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.
Filter Total Items: 18926
Integrated water availability in the conterminous United States, 2010–20
Water availability is defined as the spatial and temporal distribution of water quantity and quality as it relates to the needs of humans and ecosystems. Broad assessment of water availability requires the consideration of multiple indicators because water users have different sensitivities to the degradation of water conditions. This chapter draws upon estimates of water supply, water...
Authors
Edward G. Stets, Matthew J. Cashman, Olivia L. Miller, Kathryn A. Powlen
Climate change and future water availability in the United States
The steady rise in global temperature as a result of human activity is causing changes in Earth’s water cycle. The balance of water stored within and moving between vapor, liquid, and frozen states in the water cycle is shifting, with consequences for water availability that include increases in drought, fire weather, flooding, and heavy precipitation, as well as cryosphere decline and...
Authors
Martha A. Scholl, Gregory J. McCabe, Carolyn G. Olson, Kathryn A. Powlen
Water use across the conterminous United States, water years 2010–20
Withdrawals of water for human use are fundamental to the evaluation of the Nation’s water availability. This chapter provides an analysis of public supply, crop irrigation, and thermoelectric power water use for the conterminous United States (CONUS) during water years 2010–20. These three categories account for about 90 percent of water withdrawals in the Nation. The values presented...
Authors
Laura Medalie, Amy E. Galanter, Anthony J. Martinez, Althea A. Archer, Carol L. Luukkonen, Melissa A. Harris, Jonathan V. Haynes
Water supply in the conterminous United States, Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico, water years 2010–20
We present an assessment of water supply across the conterminous United States (CONUS), Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico covering water years 2010–20. Our analysis drew on two national hydrologic models, the National Hydrologic Model Precipitation-Runoff Modeling System and the Weather Research and Forecasting model hydrologic modeling system. Both models produced estimates of streamflow...
Authors
Galen Gorski, Edward G. Stets, Martha A. Scholl, James R. Degnan, John R. Mullaney, Amy E. Galanter, Anthony J. Martinez, Julie Padilla, Jacob H. LaFontaine, Hayley R. Corson-Dosch, Allen Shapiro
The National integrated water availability assessment, water years 2010–20
Water availability is fundamentally important to human well-being, economic vitality, and ecosystem health. Because of its central importance, the U.S. Congress tasked the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and other Federal agencies with conducting regular, comprehensive assessments of water availability in the United States through the requirements under the SECURE Water Act. In response to...
Authors
Edward G. Stets, Althea A. Archer, James R. Degnan, Melinda L. Erickson, Galen Gorski, Laura Medalie, Martha A. Scholl
U.S. Geological Survey Integrated Water Availability Assessment—2010–20
This professional paper is a multichapter report that assesses water availability in the United States for water years 2010–20. This work was conducted as part of the fulfillment of the mandates of Subtitle F of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-11), also known as the SECURE Water Act. As such, this work examines the spatial and temporal distribution of water...
Groundwater-level elevations in the Denver Basin bedrock aquifers and Upper Black Squirrel Creek alluvial aquifer, El Paso County, Colorado, 2021–24
El Paso County is the second-most populous county in Colorado and is projected to grow another 15 percent by 2030. Within El Paso County is the Upper Black Squirrel Creek Designated Groundwater Basin (Black Squirrel Basin), an area where surface water is scarce and water users rely primarily on groundwater from five different aquifers (the Upper Black Squirrel Creek alluvial aquifer and...
Authors
Zachary D. Kisfalusi, Erin K. Hennessy, Jackson B. Sharp
U.S. Geological Survey National Groundwater Climate Response Network
What is the U.S. Geological Survey National Groundwater Climate Response Network?The U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) National Water Monitoring Network is a network of networks that includes the Climate Response Network (CRN). The CRN is a network of wells selected to monitor the effects of climate variability, including droughts, on groundwater systems within the United States, Puerto...
Authors
Rodney R. Caldwell, Jason M. Fine
Enhanced hydrologic monitoring and characterization of groundwater drainage features
Groundwater drains to the land surface, generating the baseflow of streams, lakes, and wetlands. The hydrologic resilience of baseflow during prolonged dry periods and after disturbance can be assessed with evolving remote sensing analysis paired with localized monitoring of groundwater drainage features and creative model calibration strategies.
Authors
Martin Briggs
Review of the Lake Washington Ship Canal and Ballard Locks model, Seattle, Washington, 2014–20
Executive SummaryThe Hiram M. Chittenden (Ballard) Locks and Lake Washington Ship Canal connect freshwater Lake Washington and saline Shilshole Bay of Puget Sound in Seattle, Washington. The locks and canal allow for ships to traverse this reach. Anadromous salmonids also migrate through, transitioning between saline and freshwater environments, and making use of a fish ladder at the...
Authors
Annett B. Sullivan, Anya C. Leach
Local water use and climate drive water stress over the conterminous United States with substantial impacts to fish species of conservation concern
There is a growing need for consistent, large-scale estimates of water availability to identify and avoid potential conflicts among human and ecosystem uses of water. We present an assessment of water limitation, defined as the monthly balance (difference) between water supply (ws) and human consumptive water use (wc), for the conterminous United States (CONUS) during water years 2010...
Authors
Edward G. Stets, Olivia L. Miller, Matthew J. Cashman, Kathryn A. Powlen, Anthony J. Martinez, Althea A. Archer, Julie Padilla
Stream discharge determinations using slug additions and specific conductance
Stream discharge is often determined by wading the stream and measuring the velocity at fixed widths and depths. However, there are conditions when wading measurements are not safe or the measurements are poor because of high turbulence, rocky streambeds, shallow or sheet flow, aquatic plants, or inaccessibility due to ice. Under these conditions, it is often preferable to determine...
Authors
R. Blaine McCleskey, Robert L. Runkel, Sheila F. Murphy, David A. Roth