Publications
Impartial scientific information
Interpretive journal articles from Virginia and West Virginia Water Science Center scientists.
Interpretive journal articles from Virginia and West Virginia Water Science Center scientists.
Publications are crucial for the dissemination of the Virginia and West Virginia Water Science Center's scientific data and conclusions. View journal articles authored by our Center's scientists here. The full, searchable catalog of USGS publications can be accessed through the USGS Publications Warehouse.
Filter Total Items: 294
Using satellite imagery and soil data to understand occurrences and migration of soil conditions harmful to archaeological sites on Jamestown Island, Virginia Using satellite imagery and soil data to understand occurrences and migration of soil conditions harmful to archaeological sites on Jamestown Island, Virginia
Many know Jamestown Island, Virginia, hereafter referred to as “the Island,” located near the mouth of the James River into the Chesapeake Bay, as the home of the first permanent English settlement in North America. However, the Island is home to 15,000 years’ worth of cultural artifacts and archaeological sites. In addition to its rich history, the Island is home to a variety of native...
Authors
Samuel H. Caldwell
Assessment of natural gas pipeline construction on stream temperature and turbidity in southwestern Virginia, 2017—25 Assessment of natural gas pipeline construction on stream temperature and turbidity in southwestern Virginia, 2017—25
The natural gas pipeline network in the United States is extensive and often intersects streams and other sensitive habitats, yet there are limited case studies utilizing a comparative upstream-downstream approach to evaluate potential short- and long-term effects of pipeline stream crossing construction from pre-construction to post-site restoration. In 2017, the U.S. Geological Survey...
Authors
Brendan M. Foster, Carly Marcella Maas, Alejandra Logan Flota
Potomac Tributary Summary: A summary of trends in tidal water quality and associated factors, 1985 - 2022 Potomac Tributary Summary: A summary of trends in tidal water quality and associated factors, 1985 - 2022
The Potomac Tributary Summary outlines change over time for a suite of monitored tidal water quality parameters and associated potential drivers of those trends for the period of 1985 to 2022, and provides a brief description of the current state of knowledge explaining these observed changes. Water quality parameters described include surface (above pycnocline) total nitrogen (TN)...
Authors
Breck Maura Sullivan, Kaylyn Gootman, Alex Gunnerson, Sarah Betts, Gabriel Duran, Cindy Johnson, Christopher A. Mason, Elgin Perry, Gopal Bhatt, Jennifer L. Keisman, James S. Webber, Jon Harcum, Michael Lane, Olivia Devereux, Qian Zhang, Rebecca Murphy, Renee Karrh, Thomas Butler, Zhaoying Wei
Tracking status and trends in seven key indicators of river and stream condition in the Chesapeake Bay watershed Tracking status and trends in seven key indicators of river and stream condition in the Chesapeake Bay watershed
Freshwater streams and rivers are recognized as vital habitats within the Chesapeake Bay watershed, which has been undergoing extensive restoration efforts for more than 30 years. Resource managers need to understand stream and river condition and how these conditions are changing over time to determine whether regional long-term restoration and conservation goals are being met. The...
Authors
Lindsey J. Boyle, Samuel H. Austin, Matthew J. Cashman, Zachary J. Clifton, John W. Clune, James E. Colgin, Kaitlyn E.M. Elliott, Rosemary M. Fanelli, Ellie P. Foss, Nathaniel P. Hitt, Elizabeth A. Hittle, Coral M. Howe, Emily H. Majcher, Kelly O. Maloney, Christopher A. Mason, Marina J. Metes, Douglas L. Moyer, Trevor P. Needham, Karli M. Rogers, Joshua J. Thompson, Guoxiang Yang, Tammy M. Zimmerman
Factors affecting the distribution of water-bearing fractures in the bedrock aquifers of West Virginia Factors affecting the distribution of water-bearing fractures in the bedrock aquifers of West Virginia
Bedrock aquifers cover 23,601 square miles within the State of West Virginia and comprise 97.4 percent of the surficial area within the State; the remaining 2.6 percent (621 square miles) consists of alluvial sand-and-gravel and glacial outwash aquifers bordering the State’s major rivers. While West Virginia’s alluvial aquifers have been studied extensively, bedrock aquifers have only...
Authors
Mark D. Kozar, Mitchell A. McAdoo, Samuel H. Austin, Carson A. Wright
Estimated hydrogeologic, spatial, and temporal distribution of self-supplied domestic groundwater withdrawals for aquifers of the Virginia Coastal Plain Estimated hydrogeologic, spatial, and temporal distribution of self-supplied domestic groundwater withdrawals for aquifers of the Virginia Coastal Plain
Water use from private-domestic wells accounts for nearly 40 percent of total groundwater withdrawals in the Virginia Coastal Plain Physiographic Province (henceforth called the Virginia Coastal Plain). However, because self-supplied domestic water use generally falls below the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (VDEQ) reporting and management threshold of 300,000 gallons per...
Authors
Matthew R. Kearns, Jason P. Pope
Municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plant effluent contributions to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in the Potomac River: A basin-scale measuring and modeling approach Municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plant effluent contributions to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in the Potomac River: A basin-scale measuring and modeling approach
Managing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in water resources requires a basin-scale approach. Predicted environmental concentrations (PEC) and stream-vulnerability scores for PFAS were determined for the Potomac River watershed in the eastern United States. Approximately 15% of stream reaches contained municipal and/or industrial wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) discharges...
Authors
Larry B. Barber, Samuel Adam Miller, Lee Blaney, Paul M. Bradley, Kaycee E. Faunce, Jacob Fleck, Malinda Frick, Ke He, Ryan D. Hollins, Conor J. Lewellyn, Emily H. Majcher, Mitchell A. McAdoo, Kelly L. Smalling
Evaluation of alternative coatings for U.S. Geological Survey water-quality samplers Evaluation of alternative coatings for U.S. Geological Survey water-quality samplers
Each year, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) personnel collect approximately 52,000 water-quality samples from rivers and streams across the United States. Several samplers are used by the USGS for water-quality sample collection in riverine environments. These samplers are coated with Plasti Dip to protect the exterior of the sampler; however, Plasti Dip is susceptible to fraying and wear...
Authors
Alyssa M. Thornton
RIce-Net: Integrating ground-based cameras and machine learning for automated river ice detection RIce-Net: Integrating ground-based cameras and machine learning for automated river ice detection
River ice plays a critical role in controlling streamflow in cold regions. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) qualifies affected water-level measurements and inferred streamflow by ice conditions at a date later than the day of the actual measurements. This study introduces a novel computer vision-based framework, River Ice-Network (RIce-Net), that uses the USGS nationwide network of...
Authors
Mahmoud Ayyad, Marouane Temini, Mohamed Abdelkader, Moheb Henein, Frank L. Engel, R. Russell Lotspeich, Jack R. Eggleston
Spatiotemporal patterns in urban nutrient and suspended sediment loads and stream response to watershed management implementation Spatiotemporal patterns in urban nutrient and suspended sediment loads and stream response to watershed management implementation
In recent years, local governments have invested heavily in management practices to reduce nutrient and sediment loads. These practices provide localities with nutrient and sediment regulatory reduction credits; however, their effects on water quality are poorly understood at the watershed scale. Long-term watershed-scale monitoring is essential for assessing progress toward water...
Authors
Aaron J. Porter
METRIC: An interactive framework for integrated visualization and analysis of monitored and expected load reductions for nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment in the Chesapeake Bay watershed METRIC: An interactive framework for integrated visualization and analysis of monitored and expected load reductions for nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment in the Chesapeake Bay watershed
Reductions of nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment loads have been the focus of watershed restoration in many regions for improving water quality, including the Chesapeake Bay. Watershed models and riverine monitoring data can provide important information on the progress of load reductions but do not always generate consistent interpretations. A new framework for integrated visualization...
Authors
Qian Zhang, Gary W. Shenk, Gopal Bhatt, Isabella Bertani
Improving time of concentration estimates for small rural watersheds in the Appalachian Plateaus physiographic province, West Virginia Improving time of concentration estimates for small rural watersheds in the Appalachian Plateaus physiographic province, West Virginia
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the West Virginia Department of Transportation, Division of Highways, compared time of concentration (Tc) and related runoff characteristics measured at four field sites in West Virginia to estimates of these values made using accepted methods. These four sites were selected to represent a range of basin size, length, and slope, and...
Authors
Terence Messinger, Darrin A. Holmes, James D. Scott, Douglas W. Kirk