Lori Sprague

Lori Sprague is a Hydrologist and Senior Policy Advisor in the Office of the Associate Director of the USGS Water Resources Mission Area. The Water Resources Mission Area works with Federal, State, Tribal, and local partners to monitor, assess, research, and deliver information on the quantity, quality, and use of the Nation's surface and ground waters. Lori is also the USGS representative on the interagency Mississippi River/Gulf of Mexico Watershed Nutrient Task Force coordinating committee.  The Task Force works to understand the causes and effects of eutrophication in the Gulf of Mexico; coordinate activities to reduce the size, severity, and duration of the seasonal hypoxic zone in the Gulf of Mexico; and ameliorate the effects of hypoxia.  See https://www.epa.gov/ms-htf/ for more information.

PUBLICATIONS

EG Stets, LA Sprague, GP Oelsner, HM Johnson, JC Murphy, KR Ryberg, AV Vecchia, RE Zuellig, JA Falcone, and ML Riskin, 2020, Landscape drivers of dynamic change in water quality of U.S. rivers: Environmental Science and Technology, https://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.9b05344.

LA Sprague, RA Mitchell, AI Pollard, and JA Falcone, 2019, Assessing water-quality changes in U.S. rivers at multiple geographic scales using results from probabilistic and targeted monitoring: Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, vol. 191.

SM Stackpoole, EG Stets, and LA Sprague, 2019, Variable impacts of contemporary versus legacy agricultural phosphorus on U.S. river water quality: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 116, p. 20562-20567.

JT Crawford, EG Stets, and LA Sprague, 2019, Network controls on mean and variance of nitrate loads from the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico: Journal of Environmental Quality, vol. 48, p. 1789-1799.

JA Falcone, JC Murphy, and LA Sprague, 2019, Regional patterns of anthropogenic influences on streams and rivers in the conterminous United States, from the early 1970s to 2012, Journal of Land Use Science, vol. 13, p. 585–614.

JC Murphy and LA Sprague, 2019, Water-quality trends in US rivers: Exploring effects from streamflow trends and changes in watershed management: Science of The Total Environment, vol. 656, p. 645-658.

ME Shoda, LA Sprague, JC Murphy, and ML Riskin, 2019, Water-quality trends in U.S. rivers, 2002 to 2012: Relations to levels of concern: Science of the Total Environment, vol. 650, p. 2314-2324.

JC Murphy, WH Farmer, LA Sprague, LA De Cicco, and RM Hirsch, 2018, Water-quality trends and trend component estimates for the Nation's rivers and streams using Weighted Regressions on Time, Discharge, and Season (WRTDS) models and generalized flow normalization, 1972-2012: U.S. Geological Survey data release.

HM Amos, CF Miniat, J Lynch, J Compton, PH Templer, LA Sprague, D Shaw, D Burns, A Rea, D Whitall, L Myles, D Gay, M Nilles, J Walker, AK Rose, J Bales, J Deacon, and R Pouyat, 2018, What Goes Up Must Come Down: Integrating Air and Water Quality Monitoring for Nutrients: Environmental Science & Technology, vol. 52, p. 11441-11448.

JC Murphy, WH Farmer, LA Sprague, LA De Cicco, and RM Hirsch, 2018, Water-quality trends and trend component estimates for the Nation's rivers and streams using Weighted Regressions on Time, Discharge, and Season (WRTDS) models and generalized flow normalization, 1972-2012: U.S Geological Survey data release.

LA Sprague, GP Oelsner, and DM Argue, 2017, Challenges with secondary use of multi-source water-quality data in the United States: Water Research, vol. 110, p. 252-261.

GP Oelsner, LA Sprague, JC Murphy, RE Zuellig, HM Johnson, KR Ryberg, JA Falcone, EG Stets, AV Vecchia, ML Riskin, LA De Cicco, TJ Mills, and WH Farmer, 2017, Water-quality trends in the Nation's rivers and streams 1972-2012—Data preparation, statistical methods, and trend results: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2017-5006, 136 p.

LA Sprague, 2017, Water-quality changes in the Nation's streams and rivers: U.S. Geological Survey Web Page, http://nawqatrends.wim.usgs.gov/swtrends.

LA De Cicco, LA Sprague, JC Murphy, ML Riskin, JA Falcone, EG Stets, GP Oelsner, and HM Johnson, 2017, Water-quality and streamflow datasets used in the Weighted Regressions on Time, Discharge, and Season (WRTDS) models to determine trends in the Nation’s rivers and streams, 1972-2012: U.S. Geological Survey data release.

TJ Mills, LA Sprague, JC Murphy, ML Riskin, JA Falcone, EG Stets, GP Oelsner, and HM Johnson, 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.

JC Murphy, RM Hirsch, LA Sprague, 2014, Antecedent flow conditions and nitrate concentrations in the Mississippi River basin: Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, vol. 18, p. 967-979. 

JC Murphy, RM Hirsch, LA Sprague., 2013, Nitrate in the Mississippi River and its tributaries, 1980-2010--An update: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2013-5169, 31 p.

LA Sprague and JM Gronberg, 2013, Estimated anthropogenic nitrogen and phosphorus inputs to the land surface of the conterminous United States—1992, 1997, and 2002: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2012–5241, 14 p.

LA Sprague and JM Gronberg, 2012, Relating management practices and nutrient export in agricultural watersheds of the United States: Journal of Environmental Quality, vol. 41, p. 1939-1950.

LA Sprague, RM Hirsch, BT Aulenbach, 2011, Nitrate in the Mississippi River and its tributaries: are we making progress?: Environmental Science and Technology, vol. 45, no. 17, p. 7209–7216.

JB Brown, LA Sprague, and JA Dupree, 2011, Nutrient sources and transport in the Missouri River Basin, with emphasis on the effects of reservoirs and irrigation: Journal of the American Water Resources Association , vol. 47, no. 5, p. 1034-1060.

NL Booth, EE Everman, IL Kuo, LA Sprague, LA Murphy, 2011, A web-based decision support system for assessing regional water-quality conditions and planning management actions: Journal of the American Water Resources Association, vol. 47, no. 5, p. 1136-1150.

DC Heimann, LA Sprague, DW Blevins, 2011, Trends in suspended-sediment loads and concentrations in the Mississippi River Basin, 1950–2009: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2011–5200, 33 p.

NM Dubrovsky, KR Burow, GM Clark, JM Gronberg, PA Hamilton, KJ Hitt, DK Mueller, MD Munn, BT Nolan, LJ Puckett, MG Rupert, TM Short, NE Spahr, LA Sprague, and WG Wilber, 2010, The quality of our Nation’s waters—Nutrients in the Nation’s streams and groundwater, 1992–2004: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1350, 174 p.

LA Sprague and DL Lorenz, 2009, Regional nutrient trends in streams and rivers of the United States, 1993–2003: Environmental Science and Technology, v. 43, no.10, p. 3430-3435.

LA Sprague, DK Mueller, GE Schwarz, DL Lorenz, 2009, Nutrient trends in streams and rivers of the United States, 1993–2003: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2008-5202, 196 p.

EMP Giddings, AH Bell, KM Beaulieu, TF Cuffney, JF Coles, LR Brown, FA Fitzpatrick, J. Falcone, LA Sprague, WL Bryant, MC Peppler, C Stephens, and G McMahon, 2009, Selected physical, chemical, and biological data used to study urbanizing streams in nine metropolitan areas of the United States, 1999–2004: U.S. Geological Survey Data Series 423, 11 p.

LA Sprague and LH Nowell, 2008, Comparison of pesticide concentrations in streams at low flow in six metropolitan areas of the United States: Journal of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, v. 27, no. 2, p. 288-298.

LA Sprague, DA Harned, DW Hall, LH Nowell, NJ Bauch, and KD Richards, 2007, Response of stream chemistry during base flow to gradients of urbanization in selected locations across the conterminous United States, 2002–04: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2007–5083, 132 p.

RE Zuellig, LA Sprague, JA Collins, and ON Cox, 2007, Aquatic communities and selected water chemistry in St. Vrain Creek near the City of Longmont, Colorado, wastewater-treatment plant, 2005 and 2006: U.S. Geological Survey Data Report 253.

LA Sprague, ML Clark, DL Rus, RB Zelt, JL Flynn, JV Davis, 2006, Trends of nutrients and suspended sediment in the Missouri River Basin, 1993-2003: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2006-5231, 80 p.

LA Sprague, RE Zuellig, and JA Dupree, 2006, Effects of urbanization on stream ecosystems in the South Platte River Basin, Colorado and Wyoming: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2006-5101-A, 139 p.

LA Sprague, RE Zuellig, and JA Dupree, 2006, Effects of urban development on stream ecosystems along the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, Colorado and Wyoming: U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 2006-3083, 4 p.

JA Collins and LA Sprague, 2005, The Cache la Poudre River, Colorado, as a drinking-water source: U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 2005-3037, 4 p.

LA Sprague and WA Battaglin, 2005, Wastewater chemicals in Colorado’s streams and ground water: U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 2004-3127, 4 p.

LA Sprague, 2005, Drought effects on water quality in the South Platte River Basin, Colorado: Journal of the American Water Resources Association, v. 41, no. 1, p. 11-24.

MR Stevens and LA Sprague, 2003, Hydrology and water-quality characteristics of Muddy Creek and Wolford Mountain Reservoir near Kremmling, Colorado, 1990 through 2001: U.S. Geological Survey Water Resources Investigations Report 03-4073, 82 p.

LA Sprague and AI Greve, 2003, Changes in nutrient and pesticide concentrations in urban and agricultural areas of the South Platte River Basin, Colorado, Wyoming, and Nebraska, 1994-2000: U.S. Geological Survey Water Resources Investigations Report 02-4270, 12 p.

JS Herman, SJ Kauffman, LA Sprague, KE Hyer, GM Hornberger, 2002, Facilitated transport of atrazine in an agricultural watershed, in Colloids and colloid-facilitated transport of contaminants in soils and sediments, de Jonge, LW, Moldrup, Per, and Jacobsen, OH (eds.), Danish Institute of Agricultural Sciences Plant Production report no. 80, 324 p.

LA Sprague, 2002, Nutrient dynamics in off-stream reservoirs of the lower South Platte River Basin, 1995: U.S. Geological Survey Water Resources Investigations Report 02-4142, 72 p.

LA Sprague, RK Kimbrough, TJ Ranalli, 2002, What happens to nutrients in offstream reservoirs in the lower South Platte River Basin?: U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 044-02, 6 p.

LA Sprague, 2001, Effects of storm-sampling frequency on estimation of water-quality loads and trends in two tributaries to Chesapeake Bay in Virginia: U.S. Geological Survey Water Resources Investigations Report 01-4136, 39 p.

MJ Langland, RE Edwards, LA Sprague, SE Yochum, 2001, Summary of trends and status analysis for flow, nutrients, and sediments at selected non-tidal sites, Chesapeake Bay Basin, 1985-99: U.S. Geological Survey Open File Report 01-73, 49 p.

LA Sprague, MJ Langland, SE Yochum, RE Edwards, JD Blomquist, SW Phillips, GW Shenk, and SD Preston, 2000, Factors affecting nutrient trends in major rivers of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed: U.S. Geological Survey Water Resources Investigations Report 00-4218, 98 p.

LA Sprague, JS Herman, GM Hornberger, AL Mills, 2000, Atrazine adsorption and colloid-facilitated transport through the unsaturated zone: Journal of Environmental Quality, v. 29, no. 5, p. 1632-1641.

MJ Langland, JD Blomquist, LA Sprague, RE Edwards, 2000, Trends and status of flow, nutrients, and sediments for selected non-tidal sites in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, 1985-98: U.S. Geological Survey Open File Report 99-451, 46 p.

DL Belval and LA Sprague, 1999, Monitoring nutrients in the major rivers draining to Chesapeake Bay: U.S. Geological Survey Water Resources Investigations Report 99-4238, 8 p.