Postwildfire debris flows hazard assessment for the area burned by the 2011 Track Fire, northeastern New Mexico and southeastern Colorado
Anne C. Tillery, Michael J. Darr, Susan H. Cannon, John A. Michael
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1257
In June 2011, the Track Fire burned 113 square kilometers in Colfax County, northeastern New Mexico, and Las Animas County, southeastern Colorado, including the upper watersheds of Chicorica and Raton Creeks. The burned landscape is now at risk of damage from postwildfire erosion, such as that caused by debris flows...
Evaluation and trends of land cover, streamflow, and water quality in the North Canadian River Basin near Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, 1968-2009
Rachel A. Esralew, William J. Andrews, S. Jerrod Smith
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5117
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the city of Oklahoma City, collected water-quality samples from the North Canadian River at the streamflow-gaging station near Harrah, Oklahoma (Harrah station), since 1968, and at an upstream streamflow-gaging station at Britton Road at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (Britton Road station), since 1988. Statistical...
Temporal and spatial distribution of landslides in the Redwood Creek Basin, Northern California
Mary Ann Madej
C. Nicholas Medley, Glenn Patterson, Melanie J. Parker, editor(s)
2011, Conference Paper, Observing, studying, and managing for change: Proceedings of the Fourth Interagency Conference on Research in the Watersheds (SIR 2011-5169)
Mass movement processes are a dominant means of supplying sediment to mountainous rivers of north coastal California, but the episodic nature of landslides represents a challenge to interpreting patterns of slope instability. This study compares two major landslide events occurring in 1964-1975 and in 1997 in the Redwood Creek basin...
A study of the effects of implementing agricultural best management practices and in-stream restoration on suspended sediment, stream habitat, and benthic macroinvertebrates at three stream sites in Surry County, North Carolina, 2004-2007-Lessons learned
Douglas G. Smith, G.M. Ferrell, Douglas A. Harned, Thomas F. Cuffney
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5098
The effects of agricultural best management practices and in-stream restoration on suspended-sediment concentrations, stream habitat, and benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages were examined in a comparative study of three small, rural stream basins in the Piedmont and Blue Ridge Physiographic Provinces of North Carolina and Virginia between 2004 and 2007. The study...
Channel change and bed-material transport in the Umpqua River basin, Oregon
J. Rose Wallick, Jim E. O'Connor, Scott Anderson, Mackenzie K. Keith, Charles Cannon, John C. Risley
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5041
The Umpqua River drains 12,103 square kilometers of western Oregon; with headwaters in the Cascade Range, the river flows through portions of the Klamath Mountains and Oregon Coast Range before entering the Pacific Ocean. Above the head of tide, the Umpqua River, along with its major tributaries, the North and...
Tracking change over time
Water Resources Division, U.S. Geological Survey
2011, General Information Product 133
Landsat satellites capture images of Earth from space-and have since 1972! These images provide a long-term record of natural and human-induced changes on the global landscape. Comparing images from multiple years reveals slow and subtle changes as well as rapid and devastating ones. Landsat images are available over the Internet...
Probability and volume of potential postwildfire debris flows in the 2011 Indian Gulch burn area, near Golden, Colorado
Barbara C. Ruddy
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1248
This report presents an assessment of the debris-flow hazards from drainage basins burned in 2011 by the Indian Gulch wildfire near Golden, Colorado. Empirical models derived from statistical evaluation of data collected from recently burned drainage basins throughout the intermountain western United States were used to estimate the probability of...
USGS research on Florida's isolated freshwater wetlands
Arturo E. Torres, Kim H. Haag, Terrie M. Lee, Patricia A. Metz
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3094
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has studied wetland hydrology and its effects on wetland health and ecology in Florida since the 1990s. USGS wetland studies in Florida and other parts of the Nation provide resource managers with tools to assess current conditions and regional trends in wetland resources. Wetland...
Hydrogeologic framework of the Johns Creek subbasin and vicinity, Mason County, Washington
Wendy B. Welch, Mark E. Savoca
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5168
This report describes the hydrogeologic framework of the groundwater-flow system in the Johns Creek subbasin and vicinity. The study area covers 97 square miles in southeastern Mason County, Washington, and includes the Johns Creek subbasin, which drains an area of about 11 square miles. The study area extends beyond the...
Hydrography of and biogeochemical inputs to Liberty Bay, a small urban embayment in Puget Sound, Washington
Renee K. Takesue
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5152
This multi-chapter report describes scientific and logistic understanding gained from a 2 year proof-of-concept study in Liberty Bay, a small urban embayment in central Puget Sound, Washington. The introductory chapter describes the regional and local setting, the high-level study goals, the site-specific urban stressors, and the interdisciplinary study approach. Subsequent...
Assessment of managed aquifer recharge from Sand Hollow Reservoir, Washington County, Utah, updated to conditions in 2010
Victor M. Heilweil, Thomas M. Marston
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5142
Sand Hollow Reservoir in Washington County, Utah, was completed in March 2002 and is operated primarily for managed aquifer recharge by the Washington County Water Conservancy District. From 2002 through 2009, total surface-water diversions of about 154,000 acre-feet to Sand Hollow Reservoir have allowed it to remain nearly full since...
Assessment of surface-water quantity and quality, Eagle River watershed, Colorado, 1947-2007
Cory A. Williams, Jennifer L. Moore, Rodney J. Richards
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5075
From the early mining days to the current tourism-based economy, the Eagle River watershed (ERW) in central Colorado has undergone a sequence of land-use changes that has affected the hydrology, habitat, and water quality of the area. In 2000, the USGS, in cooperation with the Colorado River Water Conservation District,...
Flood-frequency analyses from paleoflood investigations for Spring, Rapid, Boxelder, and Elk Creeks, Black Hills, western South Dakota
Tessa M. Harden, Jim E. O'Connor, Daniel G. Driscoll, John F. Stamm
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5131
Flood-frequency analyses for the Black Hills area are important because of severe flooding of June 9-10, 1972, that was caused by a large mesoscale convective system and caused at least 238 deaths. Many 1972 peak flows are high outliers (by factors of 10 or more) in observed records that date...
Technique for estimation of streamflow statistics in mineral areas of interest in Afghanistan
Scott A. Olson, Thomas J. Mack
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1176
A technique for estimating streamflow statistics at ungaged stream sites in areas of mineral interest in Afghanistan using drainage-area-ratio relations of historical streamflow data was developed and is documented in this report. The technique can be used to estimate the following streamflow statistics at ungaged sites: (1) 7-day low flow...
Proceedings of the Fourth Interagency Conference on Research in the Watersheds—Observing, Studying, and Managing for Change
C. Nicholas Medley, Glenn Patterson, Melanie J. Parker, editor(s)
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5169
These proceedings contain the abstracts, manuscripts, and posters of presentations given at the Fourth Interagency Conference on Research in the Watersheds—Observing, Studying, and Managing for Change, held at the Westmark Hotel in Fairbanks, Alaska, September 26–30, 2011. The conference was jointly hosted by the Bureau of Land Management and the...
Geologic map of Big Bend National Park, Texas
Kenzie J. Turner, Margaret E. Berry, William R. Page, Thomas M. Lehman, Robert G. Bohannon, Robert B. Scott, Daniel P. Miggins, James R. Budahn, Roger W. Cooper, Benjamin J. Drenth, Eric D. Anderson, Van S. Williams
2011, Scientific Investigations Map 3142
The purpose of this map is to provide the National Park Service and the public with an updated digital geologic map of Big Bend National Park (BBNP). The geologic map report of Maxwell and others (1967) provides a fully comprehensive account of the important volcanic, structural, geomorphological, and paleontological features...
Groundwater quality in the Monterey Bay and Salinas Valley groundwater basins, California
Justin T. Kulongoski, Kenneth Belitz
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3089
The Monterey-Salinas study unit is nearly 1,000 square miles and consists of the Santa Cruz Purisima Formation Highlands, Felton Area, Scotts Valley, Soquel Valley, West Santa Cruz Terrace, Salinas Valley, Pajaro Valley, and Carmel Valley groundwater basins (California Department of Water Resources, 2003; Kulongski and Belitz, 2011). These basins were...
Status and understanding of groundwater quality in the Santa Clara River Valley, 2007-California GAMA Priority Basin Project
Carmen A. Burton, Joseph Montrella, Matthew K. Landon, Kenneth Belitz
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5052
Groundwater quality in the approximately 460-square-mile Santa Clara River Valley study unit was investigated from April through June 2007 as part of the Priority Basin Project of the Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program. The GAMA Priority Basin Project is conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in collaboration...
Status and understanding of groundwater quality in the Monterey Bay and Salinas Valley Basins, 2005-California GAMA Priority Basin Project
Justin T. Kulongoski, Kenneth Belitz
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5058
Groundwater quality in the approximately 1,000 square mile (2,590 km2) Monterey Bay and Salinas Valley Basins (MS) study unit was investigated as part of the Priority Basin Project of the Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program. The study unit is located in central California in Monterey, Santa Cruz, and...
Groundwater quality in the Santa Clara River Valley, California
Carmen A. Burton, Matthew K. Landon, Kenneth Belitz
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3055
The Santa Clara River Valley (SCRV) study unit is located in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties, California, and is bounded by the Santa Monica, San Gabriel, Topatopa, and Santa Ynez Mountains, and the Pacific Ocean. The 460-square-mile study unit includes eight groundwater basins: Ojai Valley, Upper Ojai Valley, Ventura River...
Occurrence and concentrations of pharmaceutical compounds in groundwater used for public drinking-water supply in California
Miranda S. Fram, Kenneth Belitz
2011, Science of the Total Environment (409) 3409-3417
Pharmaceutical compounds were detected at low concentrations in 2.3% of 1231 samples of groundwater (median depth to top of screened interval in wells = 61 m) used for public drinking-water supply in California. Samples were collected statewide for the California State Water Resources Control Board's Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program....
On the brink of change: Plant responses to climate on the Colorado Plateau
Seth M. Munson, Jayne Belnap, Charles D. Schelz, Mary Moran, Tara W. Carolin
2011, Ecosphere (2)
The intensification of aridity due to anthropogenic climate change in the southwestern U.S. is likely to have a large impact on the growth and survival of plant species that may already be vulnerable to water stress. To make accurate predictions of plant responses to climate change, it is essential to...
Energy and conservation benefits from managed prairie biomass
Jacob M. Jungers, Jared J. Trost, Clarence L. Lehman, David Tilman
Elaine Booth, editor(s)
2011, Conference Paper, Biomass and energy crops IV
Marginally productive land, such as that enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), may provide acreage and economic incentives for cellulosic energy production. Improving the yields from these lands will help establish a biomass producer's position in the marketplace. The effects of water and nitrogen on biomass yields were investigated...
A geographic information system tool for aquatic resource conservation in the Red and Sabine River Watersheds of the southeast United States
J. A. Jenkins, S. B. Hartley, J. Carter, D. J. Johnson, J. B. Alford
2011, Article
Our goal was to build a geographic information system (GIS) tool to enhance modeling and hypothesis testing relevant to watersheds and fish fauna of the Red and Sabine Rivers in the southeastern United States. Species of concern were identified from wildlife action plans and Web sites. Spatial distributions of fish...
Simulated changes in salinity in the York and Chickahominy Rivers from projected sea-level rise in Chesapeake Bay
Karen C. Rice, Mark Bennett, Jian Shen
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1191
As a result of climate change and variability, sea level is rising throughout the world, but the rate along the east coast of the United States is higher than the global mean rate. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the City of Newport News, Virginia, conducted a study to...
