Publications

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...

Why are the effects of urbanization a concern? As the city of Middleton, Wisconsin, and its surroundings continue to develop, the Pheasant Branch watershed (fig.l) is expected to undergo urbanization. For the downstream city of Middleton, urbanization in the watershed can mean increased flood peaks, water volume and pollutant loads. More subtly, it may also reduce water that sustains the...

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...

St. Clair River is a connecting channel of the Great Lakes between Lake Huron and Lake St. Clair. The river forms part of the international boundary between the United States and Canada in the eastern Lower Peninsula of Michigan and southern Ontario. Drifting buoys were deployed to help investigate flow characteristics near public water intakes in ten reaches of St. Clair River from...

Water, sediment, and fish were sampled in the summer and fall of 1998 at 106 sites from 20 U.S. watershed basins to examine relations of mercury (Hg) and methylmercury (MeHg) in aquatic ecosystems. Bioaccumulation of Hg in fish from these basins was evaluated in relation to species, Hg and MeHg in surficial sediment and water, and watershed characteristics. Bioaccumulation was strongly...

During spring 2001 there was much flooding in the Mississippi River Basin in Minnesota. Greater than normal precipitation starting with late fall rains in 2000, greater than normal snowfalls, a delayed snowmelt, and record rains in April, all contributed to the flooding. Parts of the southern one-half of Minnesota had streamflows of magnitudes not seen in more than 30 years...

Streambed sediments and fish tissues were collected in part of the Upper Mississippi River Basin to assess the presence and distribution of organochlorine compounds (OCs) including PCBs. A total of 13 OCs were detected among 14 of 27 streambed sediment sampling locations. In fish tissues analyzed, 9 OCs were detected among 17 of 24 sites sampled. Eight OCs were detected in both fish and...

Nutrient and suspended-sediment data were collected on major tributaries to the St. Croix River during 1997-99 as part of three studies. The first study, done in 1997 as part of the U.S. Geological Survey?s National Water-Quality Assessment Program Upper Mississippi Study Unit, was a widespread synoptic survey of nutrient and suspended-sediment concentrations, loads, and yields during...

Higgins Lake, a popular recreation area in the north-central Lower Peninsula of Michigan, drains an area of 58 square miles and is composed of two deep basins separated by a narrow channel between Flag Point and Point Detroit.The North and South Basins have a maximum depth of about 141 and 100 feet respectively. Ground-water inflow is the major source of the lake’s water supply, with...

Proposed changes to watershed management practices near C-3 Pool at Seney National Wildlife Refuge will affect surface-water flow patterns, ground-water levels, and possibly local plant communities. Data were collected between fall 1998 and spring 2000 to document existing conditions and to assess potential changes in hydrology that might occur as a consequence of modifications to water...

To protect and manage rivers and streams (hereafter, collectively referred to as streams) in the United States, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) is establishing regionally based nutrient criteria that reflect the natural variability in water quality. As a basic approach to establish these criteria, the USEPA has divided the country into nutrient ecoregions (delineated on...

Success of agriculture in many areas of Michigan relies on withdrawal of large quantities of ground water for irrigation. In some areas of the State, water-level declines associated with large ground-water withdrawals may adversely affect nearby residential wells. Residential wells in several areas of Saginaw County, in Michigan's east-central Lower Peninsula, recently went dry shortly...