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Publications

Nitrogen in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed - A Century of Change, 1950–2050

National Award for Superior Communication Product

News Event

Domestic Well Water Quality in Marcellus Shale Region

Factors Affecting Groundwater Quality Used for Domestic Supply in Marcellus Shale Region of North-Central and North-East Pennsylvania

Journal Article

Geohydrologic and water-quality characterization of a fractured-bedrock test hole in an area of Marcellus Shale gas development, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania

Report at Pennsylvania Geological Survey

Publications are the cornerstone of the Pennsylvania Water Science Center’s dissemination of scientific data and conclusions. 

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Filter Total Items: 937

Is there an urban pesticide signature? Urban streams in five U.S. regions share common dissolved-phase pesticides but differ in predicted aquatic toxicity

Pesticides occur in urban streams globally, but the relation of occurrence to urbanization can be obscured by regional differences. In studies of five regions of the United States, we investigated the effect of region and urbanization on the occurrence and potential toxicity of dissolved pesticide mixtures. We analyzed 225 pesticide compounds in weekly discrete water samples collected during 6–12
Authors
Lisa H. Nowell, Patrick W. Moran, Laura M. Bexfield, Barbara Mahler, Peter C. Van Metre, Paul M. Bradley, Travis S. Schmidt, Daniel T. Button, Sharon L. Qi
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology, California Water Science Center, Fort Collins Science Center, Maryland-Delaware-D.C. Water Science Center, New Mexico Water Science Center, Oklahoma-Texas Water Science Center, Oregon Water Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center, South Atlantic Water Science Center (SAWSC), Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, Upper Midwest Water Science Center, Washington Water Science Center

Perfluoroalkyl substances in plasma of smallmouth bass from the Chesapeake Bay Watershed

Smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieu is an economically important sportfish and within the Chesapeake Bay watershed has experienced a high prevalence of external lesions, infectious disease, mortality events, reproductive endocrine disruption and population declines. To date, no clear or consistent associations with contaminants measured in fish tissue or surface water have been found. Therefore,
Authors
Vicki S. Blazer, Stephanie Gordon, Heather L. Walsh, Cheyenne R. Smith
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Chesapeake Bay Activities, Pennsylvania Water Science Center

Geophysical and video logs of selected wells at and near the former Naval Air Warfare Center Warminster, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, 2017-19

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) collected borehole geophysical and video logs in 17 open-hole wells in Northampton, Warminster, and Warwick Townships, Bucks County, Pennsylvania during 2017–19 to support detailed groundwater investigations at and near the former Naval Air Warfare Center (NAWC) Warminster, where groundwater contamination with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) had become
Authors
Lisa A. Senior, J. Alton Anderson, Philip H. Bird
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Pennsylvania Water Science Center

Machine-learning predictions of high arsenic and high manganese at drinking water depths of the glacial aquifer system, northern continental United States

Globally, over 200 million people are chronically exposed to arsenic (As) and/or manganese (Mn) from drinking water. We used machine-learning (ML) boosted regression tree (BRT) models to predict high As (>10 μg/L) and Mn (>300 μg/L) in groundwater from the glacial aquifer system (GLAC), which spans 25 states in the northern United States and provides drinking water to 30 million people. Our BRT mo
Authors
Melinda L. Erickson, Sarah M. Elliott, Craig J. Brown, Paul Stackelberg, Katherine Marie Ransom, James E. Reddy, Charles A. Cravotta
By
Water Resources Mission Area, California Water Science Center, New England Water Science Center, New York Water Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, Upper Midwest Water Science Center

Evaluating low flow patterns, drivers and trends in the Delaware River Basin

In the humid, temperate Delaware River Basin (DRB) where water availability is generally reliable, summer low flows can cause competition between various human and ecological water uses. As temperatures continue to rise, population increases and development expands, it is critical to understand historical low flow variability to anticipate and plan for future flows. Using a sample of 325 U.S. Geol
Authors
John C. Hammond, Brandon J. Fleming
By
Maryland-Delaware-D.C. Water Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center

Environmental and anthropogenic drivers of contaminants in agricultural watersheds with implications for land management

If not managed properly, modern agricultural practices can alter surface and groundwater quality and drinking water resources resulting in potential negative effects on aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Exposure to agriculturally derived contaminant mixtures has the potential to alter habitat quality and negatively affect fish and other aquatic organisms. Implementation of conservation practices
Authors
Kelly L. Smalling, Olivia H. Devereux, Stephanie Gordon, Patrick J. Phillips, Vicki S. Blazer, Michelle Hladik, Dana W. Kolpin, Michael T. Meyer, Adam Sperry, Tyler Wagner
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology, California Water Science Center, Central Midwest Water Science Center, Chesapeake Bay Activities, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Kansas Water Science Center, New Jersey Water Science Center, New York Water Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center

Modeling estrogenic activity in streams throughout the Potomac and Chesapeake Bay watersheds

Endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs), specifically estrogenic endocrine-disrupting compounds, vary in concentration and composition in surface waters under the influence of different landscape sources and landcover gradients. Estrogenic activity in surface waters may lead to adverse effects in aquatic species at both individual and population levels, often observed through the presence of interse
Authors
Stephanie Gordon, Daniel Jones, Vicki S. Blazer, Luke R. Iwanowicz, Brianna Williams, Kelly Smalling
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology, Chesapeake Bay Activities, Eastern Ecological Science Center, New Jersey Water Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center, Utah Water Science Center

Nutrient trends and drivers in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed

The Chesapeake Bay Program maintains an extensive nontidal monitoring network, measuring nitrogen and phosphorus (nutrients) at more than 100 locations on rivers and streams in the watershed. Data from these locations are used by United States Geological Survey to assess the ecosystem’s response to nutrient-reduction efforts. This fact sheet summarizes recent trends in nitrogen and phosphorus in n
Authors
Kenneth E. Hyer, Scott W. Phillips, Scott W. Ator, Doug L. Moyer, James S. Webber, Rachel Felver, Jennifer L. Keisman, Lee A. McDonnell, Rebecca Murphy, Emily M. Trentacoste, Qian Zhang, William C. Dennison, Sky Swanson, Brianne Walsh, Jane Hawkey, Dylan Taillie
By
Chesapeake Bay Activities, Pennsylvania Water Science Center, Virginia and West Virginia Water Science Center

Microplastics in the Delaware River, northeastern United States

Microplastics are a contaminant of increasing concern in aquatic environments. Our understanding of microplastics in freshwater environments has increased dramatically over the past decade, but we still lack information on microplastic occurrence and biological uptake in National Park Service (NPS) waters. During 2015–19, the U.S. Geological Survey and the NPS conducted a three-phase study of micr
Authors
Austin K. Baldwin, Andrew R. Spanjer, Brett Hayhurst, Donald Hamilton
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Idaho Water Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, Upper Midwest Water Science Center, Washington Water Science Center

Widespread use of the nitrification inhibitor nitrapyrin: Assessing benefits and costs to agriculture, ecosystems, and environmental health

Agricultural production and associated applications of nitrogen (N) fertilizers have increased dramatically in the last century, and current projections to 2050 show that demands will continue to increase as the human population grows. Applied in both organic and inorganic fertilizer forms, N is an essential nutrient in crop productivity. Increased fertilizer applications, however, create the pote
Authors
Emily Woodward, Thea Margaret Edwards, Carrie E Givens, Dana W. Kolpin, Michelle Hladik
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology, California Water Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center

Hydrogeologic framework, water levels, and selected contaminant concentrations at Valmont TCE Superfund Site, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, 2020

The Valmont TCE Superfund Site, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania is underlain by fractured and folded sandstones and shales of the Pottsville and Mauch Chunk Formations, which form a fractured-rock aquifer recharged locally by precipitation. Industrial activities at the former Chromatex Plant resulted in trichloroethene (TCE) contamination of groundwater at and near the facility, which was identified

Authors
Lisa A. Senior, Alex R. Fiore, Philip H. Bird
By
Water Resources Mission Area, New Jersey Water Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center

Lithium in groundwater used for drinking-water supply in the United States

Lithium concentrations in untreated groundwater from 1464 public-supply wells and 1676 domestic-supply wells distributed across 33 principal aquifers in the United States were evaluated for spatial variations and possible explanatory factors. Concentrations nationwide ranged from <1 to 396 μg/L (median of 8.1) for public supply wells and <1 to 1700 μg/L (median of 6 μg/L) for domestic supply wells
Authors
Bruce D. Lindsey, Kenneth Belitz, Charles A. Cravotta, Patricia Toccalino, Neil M. Dubrovsky
By
Water Resources Mission Area, California Water Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center