Publications
Dive into our publications and explore the science from the Environmental Health Program (Toxic Substances Hydrology and Contaminant Biology).
GeoHEALTH-USGS Newsletter
GeoHEALTH-USGS Newsletter
The GeoHEALTH–USGS Newsletter—published since 2004—provides information on USGS science activities pertinent to safeguarding the health of fish, wildlife, domesticated animals, and people from environmental exposures to contaminants and pathogens.
Featured Science Activities
Featured Science Activities
Lean about our Featured Science Activities through our pages that highlight science studies, publications, and results.
Filter Total Items: 3740
Cyanotoxin occurrence in large rivers of the United States
Cyanotoxins occur in rivers worldwide but are understudied in lotic ecosystems relative to lakes and reservoirs. Eleven large river sites located throughout the United States were sampled during June–September 2017 to determine the occurrence of cyanobacteria with known cyanotoxin-producing strains, cyanotoxin synthetase genes, and cyanotoxins. Chlorophyll-a concentrations spanned the range from o
Authors
Jennifer L. Graham, Neil Dubrovsky, Guy Foster, Lindsey R. King, Keith Loftin, Barry Rosen, Erin Stelzer
Exposure and potential effects of pesticides and pharmaceuticals in protected streams of the US National Park Service southeast Region
Globally protected areas offer refugia for a broad range of taxa including threatened and endangered species. The United States National Park Service (NPS) manages public lands to preserve biodiversity, but increasing park visitation and development of surrounding landscapes increase exposure to and effects from bioactive contaminants. The risk (exposure and hazard) to NPS protected-stream ecosyst
Authors
Paul M. Bradley, Kristin M. Romanok, Jeffrey R. Duncan, William Battaglin, Jimmy Clark, Michelle Hladik, Bradley Huffman, Luke Iwanowicz, Celeste A. Journey, Kelly Smalling
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology, California Water Science Center, Colorado Water Science Center, Eastern Ecological Science Center, New Jersey Water Science Center, South Atlantic Water Science Center (SAWSC)
Measurement of cyanobacteria bloom magnitude using satellite remote sensing
Cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cyanoHABs) are a serious environmental, water quality and public health issue worldwide because of their ability to form dense biomass and produce toxins. Models and algorithms have been developed to detect and quantify cyanoHABs biomass using remotely sensed data but not for quantifying bloom magnitude, information that would guide water quality management dec
Authors
Sachidananda Mishra, Richard P. Stumpf, Blake Schaeffer, P. Jeremy Werdell, Keith A. Loftin, Andrew Meredith
An overview of bioaerosol load and health impacts associated with dust storms: A focus on the Middle East
Dust storms are an important environmental problem worldwide. The main sources of dust storms include the Sahara, the Middle East, and central and northeastern Asia. Dust storms originating from these regions can be dispersed across oceans and in some cases globally. They occur throughout the year and vary in frequency and intensity. The biological agents (e.g., fungi, bacteria and viruses) and th
Authors
Zahra Soleimani, Pari Teymouri, Ali Darvishi Boloorani, Alireza Mesdaghinia, Nick Middleton, Dale W. Griffin
Malignant melanoma of Brown Bullhead (Ameiurus nebulosus) in Lake Memphremagog, Vermont/Quebec
In 2012, brown bullhead (Ameiurus nebulosus) with large, raised, black growths were first reported from multiple areas within the Vermont portion of Lake Memphremagog. Subsequent surveys conducted from 2014 to 2017 at two sites within the lake indicated a prevalence of 30% in adult brown bullhead 200 mm and above total length. These lesions ranged from slightly raised smooth black areas to large n
Authors
Vicki S. Blazer, Cassidy H. Shaw, Cheyenne R. Smith, P Emerson, Thomas R. Jones
Phytoplankton community and algal toxicity at a recurring bloom in Sullivan Bay, Kabetogama Lake, Minnesota, USA
Kabetogama Lake in Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota, USA suffers from recurring late summer algal blooms that often contain toxin-producing cyanobacteria. Previous research identified the toxin microcystin in blooms, but we wanted to better understand how the algal and cyanobacterial community changed throughout an open water season and how changes in community structure were related to toxin pr
Authors
Victoria Christensen, Ryan P. Maki, Erin A. Stelzer, Jack E. Norland, Eakalak Khan
Mercury source changes and food web shifts alter contamination signatures of predatory fish from Lake Michigan
To understand the impact reduced mercury (Hg) loading and invasive species have had on methylmercury bioaccumulation in predator fish of Lake Michigan, we reconstructed bioaccumulation trends from a fish archive (1978 to 2012). By measuring fish Hg stable isotope ratios, we related temporal changes in Hg concentrations to varying Hg sources. Additionally, dietary tracers were necessary to identify
Authors
Ryan F. Lepak, Joel C. Hoffman, Sarah E. Janssen, David P. Krabbenhoft, Jacob M. Ogorek, John F. DeWild, Michael T. Tate, Christopher L. Babiarz, Runsheng Yin, Elizabeth W Murphy, Daniel R Engstrom, James P. Hurley
Reactive transport modeling to understand attenuation of arsenic concentrations in anoxic groundwater during Fe(II) oxidation by nitrate
A previously published field-experimental investigation showed that injection of nitrate in anoxic groundwater that contained aqueous and sediment-bound Fe(II) diminished concentrations of As(V) and As(III) to below drinking-water limits. In the current study, reactive transport modeling confirmed that the observed attenuation was consistent with oxidation of Fe(II) by nitrate, leading to precipit
Authors
Douglas B. Kent, Richard L. Smith, James Jamieson, John K. Böhlke, Deborah A. Repert, Henning Prommer
Draft genome sequence of the Mn(II)-oxidizing bacterium Oxalobacteraceae sp. AB_14
Biological Mn(II) oxidation produces reactive manganese oxides that help to mitigate metal contamination in the environment. Here we present the genome of Oxalobacteraceae sp. AB_14, a species of Mn(II)-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) notable for its ability to catalyze Mn oxidation at low pH (5.5).
Authors
Timothy Bushman, Denise M. Akob, Tsing Bohu, Andrea Beyer, Tanja Woyke, Nicole Shapiro, Alla Lapidus, Hans-Peter Klenk, Kirsten Küsel
Competitive interactions among H, CU, and Zn ion moderate aqueous uptake of Cu and Zn by an aquatic insect
The absorption of aqueous copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) by aquatic insects, a group widely used to assess water quality, is unresolved. This study examined interactions among Cu, Zn, and protons that potentially moderate Cu and Zn uptake by the acid-tolerant stonefly Zapada sp. Saturation uptake kinetics was imposed to identify competitive mechanisms. Decreasing pH reduced the maximum transport capaci
Authors
Daniel J. Cain, Marie-Noële Croteau, Christopher C. Fuller
Spatial fingerprinting of biogenic and anthropogenic volatile organic compounds in an arid unsaturated zone
Subsurface volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can pose risks to human and environmental health and mediate biological processes. VOCs have both anthropogenic and biogenic origins, but the relative importance of these sources has not been explored in subsurface environments. This study synthesizes 17 years of VOC data from the Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) with the goal of improving understan
Authors
Christopher Green, Wentai Luo, Christopher H. Conaway, Karl B. Haase, Ronald J. Baker, Brian J. Andraski
Influence of dissolved organic carbon on the acute toxicity of copper and zinc to White Sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) and a Cladoceran (Ceriodaphnia dubia)
We conducted acute lethality tests with white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) and Ceriodaphnia dubia exposed to copper and zinc at dissolved organic carbon concentrations ranging from 0.5 to 5.5 mg/L. Dissolved organic carbon had minimal effects on zinc toxicity but did have a protective effect on acute copper toxicity, which was equal to that predicted by the copper biotic ligand model (BLM).
Authors
Chris D. Ivey, John M. Besser, Jeffery Steevens, Michael Walther, Vanessa Melton