Soil Moisture and Permafrost

Irrigation water use includes water that is applied by an irrigation system to sustain plant growth in agricultural and horticultural practices. Irrigation also includes water that is used for pre-irrigation, frost protection, chemical application, weed control, field preparation, crop cooling, harvesting, dust suppression, and leaching salts from the root zone. Estimates of irrigation withdrawals...

Many people might be surprised to learn that drinking-water sources, especially groundwater, can contain radioactive elements (radionuclides). Radionuclides in water can be a concern for human health because several are toxic or carcinogenic. Other radionuclides are useful tools for determining the age of groundwater in an aquifer or of sediment deposited at the bottom of a water body.

The sources, biogeochemistry, and ecotoxicology of selenium (Se) combine to produce a widespread potential for ecological risk such as deformities in birds and fish. Linking the understanding of source characteristics to a mechanistic, biodynamic dietary model of Se exposure on an ecosystem-scale improves the prediction of Se effects and its potential remediation.

USGS is undertaking a 3-year study of water use, availability, and change in the Upper Rio Grande Basin. This study area runs 670 miles from its headwaters in Colorado through New Mexico and northern Mexico to Texas, and will compile existing information and add new scientific data and interpretation to help stakeholders face current and future water issues.

As one of several National Focus Area Studies within the USGS National Water Census (NWC), the USGS completed a 3-year study of water availability and use in the Delaware River Basin.

All water naturally contains dissolved solids that can make it "brackish" or distastefully salty. The amount of freshwater for drinking-water, agricultural, industrial, and environmental needs has declined in many areas and has led to concerns about future availability. The USGS conducted a national assessment of brackish aquifers that could supplement or replace freshwater sources.

The Harlem and Bronx Rivers provide ecological and social resources in an intensively urban area. Connecting people to rivers requires clean water—the USGS is helping to assess the efficacy of green infrastructure to improve the quality of stormwater that flows into the rivers.

USGS scientists are working alongside university researchers in Alaska to understand how groundwater and permafrost conditions change over time due to seasonal variations and climate change. Changes in permafrost can pose a threat to built infrastructure (like roads, homes, and pipelines) and to valued ecological resources that provide important habitats for wildlife.

A method and apparatus for removing selenate from waste water through the use of selenate respiring microorganisms under substantially anoxic conditions is described. The method includes a first zone for removing nitrate by assimilation into biomass. (Full details available at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office website for patents 5,271,831 and 5,009,786.)

In the operation of the present invention, a compacted porous medium is provided with a supply of the desired liquid and is subjected to centrifugal force until the measurement of the flow rate of liquid through the medium is substantially constant. (Full details provided by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office website.)

As one of several Focus Area Studies within the USGS National Water Census (NWC), the USGS has completed a 3-year study of water availability and use in the Colorado River Basin.

Stream, river, and lake bed sediment are reservoirs for many contaminants. These contaminants include some “legacy” contaminants, like DDT, PCBs, and chlordane, and chemicals currently in use, like the insecticide bifenthrin and many flame retardants. Learn about techniques used to study sediment-associated contaminants and their importance to aquatic biota.