Comparison of two precipitation gage networks in Cook County, Illinois
Kevin K. Johnson
2026, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5102
The Cook County Precipitation Network is a set of 25 precipitation gages established within Cook County, Illinois, on approximately a 5- to 7-mile square grid and used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to help account for diversions of water from Lake Michigan to the State of Illinois. The...
Groundwater tracing used to delineate recharge areas and map karst groundwater pathways for subterranean streams at Oregon Caves National Monument and Preserve
Benjamin V. Miller
2026, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5084
Oregon Caves National Monument and Preserve in southwestern Oregon is a 4,554-acre area managed by the National Park Service that is home to several cave systems, including Oregon Caves, which is the longest cave in Oregon, with 3.03 miles of mapped passages. Because of the interconnected nature of karst hydrologic...
Evaluation of water quality in the Langford Valley–Irwin Groundwater Subbasin, Fort Irwin National Training Center, California, 1993–2019
Jill N. Densmore, John A. Izbicki, Meghan C. Dick, Sandra Bond
2026, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5105
The U.S. Army Fort Irwin National Training Center (NTC), 120 miles northeast of Los Angeles in the Mojave Desert of California, obtains its potable water supply from the Bicycle Valley and Langford Valley groundwater basins; Langford Valley groundwater basin is further subdivided into the Langford Well Lake and Irwin groundwater...
Evaluating hydrologic data products for scientific and management applications related to potential future streamflow conditions in the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers
Molly Van Appledorn, Lucie Sawyer, John Delaney, Chanel Mueller, Leigh Youngblood, Jane Harrell, Brian Breaker, Chris Frans
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5101
The hydrology of the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers is a fundamental driver of ecosystem patterns and processes across a large portion of the United States. Quantitative hydrologic data for the main stems of these rivers underlie numerous scientific investigations, statistical models, and decision-making processes for local, State, and Federal...
Using visualization science to inform the design of environmental decision-support tools—A case study of the U.S. Geological Survey Waterwatch
Michael D. Gerst, Melissa A. Kenney, Emily Read
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5085
Environmental decision-support tools are increasingly being used to serve both expert and non-expert audiences. Many existing tools are primarily expert-focused, and redesigning them can be challenging because experts and non-experts interact with tools differently, existing users may be resistant to changes, and there is little guidance on how to prioritize...
Assessment of treated wastewater infiltration in Bright Angel Wash and the potential for contaminants of emerging concern influencing spring water quality along the South Rim of the Grand Canyon in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona
Nicholas V. Paretti, Kimberly R. Beisner, Sarah J.R. Shepherd
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5095
In April 2021, a synoptic study conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and National Park Service (NPS) identified wastewater-related contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) in springs along the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. These springs are located north of Bright Angel Wash, an ephemeral channel that receives treated...
Hydrogeologic characterization of the Cahuilla Valley and Terwilliger Valley Groundwater Basins, Riverside County, California
Christina L. Stamos, Allen H. Christensen, Geoffrey Cromwell, Meghan C. Dick, Christopher P. Ely, Elizabeth R. Jachens, Sarah E. Ogle, Mackenzie M. Shepherd
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5073
The relation between the groundwater and the amount of natural recharge to the Cahuilla Valley and Terwilliger Valley groundwater basins is not well understood. During the 20th century, the reliance on groundwater near Anza, California, used for agricultural, domestic, and municipal reasons has increased, and there is the potential for...
A probabilistic assessment methodology for the evaluation of geologic energy storage capacity—Natural gas storage in depleted hydrocarbon reservoirs
Marc L. Buursink, Ashton M. Wiens, Matthew M. Jones, Brian A. Varela, Philip A. Freeman, Sean T. Brennan, Matthew D. Merrill, Peter D. Warwick
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5108
The need for energy storage, particularly underground, where capacity and duration may far exceed battery storage technologies, is especially relevant given the increasing demands for reliable power alongside the development of intermittent renewable electricity sources. Geologic energy storage facilities already exist, and expanded use would enable storing gases such as...
Shallow geologic framework of the Mississippi Sound and the potential for sediment resources
James Flocks, Arnell Forde
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5100
The Mississippi Sound, an estuarine environment located between the mainland and barrier islands bordering the northern Gulf of America (formerly the Gulf of Mexico), serves as a vital ecosystem for the States of Mississippi and Alabama. Spanning approximately 100 kilometers from east to west and covering 1,400 square kilometers, the...
Environmental characterization of Blue Mesa Reservoir and potential causes of and management strategies for harmful algal blooms, 1970 through 2023, Curecanti National Recreation Area, Colorado
Katherine Walton-Day, Natalie K. Day, M. Alisa Mast, Rachel G. Gidley, Evan J. Gohring, Tyler V. King, Warren C. Day, Nicole D. Gibney, Nancy J. Bauch
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5109
Blue Mesa Reservoir, in the Curecanti National Recreation Area, is the largest storage reservoir in Colorado and consists of three distinct basins: Iola (the shallowest), Cebolla, and Sapinero. After algal toxins were first documented in Iola basin in 2018, the U.S. Geological Survey began a study in cooperation with the...
Sediment accumulation rates and volume in Pahranagat Wash above Arrow Canyon Dam in northern Moapa Valley, Nevada
Jon W. Wilson, Boris Poff, Christopher C. Fuller
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5106
An evaluation of sediment deposition rates and volume of impounded sediments in Pahranagat Wash behind Arrow Canyon dam in southeastern Nevada was done between 2016 and 2022. Data were collected and interpreted to address concerns by the Moapa Band of Paiutes and local historical preservation groups regarding the burial of...
Responding to ecological transformation in Capitol Reef National Park, Utah—Employee perspectives from pilot interviews from the Cross-Park Resist-Assist-Direct Project
Amanda E. Cravens, Zachary B. Hough Solomon, Julia B. Goolsby, Heather M. Yocum, Stefan Tangen, Wylie Carr
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5103
Executive SummaryClimate change is causing a range of changes that can affect the natural, cultural, and built resources of the Nation’s protected areas and affect opportunities to visit and recreate in these spaces. Changes in temperature and precipitation patterns also affect species and habitats, leading to ecological transformation. This report...
Conceptual and numerical groundwater flow model of the Iowa River alluvial aquifer near Tama County, Iowa, 1980 through 2022
Kendall M.F. Goldstein, Kyle W. Davis
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5086
The Iowa River alluvial aquifer is an important source of water on the Meskwaki Settlement in Tama County, Iowa, which is land owned by the Sac & Fox Tribe of the Mississippi in Iowa (commonly known as the Meskwaki Nation). The U.S. Geological Survey constructed a groundwater flow model, including...
Geochemical and hydrological investigations of historical data collected at the Lee Acres Landfill and Giant Bloomfield Refinery, New Mexico, 1985–2020
Erin L. Gray, Christina L. Ferguson
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5091
The Lee Acres Landfill and Giant Bloomfield Refinery are adjacent properties near the City of Farmington, New Mexico, each having undergone monitoring and remediation related to historical site activities. At the landfill, site cleanup has included the installation of a capillary barrier over former liquid waste lagoons and periodic monitoring...
Simulation of groundwater flow in Wake County, North Carolina, 2000 through 2070
Dominick J. Antolino, Gerard J. Gonthier, Georgina M. Sanchez
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5087
In 2019, the U.S. Geological Survey and Wake County Environmental Services began a collaborative study to evaluate groundwater resources and long-term groundwater availability in the county’s fractured-rock groundwater system. Wake County, in central North Carolina, is experiencing rapid population growth, associated land development, and changing water use. Hydrogeologic data including...
Quality of groundwater used for domestic supply in the Gilroy-Hollister basin and surrounding areas, California, 2022
Kirsten E. Faulkner, Bryant C. Jurgens
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5097
More than 2 million Californians rely on groundwater from domestic wells for drinking-water supply. This report summarizes a 2022 California Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment Priority Basin Project (GAMA-PBP) water-quality survey of 33 domestic and small-system drinking-water supply wells in the Gilroy-Hollister Valley groundwater basin and the surrounding areas, where more...
Temporal changes in nutrient concentrations in the Lower Grand River and selected drainage basins, Missouri and Iowa, during the Mississippi River Basin Healthy Watersheds Initiative (2010–23)
Brock J.W. Kamrath, Courtney N. Lauderback, Jennifer C. Murphy
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5099
This report describes a cooperative study by the U.S. Geological Survey and Missouri Department of Natural Resources that evaluated temporal changes in total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) concentrations in the Lower Grand River hydrologic unit. The study focused on trends since 2010, when the basin was designated as...
An evaluation of the effects of different deicing salt application rates on three watersheds in Essex County, New York
Kristina Gutchess, Natasha Scavotto, Amanda Dondero, Joshua Woda, Neil Terry, Kirk Smith, John Williams
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5062
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the New York State Department of Transportation, evaluated the effects of different deicing salt application rates on surface water, groundwater, and highway runoff quality near State highways in northern New York. Three reaches of State highways were tested with different deicing treatments between...
Estimating flood discharges at selected annual exceedance probabilities for unregulated, rural streams in Vermont, 2023
Scott A. Olson
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5088
This report provides estimates of flood discharge at selected annual exceedance probabilities (AEPs) for streamgages in and adjacent to Vermont and equations for estimating flood discharges at AEPs of 50-, 20-, 10-, 4-, 2-, 1-, 0.5-, and 0.2-percent (recurrence intervals of 2-, 5-, 10-, 25-, 50-, 100-, and 500-years, respectively)...
Groundwater response to managed aquifer recharge at the Southeast Houghton Artificial Recharge Project in Tucson, Arizona
Libby M. Wildermuth, Jeffrey R. Kennedy, Jacob L. Conrad
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5017
Managed aquifer recharge is a widespread practice for storing water in the subsurface as groundwater. At a managed aquifer recharge facility in southern Arizona, groundwater-level and repeat microgravity data were collected to monitor aquifer response. These data were used to inform parameter identification for an unsaturated-zone flow model used to...
An inset groundwater-flow model to evaluate the effects of layering configuration on model calibration and assess managed aquifer recharge near Shellmound, Mississippi
Moussa Guira, Jonathan P. Traylor, Andrew T. Leaf, Alec R. Weisser
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5055
The U.S. Geological Survey has developed a high-resolution inset groundwater-flow model in the Mississippi Delta as part of an interdisciplinary collaboration coordinated by the Mississippi Alluvial Plain project to provide a tool that stakeholders can use to support water-resource management decisions. Groundwater withdrawals from the Mississippi River Valley alluvial (MRVA)...
Statistical streamflow comparison of current and historical 30-year periods for selected streams in New Jersey
Brianna Williams, Samantha L. Sullivan, Thomas P. Suro, Jerilyn V. Collenburg, Amy R. McHugh, Jennifer L. Shourds
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5061
As the population of New Jersey increases, supplying adequate drinking water to meet demand remains a high priority. To better understand potential streamflow trends over time, the U.S. Geological Survey completed a study comparing low flows at continuous- and partial-record streamgages in New Jersey between a historical period (1950–79) and...
Potentiometric surface maps and groundwater-level hydrographs for confined aquifers of the New Jersey Coastal Plain, 2018
Alex R. Fiore, Stephen J. Cauller, Eileen J. Brown
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5080
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), prepared potentiometric surface maps for 10 confined aquifers of the New Jersey Coastal Plain physiographic province based on water-level measurements collected during late 2018 and early 2019 from 951 wells in New Jersey and parts...
User’s guide for the National Hydrography Dataset Plus High Resolution (NHDPlus HR)
Richard B. Moore, Lucinda D. McKay, Alan H. Rea, Timothy R. Bondelid, Curtis V. Price, Thomas G. Dewald, Laura Hayes
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5031
The National Hydrography Dataset Plus High Resolution (NHDPlus HR) is a scalable hydrologic geospatial fabric or framework, built from (1) the High Resolution (1:24,000-scale or better) National Hydrography Dataset (NHD), (2) nationally complete Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD), and (3) 1/3-arc-second 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) digital elevation model (DEM) data (at...
Effects of beaver dams and ponds on water quality in urban streams of the Tualatin River Basin, northwestern Oregon
Cassandra D. Smith, Erin K. Leahy, Krista L. Jones, Stewart A. Rounds
2025, Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5039-D
Significant Findings American beavers (Castor canadensis) are native to the Pacific Northwest, and their populations have increased in many locations after being nearly removed by historical trapping. Beaver dams have well-documented effects on water quality in forested streams, but their effects on water quality in urban streams have not been well...
