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The USGS Central Midwest Water Science Center collects, analyzes and disseminates the impartial hydrologic data and information needed to wisely and effectively manage water resources in Illinois. Our scientific research affects current issues ranging from flood and drought hazards to the impact and control of invasive species.
Link to Science CenterNews
Delivering Information to Fishery Managers in the Great Lakes Basin.
The Effect of Environmental Changes on Prey Fish in Lake Michigan.
Editor: In the public interest and in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration regulations, the USGS is announcing this low-level airborne project. Your assistance informing the local communities is appreciated.
Publications
Concentrations of lead and other inorganic constituents in samples of raw intake and treated drinking water from the municipal water filtration plant and residential tapwater in Chicago, Illinois, and East Chicago, Indiana, July–December 2017
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Environmental Health Mission Area (EHMA) is providing comprehensive science on sources, movement, and transformation of contaminants and pathogens in watershed and aquifer drinking-water supplies and in built water and wastewater infrastructure (referred to as the USGS Water and Wastewater Infrastructure project)...
Romanok, Kristin M.; Kolpin, Dana W.; Meppelink, Shannon M.; Focazio, Michael J.; Argos, Maria; Hollingsworth, Mary E. ; McCleskey, R. Blaine; Putz, Andrea R.; Stark, Alan ; Weis, Christopher P.; Zehraoui, Abderrahman; Bradley, Paul M.
Development of a hydraulic model and flood-inundation maps for the Wabash River near the Interstate 64 Bridge near Grayville, Illinois
A two-dimensional hydraulic model and digital flood‑inundation maps were developed for a 30-mile reach of the Wabash River near the Interstate 64 Bridge near Grayville, Illinois. The flood-inundation maps, which can be accessed through the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Flood Inundation Mapping Science web site at http://water.usgs.gov/osw/...
Boldt, Justin A.
Flooding in the southern Midwestern United States, April–May 2017
Excessive rainfall resulted in flooding on numerous rivers throughout the southern Midwestern United States (southern Midwest) in late April and early May of 2017. The heaviest rainfall, between April 28 and 30, resulted in extensive flooding from eastern Oklahoma to southern Indiana including parts of Missouri, Arkansas, and Illinois.Peak-of-...
Heimann, David C.; Holmes, Robert R.; Harris, Thomas E.
United States Assessments of Undiscovered Oil and Gas Resources
USGS Energy Resources Program provides periodic assessments of the oil and natural gas endowment of the United States and the World (click here for information about World Oil and Gas Assessments). This website provides access to new, prioritized, assessment results and supporting data for the United States, as part...
Illinois Nutrient Monitoring Sites
Eight nutrient monitoring stations were established in 2015 to continuously monitor nutrient and sediment concentrations and loads in support of the Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy. This site provides current and historical monitoring information for the eight nutrient monitoring stations.
2017 Midwest Spring Floods
Learn more about USGS flood activities related to the 2017 Midwest Spring Floods that occurred across large portions of Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Arkansas in late April and early May, 2017.
Continuous Water-Quality Monitoring During December 2015-January 2016 Flood Events
During the late December 2015-early January 2016 storm event, two sewage-treatment plants and a drinking-water plant in Missouri were inundated by water and failed, contributing untreated sewage to the floodwaters. The USGS collected water-quality samplesat key locations in the Mississippi and Missouri River Basins and continued to sample the flood surge as it moved down the Mississippi River...
May-June 2013 Midwest Floods
Learn more about USGS flood activities related to the May-June 2013 Midwest Floods.
April-May 2013 Midwest Floods
Learn more about USGS flood activities related to the April-May 2013 Midwest Floods caused by heavy rainfall and late snow-melt in six states.
Spring/Summer 2011 Mississippi River Basin Floods
Learn more about USGS flood activities related to the Spring/Summer 2011 floods throughout the Mississippi River Basin.
May 2011 New Madrid Floodway
Learn more about USGS flood activities related to the May 2011 New Madrid Floodway breaches.
Illinois Basin Oil and Gas Assessments
The U.S. Geological Survey completed the following assessments of undiscovered continuous oil and gas resources of the Illinois Basin Province 5064:
- 2007 Continuous and Conventional Assessment (Fact Sheet 2007-3058).
- 1995 Assessment ( ...
Michigan Basin Oil and Gas Assessments
The U.S. Geological Survey completed the following assessments of undiscovered oil and gas resources of the U.S. portion of the Michigan Basin 5063:
- 2004 Continuous and Conventional Assessment (DDS 69-T).
- 1995 Assessment ( ...
Natural Drought and Flood Histories from Lacustrine Archives
Previous work performed as part of the USGS Holocene Synthesis project illuminated complex centennial-scale patterns of drought and wetter-than-average conditions across the North American continent interior during the past two millennia, where paleorecord data coverage is sparse. In order to explain the patterns of naturally-occurring drought, floods, and storms for the past, identified by...
Sediment Acoustics- Molly Wood
Acoustic instruments are increasingly being used to measure suspended-sediment concentration (SSC) in fluvial environments. The USGS Office of Surface Water, USGS Sediment Acoustics Leadership Team, and the Federal Interagency Sedimentation Project are developing standardized methods and software for estimating SSC from acoustic backscatter from acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCPs).
The NWIS mapper provides access to over 1.5 million sites contained in the USGS National Water Information System (NWIS), including sites where current and historical surface-water, groundwater, springs, and atmospheric data has been collected. Users can search by site type, data type, site number, or place.
GIS Data for Illinois Basin Oil and Gas Assessments
GIS Data for Michigan Basin Oil and Gas Assessments
Beginning with Water Year 2006 and ending with Water Year 2013, annual water data reports were made available as individual electronic Site Data Sheets for the entire Nation for retrieval, download, and localized printing on demand. As of 2014, NWISWeb now provides an on-demand, print-ready Water-Year Summary as an annual water-data product.
Interactively explore assessment summary information for continuous (unconventional) assessments conducted at the USGS from 2000-2018. The assessment results data used to generate this visualization can be downloaded here in Excel Format. These data represent all assessment results for Continuous Assessments only from 2000-2018.
Nitrapyrin is a nitrification inhibitor that is co-applied with N-fertilizer in agroecosystems. Over the course of one year (March 2016 to June 2017), 192 water samples from seven streams across Iowa and Illinois were analyzed for nitrapyrin, its degradate 6-chloropicolinic acid (6-CPA), and three widely used herbicides acetochlor, atrazine, and metolachlor. Additional environmental samples were
This is the dataset used in the BioScience publication of the same name.
The National Water Information System (NWIS) web application provides access to real-time and historical surface-water, groundwater, water-quality, and water-use data collected at approximately 1.5 million sites across all 50 states.
Four dichloroacetamide herbicide safeners (AD-67, benoxacor, dichlormid, and furilazole) and two co-applied herbicides (acetochlor and metolachlor) were measured in water samples from 7 streams across Iowa and Illinois. Iowa water samples were collected from March 2016 to June 2017, and Illinois water samples were collected from September 2016 to June 2017. The compounds studied are applied to co
USGS data portray selected structures data, including the location and characteristics of manmade facilities. Characteristics consist of a structure's physical form (footprint), function, name, location, and detailed information about the structure. The types of structures collected are largely determined by the needs of the disaster planning and response and homeland security organizations.
Boundaries data or governmental units represent major civil areas including states, counties, Federal, and Native American lands, and incorporated places such as cities and towns.
The National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) are used to portray surface water on The National Map.
This map shows the provinces assessed by the USGS for undiscovered oil and gas resources.
The 3DEP products and services available through The National Map consist of standard digital elevation models (DEMs) at various horizontal resolutions, elevation source and associated datasets, an elevation point query service and bulk point query service. All 3DEP products are available, free of charge and without use restrictions.
Concentrations of lead and other inorganic constituents in samples of raw intake and treated drinking water from the municipal water filtration plant and residential tapwater in Chicago, Illinois, and East Chicago, Indiana, July–December 2017
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Environmental Health Mission Area (EHMA) is providing comprehensive science on sources, movement, and transformation of contaminants and pathogens in watershed and aquifer drinking-water supplies and in built water and wastewater infrastructure (referred to as the USGS Water and Wastewater Infrastructure project)...
Romanok, Kristin M.; Kolpin, Dana W.; Meppelink, Shannon M.; Focazio, Michael J.; Argos, Maria; Hollingsworth, Mary E. ; McCleskey, R. Blaine; Putz, Andrea R.; Stark, Alan ; Weis, Christopher P.; Zehraoui, Abderrahman; Bradley, Paul M.
Methods used for the collection and analysis of chemical and biological data for the Tapwater Exposure Study, United States, 2016–17
In 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Environmental Health Mission Area, initiated the Tapwater Exposure Study as part of an infrastructure project to assess human exposure to potential threats from complex mixtures of contaminants. In the pilot phase (2016), samples were collected from 11 States throughout the United States, and in the...
Romanok, Kristin M.; Kolpin, Dana W.; Meppelink, Shannon M.; Argos, Maria; Brown, Juliane B.; Devito, Michael J.; Dietze, Julie E.; Givens, Carrie E.; Gray, James L.; Higgins, Christopher P.; Hladik, Michelle L.; Iwanowicz, Luke R.; Loftin, Keith A.; McCleskey, R. Blaine; McDonough, Carrie A.; Meyer, Michael T.; Strynar, Mark J.; Weis, Christopher P.; Wilson, Vickie S.; Bradley, Paul M.
Using reverse-time egg transport analysis for predicting Asian Carp spawning grounds in the Illinois River
Identifying spawning grounds of Asian carp is important for determining the reproductive front of invasive populations. Ichthyoplankton monitoring along the Illinois Waterway (IWW) has provided information on abundances of Asian carp eggs in the IWW's navigation pools. Post-fertilization times derived from egg development stages and water...
Zhu, Zhenduo; Soong, David T.; Garcia, Tatiana; Behrouz, Mina Shahed; Butler, Steven E.; Murphy, Elizabeth A.; Diana, Matthew J.; Duncker, James J.; Wahl, David H. Flooding in the southern Midwestern United States, April–May 2017
Excessive rainfall resulted in flooding on numerous rivers throughout the southern Midwestern United States (southern Midwest) in late April and early May of 2017. The heaviest rainfall, between April 28 and 30, resulted in extensive flooding from eastern Oklahoma to southern Indiana including parts of Missouri, Arkansas, and Illinois.Peak-of-...
Heimann, David C.; Holmes, Robert R.; Harris, Thomas E. Development of a hydraulic model and flood-inundation maps for the Wabash River near the Interstate 64 Bridge near Grayville, Illinois
A two-dimensional hydraulic model and digital flood‑inundation maps were developed for a 30-mile reach of the Wabash River near the Interstate 64 Bridge near Grayville, Illinois. The flood-inundation maps, which can be accessed through the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Flood Inundation Mapping Science web site at http://water.usgs.gov/osw/...
Boldt, Justin A.
River meander modeling of the Wabash River near the Interstate 64 Bridge near Grayville, Illinois
Natural river channels continually evolve and change shape over time. As a result, channel evolution or migration can cause problems for bridge structures that are fixed in the flood plain. A once-stable bridge structure that was uninfluenced by a river’s shape could be encroached upon by a migrating river channel. The potential effect of the...
Lant, Jeremiah G.; Boldt, Justin A.
Performance evaluation testing of wells in the gradient control system at a federally operated Confined Disposal Facility using single well aquifer tests, East Chicago, Indiana
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) performed tests to evaluate the hydrologic connection between the open interval of the well and the surrounding Calumet aquifer in response to fouling of extraction well pumps onsite. Two rounds of air slug testing were performed on seven monitoring wells and step drawdown and subsequent recovery tests on three...
Lampe, David C.; Unthank, Michael D. St. Louis area earthquake hazards mapping project; seismic and liquefaction hazard maps
We present probabilistic and deterministic seismic and liquefaction hazard maps for the densely populated St. Louis metropolitan area that account for the expected effects of surficial geology on earthquake ground shaking. Hazard calculations were based on a map grid of 0.005°, or about every 500 m, and are thus higher in resolution than any...
Cramer, Chris H.; Bauer, Robert A.; Chung, Jae-won; Rogers, David; Pierce, Larry; Voigt, Vicki; Mitchell, Brad; Gaunt, David; Williams, Robert; Hoffman, David; Hempen, Gregory L.; Steckel, Phyllis; Boyd, Oliver S.; Watkins, Connor M.; Tucker, Kathleen; McCallister, Natasha
Estimating suspended sediment using acoustics in a fine-grained riverine system, Kickapoo Creek at Bloomington, Illinois
Acoustic technologies have the potential to be used as a surrogate for measuring suspended-sediment concentration (SSC). This potential was examined in a fine-grained (97-100 percent fines) riverine system in central Illinois by way of installation of an acoustic instrument. Acoustic data were collected continuously over the span of 5.5 years....
Manaster, Amanda D.; Domanski, Marian M.; Straub, Timothy D.; Boldt, Justin A.
Historical files from Federal Government mineral exploration-assistance programs, 1950 to 1974
The Defense Minerals Administration (DMA), Defense Minerals Exploration Administration (DMEA), and Office of Minerals Exploration (OME) mineral exploration programs were active over the period 1950–1974. Under these programs, the Federal Government contributed financial assistance in the exploration for certain strategic and critical minerals. The...
Frank, David G. Ground motion-simulations of 1811-1812 New Madrid earthquakes, central United States
We performed a suite of numerical simulations based on the 1811–1812 New Madrid seismic zone (NMSZ) earthquakes, which demonstrate the importance of 3D geologic structure and rupture directivity on the ground‐motion response throughout a broad region of the central United States (CUS) for these events. Our simulation set consists of 20...
Ramirez-Guzman, L.; Graves, Robert; Olsen, Kim B.; Boyd, Oliver S.; Cramer, Chris H.; Hartzell, Stephen H.; Ni, Sidao; Somerville, Paul G.; Williams, Robert; Zhong, Jinquan Crustal deformation in the New Madrid seismic zone and the role of postseismic processes
Global Navigation Satellite System data across the New Madrid seismic zone (NMSZ) in the central United States over the period from 2000 through 2014 are analyzed and modeled with several deformation mechanisms including the following: (1) creep on subsurface dislocations, (2) postseismic frictional afterslip and viscoelastic relaxation from the...
Boyd, Oliver S.; Robert Smalley, Jr; Zeng, Yuehua
Algal blooms occur in many water bodies where there is too much "food"
Harmful Algal Blooms
USGS scientists identified potentially harmful levels of cyanobacteria in lakes they sampled in Illinois during the drought of 2012. Toxins produced by the cyanobacteria were measured at harmful concentrations in four lakes. Cyanobacteria, also called blue-green algae, are capable of generating toxins (cyanotoxins), such as microcystin, that
...
Central Midwest Water Science Center Urbana, IL office entrance
Entrance for the Urbana, IL office of the Central Midwest Water Science Center. Located in the North deck parking garage on the University of Illinois campus. Entrance is on east side of building; address 405 N Goodwin Ave, Urbana, IL 6180. Contact office for visitor parking information at 217-328-8747.
National Oil and Gas Assessment Provinces
This is a graphic from the USGS National Oil and Gas Assessment Explorer application, which allows user to drill into 70 oil and gas assessment provinces throughout the United States.
PAMF Participation Cycle
This video describes the annual participation cycle for those enrolled in the Phragmites Adaptive Management Framework (PAMF). PAMF encompasses three annual steps including enrolling, monitoring and managing. As participants employ management actions and submit monitoring reports they will receive management guidance generated by the PAMF model, which provides the most
...
PAMF Participation Cycle (Audio-Described)
This video describes the annual participation cycle for those enrolled in the Phragmites Adaptive Management Framework (PAMF). PAMF encompasses three annual steps including enrolling, monitoring and managing. As participants employ management actions and submit monitoring reports they will receive management guidance generated by the PAMF model, which provides the most
...
Acoustic Deterrent Emiquon Preserve
James Wamboldt (USGS – La Crosse, WI), Kelsie Murchy (University of Victoria - BC Canada), and Doug Blodgett (The Nature Conservancy- Illinois Rivers Office at Emiquon) testing an underwater acoustic deterrent for Asian Carp at the water control structure located at The Nature Conservancy’s Emiquon Preserve, Lewiston, Illinois in 2017. Underwater speakers were activated in
...
The Phragmites Adaptive Management Framework (PAMF)
This is an introductory video to an adaptive management approach for the invasive plant Phragmites australis in the Great Lakes basin. An adaptive management framework is an iterative process of robust decision making aimed at reducing uncertainty over time, for a variety of stakeholders with differing backgrounds and interests, via system monitoring.
Timelapse of Brandon Road Lock during USGS Dye Study
This is a timelapse video of a dye tracer study at Brandon Road Lock, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) facility in Joliet, IL, on the Des Plaines River on October 20, 2015. This video was collected using a digital camera mounted on the upstream gates of the lock looking downstream with a 5-second interval between images and played back at 10 frames per second (fps).
...
Visualizing Flow Through the Brandon Road Lock & Dam
This video portrays two areas near the Brandon Road Lock and Dam, a US Army Corps of Engineers facility in Joliet, IL. This video was collected as the lock was emptied through the downstream valves, refilled with water, and then emptied again. This data collection is supporting efforts to combat the spread of invasive Asian carp into the Great Lakes Basin. Brandon Road has
...
R/V Sturgeon leaving dock at the Navy Pier in Chicago, IL
The R/V Sturgeon setting sail from the Navy Pier in Chicago, IL on its fall survey of Lake Michigan. The Sturgeon is based in Cheboygan, MI at the Cheboygan Vessel Base.
Silver Carp on the Illinois River
Silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) jumping out of the Illinois River.
Public-supply well in Illinois
Public-supply wells pump higher volumes of water than domestic-supply wells. This photo appears in Circular 1352, Water Quality in the Glacial Aquifer System, Northern United States, one of a series of circulars on groundwater quality in the
...Delivering Information to Fishery Managers in the Great Lakes Basin.
The Effect of Environmental Changes on Prey Fish in Lake Michigan.
Editor: In the public interest and in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration regulations, the USGS is announcing this low-level airborne project. Your assistance informing the local communities is appreciated.
A regional assessment of untreated groundwater in the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system, which includes parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri and Indiana, is now available from the U.S. Geological Survey.
Oxygen levels, dissolved minerals among factors responsible for high concentrations of radium in untreated water from aquifer that underlies six states
A carbonatite here, a glacial moraine there, a zig-zagging fault or two, even a behemoth of a batholith. The geology of the 50 States is an enormous patchwork of varied forms, beautiful in their variance but challenging to present as a single map.
Invasive mussels and less nutrients from tributaries have altered the Lake Michigan ecosystem making it more conducive to the stocking of lake trout and steelhead than Chinook salmon, according to a recent U.S. Geological Survey and Michigan State University study.
U.S. Geological Survey scientists will inject a harmless, bright red fluorescent dye into the auxiliary lock at Locks and Dam 14 on the Mississippi River near Pleasant Valley, Iowa, Tuesday, June 13, 2017, weather permitting. If needed, a backup date is scheduled for June 27, 2017.
If invasive bighead carp and silver carp spread into Lake Michigan, there would be enough food available for these particular species of Asian carp to survive, according to a new study by the U.S. Geological Survey.
Human and bovine, or cattle, viruses were detected in a small percentage of some Great Lakes Basin streams, with human viruses more prevalent in urban streams and bovine viruses more common in streams in agricultural areas, according to a recent U.S. Geological Survey-led study.
Bifenthrin combats pests, but may harm aquatic ecosystems
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Locations
Illinois Water Science Center
Phone: 217-328-8747
Fax: 217-328-9770
Southern Illinois Field Office - Mt. Vernon
Phone: 618-242-4495
Fax: 618-242-4578
Northern Illinois Field Office - DeKalb
Phone: 815-756-9207
Fax: 815-756-9214
