Water resources of St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana
Larry B. Prakken
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3030
In 2010, about 261 million gallons per day (Mgal/d) of water were withdrawn in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana, almost entirely from surface-water sources. Industrial use accounted for about 97 percent (253 Mgal/d) of the total water withdrawn. Other categories of use included public supply, rural domestic, and livestock. Water-use data...
Sediment accretion rates and sediment composition in Prairie Pothole wetlands under varying land use practices, Montana, United States
T.M. Preston, R.S. Sojda, R.A. Gleason
2013, Journal of Soil and Water Conservation (68) 199-211
Increased sedimentation and nutrient cycle changes in Prairie Pothole Region wetlands associated with agriculture threaten the permanence and ecological functionality of these important resources. To determine the effects of land use on sedimentation and nutrient cycling, soil cores were analyzed for cesium-137 (137Cs), lead-210 (210Pb), and potassium-40 (40K) activities; textural...
The ancient blue oak woodlands of California: longevity and hydroclimatic history
D.W. Stahle, R.D. Griffin, D.M. Meko, M.D. Therrell, J.R. Edmondson, M.K. Cleaveland, D.J. Burnette, J.T. Abatzoglou, K.T. Redmond, M. D. Dettinger, D.R. Cayan
2013, Earth Interactions (17) 1-23
Ancient blue oak trees are still widespread across the foothills of the Coast Ranges, Cascades, and Sierra Nevada in California. The most extensive tracts of intact old-growth blue oak woodland appear to survive on rugged and remote terrain in the south Coast Ranges and on the foothills west and southwest...
The landfall and inland penetration of a flood-producing atmospheric river in Arizona. Part I: observed synoptic-scale, orographic, and hydrometeorological characteristics
Paul J. Neiman, F. Martin Ralph, Benjamin J. Moore, Mimi Hughes, Kelly M. Mahoney, Jason M. Cordeira, Michael D. Dettinger
2013, Journal of Hydrometeorology (14) 460-484
Atmospheric rivers (ARs) are a dominant mechanism for generating intense wintertime precipitation along the U.S. West Coast. While studies over the past 10 years have explored the impact of ARs in, and west of, California’s Sierra Nevada and the Pacific Northwest’s Cascade Mountains, their influence on the weather across the...
Estimating thermal regimes of bull trout and assessing the potential effects of climate warming on critical habitats
Leslie A. Jones, Clint C. Muhlfeld, Lucy A. Marshall, Brian L. McGlynn, Jeffrey L. Kershner
2013, River Research and Applications (30) 204-216
Understanding the vulnerability of aquatic species and habitats under climate change is critical for conservation and management of freshwater systems. Climate warming is predicted to increase water temperatures in freshwater ecosystems worldwide, yet few studies have developed spatially explicit modelling tools for understanding the potential impacts. We parameterized a nonspatial...
A national streamflow network gap analysis
Julie E. Kiang, David W. Stewart, Stacey A. Archfield, Emily B. Osborne, Ken Eng
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5013
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted a gap analysis to evaluate how well the USGS streamgage network meets a variety of needs, focusing on the ability to calculate various statistics at locations that have streamgages (gaged) and that do not have streamgages (ungaged). This report presents the results of analysis...
At-sea behavior varies with lunar phase in a nocturnal pelagic seabird, the swallow-tailed gull
Sebastian M. Cruz, Mevin Hooten, Kathryn P. Huyvaert, Carolina B. Proano, David J. Anderson, Vsevolod Afanasyev, Martin Wikelski
2013, PLoS ONE (8)
Strong and predictable environmental variability can reward flexible behaviors among animals. We used long-term records of activity data that cover several lunar cycles to investigate whether behavior at-sea of swallow-tailed gulls Creagrus furcatus, a nocturnal pelagic seabird, varied with lunar phase in the Galápagos Islands. A Bayesian hierarchical model showed...
Inferential consequences of modeling rather than measuring snow accumulation in studies of animal ecology
Paul C. Cross, Robert W. Klaver, Angela Brennan, Scott Creel, Jon P. Beckmann, Megan D. Higgs, Brandon M. Scurlock
2013, Ecological Applications (23) 643-653
Abstract. It is increasingly common for studies of animal ecology to use model-based predictions of environmental variables as explanatory or predictor variables, even though model prediction uncertainty is typically unknown. To demonstrate the potential for misleading inferences when model predictions with error are used in place of direct measurements, we...
Concentration, flux, and the analysis of trends of total and dissolved phosphorus, total nitrogen, and chloride in 18 tributaries to Lake Champlain, Vermont and New York, 1990–2011
Laura Medalie
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5021
Annual concentration, flux, and yield for total phosphorus, dissolved phosphorus, total nitrogen, and chloride for 18 tributaries to Lake Champlain were estimated for 1990 through 2011 using a weighted regression method based on time, tributary streamflows (discharges), and seasonal factors. The weighted regression method generated two series of daily estimates...
Field trial of a pulsed limestone diversion well
Philip L. Sibrell, C. Denholm, Margaret Dunn
2013, Conference Paper, 2nd Wyoming reclamation and restoration symposium and 30th annual meeting of the American society of mining and reclamation: Reclamation across industries
The use of limestone diversion wells to treat acid mine drainage (AMD) is well-known, but in many cases, acid neutralization is not as complete as would be desired. Reasons for this include channeling of the water through the limestone bed, and the slow reaction rate of the limestone gravel. A...
Improving predictive power of physically based rainfall-induced shallow landslide models: a probablistic approach
S. Raia, M. Alvioli, M. Rossi, R.L. Baum, J. W. Godt, F. Guzzetti
2013, Geoscientific Model Development and Discussions (6) 1367-1426
Distributed models to forecast the spatial and temporal occurrence of rainfall-induced shallow landslides are deterministic. These models extend spatially the static stability models adopted in geotechnical engineering and adopt an infinite-slope geometry to balance the resisting and the driving forces acting on the sliding mass. An infiltration model is used...
Hydrogeology of the West Branch Delaware River basin, Delaware County, New York
Richard J. Reynolds
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5025
In 2009, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, began a study of the hydrogeology of the West Branch Delaware River (Cannonsville Reservoir) watershed. There has been recent interest by energy companies in developing the natural gas reserves that are trapped within...
The 3D Elevation Program: summary for Wisconsin
William J. Carswell Jr.
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3032
Elevation data are essential to a broad range of applications, including forest resources management, wildlife and habitat management, national security, recreation, and many others. For the State of Wisconsin, elevation data are critical for agriculture and precision farming, natural resources conservation, flood risk management, infrastructure and construction management, water supply...
Properties of basin-fill deposits, a 1971–2000 water budget, and surface-water-groundwater interactions in the upper Humboldt River basin, northeastern Nevada
Russell W. Plume, J. LaRue Smith
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5077
This study was done in cooperation with Elko County, Nevada in response to concerns over growing demand for water within the county and increasing external demands that are occurring statewide. The upper Humboldt River basin encompasses 4,360 square miles in northeastern Nevada and includes the headwaters area of the Humboldt...
Groundwater well inventory and assessment in the area of the proposed Normally Pressured Lance natural gas development project, Green River Basin, Wyoming, 2012
Michael J. Sweat
2013, Data Series 770
During May through September 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management, inventoried and assessed existing water wells in southwestern Wyoming for inclusion in a possible groundwater-monitor network. Records were located for 3,282 wells in the upper Green River Basin, which includes the U.S. Geological...
Development of a numerical model to simulate groundwater flow in the shallow aquifer system of Assateague Island, Maryland and Virginia
John P. Masterson, Michael N. Fienen, Dean B. Gesch, Carl S. Carlson
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1111
A three-dimensional groundwater-flow model was developed for Assateague Island in eastern Maryland and Virginia to simulate both groundwater flow and solute (salt) transport to evaluate the groundwater system response to sea-level rise. The model was constructed using geologic and spatial information to represent the island geometry, boundaries, and physical properties...
Landscape consequences of natural gas extraction in Fayette and Lycoming Counties, Pennsylvania, 2004–2010
E.T. Slonecker, L.E. Milheim, C.M. Roig-Silva, A.R. Malizia, B.H. Gillenwater
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1119
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,...
The timing of scour and fill in a gravel-bedded river measured with buried accelerometers
Andrew S. Gendaszek, Christopher S. Magirl, Christiana R. Czuba, Christopher P. Konrad
2013, Journal of Hydrology (495) 186-196
A device that measures the timing of streambed scour and the duration of sediment mobilization at specific depths of a streambed was developed using data-logging accelerometers placed within the gravel substrate of the Cedar River, Washington, USA. Each accelerometer recorded its orientation every 20 min and remained stable until the...
Documenting the stages and streamflows associated with the 2011 activation of the New Madrid Floodway, Missouri
Todd A. Koenig, Robert R. Holmes Jr.
2013, Professional Paper 1798-E
The U.S. Geological Survey initiated a substantial effort in the summer of 2011 to measure and document the record-setting floods of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, including the reach in and near the New Madrid Floodway. The activation of the floodway, which had not occurred since 1937, provided a rare...
Mercury in wetlands at the Glacial Ridge National Wildlife Refuge, northwestern Minnesota, 2007-9
Timothy K. Cowdery, Mark E. Brigham
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5068
The Glacial Ridge National Wildlife Refuge was established in 2004 on land in northwestern Minnesota that had previously undergone extensive wetland and prairie restorations. About 7,000 acres of drained wetlands were restored to their original hydrologic function and aquatic ecosystem. During 2007–9, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the...
Variations in surface water-ground water interactions along a headwater mountain stream : comparisons between transient storage and water balance analyses
Adam S. Ward, Robert A. Payn, Michael N. Gooseff, Brian L. McGlynn, Kenneth E. Bencala, Christa A. Kelleher, Steven M. Wondzell, Thorsten Wagener
2013, Water Resources Research (49) 3359-3374
The accumulation of discharge along a stream valley is frequently assumed to be the primary control on solute transport processes. Relationships of both increasing and decreasing transient storage, and decreased gross losses of stream water have been reported with increasing discharge; however, we have yet to validate these relationships with...
The influence of vegetation on the hydrodynamics and geomorphology of a tree island in Everglades National Park (Florida, United States)
Pamela L. Sullivan, Victor C. Engel, Michael S. Ross, Rene M. Price
2013, Ecohydrology (7) 727-744
Transpiration-driven nutrient accumulation has been identified as a potential mechanism governing the creation and maintenance of wetland vegetation patterning. This process may contribute to the formation of nutrient-rich tree islands within the expansive oligotrophic marshes of the Everglades (Florida, United States). This study presents hydrogeochemical data indicating that tree root...
Hydrologic controls on the transport and cycling of carbon and nitrogen in a boreal catchment underlain by continuous permafrost
Joshua C. Koch, Robert L. Runkel, Robert G. Striegl, Diane M. McKnight
2013, Journal of Geophysical Research G: Biogeosciences (118) 698-712
Boreal ecosystems represent a large carbon (C) reservoir and a substantial source of greenhouse gases. Hydrologic conditions dictate whether C leached from boreal soils is processed in catchments or flushed to less productive environments via the stream. This study quantified hydrologic and biogeochemical C loss from a boreal catchment underlain...
Macroinvertebrate diets reflect tributary inputs and turbidity-driven changes in food availability in the Colorado River downstream of Glen Canyon Dam
Holly A. Wellard Kelly, Emma J. Rosi-Marshall, Theodore A. Kennedy, Robert O. Hall Jr., Wyatt F. Cross, Colden V. Baxter
2013, Freshwater Science (32) 397-410
Physical changes to rivers associated with large dams (e.g., water temperature) directly alter macroinvertebrate assemblages. Large dams also may indirectly alter these assemblages by changing the food resources available to support macroinvertebrate production. We examined the diets of the 4 most common macroinvertebrate taxa in the Colorado River through Glen...
A Unified Flash Flood Database across the United States
Jonathan J. Gourley, Yang Hong, Zachary L. Flamig, Ami Arthur, Robert Clark, Martin Calianno, Isabelle Ruin, Terry W. Ortel, Michael Wieczorek, Pierre-Emmanuel Kirstetter, Edward Clark, Witold F. Krajewski
2013, Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society (94) 799-805
Despite flash flooding being one of the most deadly and costly weather-related natural hazards worldwide, individual datasets to characterize them in the United States are hampered by limited documentation and can be difficult to access. This study is the first of its kind to assemble, reprocess, describe, and disseminate a...
