Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Kelly R McPherson

Geographic Information Systems (GIS), data processing and web professional with experience in cartography, mapping, illustration and dissemination of water data resources to the public through web media and email data requests.

In 1991, I began my career as a hydrologic technician surveying and processing GIS datasets with what was then the California District. Because of my focus on geography, in 1995, my title changed from a hydrologic technician to a geographer. In this role, I extended my geographic focus to include web-based applications for our cooperators to access data remotely. In 2005, I set up an ArcIMS server to allow the USGS and cooperators access to data and mapping tools. I continue to migrate access to data using new tools, and migrate web based applications to an up-to-date platforms. To make data more accessible to cooperators and the public, I have been part of a team implementing National Water Information System data across the web. From 2009 to 2011, I managed a project to analyze bathymetric surveying methods used at Loch Lomond Reservoir. These survey methods will become a baseline for bathemetric data collection in similar reservoirs.

Expertise

2009 to 2011, Project development and management for the Loch Lomond Reservoir study area.

2000 to present, website page development for multiple projects throughout the state.

1990 to present, Geographer for multiple projects throughout the state.

1990 to 2003, surveyor for flood inundation, river channel research, and gaging station references.

Interests

Geospatial mapping made available to the public through web interface and creation of USGS standardized web products.

Projects

GAMA - GIS, programming and web support for water quality research in California.

Mojave Water Resources - Development of a website to support water-level and land-subsidence research.

Optimum Basin Management in San Bernardino - GIS and web support for ground-water modeling and optimum basin management research.

Owens Valley - GIS and web support for ground-water modeling research.

San Diego Hydrogeology - GIS and web support for ground-water modeling research.

Temecula - Web support for ground-water modeling research.

Science and Products

link
map of the Owens Valley, California

Owens Valley Hydrogeology

The Owens Valley, a long, narrow valley along the east side of the Sierra Nevada in east-central California, is the main source of water for the city of Los Angeles. The city diverts most of the surface water in the valley into the Owens River-Los Angeles Aqueduct system, which transports the water more than 200 miles south to areas of distribution and use. Additionally, ground water is pumped or...
By
California Water Science Center
link

Owens Valley Hydrogeology

The Owens Valley, a long, narrow valley along the east side of the Sierra Nevada in east-central California, is the main source of water for the city of Los Angeles. The city diverts most of the surface water in the valley into the Owens River-Los Angeles Aqueduct system, which transports the water more than 200 miles south to areas of distribution and use. Additionally, ground water is pumped or...
Learn More
link
Cover page of SIR 2011-5141

New Methods to Measure Reservoir Storage Capacity and Sedimentation in Loch Lomond Reservoir

A new method of measuring the storage capacity and sedimentation of Loch Lomond Reservoir, Santa Cruz shows promise to help water managers more effectively assess changes in water-storage capacity in similar basins with steep, narrow drainages in mountainous terrain. The method employs a combination of bathymetric scanning using multibeam-sidescan sonar, and topographic surveying using laser...
By
California Water Science Center
link

New Methods to Measure Reservoir Storage Capacity and Sedimentation in Loch Lomond Reservoir

A new method of measuring the storage capacity and sedimentation of Loch Lomond Reservoir, Santa Cruz shows promise to help water managers more effectively assess changes in water-storage capacity in similar basins with steep, narrow drainages in mountainous terrain. The method employs a combination of bathymetric scanning using multibeam-sidescan sonar, and topographic surveying using laser...
Learn More

Relative distance of California's Central Valley from trough to valley edge and supporting data

California's Central Valley ranges from the mountain fronts toward a central trough, mainly defined by the San Joaquin and Sacramento Rivers, and the relative distance from trough to valley edges is of interest. This data release provides supplemental data for the USGS Professional Paper 1766, titled Groundwater Availability of the Central Valley Aquifer, California and provides geographic informa
By
California Water Science Center

Archive of Merced River Basin Precipitation-Runoff Modeling System, with forecasting, climate-file preparation, and data-visualization tools

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the California Department of Water Resources (DWR), has constructed a new spatially distributed Precipitation-Runoff Modeling System (PRMS) for the Merced River Basin (Koczot and others, 2021), which is a tributary of the San Joaquin River in California. PRMS is a deterministic, distributed-parameter, physical-process-based modeling system developed
By
California Water Science Center

Precipitation-runoff processes in the Merced River Basin, Central California, with prospects for streamflow predictability, water years 1952–2013

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the California Department of Water Resources (DWR), has constructed a new spatially detailed Precipitation-Runoff Modeling System (PRMS) model for the Merced River Basin, California, which is a tributary of the San Joaquin River in California. Operated through an Object User Interface (OUI) with Ensemble Streamflow Prediction (ESP) and daily climate
Authors
Kathryn M. Koczot, John C. Risley, JoAnn M. Gronberg, John M. Donovan, Kelly R. McPherson
By
Water Resources Mission Area, California Water Science Center

Geologic, hydrologic, and water-quality data from multiple-well monitoring sites in the Bunker Hill and Yucaipa Groundwater Subbasins, San Bernardino County, California, 1974–2016

In 1974, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District, initiated a study to assess the regional groundwater resources in the Bunker Hill Subbasin of the Upper Santa Ana Valley Groundwater Basin in San Bernardino County, California. The study area expanded east into the Yucaipa Subbasin in 1996. This report compiles the geologic (borehole
Authors
Gregory O. Mendez, Robert Anders, Kelly R. McPherson, Wesley R. Danskin
By
Water Resources Mission Area, California Water Science Center

Analysis of methods to determine storage capacity of, and sedimentation in, Loch Lomond Reservoir, Santa Cruz County, California, 2009

In 2009, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the City of Santa Cruz, conducted bathymetric and topographic surveys to determine the water storage capacity of, and the loss of capacity owing to sedimentation in, Loch Lomond Reservoir in Santa Cruz County, California. The topographic survey was done as a supplement to the bathymetric survey to obtain information about temporal changes in
Authors
Kelly R. McPherson, Lawrence A. Freeman, Lorraine E. Flint
By
Water Resources Mission Area, California Water Science Center

Water-level and land-subsidence studies in the Mojave River and Morongo groundwater basins

Since 1992, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Mojave Water Agency (MWA), has constructed a series of regional water-table maps for intermittent years in a continuing effort to monitor groundwater conditions in the Mojave River and Morongo groundwater basins. The previously published data, which were used to construct these maps, can be accessed on the interactive map. The
Authors
Christina L. Stamos, Carolyn S. Glockhoff, Kelly R. McPherson, Raymond J. Julich
By
Water Resources Mission Area, California Water Science Center

Sources of High-Chloride Water to Wells, Eastern San Joaquin Ground-Water Subbasin, California

As a result of pumping and subsequent declines in water levels, chloride concentrations have increased in water from wells in the Eastern San Joaquin Ground-Water Subbasin, about 80 miles east of San Francisco (Montgomery Watson, Inc., 2000). Water from a number of public-supply, agricultural, and domestic wells in the western part of the subbasin adjacent to the San Joaquin Delta exceeds the U.S.
Authors
John A. Izbicki, Loren F. Metzger, Kelly R. McPherson, Rhett R. Everett, George L. Bennett V

Hydrology, description of computer models, and evaluation of selected water-management alternatives in the San Bernardino area, California

The San Bernardino area of southern California has complex water-management issues. As an aid to local water managers, this report provides an integrated analysis of the surface-water and ground-water systems, documents ground-water flow and constrained optimization models, and provides seven examples using the models to better understand and manage water resources of the area. As an aid to invest
Authors
Wesley R. Danskin, Kelly R. McPherson, Linda R. Woolfenden
By
Water Resources Mission Area, California Water Science Center

Storage capacity and sedimentation of Loch Lomond Reservoir, Santa Cruz County, California, 1998

In 1998, a bathymetric survey was done to determine the storage capacity and the loss of capacity owing to sedimentation of Loch Lomond Reservoir in Santa Cruz County, California. Results of the survey indicate that the maximum capacity of the reservoir is 8,991 acre-feet in November 1998. The results of previous investigations indicate that storage capacity of the reservoir is less than 8,991 acr
Authors
Kelly R. McPherson, Jerry G. Harmon

Topography, surface features, and flooding of Rogers Lake playa, California

Rogers Lake is a desert playa used as a military airport for Edwards Air Force Base in the Antelope Valley of southern California. Previous measurements of land subsidence and ground-water levels in the study area indicated that ground-water pumping induced tensional stresses in the playa, which were sporadically relieved through the formation of long cracks. Drying of the sediments beneath the pl
Authors
Randal L. Dinehart, Kelly R. McPherson

Flood-inundation map and water surface profiles for floods of selected recurrence intervals, Cosumnes River and Deer Creek, Sacramento County, California

The damage caused by the January 1997 floods along the Cosumnes River and Deer Creek generated new interest in planning and managing land use in the study area. The 1997 floodflow peak, the highest on record and considered to be a 150-year flood, caused levee failures at 24 locations. In order to provide a technical basis for floodplain management practices, the U.S. Goelogical Survey, in cooperat
Authors
Joel R. Guay, Jerry G. Harmon, Kelly R. McPherson

Land use and water use in the Antelope Valley, California

Urban land use and water use in the Antelope Valley, California, have increased significantly since development of the valley began in the late 1800's.. Ground water has been a major source of water in this area because of limited local surface-water resources. Ground-water pumpage is reported to have increased from about 29,000 acre-feet in 1919 to about 400,000 acre-feet in the 1950's. Completio
Authors
William E. Templin, Steven P. Phillips, Daniel E. Cherry, Myrna L. DeBortoli, T.C. Haltom, Kelly R. McPherson, C.A. Mrozek
By
Water Resources Mission Area, California Water Science Center

Science and Products