Hydrologic Technician James Foreman prepares to attach an external load of equipment to an approaching helicopter as part of the nutrient loading to alpine lakes project.
Rich Sheibley
Rich is a research hydrologist for the Washington Water Science Center in Tacoma, WA.
His research interests include water quality, nutrient cycling, and groundwater-surface water exchange in lakes, streams and rivers.
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 15
Stormwater Action Monitoring (SAM)
The issue: Stormwater runoff often carries pollutants that degrade water quality in receiving waters. A regional-scale monitoring program is necessary to objectively measure and track progress in reducing stormwater impacts on environmental health. How USGS will help: Scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) are monitoring water quality and watershed health for urban and urbanizing areas...
Groundwater chemistry and groundwater-surface water interactions in the Soos Creek watershed
The issue: Portions of the Soos Creek watershed are listed as impaired by the Washington State Department of Ecology for temperature, dissolved oxygen (DO), and bacteria. Ecology is developing a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) in the watershed for these parameters. How the USGS will help: The USGS will help the TMDL development process by providing Ecology with seasonal information on shallow...
Nooksack river basin continuous nitrate monitoring
The issue: Learning more about where and how much nitrates there are in the Nooksack river basin. How USGS will help: Provide continuous nitrate concentration data at three locations. Provide validation water samples analyzing for nitrate concentration. Compute nitrate load estimates using stream discharge data coupled with newly collected nitrate concentration data.
USGS Tacoma Seminar Series
Please note, the seminars are suspended until further notice. Our lunchtime "brownbag" seminars are held Tuesdays from 12pm to 1 pm unless otherwise noted. The science lectures are held at the USGS Washington Water Science Center at 934 Broadway, Suite 300, Tacoma, WA. The presentations are informal and are open to the public. Please, bring your lunch.
Yakima Nitrates
The Issue: Links between nitrate application to the land surface and measured nitrate concentrations in groundwater or surface water are poorly understood in the Yakima River basin due to the variety of potential nitrate sources. Fertilizer-intensive irrigated agriculture has been prevalent in the basin for decades, and since 1994 the growth of dairy operations has resulted in numerous liquid...
National Parks North Coast and Cascades Network Critical Loads
Nutrients such as nitrogen are essential for plant and animal growth and nourishment, but overabundance can cause adverse effects. Excess amounts of nitrogen from the atmosphere can cause a lake to go through eutrophication, the process in which excess nitrogen triggers a series of events that cause a lake to become fatally low in dissolved oxygen. Alpine lakes are especially sensitive to excess...
Regional Stormwater Monitoring Program Sampling
The Issue: The State of Washington issues Municipal Stormwater Permits to local governments in the Puget Sound region that require them to develop and implement a stormwater management program that reduces the discharge of pollutants and protects the quality of water in rivers, streams, lakes and Puget Sound. The permitees in partnership with the State need to measure whether water quality and...
Raging River Temperature
The Issue: Large, in-channel wood that helps to create and maintain healthy aquatic habitat in rivers throughout the Pacific Northwest was removed from many rivers in the past. In 2009, King County put wood back into the river to restore the Raging River watershed. To guide the county's restoration of the Raging River watershed, managers need to know the effect of restoration actions on in-stream...
Lake Spokane
The Issue: Phosphorus from many different sources has caused water quality problems for Lake Spokane in eastern Washington by promoting the growth of algae and aquatic plants. Phosphorus comes from municipal and industrial point-sources upstream of Lake Spokane, as well as non-point sources like septic tanks, agricultural fields, and wildlife. Lake Spokane was listed by the Washington State...
Upper Kittitas County
The Issue: Baseflows in the tributary streams in the western portion of Kittitas County are important in the late summer and fall when demands on these streams peak. An ongoing USGS Yakima River basin study indicates that groundwater and surface water are interconnected, however the hydrogeologic framework and the potential impacts of groundwater withdrawals on tributary streamflow in the bedrock...
Vancouver Lake Nutrient Budget
The Issue: Vancouver Lake in Clark County, WA has been experiencing water quality problems for decades. Recently, harmful algal blooms have been taking place in summer resulting in closures of the lake to swimming/water contact. One potential cause of these algal blooms in the increased loading of nutrients to the lake; however, there is currently little known about the amount and timing of...
Phosphorus SPARROW Model for the Yakima River
The Issue - During the 2004-07 irrigation season, nutrient concentrations in the lower Yakima River were high enough at certain times and locations to support the abundant growth of periphytic algae and macrophytes which resulted in large daily fluctuations in dissolved oxygen concentrations and pH levels that exceeded the Washington State water-quality standards for these parameters. The nutrient...
Hidden Lake External Load
Hydrologic Technician James Foreman prepares to attach an external load of equipment to an approaching helicopter as part of the nutrient loading to alpine lakes project.
Hidden Lake
This picture was taken while recovering passive atmospheric deposition samplers used to evaluate the nutrient loading of alpine lakes in Washington's National Parks.
This picture was taken while recovering passive atmospheric deposition samplers used to evaluate the nutrient loading of alpine lakes in Washington's National Parks.
Hidden Lake
This picture was taken during sediment coring field work for a project evaluating atmospheric loading of nutrients to high alpine lakes.
This picture was taken during sediment coring field work for a project evaluating atmospheric loading of nutrients to high alpine lakes.
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 15
Stormwater Action Monitoring (SAM)
The issue: Stormwater runoff often carries pollutants that degrade water quality in receiving waters. A regional-scale monitoring program is necessary to objectively measure and track progress in reducing stormwater impacts on environmental health. How USGS will help: Scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) are monitoring water quality and watershed health for urban and urbanizing areas...
Groundwater chemistry and groundwater-surface water interactions in the Soos Creek watershed
The issue: Portions of the Soos Creek watershed are listed as impaired by the Washington State Department of Ecology for temperature, dissolved oxygen (DO), and bacteria. Ecology is developing a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) in the watershed for these parameters. How the USGS will help: The USGS will help the TMDL development process by providing Ecology with seasonal information on shallow...
Nooksack river basin continuous nitrate monitoring
The issue: Learning more about where and how much nitrates there are in the Nooksack river basin. How USGS will help: Provide continuous nitrate concentration data at three locations. Provide validation water samples analyzing for nitrate concentration. Compute nitrate load estimates using stream discharge data coupled with newly collected nitrate concentration data.
USGS Tacoma Seminar Series
Please note, the seminars are suspended until further notice. Our lunchtime "brownbag" seminars are held Tuesdays from 12pm to 1 pm unless otherwise noted. The science lectures are held at the USGS Washington Water Science Center at 934 Broadway, Suite 300, Tacoma, WA. The presentations are informal and are open to the public. Please, bring your lunch.
Yakima Nitrates
The Issue: Links between nitrate application to the land surface and measured nitrate concentrations in groundwater or surface water are poorly understood in the Yakima River basin due to the variety of potential nitrate sources. Fertilizer-intensive irrigated agriculture has been prevalent in the basin for decades, and since 1994 the growth of dairy operations has resulted in numerous liquid...
National Parks North Coast and Cascades Network Critical Loads
Nutrients such as nitrogen are essential for plant and animal growth and nourishment, but overabundance can cause adverse effects. Excess amounts of nitrogen from the atmosphere can cause a lake to go through eutrophication, the process in which excess nitrogen triggers a series of events that cause a lake to become fatally low in dissolved oxygen. Alpine lakes are especially sensitive to excess...
Regional Stormwater Monitoring Program Sampling
The Issue: The State of Washington issues Municipal Stormwater Permits to local governments in the Puget Sound region that require them to develop and implement a stormwater management program that reduces the discharge of pollutants and protects the quality of water in rivers, streams, lakes and Puget Sound. The permitees in partnership with the State need to measure whether water quality and...
Raging River Temperature
The Issue: Large, in-channel wood that helps to create and maintain healthy aquatic habitat in rivers throughout the Pacific Northwest was removed from many rivers in the past. In 2009, King County put wood back into the river to restore the Raging River watershed. To guide the county's restoration of the Raging River watershed, managers need to know the effect of restoration actions on in-stream...
Lake Spokane
The Issue: Phosphorus from many different sources has caused water quality problems for Lake Spokane in eastern Washington by promoting the growth of algae and aquatic plants. Phosphorus comes from municipal and industrial point-sources upstream of Lake Spokane, as well as non-point sources like septic tanks, agricultural fields, and wildlife. Lake Spokane was listed by the Washington State...
Upper Kittitas County
The Issue: Baseflows in the tributary streams in the western portion of Kittitas County are important in the late summer and fall when demands on these streams peak. An ongoing USGS Yakima River basin study indicates that groundwater and surface water are interconnected, however the hydrogeologic framework and the potential impacts of groundwater withdrawals on tributary streamflow in the bedrock...
Vancouver Lake Nutrient Budget
The Issue: Vancouver Lake in Clark County, WA has been experiencing water quality problems for decades. Recently, harmful algal blooms have been taking place in summer resulting in closures of the lake to swimming/water contact. One potential cause of these algal blooms in the increased loading of nutrients to the lake; however, there is currently little known about the amount and timing of...
Phosphorus SPARROW Model for the Yakima River
The Issue - During the 2004-07 irrigation season, nutrient concentrations in the lower Yakima River were high enough at certain times and locations to support the abundant growth of periphytic algae and macrophytes which resulted in large daily fluctuations in dissolved oxygen concentrations and pH levels that exceeded the Washington State water-quality standards for these parameters. The nutrient...
Hidden Lake External Load
Hydrologic Technician James Foreman prepares to attach an external load of equipment to an approaching helicopter as part of the nutrient loading to alpine lakes project.
Hydrologic Technician James Foreman prepares to attach an external load of equipment to an approaching helicopter as part of the nutrient loading to alpine lakes project.
Hidden Lake
This picture was taken while recovering passive atmospheric deposition samplers used to evaluate the nutrient loading of alpine lakes in Washington's National Parks.
This picture was taken while recovering passive atmospheric deposition samplers used to evaluate the nutrient loading of alpine lakes in Washington's National Parks.
Hidden Lake
This picture was taken during sediment coring field work for a project evaluating atmospheric loading of nutrients to high alpine lakes.
This picture was taken during sediment coring field work for a project evaluating atmospheric loading of nutrients to high alpine lakes.