Charles A Cravotta, III, PhD, PG
Charles "Chuck" Cravotta is a research hydrologist whose projects focus on geochemical and hydrological processes that control water quality, particularly the sources, transport, and attenuation of metals and nutrients in undisturbed and mining-impacted watersheds and aquifers. Results apply to scientific and regulatory programs for the prevention and remediation of aquatic contamination.
Biography
Education
1979 B.A. Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia
1980-82 Continuing education, George Mason University
1986 M.S. Geochemistry and Mineralogy, Pennsylvania State University
1996 Ph.D. Geochemistry and Mineralogy, Pennsylvania State University
Professional Assignments
1987-present: Research Hydrologist, USGS, Pennsylvania Water Science Center, New Cumberland, Pennsylvania
1986-1987: Geochemist, IT Corporation, Monroeville, Pennsylvania
1982-1986: Graduate Teaching and Research Assistant, Geosciences Department, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania
1979-1982: Geologist, Office of Scientific Publications, Geologic Division, USGS, Reston, Virginia
1979: Geologic Technician, Virginia State Water Control Board, Alexandria, Virginia
Professional Affiliations and Certification
2018-present: Adjunct Instructor, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Pittsburgh
2011-2016: Associate Editor, Mine Water and the Environment Journal, International Mine Water Association
2001-2005: Adjunct Assistant Professor of Environmental Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
1995-present: Registered Professional Geologist in Pennsylvania PG-002255-G
Awards and Recognition
The Society for Organic Petrology Dalaway J. Swain Award “Best Refereed Paper”, 2016
Department of Interior Partners in Conservation Award (AMDTreat Development Team), 2013
Top 50 Most-Cited Papers in "Applied Geochemistry" (2006-2011)
Department of Interior Superior Service Award, 2005
Schuylkill County Conservation Professional of the Year Award, 2003
Department of Interior Honor Award, 2000
Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection Award for Excellence, 1999
External Research Database
Science and Products
Groundwater Quality of Domestic Supply Wells in Pennsylvania
Most rural residents in Pennsylvania use groundwater from domestic supply wells for drinking, cleaning and other purposes. Some groundwater samples have been analyzed for private purposes, but those results generally are not readily available to the public. Many of the publicly available water-quality samples from rural areas were collected more than 30 years ago. Quality-assured groundwater...
Regional Synthesis of Groundwater Quality in Domestic Supply Wells in Northeast and North Central Pennsylvania
USGS is synthesizing groundwater quality measurements in wells to characterize regional chemical characteristics of aquifers used for domestic supply in northeast and north central Pennsylvania.
Recoding of AMDTreat Phase 2: Integration of PHREEQ-N-AMDTreat water-quality prediction tools with recoded AMDTreat cost-analysis software
Newly developed PHREEQ-N-AMDTreat water-quality prediction tools indicate potential changes in pH, dissolved metals, and associated solute concentrations resulting from passive and active treatment of coal-mine drainage.
Mine Drainage and Water Quality Research
PaWSC conducts research on geochemical and hydrological processes that control water quality, particularly the sources, transport, and attenuation of metals and nutrients in undisturbed and mining-impacted watersheds and aquifers. Results apply to scientific and regulatory programs for the prevention and remediation of aquatic contamination.
Groundwater quality in relation to drinking water health standards and hydrogeologic and geochemical characteristics for 47 domestic wells in Potter County, Pennsylvania, 2017
As part of a regional effort to characterize groundwater in rural areas of Pennsylvania, water samples from 47 domestic wells in Potter County were collected from May through September 2017. The sampled wells had depths ranging from 33 to 600 feet in sandstone, shale, or siltstone aquifers. Groundwater samples were analyzed for physicochemical...
Galeone, Daniel G.; Cravotta, Charles A. ; Risser, Dennis W.Groundwater quality in relation to drinking water health standards and geochemical characteristics for 54 domestic wells in Clinton County, Pennsylvania, 2017
Despite the reliance on groundwater by approximately 2.4 million rural Pennsylvania residents, publicly available data to characterize the quality of private well water are limited. As part of a regional effort to characterize groundwater in rural areas of Pennsylvania, samples from 54 domestic wells in Clinton County were collected and analyzed...
Clune, John W.; Cravotta, Charles A.Batch extraction method to estimate total dissolved solids (TDS) release from coal refuse and overburden
A rapid batch extraction method was evaluated to estimate potential for total dissolved solids (TDS) release by 65 samples of rock from coal and gas-bearing strata of the Appalachian Basin in eastern USA. Three different extractant solutions were considered: deionized water (DI), DI equilibrated with 10% CO2 atmosphere (DI + CO2),...
Castillo-Meza, L. E.; Cravotta, Charles A.; Tasker, T. L.; Warner, N. R.; Daniels, W. L.; Orndorff, Z. W.; Bergstresser, T.; Douglass, A.; Kimble, G.; Streczywilk, J.; Barton, C.; Thompson A.; Burgos, W. D.Kinetic study on clogging of a geothermal pumping well triggered by mixing-induced biogeochemical reactions
The sustainability of ground-source geothermal systems can be severely impacted by microbially mediated clogging processes. Biofouling of water wells by hydrous ferric oxide is a widespread problem. Although the mechanisms and critical environmental factors associated with clogging development are widely recognized, effects of mixing processes...
Burté, Luc; Cravotta, Charles A. ; Bethencourt, Lorine; Farasin, Julien; Pedrot, Mathieu; Dufresne, Alexis; Gérard, Marie-Françoise; Baranger, Catherine; Le Borgne, Tanguy; Aquilina, LucDrinking water health standards comparison and chemical analysis of groundwater for 72 domestic wells in Bradford County, Pennsylvania, 2016
Pennsylvania has the second highest number of residential wells of any state in the Nation with approximately 2.4 million residents that depend on groundwater for their domestic water supply. Despite the widespread reliance on groundwater in rural areas of the state, publicly available data to characterize the quality of private well water are...
Clune, John W.; Cravotta, Charles A.Factors affecting the occurrence of lead and manganese in untreated drinking water from Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain aquifers, eastern United States—Dissolved oxygen and pH framework for evaluating risk of elevated concentrations
Groundwater samples collected during 2012 and 2013 from public-supply wells screened in the Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain aquifers of the eastern and southeastern U.S. rarely contained lead or manganese concentrations that exceeded drinking-water limits, despite having corrosive characteristics. Data indicate that the...
Brown, Craig J.; Barlow, Jeannie R. B.; Cravotta, Charles A.; Lindsey, Bruce D.Radium accumulation in carbonate river sediments at oil and gas produced water discharges: Implications for beneficial use as disposal management
In the western U.S., produced water from oil and gas wells discharged to surface water augments downstream supplies used for irrigation and livestock watering. Here we investigate six permitted discharges on three neighboring tributary systems in Wyoming. During 2013-16, we evaluated radium activities of the permitted discharges and the potential...
McDevitt, Bonnie; McLaughlin, Molly; Cravotta, Charles A. ; Ajemigbitse, Moses A; Van Sice, Katherine J.; Blotevogel, Jens; Borch, Thomas; Warner, Nathaniel R.Radium attenuation and mobilization in stream sediments following oil and gas wastewater disposal in western Pennsylvania
Centralized waste treatment facilities (CWTs) in Pennsylvania discharged wastewater from conventional and unconventional oil and gas (O&G) wells into surface waters until 2011, when a voluntary request from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP) encouraged recycling rather than...
Van Sice, Katherine; Cravotta, Charles A.; McDevitt, Bonnie; Tasker, Travis L.; Landis, Joshua D.; Puhr, Johnna; Warner, Nathaniel R.Hydrologic characteristics and water quality of headwater streams and wetlands at the Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site, Summit area, Blair and Cambria Counties, Pennsylvania, 2014–16
The Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site (ALPO) in Blair and Cambria Counties, Pennsylvania, protects historic features of the first railroad portage over the Allegheny Front and the first railroad tunnel in the United States. This report, which was completed by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the National Park Service...
Cravotta, Charles A.; Galeone, Daniel G.; Penrod, Kathy A.Baseline assessment of groundwater quality in Pike County, Pennsylvania, 2015
The Devonian-age Marcellus Shale and the Ordovician-age Utica Shale, which have the potential for natural gas development, underlie Pike County and neighboring counties in northeastern Pennsylvania. In 2015, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Pike County Conservation District, conducted a study that expanded on a previous more...
Senior, Lisa A.; Cravotta, Charles A.Groundwater quality for 75 domestic wells in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, 2014
Groundwater is a major source of drinking water in Lycoming County and adjacent counties in north-central and northeastern Pennsylvania, which are largely forested and rural and are currently undergoing development for hydrocarbon gases. Water-quality data are needed for assessing the natural characteristics of the groundwater resource and the...
Gross, Eliza L.; Cravotta, Charles A.Hydrological and geophysical investigation of streamflow losses and restoration strategies in an abandoned mine lands setting
Longitudinal discharge and water-quality campaigns (seepage runs) were combined with surface-geophysical surveys, hyporheic-temperature profiling, and watershed-scale hydrological monitoring to evaluate the locations, magnitude, and impact of streamwater losses from the West Creek subbasin of the West West Branch Schuylkill River into the...
Cravotta, Charles A.; Sherrod, Laura; Galeone, Daniel G.; Lehman, Wayne G.; Ackman, Terry E.; Kramer, AlexaPre-USGS Publications
Silver Creek Aerobic Wetlands, New Philadelphia, PA, treatment stages
Silver Creek Aerobic Wetlands, New Philadelphia, PA
Treatment Stage:
0-Untreated
1-Sedimentation Pond
2-Aeration Cascade
3-Aerobic Pond
4-Aeration Cascade
5-Aerobic Pond
6-Riprap Cascade
7-Aerobic Wetland
8-Riprap Cascade
9-Aerobic Wetland
10-Riprap
USGS Develops a New Water-Quality Modeling Tool for Acid Mine Drainage Treatment Systems
USGS developed, in cooperation with the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, “user-friendly” aqueous geochemical modeling tools to simulate changes in water quality during passive and active treatment of acid mine drainage as described in a new study.
USGS Characterizes Baseline Groundwater Quality in Potter County, Pennsylvania
A report on the groundwater quality of Potter County is the latest of seven publications characterizing water quality of aquifers underlying central and northern tier counties. Wells were sampled throughout Potter County with funding support from Commonwealth Financing Authority through the...
USGS fills a knowledge gap for radionuclide occurrence in groundwater
Using recently developed and sensitive laboratory methods, the USGS has documented where the radionuclides lead-210 and polonium-210 occur in principal aquifers of the U.S. used for drinking-water supply, reports a ...