A YSI Sontek M9 acoustic doppler current profiler (ADCP) measures the flow along the Sevenmile Canal. The Sevenmile Canal is a tributary to Upper Klamath Lake.
Klamath Basin Studies Active
In 1992, the USGS began studying possible causes for the change in trophic status of Upper Klamath Lake. Since then research has expanded to include groundwater, geomorphology, streamflow forecasting, and fish ecology.
Upper Klamath Lake is a large, shallow lake in southern Oregon that feeds the Klamath River, which flows through California into the Pacific Ocean. The lake is naturally rich in nutrients (i.e., eutrophic), but has become hypereutrophic during the 20th century. Nutrient levels have been high enough to cause annual, extensive blue-green algae blooms each summer since the 1930's. Generally, a eutrophic lake can support diverse plant and animal communities.
Water-quality problems that coincide with the blooms and subsequent decay of dead algae include foul odors, increased acidity, dissolved oxygen concentrations that fluctuate from supersaturation to depletion, elevated ammonia concentrations, and occasionally extensive fish kills. The degraded water quality is a contributing factor in the decline in populations of the shortnose sucker, Chasmistes brevirostris, and the Lost River sucker, Deltistes luxatus, both listed as Federally Endangered Species.
Research by USGS and others continues to monitor and assess conditions in Upper Klamath Lake and the surrounding watershed.
Below are science projects associated with the Klamath Basin.
Upper Klamath Basin Groundwater Studies
Klamath Dam Removal Studies
Vertical Hydraulic Gradient at the Sediment-Water Interface in Upper Klamath Lake
Upper Klamath River Basin Forecasts
Sediment Fingerprinting in the Upper Klamath Basin
Wood River Shoreline Management Tool
Water Quality in Keno Reach of the Klamath River
Future Water Clarity and Dissolved Oxygen in Crater Lake
Geomorphology of the Sprague River Basin
Nutrient and Sediment Loading to Upper Klamath Lake
Nutrient Loading to Lost River and Klamath River Subbasins
Below are data releases from the Klamath Basin.
USGS Klamath River Basin Water-Quality Mapper
This map interface represents continuous and discrete water-quality data collected by Bureau of Reclamation and USGS at Klamath Basin sites. The USGS and Reclamation data stored in NWIS are accessible using existing tools such as NWIS-Web and the USGS Data Grapher system.
Klamath Marsh January Through June Maximum Surface Water Extent, 1985-2021
Klamath Marsh January Through May Maximum Surface Water Extent, 1985-2021 (ver. 2.0, March 2022)
Phytoplankton and Zooplankton Data for Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2020
Phytoplankton Data for Upper Klamath River, Oregon 2016 - 2020
Depth-to-water data and calculated vertical hydraulic gradient at the sediment-water interface in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2017
Phytoplankton and Zooplankton Data for Upper Klamath Lake and River, Oregon, 2019
National Water Information System (NWIS) - Oregon
National Water Information System: Mapper (Oregon)
Data from an Analysis of Dissolved Organic Matter in the Upper Klamath River, Lost River, and Klamath Straits Drain, Oregon and California, 201316
Using High-Throughput DNA Sequencing, Genetic Fingerprinting, and Quantitative PCR as Tools for Monitoring Bloom-Forming and Toxigenic Cyanobacteria in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2013 and 2014
Upper Klamath and Agency Lakes May/June 1996 bathymetric mapping project
Oregon Streamflow Data by Basin
View real-time streamflow data in Oregon river basins.
Klamath River Water-Quality Sites
Klamath River water-quality monitoring -- Keno Reach monitors
Below are multimedia items associated with the Klamath Basin.
A YSI Sontek M9 acoustic doppler current profiler (ADCP) measures the flow along the Sevenmile Canal. The Sevenmile Canal is a tributary to Upper Klamath Lake.
View of Klamath Lake as seen by a USGS Hydrologic Technician in the field. Photo provided by Justin Willhite.
View of Klamath Lake as seen by a USGS Hydrologic Technician in the field. Photo provided by Justin Willhite.
Dennis Lynch, USGS scientist and Department of Interior's Program Manager for the Klamath Basin Secretarial Determination, brings us up to speed on recent developments in the Klamath River Basin restoration.
Dennis Lynch, USGS scientist and Department of Interior's Program Manager for the Klamath Basin Secretarial Determination, brings us up to speed on recent developments in the Klamath River Basin restoration.
Below are publications associated with the Klamath Basin.
Summary of extreme water-quality conditions in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2005–19
Spectral mixture analysis for surveillance of harmful algal blooms (SMASH): A field-, laboratory-, and satellite-based approach to identifying cyanobacteria genera from remotely sensed data
Monitoring wetland water quality related to livestock grazing in amphibian habitats
Benthic vertical hydraulic gradients in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2017
Modeling a 2- and 4-foot drawdown in the Link River to Keno Dam reach of the upper Klamath River, south-central Oregon
Evaluation of hydrologic impact of an irrigation curtailment program in the Upper Klamath Lake Basin using Landsat satellite data
Using the precipitation-runoff modeling system to predict seasonal water availability in the upper Klamath River basin, Oregon and California
Refining the Baseline Sediment Budget for the Klamath River, California
Four dams in the Klamath River Hydroelectric Project (KHP) in Oregon and California (Figure 1) are currently scheduled to be removed over a period of a few weeks or months, beginning in January 2021. The Klamath dam removal will be the largest in the world by almost all measures, and is an unprecedented opportunity to advance science of river responses to such events. The KHP contains approximatel
Annual variations in microcystin occurrence in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, based on high-throughput DNA sequencing, qPCR, and environmental parameters
Modeling hydrodynamics, water temperature, and water quality in Klamath Straits Drain, Oregon and California, 2012–15
Klamath River Basin water-quality data
A metabolism-based whole lake eutrophication model to estimate the magnitude and time scales of the effects of restoration in Upper Klamath Lake, south-central Oregon
Below are web tools to help you explore data in the Klamath Basin.
USGS Data Grapher
This is a data graphing utility that allows the user to build graphs of data from selected USGS stations. Select the station, the type of graph, the parameter(s) to plot, and the starting and ending dates for the graph.
Below are news stories associated with the Klamath Basin.
A Warming Climate Could Alter the Ecology of the Deepest Lake in the United States
Warming air temperature is predicted to change water temperature and water column mixing in Oregon’s Crater Lake over the next several decades, potentially impacting the clarity and health of the iconic lake, according to a U.S. Geological Survey report released today.
Below are partners that work with USGS in the Klamath Basin.
In 1992, the USGS began studying possible causes for the change in trophic status of Upper Klamath Lake. Since then research has expanded to include groundwater, geomorphology, streamflow forecasting, and fish ecology.
Upper Klamath Lake is a large, shallow lake in southern Oregon that feeds the Klamath River, which flows through California into the Pacific Ocean. The lake is naturally rich in nutrients (i.e., eutrophic), but has become hypereutrophic during the 20th century. Nutrient levels have been high enough to cause annual, extensive blue-green algae blooms each summer since the 1930's. Generally, a eutrophic lake can support diverse plant and animal communities.
Water-quality problems that coincide with the blooms and subsequent decay of dead algae include foul odors, increased acidity, dissolved oxygen concentrations that fluctuate from supersaturation to depletion, elevated ammonia concentrations, and occasionally extensive fish kills. The degraded water quality is a contributing factor in the decline in populations of the shortnose sucker, Chasmistes brevirostris, and the Lost River sucker, Deltistes luxatus, both listed as Federally Endangered Species.
Research by USGS and others continues to monitor and assess conditions in Upper Klamath Lake and the surrounding watershed.
Below are science projects associated with the Klamath Basin.
Upper Klamath Basin Groundwater Studies
Klamath Dam Removal Studies
Vertical Hydraulic Gradient at the Sediment-Water Interface in Upper Klamath Lake
Upper Klamath River Basin Forecasts
Sediment Fingerprinting in the Upper Klamath Basin
Wood River Shoreline Management Tool
Water Quality in Keno Reach of the Klamath River
Future Water Clarity and Dissolved Oxygen in Crater Lake
Geomorphology of the Sprague River Basin
Nutrient and Sediment Loading to Upper Klamath Lake
Nutrient Loading to Lost River and Klamath River Subbasins
Below are data releases from the Klamath Basin.
USGS Klamath River Basin Water-Quality Mapper
This map interface represents continuous and discrete water-quality data collected by Bureau of Reclamation and USGS at Klamath Basin sites. The USGS and Reclamation data stored in NWIS are accessible using existing tools such as NWIS-Web and the USGS Data Grapher system.
Klamath Marsh January Through June Maximum Surface Water Extent, 1985-2021
Klamath Marsh January Through May Maximum Surface Water Extent, 1985-2021 (ver. 2.0, March 2022)
Phytoplankton and Zooplankton Data for Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2020
Phytoplankton Data for Upper Klamath River, Oregon 2016 - 2020
Depth-to-water data and calculated vertical hydraulic gradient at the sediment-water interface in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2017
Phytoplankton and Zooplankton Data for Upper Klamath Lake and River, Oregon, 2019
National Water Information System (NWIS) - Oregon
National Water Information System: Mapper (Oregon)
Data from an Analysis of Dissolved Organic Matter in the Upper Klamath River, Lost River, and Klamath Straits Drain, Oregon and California, 201316
Using High-Throughput DNA Sequencing, Genetic Fingerprinting, and Quantitative PCR as Tools for Monitoring Bloom-Forming and Toxigenic Cyanobacteria in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2013 and 2014
Upper Klamath and Agency Lakes May/June 1996 bathymetric mapping project
Oregon Streamflow Data by Basin
View real-time streamflow data in Oregon river basins.
Klamath River Water-Quality Sites
Klamath River water-quality monitoring -- Keno Reach monitors
Below are multimedia items associated with the Klamath Basin.
A YSI Sontek M9 acoustic doppler current profiler (ADCP) measures the flow along the Sevenmile Canal. The Sevenmile Canal is a tributary to Upper Klamath Lake.
A YSI Sontek M9 acoustic doppler current profiler (ADCP) measures the flow along the Sevenmile Canal. The Sevenmile Canal is a tributary to Upper Klamath Lake.
View of Klamath Lake as seen by a USGS Hydrologic Technician in the field. Photo provided by Justin Willhite.
View of Klamath Lake as seen by a USGS Hydrologic Technician in the field. Photo provided by Justin Willhite.
Dennis Lynch, USGS scientist and Department of Interior's Program Manager for the Klamath Basin Secretarial Determination, brings us up to speed on recent developments in the Klamath River Basin restoration.
Dennis Lynch, USGS scientist and Department of Interior's Program Manager for the Klamath Basin Secretarial Determination, brings us up to speed on recent developments in the Klamath River Basin restoration.
Below are publications associated with the Klamath Basin.
Summary of extreme water-quality conditions in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2005–19
Spectral mixture analysis for surveillance of harmful algal blooms (SMASH): A field-, laboratory-, and satellite-based approach to identifying cyanobacteria genera from remotely sensed data
Monitoring wetland water quality related to livestock grazing in amphibian habitats
Benthic vertical hydraulic gradients in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2017
Modeling a 2- and 4-foot drawdown in the Link River to Keno Dam reach of the upper Klamath River, south-central Oregon
Evaluation of hydrologic impact of an irrigation curtailment program in the Upper Klamath Lake Basin using Landsat satellite data
Using the precipitation-runoff modeling system to predict seasonal water availability in the upper Klamath River basin, Oregon and California
Refining the Baseline Sediment Budget for the Klamath River, California
Four dams in the Klamath River Hydroelectric Project (KHP) in Oregon and California (Figure 1) are currently scheduled to be removed over a period of a few weeks or months, beginning in January 2021. The Klamath dam removal will be the largest in the world by almost all measures, and is an unprecedented opportunity to advance science of river responses to such events. The KHP contains approximatel
Annual variations in microcystin occurrence in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, based on high-throughput DNA sequencing, qPCR, and environmental parameters
Modeling hydrodynamics, water temperature, and water quality in Klamath Straits Drain, Oregon and California, 2012–15
Klamath River Basin water-quality data
A metabolism-based whole lake eutrophication model to estimate the magnitude and time scales of the effects of restoration in Upper Klamath Lake, south-central Oregon
Below are web tools to help you explore data in the Klamath Basin.
USGS Data Grapher
This is a data graphing utility that allows the user to build graphs of data from selected USGS stations. Select the station, the type of graph, the parameter(s) to plot, and the starting and ending dates for the graph.
Below are news stories associated with the Klamath Basin.
A Warming Climate Could Alter the Ecology of the Deepest Lake in the United States
Warming air temperature is predicted to change water temperature and water column mixing in Oregon’s Crater Lake over the next several decades, potentially impacting the clarity and health of the iconic lake, according to a U.S. Geological Survey report released today.
Below are partners that work with USGS in the Klamath Basin.