Gregory Granato is a hydrologist whose research focuses on developing hydrologic software to provide actionable information for environmental decisionmakers. Gregory has worked with the USGS on projects covering all aspects of hydrology since 1992. Before that time he was an aerospace engineer working on the design of the Space Station's water and waste treatment systems.
Software (currently supported):
Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model (SELDM) Report on-line Software support page
KTRLine: Kendall-Theil Robust Line Report on-line Software support page
Streamflow data mining and analysis software (GNWISQ, MkPP, SREF, QSTATS, and MkDF) Report on line Software support page
Highway-Runoff Database Report on line Software support page
Hydrologic Drought Decision Support System (HyDroDSS) Report and software on-line
Patents:
Granato, G.E. and Smith, K.P., 2000, Automated Groundwater Monitoring System and Method: Washington D.C., U.S. Government Patent and Trademark Office, United States Patent 6,021,664, 31 p. Available on-line
Smith, K.P. and Granato; G.E., 2005, Automated self-calibrating water quality monitoring sensor housing assembly: Washington D.C., U.S. Government Patent and Trademark Office, United States Patent 6,936,156, 9 p. Available on-line
Publications:
U.S. Geological Survey Techniques and Methods Reports:
Granato, G.E., 2013, Stochastic empirical loading and dilution model (SELDM) version 1.0.0: U.S. Geological Survey Techniques and Methods, book 4, chap. C3, 112 p., CD–ROM. (Also available at .) Report On-Line Note: SELDM is now on version 1.0.1 Please use the new version on the software support page here: Software Support Page
Granato, G.E., 2006, Kendall-Theil Robust Line (KTRLine--version 1.0)—A visual basic program for calculating and graphing robust nonparametric estimates of linear-regression coefficients between two continuous variables: Techniques and Methods of the U.S. Geological Survey, book 4, chap. A7, 31 p. Report On-Line Software On-Line Software Support Page
Kiang, Julie E., Flynn, Kate, Hummel, Paul, Zhai, Tong, and Granato, G.E., 2017, SWToolbox: A Surface Water Toolbox for Statistical Analysis of Streamflow Time Series: U.S. Geological Survey Techniques and Methods, book 4, chap. A11
Journal Articles:
Jeznach, L.C., and Granato, G.E., 2020, Comparison of SELDM simulated total-phosphorus concentrations with ecological impervious-area criteria: Journal of Environmental Engineering: v. 146, No. 8, 10 p. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)EE.1943-7870.0001763
Granato, G.E., and Jones, S.C., 2019, Simulating runoff quality with the Highway Runoff Database and the Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model: Transportation Research Record, Journal of the Transportation Research Board, 7 p. https://doi.org/10.1177/0361198118822821
Stonewall, A.J., Granato, G.E., and Haluska, T.L., 2018, Assessing roadway contributions to stormwater flows, concentrations and loads by using the StreamStats application: Transportation Research Record, Journal of the Transportation Research Board, 9 p. https://doi.org/10.1177/0361198118758679
Granato, G.E., and Jones, S.C., 2017, Estimating Total Maximum Daily Loads with the Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model: Transportation Research Record, Journal of the Transportation Research Board, No. 2638, p. 104-112. https://doi.org/10.3141/2638-12
Granato, G.E., and Jones, S.C., 2014, Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model for analysis of flows, concentrations, and loads of highway runoff constituents: Transportation Research Record, Journal of the Transportation Research Board, No. 2436, p. 139-147. http://doi.org/10.3141/2436-14
Eng, K., Kiang, J.E., Chen, Y.-Y., Carlisle, D.M. and Granato, G.E., 2011, Causes of systematic over- or underestimation of low streamflows by use of index-streamgage approaches in the United States: Hydrological Processes, v. 25, pp. 2211–2220 http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/hyp.7976
Granato, G.E., and Smith, K.P., 1999, Robowell: An automated process for monitoring groundwater quality using established sampling protocols. Groundwater Monitoring and Remediation, v. 19, no. 4, p. 81-89. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6592.1999.tb00243.x
Granato, G.E., 1996, Deicing chemicals as a source of constituents in highway runoff. Transportation Research Record 1533, Transportation Research Board, National Research Council, Washington D.C., p. 50-58. https://doi.org/10.3141/1533-08
Church, P.E., and Granato, G.E., 1996, Bias in groundwater data caused by well-bore flow in long-screen wells: Groundwater, Vol. 34, No. 2, p. 262-273. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6584.1996.tb01886.x
Granato, G.E., Church, P.E., and Stone V.J., 1995, Mobilization of Major and Trace Constituents of Highway Runoff in Groundwater Potentially Caused by Deicing-Chemical Migration, Transportation Research Record 1483, Transportation Research Board, National Research Council, Washington D.C., p. 92-104.
and 44 other USGS Publications (Scholar) (USGS Pubs warehouse)...
USGS National Training Center Classes:
H1843 - Stormwater Runoff Quality Analysis with the Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model Developed and taught this class in MA(2013), DC(2014), OR (2014), CO (2015), TX (2016), CA(2017), NV (2017), OR (2018), Online (2020).
National Webinars:
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Transportation Research Board Approaches for Determining and Complying with TMDL Requirements Related to Roadway Stormwater Runoff
Water Research Foundation Integrated Stormwater Management for Highway and Transportation Sector (2017)
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Transportation Research Board Use and Implementation of the Federal Highway Administration Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model (SELDM): Oregon and Massachusetts
Other research activities:
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Transportation Research Board Standing Committees
AKD50 Standing Committee on Hydrology, Hydraulics and Stormwater
AFB 60 Standing Committee on Hydrology, Hydraulics and Water Quality, Full Member
AFB 65 Standing Committee on Stormwater, Full Member
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; National Cooperative Highway Research Program Research Panels
Project NCHRP 25-25 Research for the AASHTO Committee on Environment and Sustainability, Task 119 and 120 Enhancing the International Stormwater BMP Database to Serve as a Highway Specific BMP Database
Project NCHRP 25-31 Guidelines for Evaluating and Selecting Modifications to Existing Roadway Drainage Infrastructure to Improve Water Quality in Ultra-Urban Areas
Project NCHRP 25-32 Measuring and Removing Dissolved Metals from Storm Water in Highly Urbanized Areas
Project NCHRP 25-40 Long-Term Performance and Life-Cycle Costs of Stormwater Best Management Practices
Project NCHRP 25-53 Approaches for Determining and Complying with TMDL Requirements Related to Roadway Stormwater Runoff
American Society of Civil Engineers Outstanding Reviewer Prize: Reston, 2015 (Journal of Environmental Engineering)
Streamflow statistics are needed by decision makers for many planning, management, and design activities. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) StreamStats Web application provides convenient access to streamflow statistics for many streamgages by accessing the underlying StreamStatsDB database. In 2016, non-interpretive streamflow statistics were...
Granato, Gregory E.; Ries, Kernell G.; Steeves, Peter A.
The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Rhode Island DOT are assessing and addressing roadway contributions to total maximum daily loads (TMDLs). Example analyses for total nitrogen, total phosphorus, suspended sediment, and total zinc in highway runoff were done by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with FHWA to...
Granato, Gregory; Jones, Susan Cheung The stochastic empirical loading and dilution model (SELDM) was used to demonstrate methods for estimating risks for water-quality exceedances of event-mean concentrations (EMCs) of total-copper. Monte Carlo methods were used to simulate stormflow, total-hardness, suspended-sediment, and total-copper EMCs as stochastic variables. These simulations...
Dunn, Christopher N.; Van Weele, Brian; Granato, Gregory E.; Jones, Susan C. Studies from North Carolina (NC) indicate that increasing concentrations of total phosphorus (TP) and other constituents are correlated to adverse effects on stream ecosystems as evidenced by differences in benthic macroinvertebrate populations in streams across the state. As a result, stringent in-stream criteria based on the Water Quality...
Granato, Gregory E.; Jones, Susan C. Decisionmakers need information about the quality and quantity of stormwater runoff, the risk for adverse effects of runoff on receiving waters, and the potential effectiveness of mitigation measures to reduce these risks. The Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model (SELDM) uses Monte Carlo methods to generate stormflows, concentrations,...
Granato, Gregory E.; Jones, Susan C.
Chloride exists as a major ion in most natural waters, but many anthropogenic sources are increasing concentrations of chloride in many receiving waters. Although natural concentrations in continental waters can be as high as 200,000 milligrams per liter, chloride concentrations that are suitable for freshwater ecology, human consumption, and...
Granato, Gregory E.; DeSimone, Leslie A.; Barbaro, Jeffrey R.; Jeznach, Lillian C. In cooperation with FHWA, the U.S. Geological Survey developed the stochastic empirical loading and dilution model (SELDM) to supersede the 1990 FHWA runoff quality model. The SELDM tool is designed to transform disparate and complex scientific data into meaningful information about the adverse risks of runoff on receiving waters, the potential...
Granato, Gregory E.; Jones, Susan C.
In 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey and the Oregon Department of Transportation began a cooperative study to demonstrate use of the Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model (SELDM) for runoff-quality analyses in Oregon. SELDM can be used to estimate stormflows, constituent concentrations, and loads from the area upstream of a stormflow...
Risley, John C.; Granato, Gregory E.
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) developed the Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model (SELDM) in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to indicate the risk for stormwater concentrations, flows, and loads to be above user-selected water-quality goals and the potential effectiveness of mitigation measures to reduce...
Granato, Gregory E.
The hydrologic drought decision support system (HyDroDSS) was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Rhode Island Water Resources Board (RIWRB) for use in the analysis of hydrologic variables that may indicate the risk for streamflows to be below user-defined flow targets at a designated site of interest, which is...
Granato, Gregory E.
The Rhode Island Water Resources Board is considering use of groundwater resources from the Big River Management Area in central Rhode Island because increasing water demands in Rhode Island may exceed the capacity of current sources. Previous water-resources investigations in this glacially derived, valley-fill aquifer system have focused...
Masterson, John P.; Granato, Gregory E.
The Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model (SELDM) is designed to transform complex scientific data into meaningful information about the risk of adverse effects of runoff on receiving waters, the potential need for mitigation measures, and the potential effectiveness of such management measures for reducing these risks. The U.S....
Granato, Gregory E.