Reports

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Suffolk County Water Authority, evaluated the groundwater-flow characteristics and aquifer properties of the North Magee Street well field north of the village of Southampton, New York. Characteristics and properties included groundwater-flow direction, potential groundwater-contributing areas to the well field production wells, and...

Groundwater wells and surface-water storm sewers contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) at the former Naval Air Warfare Center (NAWC) site in West Trenton, New Jersey were sampled in 2018 as part of the Navy’s long-term monitoring program. Trichloroethene (TCE), cis-1,2-dichloroethene (cisDCE), and vinyl chloride concentrations...

The age and source of the late Pleistocene Roxana Silt in the Mississippi Valley have been studied since the middle 1800s. Published age and paleoenvironmental data for the Roxana Silt in the Mississippi Valley show that deposition occurred from late marine isotope stage 5 (MIS5) through late marine isotope stage 3 (MIS3) (80–30 kilo-annum [ka]), when the warm to hot interglacial climate...

Groundwater quality in the Northern San Joaquin Valley region of California was studied as part of California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment Program-Priority Basin Project (GAMA-PBP). The GAMA-PBP made a spatially unbiased assessment of the aquifer system used for domestic drinking-water supply in the study region and compared...

Between 2015 and 2019, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) studied concerns related to projected increases in demand for groundwater, in collaboration with municipal water providers and county managers within the study area, Aiken County and part of Lexington County, South Carolina. A three-dimensional (3D), numerical groundwater-flow model of the Atlantic Coastal Plain (ACP) aquifers...

The Trinity River is managed in two sections: (1) the upper 64-kilometer (km) “restoration reach” downstream from Lewiston Dam and (2) the 120-km lower Trinity River downstream from the restoration reach. The Stream Salmonid Simulator (S3) has been previously constructed and calibrated for the restoration reach. In this report, we extended and parameterized S3 for the 120-km section of...

Groundwater is important as a drinking-water source and for maintaining base flow in rivers, streams, and lakes. Groundwater quality can be predicted, in part, by its residence time in the subsurface, but the residence-time distribution cannot be measured directly and must be inferred from models. This report compares residence-time distributions from four areas where groundwater flow...

Digital flood-inundation maps for an 8-mile reach of Papillion Creek near Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, were created by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the U.S. Air Force, Offutt Air Force Base. The flood-inundation maps, which can be accessed through the USGS Flood Inundation Mapping Program website at https://www.usgs.gov/mission-areas/water-resources/science...

Factors such as soil type and precipitation vary across rangeland landscapes, and these factors affect restoration outcomes and ultimately mean that “one size fits all” management strategies are not effective across large, complex landscapes. Big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) is a foundational rangeland species that is important to wildlife habitat across the western U.S. On the...

Freshwater ecosystems of the Alaskan Arctic and Subarctic provide resources that are culturally, ecologically, and economically invaluable. Presently, these regions are relatively free of the impacts from invasive species compared to southern latitudes. To date, there have been relatively few verified introductions of aquatic invasive species (AIS) to freshwater ecosystems in Alaska. The...

Located in North Central Utah, Emigration Canyon is a prominent and historic canyon that runs northeast from Salt Lake City into the higher elevations of the Wasatch Mountains. The Wasatch Range is characterized by steep, rocky slopes and 26-44 millimeters of annual rainfall, both of which contribute to a high threat of wildfire. The area’s landscape is diverse with oak woodland at the...

Selenium in aquatic ecosystems of the lower Gunnison River Basin in Colorado is affecting the recovery of populations of endangered, native fish species. Dietary exposure is the primary pathway for bioaccumulation of selenium in fish, and particulate selenium can be consumed directly by fish or by the invertebrates on which fish feed. Although selenium can be incorporated into...