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...
Simulating daily water temperatures of the Klamath River under dam removal and climate change scenarios
Russell W. Perry, John C. Risley, Scott J. Brewer, Edward C. Jones, Dennis W. Rondorf
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1243
A one-dimensional daily averaged water temperature model was used to simulate Klamath River temperatures for two management alternatives under historical climate conditions and six future climate scenarios. The analysis was conducted for the Secretarial Determination on removal of four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River. In 2012, the Secretary of...
Hydrogeology and simulation of groundwater flow at the Green Valley reclaimed coal refuse site near Terre Haute, Indiana
E. Randall Bayless, Leslie D. Arihood, Kathleen K. Fowler
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5116
The Green Valley reclaimed coal refuse site, near Terre Haute, Ind., was mined for coal from 1948 to 1963. Subsurface coal was cleaned and sorted at land surface, and waste material was deposited over the native glacial till. Approximately 2.7 million cubic yards of waste was deposited over 159 acres...
Observations of debris flows at Chalk Cliffs, Colorado, USA: Part 1, in-situ measurements of flow dynamics, tracer particle movement and video imagery from the summer of 2009
Scott W. McCoy, Jeffrey A. Coe, Jason W. Kean, Greg E. Tucker, Dennis M. Staley, Thad A. Wasklewicz
2011, Italian Journal of Engineering Geology and Environment 715-726
Debris flows initiated by surface-water runoff during short duration, moderate- to high-intensity rainfall are common in steep, rocky, and sparsely vegetated terrain. Yet large uncertainties remain about the potential for a flow to grow through entrainment of loose debris, which make formulation of accurate mechanical models of debris-flow routing difficult....
Transient surface liquid in Titan's south polar region from Cassini
A. G. Hayes, O. Aharonson, J. I. Lunine, R. L. Kirk, H. A. Zebker, L. C. Wye, R. D. Lorenz, E. P. Turtle, P. Paillou, Giuseppe Mitri, S. D. Wall, E. R. Stofan, K. L. Mitchell, C. Elachi
2011, Icarus (211) 655-671
Cassini RADAR images of Titan’s south polar region acquired during southern summer contain lake features which disappear between observations. These features show a tenfold increases in backscatter cross-section between images acquired one year apart, which is inconsistent with common scattering models without invoking temporal variability. The morphologic boundaries are...
CRevolution 2—Origin and evolution of the Colorado River system, workshop abstracts
L. Sue Beard, Karl E. Karlstrom, Richard A. Young, George H. Billingsley, editor(s)
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1210
A 2010 Colorado River symposium, held in Flagstaff, Arizona, involved 70 participants who engaged in intense debate about the origin and evolution of the Colorado River system. This symposium, built upon two previous decadal scientific meetings, focused on forging scientific consensus, where possible, while articulating continued controversies regarding the Cenozoic...
Hydrogeologic and geochemical characterization of groundwater resources in Rush Valley, Tooele County, Utah
Philip M. Gardner, Stefan Kirby
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5068
The water resources of Rush Valley were assessed during 2008–2010 with an emphasis on refining the understanding of the groundwater-flow system and updating the groundwater budget. Surface-water resources within Rush Valley are limited and are generally used for agriculture. Groundwater is the principal water source for most other uses including...
Conceptual model of the Great Basin carbonate and alluvial aquifer system
Victor M. Heilweil, Lynette E. Brooks, editor(s)
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5193
A conceptual model of the Great Basin carbonate and alluvial aquifer system (GBCAAS) was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for a regional assessment of groundwater availability as part of a national water census. The study area is an expansion of a previous USGS Regional Aquifer Systems Analysis (RASA)...
Land-cover change research at the U.S. Geological Survey-assessing our nation's dynamic land surface
Tamara S. Wilson
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3080
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) recently completed an unprecedented, 27-year assessment of land-use and land-cover change for the conterminous United States. For the period 1973 to 2000, scientists generated estimates of change in major types of land use and land cover, such as development, mining, agriculture, forest, grasslands, and wetlands....
An analysis of spatial relation predicates in U.S. Geological Survey feature definitions
Holly K. Caro, Dalia E. Varanka
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1235
The Semantic Web uses a data model called a triple, which consists of a subject -predicate - object structure. When represented as triples, geospatial data require a spatial relation term to serve as the predicate linking two spatial features. This document summarizes the approaches and procedures used during the identification...
Site-specific seismic-hazard maps and deaggregation in the western United States using the NGA models for ground-motion prediction
Stephen Harmsen
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1218
The 2008 National Seismic Hazard Mapping Project (NSHMP) update for the conterminous United States employs several new ground-motion prediction equations which include modern empirical models of linear and nonlinear site response to local and regional earthquakes. The recent availability of attenuation functions incorporating site conditions via Vs30 values permits the...
Numerical simulation of groundwater flow for the Yakima River basin aquifer system, Washington
D.M. Ely, M.P. Bachmann, J. J. Vaccaro
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5155
A regional, three-dimensional, transient numerical model of groundwater flow was constructed for the Yakima River basin aquifer system to better understand the groundwater-flow system and its relation to surface-water resources. The model described in this report can be used as a tool by water-management agencies and other stakeholders to quantitatively...
Assessment of coal geology, resources, and reserves in the Southwestern Powder River Basin, Wyoming
Lee M. Osmonson, David C. Scott, Jon E. Haacke, James A. Luppens, Paul E. Pierce
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1134
The availability of abundant new borehole data from recent coal bed natural gas development was utilized by the U.S. Geological Survey for a comprehensive evaluation of coal resources and reserves in the southwestern part of the Powder River Basin in Wyoming. This report on the Southwestern Powder River Basin assessment...
U.S. Geological Survey Science for the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative-2010 Annual Report
Zachary H. Bowen, Cameron L. Aldridge, Patrick J. Anderson, Timothy J. Assal, Laura Biewick, Steven W. Blecker, Gregory K. Boughton, R. Sky Bristol, Natasha B. Carr, Anna D. Chalfoun, Geneva W. Chong, Melanie L. Clark, Jay E. Diffendorfer, Bradley C. Fedy, Katharine Foster, Steven L. Garman, Steve Germaine, JoAnn Holloway, Collin G. Homer, Matthew J. Kauffman, Douglas Keinath, Natalie Latysh, Daniel J. Manier, Robert R. McDougal, Cynthia P. Melcher, Kirk A. Miller, Jessica Montag, Christopher J. Potter, Spencer Schell, Sarah L. Shafer, David B. Smith, Lisa L. Stillings, Michele L. Tuttle, Anna B. Wilson
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1219
This is the third report produced by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative (WLCI) to detail annual work activities. The first report described activities for 2007 and 2008, and the second report covered work activities for FY09. This third report covers work activities conducted in...
Interagency partnering for weed prevention-- Progress on development of a National Early Detection and Rapid Response System for Invasive Plants in the United States
Randy G. Westbrooks
R. Westbrooks, editor(s)
2011, Book chapter, Invasive plant management issues and challenges in the United States: 2011 Overview
Over the past 50 years, experience has shown that interagency groups provide an effective forum for addressing various invasive species issues and challenges on multiple land units. However, more importantly, they can also provide a coordinated framework for early detection, reporting, identification and vouchering, rapid assessment, and rapid response to...
Dose-Response Calculator for ArcGIS
Steven E. Hanser, Cameron L. Aldridge, Matthias Leu, Scott E. Nielsen
2011, Data Series 631
The Dose-Response Calculator for ArcGIS is a tool that extends the Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) ArcGIS 10 Desktop application to aid with the visualization of relationships between two raster GIS datasets. A dose-response curve is a line graph commonly used in medical research to examine the effects of different...
Hydrogeology and simulation of groundwater flow in the Arbuckle-Simpson aquifer, south-central Oklahoma
Scott Christenson, Noel I. Osborn, Christopher R. Neel, Jason R. Faith, Charles D. Blome, James Puckette, Michael P. Pantea
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5029
The Arbuckle-Simpson aquifer in south-central Oklahoma provides water for public supply, farms, mining, wildlife conservation, recreation, and the scenic beauty of springs, streams, and waterfalls. Proposed development of water supplies from the aquifer led to concerns that large-scale withdrawals of water would cause decreased flow in rivers and springs, which...
Recent (2008-10) water quality in the Barton Springs segment of the Edwards aquifer and its contributing zone, central Texas, with emphasis on factors affecting nutrients and bacteria
Barbara Mahler, MaryLynn Musgrove, Thomas L. Sample, Corinne I. Wong
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5139
The Barton Springs zone, which comprises the Barton Springs segment of the Edwards aquifer and the watersheds to the west that contribute to its recharge, is in south-central Texas, an area with rapid growth in population and increasing amounts of land area affected by development. During November 2008-March 2010, an...
The water-quality monitoring program for the Baltimore reservoir system, 1981-2007—Description, review and evaluation, and framework integration for enhanced monitoring
Michael T. Koterba, Marcus C. Waldron, Tamara E.C. Kraus
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5101
The City of Baltimore, Maryland, and parts of five surrounding counties obtain their water from Loch Raven and Liberty Reservoirs. A third reservoir, Prettyboy, is used to resupply Loch Raven Reservoir. Management of the watershed conditions for each reservoir is a shared responsibility by agreement among City, County, and State...
Refinement and evaluation of the Massachusetts firm-yield estimator model version 2.0
Sara B. Levin, Stacey A. Archfield, Andrew J. Massey
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5125
The firm yield is the maximum average daily withdrawal that can be extracted from a reservoir without risk of failure during an extended drought period. Previously developed procedures for determining the firm yield of a reservoir were refined and applied to 38 reservoir systems in Massachusetts, including 25 single- and...
Coastal habitats of the Elwha River, Washington- Biological and physical patterns and processes prior to dam removal
Jeffrey J. Duda, Jonathan A. Warrick, Christopher S. Magirl
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5120
This report includes chapters that summarize the results of multidisciplinary studies to quantify and characterize the current (2011) status and baseline conditions of the lower Elwha River, its estuary, and the adjacent nearshore ecosystems prior to the historic removal of two long-standing dams that have strongly influenced river, estuary, and...
A multi-year analysis of passage and survival at McNary Dam, 2004-09
Noah S. Adams, C. E. Walker, R.W. Perry
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1230
We analyzed 6 years (2004–09) of passage and survival data collected at McNary Dam to determine how dam operations and environmental conditions affect passage and survival of juvenile salmonids. A multinomial logistic regression was used to examine how environmental variables and dam operations relate to passage behavior of juvenile salmonids...
Relations between hydrology, water quality, and taste-and-odor causing organisms and compounds in Lake Houston, Texas, April 2006-September 2008
Amy M. Beussink, Jennifer L. Graham
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2011-5121
Lake Houston is a surface-water-supply reservoir and an important recreational resource for the city of Houston, Texas. Growing concerns over water quality in Lake Houston prompted a detailed assessment of water quality in the reservoir. The assessment focused on water-quality constituents that affect the aesthetic quality of drinking water. The...
Nitrogen uptake by the shoots of smooth cordgrass Spartina alterniflora
T. J. Mozdzer, M. Kirwan, K. J. McGlathery, J. C. Zieman
2011, Marine Ecology Progress Series (433) 43-52
The smooth cordgrass Spartina alterniflora is the foundation species in intertidal salt marshes of the North American Atlantic coast. Depending on its elevation within the marsh, S. alterniflora may be submerged for several hours per day. Previous ecosystem-level studies have demonstrated that S. alterniflora marshes are a net sink for...
Inference about density and temporary emigration in unmarked populations
Richard B. Chandler, J. Andrew Royle, David I. King
2011, Ecology (92) 1429-1435
Few species are distributed uniformly in space, and populations of mobile organisms are rarely closed with respect to movement, yet many models of density rely upon these assumptions. We present a hierarchical model allowing inference about the density of unmarked populations subject to temporary emigration and imperfect detection. The model...
