Publications

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...

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...

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...

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...

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 Information about amounts of water withdrawn, sources of water, how the water was...

The Galena-Platteville bedrock unit is a dependable source of ground water for many private well owners and some municipal-water-supply systems in northern Illinois (Hackett, 1960) and in Wisconsin. The carbonate lithology of the unit contributes to the availability of ground water and also to the susceptibility of the unit to ground-water contamination. Susceptibility to contamination...

Habitat characteristics of 11 fixed sites in the Western Lake Michigan Drainages were examined by the U.S. Geological Survey from 1993 through 1995 as part of the ecological assessment of the National Water-Quality Assessment Program. Evaluation of habitat consisted of more than 75 measurements at three spatial levels: drainage basin, stream segment between major tributaries (length from...

The objective of the watershed-management evaluation monitoring program in Wisconsin is to evaluate the effectiveness of best-management practices (BMP's) for controlling nonpoint-source contamination in eight rural and four urban watersheds. This report, the fourth in an annual series of reports, presents a summary of the data collected for the program by the U.S. Geological Survey and...

The discharge of untreated sewage is illegal in Michigan unless permitted under Act 245 due to public health concerns. In October, 1992, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR, now the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality) issued a discharge permit to Detroit authorizing discharge from the City's 78 combined-sewer overflows (CSOs), and requiring that a long-term...

This report contains the quality control results of the Western Lake Michigan Drainages study unit of the National Water Quality Assessment Program. Quality control samples were collected in the same manner and contemporaneously with environmental samples during the first highintensity study phase in the unit (1992 through 1995) and amounted to approximately 15 percent of all samples...

In 1991, the U.S. Geological Survey began to implement its National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) program. The Western Lake Michigan Drainages was one of 20 study units selected for investigation to begin in 1991. The study-unit investigation will include an assessment of surface- and ground-water quality. The quality of water in a study unit is intrinsically related to the natural...

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with local and other agencies, collects data at selected lakes throughout Wisconsin. These data, accumulated over many years, provide a data base for developing an improved understanding of the water quality of lakes. To make these data available to interested parties outside the USGS, the data are published annually in this report series...