the use of satellite data to evaluate...
Groundwater quality in the Northern San Joaquin Valley, California
George L. V Bennett V, Kenneth Belitz
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3079
Groundwater provides more than 40 percent of California's drinking water. To protect this vital resource, the State of California created the Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program. The Priority Basin Project of the GAMA Program provides a comprehensive assessment of the State's groundwater quality and increases public access to...
Groundwater resources of Ribeira Fajã basin, island of São Nicolau, Cape Verde, West Africa
Victor M. Heilweil, Stephen B. Gingerich, Niel Plummer, Ingrid M. Verstraeten
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3071
Groundwater resources in Cape Verde provide water for agriculture, industry, and human consumption. These resources are limited and susceptible to contamination. Additional groundwater resources are needed for continued agricultural development, particularly during times of drought, but increased use and (or) climatic change may have adverse effects on the quantity and...
PAGER--Rapid assessment of an earthquakes impact
D.J. Wald, K. Jaiswal, K. D. Marano, D. Bausch, M. Hearne
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3036
PAGER (Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response) is an automated system that produces content concerning the impact of significant earthquakes around the world, informing emergency responders, government and aid agencies, and the media of the scope of the potential disaster. PAGER rapidly assesses earthquake impacts by comparing the population...
Groundwater resources of Mosteiros basin, island of Fogo, Cape Verde, West Africa
Victor M. Heilweil, Stephen B. Gingerich, Niel Plummer, Ingrid M. Verstraeten
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3069
Groundwater resources in Cape Verde provide water for agriculture, industry, and human consumption. These resources are limited and susceptible to contamination. Additional groundwater resources are needed for continued agricultural development, particularly during times of drought, but increased use and (or) climatic change may have adverse effects on the quantity and...
Groundwater resources of Ribeira Paúl basin, island of Santo Antão, Cape Verde, West Africa
Victor M. Heilweil, Stephen B. Gingerich, Ingrid M. Verstraeten
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3070
Groundwater resources in Cape Verde provide water for agriculture, industry, and human consumption. These resources are limited and susceptible to contamination. Additional groundwater resources are needed for continued agricultural development, particularly during times of drought, but increased use and (or) climatic change may have adverse effects on the quantity and...
USGS EDMAP Program-Training the Next Generation of Geologic Mappers
National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3088
EDMAP is an interactive and meaningful program for university students to gain experience and knowledge in geologic mapping while contributing to national efforts to map the geology of the United States. It is a matching-funds grant program with universities and is one of the three components of the congressionally mandated...
Nutrients in the nation's streams and groundwater: National findings and implications
Neil M. Dubrovsky, Pixie A. Hamilton
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3078
A comprehensive national analysis of the distribution and trends of nutrient concentrations in streams and groundwater from 1992 through 2004 is provided by the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program of the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Findings describe the distribution and causes of varying nutrient concentrations in streams and groundwater...
Expanded USGS science in the Chesapeake Bay restoration
Scott Phillips
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3081
In May 2009, the President issued Executive Order (EO) 13508 for Chesapeake Bay Protection and Restoration. For the first time since the creation of the Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) in 1983, the full weight of the Federal Government will be used to address the challenges facing the Chesapeake Bay. The...
Characterization of Fish Creek, Teton County, Wyoming, 2004-08
Cheryl A. Eddy-Miller, David A. Peterson, Jerrod D. Wheeler, Daniel J. Leemon
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3075
Fish Creek, a tributary to the Snake River, is about 15 river miles long and is located in Teton County in western Wyoming near the town of Wilson (fig. 1). Public concern about nuisance growths of aquatic plants in Fish Creek has been increasing since the early 2000s. To address...
Noninvasive methods for monitoring bear population trends
Katherine Kendall
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3054
The U.S. Geological Survey began a grizzly bear research project in 2009 in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem (NCDE) of northwestern Montana. This work uses hair collection and DNA analysis methods similar to those used in the 2004 Northern Divide Grizzly Bear Project. However, instead of producing a snapshot of...
Decadal-scale changes in dissolved-solids concentrations in groundwater used for public supply, Salt Lake Valley, Utah
Susan A. Thiros, Larry Spangler
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3073
Basin-fill aquifers are a major source of good-quality water for public supply in many areas of the southwestern United States and have undergone increasing development as populations have grown over time. During 2005, the basin-fill aquifer in Salt Lake Valley, Utah, provided approximately 75,000 acre-feet, or about 29 percent of...
Hawaii StreamStats: A web application for defining drainage-basin characteristics and estimating peak-streamflow statistics
Sarah N. Rosa, Delwyn S. Oki
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3052
Reliable estimates of the magnitude and frequency of floods are necessary for the safe and efficient design of roads, bridges, water-conveyance structures, and flood-control projects and for the management of flood plains and flood-prone areas. StreamStats provides a simple, fast, and reproducible method to define drainage-basin characteristics and estimate the...
Hydrology, phenology and the USA National Phenology Network
George R. Kish
2010, Fact Sheet 2010-3083
Phenology is the study of seasonally-recurring biological events (such as leaf-out, fruit production, and animal reproduction and migration) and how these events are influenced by environmental change. Phenological changes are some of the most sensitive biological indicators of climate change, and also affect nearly all aspects of ecosystem function. Spatially...
