Water Quality and Ecology

USGS is working with federal, state, and local partners to monitor and evaluate perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in Pennsylvania's groundwater and surface waters. A recent study sampled tap water in Pennsylvania (and other states) and detected PFAS chemicals in some samples.

USGS provides monitoring, analysis, modeling and research on streams and water quality to better understand the fate and transport of nutrients and sediment to the Susquehanna and other rivers, and their tributaries, and eventually to the Chesapeake Bay. Additional research focuses on emerging contaminants and other stressors that effect human and aquatic life in the watershed and estuary.

Issue: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have been manufactured and used in a variety of industries in the United States since the 1940s. PFAS are ubiquitous and persistent in the environment and have the potential to have adverse human and ecological health effects. The Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) partnerships has concerns about how PFAS will affect the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem. The CBP...

USGS is providing data and analyses to assess stream restoration effectiveness in Turtle Creek, Union County, Pennsylvania, by measuring differences in sediment erosion and deposition in restored and eroded stream reaches.

In Pennsylvania, the USGS's water-resources roots date back to the late 1800's, with the initiation of streamflow gaging on the Susquehanna and Delaware Rivers and assessments of groundwater resources near Philadelphia. The USGS Pennsylvania Water Science Center continues to provide scientific information about the water resources of the Susquehanna River Basin, in cooperation with regional and...

USGS Pennsylvania Water Science Center, in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, samples 28 wells biannually to monitor ambient groundwater quality conditions throughout Pennsylvania.

USGS synthesized groundwater quality measurements in wells to characterize regional chemical characteristics of aquifers used for domestic supply in northeast and north central Pennsylvania.

Issue: The Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) partnership is striving to improve water-quality conditions in the Bay by using a variety of management strategies to reduce nutrient and sediment loads. The partnership uses monitoring results and modeling tools to implement management strategies, relying on the scientific community to synthesize existing information and direct new research to address...

Since 1969, the Pennsylvania Water Science Center has had a cooperative program with Chester County to measure and describe water resources. Cooperation has been primarily with the Chester County Water Resources Authority, with participation from the Chester County Health Department. This partnership provides Chester County with scientific information for water-resources management.

USGS annually samples domestic groundwater wells to characterize pesticides, nutrients, and radon in agricultural areas, in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. Beginning in 2021, samples for major ions, trace elements, bacteria, and isotopes will also be collected. A subset of wells will be sampled for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), emerging industrial...

What is a Super Gage? A gage at which continuous flow and water level are determined, along with continuous traditional water-quality (water temperature, specific conductance, pH, dissolved oxygen, and/or turbidity) and either of the following criteria: at least one other less-traditional continuous water-quality parameter (orthophosphate, nitrate concentration) and/or where surrogates (developed...

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of anthropogenic emerging contaminants. Some PFAS have been voluntarily phased out, as exposure has been linked to adverse human health effects.