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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: 19037

The 2024 “Hacking Limnology” Workshop Series and Virtual Summit: Increasing inclusion, participation, and representation in the aquatic sciences The 2024 “Hacking Limnology” Workshop Series and Virtual Summit: Increasing inclusion, participation, and representation in the aquatic sciences

No abstract available.
Authors
Michael Frederick Meyer, Robert T. Hensley, Carolina C. Barbosa, Jonathan J Borelli, Johannes Feldbauer, Merritt Elizabeth Harlan, Burak Kuyumcu, Robert Ladwig, Jorrit Mesman, Rachel M. Pilla, Qinglong Zhang, Jacob Aaron Zwart, Ana I Ayala, Craig B. Brinkerhoff, David Kneis, Daniel Mercado-Bettin, Cassandra Nickles, Donald C. Pierson, Patch Thongthaisong, Inne Vanderkelen

Predictions of groundwater PFAS occurrence at drinking water supply depths in the United States Predictions of groundwater PFAS occurrence at drinking water supply depths in the United States

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), known colloquially as “forever chemicals”, have been associated with adverse human health effects and have contaminated drinking water supplies across the United States owing to their long-term and widespread use. People in the United States may unknowingly be drinking water that contains PFAS because of a lack of systematic analysis...
Authors
Andrea K. Tokranov, Katherine Marie Ransom, Laura M. Bexfield, Bruce D. Lindsey, Elise Watson, Danielle Dupuy, Paul E. Stackelberg, Miranda S. Fram, Stefan Voss, James A. Kingsbury, Bryant C. Jurgens, Kelly Smalling, Paul M. Bradley

Software application for spectral mixture analysis for surveillance of harmful algal blooms (SMASH): A tool for identifying cyanobacteria genera from remotely sensed data Software application for spectral mixture analysis for surveillance of harmful algal blooms (SMASH): A tool for identifying cyanobacteria genera from remotely sensed data

Remote sensing is often used to detect algae, but standard techniques do not provide information on the types of algae present or their potential to form a harmful algal bloom (HAB). We developed a framework for identifying algal genera based on reflectance: SMASH, short for Spectral Mixture Analysis for Surveillance of HABs. The Software Application for SMASH (SAS) was developed in...
Authors
Carl J. Legleiter, Tyler V. King

Managing water for birds— A tool for the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge Managing water for birds— A tool for the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge

The “Water for Birds Tool” is an Excel-based model designed for resource managers to assess the spatial extent and types of bird habitats in the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. The model quantifies the area of open water, partial water, and water depths on a monthly timescale during the irrigation season (April–July) from 2021–2024. This model combines previously published datasets and
Authors
Cassandra Smith

Correction to A regime shift in sediment export from a coastal watershed during a record wet winter, California: Implications for landscape response to hydroclimatic extremes Correction to A regime shift in sediment export from a coastal watershed during a record wet winter, California: Implications for landscape response to hydroclimatic extremes

In the referenced article, the authors would like to correct text in the first paragraph on page 2571, Figure 9 and its caption. The changes reflect an error made in the processing of the rainfall intensity-duration data used to compare storms to published debris flow triggering thresholds. The correctly processed data does not change the interpretations made in the paper but does...
Authors
Amy E. East, Andrew W. Stevens, Andrew C. Ritchie, Patrick L. Barnard, Pamela L. Campbell‐Swarzenski, Brian D. Collins, Christopher H. Conaway

Evaluating hydrologic model performance for characterizing streamflow drought in the conterminous United States Evaluating hydrologic model performance for characterizing streamflow drought in the conterminous United States

Hydrologic models are the primary tools that are used to simulate streamflow drought and assess impacts. However, there is little consensus about how to evaluate the performance of these models, especially as hydrologic modeling moves toward larger spatial domains. This paper presents a comprehensive multi-objective approach to systematically evaluating the critical features in...
Authors
Caelan Simeone, Sydney Foks, Erin Towler, Timothy O. Hodson, Thomas M. Over

Seasonally varying contributions of contemporaneous and lagged sources of instream total nitrogen and phosphorus load across the Illinois River basin Seasonally varying contributions of contemporaneous and lagged sources of instream total nitrogen and phosphorus load across the Illinois River basin

Quantifying nutrient sources in streams, their temporal and spatial variability, and drivers of that variability can support effective water resources management. Yet a lack of data and modeling capabilities has previously prevented comprehensive quantification across both space and time. Here a dynamic SPARROW (Spatially Referenced Regressions on Watershed attributes) model that...
Authors
Noah Schmadel, Olivia L. Miller, Scott Ator, Matthew P. Miller, Gregory E. Schwarz, Dale M. Robertson, Andrew J. Sekellick, Kenneth D. Skinner, David A. Saad

Reducing wastewater nitrogen loading by >90% with carbon-amended septic systems: A field demonstration in Barnstable (Cape Cod), Massachusetts Reducing wastewater nitrogen loading by >90% with carbon-amended septic systems: A field demonstration in Barnstable (Cape Cod), Massachusetts

Onsite wastewater treatment systems (OWTS) are a major source of excess nutrients and co-pollutants in watersheds across the United States. In Barnstable County (Cape Cod), Massachusetts, effluent from septic systems and cesspools contributes approximately 80% of the controllable reactive nitrogen (N) load to numerous impaired estuaries and degrades water quality in the region's sole...
Authors
Laura Erban, Sara Wigginton, Brian Baumgaertel, Bryan Horsley, Timothy D. McCobb, Zee Crocker, Scott Horsley, Timothy Gleason

Predictive understanding of stream salinization in a developed watershed using machine learning Predictive understanding of stream salinization in a developed watershed using machine learning

Stream salinization is a global issue, yet few models can provide reliable salinity estimates for unmonitored locations at the time scales required for ecological exposure assessments. Machine learning approaches are presented that use spatially limited high-frequency monitoring and spatially distributed discrete samples to estimate the daily stream-specific conductance across a...
Authors
Jared David Smith, Lauren Elizabeth Koenig, Margaux Jeanne Sleckman, Alison P. Appling, Jeffrey M Sadler, Vincent T. DePaul, Zoltan Szabo

Environmental and societal consequences of winter ice loss from lakes Environmental and societal consequences of winter ice loss from lakes

More than half a billion people live near lakes that freeze over in the winter. However, lakes are rapidly losing winter ice cover in response to warming, and the rate of loss has accelerated over the past 25 years. Hampton et al. reviewed the state of seasonal ice cover on lakes and discuss some of the consequences of its disappearance. Ice loss will affect culture, economy, water...
Authors
Stephanie E. Hampton, Stephen M. Powers, Hilary A. Dugan, Lesley B. Knoll, Bailey C. McMeans, Michael Frederick Meyer, Catherine M. O’Reilly, Ted Ozersky, Sapna Sharma, David C Barrett, Sudeep Chandra, Joachim Jansen, Ryan P. McClure, Milla Rautio, Gesa A. Weyhenmeyer, Xiao Yang

State of science, gap analysis, and prioritization for southeastern United States water-quality impacts from coastal storms—Fiscal year 2023 program report to the Water Resources Mission Area from the Water Availability Impacts of Extreme Events Program—H State of science, gap analysis, and prioritization for southeastern United States water-quality impacts from coastal storms—Fiscal year 2023 program report to the Water Resources Mission Area from the Water Availability Impacts of Extreme Events Program—H

Tropical cyclones (coastal storm events that include tropical depressions, tropical storms, and hurricanes) cause landscape-scale disturbances that can lead to impaired water quality and thus reduce water availability for use. Stakeholders and scientists at local and national scales have illustrated a need for understanding these risks to water quality. A regional and comprehensive...
Authors
Lisamarie Windham-Myers, Tara L. Root, Matthew D. Petkewich, MaryLynn Musgrove, Amy C. Gill, J. Curtis Weaver, Christopher H. Conaway, Bruce D. Lindsey, Francis Parchaso, Noah Knowles, Elizabeth J. Tomaszewski

Hyperspectral Image Transects during Transient Events in Rivers (HITTER): Framework development and application to a tracer experiment on the Missouri River, USA Hyperspectral Image Transects during Transient Events in Rivers (HITTER): Framework development and application to a tracer experiment on the Missouri River, USA

Rivers convey a broad range of materials, such as sediment, nutrients, and contaminants. Much of this transport can occur during or immediately after an episodic, pulsed event like a flood or an oil spill. Understanding the flow processes that influence the motion of these substances is important for managing water resources and conserving aquatic ecosystems. This study introduces a new...
Authors
Carl J. Legleiter, Victoria Mary Scholl, Brandon James Sansom, Matthew Alexander Burgess
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