Murphy, J.C., G.M. Hornberger, and R.G. Liddle, 2014, Concentration–discharge relationships in the coal mined region of the New River basin and Indian Fork sub-basin, Tennessee, USA. Hydrological Processes 28: 718-728.
Jennifer Murphy
Biography
Jenny is a hydrologist at the Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center. Much of her work focuses on characterizing and understanding water-quality trends in the Nations streams and rivers. Jenny has been part of the National Water Quality Assessment Project's Surface Water Status and Trends Team since 2014 and played an important role is characterizing water-quality trends with the Weighted Regressions on Time, Season and Discharge (WRTDS) model at over 1,000 sites across the country using an extensive multi-agency dataset. Jenny's additional trends work includes looking at nitrate in the Mississippi River Basin, sediment in the lowermost Mississippi and Atchafalaya Rivers, and streamflow in the Southeastern U.S. as part of the RESTORE project. Additionally, Jenny has worked on projects ranging from the evaluation of best management practices in small agricultural drainages, to characterizing and understanding ecological flows, and estimating water use at thermoelectric powerplants. Her current interests are in trend studies, causal attribution of these trends, and exploring the influence of streamflow on water quality.
EDUCATION
- B.A., Geology, 2006, Lawrence University, Appleton, Wisconsin
- M.S., Earth and Environmental Science, 2011, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
CURRENT & PAST PROJECTS
- NAWQA Surface Water Status and Trends team (Causal Analysis team lead)
- Evaluating agricultural best management practices in northwestern MS
- Ecological flows in the Cumberland and Tennessee River Basins
- Water-quality trends in the Mississippi River Basin
- Streamflow trends in the Southeastern U.S. as part of the RESTORE project
- Water use at thermoelectric powerplants
- Water quality in the lowermost Mississippi and Atchafalya Rivers
Science and Products
Date published: January 8, 2013
Environmental Flow Research in the Tennessee River Basin
The objective of this project is to improve understanding of how alteration of streamflow characteristics affects the ecological health of rivers and streams in Tennessee. Initial efforts are aimed at identifying critical streamflow characteristics and providing a set of statistical tools and analytical approaches for the prediction of these characteristics. Application of these tools will...
Contacts: Rodney R Knight, Jennifer Murphy
Year Published: 2019
Regional patterns of anthropogenic influences on streams and rivers in the conterminous United States, from the early 1970s to 2012
This paper introduces a dataset containing consistent time-series measurements of anthropogenic activities potentially affecting stream quality across the conterminous United States and summarizes the most noteworthy trends from 61 variables in 16 categories. Data include measures of atmospheric deposition, agricultural production, livestock,...
Falcone, James A.; Murphy, Jennifer C.; Sprague, Lori A.
Year Published: 2019
Tracking changes in nutrient delivery to western Lake Erie: Approaches to compensate for variability and trends in streamflow
Tracking changes in stream nutrient inputs to Lake Erie over multidecadal time scales depends on the use of statistical methods that can remove the influence of year-to-year variability of streamflow but also explicitly consider the influence of long-term trends in streamflow. The methods introduced in this paper include an extended version of...
Choquette, Anne F.; Hirsch, Robert M.; Murphy, Jennifer C.; Johnson, L.T.; Confesor, R. B.Attribution: Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center
Year Published: 2019
Water-quality trends in US rivers: Exploring effects from streamflow trends and changes in watershed management
We present a conceptual model that explores the relationship of streamflow trends to 15 water-quality parameters at 370 sites across the contiguous United States (US). Our analytical framework uses discrete water-quality data, daily streamflow records, and a statistical model to estimate water-quality trends between...
Murphy, Jennifer C.; Sprague, Lori A.Attribution: Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center
Year Published: 2019
Water-quality trends in U.S. rivers, 2002 to 2012: Relations to levels of concern
Effective management and protection of water resources relies upon understanding how water-quality conditions are changing over time. Water-quality trends for ammonia, chloride, nitrate, sulfate, total dissolved solids (TDS), total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) were assessed at 762 sites located in the conterminous United...
Shoda, Megan E.; Sprague, Lori A.; Murphy, Jennifer C.; Riskin, Melissa L.Attribution: Water, New Mexico Water Science Center, Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Water Science Center, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, United States of America
View Citation
Shoda, M.E., Sprague, L.A., Murphy, J.C., and Riskin, M.L., 2018, Water-quality trends in U.S. rivers, 2002 to 2012: Relations to levels of concern. Science of the Total Environment 650 (2019), p. 2314-2324. doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.09.377
Year Published: 2017
Methods for computing water-quality loads at sites in the U.S. Geological Survey National Water Quality Network
The U.S. Geological Survey currently (2020) publishes information on concentrations and loads of water-quality constituents at 110 sites across the United States as part of the U.S. Geological Survey National Water Quality Network (NWQN). This report details historical and updated methods for computing water-quality loads at NWQN sites. The...
Lee, Casey J.; Murphy, Jennifer C.; Crawford, Charles G.; Deacon, Jeffrey R.Attribution: Kansas Water Science Center, Water Resources, Groundwater and Streamflow Information Program, , United States of America
View Citation
Lee, C.J., Murphy, J.C., Crawford, C.G., and Deacon, J.R, 2017, Methods for computing water-quality loads at sites in the U.S. Geological Survey National Water Quality Network (ver. 1.1, January 2020): U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2017–1120, 20 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20171120.
Year Published: 2017
Nutrient and sediment concentrations and loads in the Steele Bayou Basin, northwestern Mississippi, 2010–14
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-Vicksburg District, monitored streamflow, water quality, and sediment at two stations on the Steele Bayou in northwestern Mississippi from October 2010 through September 2014 to characterize nutrient and sediment concentrations and loads in areas where substantial...
Hicks, Matthew B.; Murphy, Jennifer C.; Stocks, Shane J.Attribution: Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center
View Citation
Hicks, M.B., Murphy, J.C., and Stocks, S.J., 2017, Nutrient and sediment concentrations and loads in the Steele Bayou Basin, northwestern Mississippi, 2010–14: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2017–5035, 32 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20175035.
Year Published: 2017
Water-quality and streamflow datasets used in Seasonal Kendall trend tests for the Nation’s rivers and streams, 1972-2012
In 1991, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) began a study of more than 50 major river basins across the Nation as part of the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) project of the National Water-Quality Program. One of the major goals of the NAWQA project is to determine how water-quality conditions change over time. To support that goal, long-...
Mills, Taylor J.; Sprague, Lori A.; Murphy, Jennifer C.; Riskin, Melissa L.; Falcone, James A.; Stets, Edward G.; Oelsner, Gretchen P.; Johnson, Henry M.Attribution: New Jersey Water Science Center
View Citation
Mills, T.J., Sprague, L.A., Murphy, J.C., Riskin, M.L., Falcone, J.A., Stets, E.G., Oelsner, G.P, and Johnson, H.M., 2017, Water-quality and streamflow datasets used in Seasonal Kendall trend tests for the Nation’s rivers and streams, 1972-2012: U.S. Geological Survey data release, http://dx.doi.org/10.5066/F7QN64VT.
Year Published: 2017
Water-quality trends in the nation’s rivers and streams, 1972–2012—Data preparation, statistical methods, and trend results
Since passage of the Clean Water Act in 1972, Federal, State, and local governments have invested billions of dollars to reduce pollution entering rivers and streams. To understand the return on these investments and to effectively manage and protect the Nation’s water resources in the future, we need to know how and why water quality has been...
Oelsner, Gretchen P.; Sprague, Lori A.; Murphy, Jennifer C.; Zuellig, Robert E.; Johnson, Henry M.; Ryberg, Karen R.; Falcone, James A.; Stets, Edward G.; Vecchia, Aldo V.; Riskin, Melissa L.; De Cicco, Laura A.; Mills, Taylor J.; Farmer, William H.Attribution: Water, Colorado Water Science Center, New Jersey Water Science Center, New Mexico Water Science Center, Water Resources, United States of America
View Citation
Oelsner, G.P., Sprague, L.A., Murphy, J.C., Zuellig, R.E., Johnson, H.M., Ryberg, K.R., Falcone, J.A., Stets, E.G., Vec-chia, A.V., Riskin, M.L., De Cicco, L.A., Mills, T.J., and Farmer, W.H., 2017, Water-quality trends in the Nation’s rivers and streams, 1972–2012—Data preparation, statistical methods, and trend results (ver. 2.0, October 2017): U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2017–5006, 136 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20175006.
Year Published: 2016
Water-quality data and Escherichia coli predictions for selected karst catchments of the upper Duck River watershed in central Tennessee, 2007–10
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Tennessee Duck River Development Agency, monitored water quality at several locations in the upper Duck River watershed between October 2007 and September 2010. Discrete water samples collected at 24 sites in the watershed were analyzed for water quality, and Escherichia coli (E. coli) and...
Murphy, Jennifer C.; Farmer, James; Layton, AliceAttribution: Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center
View Citation
Murphy, Jennifer, Farmer, James, and Layton, Alice, 2016, Water-quality data and Escherichia coli predictions for selected karst catchments of the upper Duck River watershed in central Tennessee, 2007–10:
U.S. Geological Survey Data Series 1003, 17 p., http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/ds1003.
Year Published: 2014
Mississippi River nitrate loads from high frequency sensor measurements and regression-based load estimation
Accurately quantifying nitrate (NO3–) loading from the Mississippi River is important for predicting summer hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico and targeting nutrient reduction within the basin. Loads have historically been modeled with regression-based techniques, but recent advances with high frequency NO3– sensors allowed us to...
Pellerin, Brian A.; Bergamaschi, Brian A.; Gilliom, Robert J.; Crawford, Charles G.; Saraceno, John F.; Frederick, C. Paul; Downing, Bryan D.; Murphy, Jennifer C.View Citation
BA Pellerin, BA Bergamaschi, RJ Gilliom, CG Crawford, J Saraceno, CP Frederick, BD Downing and JC Murphy. 2014. Mississippi River Nitrate Loads from High Frequency Sensor Measurements and Regression-Based Load Estimation. Environmental Science and Techology, 48: 12612-12619.
Year Published: 2014
Antecedent flow conditions and nitrate concentrations in the Mississippi River basin
The relationship between antecedent flow conditions and nitrate concentrations was explored at eight sites in the 2.9 million square kilometers (km2) Mississippi River basin, USA. Antecedent flow conditions were quantified as the ratio between the mean daily flow of the previous year and the mean daily flow from the period of record (Qratio), and...
Murphy, Jennifer C.; Hirsch, Robert M.; Sprague, Lori A.View Citation
Antecedent flow conditions and nitrate concentrations in the Mississippi River basin; 2014; Article; Journal; Hydrology and Earth System Sciences; Murphy, Jennifer C; Hirsch, Robert M; Sprague, Lori A.
Year Published: 2014
Ecological limit functions relating fish community response to hydrologic departures of the ecological flow regime in the Tennessee River basin, United States
Ecological limit functions relating streamflow and aquatic ecosystems remain elusive despite decades of research. We investigated functional relationships between species richness and changes in streamflow characteristics at 662 fish sampling sites in the Tennessee River basin. Our approach included the following: (1) a brief summary of relevant...
Knight, Rodney R.; Murphy, Jennifer C.; Wolfe, William J.; Saylor, Charles F.; Wales, Amy K.View Citation
Ecological limit functions relating fish community response to hydrologic departures of the ecological flow regime in the Tennessee River basin, USA; 2013; Article; Journal; Ecohydrology; Knight, Rodney R.; Murphy, Jennifer C.; Wolfe, William J.; Saylor, Charles F.; Wales, Amy K.
Pre-USGS Publications
Debra Perrone, Jennifer Murphy, and George M. Hornberger (2011), Gaining Perspective on the Water−Energy Nexus at the Community Scale. Environ. Sci. Technol., 2011, 45 (10), pp 4228–4234
DOI: 10.1021/es103230n.