Brian Pellerin
Brian Pellerin is the Program Manager for the Next Generation Water Observing Systems (NGWOS) and Water Hazards Programs.
Professional Experience
2017- Branch Chief, Hydrologic Networks Branch, USGS, Observing Systems Division, Reston, Virginia
2016-2017 Research Physical Scientist (RGE), USGS, Office of Water Quality, Reston, Virginia
2009-2016 Research Soil Scientist (RGE), USGS, California Water Science Center, Sacramento
2007-2009 Soil Scientist, USGS, California Water Science Center, Sacramento
2004-2007 National Research Council Post-Doctoral Associate, USGS, California Water Science Center, Sacramento
2000-2004 Graduate Research Assistant, University of New Hampshire
1998-2000 Graduate Research Assistant, University of Maine
1996-1998 Technician Assistant, USDA-Forest Service, Durham, New Hampshire
Education and Certifications
2004 Ph.D., Natural Resources and Environmental Studies, University of New Hampshire, Durham. Dissertation: The influence of urbanization on runoff generation and stream chemistry in Massa
2000 M.S., Plant, Soil and Environmental Science, University of Maine, Orono. Thesis: Inferences from soil chemical properties on linkages between soil and surface water in Maine forested waters
1998 B.S., Environmental Science (Soil Science minor), University of New Hampshire, Durham
Science and Products
The role of irrigation runoff and winter rainfall on dissolved organic carbon loads in an agricultural watershed
Extreme rainfall, vulnerability and risk: a continental-scale assessment for South America
Optical techniques for the determination of nitrate in environmental waters: Guidelines for instrument selection, operation, deployment, maintenance, quality assurance, and data reporting
Mercury dynamics in a San Francisco estuary tidal wetland: assessing dynamics using in situ measurements
Seeing the light: the effects of particles, dissolved materials, and temperature on in situ measurements of DOM fluorescence in rivers and streams
In situ optical water-quality sensor networks - Workshop summary report
Methyl mercury dynamics in a tidal wetland quantified using in situ optical measurements
The aquatic real-time monitoring network; in-situ optical sensors for monitoring the nation's water quality
From deposition to erosion: Spatial and temporal variability of sediment sources, storage, and transport in a small agricultural watershed
Taking the pulse of snowmelt: in situ sensors reveal seasonal, event and diurnal patterns of nitrate and dissolved organic matter variability in an upland forest stream
Historical legacies, information and contemporary water science and management
Tapping environmental history to recreate America's colonial hydrology
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
- Science
Filter Total Items: 13
- Data
- Multimedia
- Publications
Filter Total Items: 44
The role of irrigation runoff and winter rainfall on dissolved organic carbon loads in an agricultural watershed
We investigated the role of land use/land cover and agriculture practices on stream dissolved organic carbon (DOC) dynamics in the Willow Slough watershed (WSW) from 2006 to 2008. The 415 km2watershed in the northern Central Valley, California is covered by 31% of native vegetation and the remaining 69% of agricultural fields (primarily alfalfa, tomatoes, and rice). Stream discharge and weekly DOCAuthorsNeung-Hwan Oh, Brian A. Pellerin, Philip A.M. Bachand, Peter J. Hernes, Sandra M. Bachand, Noriaki Ohara, M. Levent Kavvas, Brian A. Bergamaschi, William R. HorwathExtreme rainfall, vulnerability and risk: a continental-scale assessment for South America
Extreme weather continues to preoccupy society as a formidable public safety concern bearing huge economic costs. While attention has focused on global climate change and how it could intensify key elements of the water cycle such as precipitation and river discharge, it is the conjunction of geophysical and socioeconomic forces that shapes human sensitivity and risks to weather extremes. We demonAuthorsCharles J. Vorosmarty, Lelys Bravo de Guenni, Wilfred M. Wollheim, Brian A. Pellerin, David M. Bjerklie, Manoel Cardoso, Cassiano D'Almeida, Lilybeth ColonOptical techniques for the determination of nitrate in environmental waters: Guidelines for instrument selection, operation, deployment, maintenance, quality assurance, and data reporting
The recent commercial availability of in situ optical sensors, together with new techniques for data collection and analysis, provides the opportunity to monitor a wide range of water-quality constituents on time scales in which environmental conditions actually change. Of particular interest is the application of ultraviolet (UV) photometers for in situ determination of nitrate concentrations inAuthorsBrian A. Pellerin, Brian A. Bergamaschi, Bryan D. Downing, John Franco Saraceno, Jessica D. Garrett, Lisa D. OlsenMercury dynamics in a San Francisco estuary tidal wetland: assessing dynamics using in situ measurements
We used high-resolution in situ measurements of turbidity and fluorescent dissolved organic matter (FDOM) to quantitatively estimate the tidally driven exchange of mercury (Hg) between the waters of the San Francisco estuary and Browns Island, a tidal wetland. Turbidity and FDOM—representative of particle-associated and filter-passing Hg, respectively—together predicted 94 % of the observed variabAuthorsBrian A. Bergamaschi, Jacob A. Fleck, Bryan D. Downing, Emmanuel Boss, Brian A. Pellerin, Neil K. Ganju, David H. Schoellhamer, Amy A. Byington, Wesley A. Heim, Mark Stephenson, Roger FujiiSeeing the light: the effects of particles, dissolved materials, and temperature on in situ measurements of DOM fluorescence in rivers and streams
Field-deployable sensors designed to continuously measure the fluorescence of colored dissolved organic matter (FDOM) in situ are of growing interest. However, the ability to make FDOM measurements that are comparable across sites and over time requires a clear understanding of how instrument characteristics and environmental conditions affect the measurements. In particular, the effects of waterAuthorsBryan D. Downing, Brian A. Pellerin, Brian A. Bergamaschi, John Franco Saraceno, Tamara E.C. KrausIn situ optical water-quality sensor networks - Workshop summary report
Advanced in situ optical water-quality sensors and new techniques for data analysis hold enormous promise for furthering scientific understanding of aquatic systems. These sensors measure important biogeochemical parameters for long deployments, enabling the capture of data at time scales over which they vary most meaningfully. The high-frequency, real-time water-quality data they generate provideAuthorsBrian A. Pellerin, Brian A. Bergamaschi, Jeffery S. HorsburghMethyl mercury dynamics in a tidal wetland quantified using in situ optical measurements
We assessed monomethylmercury (MeHg) dynamics in a tidal wetland over three seasons using a novel method that employs a combination of in situ optical measurements as concentration proxies. MeHg concentrations measured over a single spring tide were extended to a concentration time series using in situ optical measurements. Tidal fluxes were calculated using modeled concentrations and bi-directionAuthorsB.A. Bergamaschi, J.A. Fleck, B.D. Downing, E. Boss, B. Pellerin, N. K. Ganju, D. H. Schoellhamer, A.A. Byington, W.A. Heim, M. Stephenson, R. FujiiThe aquatic real-time monitoring network; in-situ optical sensors for monitoring the nation's water quality
Floods, hurricanes, and longer-term changes in climate and land use can have profound effects on water quality due to shifts in hydrologic flow paths, water residence time, precipitation patterns, connectivity between rivers and uplands, and many other factors. In order to understand and respond to changes in hydrology and water quality, resource managers and policy makers have a need for accurateAuthorsBrian A. Pellerin, Brian A. Bergamaschi, Peter S. Murdoch, Bryan D. Downing, John Franco Saraceno, George R. Aiken, Robert G. StrieglFrom deposition to erosion: Spatial and temporal variability of sediment sources, storage, and transport in a small agricultural watershed
The spatial and temporal variability of sediment sources, storage, and transport were investigated in a small agricultural watershed draining the Coast Ranges and Sacramento Valley in central California. Results of field, laboratory, and historical data analysis in the Willow Slough fluvial system document changes that transformed a transport-limited depositional system to an effective erosion andAuthorsJ.L. Florsheim, B.A. Pellerin, N.H. Oh, N. Ohara, P.A.M. Bachand, Sandra M. Bachand, B.A. Bergamaschi, P.J. Hernes, M.L. KavvasTaking the pulse of snowmelt: in situ sensors reveal seasonal, event and diurnal patterns of nitrate and dissolved organic matter variability in an upland forest stream
Highly resolved time series data are useful to accurately identify the timing, rate, and magnitude of solute transport in streams during hydrologically dynamic periods such as snowmelt. We used in situ optical sensors for nitrate (NO3-) and chromophoric dissolved organic matter fluorescence (FDOM) to measure surface water concentrations at 30 min intervals over the snowmelt period (March 21–May 13AuthorsBrian A. Pellerin, John Franco Saraceno, James B. Shanley, Stephen D. Sebestyen, George R. Aiken, Wilfred M. Wollheim, Brian A. BergamaschiHistorical legacies, information and contemporary water science and management
Hydrologic science has largely built its understanding of the hydrologic cycle using contemporary data sources (i.e., last 100 years). However, as we try to meet water demand over the next 100 years at scales from local to global, we need to expand our scope and embrace other data that address human activities and the alteration of hydrologic systems. For example, the accumulation of human impactsAuthorsDaniel J. Bain, Jennifer A.S. Arrigo, Mark B. Green, Brian A. Pellerin, Charles J. VörösmartyTapping environmental history to recreate America's colonial hydrology
Throughout American history water resources have played integral roles in shaping patterns of human settlement and networks of biological and economic exchange. In turn, humans have altered hydrologic systems to meet their needs. A paucity of climate and water discharge data for the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, however, has left America's preindustrial hydrology largely unstudied. As a reAuthorsChristopher L. Pastore, Mark B. Green, Daniel J. Bain, Andrea Muñoz-Hernandez, Charles J. Vorosmarty, Jennifer Arrigo, Sara Brandt, Jonathan M. Duncan, Francesca Greco, Hyojin Kim, Sanjiv Kumar, Michael Lally, Anthony J. Parolari, Brian A. Pellerin, Nira Salant, Adam Schlosser, Kate ZalzalNon-USGS Publications**
Oczkowski AJ, BA Pellerin, CW Hunt, WM Wollheim, CJ Vörösmarty and TC Loder III. 2006. The role of snowmelt and spring rainfall in inorganic nutrient fluxes from a large temperate watershed, the Androscoggin River basin (Maine and New Hampshire). Biogeochemistry, 80: 191-203.Wollheim WM, BA Pellerin, CJ Vörösmarty and CS Hopkinson. 2005. Nitrogen retention in urbanizing headwater catchments. Ecosystems, 8: 871-884.Pellerin BA, WM Wollheim, CS Hopkinson, WH McDowell, CJ Vörösmarty, MW Williams and ML Daley. 2004. Role of wetlands and developed land use on dissolved organic nitrogen concentrations and DON / TDN in northeastern U.S. rivers and streams. Limnology and Oceanography, 49: 910-918.Pellerin BA, IJ Fernandez, SA Norton and JS Kahl. 2002. Soil aluminum distribution in the near-stream zone at the Bear Brook Watershed in Maine. Water, Air and Soil Pollution, 134: 189-204.**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.