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: 19030
Energy-related wastewater contamination alters microbial communities of sediment, water, and amphibian skin Energy-related wastewater contamination alters microbial communities of sediment, water, and amphibian skin
To inform responsible energy development, it is important to understand the ecological effects of contamination events. Wastewaters, a common byproduct of oil and gas extraction, often contain high concentrations of sodium chloride (NaCl) and heavy metals (e.g., strontium and vanadium). These constituents can negatively affect aquatic organisms, but there is scarce information for how...
Authors
Brian J. Tornabene, Kelly L. Smalling, Carrie E. Givens, Emily Bea Oja, Blake R. Hossack
U.S. Geological Survey and Blackfeet Water Department Hydrologic Assessment of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, Montana U.S. Geological Survey and Blackfeet Water Department Hydrologic Assessment of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, Montana
The Blackfeet Nation seeks an increased scientific understanding of the water resources within the Blackfeet Indian Reservation of northwestern Montana. Hydrologic information is needed to better inform water-management decisions as the Blackfeet Nation implements the Blackfeet Water Rights Compact, initiates new water-use projects, and improves the Blackfeet Irrigation Project. The U.S...
Authors
Sean M. Lawlor, Rodney R. Caldwell, Timothy T. Bartos, Brett Price
Multiresidue extraction of current-use pesticides from complex solid matrices using energized dispersive guided extraction with analysis by gas and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectroscopy Multiresidue extraction of current-use pesticides from complex solid matrices using energized dispersive guided extraction with analysis by gas and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectroscopy
The development of sample processing techniques that recover a broad suite of pesticides from solid matrices, while mitigating coextracted matrix interferences, and reducing processing time is beneficial for high throughput analyses. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of an automated extraction system for pesticide analyses in solid environmental samples. An...
Authors
Gabrielle Pecora Black, Emily E. Woodward, Corey Sanders, Michael S. Gross, Michelle L. Hladik
Potential factors controlling benthic algae in the upper White River Basin, Colorado, 2018–21 Potential factors controlling benthic algae in the upper White River Basin, Colorado, 2018–21
Nuisance levels of benthic algae are becoming increasingly common in surface waters of the western United States and can compromise aesthetic quality, limit recreational activities, block water infrastructure, and negatively affect aquatic life. In cooperation with the White River and Douglas Creek Conservation Districts, the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Forum, and the Colorado...
Authors
Rachel G. Gidley, Natalie K. Day
Characterization of streamflow and nutrient occurrence in the upper White River Basin, Colorado, 1980–2020 Characterization of streamflow and nutrient occurrence in the upper White River Basin, Colorado, 1980–2020
In 2016, Colorado Parks and Wildlife identified filamentous algae collected from the main stem White River as Cladophora glomerata, a pervasive nuisance aquatic alga. Excessive levels of filamentous algae can compromise aesthetic quality, limit recreational activities, and have negative effects on aquatic life including strong fluctuations in dissolved oxygen levels and a reduction in...
Authors
Natalie K. Day
Investigation of potential factors controlling benthic algae in the upper White River Basin, Colorado, 2018–21 Investigation of potential factors controlling benthic algae in the upper White River Basin, Colorado, 2018–21
Nuisance levels of benthic filamentous green algae are becoming increasingly common in surface waters of Colorado and the western United States. In 2018 the U.S. Geological Survey began a study in cooperation with the White River and Douglas Creek Conservation Districts, Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Forum, and the Colorado River Water Conservation District to collect and analyze...
Authors
Natalie K. Day, Mark F. Henneberg
Bivalve effects on the food web supporting delta smelt—A spatially intensive study of bivalve recruitment, biomass, and grazing rate patterns with varying freshwater outflow in 2019 Bivalve effects on the food web supporting delta smelt—A spatially intensive study of bivalve recruitment, biomass, and grazing rate patterns with varying freshwater outflow in 2019
Phytoplankton are an important and limiting food source in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and San Francisco Bay. The decline of phytoplankton biomass is one potential factor in the decline of the protected Hypomesus transpacificus (delta smelt) and other pelagic organisms. The bivalves Corbicula fluminea and Potamocorbula amurensis (hereafter C. fluminea and P. amurensis, respectively)...
Authors
Emily L. Zierdt Smith, Kelly H. Shrader, Janet K. Thompson, Francis Parchaso, Karen Gehrts, Elizabeth Wells
Completion summary for Borehole TAN-2336 at Test Area North, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Completion summary for Borehole TAN-2336 at Test Area North, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho
In 2021, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, drilled and constructed borehole TAN-2336 for stratigraphic framework analyses and long-term groundwater monitoring of the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer at the Idaho National Laboratory in southeastern Idaho. Borehole TAN-2336 initially was cored from the depths of 34.0–255.8 ft below land surface...
Authors
Brian V. Twining, Kerri C. Treinen, Allison R. Trcka
Satellite remote sensing of river discharge: A framework for assessing the accuracy of discharge estimates made from satellite remote sensing observations Satellite remote sensing of river discharge: A framework for assessing the accuracy of discharge estimates made from satellite remote sensing observations
This research presents an evaluation of the accuracy and uncertainty of estimates of river discharge made using satellite observed data sources as input to a modified form of Manning’s equation. Conventional U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) streamflow gaging station data and in-situ measurements of width, depth, height, slope, discharge, and velocity from 30 USGS gage sites were used as...
Authors
David M. Bjerklie, Michael Durand, James M. LeNoir, Robert W. Dudley, Charon Birkett, John Jones, Merritt Elizabeth Harlan
A framework for estimating global river discharge from the Surface Water and Ocean Topography satellite mission A framework for estimating global river discharge from the Surface Water and Ocean Topography satellite mission
The Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission will vastly expand measurements of global rivers, providing critical new data sets for both gaged and ungaged basins. SWOT discharge products (available approximately 1 year after launch) will provide discharge for all river that reaches wider than 100 m. In this paper, we describe how SWOT discharge produced and archived by the US...
Authors
Michael Durand, Colin Gleason, Tamlin Pavelsky, Renato Frasson, Michael Turmon, Cedric H. David, Elizabeth Altenau, Nikki Tebaldi, Kevin Larnier, Jerome Monnier, Pierre Olivier Malaterre, Hind Oubanas, George H. Allen, Brian Astifan, Craig Brinkerhoff, Paul Bates, David M. Bjerklie, Stephen Coss, Robert W. Dudley, Luciana Fengolio, Pierre-Andre Garambois, Augusto Getirana, Peirong Lin, Steven A. Margulis, Pascal Matte, J.Toby Minear, Aggrey Muhebwa, Ming Pan, Daniel L. Peters, Ryan Riggs, Safat Sikder, Travis Simmons, Cassie Stuurman, Jay Taneja, Angelica Tarpanelli, Kerstin Schulze, Mohammad Tourian, Jida Wang
Uptake of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances by fish, mussel, and passive samplers in mobile laboratory exposures using groundwater from a contamination plume at a historical fire training area, Cape Cod, Massachusetts Uptake of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances by fish, mussel, and passive samplers in mobile laboratory exposures using groundwater from a contamination plume at a historical fire training area, Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Aqueous film-forming foams historically were used during fire training activities on Joint Base Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and created an extensive per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) groundwater contamination plume. The potential for PFAS bioconcentration from exposure to the contaminated groundwater, which discharges to surface water bodies, was assessed with mobile-laboratory...
Authors
Larry B. Barber, Heidi M. Pickard, David A. Alvarez, Jitka Becanova, Steffanie H. Keefe, Denis R. LeBlanc, Rainer Lohmann, Jeffery A. Steevens, Alan M. Vajda
Assessing Escherichia coli and microbial source tracking markers in the Rio Grande in the South Valley, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 2020–21 Assessing Escherichia coli and microbial source tracking markers in the Rio Grande in the South Valley, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 2020–21
The Rio Grande, in southern Albuquerque, New Mexico, is a Clean Water Act Section 303(d) Category 5 impaired reach for Escherichia coli (E. coli). The reach is 5 miles in length, extending from Tijeras Arroyo south to the Isleta Pueblo boundary. An evaluation of E. coli and microbial source tracking markers (human-, canine-, and waterfowl-specific sources) was conducted by the U.S...
Authors
Rebecca E. Travis, Kate Wilkins, Christopher M. Kephart