Images

Indiana Harbor Canal at East Chicago, IN - ADCP measurement - Moriah Will

Indiana Harbor Canal at East Chicago, IN - walk bridge

Indiana Harbor Canal at East Chicago, IN - measurement - Andy Gorman

Agricultural Stream in Indiana

In the Corn Belt states of the Midwestern U.S., intensive row-cropping surrounds small streams, effectively eliminating riparian cover and habitat. Agricultural activities can have profound effects on the chemical and physical characteristics of small streams.

In the Corn Belt states of the Midwestern U.S., intensive row-cropping surrounds small streams, effectively eliminating riparian cover and habitat. Agricultural activities can have profound effects on the chemical and physical characteristics of small streams.

In the Corn Belt states of the Midwestern U.S., intensive row-cropping surrounds small streams, effectively eliminating riparian cover and habitat. Agricultural activities can have profound effects on the chemical and physical characteristics of small streams.

In the Corn Belt states of the Midwestern U.S., intensive row-cropping surrounds small streams, effectively eliminating riparian cover and habitat. Agricultural activities can have profound effects on the chemical and physical characteristics of small streams.

Many small farms in the Corn Belt state of the Midwest also have confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs). These CAFOs can be a source of nitrogen to receiving small streams. The USGS Regional Stream Quality Assessment (RSQA) investigated the water quality of small streams across the Midwest during 2013.

Micro-samplers are sophisticated instruments that collect small "sips" of water at designated intervals.  Installing one during high water conditions is a tricky business.  The samples, collected every few hours, provide a picture of how rapidly water quality can change over time.  These samples were analyzed for a suite of hundreds of pesticides.&nbs

Micro-samplers are sophisticated instruments that collect small "sips" of water at frequent intervals.  The samples, collected every few hours, provide a picture of how rapidly water quality can change over time.  These samples were analyzed for a suite of hundreds of pesticides.  In 2013, the USGS Regional Stream Quality Assessment (

A USGS hydrologist and hydrologic technician install a microsampler in an urban creek in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The microsampler allows collection of a sample "sip" every 6 hours; the sips are composited into a daily sample. Collection of daily samples revealed the presence of more pesticides and higher concentrations than manual samples collected weekly.

As schools close for the year and summer weather beckons, many recreationalists head to the Great Lakes' public beaches. However, these coastal areas can become contaminated with disease-causing bacteria that threaten public health, disrupt water recreation, and pay a toll on the Great Lakes economies that depend on summer tourism.

USGS Water towers at Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center

An example stream reach of Underwood Creek’s concrete lined channel before rehabilitation in 2012.

Monitoring wells near the location of a 1979 oil spill at the National Crude Oil Spill Fate and Natural Attenuation Research Site near Bemidji, Minnesota, in October 2010. Some are for sampling groundwater, some are for sampling soil gas, some are for sampling oil. The green PVC collar in the foreground is for measuring soil carbon dioxide (CO2) efflux.

Measuring soil CO2 efflux at the Bemidji Crude Oil Spill research site

The Research Vessel Arcticus

Fish are identified and counted in the field, and game fish are measured for total length and weighed, before being released live back to the stream site.

A tile drain concentrates and transports irrigation water and the chemicals it contains to a stream.

In the Corn Belt states of the Midwest, intensive agriculture extends up to stream banks, eliminating trees and other riparian vegegation.  In 2013, the USGS Regional Stream Quality Assessment (RSQA) investigated the effects of land use, stream quality, and other stressors on the ecological health of 100 streams i