Estimating streambed hydraulic conductivity for selected streams in the Mississippi Alluvial Plain using continuous resistivity profiling methods—Delta region
Ryan F. Adams, Benjamin Miller, Wade H. Kress, Burke J. Minsley, James R. Rigby
2023, Scientific Investigations Map 3500
Introduction The Mississippi Alluvial Plain is one of the most important agricultural regions in the United States, and crop productivity relies on groundwater irrigation from an aquifer system whose full capacity is unknown. Groundwater withdrawals from the Mississippi River Valley alluvial aquifer have resulted in substantial groundwater-level declines and reductions...
Techniques for estimating the magnitude and frequency of peak flows on small streams in Minnesota, excluding the Rainy River Basin, based on data through water year 2019
Christopher A. Sanocki, Sara B. Levin
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5079
Annual peak-flow data collected at U.S. Geological Survey streamgages in Minnesota and adjacent areas of neighboring states of Iowa and South Dakota were analyzed to develop and update regional regression equations that can be used to estimate the magnitude and frequency of peak streamflow for ungaged streams in Minnesota, excluding...
Selenium hazards in the Salton Sea environment—Summary of current knowledge to inform future wetland management
Michael R. Rosen, Susan E.W. De La Cruz, Krishangi D. Groover, Isa Woo, Sarah A. Roberts, Melanie J. Davis, Cristiana Y. Antonino
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5042
Quaternary marine and continental shales in the western United States are sources of selenium that can be loaded into the aquatic environment through mining, agricultural, and energy production processes. The mobilization of selenium from shales through agricultural irrigation has been recognized since the 1930s; however, discovery of deformities in birds...
Turbulence near a sandbar island in the lower Missouri River
Geng Li, Caroline M. Elliott, Bruce Call, Brandon James Sansom, R. B. Jacobson, Bin Wang
2023, River Research and Applications (39) 1857-1874
River turbulence is spatially variable due to interactions between morphology of rivers and physical mechanics of flowing water. Understanding the variation of turbulence in rivers is important for characterizing transport processes of soluble and particulate materials in these systems. We present an exploratory effort to...
Application of surrogate technology to predict real-time metallic-contaminant concentrations and loads in the Clark Fork near Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site, Montana, water years 2019–20
Christopher A. Ellison, Steven K. Sando, Tom E. Cleasby
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5021
Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site (GRKO) in southwestern Montana commemorates the frontier cattle era and its formative role in shaping the culture and history of the Western United States. The ranch was designated a national historic landmark in 1960 and a unit of the National Park Service (NPS) by Congress...
Simulation of future streamflow and irrigation demand based on climate and urban growth projections in the Cape Fear and Pee Dee River Basins, North Carolina and South Carolina, 2055–65
Laura N. Gurley, Ana Maria Garcia, Cassandra A. Pfeifle, Georgina M. Sanchez
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5036
Water resources in the coastal region of North Carolina and South Carolina (Coastal Carolinas) are currently under stress from competing ecological and societal needs. Projected changes in climate and population are expected to place even more stress on water resources in the region. The Coastal Carolinas Focus Area Study...
Potentiometric surface map of the Southern High Plains aquifer in the Cannon Air Force Base area, Curry County, New Mexico, 2020
A.B. Goodwin, Meghan T. Bell
2023, Scientific Investigations Map 3504
Declining water levels and the potential impact on water resources on and around Cannon Air Force Base (AFB), New Mexico, has necessitated an up-to-date review of the potentiometric surface to evaluate the availability of water resources for future use. Analysis of groundwater-flow directions and hydraulic gradients can provide an understanding...
Nutrient and suspended-sediment concentrations, flux, and yields in the Galena River, Illinois, 2019–21
Paul J. Terrio, Luis A. Garcia
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5044
Two stations on the Galena River in Illinois were monitored for nitrogen, phosphorus, and suspended sediment from 2019 to 2021 to determine physiochemical properties and constituent concentrations, flux, and yields. This information could aide in the management and understanding of the Galena River and the contributions from the intervening 58-square-mile...
Arsenic in groundwater in the Grand Canyon region and an evaluation of potential pathways for arsenic contamination of groundwater from breccia pipe uranium mining
Fred D. Tillman, Kimberly R. Beisner, Casey J.R. Jones
2023, PLOS Water (2)
The Grand Canyon in northern Arizona is an international tourist destination, a home or sacred place to many Native Americans, and hosts some of the highest-grade uranium deposits in the United States. Although potential contamination of water resources by uranium from mining activities is a concern,...
Floodwater drainage assessment of Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, 2020–22
Christopher M. Hobza, Kellan R. Strauch
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5053
Offutt Air Force Base, south of Omaha, Nebraska, experienced major flooding during the March 2019 flood event because of the proximity of the base to the confluence of the Missouri River and nearby tributaries, which exceeded flood stages. Postflood, standing water remained through much of the year, attracting waterfowl and...
Quality of surface water in Missouri, water year 2021
Kendra M. Markland
2023, Data Report 1179
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, maintains a statewide group of stations known as the Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network, which includes selected streams and springs in Missouri. During water year 2021 (October 1, 2020, through September 30, 2021), the U.S. Geological Survey collected...
Application of the Precipitation-Runoff Modeling System (PRMS) to simulate the streamflows and water balance of the Red River Basin, 1980–2016
Victor L. Roland II
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2022-5105
The Precipitation-Runoff Modeling System (PRMS) was used to develop and calibrate a streamflow and water balance model for the Red River Basin as part of the U.S. Geological Survey National Water Census, a research effort focused on developing innovative water accounting...
Historical changes to channel planform and bed elevations downstream from dams along Fall Creek and Middle Fork Willamette River, Oregon, 1926–2016
Mackenzie K. Keith, J. Rose Wallick, Gabriel W. Gordon, Heather D. Bervid
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5048
Operation of large, multipurpose dams within the Middle Fork Willamette River Basin, Oregon, including the Fall Creek sub-basin, have disrupted natural streamflow and sediment transport regimes and fish passage along the river corridors. Documenting channel morphology, including channel planform, landforms, vegetation cover, and river channel elevations at multiple points in...
Analysis of aquifer framework and properties, North Magee Street well field, Southampton, New York
Paul E. Misut
2023, Open-File Report 2023-1028
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Suffolk County Water Authority, evaluated the groundwater-flow characteristics and aquifer properties of the North Magee Street well field north of the village of Southampton, New York. Characteristics and properties included groundwater-flow direction, potential groundwater-contributing areas to the well field production wells, and...
Calibration of the Trinity River Stream Salmonid Simulator (S3) with extension to the Klamath River, California, 2006–17
John M. Plumb, Russell W. Perry, Nicholas A. Som, Damon H. Goodman, Aaron C. Martin, Justin S. Alvarez, Nicholas J. Hetrick
2023, Open-File Report 2023-1023
The Trinity River is managed in two sections: (1) the upper 64-kilometer (km) “restoration reach” downstream from Lewiston Dam and (2) the 120-km lower Trinity River downstream from the restoration reach. The Stream Salmonid Simulator (S3) has been previously constructed and calibrated for the restoration reach. In this report, we...
Groundwater residence times in glacial aquifers—A new general simulation-model approach compared to conventional inset models
J. Jeffrey Starn, Leon J. Kauffman, Daniel T. Feinstein
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2021-5142
Groundwater is important as a drinking-water source and for maintaining base flow in rivers, streams, and lakes. Groundwater quality can be predicted, in part, by its residence time in the subsurface, but the residence-time distribution cannot be measured directly and must be inferred from models. This report compares residence-time distributions...
Source contributions to suspended sediment and particulate selenium export from the Loutsenhizer Arroyo and Sunflower Drain watersheds in Colorado
Carleton R. Bern, Cory A. Williams, Christopher G. Smith
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5056
Selenium in aquatic ecosystems of the lower Gunnison River Basin in Colorado is affecting the recovery of populations of endangered, native fish species. Dietary exposure is the primary pathway for bioaccumulation of selenium in fish, and particulate selenium can be consumed directly by fish or by the invertebrates on which...
Bathymetric and velocimetric surveys at highway bridges crossing the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers near St. Louis, Missouri, August 3–10, 2020
Richard J. Huizinga
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5050
Bathymetric and velocimetric data were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Transportation, near 15 bridges at 10 highway crossings of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers near Washington, Louisiana, and St. Louis, Missouri, on August 3–10, 2020. A multibeam echosounder mapping system was used...
Landslides triggered by the 2016–2017 storm season, eastern San Francisco Bay region, California
Skye C. Corbett, Brian D. Collins
2023, Scientific Investigations Map 3503
DiscussionThe winter rainy season of 2016–2017 brought abundant rainfall to the State of California and to the San Francisco Bay region. In January and February of 2017, intense rainfall from strong winter storms saturated soils in the region and triggered thousands of shallow landslides. The highest concentration of these landslides...
Generating a reference flow network with improved connectivity to support durable data integration and reproducibility in the coterminous US
David L. Blodgett, J. Michael Johnson, Andrew R. Bock
2023, Environmental Modelling and Software (165)
This report presents a reference flow network for the conterminous United States that is built from the best available information from the U.S. Geological Survey, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Weather Service, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The work is intended to support durable data integration and reproducibility. Originating...
Evaluating drivers of hydrology, water quality, and benthic macroinvertebrates in streams of Fairfax County, Virginia, 2007–18
James S. Webber, Jeffrey G. Chanat, Aaron J. Porter, John D. Jastram
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5027
In 2007, the U.S. Geological Survey partnered with Fairfax County, Virginia, to establish a long-term water-resources monitoring program to evaluate the hydrology, water quality, and ecology of Fairfax County streams and the watershed-scale effects of management practices. Fairfax County uses a variety of management practices, policies, and programs to protect...
Simulation of flow and eutrophication in the central Salem River, New Jersey
Frederick J. Spitz, Vincent T. DePaul
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2022-5047
The central Salem River in New Jersey is subject to periods of water-quality impairment, marked by elevated concentrations of phosphorus and chlorophyll-a, and low concentrations of and large diurnal swings in concentrations of dissolved oxygen. These seasonal eutrophic conditions are controlling factors for water quality in lower reaches, where the...
Assessing potential effects of changes in water use in the middle Carson River Basin with a numerical groundwater-flow model, Eagle, Dayton, and Churchill Valleys, west-central Nevada
Eric D. Morway, Susan G. Buto, Richard G. Niswonger, Justin L. Huntington
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5008
During the economic boom of the mid part of the first decade of the 2000s in northwestern Nevada, municipal and housing growth increased use of the water resources of this semi-arid region. In 2008, when the economy slowed, new housing development stopped, and immediate pressure on groundwater resources abated. The...
Development of an integrated hydrologic flow model of the Rio San Jose Basin and surrounding areas, New Mexico
Andre B. Ritchie, Shaleene B. Chavarria, Amy E. Galanter, Allison K. Flickinger, Andrew J. Robertson, Donald S. Sweetkind
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5028
The Rio San Jose Integrated Hydrologic Model (RSJIHM) was developed to provide a tool for analyzing the hydrologic system response to historical water use and potential changes in water supplies and demands in the Rio San Jose Basin. The study area encompasses about 6,300 square miles in west-central New Mexico...
Magnitude and frequency of floods on Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Maui, and Hawaiʻi, State of Hawaiʻi, based on data through water year 2020
Jackson N. Mitchell, Daniel M. Wagner, Andrea G. Veilleux
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5014
Accurate estimates of flood magnitude and frequency are needed to (1) optimize the design and location of infrastructure, including dams, culverts, bridges, industrial buildings, and highways, and (2) inform flood-zoning and flood-insurance studies. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the State of Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation, estimated flood...
