Ken Belitz
Ken Belitz is a Research Hydrologist with the USGS Water Resources Mission Area.
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 23
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Filter Total Items: 204
Hydrocarbons in upland groundwater, Marcellus Shale Region, Northeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New York, USA
Water samples from 50 domestic wells located <1 km (proximal) and >1 km (distal) from shale-gas wells in upland areas of the Marcellus Shale region were analyzed for chemical, isotopic, and groundwater-age tracers. Uplands were targeted because natural mixing with brine and hydrocarbons from deep formations is less common in those areas compared to valleys. CH4-isotope, predrill CH4-concentration,
Authors
Peter B. McMahon, Bruce D. Lindsey, Matthew D. Conlon, Andrew G. Hunt, Kenneth Belitz, Bryant Jurgens, Brian A. Varela
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Energy Resources Program, National Water Quality Program, California Water Science Center, Central Energy Resources Science Center, Colorado Water Science Center, Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, New England Water Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center
Estimating domestic well locations and populations served in the contiguous U.S. for years 2000 and 2010
Domestic wells provide drinking water supply for approximately 40 million people in the United States. Knowing the location of these wells, and the populations they serve, is important for identifying heavily used aquifers, locations susceptible to contamination, and populations potentially impacted by poor-quality groundwater. The 1990 census was the last nationally consistent survey of a home’s
Authors
Tyler D. Johnson, Kenneth Belitz, Melissa Lombard
Assessing the lead solubility potential of untreated groundwater of the United States
In the U.S., about 44 million people rely on self-supplied groundwater for drinking water. Because most self-supplied homeowners do not treat their water to control corrosion, drinking water can be susceptible to lead (Pb) contamination from metal plumbing. To assess the types and locations of susceptible groundwater, a geochemical reaction model that included pure Pb minerals and solid solutions
Authors
Bryant Jurgens, David L. Parkhurst, Kenneth Belitz
Hormones and pharmaceuticals in groundwater used as a source of drinking water across the United States
This is the first large-scale, systematic assessment of hormone and pharmaceutical occurrence in groundwater used for drinking across the United States. Samples from 1091 sites in Principal Aquifers representing 60% of the volume pumped for drinking-water supply had final data for 21 hormones and 103 pharmaceuticals. At least one compound was detected at 5.9% of 844 sites representing the resource
Authors
Laura M. Bexfield, Patricia Toccalino, Kenneth Belitz, William T. Foreman, Edward Furlong
Elevated manganese concentrations in United States groundwater, role of land surface–soil–aquifer connections
Chemical data from 43 334 wells were used to examine the role of land surface–soil–aquifer connections in producing elevated manganese concentrations (>300 μg/L) in United States (U.S.) groundwater. Elevated concentrations of manganese and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in groundwater are associated with shallow, anoxic water tables and soils enriched in organic carbon, suggesting soil-derived DOC
Authors
Peter B. McMahon, Kenneth Belitz, James E. Reddy, Tyler D. Johnson
Metrics for assessing the quality of groundwater used for public supply, CA, USA: Equivalent-population and area
Data from 11 000 public supply wells in 87 study areas were used to assess the quality of nearly all of the groundwater used for public supply in California. Two metrics were developed for quantifying groundwater quality: area with high concentrations (km2 or proportion) and equivalent-population relying upon groundwater with high concentrations (number of people or proportion). Concentrations are
Authors
Kenneth Belitz, Miranda S. Fram, Tyler D. Johnson
Secondary hydrogeologic regions of the conterminous United States
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) previously identified and mapped 62 Principal Aquifers (PAs) in the U.S., with 57 located in the conterminous states. Areas outside of PAs, which account for about 40% of the conterminous U.S., were collectively identified as “other rocks.” This paper, for the first time, subdivides this large area into internally-consistent features, defined here as Secondary H
Authors
Kenneth Belitz, Elise Watson, Tyler D. Johnson, Jennifer B. Sharpe
Groundwater-quality and select quality-control data from the National Water-Quality Assessment Project, January through December 2015, and previously unpublished data from 2013 to 2014
Groundwater-quality data were collected from 502 wells as part of the National Water-Quality Assessment Project of the U.S. Geological Survey National Water-Quality Program and are included in this report. Most of the wells (500) were sampled from January through December 2015, and 2 of them were sampled in 2013. The data were collected from five types of well networks: principal aquifer study net
Authors
Terri Arnold, Laura M. Bexfield, MaryLynn Musgrove, Paul E. Stackelberg, Bruce D. Lindsey, James A. Kingsbury, Justin T. Kulongoski, Kenneth Belitz
Domestic well locations and populations served in the contiguous U.S.: 1990
We estimate the location and population served by domestic wells in the contiguous United States in two ways: (1) the “Block Group Method” or BGM, uses data from the 1990 census, and (2) the “Road-Enhanced Method” or REM, refines the locations by using a buffer expansion and shrinkage technique along roadways to define areas where domestic wells exist. The fundamental assumption is that houses (an
Authors
Tyler Johnson, Kenneth Belitz
Groundwater-quality data from the National Water-Quality Assessment Project, January through December 2014 and select quality-control data from May 2012 through December 2014
Groundwater-quality data were collected from 559 wells as part of the National Water-Quality Assessment Project of the U.S. Geological Survey National Water-Quality Program from January through December 2014. The data were collected from four types of well networks: principal aquifer study networks, which are used to assess the quality of groundwater used for public water supply; land-use study ne
Authors
Terri Arnold, Laura M. Bexfield, MaryLynn Musgrove, Bruce D. Lindsey, Paul E. Stackelberg, Jeannie R. B. Barlow, Leslie A. DeSimone, Justin T. Kulongoski, James A. Kingsbury, Joseph D. Ayotte, Brandon J. Fleming, Kenneth Belitz
Methane in aquifers used for public supply in the United States
In 2013 to 2015, 833 public supply wells in 15 Principal aquifers in the U.S. were sampled to identify which aquifers contained high methane concentrations (>1 mg/L) and determine the geologic, hydrologic, and geochemical conditions associated with high concentrations. This study represents the first national assessment of methane in aquifers used for public supply in the U.S. and, as such, advanc
Authors
Peter B. McMahon, Kenneth Belitz, Jeannie R. B. Barlow, Bryant C. Jurgens
A hybrid machine learning model to predict and visualize nitrate concentration throughout the Central Valley aquifer, California, USA
Intense demand for water in the Central Valley of California and related increases in groundwater nitrate concentration threaten the sustainability of the groundwater resource. To assess contamination risk in the region, we developed a hybrid, non-linear, machine learning model within a statistical learning framework to predict nitrate contamination of groundwater to depths of approximately 500 m
Authors
Katherine M. Ransom, Bernard T. Nolan, Jonathan A. Traum, Claudia C. Faunt, Andrew M. Bell, Jo Ann M. Gronberg, David C. Wheeler, Celia Zamora, Bryant C. Jurgens, Gregory E. Schwarz, Kenneth Belitz, Sandra M. Eberts, George Kourakos, Thomas Harter
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 23
No Result Found
Filter Total Items: 204
Hydrocarbons in upland groundwater, Marcellus Shale Region, Northeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New York, USA
Water samples from 50 domestic wells located <1 km (proximal) and >1 km (distal) from shale-gas wells in upland areas of the Marcellus Shale region were analyzed for chemical, isotopic, and groundwater-age tracers. Uplands were targeted because natural mixing with brine and hydrocarbons from deep formations is less common in those areas compared to valleys. CH4-isotope, predrill CH4-concentration,
Authors
Peter B. McMahon, Bruce D. Lindsey, Matthew D. Conlon, Andrew G. Hunt, Kenneth Belitz, Bryant Jurgens, Brian A. Varela
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Energy Resources Program, National Water Quality Program, California Water Science Center, Central Energy Resources Science Center, Colorado Water Science Center, Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, New England Water Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center
Estimating domestic well locations and populations served in the contiguous U.S. for years 2000 and 2010
Domestic wells provide drinking water supply for approximately 40 million people in the United States. Knowing the location of these wells, and the populations they serve, is important for identifying heavily used aquifers, locations susceptible to contamination, and populations potentially impacted by poor-quality groundwater. The 1990 census was the last nationally consistent survey of a home’s
Authors
Tyler D. Johnson, Kenneth Belitz, Melissa Lombard
Assessing the lead solubility potential of untreated groundwater of the United States
In the U.S., about 44 million people rely on self-supplied groundwater for drinking water. Because most self-supplied homeowners do not treat their water to control corrosion, drinking water can be susceptible to lead (Pb) contamination from metal plumbing. To assess the types and locations of susceptible groundwater, a geochemical reaction model that included pure Pb minerals and solid solutions
Authors
Bryant Jurgens, David L. Parkhurst, Kenneth Belitz
Hormones and pharmaceuticals in groundwater used as a source of drinking water across the United States
This is the first large-scale, systematic assessment of hormone and pharmaceutical occurrence in groundwater used for drinking across the United States. Samples from 1091 sites in Principal Aquifers representing 60% of the volume pumped for drinking-water supply had final data for 21 hormones and 103 pharmaceuticals. At least one compound was detected at 5.9% of 844 sites representing the resource
Authors
Laura M. Bexfield, Patricia Toccalino, Kenneth Belitz, William T. Foreman, Edward Furlong
Elevated manganese concentrations in United States groundwater, role of land surface–soil–aquifer connections
Chemical data from 43 334 wells were used to examine the role of land surface–soil–aquifer connections in producing elevated manganese concentrations (>300 μg/L) in United States (U.S.) groundwater. Elevated concentrations of manganese and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in groundwater are associated with shallow, anoxic water tables and soils enriched in organic carbon, suggesting soil-derived DOC
Authors
Peter B. McMahon, Kenneth Belitz, James E. Reddy, Tyler D. Johnson
Metrics for assessing the quality of groundwater used for public supply, CA, USA: Equivalent-population and area
Data from 11 000 public supply wells in 87 study areas were used to assess the quality of nearly all of the groundwater used for public supply in California. Two metrics were developed for quantifying groundwater quality: area with high concentrations (km2 or proportion) and equivalent-population relying upon groundwater with high concentrations (number of people or proportion). Concentrations are
Authors
Kenneth Belitz, Miranda S. Fram, Tyler D. Johnson
Secondary hydrogeologic regions of the conterminous United States
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) previously identified and mapped 62 Principal Aquifers (PAs) in the U.S., with 57 located in the conterminous states. Areas outside of PAs, which account for about 40% of the conterminous U.S., were collectively identified as “other rocks.” This paper, for the first time, subdivides this large area into internally-consistent features, defined here as Secondary H
Authors
Kenneth Belitz, Elise Watson, Tyler D. Johnson, Jennifer B. Sharpe
Groundwater-quality and select quality-control data from the National Water-Quality Assessment Project, January through December 2015, and previously unpublished data from 2013 to 2014
Groundwater-quality data were collected from 502 wells as part of the National Water-Quality Assessment Project of the U.S. Geological Survey National Water-Quality Program and are included in this report. Most of the wells (500) were sampled from January through December 2015, and 2 of them were sampled in 2013. The data were collected from five types of well networks: principal aquifer study net
Authors
Terri Arnold, Laura M. Bexfield, MaryLynn Musgrove, Paul E. Stackelberg, Bruce D. Lindsey, James A. Kingsbury, Justin T. Kulongoski, Kenneth Belitz
Domestic well locations and populations served in the contiguous U.S.: 1990
We estimate the location and population served by domestic wells in the contiguous United States in two ways: (1) the “Block Group Method” or BGM, uses data from the 1990 census, and (2) the “Road-Enhanced Method” or REM, refines the locations by using a buffer expansion and shrinkage technique along roadways to define areas where domestic wells exist. The fundamental assumption is that houses (an
Authors
Tyler Johnson, Kenneth Belitz
Groundwater-quality data from the National Water-Quality Assessment Project, January through December 2014 and select quality-control data from May 2012 through December 2014
Groundwater-quality data were collected from 559 wells as part of the National Water-Quality Assessment Project of the U.S. Geological Survey National Water-Quality Program from January through December 2014. The data were collected from four types of well networks: principal aquifer study networks, which are used to assess the quality of groundwater used for public water supply; land-use study ne
Authors
Terri Arnold, Laura M. Bexfield, MaryLynn Musgrove, Bruce D. Lindsey, Paul E. Stackelberg, Jeannie R. B. Barlow, Leslie A. DeSimone, Justin T. Kulongoski, James A. Kingsbury, Joseph D. Ayotte, Brandon J. Fleming, Kenneth Belitz
Methane in aquifers used for public supply in the United States
In 2013 to 2015, 833 public supply wells in 15 Principal aquifers in the U.S. were sampled to identify which aquifers contained high methane concentrations (>1 mg/L) and determine the geologic, hydrologic, and geochemical conditions associated with high concentrations. This study represents the first national assessment of methane in aquifers used for public supply in the U.S. and, as such, advanc
Authors
Peter B. McMahon, Kenneth Belitz, Jeannie R. B. Barlow, Bryant C. Jurgens
A hybrid machine learning model to predict and visualize nitrate concentration throughout the Central Valley aquifer, California, USA
Intense demand for water in the Central Valley of California and related increases in groundwater nitrate concentration threaten the sustainability of the groundwater resource. To assess contamination risk in the region, we developed a hybrid, non-linear, machine learning model within a statistical learning framework to predict nitrate contamination of groundwater to depths of approximately 500 m
Authors
Katherine M. Ransom, Bernard T. Nolan, Jonathan A. Traum, Claudia C. Faunt, Andrew M. Bell, Jo Ann M. Gronberg, David C. Wheeler, Celia Zamora, Bryant C. Jurgens, Gregory E. Schwarz, Kenneth Belitz, Sandra M. Eberts, George Kourakos, Thomas Harter