Publications

Five roadway sections in northeastern Ramsey County, Minnesota were monitored during 1993-95, to evaluate water quality and loading of constituents from roadway runoff. Two snowmelt-runoff and five rainfall-runoff events were monitored per year at each site. Additional samples of rainfall were analyzed to determine if rainfall was a direct source of constituent loading to roadway runoff...

In 1991, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) began implementation of the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program. The long-term goals of the NAWQA Program are to describe the status and trends in the quality of a large, representative part of the Nation's surface- and ground- water resources, and to identify, describe, and explain, if possible, the major factors that affect the...

Wetlands, once perceived as worthless land, are now recognized as a necessary component of a vital landscape. However, due to draining and filling we have lost many of our wetlands. The loss of wetlands can have undesirable effects on the landscape, such as erosion, flooding, habitat loss and deterioration of water quality. While natural wetland systems are being destroyed nationwide...

The objectives of this study are to provide continuous discharge records for selected rivers at specific sites to supply the needs for regulation, analytical studies, definition of statistical properties, trends analysis, determination of the occurrence, and distribution of water in streams for planning. The project is also designed to determine lake levels and to provide discharge for...

This study was part of the Management Systems Evaluation Area (MSEA) Program, a multi-scale, inter-agency initiative to evaluate the effects of agricultural systems on water quality in the midwest corn belt. The research was part of the U.S. Geological Survey Toxics Substances Hydrology Program. The research area was located in the Anoka Sand Plain about 5 kilometers southwest of...

Sampling was conducted in 1992,1994, and 1995 to determine the occurrence of a broad suite of trace elements and synthetic organic compounds in biota and streambed sediment in selected streams in the Western Lake Michigan Drainages a study unit of the National Water- Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program of the U.S. Geological Survey. Sediment was sampled at 31 sites for trace elements and...

Watershed planners in the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) and in Wisconsin county governments use estimates of loads of total solids and total phosphorus in streams for numerous management purposes. A few examples of these are to establish load reduction goals, to estimate the relative magnitude of nonpoint sources compared to point sources, and to estimate phosphorus...

Two statistically-derived techniques, regional regression equation and region of influence regression, that estimate peak flow on small, ungaged streams in Minnesota were developed. Both techniques relate physical and climatic characteristics to peak flow for 2-, 5-, 10-, 25-, 50-, and 100-year recurrence intervals. Regional regression equations were developed for each recurrence...

This report presents an evaluation of generalized skew coefficients used in flood-frequency analysis. Station skew coefficients were computed for 267 long-term stream-gaging stations in Minnesota and the surrounding states of Iowa, North and South Dakota, Wisconsin, and the provinces of Manitoba and Ontario, Canada. Generalized skew coefficients were computed from station skew...

This report is a compilation of data on the physical and chemical properties of water and sediments in Grand Portage and Wauswaugoning Bays of Lake Superior along the shoreline of the Grand Portage Indian Reservation. The data were collected during 1993-96 by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Grand Portage Indian Reservation. The data include: (1) temperature, pH, and...

Fish communities were surveyed at 20 wadable stream sites during 1993-95 as part of the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) National Water- Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program's assessment of the Western Lake Michigan Drainages. Part of the NAWQA design is to incorporate ecological data into an overall environmental assessment. Collection of fish-community data was part of this ecological...

As part of the National Water-Use Information Program, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) stores water-use data in standardized format for different categories of water use. The data base (Site Specific Water Use Data System) is updated annually or as more current water-use information becomes available. Information about amounts of water withdrawn, sources of water, how the water was...