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: 19021
Towards identifying the next generation of superfund and hazardous waste site contaminants Towards identifying the next generation of superfund and hazardous waste site contaminants
Background This commentary evolved from a workshop sponsored by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences titled "Superfund Contaminants: The Next Generation" held in Tucson, Arizona, in August 2009. All the authors were workshop participants. Objectives Our aim was to initiate a dynamic, adaptable process for identifying contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) that are...
Authors
Wendell P. Ela, David L. Sedlak, Morton A. Barlaz, Heather F. Henry, Derek C.G. Muir, Deborah L. Swackhamer, Eric J. Weber, Robert G. Arnold, P. Lee Ferguson, Jennifer A. Field, Edward T. Furlong, John P. Giesy, Rolf U. Halden, Tala Henry, Ronald A. Hites, Keri C. Hornbuckle, Philip H. Howard, Richard G. Luthy, Anita K. Meyer, A. Eduardo Saez, Frederick S. vom Saal, Chris D. Vulpe, Mark R. Wiesner
Estimating water supply arsenic levels in the New England bladder cancer study Estimating water supply arsenic levels in the New England bladder cancer study
Background: Ingestion of inorganic arsenic in drinking water is recognized as a cause of bladder cancer when levels are relatively high (≥ 150 μg/L). The epidemiologic evidence is less clear at the low-to-moderate concentrations typically observed in the United States. Accurate retrospective exposure assessment over a long time period is a major challenge in conducting epidemiologic...
Authors
John R. Nuckols, Laura E. Beane Freeman, Jay H. Lubin, Matthew S. Airola, Dalsu Baris, Joseph D. Ayotte, Anne Taylor, Chris Paulu, Margaret R. Karagas, Joanne Colt, Mary H. Ward, An-Tsun Huang, William Bress, Sai Cherala, Debra T. Silverman, Kenneth P. Cantor
Selective uptake and biological consequences of environmentally relevant antidepressant pharmaceutical exposures on male fathead minnows Selective uptake and biological consequences of environmentally relevant antidepressant pharmaceutical exposures on male fathead minnows
Antidepressant pharmaceuticals have been reported in wastewater effluent at the nanogram to low microgram-per-liter range, and include bupropion (BUP), fluoxetine (FLX), sertraline (SER), and venlafaxine (VEN). To assess the effects of antidepressants on reproductive anatomy, physiology, and behavior, adult male fathead minnows (Pimeplwles promelas) were exposed for 21 days either to a...
Authors
Melissa M. Schultz, Meghan M. Painter, Stephen E. Bartell, Amanda Logue, Edward T. Furlong, Stephen L. Werner, Heiko L. Schoenfuss
Contamination of nonylphenolic compounds in creek water, wastewater treatment plant effluents, and sediments from Lake Shihwa and vicinity, Korea: Comparison with fecal pollution Contamination of nonylphenolic compounds in creek water, wastewater treatment plant effluents, and sediments from Lake Shihwa and vicinity, Korea: Comparison with fecal pollution
Nonylphenolic compounds (NPs), coprostanol (COP), and cholestanol, major contaminants in industrial and domestic wastewaters, were analyzed in creek water, wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent, and sediment samples from artificial Lake Shihwa and its vicinity, one of the most industrialized regions in Korea. We also determined mass discharge of NPs and COP, a fecal sterol, into the...
Authors
Minkyu Choi, Edward T. Furlong, Hyo-Bang Moon, Jun Yu, Hee-Gu Choi
Colorimetric determination of nitrate plus nitrite in water by enzymatic reduction, automated discrete analyzer methods Colorimetric determination of nitrate plus nitrite in water by enzymatic reduction, automated discrete analyzer methods
This report documents work at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water Quality Laboratory (NWQL) to validate enzymatic reduction, colorimetric determinative methods for nitrate + nitrite in filtered water by automated discrete analysis. In these standard- and low-level methods (USGS I-2547-11 and I-2548-11), nitrate is reduced to nitrite with nontoxic, soluble nitrate reductase...
Authors
Charles J. Patton, Jennifer R. Kryskalla
Hydrostratigraphic interpretation of test-hole and geophysical data, Upper Loup River Basin, Nebraska, 2008-10 Hydrostratigraphic interpretation of test-hole and geophysical data, Upper Loup River Basin, Nebraska, 2008-10
Nebraska's Upper Loup Natural Resources District is currently (2011) participating in the Elkhorn-Loup Model to understand the effect of various groundwater-management scenarios on surface-water resources. During Phase 1 of the Elkhorn-Loup Model, a lack of subsurface geological information in the Upper Loup Natural Resources District, hereafter referred to as the upper Loup study area...
Authors
Christopher M. Hobza, Theodore H. Asch, Paul A. Bedrosian
Evaluating the potential for remote bathymetric mapping of a turbid, sand-bed river: 2. application to hyperspectral image data from the Platte River Evaluating the potential for remote bathymetric mapping of a turbid, sand-bed river: 2. application to hyperspectral image data from the Platte River
This study examined the possibility of mapping depth from optical image data in turbid, sediment-laden channels. Analysis of hyperspectral images from the Platte River indicated that depth retrieval in these environments is feasible, but might not be highly accurate. Four methods of calibrating image-derived depth estimates were evaluated. The first involved extracting image spectra at...
Authors
Carl J. Legleiter, Paul J. Kinzel, Brandon T. Overstreet
Role of biofilms in sorptive removal of steroidal hormones and 4-nonylphenol compounds from streams Role of biofilms in sorptive removal of steroidal hormones and 4-nonylphenol compounds from streams
Stream biofilms play an important role in geochemical processing of organic matter and nutrients, however, the significance of this matrix in sorbing trace organic contaminants is less understood. This study focused on the role of stream biofilms in sorbing steroidal hormones and 4-nonylphenol compounds from surface waters using biofilms colonized in situ on artificial substrata and...
Authors
Jeffrey H. Writer, Joseph N. Ryan, Larry B. Barber
Characterization of the intragranular water regime within subsurface sediments: pore volume, surface area, and mass transfer limitations Characterization of the intragranular water regime within subsurface sediments: pore volume, surface area, and mass transfer limitations
Although "intragranular" pore space within grain aggregates, grain fractures, and mineral surface coatings may contain a relatively small fraction of the total porosity within a porous medium, it often contains a significant fraction of the reactive surface area, and can thus strongly affect the transport of sorbing solutes. In this work, we demonstrate a batch experiment procedure using...
Authors
Michael B. Hay, Deborah L. Stoliker, James A. Davis, John M. Zachara
2009 Monitoring and tracking wet nitrogen deposition at Rocky Mountain National Park 2009 Monitoring and tracking wet nitrogen deposition at Rocky Mountain National Park
No abstract available.
Authors
Kristi Morris, Alisa Mast, Greg Wetherbee, Jill Baron, Curt Taipale, Tamara Blett, David Gay, Eric Richer
Estimating groundwater recharge Estimating groundwater recharge
Groundwater recharge is the entry of fresh water into the saturated portion of the subsurface part of the hydrologic cycle, the modifier “saturated” indicating that the pressure of the pore water is greater than atmospheric. Briefly stated, recharge is downward flux across the water table. The term “groundwater recharge” can refer either to the multiple interacting processes generating...
Authors
David A. Stonestrom
Inversion of multi-frequency electromagnetic induction data for 3D characterization of hydraulic conductivity Inversion of multi-frequency electromagnetic induction data for 3D characterization of hydraulic conductivity
Electromagnetic induction (EMI) instruments provide rapid, noninvasive, and spatially dense data for characterization of soil and groundwater properties. Data from multi-frequency EMI tools can be inverted to provide quantitative electrical conductivity estimates as a function of depth. In this study, multi-frequency EMI data collected across an abandoned uranium mill site near Naturita...
Authors
Troy R. Brosten, Frederick D. Day-Lewis, Gregory M. Schultz, Gary P. Curtis, John W. Lane