Audio

In this episode we explore how vital groundwater is as a natural resource and discuss what impact a changing climate and human consumption has on groundwater supplies. Join us, as we sit down with USGS Groundwater Specialist Marshall Gannett to get a primer on the role groundwater plays in our daily lives, today on the Oregon Science Podcast.

In this episode we sit down with USGS wildlife biologist Joan Hagar and discuss her recent study on songbirds in the Pacific Northwest. New research indicates a possible relationship between reductions in the abundance of some species of songbird and reductions in the amount of deciduous trees in evergreen forests.

For this month’s episode we discuss the water-quality parameter turbidity. More than just a way to measure dirty water, turbidity can serve as a useful indicator of the ecological health of a watershed.

In this month’s episode we discuss how 3-D modeling is used to examine groundwater in the Columbia Plateau. USGS hydrologist Erick Burns describes how his team modeled the 53,000 mi² plateau, how this information is currently used, and what implications it has for the future.

This month's episode focuses on one of the most useful geographic tools scientists have for studying our natural world: Light Detection and Ranging, or LiDAR. LiDAR is a powerful data collection technique that can be used to map surface features, even those hidden beneath the dense canopy of Pacific Northwest forests.

There is a black box hidden beneath the forests of the Pacific Northwest, guarding the secrets to why the trees grow so large! The black box is soil, which harbors immense biological diversity and controls the release of water and nutrients that support the life above ground.

This month the USGS Oregon Science Podcast contains two interviews. First, we sit down with USGS hydrologist Stewart Rounds to discuss the effect dams have on water temperature in the rivers of the Willamette Valley.

This month we highlight a new interactive map that allows users to determine the depth to groundwater at any location in the Portland Metropolitan Area, Oregon. This month's episode features an interview with the groundwater project's lead author, USGS hydrologist Daniel Snyder.

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.

Prescribed burns are a common tool used by land managers to control invasive plant species and to promote native plants. There are many benefits to using a prescribed burn as a management tool; however, controlling fire is often difficult as it can be unpredictable.

Compared to the rich diversity of forests, sagebrush shrublands contain relatively few species. Yet, these shrublands in the western United States have incredibly complex dynamics that present major challenges for conservation. They are also one of the most imperiled habitats in North America, primarily due to invasive plant species.

The potentially lethal fungal disease chytridiomycosis has been associated with declining amphibian populations around the globe. This rapidly emerging disease, and the chytrid fungus that causes it, have forced scientists to scramble to learn more. There are still plenty of mysteries about the origin and spread of the fungus.

Few would believe the importance of freshwater mussels to scientists here in the Pacific Northwest. These little-known and often-ignored organisms may live for over a century on the bottoms of lakes, rivers, and streams. Freshwater mussels have a story to tell, and researchers have developed a way of ‘reading’ this story.

The Johnson Creek watershed is an important resource in Portland, Oregon. It forms a wildlife and recreational corridor through densely populated areas of the Portland metropolitan area, as well as rural and agricultural land in Multnomah and Clackamas Counties.

Tsunamis are devastating. Usually associated with earthquakes in the Pacific, these giant surges of oceanic water can kill thousands and do billions of dollars of damage in minutes. Surprisingly, most people in Oregon are not aware of the tsunami history and hazard along our very own coast.

Better late than never, here's a proper introduction to the USGS Oregon Science Podcast. Learn about who we are, what we do, and what you can expect from us in the future. Plus, as an added bonus, get a teaser for what's coming next month.

Coinciding with the release of the USGS report ‘Reconnaissance of Pharmaceutical Chemicals in Urban Streams of the Tualatin River Basin, Oregon, 2002,’ we sit down and discuss recent findings with USGS hydrologist Stewart Rounds.