John R Mullaney
John Mullaney is a Hydrologist in the New England Water Science Center.
John serves as the Center Groundwater Specialist. He began working for the USGS in 1986, and has worked on a wide variety of groundwater and water-quality studies in Connecticut and other parts of New England.
Current projects include:
- National surveillance of the status of groundwater levels in the United States
- Evaluation of the effects of bottled water extraction in the Saco River Basin, New Hampshire and Maine
- Evaluation of nitrogen loads to Long Island Sound from the major tributaries
- Analysis of tidal groundwater levels in the vicinity of the Herring River, Lower Cape Cod, as part of a proposed tidal marsh restoration at the Cape Cod National Seashore
- Development of tools using R computing environment for review of water-quality and groundwater-level data
- Development of web pages using the R computing environment for display of USGS data
Highlights of past work:
- Analysis of long-term nutrient trends and loads to Long Island Sound and Narragansett Bay
- Analysis of water quality in Connecticut in the four decades since the Clean Water Act
- Modeling nitrogen loads from groundwater to streams and Long Island Sound
- Use of surrogate methods to determine total nitrogen concentrations in the lower Connecticut River from sensor data
- Analysis of the effects of road deicing on groundwater and surface water quality
- Investigation of the effects of sea-level rise on groundwater levels in New Haven, Connecticut
- Modeling groundwater flow and water use from a crystalline bedrock aquifer, southwestern Connecticut
- Assessment of the hydrogeology and water-quality of a large Superfund site in southwestern Connecticut
- Studies of groundwater and surface water quality with the USGS National Water Quality Assessment Program (NAWQA)
- Mapping the geohydrology of the Upper Connecticut and Androscoggin Basins, northern New Hampshire
- Statewide assessment of pesticides in groundwater in Connecticut
Professional Experience
Hydrologist, Groundwater Specialist, U.S. Geological Survey, New England Water Science Center, 2017 to Present
Acting Groundwater Specialist, California Water Science Center, 2020 to 2021
Hydrologist, Lead Scientist, Groundwater Specialist, U.S. Geological Survey, Connecticut Office, 2014 to 2017
Supervisory Hydrologist, Chief of the Hydrologic Studies Section, U.S. Geological Survey, Connecticut Water Science Center, 2007 to 2013
Hydrologist, U.S. Geological Survey, Connecticut Water Science Center, 1992 to 2007
Hydrologist, U.S. Geological Survey, New Hampshire-Vermont Office, 1991
Hydrologist, U.S. Geological Survey, Connecticut Office, New England District, 1989 to 1991
Hydrologic Technician, U.S. Geological Survey, Connecticut Office, New England District, 1986 to 1989
Education and Certifications
B.S. Geology, University of Connecticut, 1986
Affiliations and Memberships*
Connecticut Interagency Drought Workgroup, Technical Assistance
Long Island Sound Study, Science and Technical Advisory Committee
Abstracts and Presentations
Panel Discussion: dataRetrieval: Success Stories and Future Enhancements, National Water Quality Monitoring Conference, April 2021
Is Greenwich facing a water shortage? One Air, Water, and Land a New Environmental Lecture Series Hosted by Cos Cob Library, Greenwich CT, Panelist, March, 2021
Nitrogen Loading Analysis of Tributaries to Long Island Sound, Restore America's Estuaries Summit, 2020, virtual meeting
Groundwater and surface water, a single resource in New England, Water, New England’s next Big Challenge, Southeastern Massachusetts Watershed Action Alliance, March 29, 2019
Science and Products
Metals, organic compounds, and nutrients in Long Island Sound: sources, magnitudes, trends, and impacts
Estimated nitrogen loads from selected tributaries in Connecticut draining to Long Island Sound, 1999–2009
Nutrient concentrations and loads and Escherichia coli densities in tributaries of the Niantic River estuary, southeastern Connecticut, 2005 and 2008–2011
Nutrient concentrations and loads in the northeastern United States - Status and trends, 1975-2003
Preliminary investigation of the effects of sea-level rise on groundwater levels in New Haven, Connecticut
Preliminary assessment of chloride concentrations, loads, and yields in selected watersheds along the Interstate 95 corridor, southeastern Connecticut, 2008-09
Chloride in Groundwater and Surface Water in Areas Underlain by the Glacial Aquifer System, Northern United States
Nutrient Loads and Ground-Water Residence Times in an Agricultural Basin in North-Central Connecticut
Summary of water quality trends in the Connecticut River, 1968-1998
Water use, ground-water recharge and availability, and quality of water in the Greenwich area, Fairfield County, Connecticut and Westchester County, New York, 2000-2002
Estimation of nitrogen yields and loads from basins draining to Long Island Sound, 1988–98
Delineation and Analysis of Uncertainty of Contributing Areas to Wells at the Southbury Training School, Southbury, Connecticut
Science and Products
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Filter Total Items: 31
Metals, organic compounds, and nutrients in Long Island Sound: sources, magnitudes, trends, and impacts
Long Island Sound (LIS) is a relatively shallow estuary with a mean depth of 20 m (maximum depth 49 m) and a unique hydrology and history of pollutant loading. Those factors have contributed to a wide variety of contamination problems in its muddy sediments, aquatic life and water column. The LIS sediments are contaminated with a host of legacy and more recently released toxic compounds and elemeAuthorsJohn R. Mullaney, J.C. Varekamp, A.E. MCElroy, V.T. BrsslinEstimated nitrogen loads from selected tributaries in Connecticut draining to Long Island Sound, 1999–2009
The total nitrogen load to Long Island Sound from Connecticut and contributing areas to the north was estimated for October 1998 to September 2009. Discrete measurements of total nitrogen concentrations and continuous flow data from 37 water-quality monitoring stations in the Long Island Sound watershed were used to compute total annual nitrogen yields and loads. Total annual computed yields and bAuthorsJohn R. Mullaney, Gregory E. SchwarzNutrient concentrations and loads and Escherichia coli densities in tributaries of the Niantic River estuary, southeastern Connecticut, 2005 and 2008–2011
Nutrient concentrations and loads and Escherichia coli (E. coli) densities were studied in 2005 and from 2008 through 2011 in water-quality samples from tributaries of the Niantic River Estuary in southeastern Connecticut. Data from a water-quality survey of the base flow of subbasins in the watershed in June 2005 were used to determine the range of total nitrogen concentrations (0.09 to 2.4 milliAuthorsJohn R. MullaneyNutrient concentrations and loads in the northeastern United States - Status and trends, 1975-2003
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment Program (NAWQA) began regional studies in 2003 to synthesize information on nutrient concentrations, trends, stream loads, and sources. In the northeastern United States, a study area that extends from Maine to central Virginia, nutrient data were evaluated for 130 USGS water-quality monitoring stations. Nutrient data were analyzeAuthorsElaine C. Todd Trench, Richard B. Moore, Elizabeth A. Ahearn, John R. Mullaney, R. Edward Hickman, Gregory E. SchwarzPreliminary investigation of the effects of sea-level rise on groundwater levels in New Haven, Connecticut
Global sea level rose about 0.56 feet (ft) (170 millimeters (mm)) during the 20th century. Since the 1960s, sea level has risen at Bridgeport, Connecticut, about 0.38 ft (115 mm), at a rate of 0.008 ft (2.56 mm + or - 0.58 mm) per year. With regional subsidence, and with predicted global climate change, sea level is expected to continue to rise along the northeast coast of the United States througAuthorsDavid M. Bjerklie, John R. Mullaney, Janet Radway Stone, Brian J. Skinner, Matthew A. RamlowPreliminary assessment of chloride concentrations, loads, and yields in selected watersheds along the Interstate 95 corridor, southeastern Connecticut, 2008-09
Water-quality conditions were assessed to evaluate potential effects of road-deicer applications on stream-water quality in four watersheds along Interstate 95 (I-95) in southeastern Connecticut from November 1, 2008, through September 30, 2009. This preliminary study is part of a four-year cooperative study by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), and the CAuthorsCraig J. Brown, John R. Mullaney, Jonathan Morrison, Remo MondazziChloride in Groundwater and Surface Water in Areas Underlain by the Glacial Aquifer System, Northern United States
A study of chloride in groundwater and surface water was conducted for the glacial aquifer system of the northern United States in forested, agricultural, and urban areas by analyzing data collected for the National Water-Quality Assessment Program from 1991 to 2004. Groundwater-quality data from a sampling of 1,329 wells in 19 states were analyzed. Chloride concentrations were greater than theAuthorsJohn R. Mullaney, David L. Lorenz, Alan D. ArntsonNutrient Loads and Ground-Water Residence Times in an Agricultural Basin in North-Central Connecticut
Nutrient loads from ground-water discharge were studied in Broad Brook Basin, a 15.8-square mile basin in north-central Connecticut, dominated by agricultural activity. Loads were calculated, along with the travel times of ground water from recharge to discharge areas, to estimate the time required for the effects of Best Management Practices (BMPs) to be observed. Most concentrations of nitrogenAuthorsJohn R. MullaneySummary of water quality trends in the Connecticut River, 1968-1998
The Connecticut River has a long history of water quality impairment. From the 1800s to the late 1960s, untreated or minimally treated waste discharges from population centers and industries have caused serious water quality problems. Trend analysis of selected water quality data in Connecticut from 1968 to 1998, collected by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Connecticut DepartmenAuthorsJohn R. MullaneyWater use, ground-water recharge and availability, and quality of water in the Greenwich area, Fairfield County, Connecticut and Westchester County, New York, 2000-2002
Ground-water budgets were developed for 32 small basin-based zones in the Greenwich area of southwestern Connecticut, where crystalline-bedrock aquifers supply private wells, to determine the status of residential ground-water consumption relative to rates of ground-water recharge and discharge. Estimated residential ground-water withdrawals for small basins (averaging 1.7 square miles (mi2)) rangAuthorsJohn R. MullaneyEstimation of nitrogen yields and loads from basins draining to Long Island Sound, 1988–98
Monitoring data on total nitrogen concentrations and streamflow were used to estimate annual nonpoint nitrogen loads for 1988?98 at 28 monitoring sites and 26 unmonitored basins that drain to Long Island Sound. The estimated total nitrogen yields at monitoring sites were used with basin characteristics and ancillary data to develop a multiple-linear regression equation to estimate nonpointAuthorsJohn R. Mullaney, Gregory E. Schwarz, Elaine C. Todd TrenchDelineation and Analysis of Uncertainty of Contributing Areas to Wells at the Southbury Training School, Southbury, Connecticut
Contributing areas to public-supply wells at the Southbury Training School in Southbury, Connecticut, were mapped by simulating ground-water flow in stratified glacial deposits in the lower Transylvania Brook watershed. The simulation used nonlinear regression methods and informational statistics to estimate parameters of a ground-water flow model using drawdown data from an aquifer test. The goodAuthorsJ. Jeffrey Starn, Janet Radway Stone, John R. Mullaney - Web Tools
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*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government