Interacting vegetative and thermal contributions to water movement in desert soil
C.A. Garcia, Brian J. Andraski, David A. Stonestrom, C.A. Cooper, J. Simunek, S.W. Wheatcraft
2011, Vadose Zone Journal (10) 552-564
Thermally driven water-vapor flow can be an important component of total water movement in bare soil and in deep unsaturated zones, but this process is often neglected when considering the effects of soil–plant–atmosphere interactions on shallow water movement. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the coupled and separate...
The impact of the 2009-10 El Niño Modoki on U.S. West Coast beaches
Patrick L. Barnard, Jonathan Allan, Jeff E. Hansen, George M. Kaminsky, Peter Ruggiero, André Doria
2011, Geophysical Research Letters (38)
High-resolution beach morphology data collected along much of the U.S. West Coast are synthesized to evaluate the coastal impacts of the 2009–10 El Niño. Coastal change observations were collected as part of five beach monitoring programs that span between 5 and 13 years in duration. In California, regional wave and...
Water-resources data for the United States: water year 2011
Water Resources Division, U.S. Geological Survey
2011, Water Data Report 2011
Water resources data are published annually for use by engineers, scientists, managers, educators, and the general public. These archival products supplement direct access to current and historical water data provided by NWISWeb. Beginning with Water Year 2006, annual water data reports are available as individual electronic Site Data Sheets for...
Ecosystem approach to inland fisheries: research needs and implementation strategies
T. Douglas Beard Jr., Robert Arlinghaus, Steven J. Cooke, Peter B. McIntyre, Sena De Silva, Devin M. Bartley, Ian G. Cowx
2011, Biology Letters (7) 481-483
Inland fisheries are a vital component in the livelihoods and food security of people throughout the world, as well as contributing huge recreational and economic benefits. These valuable assets are jeopardized by lack of research-based understanding of the impacts of fisheries on inland ecosystems, and similarly the impact of human...
Mineral resource of the month: copper
Water Resources Division, U.S. Geological Survey
2011, Earth (56) 28-29
The article provides information on copper and its various uses. It was the first metal used by humans and is considered as one of the materials that played an important role in the development of civilization. It is a major industrial metal because of its low cost, availability, electrical conductivity,...
Evolution of natural history information in the 21st century – developing an integrated framework for biological and geographical data
Deborah A. Reusser, Henry Lee II
2011, Journal of Biogeography (38) 1225-1239
Threats to marine and estuarine species operate over many spatial scales, from nutrient enrichment at the watershed/estuarine scale to invasive species and climate change at regional and global scales. To help address research questions across these scales, we provide here a standardized framework for a biogeographical information system containing queriable...
Biogeochemical evolution of a landfill leachate plume, Norman, Oklahoma
Isabelle M. Cozzarelli, J.K. Bohlke, Jason R. Masoner, George N. Breit, Michelle M. Lorah, Michele L. Tuttle, Jeanne B. Jaeschke
2011, Ground Water (49) 663-687
Leachate from municipal landfills can create groundwater contaminant plumes that may last for decades to centuries. The fate of reactive contaminants in leachate-affected aquifers depends on the sustainability of biogeochemical processes affecting contaminant transport. Temporal variations in the configuration of redox zones downgradient from the Norman Landfill were studied for...
The fecal bacteria
Michael J. Sadowsky, Richard L. Whitman, editor(s)
2011, Book
The Fecal Bacteria offers a balanced, integrated discussion of fecal bacteria and their presence and ecology in the intestinal tract of mammals, in the environment, and in the food supply. This new volume covers their use in examining and assessing water quality in order to offer protection from illnesses related...
Changes in historical Iowa land cover as context for assessing the environmental benefits of current and future conservation efforts on agricultural lands
Alisa L. Gallant, Walt Sadinski, Mark F. Roth, Charles A. Rewa
2011, Journal of Soil and Water Conservation (66) 67A-77A
Conservationists and agriculturists face unprecedented challenges trying to minimize tradeoffs between increasing demands for food, fiber, feed, and biofuels and the resulting loss or reduced values of other ecosystem services, such as those derived from wetlands and biodiversity (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2005a, 2005c; Maresch et al. 2008). The Food, Conservation,...
Mineral resource of the month: feldspar
Water Resources Division, U.S. Geological Survey
2011, Earth (56) 29-29
The article focuses on feldspar, a mineral that composes of potassium, sodium, or a fusion of the two, and its various applications. According to estimates by scientists, the mineral is present at 60 percent of the crust of Earth, wherein it is commonly used for making glass and ceramics. Global...
Historical legacies, information and contemporary water science and management
Daniel J. Bain, Jennifer A.S. Arrigo, Mark B. Green, Brian A. Pellerin, Charles J. Vörösmarty
2011, Water (3) 566-575
Hydrologic science has largely built its understanding of the hydrologic cycle using contemporary data sources (i.e., last 100 years). However, as we try to meet water demand over the next 100 years at scales from local to global, we need to expand our scope and embrace other data that address...
Conclusions and future use of fecal indicator bacteria for monitoring water quality and protecting human health
Michael J. Sadowsky, Richard L. Whitman
2011, Book chapter, The fecal bacteria
A summary of the focus and the recurring theme of the book is presented in this chapter. It includes the use of faecal bacteria as an indicator of faecal pollution and water quality, ubiquity of faecal bacteria, and sources and movement of faecal bacteria in the environment....
Pumice, pumicite review
R.D. Crangle Jr.
2011, Mining Engineering (63) 18-18
The article focuses on the industrial mineral pumice. It mentions the estimated production of pumice in the U.S. in 2010, price range, and total U.S. exports and imports. Described as an igneous volcanic rock, pumice has low density which allows it float on water and porous enough to be used...
Saline lakes of the glaciated Northern Great Plains
David M. Mushet
2011, Lakeline (31) 31-35
Unless you have flown over the region or seen aerial photographs, it is hard to grasp the scale of the millions of lakes and wetlands that dot the prairie landscape of the glaciated Northern Great Plains (Figure 1). This region of abundant aquatic habitats within a grassland matrix provides for...
Modeling fate and transport of fecal bacteria in surface water
Meredith B. Nevers, Alexandria B. Boehm
Michael J. Sadowsky, Richard L. Whitman, editor(s)
2011, Book chapter, The fecal bacteria
This chapter provides a basic review of deterministic and empirical statistical modelling and their application for predicting microbiological surface water quality....
Physical and biological factors influencing environmental sources of fecal indicator bacteria in surface water
Richard L. Whitman, Meredith B. Nevers, Katarzyna Przybyla-Kelly, Muruleedhara N. Byappanahalli
Michael J. Sadowsky, Richard L. Whitman, editor(s)
2011, Book chapter, The fecal bacteria
This paper describes the environmental populations of faecal indicator bacteria, and the processes by which these populations become nonpoint sources and influence nearshore water quality. The different possible sources of these indicator bacteria are presented. These include groundwater, springs and seeps, aquatic sediments, beach sand, birds, Cladophora and plant wrack....
Landscape models of brook trout abundance and distribution in lotic habitat with field validation
James E. McKenna Jr., James H. Johnson
2011, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (31) 742-756
Brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis are native fish in decline owing to environmental changes. Predictions of their potential distribution and a better understanding of their relationship to habitat conditions would enhance the management and conservation of this valuable species. We used over 7,800 brook trout observations throughout New York State and...
Lake sturgeon response to a spawning reef constructed in the Detroit river
Edward F. Roseman, B. Manny, J. Boase, M. Child, G. Kennedy, J. Craig, K. Soper, R. Drouin
2011, Journal of Applied Ichthyology (27) 66-76
Prior to the First World War, the bi-national Detroit River provided vast areas of functional fish spawning and nursery habitat. However, ongoing conflicting human uses of these waters for activities such as waste disposal, water withdrawals, shoreline development, shipping, recreation, and fishing have altered many of the chemical, physical, and...
Effects of baseline conditions on the simulated hydrologic response to projected climate change
Kathryn M. Koczot, Steven L. Markstrom, Lauren E. Hay
2011, Earth Interactions (15) 1-23
Changes in temperature and precipitation projected from five general circulation models, using one late-twentieth-century and three twenty-first-century emission scenarios, were downscaled to three different baseline conditions. Baseline conditions are periods of measured temperature and precipitation data selected to represent twentieth-century climate. The hydrologic effects of the climate projections are evaluated...
South Cascade (USA/North Cascades)
William R. Bidlake
2011, Glacier Mass Balance Bulletin (11) 81-89
The U.S. Geological Survey has closely monitored this temperate mountain glacier since the late 1950s. During 1958-2007, the glacier retreated about 0.7 km and shrank in area from 2.71 to 1.73 km2, although part of the area change was due to separation of contributing ice bodies from the main glacier....
Applications of Groundwater Helium
Justin T. Kulongoski, David R. Hilton
2011, Book chapter, Handbook of Environmental Isotop Geochemistry, Volume 1
Helium abundance and isotope variations have widespread application in groundwater-related studies. This stems from the inert nature of this noble gas and the fact that its two isotopes ? helium-3 and helium-4 ? have distinct origins and vary widely in different terrestrial reservoirs. These attributes allow He concentrations and 3He/4He...
Spring-migration ecology of Northern Pintails in south-central Nebraska
Aaron T. Pearse, Gary L. Krapu, Robert R. Cox Jr., Bruce E. Davis
2011, Waterbirds (34) 10-18
Spring-migration ecology of staging Northern Pintails, Anas acuta, was investigated in south-central Nebraska, USA. Habitat associations, local movements, settling patterns, arrival dates, residency times and survival were estimated from 71 radiomarked pintails during spring 2001, 2003 and 2004, and diet determined from 130 females collected during spring 1998 and 1999. Seventy-two percent of...
Fish and land use influence Gammarus lacustris and Hyalella azteca (Amphipoda) densities in large wetlands across the upper Midwest
Michael J. Anteau, Alan D. Afton, Andrea C.E. Anteau, E. Barry Moser
2011, Hydrobiologia (664) 69-80
Gammarus lacustris and Hyalella azteca (hereafter G. lacustris and H. azteca, respectively) are important components of secondary production in wetlands and shallow lakes of the upper Midwest, USA. Within the past 50 years, amphipod densities have decreased while occurrences of fish and intensity of agricultural land use have increased...
Discussion of Near-Transducer Errors in ADCP Measurements: Experimental Findings by Marian Muste, Dongsu Kim, and Juan A Gonzalez-Castro
David S. Mueller, Kevin A. Oberg
2011, Journal of Hydraulic Engineering (137) 863-866
Seasonal flows on warm Martian slopes
Alfred S. McEwen, Lujendra Ojha, Colin M. Dundas, Sarah S. Mattson, Shane Byrne, James J. Wray, Selby C. Cull, Scott L. Murchie, Nicolas Thomas, Virginia C. Gulick
2011, Science (333) 740-743
Water probably flowed across ancient Mars, but whether it ever exists as a liquid on the surface today remains debatable. Recurring slope lineae (RSL) are narrow (0.5 to 5 meters), relatively dark markings on steep (25° to 40°) slopes; repeat images from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter High Resolution Imaging Science...