Publications

Mercury in precipitation was monitored during 2001 through 2003 at four locations in Indiana as part of the National Atmospheric Deposition Program-Mercury Deposition Network (NADP-MDN). Monitoring stations were operated at Roush Lake near Huntington, Clifty Falls State Park near Madison, Monroe County Regional Airport near Bloomington, and Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore near Porter...

Water samples were collected from 20 community water-supply wells in New Jersey to assess the chemical quality of the water before and after chlorination, to characterize the types of organic carbon present, and to determine the disinfection by-product formation potential. Water from the selected wells previously had been shown to contain concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC)...

Alpine glaciers have generally receded during the past century (post-“Little Ice Age”) because of climate warming (Oerlemans and others, 1998; Mann and others, 1999; Dyurgerov and Meier, 2000; Grove, 2001). This general retreat has accelerated since the mid 1970s, when a shift in atmospheric circulation occurred (McCabe and Fountain, 1995; Dyurgerov and Meier, 2000). The loss in glacier...

In January 2001, State oil and gas inspectors noted bubbles of natural gas in well water during a complaint investigation near Tioga Junction, Tioga County, north-central Pa. By 2004, the gas occurrence in ground water and accumulation in homes was a safety concern; inspectors were taking action to plug abandoned gas wells and collect gas samples. The origins of the natural-gas problems...

Records of water quantity, water quality, and meteorological parameters were continuously collected from three reservoirs, two primary streams, and four subbasin tributaries in the Cambridge, Massachusetts, drinking-water source area during water year 2005 (October 2004 through September 2005). Water samples were collected during base-flow conditions and storms in the subbasins of the...

From May 13-17, 2006, central and southern New Hampshire experienced severe flooding caused by as much as 14 inches of rainfall in the region. As a result of the flood damage, a presidential disaster declaration was made on May 25, 2006, for seven counties-Rockingham, Hillsborough, Strafford, Merrimack, Belknap, Carroll, and Grafton. Following the flooding, the U.S. Geological Survey, in...

The world's use of nonfuel mineral resources continues to increase to support a growing population and increasing standards of living. The ability to meet this increasing demand is affected especially by concerns about possible environmental degradation associated with minerals production and by competing land uses. What information does the world need to support global minerals...

Several methods were used to determine the sources of fecal contamination in water samples collected during September and October 2004 from four tributaries to the New River Gorge National River -- Arbuckle Creek, Dunloup Creek, Keeney Creek, and Wolf Creek. All four tributaries historically have had elevated levels of fecal coliform bacteria. The source-tracking methods used yielded...

An analysis of existing nutrient, habitat, basin-characteristics, and biological-community (fish and invertebrate) data assessed significant relations between nutrients and biological data. Data from 1998 through 2000 for 58 sites in the Upper Wabash River Basin, Lower Wabash River Basin, and tributaries to the Great Lakes and Ohio River Basins were analyzed. Correspondence analysis was...

The U.S. Geological Survey synthesized, reviewed, and assessed Massachusetts water-quality data for use in the development of either numerical nutrient criteria for rivers and streams or a science-based framework for interpreting narrative criterial for nutrients. Water-quality data collected from 65 Massachusetts locations were selected to represent a wide range, but not a statistical...

Human activity has profoundly altered the Charles River and its watershed over the past 375 years. Restoration of environmental quality in the watershed has become a high priority for private- and public-sector organizations across the region. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs worked together to coordinate the efforts...

The hydrology and quality of surface water in and around the Pike Hill Brook watershed, in Corinth, Vermont, was studied from October 2004 to December 2005 by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). Pike Hill was mined intermittently for copper from 1847 to 1919 and the site is known to be contributing trace elements and acidity to...