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.
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.
Below are multimedia items associated with the Klamath Basin.
Below are publications associated with the Klamath Basin.
Development of an interactive shoreline management tool for the lower Wood River Valley, Oregon, phase 1: Stage-volume and stage-area relations
Water-quality conditions in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2002-04
An evaluation and review of water-use estimates and flow data for the Lower Klamath and Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuges, Oregon and California
An analysis of statistical methods for seasonal flow forecasting in the Upper Klamath River basin of Oregon and California
Basis for paleoenvironmental interpretation of magnetic properties of sediment from Upper Klamath Lake (Oregon): Effects of weathering and mineralogical sorting
Sediment oxygen demand in upper Klamath and Agency lakes, Oregon, 1999
A selected bibliography of water-related research in the upper Klamath Basin, Oregon
A review of possible causes of nutrient enrichment and decline of endangered sucker populations in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon
210Pb-determined sedimentation rates and trace-metal concentrations, upper Klamath Lake and Lake Euwana, Oregon
Below are web tools to help you explore data in the Klamath Basin.
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.
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.
Below are multimedia items associated with the Klamath Basin.
Below are publications associated with the Klamath Basin.
Development of an interactive shoreline management tool for the lower Wood River Valley, Oregon, phase 1: Stage-volume and stage-area relations
Water-quality conditions in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, 2002-04
An evaluation and review of water-use estimates and flow data for the Lower Klamath and Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuges, Oregon and California
An analysis of statistical methods for seasonal flow forecasting in the Upper Klamath River basin of Oregon and California
Basis for paleoenvironmental interpretation of magnetic properties of sediment from Upper Klamath Lake (Oregon): Effects of weathering and mineralogical sorting
Sediment oxygen demand in upper Klamath and Agency lakes, Oregon, 1999
A selected bibliography of water-related research in the upper Klamath Basin, Oregon
A review of possible causes of nutrient enrichment and decline of endangered sucker populations in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon
210Pb-determined sedimentation rates and trace-metal concentrations, upper Klamath Lake and Lake Euwana, Oregon
Below are web tools to help you explore data in the Klamath Basin.
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.