Collecting water quality samples from the New River Gorge in support of USGS-NPS partnership.
Fall 2022 Photo Contest Winner: Matt Kearns, USGS at Work category
Matthew R. Kearns
Matt Kearns is a hydrologist in the Charleston Field Office of the Virginia and West Virginia Water Science Center.
Matt works on a variety of water resources studies, including water availability and water use.
Current projects and interests:
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Groundwater assessment of Fauquier County, Virginia
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West Virginia Aquifer characterization with borehole geophysics
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Mid-Atlantic water use and consumption
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Water resources management for ecological and environmental flows
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Drought and climate change
Education and Certifications
M.S. Forest Resource Management, West Virginia University
B.S. Marine and Environmental Science, United State Coast Guard Academy
Science and Products
Water withdrawal data of selected public water systems in West Virginia, 2014 - 2020
Raster and vector geospatial data of interpolated groundwater level altitude associated with a groundwater-level map of Fauquier County, Virginia, October - November 2018
Collecting water quality samples from the New River Gorge in support of USGS-NPS partnership.
Fall 2022 Photo Contest Winner: Matt Kearns, USGS at Work category
Drought-vulnerability assessment of public water systems in West Virginia
Groundwater-level contour map of Fauquier County, Virginia, October-November 2018
Interactive Map: West Virginia Public Water System Drought Risk
This application is intended to help emergency, environmental, and public health managers at the federal, state, and local levels in West Virginia evaluate, plan for, and respond to potential drought conditions in at-risk communities. It uses estimated public water supply withdrawal rates to symbolize modeled drought conditions once every hour using National Water Model streamflow estimates.
Science and Products
- Data
Water withdrawal data of selected public water systems in West Virginia, 2014 - 2020
These data were collected to support a drought-vulnerability assessment and near real-time drought awareness web tool for public water systems (PWS) on surface water supply in West Virginia. PWS withdrawal rates were evaluated against USGS low-flow stream statistics, modeled streamflow from the National Water Model, and thresholds from state drought response guidelines and ecological-flow literatuRaster and vector geospatial data of interpolated groundwater level altitude associated with a groundwater-level map of Fauquier County, Virginia, October - November 2018
This dataset is the product of a geospatial interpolation using groundwater-level data obtained from a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) synoptic survey of 129 groundwater wells in Fauquier County, VA from October 29 through November 2, 2018 and selected points from the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD). Methodology is detailed in USGS SIR 2022-5014 "Groundwater-level contour map of Fauquier County, - Multimedia
Collecting water quality samples from the New River GorgeCollecting water quality samples from the New River Gorge
Collecting water quality samples from the New River Gorge in support of USGS-NPS partnership.
Fall 2022 Photo Contest Winner: Matt Kearns, USGS at Work categoryCollecting water quality samples from the New River Gorge in support of USGS-NPS partnership.
Fall 2022 Photo Contest Winner: Matt Kearns, USGS at Work category - Publications
Drought-vulnerability assessment of public water systems in West Virginia
Water withdrawn from rivers and streams accounts for approximately 80 percent of the public water supply in West Virginia. Localized and (or) seasonal droughts may threaten future water availability in the state, particularly in rural communities located in the headwaters of unregulated watersheds. Monthly water withdrawal data obtained from the West Virginia Department of Environmental ProtectionAuthorsMatthew R. Kearns, Kaycee E. Faunce, Terence MessingerGroundwater-level contour map of Fauquier County, Virginia, October-November 2018
Groundwater withdrawals provide most public-water supplies and all private-domestic users in Fauquier County, Virginia, a fast-growing rural area southwest of Washington, D.C. Groundwater levels were measured in 129 wells during a county-wide synoptic survey from October 29 through November 2, 2018. Field measurements, combined with datapoints from the National Hydrography Dataset, were used to deAuthorsMatthew R. Kearns, Kurt J. McCoy - Web Tools
Interactive Map: West Virginia Public Water System Drought Risk
This application is intended to help emergency, environmental, and public health managers at the federal, state, and local levels in West Virginia evaluate, plan for, and respond to potential drought conditions in at-risk communities. It uses estimated public water supply withdrawal rates to symbolize modeled drought conditions once every hour using National Water Model streamflow estimates.