Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Oregon Water Science Center

Welcome to the USGS in Oregon. Our mission is to explore the natural world around us and provide reliable scientific information to help Federal, State, and local agencies, Tribes, and the public make well-informed decisions. Our research is widely used to manage Oregon's water resources for the benefit and safety of people and the environment. 

News

link

Three historic USGS streamgages recognized by new World Meteorological Organization designation

link

New project webpage: Modeling the water-quality effects to the Klamath River from drain recirculation

link

New Publication - Assessing the Effects of Chloride Deicer Applications on Groundwater near the Siskiyou Pass, Southwestern Oregon

Publications

Assessing the effects of chloride deicer applications on groundwater near the Siskiyou Pass, southwestern Oregon, July 2018–February 2021

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT), evaluated the effects of cold-weather chloride deicers (road deicing chemicals) on groundwater quality, with a focus on chloride, near the Siskiyou Pass in southwestern Oregon. The study covered the period during July 2018 through February 2021. Between the years 2016 and 2020 ODOT applied up to 16,000
Authors
Stephen B. Gingerich, Daniel R. Wise, Adam J. Stonewall

Implications of water, sediment, and nutrient budgets for the restoration of a shallow, turbid lake in semiarid southeastern Oregon

Malheur Lake is the largest lake in the endorheic Harney Basin in southeastern Oregon. Since the 1990s, Malheur Lake—which averages depths of about 1 meter—has been in a degraded, turbid state lacking submergent and emergent vegetation. The goals of this study were to identify the major sources of sediment and nutrients to Malheur Lake to determine the importance of managing nutrients for lake res
Authors
Cassandra D. Smith, Tamara M. Wood

Updates to CE-QUAL-W2 models for select U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reservoirs in the Willamette Valley Project and an inter-reservoir reach of the Middle Fork Willamette River, northwestern Oregon

Mechanistic models capable of simulating hydrodynamics and water temperature in rivers and reservoirs are valuable tools for investigating thermal conditions and their relation to dam operations and streamflow in river basins where upstream water storage and management decisions have an important influence on river reaches with threatened fish populations. In particular, models allow managers to i
Authors
Laurel E. Stratton Garvin, Norman L. Buccola, Stewart A. Rounds

Science

Modeling the water-quality effects to the Klamath River from drain recirculation

What could happen to nutrient loads in the Klamath River if water from the Klamath Straits Drain is recirculated into the Ady Canal? USGS scientists investigate.
link

Modeling the water-quality effects to the Klamath River from drain recirculation

What could happen to nutrient loads in the Klamath River if water from the Klamath Straits Drain is recirculated into the Ady Canal? USGS scientists investigate.
Learn More

Multiscale comparison of hyperspectral reflectance from periphyton in three Oregon rivers used for municipal supply

In this study, USGS scientists from multiple centers used advanced hyperspectral imaging techniques to advance monitoring of attached benthic algae (periphyton) in Cascade Range rivers used for municipal water supply. Periphyton are naturally occurring, but excess growth can harm ecosystems and degrade raw and treated drinking water quality. In these rivers, periphyton contain cyanobacteria that...
link

Multiscale comparison of hyperspectral reflectance from periphyton in three Oregon rivers used for municipal supply

In this study, USGS scientists from multiple centers used advanced hyperspectral imaging techniques to advance monitoring of attached benthic algae (periphyton) in Cascade Range rivers used for municipal water supply. Periphyton are naturally occurring, but excess growth can harm ecosystems and degrade raw and treated drinking water quality. In these rivers, periphyton contain cyanobacteria that...
Learn More

Estimating Groundwater Budgets for Oregon

Scientists Stephen Gingerich and Adel Haj, Jr. are leading efforts to estimate groundwater budgets across the state. Water hidden beneath the earth’s surface is a vital resource and quantifying its availability is crucial for long-term management. USGS scientists are collaborating with scientists at the Oregon Water Resources Department to gain a better understanding of this valuable resource.
link

Estimating Groundwater Budgets for Oregon

Scientists Stephen Gingerich and Adel Haj, Jr. are leading efforts to estimate groundwater budgets across the state. Water hidden beneath the earth’s surface is a vital resource and quantifying its availability is crucial for long-term management. USGS scientists are collaborating with scientists at the Oregon Water Resources Department to gain a better understanding of this valuable resource.
Learn More