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Publications

Dive into our publications and explore the science from the Environmental Health Program (Toxic Substances Hydrology and Contaminant Biology).

Filter Total Items: 4093

Winter orographic precipitation ratios in the Sierra Nevada: Large-scale atmospheric circulations and hydrologic consequences Winter orographic precipitation ratios in the Sierra Nevada: Large-scale atmospheric circulations and hydrologic consequences

The extent to which winter precipitation is orographically enhanced within the Sierra Nevada of California varies from storm to storm, and season to season, from occasions when precipitation rates at low and high altitudes are almost the same to instances when precipitation rates at middle elevations (considered here) can be as much as 30 times more than at the base of the range...
Authors
M. Dettinger, K. Redmond, D. Cayan

Uranium adsorption on weathered schist - Intercomparison of modeling approaches Uranium adsorption on weathered schist - Intercomparison of modeling approaches

Experimental data for uranium adsorption on a complex weathered rock were simulated by twelve modelling teams from eight countries using surface complexation (SC) models. This intercomparison was part of an international project to evaluate the present capabilities and limitations of SC models in representing sorption by geologic materials. The models were assessed in terms of their...
Authors
T.E. Payne, J.A. Davis, M. Ochs, M. Olin, C.J. Tweed

PHAST--a program for simulating ground-water flow, solute transport, and multicomponent geochemical reactions PHAST--a program for simulating ground-water flow, solute transport, and multicomponent geochemical reactions

The computer program PHAST simulates multi-component, reactive solute transport in three-dimensional saturated ground-water flow systems. PHAST is a versatile ground-water flow and solute-transport simulator with capabilities to model a wide range of equilibrium and kinetic geochemical reactions. The flow and transport calculations are based on a modified version of HST3D that is...
Authors
David L. Parkhurst, Kenneth L. Kipp, Peter Engesgaard, Scott R. Charlton

Organic contaminants associated with suspended sediment collected during five cruises of the Mississippi River and its principal tributaries, May 1988 to June 1990 Organic contaminants associated with suspended sediment collected during five cruises of the Mississippi River and its principal tributaries, May 1988 to June 1990

Suspended-sediment samples were obtained from sites along the Mississippi River and its principal tributaries to determine the presence of halogenated hydrophobic organic compounds on the suspended sediment smaller than 63 micrometers. Sample collection involved pumping discharge-weighted volumes of river water along a cross section of the river into a continuous-flow centrifuge to...
Authors
Colleen E. Rostad, LaDonna M. Bishop, Geoffrey S. Ellis, Thomas J. Leiker, Stephanie G. Monsterleet, Wilfred E. Pereira

Near-field receiving water monitoring of a benthic community near the Palo Alto Water Quality Control Plant in south San Francisco Bay: February 1974 through December 2003 Near-field receiving water monitoring of a benthic community near the Palo Alto Water Quality Control Plant in south San Francisco Bay: February 1974 through December 2003

Analyses of the benthic community structure of a mudflat in South San Francisco Bay over a 29-year period show that changes in the community have occurred concurrent with reduced concentrations of metals in the sediment and in the tissues of the biosentinal clam Macoma balthica from the same area. The community has shifted from being dominated by several opportunistic species to a...
Authors
Michelle K. Shouse, Francis Parcheso, Janet K. Thompson

Use of borehole radar methods and borehole geophysical logs to monitor a field-scale vegetable oil biostimulation pilot project at Fridley, Minnesota Use of borehole radar methods and borehole geophysical logs to monitor a field-scale vegetable oil biostimulation pilot project at Fridley, Minnesota

Cross-hole and surface-to-borehole radar and conventional borehole geophysical logs were used to monitor subsurface injections of vegetable oil emulsion conducted as part of a field-scale biostimulation pilot project at the Anoka County Riverfront Park (ACP), located downgradient of the Naval Industrial Reserve Ordnance Plant (NIROP), in Fridley, Minnesota. The pilot project was...
Authors
John W. Lane, Clifton C. Casey, Frederick D. Day-Lewis, A. Witten, Roelof J. Versteeg

Collection, analysis, and age-dating of sediment cores from 56 U.S. lakes and reservoirs sampled by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1992-2001 Collection, analysis, and age-dating of sediment cores from 56 U.S. lakes and reservoirs sampled by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1992-2001

The U.S. Geological Survey Reconstructed Trends National Synthesis study collected sediment cores from 56 lakes and reservoirs between 1992 and 2001 across the United States. Most of the sampling was conducted as part of the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program. The primary objective of the study was to determine trends in particle-associated contaminants in response to...
Authors
Peter Van Metre, Jennifer T. Wilson, Christopher C. Fuller, Edward Callender, Barbara Mahler

Use of PRD1 bacteriophage in groundwater viral transport, inactivation, and attachment studies Use of PRD1 bacteriophage in groundwater viral transport, inactivation, and attachment studies

PRD1, an icosahedra-shaped, 62 nm (diameter), double-stranded DNA bacteriophage with an internal membrane, has emerged as an important model virus for studying the manner in which microorganisms are transported through a variety of groundwater environments. The popularity of this phage for use in transport studies involving geologic media is due, in part, to its relative stability over a...
Authors
Ronald W. Harvey, Joseph N. Ryan

Importance of clay size minerals for Fe(III) respiration in a petroleum-contaminated aquifer Importance of clay size minerals for Fe(III) respiration in a petroleum-contaminated aquifer

The availability of Fe(III)-bearing minerals for dissimilatory Fe(III) reduction was evaluated in sediments from a petroleum-contaminated sandy aquifer near Bemidji, Minnesota (USA). First, the sediments from a contaminated area of the aquifer, in which Fe(III) reduction was the predominant terminal electron accepting process, were compared with sediments from a nearby, uncontaminated...
Authors
Evgenya S. Shelobolina, Robert T. Anderson, Yury N. Vodyanitskii, Anatolii V. Sivtsov, Richard Yuretich, Derek R. Lovely

Radon (222Rn) in ground water of fractured rocks: A diffusion/ion exchange model Radon (222Rn) in ground water of fractured rocks: A diffusion/ion exchange model

Ground waters from fractured igneous and high‐grade sialic metamorphic rocks frequently have elevated activity of dissolved radon (222Rn). A chemically based model is proposed whereby radium (226Ra) from the decay of uranium (238U) diffuses through the primary porosity of the rock to the water‐transmitting fracture where it is sorbed on weathering products. Sorption of 226Ra on the...
Authors
W.W. Wood, T. F. Kraemer, A. Shapiro

Transient Analysis of the Source of Water to Wells: Cape Cod, Massachusetts Transient Analysis of the Source of Water to Wells: Cape Cod, Massachusetts

A transient flow modeling analysis for potential public-supply wells on western Cape Cod, Massachusetts, demonstrates the difference between transient and steady-state recharge areas can have important implications for wellhead protection. An example of a single pumping well illustrates that commonly, used steady-state time-related capture areas do not represent the recharge area and...
Authors
John P. Masterson, D. A. Walter, D.R. LeBlanc
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