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Photo of a Kangaroo Rat

Small Mammal Bioaccumulation of Contaminants and Radioactivity near a Mixed Low-level Radioactive and Hazardous Chemical Waste Site—Science to Understand Wildlife Exposure to Environmental Contaminants

Pilot-study results document the presence, concentrations, and distribution of polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and tritium in small mammals, insects, plants, and soils adjacent to a mixed low-level radioactive and hazardous chemical waste site near Beatty, Nevada, and provide a better understanding of potential exposure pathways.
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Environmental Health Program
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Small Mammal Bioaccumulation of Contaminants and Radioactivity near a Mixed Low-level Radioactive and Hazardous Chemical Waste Site—Science to Understand Wildlife Exposure to Environmental Contaminants

Pilot-study results document the presence, concentrations, and distribution of polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and tritium in small mammals, insects, plants, and soils adjacent to a mixed low-level radioactive and hazardous chemical waste site near Beatty, Nevada, and provide a better understanding of potential exposure pathways.
Learn More
link
Taking GPS coordinates at the Amargosa Desert Research Site

Amargosa Desert Research Site Collaborator Information

A USGS goal, under the auspices of the Toxic Substances Hydrology (Toxics) Program, is to provide and maintain the Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) as a field laboratory that will bring together scientists from various disciplines, agencies, and universities for focused study of processes that affect migration and fate of contaminants in a complex (i.e., real-world) setting. The main purpose...
By
Nevada Water Science Center
link

Amargosa Desert Research Site Collaborator Information

A USGS goal, under the auspices of the Toxic Substances Hydrology (Toxics) Program, is to provide and maintain the Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) as a field laboratory that will bring together scientists from various disciplines, agencies, and universities for focused study of processes that affect migration and fate of contaminants in a complex (i.e., real-world) setting. The main purpose...
Learn More
link
Sampling at the Amargosa Desert Research Site

Amargosa Desert Research Site Description

The Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS), in the northern Mojave Desert, is about 20 km east of Death Valley National Park. Recognizing the paucity of information on unsaturated-zone hydrology in arid regions, the USGS, in 1983, established the ADRS through agreements with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the State of Nevada. The ADRS serves as a field laboratory for the study of arid-land...
By
Nevada Water Science Center
link

Amargosa Desert Research Site Description

The Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS), in the northern Mojave Desert, is about 20 km east of Death Valley National Park. Recognizing the paucity of information on unsaturated-zone hydrology in arid regions, the USGS, in 1983, established the ADRS through agreements with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the State of Nevada. The ADRS serves as a field laboratory for the study of arid-land...
Learn More
link
Perchlorate nitrate testing at the Amargosa Desert Research Site

Amargosa Desert Research Site Research Team

The multidisciplinary research team is made up of scientists from research institutes, universities, National laboratories, and the USGS. The USGS co-leaders for the team are Brian J. Andraski (ADRS Coordinator, Nevada Water Science Center) and David A. Stonestrom (National Research Program, California).
By
Nevada Water Science Center
link

Amargosa Desert Research Site Research Team

The multidisciplinary research team is made up of scientists from research institutes, universities, National laboratories, and the USGS. The USGS co-leaders for the team are Brian J. Andraski (ADRS Coordinator, Nevada Water Science Center) and David A. Stonestrom (National Research Program, California).
Learn More
link
Amargosa Desert Research Site

Amargosa Desert Research Site

In 1976, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) began studies of unsaturated zone hydrology at a site in the Amargosa Desert near Beatty, Nevada, as part of the USGS Low-Level Radioactive Waste Program. The site is near disposal trenches for civilian waste. Over the years, USGS investigations at the Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) have provided long-term "benchmark" information about the hydraulic...
By
Nevada Water Science Center
link

Amargosa Desert Research Site

In 1976, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) began studies of unsaturated zone hydrology at a site in the Amargosa Desert near Beatty, Nevada, as part of the USGS Low-Level Radioactive Waste Program. The site is near disposal trenches for civilian waste. Over the years, USGS investigations at the Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) have provided long-term "benchmark" information about the hydraulic...
Learn More

Soil sample data for four uranium mine sites, Mohave County, Arizona, April and November 2018

This U.S. Geological Survey data release is a spreadsheet containing soil-profile measurements of ambient spring and fall water-potential and water-content conditions, and physical and chemical properties for four mine sites, Mohave County, Arizona, April and November 2018. The four mines sampled in both April and November were Kanab North (native soil and reclaimed soil), EZ2 (native soil), Arizo
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology, Nevada Water Science Center

Micrometeorological and Soil-Moisture Data at the Amargosa Desert Research Site in Nye County near Beatty, Nevada, 20122016

This data release describes micrometeorological and soil-moisture data collected from January 1, 2012 through December 31, 2016 at the Amargosa Desert Research Site adjacent to a low-level radioactive waste and hazardous chemical waste facility near Beatty, Nevada. Micrometeorological data include precipitation, solar radiation, net radiation, air temperature, relative humidity, saturated and ambi

Selected Evapotranspiration Data, Amargosa Desert Research Site, Nye County, Nevada, 7/5/2011-1/1/2017

Selected evapotranspiration data were collected from 7/5/2011 to 1/1/2017 at the Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS, https://nevada.usgs.gov/adrs/) in support of ongoing research to improve the understanding of hydrologic and contaminant-transport processes in arid environments. The data presented in this data release includes 30-minute and daily evapotranspiration and associated energy-balance f
By
Nevada Water Science Center
Filter Total Items: 50

Emerging and historical contaminants detected in desert rodents collected near a low‐level radioactive waste site

In an effort to determine contaminant presence, concentrations, and movement from a low‐level radioactive waste (LLRW) burial disposal site to ecosystems in the surrounding area, a study was developed to assess concentrations of per‐ and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and tritium. To complete this assessment small mammals, vegetation, soil, and insect samples
Authors
Ryan S. Cleary, Adcharee Karnjanapiboonwong, William A. Thompson, Steven J. Lasee, Seenivasan Sabbiah, Ronald Kauble, Brian J. Andraski, Todd A. Anderson
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology, Nevada Water Science Center

Spatial fingerprinting of biogenic and anthropogenic volatile organic compounds in an arid unsaturated zone

Subsurface volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can pose risks to human and environmental health and mediate biological processes. VOCs have both anthropogenic and biogenic origins, but the relative importance of these sources has not been explored in subsurface environments. This study synthesizes 17 years of VOC data from the Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) with the goal of improving understan
Authors
Christopher Green, Wentai Luo, Christopher H. Conaway, Karl B. Haase, Ronald J. Baker, Brian J. Andraski
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology

Unsaturated zone CO2, CH4, and δ13C-CO2 at an arid region low-level radioactive waste disposal site

Elevated tritium, radiocarbon, Hg, and volatile organic compounds associated with low-level radioactive waste (LLRW) at the USGS Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) have stimulated research on factors and processes that affect contaminant gas distribution and transport. Consequently, we examined the sources, mixing, and biogeochemistry of CO2 and CH4, two additional important species in the unsat
Authors
Christopher H. Conaway, Michelle Ann Walvoord, Randall B. Thomas, Christopher Green, R.J. Baker, James J. Thordsen, David A. Stonestrom, Brian J. Andraski
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Toxic Substances Hydrology

Groundwater discharge by evapotranspiration, flow of water in unsaturated soil, and stable isotope water sourcing in areas of sparse vegetation, Amargosa Desert, Nye County, Nevada

This report documents methodology and results of a study to evaluate groundwater discharge by evapotranspiration (GWET) in sparsely vegetated areas of Amargosa Desert and improve understanding of hydrologic-continuum processes controlling groundwater discharge. Evapotranspiration and GWET rates were computed and characterized at three sites over 2 years using a combination of micrometeorological,
Authors
Michael T. Moreo, Brian J. Andraski, C. Amanda Garcia
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Nevada Water Science Center

Steady state fractionation of heavy noble gas isotopes in a deep unsaturated zone

To explore steady state fractionation processes in the unsaturated zone (UZ), we measured argon, krypton, and xenon isotope ratios throughout a ∼110 m deep UZ at the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) in Nevada, USA. Prior work has suggested that gravitational settling should create a nearly linear increase in heavy-to-light isotope ratios toward the bottom
Authors
Alan M. Seltzer, Jeffrey P. Severinghaus, Brian J. Andraski, David A. Stonestrom
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Nevada Water Science Center

Global patterns and environmental controls of perchlorate and nitrate co-occurrence in arid and semi-arid environments

Natural perchlorate (ClO4−) is of increasing interest due to its wide-spread occurrence on Earth and Mars, yet little information exists on the relative abundance of ClO4− compared to other major anions, its stability, or long-term variations in production that may impact the observed distributions. Our objectives were to evaluate the occurrence and fate of ClO4− in groundwater and soils/caliche i
Authors
W Andrew Jackson, J.K. Böhlke, Brian J. Andraski, Lynne S. Fahlquist, Laura M. Bexfield, Frank D. Eckardt, John B. Gates, Alfonso F. Davila, Christopher P. McKay, Balaji Rao, Ritesh Sevanthi, Srinath Rajagopalan, Nubia Estrada, Neil C. Sturchio, Paul B. Hatzinger, Todd A. Anderson, Greta J. Orris, Julio L. Betancourt, David A. Stonestrom, Claudio Latorre, Yanhe Li, Gregory J. Harvey
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Ecosystems Mission Area, Toxic Substances Hydrology, Environmental Health Program, Nevada Water Science Center

Multimodel analysis of anisotropic diffusive tracer-gas transport in a deep arid unsaturated zone

Gas transport in the unsaturated zone affects contaminant flux and remediation, interpretation of groundwater travel times from atmospheric tracers, and mass budgets of environmentally important gases. Although unsaturated zone transport of gases is commonly treated as dominated by diffusion, the characteristics of transport in deep layered sediments remain uncertain. In this study, we use a multi
Authors
Christopher T. Green, Michelle Ann Walvoord, Brian J. Andraski, Robert G. Striegl, David A. Stonestrom
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Ecosystems Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Nevada Water Science Center

Groundwater discharge by evapotranspiration, Dixie Valley, west-central Nevada, March 2009-September 2011

With increasing population growth and land-use change, urban communities in the desert Southwest are progressively looking toward remote basins to supplement existing water supplies. Pending applications by Churchill County for groundwater appropriations from Dixie Valley, Nevada, a primarily undeveloped basin east of the Carson Desert, have prompted a reevaluation of the quantity of naturally dis
Authors
C. Amanda Garcia, Jena M Huntington, Susan G. Buto, Michael T. Moreo, J. LaRue Smith, Brian J. Andraski
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Nevada Water Science Center

Soil, plant, and terrain effects on natural perchlorate distribution in a desert landscape

Perchlorate (ClO4−) is a contaminant that occurs naturally throughout the world, but little is known about its distribution and interactions in terrestrial ecosystems. The objectives of this Amargosa Desert, Nevada study were to determine (i) the local-scale distribution of shallow-soil (0–30 cm) ClO4− with respect to shrub proximity (far and near) in three geomorphic settings (shoulder slope, foo
Authors
Brian J. Andraski, W.A. Jackson, Toby L. Welborn, John Karl Böhlke, Ritesh Sevanthi, David A. Stonestrom
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Ecosystems Mission Area, Toxic Substances Hydrology, Environmental Health Program, Nevada Water Science Center

Field-scale sulfur hexafluoride tracer experiment to understand long distance gas transport in the deep unsaturated zone

A gas-tracer test in a deep arid unsaturated zone demonstrates that standard estimates of effective diffusivity from sediment properties allow a reasonable first-cut assessment of gas contaminant transport. Apparent anomalies in historic transport behavior at this and other waste disposal sites may result from factors other than nonreactive gas transport properties. A natural gradient SF6 tracer e
Authors
Michelle Ann Walvoord, Brian J. Andraski, Christopher T. Green, David A. Stonestrom, Robert G. Striegl
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Ecosystems Mission Area, Toxic Substances Hydrology, Environmental Health Program, Nevada Water Science Center

Tritium plume dynamics in the shallow unsaturated zone in an arid environment

The spatiotemporal variability of a tritium plume in the shallow unsaturated zone and the mechanisms controlling its transport were evaluated during a 10-yr study. Plume movement was minimal and its mass declined by 68%. Upward-directed diffusive-vapor tritium fluxes and radioactive decay accounted for most of the observed plume-mass declines.Effective isolation of tritium (3H) and other contamina
Authors
S.R. Maples, Brian J. Andraski, David A. Stonestrom, C.A. Cooper, G. Pohll, R. L. Michel
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Nevada Water Science Center

On the conversion of tritium units to mass fractions for hydrologic applications

We develop a general equation for converting laboratory-reported tritium levels, expressed either as concentrations (tritium isotope number fractions) or mass-based specific activities, to mass fractions in aqueous systems. Assuming that all tritium is in the form of monotritiated water simplifies the derivation and is shown to be reasonable for most environmental settings encountered in practice.
Authors
David A. Stonestrom, Brian J. Andraski, Clay A. Cooper, Charles J. Mayers, Robert L. Michel
By
Water Resources Mission Area
Image: Desert Perchlorate Field Work
Desert Perchlorate Field Work
Desert Perchlorate Field Work
Image: Desert Perchlorate Field Work

Desert Perchlorate Field Work

Desert Perchlorate Field Work

USGS scientists dig soil pits in Nevada's Amargosa Desert to study the distribution of natural perchlorate and to determine the atmospheric-soil-plant interactions that affected perchlorate's cycling in a terrestrial ecosystem.


Amargosa Desert, Nevada

~17 km south of Beatty; ~20 km east of Death Valley National Park.

By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Communications and Publishing
Image: Desert Perchlorate Field Work

Desert Perchlorate Field Work

Desert Perchlorate Field Work

USGS scientists dig soil pits in Nevada's Amargosa Desert to study the distribution of natural perchlorate and to determine the atmospheric-soil-plant interactions that affected perchlorate's cycling in a terrestrial ecosystem.


Amargosa Desert, Nevada

~17 km south of Beatty; ~20 km east of Death Valley National Park.

By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Communications and Publishing

Science and Products

link
Photo of a Kangaroo Rat

Small Mammal Bioaccumulation of Contaminants and Radioactivity near a Mixed Low-level Radioactive and Hazardous Chemical Waste Site—Science to Understand Wildlife Exposure to Environmental Contaminants

Pilot-study results document the presence, concentrations, and distribution of polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and tritium in small mammals, insects, plants, and soils adjacent to a mixed low-level radioactive and hazardous chemical waste site near Beatty, Nevada, and provide a better understanding of potential exposure pathways.
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Environmental Health Program
link

Small Mammal Bioaccumulation of Contaminants and Radioactivity near a Mixed Low-level Radioactive and Hazardous Chemical Waste Site—Science to Understand Wildlife Exposure to Environmental Contaminants

Pilot-study results document the presence, concentrations, and distribution of polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and tritium in small mammals, insects, plants, and soils adjacent to a mixed low-level radioactive and hazardous chemical waste site near Beatty, Nevada, and provide a better understanding of potential exposure pathways.
Learn More
link
Taking GPS coordinates at the Amargosa Desert Research Site

Amargosa Desert Research Site Collaborator Information

A USGS goal, under the auspices of the Toxic Substances Hydrology (Toxics) Program, is to provide and maintain the Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) as a field laboratory that will bring together scientists from various disciplines, agencies, and universities for focused study of processes that affect migration and fate of contaminants in a complex (i.e., real-world) setting. The main purpose...
By
Nevada Water Science Center
link

Amargosa Desert Research Site Collaborator Information

A USGS goal, under the auspices of the Toxic Substances Hydrology (Toxics) Program, is to provide and maintain the Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) as a field laboratory that will bring together scientists from various disciplines, agencies, and universities for focused study of processes that affect migration and fate of contaminants in a complex (i.e., real-world) setting. The main purpose...
Learn More
link
Sampling at the Amargosa Desert Research Site

Amargosa Desert Research Site Description

The Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS), in the northern Mojave Desert, is about 20 km east of Death Valley National Park. Recognizing the paucity of information on unsaturated-zone hydrology in arid regions, the USGS, in 1983, established the ADRS through agreements with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the State of Nevada. The ADRS serves as a field laboratory for the study of arid-land...
By
Nevada Water Science Center
link

Amargosa Desert Research Site Description

The Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS), in the northern Mojave Desert, is about 20 km east of Death Valley National Park. Recognizing the paucity of information on unsaturated-zone hydrology in arid regions, the USGS, in 1983, established the ADRS through agreements with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the State of Nevada. The ADRS serves as a field laboratory for the study of arid-land...
Learn More
link
Perchlorate nitrate testing at the Amargosa Desert Research Site

Amargosa Desert Research Site Research Team

The multidisciplinary research team is made up of scientists from research institutes, universities, National laboratories, and the USGS. The USGS co-leaders for the team are Brian J. Andraski (ADRS Coordinator, Nevada Water Science Center) and David A. Stonestrom (National Research Program, California).
By
Nevada Water Science Center
link

Amargosa Desert Research Site Research Team

The multidisciplinary research team is made up of scientists from research institutes, universities, National laboratories, and the USGS. The USGS co-leaders for the team are Brian J. Andraski (ADRS Coordinator, Nevada Water Science Center) and David A. Stonestrom (National Research Program, California).
Learn More
link
Amargosa Desert Research Site

Amargosa Desert Research Site

In 1976, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) began studies of unsaturated zone hydrology at a site in the Amargosa Desert near Beatty, Nevada, as part of the USGS Low-Level Radioactive Waste Program. The site is near disposal trenches for civilian waste. Over the years, USGS investigations at the Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) have provided long-term "benchmark" information about the hydraulic...
By
Nevada Water Science Center
link

Amargosa Desert Research Site

In 1976, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) began studies of unsaturated zone hydrology at a site in the Amargosa Desert near Beatty, Nevada, as part of the USGS Low-Level Radioactive Waste Program. The site is near disposal trenches for civilian waste. Over the years, USGS investigations at the Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) have provided long-term "benchmark" information about the hydraulic...
Learn More

Soil sample data for four uranium mine sites, Mohave County, Arizona, April and November 2018

This U.S. Geological Survey data release is a spreadsheet containing soil-profile measurements of ambient spring and fall water-potential and water-content conditions, and physical and chemical properties for four mine sites, Mohave County, Arizona, April and November 2018. The four mines sampled in both April and November were Kanab North (native soil and reclaimed soil), EZ2 (native soil), Arizo
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology, Nevada Water Science Center

Micrometeorological and Soil-Moisture Data at the Amargosa Desert Research Site in Nye County near Beatty, Nevada, 20122016

This data release describes micrometeorological and soil-moisture data collected from January 1, 2012 through December 31, 2016 at the Amargosa Desert Research Site adjacent to a low-level radioactive waste and hazardous chemical waste facility near Beatty, Nevada. Micrometeorological data include precipitation, solar radiation, net radiation, air temperature, relative humidity, saturated and ambi

Selected Evapotranspiration Data, Amargosa Desert Research Site, Nye County, Nevada, 7/5/2011-1/1/2017

Selected evapotranspiration data were collected from 7/5/2011 to 1/1/2017 at the Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS, https://nevada.usgs.gov/adrs/) in support of ongoing research to improve the understanding of hydrologic and contaminant-transport processes in arid environments. The data presented in this data release includes 30-minute and daily evapotranspiration and associated energy-balance f
By
Nevada Water Science Center
Filter Total Items: 50

Emerging and historical contaminants detected in desert rodents collected near a low‐level radioactive waste site

In an effort to determine contaminant presence, concentrations, and movement from a low‐level radioactive waste (LLRW) burial disposal site to ecosystems in the surrounding area, a study was developed to assess concentrations of per‐ and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and tritium. To complete this assessment small mammals, vegetation, soil, and insect samples
Authors
Ryan S. Cleary, Adcharee Karnjanapiboonwong, William A. Thompson, Steven J. Lasee, Seenivasan Sabbiah, Ronald Kauble, Brian J. Andraski, Todd A. Anderson
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology, Nevada Water Science Center

Spatial fingerprinting of biogenic and anthropogenic volatile organic compounds in an arid unsaturated zone

Subsurface volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can pose risks to human and environmental health and mediate biological processes. VOCs have both anthropogenic and biogenic origins, but the relative importance of these sources has not been explored in subsurface environments. This study synthesizes 17 years of VOC data from the Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) with the goal of improving understan
Authors
Christopher Green, Wentai Luo, Christopher H. Conaway, Karl B. Haase, Ronald J. Baker, Brian J. Andraski
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology

Unsaturated zone CO2, CH4, and δ13C-CO2 at an arid region low-level radioactive waste disposal site

Elevated tritium, radiocarbon, Hg, and volatile organic compounds associated with low-level radioactive waste (LLRW) at the USGS Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) have stimulated research on factors and processes that affect contaminant gas distribution and transport. Consequently, we examined the sources, mixing, and biogeochemistry of CO2 and CH4, two additional important species in the unsat
Authors
Christopher H. Conaway, Michelle Ann Walvoord, Randall B. Thomas, Christopher Green, R.J. Baker, James J. Thordsen, David A. Stonestrom, Brian J. Andraski
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Toxic Substances Hydrology

Groundwater discharge by evapotranspiration, flow of water in unsaturated soil, and stable isotope water sourcing in areas of sparse vegetation, Amargosa Desert, Nye County, Nevada

This report documents methodology and results of a study to evaluate groundwater discharge by evapotranspiration (GWET) in sparsely vegetated areas of Amargosa Desert and improve understanding of hydrologic-continuum processes controlling groundwater discharge. Evapotranspiration and GWET rates were computed and characterized at three sites over 2 years using a combination of micrometeorological,
Authors
Michael T. Moreo, Brian J. Andraski, C. Amanda Garcia
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Nevada Water Science Center

Steady state fractionation of heavy noble gas isotopes in a deep unsaturated zone

To explore steady state fractionation processes in the unsaturated zone (UZ), we measured argon, krypton, and xenon isotope ratios throughout a ∼110 m deep UZ at the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Amargosa Desert Research Site (ADRS) in Nevada, USA. Prior work has suggested that gravitational settling should create a nearly linear increase in heavy-to-light isotope ratios toward the bottom
Authors
Alan M. Seltzer, Jeffrey P. Severinghaus, Brian J. Andraski, David A. Stonestrom
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Nevada Water Science Center

Global patterns and environmental controls of perchlorate and nitrate co-occurrence in arid and semi-arid environments

Natural perchlorate (ClO4−) is of increasing interest due to its wide-spread occurrence on Earth and Mars, yet little information exists on the relative abundance of ClO4− compared to other major anions, its stability, or long-term variations in production that may impact the observed distributions. Our objectives were to evaluate the occurrence and fate of ClO4− in groundwater and soils/caliche i
Authors
W Andrew Jackson, J.K. Böhlke, Brian J. Andraski, Lynne S. Fahlquist, Laura M. Bexfield, Frank D. Eckardt, John B. Gates, Alfonso F. Davila, Christopher P. McKay, Balaji Rao, Ritesh Sevanthi, Srinath Rajagopalan, Nubia Estrada, Neil C. Sturchio, Paul B. Hatzinger, Todd A. Anderson, Greta J. Orris, Julio L. Betancourt, David A. Stonestrom, Claudio Latorre, Yanhe Li, Gregory J. Harvey
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Ecosystems Mission Area, Toxic Substances Hydrology, Environmental Health Program, Nevada Water Science Center

Multimodel analysis of anisotropic diffusive tracer-gas transport in a deep arid unsaturated zone

Gas transport in the unsaturated zone affects contaminant flux and remediation, interpretation of groundwater travel times from atmospheric tracers, and mass budgets of environmentally important gases. Although unsaturated zone transport of gases is commonly treated as dominated by diffusion, the characteristics of transport in deep layered sediments remain uncertain. In this study, we use a multi
Authors
Christopher T. Green, Michelle Ann Walvoord, Brian J. Andraski, Robert G. Striegl, David A. Stonestrom
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Ecosystems Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, Environmental Health Program, Nevada Water Science Center

Groundwater discharge by evapotranspiration, Dixie Valley, west-central Nevada, March 2009-September 2011

With increasing population growth and land-use change, urban communities in the desert Southwest are progressively looking toward remote basins to supplement existing water supplies. Pending applications by Churchill County for groundwater appropriations from Dixie Valley, Nevada, a primarily undeveloped basin east of the Carson Desert, have prompted a reevaluation of the quantity of naturally dis
Authors
C. Amanda Garcia, Jena M Huntington, Susan G. Buto, Michael T. Moreo, J. LaRue Smith, Brian J. Andraski
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Nevada Water Science Center

Soil, plant, and terrain effects on natural perchlorate distribution in a desert landscape

Perchlorate (ClO4−) is a contaminant that occurs naturally throughout the world, but little is known about its distribution and interactions in terrestrial ecosystems. The objectives of this Amargosa Desert, Nevada study were to determine (i) the local-scale distribution of shallow-soil (0–30 cm) ClO4− with respect to shrub proximity (far and near) in three geomorphic settings (shoulder slope, foo
Authors
Brian J. Andraski, W.A. Jackson, Toby L. Welborn, John Karl Böhlke, Ritesh Sevanthi, David A. Stonestrom
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Ecosystems Mission Area, Toxic Substances Hydrology, Environmental Health Program, Nevada Water Science Center

Field-scale sulfur hexafluoride tracer experiment to understand long distance gas transport in the deep unsaturated zone

A gas-tracer test in a deep arid unsaturated zone demonstrates that standard estimates of effective diffusivity from sediment properties allow a reasonable first-cut assessment of gas contaminant transport. Apparent anomalies in historic transport behavior at this and other waste disposal sites may result from factors other than nonreactive gas transport properties. A natural gradient SF6 tracer e
Authors
Michelle Ann Walvoord, Brian J. Andraski, Christopher T. Green, David A. Stonestrom, Robert G. Striegl
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Ecosystems Mission Area, Toxic Substances Hydrology, Environmental Health Program, Nevada Water Science Center

Tritium plume dynamics in the shallow unsaturated zone in an arid environment

The spatiotemporal variability of a tritium plume in the shallow unsaturated zone and the mechanisms controlling its transport were evaluated during a 10-yr study. Plume movement was minimal and its mass declined by 68%. Upward-directed diffusive-vapor tritium fluxes and radioactive decay accounted for most of the observed plume-mass declines.Effective isolation of tritium (3H) and other contamina
Authors
S.R. Maples, Brian J. Andraski, David A. Stonestrom, C.A. Cooper, G. Pohll, R. L. Michel
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Nevada Water Science Center

On the conversion of tritium units to mass fractions for hydrologic applications

We develop a general equation for converting laboratory-reported tritium levels, expressed either as concentrations (tritium isotope number fractions) or mass-based specific activities, to mass fractions in aqueous systems. Assuming that all tritium is in the form of monotritiated water simplifies the derivation and is shown to be reasonable for most environmental settings encountered in practice.
Authors
David A. Stonestrom, Brian J. Andraski, Clay A. Cooper, Charles J. Mayers, Robert L. Michel
By
Water Resources Mission Area
Image: Desert Perchlorate Field Work
Desert Perchlorate Field Work
Desert Perchlorate Field Work
Image: Desert Perchlorate Field Work

Desert Perchlorate Field Work

Desert Perchlorate Field Work

USGS scientists dig soil pits in Nevada's Amargosa Desert to study the distribution of natural perchlorate and to determine the atmospheric-soil-plant interactions that affected perchlorate's cycling in a terrestrial ecosystem.


Amargosa Desert, Nevada

~17 km south of Beatty; ~20 km east of Death Valley National Park.

By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Communications and Publishing
Image: Desert Perchlorate Field Work

Desert Perchlorate Field Work

Desert Perchlorate Field Work

USGS scientists dig soil pits in Nevada's Amargosa Desert to study the distribution of natural perchlorate and to determine the atmospheric-soil-plant interactions that affected perchlorate's cycling in a terrestrial ecosystem.


Amargosa Desert, Nevada

~17 km south of Beatty; ~20 km east of Death Valley National Park.

By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Communications and Publishing
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