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Rocky Mountain Region

USGS Region 7 Staff support and advise USGS Science Centers that provide numerous stakeholders with vital information about spatial distribution and temporal trends in critical minerals, energy resources, geology, water resources, native plants and wildlife, and hazards posed by earthquakes and landslides in Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming and beyond.

News

AquaDePTH: Merging Aquatic Disease Surveillance Data into One Useful Tool

AquaDePTH: Merging Aquatic Disease Surveillance Data into One Useful Tool

A new framework for guiding management decisions for amphibians in an uncertain future

A new framework for guiding management decisions for amphibians in an uncertain future

USGS Colorado River Basin Actionable and Strategic Integrated Science and Technology (ASIST) Initiative Science Co-Development Virtual Workshop, June 24-25, 2025

USGS Colorado River Basin Actionable and Strategic Integrated Science and Technology (ASIST) Initiative Science Co-Development Virtual Workshop, June 24-25, 2025

Publications

Environmental characterization of Blue Mesa Reservoir and potential causes of and management strategies for harmful algal blooms, 1970 through 2023, Curecanti National Recreation Area, Colorado Environmental characterization of Blue Mesa Reservoir and potential causes of and management strategies for harmful algal blooms, 1970 through 2023, Curecanti National Recreation Area, Colorado

Blue Mesa Reservoir, in the Curecanti National Recreation Area, is the largest storage reservoir in Colorado and consists of three distinct basins: Iola (the shallowest), Cebolla, and Sapinero. After algal toxins were first documented in Iola basin in 2018, the U.S. Geological Survey began a study in cooperation with the National Park Service, Colorado River Water Conservation District...
Authors
Katherine Walton-Day, Natalie Day, M. Mast, Rachel Gidley, Evan Gohring, Tyler King, Warren Day, Nicole Gibney, Nancy Bauch

Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources in the Haynesville Formation within the onshore United States and State waters of the Gulf Coast Basin, 2024 Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources in the Haynesville Formation within the onshore United States and State waters of the Gulf Coast Basin, 2024

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean resources of 152 million barrels of oil and 47.9 trillion cubic feet of gas in reservoirs of the Haynesville Formation within the onshore United States and State waters of the Gulf Coast Basin.
Authors
Rand Gardner, Jason Flaum, Justin Birdwell, Scott Kinney, Janet K. Pitman, Stanley Paxton, Katherine French, Tracey J. Mercier, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Christopher Schenk

Responding to ecological transformation in Capitol Reef National Park, Utah—Employee perspectives from pilot interviews from the Cross-Park Resist-Assist-Direct Project Responding to ecological transformation in Capitol Reef National Park, Utah—Employee perspectives from pilot interviews from the Cross-Park Resist-Assist-Direct Project

Executive Summary Climate change is causing a range of changes that can affect the natural, cultural, and built resources of the Nation’s protected areas and affect opportunities to visit and recreate in these spaces. Changes in temperature and precipitation patterns also affect species and habitats, leading to ecological transformation. This report describes findings from pilot research...
Authors
Amanda Cravens, Zachary Hough Solomon, Julia Goolsby, Heather Yocum, Stefan Tangen, Wylie Carr

Science

Connections between Forested and Urban Landscapes and Implications for Water Supply

Downstream communities rely upon forested mountains for high-quality water needed for water supply and agricultural irrigation. However, these forests are vulnerable to disturbances such as wildfire, drought, and flood, and are also affected by air pollution from adjacent urban and agricultural lands. Interactions between forested, urban, and agricultural landscapes can have substantial impacts on...
Connections between Forested and Urban Landscapes and Implications for Water Supply

Connections between Forested and Urban Landscapes and Implications for Water Supply

Downstream communities rely upon forested mountains for high-quality water needed for water supply and agricultural irrigation. However, these forests are vulnerable to disturbances such as wildfire, drought, and flood, and are also affected by air pollution from adjacent urban and agricultural lands. Interactions between forested, urban, and agricultural landscapes can have substantial impacts on...
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2025 M7.0 Hubbard Glacier Earthquake-Triggered Landslides and Snow Avalanches

A M7.0 oblique-slip earthquake initiated about 10 km below the Hubbard Glacier in the St. Elias Mountains about 88 km north of Yakutat, Alaska, at approximately 11:40am AKST (1:40pm YST) on December 6, 2025. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Ground Failure product estimated that landslides triggered by this earthquake would likely be significant in number and/or spatial extent. This was confirmed...
2025 M7.0 Hubbard Glacier Earthquake-Triggered Landslides and Snow Avalanches

2025 M7.0 Hubbard Glacier Earthquake-Triggered Landslides and Snow Avalanches

A M7.0 oblique-slip earthquake initiated about 10 km below the Hubbard Glacier in the St. Elias Mountains about 88 km north of Yakutat, Alaska, at approximately 11:40am AKST (1:40pm YST) on December 6, 2025. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Ground Failure product estimated that landslides triggered by this earthquake would likely be significant in number and/or spatial extent. This was confirmed...
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Large Magmatic Systems for Minerals

This project continues work on large magmatic systems in the U.S., where critical mineral commodities important to clean energy technologies can be concentrated. Modeling of large mafic intrusion extents will continue, and new geophysical methods will be applied to improve understanding of magmatic systems.
Large Magmatic Systems for Minerals

Large Magmatic Systems for Minerals

This project continues work on large magmatic systems in the U.S., where critical mineral commodities important to clean energy technologies can be concentrated. Modeling of large mafic intrusion extents will continue, and new geophysical methods will be applied to improve understanding of magmatic systems.
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