Fine-grained sediment dispersal along the California coast
Jonathan A. Warrick, Curt D. Storlazzi
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3023
Fine-grained sediment (silt and clay) enters coastal waters from rivers, eroding coastal bluffs, resuspension of seabed sediment, and human activities such as dredging and beach nourishment. The amount of sediment in coastal waters is an important factor in ocean ecosystem health, but little information exists on both the natural and...
A conceptual hydrogeologic model for the hydrogeologic framework, geochemistry, and groundwater-flow system of the Edwards-Trinity and related aquifers in the Pecos County region, Texas
Jonathan V. Thomas, Gregory P. Stanton, Johnathan R. Bumgarner, Daniel K. Pearson, Andrew Teeple, Natalie A. Houston, Jason Payne, MaryLynn Musgrove
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3024
The Edwards-Trinity aquifer is a vital groundwater resource for agricultural, industrial, and municipal uses in the Trans-Pecos region of west Texas. A conceptual model of the hydrogeologic framework, geochemistry, and groundwater-flow system in the 4,700 square-mile study area was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the...
Organic waste compounds in streams: Occurrence and aquatic toxicity in different stream compartments, flow regimes, and land uses in southeast Wisconsin, 2006–9
Austin K. Baldwin, Steven R. Corsi, Kevin D. Richards, Steven W. Geis, Christopher Magruder
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5104
An assessment of organic chemicals and aquatic toxicity in streams located near Milwaukee, Wisconsin, indicated high potential for adverse impacts on aquatic organisms that could be related to organic waste compounds (OWCs). OWCs used in agriculture, industry, and households make their way into surface waters through runoff, leaking septic-conveyance systems,...
The use of process models to inform and improve statistical models of nitrate occurrence, Great Miami River Basin, southwestern Ohio
Donald A. Walter, J. Jeffrey Starn
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2012-5001
Statistical models of nitrate occurrence in the glacial aquifer system of the northern United States, developed by the U.S. Geological Survey, use observed relations between nitrate concentrations and sets of explanatory variables—representing well-construction, environmental, and source characteristics— to predict the probability that nitrate, as nitrogen, will exceed a threshold concentration....
Final report for sea-level rise response modeling for San Francisco Bay estuary tidal marshes
John Y. Takekawa, Karen M. Thorne, Kevin J. Buffington, Kyle A. Spragens, Kathleen M. Swanson, Judith Z. Drexler, David H. Schoellhamer, Cory T. Overton, Michael L. Casazza
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1081
The International Panel on Climate Change has identified coastal ecosystems as areas that will be disproportionally affected by climate change. Current sea-level rise projections range widely with 0.57 to 1.9 meters increase in mea sea level by 2100. The expected accelerated rate of sea-level rise through the 21st century will...
Evidence for extensive methane venting on the southeastern U.S. Atlantic margin
L.L. Brothers, C.L. Van Dover, C.R. German, C.L. Kaiser, D.R. Yoerger, C.D. Ruppel, E. Lobecker, A.D. Skarke, J.K.S. Wagner
2013, Geology (41) 807-810
We present the first evidence for widespread seabed methane venting along the southeastern United States Atlantic margin beyond the well-known Blake Ridge diapir seep. Recent ship- and autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV)–collected data resolve multiple water-column anomalies (>1000 m height) and extensive new chemosynthetic seep communities at the Blake Ridge and...
Postwildfire debris-flow hazard assessment of the area burned by the 2012 Little Bear Fire, south-central New Mexico
Anne C. Tillery, Anne Marie Matherne
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1108
A preliminary hazard assessment was developed of the debris-flow potential from 56 drainage basins burned by the Little Bear Fire in south-central New Mexico in June 2012. The Little Bear Fire burned approximately 179 square kilometers (km2) (44,330 acres), including about 143 km2 (35,300 acres) of National Forest System lands...
Regional bankfull-channel dimensions of non-urban wadeable streams in Indiana
Bret A. Robinson
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5078
During floods, damage to properties and community infrastructure may result from inundation and the processes of erosion. The damages imparted by erosion are collectively termed the fluvial erosion hazard (FEH), and the Indiana Silver Jackets Multi-agency Hazard Mitigation Taskforce is supporting a program to build tools that will assist Indiana...
Implications of flume slope on discharge estimates from 0.762-meter H flumes used in edge-of-field monitoring
Matthew J. Komiskey, Todd D. Stuntebeck, Amanda L. Cox, Dennis R. Frame
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1082
The effects of longitudinal slope on the estimation of discharge in a 0.762-meter (m) (depth at flume entrance) H flume were tested under controlled conditions with slopes from −8 to +8 percent and discharges from 1.2 to 323 liters per second. Compared to the stage-discharge rating for a longitudinal flume...
A USANS/SANS study of the accessibility of pores in the Barnett Shale to methane and water
Leslie F. Ruppert, Richard Sakurovs, Tomasz P. Blach, Lilin He, Yuri B. Melnichenko, David F. Mildner, Leo Alcantar-Lopez
2013, Energy & Fuels (27) 772-779
Shale is an increasingly important source of natural gas in the United States. The gas is held in fine pores that need to be accessed by horizontal drilling and hydrofracturing techniques. Understanding the nature of the pores may provide clues to making gas extraction more efficient. We have investigated two...
Climate warming shifts carbon allocation from stemwood to roots in calcium-depleted spruce forests
Andrei Gennady Lapenis, Gregory B. Lawrence, Alexander Heim, Chengyang Zheng, Walter Shortle
2013, Global Biogeochemical Cycles (27) 101-107
Increased greening of northern forests, measured by the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), has been presented as evidence that a warmer climate has increased both net primary productivity (NPP) and the carbon sink in boreal forests. However, higher production and greener canopies may accompany changes in carbon allocation that favor...
Improved estimates of filtered total mercury loadings and total mercury concentrations of solids from potential sources to Sinclair Inlet, Kitsap County, Washington
Anthony J. Paulson, Kathleen E. Conn, John F. DeWild
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5081
Previous investigations examined sources and sinks of mercury to Sinclair Inlet based on historic and new data. This included an evaluation of mercury concentrations from various sources and mercury loadings from industrial discharges and groundwater flowing from the Bremerton naval complex to Sinclair Inlet. This report provides new data from...
Relation of watershed setting and stream nutrient yields at selected sites in central and eastern North Carolina, 1997-2008
Stephen L. Harden, Thomas F. Cuffney, Silvia Terziotti, Katharine R. Kolb
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5007
Data collected between 1997 and 2008 at 48 stream sites were used to characterize relations between watershed settings and stream nutrient yields throughout central and eastern North Carolina. The focus of the investigation was to identify environmental variables in watersheds that influence nutrient export for supporting the development and prioritization...
Nahcolite and halite deposition through time during the saline mineral phase of Eocene Lake Uinta, Piceance Basin, western Colorado
Ronald C. Johnson, Michael E. Brownfield
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1114
Halite and the sodium bicarbonate mineral nahcolite were deposited during the saline phase of Eocene Lake Uinta in the Piceance Basin, western Colorado. Variations in the area of saline mineral deposition through time were interpreted from studies of core and outcrop. Saline minerals were extensively leached by groundwater, so the...
Peak streamflows and runoff volumes for the Central United States, February through September, 2011
Robert R. Holmes Jr., Gregg J. Wiche, Todd A. Koenig, Steven K. Sando
2013, Professional Paper 1798-C
During 2011, excessive precipitation resulted in widespread flooding in the Central United States with 33 fatalities and approximately $4.2 billion in damages reported in the Souris/Red River of the North (Souris/Red) and Mississippi River Basins. At different times, beginning in late February 2011 and extending through September 2011, various rivers...
Arsenic and mercury in the soils of an industrial city in the Donets Basin, Ukraine
Kathryn M. Conko, Edward R. Landa, Allan Kolker, Kostiantyn Kozlov, Herman J. Gibb, Jose Centeno, Boris S. Panov, Yuri B. Panov
2013, Soil and Sediment Contamination: An International Journal (22) 574-593
Soil and house dust collected in and around Hg mines and a processing facility in Horlivka, a mid-sized city in the Donets Basin of southeastern Ukraine, have elevated As and Hg levels. Surface soils collected at a former Hg-processing facility had up to 1300 mg kg−1 As and 8800 mg...
Seawater circulation in sediments driven by interactions between seabed topography and fluid density
Leonard F. Konikow, M. Akhavan, C.D. Langevin, H.A. Michael, A.H. Sawyer
2013, Water Resources Research (49) 1386-1399
Measurements of submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) in coastal areas often show that the saltwater discharge component is substantially greater than the freshwater discharge. Several mechanisms have been proposed to explain these high saltwater discharge values, including saltwater circulation driven by wave and tidal pumping, wave and tidal setup in intertidal...
Bathymetric surveys of selected lakes in Missouri--2000-2008
Joseph M. Richards
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1101
Years of sediment accumulation and abnormally dry conditions in the Midwest in 1999 and 2000 led to the water level decline of many water-supply lakes in Missouri, and caused renewed interest in modernizing outdated area/volume tables for these lakes. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of...
Visualizing flow fields using acoustic Doppler current profilers and the Velocity Mapping Toolbox
P. Ryan Jackson
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3028
The purpose of this fact sheet is to provide examples of how the U.S. Geological Survey is using acoustic Doppler current profilers for much more than routine discharge measurements. These instruments are capable of mapping complex three-dimensional flow fields within rivers, lakes, and estuaries. Using the Velocity Mapping Toolbox to...
Chronology from sediment cores collected in southwestern Everglades National Park, Florida
C.E. Bernhardt, G.L. Wingard, Debra A. Willard, M. E. Marot, B. Landacre, C. W. Holmes
2013, Open-File Report 2012-1275
Age model data are presented for 10 cores from the southwestern coastal mangrove zone of Everglades National Park, Florida, collected in Common Era (CE) 2004 and 2005 and used for paleoecological analysis. Carbon-14 (14C), lead-210 (210Pb), cesium-137 (137Cs), radium-226 (226Ra), and pollen biostratigraphic information is included, and age models were...
Impacts of migratory Sandhill Cranes (Grus canadensis) on microbial water quality in the central Platte River, Nebraska, USA
Jason R. Vogel, Dale W. Griffin, Hon S. Ip, Nicholas J. Ashbolt, Matthew T. Moser, Jingrang Lu, Mary K. Beitz, Hodon Ryu, Jorge W. Santo Domingo
2013, Water, Air, & Soil Pollution (224)
Wild birds have been shown to be significant sources of numerous types of pathogens that are relevant to humans and agriculture. The presence of large numbers of migratory birds in such a sensitive and important ecosystem as the Platte River in central Nebraska, USA, could potentially serve a significant source...
Surficial geologic map of the Mount Grace-Ashburnham-Monson-Webster 24-quadrangle area in central Massachusetts
Janet Radway Stone
2013, Open-File Report 2006-1260-I
The surficial geologic map shows the distribution of nonlithified earth materials at land surface in an area of 24 7.5-minute quadrangles (1,238 mi2 total) in central Massachusetts. Across Massachusetts, these materials range from a few feet to more than 500 ft in thickness. They overlie bedrock, which crops out in...
Streamflow of 2012--Water year summary
Xiaodong Jian, David M. Wolock, Harry F. Lins, Steve Brady
2013, Fact Sheet 2013-3026
The maps and graphs in this summary describe streamflow conditions for water year 2012 (October 1, 2011, to September 30, 2012) in the context of the 83-year period from 1930 through 2012, unless otherwise noted. The illustrations are based on observed data from the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) National Streamflow...
Saltwater intrusion in the surficial aquifer system of the Big Cypress Basin, southwest Florida, and a proposed plan for improved salinity monitoring
Scott T. Prinos
2013, Open-File Report 2013-1088
The installation of drainage canals, poorly cased wells, and water-supply withdrawals have led to saltwater intrusion in the primary water-use aquifers in southwest Florida. Increasing population and water use have exacerbated this problem. Installation of water-control structures, well-plugging projects, and regulation of water use have slowed saltwater intrusion, but the...
Flood-inundation maps for the East Fork White River at Columbus, Indiana
Pamela J. Lombard
2013, Scientific Investigations Map 3255
Digital flood-inundation maps for a 5.4-mile reach of the East Fork White River at Columbus, Indiana, from where the Flatrock and Driftwood Rivers combine to make up East Fork White River to just upstream of the confluence of Clifty Creek with the East Fork White River, were created by the...
