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.
Assessment of diel cycling in nutrients and trace elements in the Eagle River Basin, 2017–18
Diel cycles are known to occur in all types of waters, and increasing studies indicate routine water samples may not provide an accurate snapshot in concentrations of trace elements and nutrients. Diel behavior in neutral to alkaline pH ranges is independent of streamflow variability and concentration. Extensive historical U.S. Geological Survey (...
Richards, Rodney J.; Henneberg, Mark F.
Regional regression equations based on channel-width characteristics to estimate peak-flow frequencies at ungaged sites in Montana using peak-flow frequency data through water year 2011
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Montana Department of Transportation, developed regression equations based on channel width to estimate peak-flow frequencies at ungaged sites in Montana. The equations are based on peak-flow data at streamgages through September 2011 (end of water year 2011), and channel widths measured in the...
Chase, Katherine J.; Sando, Roy; Armstrong, Daniel W.; McCarthy, Peter
Historical floods and geomorphic change in the lower Little Colorado River during the late 19th to early 21st centuries
The Little Colorado River is a major tributary to the Colorado River with a confluence at the boundary between Marble and Grand Canyons within Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. The bedrock gorge of the lower Little Colorado River is home to the largest known population of Gila cypha (humpback chub), an endangered fish endemic to the Colorado...
Unema, Joel A.; Topping, David J.; Kohl, Keith A.; Pillow, Michael J.; Caster, Joshua J.
Using satellite imagery to estimate consumptive water use from irrigated lands in the Milk River Basin, United States and Canada
The U.S. Geological Survey, with the support of the International Joint Commission, and in cooperation with Alberta Environment and Parks, Blackfeet Nation, Environment and Climate Change Canada, and Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, is leading a project that should improve information available to apportion water between...
Sando, Roy; Friedrichs, MacKenzie; Senay, Gabriel B.
Noble gas signatures constrain oil-field water as the carrier phase of hydrocarbons occurring in shallow aquifers in the San Joaquin Basin, USA
Noble gases record fluid interactions in multiphase subsurface environments through fractionation processes during fluid equilibration. Water in the presence of hydrocarbons at the subsurface acquires a distinct elemental signature due to the difference in solubility between these two fluids. We find the atmospheric noble gas signature in produced...
Karolyte, Ruta; Barry, Peter H.; Hunt, Andrew; Kulongoski, Justin T.; Tyne, R.L.; Davis, Tracy; Wright, Michael; McMahon, Peter B.; Ballentine, C.J.
General water-quality conditions, long-term trends, and network analysis at selected sites within the Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network in Missouri, water years 1993–2017
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, collects data pertaining to the surface-water resources of Missouri. Established in 1964, the Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network (AWQMN) consisted of 69 sites in 2017. Two additional sites from the National Water-Quality Program are included with...
Richards, Joseph M.; Barr, Miya N. Uncertainty in remote sensing of streams using noncontact radars
Accounting for freshwater resources and monitoring floods are vital functions for societies throughout the world. Remote-sensing methods offer great prospects to expand stream monitoring in developing countries and to smaller, headwater streams that are largely ungauged worldwide. This study evaluates the potential to estimate discharge using...
Khan, Mushfiqur Rahman; Gourley, Jonathan J; Duarte, Jorge; Vergara, Humberto; Wasielewski, Daniel; Ayral, Pierre-Alain; Fulton, John Using an unmanned aerial vehicle water sampler to gather data in a pit-lake mining environment to assess closure and monitoring
Residual pit lakes from mining are often dangerous to sample for water quality. Thus, pit lakes may be rarely (or never) sampled. This study developed new technology in which water-sampling devices, mounted on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), were used to sample three pit lakes in Nevada, USA, during 1 week in 2017. Water-quality datasets...
Straight, Brian; Castendyk, Devin; McKnight, Diane M.; Newman, Connor; Filiatreault, Pierre; Pino, Americo
Using microbial source tracking to identify fecal contamination sources in an embayment in Hempstead Harbor on Long Island, New York
The U.S. Geological Survey worked collaboratively with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to assess the potential sources of fecal contamination entering Hempstead Harbor, an embayment on the northern shore of Nassau County, Long Island, New York. Water samples are routinely collected by the New York State Department of...
Tagliaferri, Tristen N.; Fisher, Shawn C.; Kephart, Christopher M.; Cheung, Natalie; Reed, Ariel P.; Welk, Robert J.
American and Sacramento Rivers, California, erodibility measurements and model
Executive Summary A previous report by the authors described sediment sampling and drilling by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) beside the American and Sacramento Rivers near Sacramento, California, in support of a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project focused on regional flood control. The drilling was performed to define lithology, extract...
Work, Paul A.; Livsey, Daniel N. Integrating ecosystem metabolism and consumer allochthony reveals nonlinear drivers in lake organic matter processing
Lakes process both terrestrial and aquatic organic matter, and the relative contribution from each source is often measured via ecosystem metabolism and terrestrial resource use in the food web (i.e., consumer allochthony). Yet, ecosystem metabolism and consumer allochthony are rarely considered together, despite possible interactions and...
Holgerson, Meredith A.; Hovel, Rachel A.; Kelly, Patrick T.; Bortolotti, Lauren E; Brentrup, Jennifer A.; Bellamy, Amber R; Oliver, Samantha; Reisenger, Alexander J
Assessment of water-quality constituents monitored for total maximum daily loads in Johnson County, Kansas, January 2015 through December 2018
Stormwater discharges from municipalities are regulated by provisions in the Clean Water Act of 1972 to protect the Nation’s water resources from harmful pollutants. In 2014, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment issued new stormwater discharge permits for 17 municipalities in Johnson County, Kansas, in the northeastern part of the State...
Leiker, Brianna M.; Rasmussen, Teresa J.; Eslick-Huff, Patrick J.; Painter, Colin C.