Contaminant Science in Oklahoma and Texas
Contamination is the degradation of water quality compared to its original or natural conditions. USGS Oklahoma-Texas Water Science Center (OTWSC) scientists have been part of several projects to quantify the presence and effects of contaminants in surface water, groundwater, and sediment across Texas. OTWSC scientists also have looked at specific contaminant issues, such as establishing baseline water-quality conditions prior to oil and natural gas production, or evaluating the effectiveness of water treatment plants in removing pharmaceutical compounds from municipal water. Visit the links below for more information on our data and science.
Contaminants originate from a wide range of natural and man-made sources. Many commonly studied contaminants occur naturally, although concentrations of some contaminants may be altered by human activities. For example, nitrate from natural sources is present in most water, but concentrations often are increased by contributions from man-made sources in agricultural and urban areas.
CONTAMINATION SCIENCE CAPABILITIES
OTWSC has expertise in a wide variety of contaminant science applications, including, but not limited to:
- Sediment
- Coupling water and stream-bed sediment data with changes in land cover
- Characterizing Sediment Quality
- Identifying Source(s) of Contaminant Inputs
- Understanding Relations Between Streamflow and Sediment and Contaminant Transport
- Water Quality
- Studying Emerging Contaminants
- Monitoring Environmental Contaminants such as Pharmaceutical compounds, personal care products, pesticides, and herbicides
- Characterizing the water quality connection between surface water and groundwater
- Integrating monitoring networks including automated sampling, real-time data logging, and discrete sample collection
- Developing mapping applications for displaying real-time data
Find out more about OTWSC water-quality science expertise in this printable information sheet.
CURRENT CONTAMINANT SCIENCE
Contaminant Detection
Dallas Emerging Contaminants Study
San Antonio River Sediment and Water Quality Monitoring in an Oil and Gas Production Area
Salado Creek Bacteria Source Tracking
Water Quality Monitoring of Arundo Cane Removal Treatment
Long-Term Trends
Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone Monitoring Network
Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone Surface-water and Groundwater Interaction
Hydrogeologic Atlas for Fort Bliss
Water-Quality Monitoring of the Lake Houston Watershed
National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA)
National Water-Quality Assessment Project in Texas - Surface Water Activities
National Water-Quality Assessment Project in Texas - Groundwater Activities
Projects related to contamination science are listed below.
Water-Quality Monitoring of the Lake Houston Watershed
Water Quality Monitoring of Arundo Cane Removal Treatment
San Antonio River Sediment and Water Quality Monitoring in an Oil and Gas Production Area
Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone Surface-water and Groundwater Interaction
National Water-Quality Assessment Project in Texas - Surface Water Activities
Hydrogeologic Atlas for Fort Bliss
Dallas Compounds of Emerging Concern Study
Urban Waters Federal Partnership - Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone Monitoring Network
Recent publications related to contamination science are listed below. Additional publications are available from the USGS Publications Warehouse: Contamination Studies || NAWQA
Water-quality observations of the San Antonio segment of the Edwards aquifer, Texas, with an emphasis on processes influencing nutrient and pesticide geochemistry and factors affecting aquifer vulnerability, 2010–16
Selected streambed sediment compounds and water toxicity results for Westside Creeks, San Antonio, Texas, 2014
Occurrence and concentrations of selected trace elements, halogenated organic compounds, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in streambed sediments and results of water-toxicity testing in Westside Creeks and the San Antonio River, San Antonio, Texas, 20
Contamination is the degradation of water quality compared to its original or natural conditions. USGS Oklahoma-Texas Water Science Center (OTWSC) scientists have been part of several projects to quantify the presence and effects of contaminants in surface water, groundwater, and sediment across Texas. OTWSC scientists also have looked at specific contaminant issues, such as establishing baseline water-quality conditions prior to oil and natural gas production, or evaluating the effectiveness of water treatment plants in removing pharmaceutical compounds from municipal water. Visit the links below for more information on our data and science.
Contaminants originate from a wide range of natural and man-made sources. Many commonly studied contaminants occur naturally, although concentrations of some contaminants may be altered by human activities. For example, nitrate from natural sources is present in most water, but concentrations often are increased by contributions from man-made sources in agricultural and urban areas.
CONTAMINATION SCIENCE CAPABILITIES
OTWSC has expertise in a wide variety of contaminant science applications, including, but not limited to:
- Sediment
- Coupling water and stream-bed sediment data with changes in land cover
- Characterizing Sediment Quality
- Identifying Source(s) of Contaminant Inputs
- Understanding Relations Between Streamflow and Sediment and Contaminant Transport
- Water Quality
- Studying Emerging Contaminants
- Monitoring Environmental Contaminants such as Pharmaceutical compounds, personal care products, pesticides, and herbicides
- Characterizing the water quality connection between surface water and groundwater
- Integrating monitoring networks including automated sampling, real-time data logging, and discrete sample collection
- Developing mapping applications for displaying real-time data
Find out more about OTWSC water-quality science expertise in this printable information sheet.
CURRENT CONTAMINANT SCIENCE
Contaminant Detection
Dallas Emerging Contaminants Study
San Antonio River Sediment and Water Quality Monitoring in an Oil and Gas Production Area
Salado Creek Bacteria Source Tracking
Water Quality Monitoring of Arundo Cane Removal Treatment
Long-Term Trends
Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone Monitoring Network
Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone Surface-water and Groundwater Interaction
Hydrogeologic Atlas for Fort Bliss
Water-Quality Monitoring of the Lake Houston Watershed
National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA)
National Water-Quality Assessment Project in Texas - Surface Water Activities
National Water-Quality Assessment Project in Texas - Groundwater Activities
Projects related to contamination science are listed below.
Water-Quality Monitoring of the Lake Houston Watershed
Water Quality Monitoring of Arundo Cane Removal Treatment
San Antonio River Sediment and Water Quality Monitoring in an Oil and Gas Production Area
Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone Surface-water and Groundwater Interaction
National Water-Quality Assessment Project in Texas - Surface Water Activities
Hydrogeologic Atlas for Fort Bliss
Dallas Compounds of Emerging Concern Study
Urban Waters Federal Partnership - Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone Monitoring Network
Recent publications related to contamination science are listed below. Additional publications are available from the USGS Publications Warehouse: Contamination Studies || NAWQA