Publications
Browse the map above to filter and view publications by location. All of our publications are available through the USGS Publications Warehouse. USGS publications and journal articles by scientists of the Washington Water Science Center are listed below.
Filter Total Items: 769
Most rivers and streams run dry every year
The flowing waters of surface rivers and streams efficiently transport sediment, organic material and nutrients, among other things, from hillsides and overland areas to downstream lakes, reservoirs and the ocean. Along the way, rivers and streams (hereafter referred to collectively as streams) provide important resources for our communities and support rich, complex ecosystems. Non-perennial stre
Authors
Kristin Jaeger
Is there an urban pesticide signature? Urban streams in five U.S. regions share common dissolved-phase pesticides but differ in predicted aquatic toxicity
Pesticides occur in urban streams globally, but the relation of occurrence to urbanization can be obscured by regional differences. In studies of five regions of the United States, we investigated the effect of region and urbanization on the occurrence and potential toxicity of dissolved pesticide mixtures. We analyzed 225 pesticide compounds in weekly discrete water samples collected during 6–12
Authors
Lisa H. Nowell, Patrick W. Moran, Laura M. Bexfield, Barbara Mahler, Peter C. Van Metre, Paul M. Bradley, Travis S. Schmidt, Daniel T. Button, Sharon L. Qi
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology, California Water Science Center, Fort Collins Science Center, Maryland-Delaware-D.C. Water Science Center, New Mexico Water Science Center, Oklahoma-Texas Water Science Center, Oregon Water Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center, South Atlantic Water Science Center (SAWSC), Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, Upper Midwest Water Science Center, Washington Water Science Center
Beyond streamflow: Call for a national data repository of streamflow presence for streams and rivers in the United States
Observations of the presence or absence of surface water in streams are useful for characterizing streamflow permanence, which includes the frequency, duration, and spatial extent of surface flow in streams and rivers. Such data are particularly valuable for headwater streams, which comprise the vast majority of channel length in stream networks, are often non-perennial, and are frequently the mos
Authors
Kristin Jaeger, Konrad Hafen, Jason B. Dunham, Ken M. Fritz, Stephanie K. Kampf, Theodore B. Barnhart, Kendra E. Kaiser, Roy Sando, Sherri L Johnson, Ryan R. McShane, Sarah Beth Dunn
Nitrogen and phosphorus loads from groundwater to Lake Spokane, Spokane, Washington, October 2016–October 2019
Shallow nearshore groundwater and estimates of groundwater seepage were collected at 21 locations along the north and south shores of Lake Spokane beginning in October 2016 and ending in October 2019. Nitrate plus nitrite concentrations in nearshore groundwater ranged from <0.04 to 7.60 milligrams of nitrogen per liter. Nearshore groundwater orthophosphate concentrations ranged from <0.004 to 0.38
Authors
Richard W. Sheibley, James R. Foreman
Inclusion of pesticide transformation products is key to estimating pesticide exposures and effects in small U.S. streams
Improved analytical methods can quantify hundreds of pesticide transformation products (TPs), but understanding of TP occurrence and potential toxicity in aquatic ecosystems remains limited. We quantified 108 parent pesticides and 116 TPs in more than 3 700 samples from 442 small streams in mostly urban basins across five major regions of the United States. TPs were detected nearly as frequently a
Authors
Barbara Mahler, Lisa H. Nowell, Mark W. Sandstrom, Paul M. Bradley, Kristin M. Romanok, Christopher Konrad, Peter Van Metre
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology, California Water Science Center, New Jersey Water Science Center, Oklahoma-Texas Water Science Center, South Atlantic Water Science Center (SAWSC), Washington Water Science Center, National Water Quality Laboratory
Exploring biophysical linkages between coastal forestry management practices and aquatic bivalve contaminant exposure
Terrestrial land use activities present cross-ecosystem threats to riverine and marine species and processes. Specifically, pesticide runoff can disrupt hormonal, reproductive, and developmental processes in aquatic organisms, yet non-point source pollution is difficult to trace and quantify. In Oregon, U.S.A., state and federal forestry pesticide regulations, designed to meet regulatory water qua
Authors
Kaegan Scully-Engelmeyer, Elise F. Granek, Max Nielsen-Pincus, Andy Lanier, Steven S Rumrill, Patrick W. Moran, Elena Nilsen, Michelle Hladik, Lori Pillsbury
Identifying geomorphic process domains in the synthetic landscapes of West Virginia, USA
Human activities such as mining, agriculture, and urbanization have resulted in severe, large‐scale alteration to landform organization and associated geomorphic processes. The mountaintop mining (MTM) region of West Virginia, USA has experienced dramatic topographic alteration, by removing steep slopes and introducing plateau‐like areas at ridgelines and benches on valley fills. The resulting eng
Authors
Kristin Jaeger, Matthew V Ross
Microplastics in the Delaware River, northeastern United States
Microplastics are a contaminant of increasing concern in aquatic environments. Our understanding of microplastics in freshwater environments has increased dramatically over the past decade, but we still lack information on microplastic occurrence and biological uptake in National Park Service (NPS) waters. During 2015–19, the U.S. Geological Survey and the NPS conducted a three-phase study of micr
Authors
Austin K. Baldwin, Andrew R. Spanjer, Brett Hayhurst, Donald Hamilton
Contrasting mobilization of elements in contact with sediment from Lake Roosevelt and the Upper Columbia River, Washington, USA
Trace element contamination is known to be widely present in sediment of Lake Roosevelt and the riverine reach of the Columbia River in Washington State, USA due to discharges from several smelters and numerous mines dating back to the mid-1800's. In this study, the concentrations of aqueous elements in contact with bed sediment from the lake and river were examined under varying degrees of physic
Authors
Anthony Paulson, Stephen E. Cox
Common insecticide disrupts aquatic communities: A mesocosm-to-field ecological risk assessment of fipronil and its degradates in U.S. streams
Insecticides in streams are increasingly a global concern, yet information on safe concentrations for aquatic ecosystems is sparse. In a 30-day mesocosm experiment exposing native benthic aquatic invertebrates to the common insecticide fipronil and four degradates, fipronil compounds caused altered emergence and trophic cascades. Effect concentrations eliciting a 50% response (EC50) were developed
Authors
Janet L. Miller, Travis S. Schmidt, Peter C. Van Metre, Barbara Mahler, Mark W. Sandstrom, Lisa H. Nowell, Daren Carlisle, Patrick W. Moran
Variable-density groundwater flow and contaminant transport, Operable Unit 1, Naval Base Kitsap, Keyport, Washington
Chlorinated volatile organic compounds (CVOCs) have migrated to groundwater beneath a former 9-acre landfill at Operable Unit 1 (OU-1) on Naval Base Kitsap, which was active from the 1930s through 1973 on the Keyport Peninsula, in Kitsap County, Washington. Biodegradation of CVOCs at OU-1 limits the mass of dissolved-phase CVOCs in groundwater that discharges to surface water, but contaminant conc
Authors
Richard M. Yager, Wendy B. Welch, Alex O. Headman, Richard S. Dinicola
Understanding the relationship between stream metabolism and biological assemblages
Biological assemblages are commonly used for assessing stream health, but there is increased interest among the freshwater research community in incorporating measures of stream function, such as metabolism, to strengthen stream-health assessments. Presently, there is limited information about the relationships between stream metabolism and biological assemblages, along with the measurement period
Authors
Mark D. Munn, Rich W. Sheibley, Ian R. Waite, Michael Meador