Hydrological effects of forest transpiration loss in bark beetle-impacted watersheds
Lindsay A. Bearup, Reed M. Maxwell, David W. Clow, John E. McCray
2014, Nature Climate Change (4) 481-486
The recent climate-exacerbated mountain pine beetle infestation in the Rocky Mountains of North America has resulted in tree death that is unprecedented in recorded history. The spatial and temporal heterogeneity inherent in insect infestation creates a complex and often unpredictable watershed response, influencing the primary storage and flow components of...
Identifying legal, ecological and governance obstacles and opportunities for adapting to climate change
Barbara Cosens, Lance Gunderson, Craig R. Allen, Melinda H. Benson
2014, Sustainability (6) 2338-2356
Current governance of regional scale water management systems in the United States has not placed them on a path toward sustainability, as conflict and gridlock characterize the social arena and ecosystem services continue to erode. Changing climate may continue this trajectory, but it also provides a catalyst for renewal of...
Infiltration and runoff generation processes in fire-affected soils
John A. Moody, Brian A. Ebel
2014, Hydrological Processes (28) 3432-3453
Post-wildfire runoff was investigated by combining field measurements and modelling of infiltration into fire-affected soils to predict time-to-start of runoff and peak runoff rate at the plot scale (1 m2). Time series of soil-water content, rainfall and runoff were measured on a hillslope burned by the 2010 Fourmile Canyon Fire west...
Landsat-8: Science and product vision for terrestrial global change research
David P. Roy, M.A. Wulder, Thomas R. Loveland, C. E. Woodcock, R. G. Allen, M. C. Anderson, D. Helder, J. R. Irons, D.M. Johnson, R. Kennedy, T. A. Scambos, Crystal B. Schaaf, J. R. Schott, Y. Sheng, E. F. Vermote, A.S. Belward, R. Bindschadler, W.B. Cohen, F. Gao, J. D. Hipple, Patrick Hostert, J. Huntington, C.O. Justice, A. Kilic, Valeriy Kovalskyy, Z. P. Lee, Leo Lymburner, J. G. Masek, Joel McCorkel, Y. Shuai, R. Trezza, James Vogelmann, R.H. Wynne, Z. Zhu
2014, Remote Sensing of Environment (145) 154-172
Landsat 8, a NASA and USGS collaboration, acquires global moderate-resolution measurements of the Earth's terrestrial and polar regions in the visible, near-infrared, short wave, and thermal infrared. Landsat 8 extends the remarkable 40 year Landsat record and has enhanced capabilities including new spectral bands in the blue and cirrus cloud-detection portion...
Biochar application to hardrock mine tailings: Soil quality, microbial activity, and toxic element sorption
Charlene N. Kelly, Christopher D. Peltz, Mark R. Stanton, David W. Rutherford, Colleen E. Rostad
2014, Applied Geochemistry (43) 35-48
Waste rock piles from historic mining activities remain unvegetated as a result of metal toxicity and high acidity. Biochar has been proposed as a low-cost remediation strategy to increase soil pH and reduce leaching of toxic elements, and improve plant establishment. In this laboratory column study, biochar made from beetle-killed...
Genetic structuring of northern myotis (Myotis septentrionalis) at multiple spatial scales
Joshua B. Johnson, James H. Roberts, Tim L. King, John W. Edwards, W. Mark Ford, David A. Ray
2014, Acta Theriologica (59) 223-231
Although groups of bats may be genetically distinguishable at large spatial scales, the effects of forest disturbances, particularly permanent land use conversions on fine-scale population structure and gene flow of summer aggregations of philopatric bat species are less clear. We genotyped and analyzed variation at 10 nuclear DNA microsatellite markers...
Mummy Lake: An unroofed ceremonial structure within a large-scale ritual landscape
Larry V. Benson, Eleanor R. Griffin, J.R. Stein, R. A. Friedman, S. W. Andrae
2014, Journal of Archaeological Science (44) 164-179
The structure at Mesa Verde National Park known historically as Mummy Lake and more recently as Far View Reservoir is not part of a water collection, impoundment, or redistribution system. We offer an alternative explanation for the function of Mummy Lake. We suggest that it is an unroofed ceremonial structure,...
Measurements of slope currents and internal tides on the Continental Shelf and slope off Newport Beach, California
Kurt J. Rosenberger, Marlene A. Noble, Benjamin Norris
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1041
An array of seven moorings housing current meters and oceanographic sensors was deployed for 6 months at 5 sites on the Continental Shelf and slope off Newport Beach, California, from July 2011 to January 2012. Full water-column profiles of currents were acquired at all five sites, and a profile of...
Groundwater-quality data in the Klamath Mountains study unit, 2010: results from the California GAMA Program
Timothy M. Mathany, Kenneth Belitz
2014, Data Series 803
Groundwater quality in the 8,806-square-mile Klamath Mountains (KLAM) study unit was investigated by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) from October to December 2010, as part of the California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program’s Priority Basin Project (PBP). The GAMA-PBP was developed in...
Simulation of zones of contribution to wells at site GM–38, Naval Weapons Industrial Reserve Plant, Bethpage, New York
Paul Misut
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5036
A three-dimensional groundwater-flow model is coupled with the particle-tracking program MODPATH to delineate zones of contribution to wells pumping from the Magothy aquifer and supplying water to a chlorinated volatile organic compound removal plant at site GM–38, Naval Weapons Industrial Reserve Plant, Bethpage, New York. By use of driller’s logs,...
High-resolution geophysical data collected aboard the U.S. Geological Survey research vessel Rafael to supplement existing datasets from Buzzards Bay and Vineyard Sound, Massachusetts
Elizabeth A. Pendleton, Brian D. Andrews, William W. Danforth, David S. Foster
2014, Open-File Report 2013-1020
Geophysical and geospatial data were collected in Buzzards Bay, in the shallow-water areas of Vineyard Sound, and in the nearshore areas off the eastern Elizabeth Islands and northern coast of Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, on the U.S. Geological Survey research vessel Rafael between 2007 and 2011, in a collaborative effort between...
Bathymetric maps and water-quality profiles of Table Rock and North Saluda Reservoirs, Greenville County, South Carolina
Jimmy M. Clark, Celeste A. Journey, Doug D. Nagle, Timothy H. Lanier
2014, Scientific Investigations Map 3289
Lakes and reservoirs are the water-supply source for many communities. As such, water-resource managers that oversee these water supplies require monitoring of the quantity and quality of the resource. Monitoring information can be used to assess the basic conditions within the reservoir and to establish a reliable estimate of storage...
Backprojection of volcanic tremor
Matthew M. Haney
2014, Geophysical Research Letters (41) 1923-1928
Backprojection has become a powerful tool for imaging the rupture process of global earthquakes. We demonstrate the ability of backprojection to illuminate and track volcanic sources as well. We apply the method to the seismic network from Okmok Volcano, Alaska, at the time of an escalation in tremor during the...
Hydrologic Drought Decision Support System (HyDroDSS)
Gregory E. Granato
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1003
The hydrologic drought decision support system (HyDroDSS) was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Rhode Island Water Resources Board (RIWRB) for use in the analysis of hydrologic variables that may indicate the risk for streamflows to be below user-defined flow targets at a designated site...
Estimating flood magnitude and frequency for urban and small, rural streams in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, 2011
Toby D. Feaster, Anthony J. Gotvald, J. Curtis Weaver
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3015
Reliable estimates of the magnitude and frequency of floods are essential for the design of transportation and water-conveyance structures, flood insurance studies, and flood-plain management. Flood-frequency estimates are particularly important in densely populated urban areas. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) used a multistate approach to update methods for determining the...
Hydrogeologic framework and salinity distribution of the Floridan aquifer system of Broward County, Florida
Ronald S. Reese, Kevin J. Cunningham
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5029
Concerns about water-level decline and seawater intrusion in the surficial Biscayne aquifer, currently the principal source of water supply to Broward County, prompted a study to refine the hydrogeologic framework of the underlying Floridan aquifer system to evaluate its potential as an alternative source of supply. This report presents cross...
Acute and chronic sensitivity of white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) and rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) to cadmium, copper, lead, or zinc in laboratory water-only exposures
Christopher G. Ingersoll, Ning Contributions by Wang, Robin D. Calfee, Erinn Beahan, William G. Brumbaugh, Rebecca A. Dorman, Doug K. Hardesty, James L. Kunz, Edward E. Little, Christopher A. Mebane, Holly J. Puglis
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5204
White sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) are experiencing poor recruitment in the trans boundary reach of the upper Columbia River in eastern Washington State. Limited toxicity data indicated that early life stages of white sturgeon are sensitive to metals. In acute 4-day (d) exposures with larval white sturgeon, previous studies have reported...
Petrophysical properties, mineralogy, fractures, and flow tests in 25 deep boreholes at Yucca Mountain, Nevada
Philip H. Nelson, Joyce E. Kibler
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1023
As part of a site investigation for the disposal of radioactive waste, numerous boreholes were drilled into a sequence of Miocene pyroclastic flows and related deposits at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. This report contains displays of data from 25 boreholes drilled during 1979–1984, relatively early in the site investigation program. Geophysical...
1DTempPro: analyzing temperature profiles for groundwater/surface-water exchange
Emily B. Voytek, Anja Drenkelfuss, Frederick D. Day-Lewis, Richard Healy, John W. Lane Jr., Dale D. Werkema
2014, Ground Water (52) 298-302
A new computer program, 1DTempPro, is presented for the analysis of vertical one-dimensional (1D) temperature profiles under saturated flow conditions. 1DTempPro is a graphical user interface to the U.S. Geological Survey code Variably Saturated 2-Dimensional Heat Transport (VS2DH), which numerically solves the flow and heat-transport equations. Pre- and postprocessor features...
Simulation of the effects of seasonally varying pumping on intraborehole flow and the vulnerability of public-supply wells to contamination
Richard M. Yager, Charles E. Heywood
2014, Ground Water (52) 40-52
Public-supply wells with long screens in alluvial aquifers can produce waters of differing quality from different depths. Seasonal changes in quality are linked to seasonal changes in pumping rates that influence the distribution of flow into the well screens under pumping conditions and the magnitude and direction of intraborehole flow...
Mercury and methylmercury dynamics in the hyporheic zone of an Oregon stream
Stephen R. Hinkle, Kenneth E. Bencala, Dennis A. Wentz, David P. Krabbenhoft
2014, Water, Air, & Soil Pollution (225)
The role of the hyporheic zone in mercury (Hg) cycling has received limited attention despite the biogeochemically active nature of this zone and, thus, its potential to influence Hg behavior in streams. An assessment of Hg geochemistry in the hyporheic zone of a coarse-grained island in the Coast Fork Willamette...
Time-integrated passive sampling as a complement to conventional point-in-time sampling for investigating drinking-water quality, McKenzie River Basin, Oregon, 2007 and 2010-11
Kathleen A. McCarthy, David A. Alvarez
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5215
The Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB) supplies drinking water to approximately 200,000 people in Eugene, Oregon. The sole source of this water is the McKenzie River, which has consistently excellent water quality relative to established drinking-water standards. To ensure that this quality is maintained as land use in the...
Analysis of pharmaceutical and other organic wastewater compounds in filtered and unfiltered water samples by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry
Steven D. Zaugg, Patrick J. Phillips, Steven G. Smith
2014, Open-File Report 2013-1297
Research on the effects of exposure of stream biota to complex mixtures of pharmaceuticals and other organic compounds associated with wastewater requires the development of additional analytical capabilities for these compounds in water samples. Two gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analytical methods used at the U.S. Geological Survey National Water Quality...
Continuous real-time water information: an important Kansas resource
Brian L. Loving, James E. Putnam, Donita M. Turk
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3003
Continuous real-time information on streams, lakes, and groundwater is an important Kansas resource that can safeguard lives and property, and ensure adequate water resources for a healthy State economy. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) operates approximately 230 water-monitoring stations at Kansas streams, lakes, and groundwater sites. Most of these stations...
Water-quality, bed-sediment, and biological data (October 2011 through September 2012) and statistical summaries of data for streams in the Clark Fork Basin, Montana
Kent A. Dodge, Michelle I. Hornberger, Jessica Dyke
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1034
Water, bed sediment, and biota were sampled in streams from Butte to near Missoula, Montana, as part of a monitoring program in the upper Clark Fork Basin of western Montana. The sampling program was conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to characterize...
