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Environmental Health Featured Science Activities

Our science activities are summarized in a series of feature articles that highlight recent U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) environmental health science activities. They are short summaries of peer-reviewed journal articles and USGS reports co-authored by our specialized teams of scientists.
 

Filter Total Items: 220

USGS Scientists Develop an Interactive Mapping Tool to Visualize PFAS in Tap Water

A new interactive dashboard is available to visualize PFAS measurements for 716 tap water samples collected at select sites across the nation between 2016 and 2021 from private and public supplies.
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USGS Scientists Develop an Interactive Mapping Tool to Visualize PFAS in Tap Water

A new interactive dashboard is available to visualize PFAS measurements for 716 tap water samples collected at select sites across the nation between 2016 and 2021 from private and public supplies.
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A Farewell but not a Goodbye to a Civil Servant that Never Wavered on her Dedication to the Environment

Kathy Lee, a Deputy Program Coordinator for the Toxic Substances Hydrology Program within the Environmental Health Program, retired at the end of July. Her work with NAWQA as an ecologist, author of the GeoHealth Newsletter, archivist for the programs bibliography, mentor and resource will make a lasting impression in the Environmental Health community.
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A Farewell but not a Goodbye to a Civil Servant that Never Wavered on her Dedication to the Environment

Kathy Lee, a Deputy Program Coordinator for the Toxic Substances Hydrology Program within the Environmental Health Program, retired at the end of July. Her work with NAWQA as an ecologist, author of the GeoHealth Newsletter, archivist for the programs bibliography, mentor and resource will make a lasting impression in the Environmental Health community.
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Unique Approach to Measure Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances Uptake in Fish, Mussels, and Passive Samplers

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) uptake and bioconcentration by fish and mussels ─ housed in mobile laboratories at a legacy fire-training area contaminated by aqueous film-forming foams ─ varied by species, sex, and compound. PFAS in passive samplers deployed at the same time mimicked uptake by fish but not mussels indicating that passive samplers might prove useful as screening tools...
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Unique Approach to Measure Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances Uptake in Fish, Mussels, and Passive Samplers

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) uptake and bioconcentration by fish and mussels ─ housed in mobile laboratories at a legacy fire-training area contaminated by aqueous film-forming foams ─ varied by species, sex, and compound. PFAS in passive samplers deployed at the same time mimicked uptake by fish but not mussels indicating that passive samplers might prove useful as screening tools...
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Organic Contaminants in Reuse Waters and Transport Following Land Application

Potential reuse waters contained unique mixtures of organic contaminants with the greatest number detected in treated municipal wastewater treatment plant effluent, followed by urban stormwater, and agricultural runoff . This study provided information for decisions on reuse strategies to support freshwater supplies.
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Organic Contaminants in Reuse Waters and Transport Following Land Application

Potential reuse waters contained unique mixtures of organic contaminants with the greatest number detected in treated municipal wastewater treatment plant effluent, followed by urban stormwater, and agricultural runoff . This study provided information for decisions on reuse strategies to support freshwater supplies.
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Collaborative Science Provides Understanding of Contaminants in Bottled Water-an Increasingly Common Alternate Drinking Water Source

U.S. Geological Survey researchers and public health experts collaborated to determine what contaminants occur in bottled water, which is an increasingly common alternate drinking water source, to broaden their understanding of human exposure to contaminants in drinking water supply chains. Bottled water, like public-supply and private-well tap water supply chains, contained multiple organic...
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Collaborative Science Provides Understanding of Contaminants in Bottled Water-an Increasingly Common Alternate Drinking Water Source

U.S. Geological Survey researchers and public health experts collaborated to determine what contaminants occur in bottled water, which is an increasingly common alternate drinking water source, to broaden their understanding of human exposure to contaminants in drinking water supply chains. Bottled water, like public-supply and private-well tap water supply chains, contained multiple organic...
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Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) Measurements in Tampa Bay Fish and Sediments Provide an Understanding of Potential Human Exposure

Scientists provide an understanding of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) levels in sediments and the edible portions of fish within Florida’s Tampa Bay in a pilot study designed to understand the potential for human exposure and health risks through fish consumption.
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Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) Measurements in Tampa Bay Fish and Sediments Provide an Understanding of Potential Human Exposure

Scientists provide an understanding of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) levels in sediments and the edible portions of fish within Florida’s Tampa Bay in a pilot study designed to understand the potential for human exposure and health risks through fish consumption.
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Coproduced Science Linking Environmental and Public-Health Data to Evaluate Drinking Water Arsenic Exposure on Birth Outcomes

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists teamed up with public-health epidemiologists to probe for associations between arsenic in drinking water and human-birth outcomes. They reported a modest inverse relation between birth weight and arsenic exposure. Findings indicate that future research efforts using individual-level exposure data such as measured arsenic concentrations in tap water could...
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Coproduced Science Linking Environmental and Public-Health Data to Evaluate Drinking Water Arsenic Exposure on Birth Outcomes

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists teamed up with public-health epidemiologists to probe for associations between arsenic in drinking water and human-birth outcomes. They reported a modest inverse relation between birth weight and arsenic exposure. Findings indicate that future research efforts using individual-level exposure data such as measured arsenic concentrations in tap water could...
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Gratitude for a Dedicated Civil Servant who Tirelessly Promoted Environmental Health Science

Mike Focazio, the Environmental Health Program Coordinator, editor of the GeoHEALTH-USGS Newsletter, and research scientist retired from the USGS at the end of November. Throughout his 33-year career, Mike’s principle-based leadership focusing on transparency, accountability, and scientific integrity has carried environmental health science forward at USGS and for the Nation.
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Gratitude for a Dedicated Civil Servant who Tirelessly Promoted Environmental Health Science

Mike Focazio, the Environmental Health Program Coordinator, editor of the GeoHEALTH-USGS Newsletter, and research scientist retired from the USGS at the end of November. Throughout his 33-year career, Mike’s principle-based leadership focusing on transparency, accountability, and scientific integrity has carried environmental health science forward at USGS and for the Nation.
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Wild Prairie Grouse Diet and Microbiomes Vary Between Cropland and Grassland Habitats

Wild prairie grouse residing in croplands had altered diets and gut microbiome imbalances characterized by a greater abundance of pathogenic bacteria and antibiotic-resistance genes in comparison to those residing in grasslands. Similar gut microbiome imbalances are rarely associated with lethal outcomes, but rather linked to sublethal health effects including growth, development, behavior, immune...
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Wild Prairie Grouse Diet and Microbiomes Vary Between Cropland and Grassland Habitats

Wild prairie grouse residing in croplands had altered diets and gut microbiome imbalances characterized by a greater abundance of pathogenic bacteria and antibiotic-resistance genes in comparison to those residing in grasslands. Similar gut microbiome imbalances are rarely associated with lethal outcomes, but rather linked to sublethal health effects including growth, development, behavior, immune...
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Review of Wildlife Health Outcomes and Potentially Toxic Algal Blooms in the Chesapeake Bay

Scientists provide resources that review algal toxin data, explore links between avian mortality and toxin exposure, and identify future research needs to predict algal toxin health hazards and risks for birds and other wildlife in the Chesapeake Bay.
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Review of Wildlife Health Outcomes and Potentially Toxic Algal Blooms in the Chesapeake Bay

Scientists provide resources that review algal toxin data, explore links between avian mortality and toxin exposure, and identify future research needs to predict algal toxin health hazards and risks for birds and other wildlife in the Chesapeake Bay.
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Avian Influenza Prevalence Correlated to Mercury Concentrations in Wild Waterfowl

Low pathogenic avian influenza infections were directly correlated with blood mercury concentrations in wild waterfowl, indicating that mercury exposure may be related to pathogen susceptibility. Further study is needed to determine if and how mercury and other environmental contaminant exposures may affect disease susceptibility in wildlife.
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Avian Influenza Prevalence Correlated to Mercury Concentrations in Wild Waterfowl

Low pathogenic avian influenza infections were directly correlated with blood mercury concentrations in wild waterfowl, indicating that mercury exposure may be related to pathogen susceptibility. Further study is needed to determine if and how mercury and other environmental contaminant exposures may affect disease susceptibility in wildlife.
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Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria Acquired by Wild Birds in Urban Settings and Dispersed via Migration

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists have developed a model that demonstrates how migratory wild birds in urban areas can acquire bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics, including those used in clinics, and potentially disperse these bacteria between continents via migration.
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Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria Acquired by Wild Birds in Urban Settings and Dispersed via Migration

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists have developed a model that demonstrates how migratory wild birds in urban areas can acquire bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics, including those used in clinics, and potentially disperse these bacteria between continents via migration.
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