Publications
Dive into our publications and explore the science from the Environmental Health Program (Toxic Substances Hydrology and Contaminant Biology).
GeoHEALTH-USGS Newsletter
GeoHEALTH-USGS Newsletter
The GeoHEALTH–USGS Newsletter—published since 2004—provides information on USGS science activities pertinent to safeguarding the health of fish, wildlife, domesticated animals, and people from environmental exposures to contaminants and pathogens.
Featured Science Activities
Featured Science Activities
Learn about our Featured Science Activities through our pages that highlight recent studies, publications, and results.
Filter Total Items: 686
A review of algal toxin exposures on reserved federal lands and among trust species in the United States A review of algal toxin exposures on reserved federal lands and among trust species in the United States
Associated health effects from algal toxin exposure are a growing concern for human and animal health. Algal toxin poisonings may occur from contact with or consumption of water supplies or from ingestion of contaminated animals. The U.S. Federal Government owns or holds in trust about 259 million hectares of land, in addition to the Trust species obligations. We completed the first...
Authors
Zachary Laughrey, Victoria Christensen, Robert Dusek, Sarena Senegal, Julia Lankton, Tracy Ziegler, Lee Jones, Daniel Jones, Brianna Williams, Stephanie Gordon, Gerald Clyde, Erich Emery, Keith Loftin
Reproductive health and endocrine disruption in smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) from the Lake Erie drainage, Pennsylvania, USA Reproductive health and endocrine disruption in smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) from the Lake Erie drainage, Pennsylvania, USA
Smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieu were sampled from three sites within the Lake Erie drainage (Elk Creek, Twentymile Creek, and Misery Bay, an embayment in Presque Isle Bay). Plasma, tissues for histopathological analyses, and liver and testes preserved in RNALater® were sampled from 30 smallmouth bass (of both sexes) at each site. Liver and testes samples were analyzed for transcript...
Authors
Heather Walsh, Sean Rafferty, Stephanie Gordon, Vicki S. Blazer
Quantification of metal loading using tracer dilution and instantaneous synoptic sampling and importance of diel cycling in Leavenworth Creek, Clear Creek County, Colorado, 2012 Quantification of metal loading using tracer dilution and instantaneous synoptic sampling and importance of diel cycling in Leavenworth Creek, Clear Creek County, Colorado, 2012
Leavenworth Creek, a tributary of South Clear Creek and Clear Creek near Georgetown, Colorado, contains copper, lead, and zinc at concentrations close to or in excess of aquatic-life standards. In the summer of 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service and the Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety, conducted...
Authors
Katherine Walton-Day, Robert Runkel, Christin Smith, Briant A. Kimball
Oil and gas wastewater components alter streambed microbial community structure and function Oil and gas wastewater components alter streambed microbial community structure and function
The widespread application of directional drilling and hydraulic fracturing technologies expanded oil and gas (OG) development to previously inaccessible resources. A single OG well can generate millions of liters of wastewater, which is a mixture of brine produced from the fractured formations and injected hydraulic fracturing fluids (HFFs). With thousands of wells completed each year...
Authors
Denise M. Akob, Adam Mumford, Andrea Fraser, Cassandra Harris, William Orem, Matthew S. Varonka, Isabelle Cozzarelli
Exposure of predatory and scavenging birds to anticoagulant rodenticides in France: Exploration of data from French surveillance programs Exposure of predatory and scavenging birds to anticoagulant rodenticides in France: Exploration of data from French surveillance programs
Wild raptors are widely used to assess exposure to different environmental contaminants, including anticoagulant rodenticides (ARs). ARs are used on a global scale for rodent control, and act by disruption of the vitamin K cycle that results in haemorrhage usually accompanied by death within days. Some ARs are highly persistent and bioaccumulative, which can cause significant exposure of...
Authors
Meg-Anne Moriceau, Sebastien Lefebvre, Isabelle Fourel, Etienne Benoit, Florence Buronfosse, Pascal Orabi, Barnett Rattner, Virginie Lattard
A simple low-cost approach for transport parameter determination in mountain rivers A simple low-cost approach for transport parameter determination in mountain rivers
A simplified low-cost approach to experimentally determine transport parameters in mountain rivers is described, with an emphasis on the longitudinal dispersion coefficient (DL). The approach is based on a slug injection of table salt (NaCl) as a tracer and specific conductance readings at different locations downstream of the injection spot. Observed specific conductance readings are...
Authors
Daniella Castillo, Robert Runkel, Denisse Duhalde, Pablo Pasten, José L. Arumí, Jorge Oyarzun, Jorge Núñez, Hugo Maturana, Ricardo Oyarzun
Effects of hydrologic variability and remedial actions on first flush and metal loading from streams draining the Silverton caldera, 1992–2014 Effects of hydrologic variability and remedial actions on first flush and metal loading from streams draining the Silverton caldera, 1992–2014
This study examined water quality in the upper Animas River watershed, a mined watershed that gained notoriety following the 2015 Gold King mine release of acid mine drainage to downstream communities. Water-quality data were used to evaluate trends in metal concentrations and loads over a two-decade period. Selected sites included three sites on tributary streams and one main-stem site...
Authors
Tanya N Petach, Robert Runkel, Rory Cowie, Diane McKnight
A comprehensive statewide spatiotemporal stream assessment of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in an agricultural region of the United States A comprehensive statewide spatiotemporal stream assessment of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in an agricultural region of the United States
Public concern regarding per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) has grown substantially in recent years. In addition, research has documented multiple potential agriculture-related release pathways for PFAS (e.g., biosolids and livestock manure). Nevertheless, little research on the environmental prevalence of PFAS has been conducted in agricultural regions of the United States. To...
Authors
Dana W. Kolpin, Laura Hubbard, D.M. Cwiertny, Shannon M. Meppelink, D.A. Thompson, James L. Gray
Acute oral toxicity and tissue residues of saxitoxin in the mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) Acute oral toxicity and tissue residues of saxitoxin in the mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)
Since 2014, widespread, annual mortality events involving multiple species of seabirds have occurred in the Gulf of Alaska, Bering Sea, and Chukchi Sea. Among these die-offs, emaciation was a common finding with starvation often identified as the cause of death. However, saxitoxin (STX) was detected in many carcasses, indicating exposure of these seabirds to STX in the marine environment...
Authors
Robert Dusek, Matthew Smith, Caroline Van Hemert, Valerie Shearn-Bochsler, Sherwood Hall, Clark Ridge, Ransome Hardison, Robert Kaler, Barbara Bodenstein, Erik Hofmeister, Jeffrey Hall
Development of a multiplex fluorescence in situ hybridization assay to identify coinfections in young-of-the-year smallmouth bass Development of a multiplex fluorescence in situ hybridization assay to identify coinfections in young-of-the-year smallmouth bass
Histopathological assessments of young-of-the-year (age-0) Smallmouth Bass Micropterus dolomieu in the Susquehanna River drainage identified a high prevalence of the myxozoan Myxobolus inornatus. This myxozoan infects the connective tissue of the muscle below the skin but is sometimes observed in the esophagus and buccal cavity. In some instances, shallow infections cause breaks in the...
Authors
Heather Walsh, Vicki S. Blazer, Patricia Mazik
Method development for a short-term 7-day toxicity test with unionid mussels Method development for a short-term 7-day toxicity test with unionid mussels
The US Environmental Protection Agency's short-term freshwater effluent test methods include a fish (Pimephales promelas), a cladoceran (Ceriodaphnia dubia), and a green alga (Raphidocelis subcapitata). There is a recognized need for additional taxa to accompany the three standard species for effluent testing. An appropriate additional taxon is unionid mussels because mussels are widely
Authors
Ning Wang, James Kunz, Douglas Hardesty, Jeffery Steevens, Teresa Norberg-King, Edward Hammer, Candice Bauer, Tom Augspurger, Suzanne Dunn, David Martinez, M. Christopher Barnhart, Jordan Murray, Marcus Bowersox, John Roberts, Robert Bringolf, Robert Ratajczak, Serena Ciparis, W. Cope, Sean Buczek, Daniel Farrar, Lauren May, Mailee Garton, Patricia Gillis, James Bennett, Joseph Salerno, Brian Hester, Richard Lockwood, Christopher Tarr, Dennis McIntyre, Jonathan Wardell
The sensitivity of a unionid mussel (Lampsilis siliquoidea) to a permitted effluent and elevated potassium in the effluent The sensitivity of a unionid mussel (Lampsilis siliquoidea) to a permitted effluent and elevated potassium in the effluent
Freshwater mussels are one of the most imperiled groups of animals in the world and are among the most sensitive species to a variety of chemicals. However, little is known about the sensitivity of freshwater mussels to wastewater effluents. The objectives of the present study were to (1) assess the toxicity of a permitted effluent, which entered the Deep Fork River, Oklahoma (USA), to a...
Authors
James Kunz, Ning Wang, David Martinez, Suzanne Dunn, Danielle Cleveland, Jeffery Steevens