Publications
Dive into our publications and explore the science from the Environmental Health Program (Toxic Substances Hydrology and Contaminant Biology).
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Mobilization of arsenite by dissimilatory reduction of adsorbed arsenate Mobilization of arsenite by dissimilatory reduction of adsorbed arsenate
Sulfurospirillum barnesii is capable of anaerobic growth using ferric iron or arsenate as electron acceptors. Cell suspensions of S. barnesii were able to reduce arsenate to arsenite when the former oxyanion was dissolved in solution, or when it was adsorbed onto the surface of ferrihydrite, a common soil mineral, by a variety of mechanisms (e.g., coprecipitation, presorption). Reduction...
Authors
J. Zobrist, P.R. Dowdle, J.A. Davis, Ronald S. Oremland
Effect of a constructed wetland on disinfection byproducts: Removal processes and production of precursors Effect of a constructed wetland on disinfection byproducts: Removal processes and production of precursors
The fate of halogenated disinfection byproducts (DBPs) in treatment wetlands and the changes in the DBP formation potential as wastewater treatment plant (WWTP)-derived water moves through the wetlands were investigated. Wetland inlet and outlet samples were analyzed for total organic halide (TOX), trihalomethanes (TH M), haloacetic acids (HAA), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and UV...
Authors
C.E. Rostad, Barbara S. Martin, L. B. Barber, J.A. Leenheer, S.R. Daniel
Effects of the flood of 1993 on the chemical characteristics of bed sediments in the Upper Mississippi River Effects of the flood of 1993 on the chemical characteristics of bed sediments in the Upper Mississippi River
Concentrations of pollutants stored in the surficial bed sediments in the navigation pools of the Upper Mississippi River showed a general decrease after the record flood of 1993. Percent clay and total organic carbon in the surficial sediments decreased as a result of an increase in the proportion of coarser sediment. Decreases in pollutant concentration may have been a result of the...
Authors
J. A. Moody, J.F. Sullivan, Howard E. Taylor
Negative pH and extremely acidic mine waters from Iron Mountain, California Negative pH and extremely acidic mine waters from Iron Mountain, California
Extremely acidic mine waters with pH values as low as -3.6, total dissolved metal concentrations as high as 200 g/L, and sulfate concentrations as high as 760 g/L, have been encountered underground in the Richmond Mine at Iron Mountain, CA. These are the most acidic waters known. The pH measurements were obtained by using the Pitzer method to define pH for calibration of glass membrane...
Authors
D. Kirk Nordstrom, Charles N. Alpers, C.J. Ptacek, D.W. Blowes
Characterizing multiple timescales of stream and storage zone interaction that affect solute fate and transport in streams Characterizing multiple timescales of stream and storage zone interaction that affect solute fate and transport in streams
The fate of contaminants in streams and rivers is affected by exchange and biogeochemical transformation in slowly moving or stagnant flow zones that interact with rapid flow in the main channel. In a typical stream, there are multiple types of slowly moving flow zones in which exchange and transformation occur, such as stagnant or recirculating surface water as well as subsurface...
Authors
Jungyill Choi, Judson W. Harvey, Martha H. Conklin
Metal exposure in a benthic macroinvertebrate, Hydropsyche californica, related to mine drainage in the Sacramento River Metal exposure in a benthic macroinvertebrate, Hydropsyche californica, related to mine drainage in the Sacramento River
A biomonitoring technique was employed to complement studies of metal transport in the upper Sacramento River affected by acid mine drainage. Metals (Al, Cd, Cu, Fe, Hg, Pb, and Zn) were determined in a resident invertebrate, Hydropsyche californica (Insecta: Trichoptera), and streambed sediments (
Authors
Daniel J. Cain, James L. Carter, Steven V. Fend, Samuel N. Luoma, Charles N. Alpers, Howard E. Taylor
Pesticides in the atmosphere of the Mississippi River Valley, part II: Air Pesticides in the atmosphere of the Mississippi River Valley, part II: Air
Weekly composite air samples were collected from early April through to mid-September 1995 at three paired urban and agricultural sites along the Mississippi River region of the Midwestern United States. The paired sampling sites were located in Mississippi, Iowa, and Minnesota. A background site, removed from dense urban and agricultural areas, was located on the shore of Lake Superior...
Authors
W.T. Foreman, M.S. Majewski, D. A. Goolsby, F.W. Wiebe, R.H. Coupe
Occurrence of pesticides in rain and air in urban and agricultural areas of Mississippi, April-September 1995 Occurrence of pesticides in rain and air in urban and agricultural areas of Mississippi, April-September 1995
In April 1995, the US Geological Survey began a study to determine the occurrence and temporal distribution of 49 pesticides and pesticide metabolites in air and rain samples from an urban and an agricultural sampling site in Mississippi. The study was a joint effort between the National Water-Quality Assessment and the Toxic Substances Programs and was part of a larger study examining...
Authors
R.H. Coupe, M.A. Manning, W.T. Foreman, D. A. Goolsby, M.S. Majewski
Groundwater “fast paths” in the Snake River Plain aquifer: Radiogenic isotope ratios as natural groundwater tracers Groundwater “fast paths” in the Snake River Plain aquifer: Radiogenic isotope ratios as natural groundwater tracers
Preferential flow paths are expected in many groundwater systems and must be located because they can greatly affect contaminant transport. The fundamental characteristics of radiogenic isotope ratios in chemically evolving waters make them highly effective as preferential flow path indicators. These ratios tend to be more easily interpreted than solute-concentration data because their...
Authors
Thomas M. Johnson, Robert C. Roback, Travis L. McLing, Thomas D. Bullen, Donald J. DePaolo, Christine Doughty, Randall J. Hunt, Robert W. Smith, L. DeWayne Cecil, Michael T. Murrell
Identifying fracture‐zone geometry using simulated annealing and hydraulic‐connection data Identifying fracture‐zone geometry using simulated annealing and hydraulic‐connection data
A new approach is presented to condition geostatistical simulation of high‐permeability zones in fractured rock to hydraulic‐connection data. A simulated‐annealing algorithm generates three‐dimensional (3‐D) realizations conditioned to borehole data, inferred hydraulic connections between packer‐isolated borehole intervals, and an indicator (fracture zone or background‐K bedrock)...
Authors
Frederick D. Day-Lewis, Paul A. Hsieh, Steven M. Gorelick
Microbial degradation of chloroethenes in groundwater systems Microbial degradation of chloroethenes in groundwater systems
The chloroethenes, tetrachloroethene (PCE) and trichloroethene (TCE) are among the most common contaminants detected in groundwater systems. As recently as 1980, the consensus was that chloroethene compounds were not significantly biodegradable in groundwater. Consequently, efforts to remediate chloroethene-contaminated groundwater were limited to largely unsuccessful pump-and-treat...
Authors
Paul M. Bradley