Water Resources
Publications
This list of Water Resources Mission Area publications includes both official USGS publications and journal articles authored by our scientists. A searchable database of all USGS publications can be accessed at the USGS Publications Warehouse.
Time-domain electromagnetic soundings and passive-seismic measurements for delineation of saline groundwater in the Genesee Valley-fill aquifer system, western New York, 2016–17
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, used noninvasive surface geophysics in the investigation of the distribution of saline groundwater in the valley-fill aquifer system of the Genesee River Valley near the former Retsof salt mine in western New York. In 1994, the Retsof salt...
Williams, John H.; Kappel, William M.; Johnson, Carole D.; White, Eric A.; Heisig, Paul M.; Lane, Jr., John W.
Assessment of wave attenuation, current patterns, and sediment deposition and erosion during winter storms by living shoreline structures in Gandys Beach, New Jersey
This study was conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey and Northeastern University in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and The Nature Conservancy. This report summarizes field investigation and analysis of waves, current patterns, and sediment deposition and erosion along the Gandys Beach, New Jersey, salt marsh vegetated...
Wang, Hongqing; Capurso, William D.; Chen, Qin; Zhu, Ling; Niemoczynski, Lukasz; Snedden, Gregg
Water-quality, bed-sediment, and invertebrate tissue trace-element concentrations for tributaries in the Clark Fork Basin, Montana, October 2018–September 2019
Water, bed sediment, and invertebrate tissue were sampled in streams from Butte to near Missoula, Montana, as part of a monitoring program in the Clark Fork Basin. The sampling program was completed by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, to characterize aquatic resources in the Clark Fork Basin...
Clark, Gregory D.; Hornberger, Michelle I.; Hepler, Eric J.; Cleasby, Thomas E.; Heinert, Terry L.
West-wide drought analysis
This chapter describes analyses of the variability and characteristics of drought for historical and future projected climate conditions across the Western United States. The analyses are performed using the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI; Palmer, 1965) to define drought events. The advantage of using PDSI to define droughts is that it...
Gangopadhyay, Subhrendu; McCabe, Gregory J.; Pruitt, Tom; House, Brandon
Triangle Area Water Supply Monitoring Project, North Carolina—Summary of monitoring activities, quality assurance, and data, October 2017–September 2019
Surface-water supplies are important sources of drinking water for residents in the Triangle area of North Carolina, which is located within the upper Cape Fear and Neuse River Basins. Since 1988, the U.S. Geological Survey and a consortium of local governments have tracked water-quality conditions and trends in several of the area’s water-supply...
Pfeifle, Cassandra A.; Cain, Jessica L.; Rasmussen, Ryan B.
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...
Sheibley, Richard W.; Foreman, James R.
USGS National Water Quality Monitoring Network
What is the U.S. Geological Survey National Water Quality Monitoring Network?Understanding the water quality of U.S. streams and rivers requires consistent data collection and analysis over decades. The U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) National Water Quality Network (NWQN) was established to facilitate national-scale understanding of surface-water...
Riskin, Melissa L.; Lee, Casey J. Substantial declines in salinity observed across the Upper Colorado River Basin during the 20th century, 1929 to 2019
Salinity in the Colorado River Basin causes an estimated $300 to $400 million per year in economic damages in the U.S. To inform and improve salinity‐control efforts, this study quantifies long‐term trends in salinity (dissolved solids) across the Upper Colorado River Basin (UCRB), including time periods prior to the construction of large dams and...
Rumsey, Christine; Miller, Olivia L.; Hirsch, Robert; Marston, Thomas M.; Susong, David An ecohydrological typology for thermal refuges in streams and rivers
Thermal refuges are thermally distinct riverscape features used by aquatic organisms during unfavorable thermal events, facilitating resilience in marginal environments. However, the thermal refuge concept is nebulous, and the often interchangeable use of the term ‘thermal refugia’ creates additional ambiguity. We argue that lexical differences...
Sullivan, C.; Vokoun, J.; Helton, A. M.; Briggs, Martin A.; Kurylyk, B.
Geophysical and video logs of selected wells at and near the former Naval Air Warfare Center Warminster, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, 2017-19
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) collected borehole geophysical and video logs in 17 open-hole wells in Northampton, Warminster, and Warwick Townships, Bucks County, Pennsylvania during 2017–19 to support detailed groundwater investigations at and near the former Naval Air Warfare Center (NAWC) Warminster, where groundwater contamination with per...
Senior, Lisa A.; Anderson, J. Alton; Bird, Philip H.
Regression relations and long-term water-quality constituent concentrations, loads, yields, and trends in the North Fork Ninnescah River, south-central Kansas, 1999–2019
Cheney Reservoir, in south-central Kansas, is the primary water supply for the city of Wichita, Kansas. The North Fork Ninnescah River is the largest tributary to Cheney Reservoir and contributes about 70 percent of the inflow. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the City of Wichita, has been continuously monitoring water quality (...
Kramer, Ariele R.; Klager, Brian J.; Stone, Mandy L.; Eslick-Huff, Patrick J. Delineation of the freshwater-saltwater interface on southwestern Long Island, New York, through use of surface and borehole geophysical methods
The U.S. Geological Survey used surface and borehole geophysical methods to delineate the freshwater-saltwater interface in coastal plain aquifers along the southwestern part of Long Island, New York. Over pumping of groundwater in the early 20th century combined with freshwater-saltwater interfaces at the coastline created saltwater intrusion in...
Stumm, Frederick; Como, Michael D.; Zuck, Marie A.