Human Exposure

Cyanobacteria with toxin-producing potential, genes indicating an ability for toxin synthesis, or cyanotoxins were present before and after formation of a visible algal bloom in Kabetogama Lake, a popular recreation area in Voyageurs National Park that lies along the border of Minnesota and Canada. The temporal patterns observed in this study indicate that sampling only when there is a visible...

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and academic scientists partnered to identify challenges and provide considerations for future scientific study designs to advance our understanding of the often subtle sublethal effects of contaminants on individuals, populations, communities, and entire aquatic food webs.

Waterborne viruses, one of the leading causes of gastrointestinal illnesses, were measured in United States drinking water sources and finished water. Scientists used a combination of measurement and statistical techniques to overcome limitations to quantifying these viruses, thus offering an enhanced method for virus monitoring.

The public is concerned that uranium in natural geologic formations, mine tailings, dusts, water, and other geologic materials can pose a health hazard to humans and wildlife. Our specialized teams of hydrologists, chemists, and geologists working together at a field site in the Grand Canyon region of the United States have shown: Elevated uranium concentrations (above the drinking water standard)...

Science from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and other entities has shown that a mixture of natural and synthetic estrogens and other similar chemicals are discharged from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) to streams and rivers.

A growing number of human gastrointestinal, respiratory, dermatologic, and neurologic effects, as well as dog and livestock illnesses and deaths, in the United States have been linked to exposures to algal blooms in recreational lakes and stock ponds. Some of the blooms contain cyanobacteria, which have the potential to produce cyanotoxins in freshwater systems. However, the connection between...

Safe Drinking Water Act compliance addresses the safety of public-supply water systems. The composition of public-supply drinking water is generally only tested at the treatment facility, and not at the tap in homes and businesses after traveling through the water distribution system. Only lead and copper are tested at a subset of residential and other taps. Testing of water in private wells is...

The Bioactive Chemicals Research Laboratory applies a collaborative transdisciplinary approach to conduct research to minimize the risk to human and aquatic organism health from exposure to contaminants in water supplies.

Microbiologists at the Michigan Bacteriological Research Laboratory (MI-BaRL) use a wide array of traditional and modern molecular approaches to evaluate microbial pathogens and antimicrobial resistance pathways in the environment.

The Fishing, Hunting, and Subsistence Living Integrated Science Team focuses on contaminant and pathogen exposures in the environment that could impact the presence and vitality of fish and wildlife populations that drive commercial, recreational and subsistence activities such as hunting and fishing. If actual risks are identified this project will inform how to economically and effectively...

Study findings indicate that cyanobacteria and cyanotoxins were not associated with mussel mortality at the concentrations present in Lake Erie during a recent study (2013-15), but mussel growth was lower at sites with greater microcystin concentrations.

A National Park Service (NPS) and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) study determined the concentrations, potential for degradation, and potential for aquatic and terrestrial animal exposure to organic contaminants in water and sediment within the flood-plain/aquatic environments of Congaree National Park which is located downstream from urban and agricultural areas.