Publications

Increased emphasis on evaluation of nonpoint-source pollution has intensified the need for techniques that can be used to discern the toxicological effects of complex chemical mixtures. In response, the use of biological assessment techniques is receiving increased regulatory emphasis. When applied with documented habitat assessment and chemical analysis, these techniques can increase...

Where Walnut Creek flows across the South Skunk River alluvial aquifer, it provides a potential source of herbicides and herbicide metabolites. This straightened reach of the creek loses water and dissolved contaminants to the alluvial aquifer through a layer of fine-grained flood plain deposits. Estimates of potential flux of chemicals were based on measurements taken during baseflow in...

No abstract available.

The toxicity of an acid mixing zone produced at the confluence of a stream that was contaminated by acid mine drainage (AMD) and a pH-neutral stream was investigated in toxicity tests with juvenile bluegill Lepomis macrochirus and largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides. Fish mortalities in instream cages located in the mixing zone, below the mixing zone, and upstream in both tributaries...

A device that uses a siphon tube to establish a hydraulic connection between the bottom of an onshore standpipe and a point at the bottom of a water body was designed and tested for monitoring surface-water levels. Water is added to the standpipe to a level sufficient to drive a complete slug of water through the siphoning tube and to flush all air out of the system. The water levels in...

Benthic macroinvertebrates with elevated concentrations of metals were collected from the Coeur d'Alene (CDA) River, Idaho, pasteurized, and fed to cutthroat trout Oncorhynchus clarki in the laboratory from start of feeding until 90 d posthatch. Invertebrates were collected from two sites known to contain elevated concentrations of metals: near Pinehurst in the South Fork of the CDA...

A method is described for preparing formulated sediments for use intoxicity testing. Ingredients used to prepare formulated sediments included commercially available silt, clay, sand, humic acid, dolomite, and α-cellulose (as a source of organic carbon). α-Cellulose was selected as the source of organic carbon because it is commercially available, consistent from batch to batch, and low...

Previous research on the distribution of Neosho madtoms, which are Federally-listed as threatened, indicated a positive relationship between density of Neosho madtoms and cumulative density of other riffle-dwelling benthic fishes. This suggested that interspecific competition was not limiting Neosho madtom populations. We provide further evidence that interspecific competition is not...

Water-quality data from 17 surface-water monitoring sites were compiled for 1970 through 1995 and analyzed to determine historical waterquality conditions and possible trends in the Eastern Iowa Basins study unit as part of the U.S. Geological Survey's National Water-Quality Assessment Program. The Eastern Iowa Basins encompasses the Wapsipinicon, Cedar, Iowa, and Skunk River Basins and...

Water-resources data for the 1998 water year for Texas consists of records of stage, discharge, and water quality of streams; stage and contents in lakes and reservoirs; and water levels and water quality in wells. Volume 4 contains water levels for 759 observation wells and 146 water-quality data for monitoring wells. These data represent that part of the National Water Data System...

No abstract available.

Organochlorine and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon compounds are of concern in the Columbia River Basin because of their adverse effects on fish and wildlife. Because these compounds can have important biological consequences at concentrations well below the detection limits associated with conventional water-sampling techniques, we used semipermeable membrane devices (SPMDs) to sample...