View looking upstream from the hiking trail at Dinosaur national monument. Shows Brown's Park, our camp and the boats, beach, river, scenic background with cottonwoods
Melissa A Lombard
Melissa Lombard is a Research Hydrologist in the New England Water Science Center.
In the broadest sense, Melissa's work is at the intersection of humans and the environment. Her research interests include connecting environmental geochemistry with human and ecosystem health. She uses machine learning models as a tool to understand, estimate, and predict contaminant occurrence in groundwater. She enjoys collaborating with epidemiologists and public health scientists to link the occurrence of contaminants in drinking water to human health outcomes. Melissa currently oversees and coordinates research at the USGS related to PFAS contamination of groundwater on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Prior to joining the USGS, her research included examining the potential human health effects from exposure to biodiesel and petroleum diesel emissions, the occurrence of mercury in rainwater, and the occurrence of pesticides and herbicides in groundwater. She has also worked with K-12 science educators and taught college level courses in geology and environmental science.
Science and Products
Coproduced Science Linking Environmental and Public-Health Data to Evaluate Drinking Water Arsenic Exposure on Birth Outcomes
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists teamed up with public-health epidemiologists to probe for associations between arsenic in drinking water and human-birth outcomes. They reported a modest inverse relation between birth weight and arsenic exposure. Findings indicate that future research efforts using individual-level exposure data such as measured arsenic concentrations in tap water could...
USGS Publications on the Water Resources of Cape Cod and Southeastern Massachusetts
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has been investigating groundwater and surface-water resources on Cape Cod for more than 50 years. Recent studies have focused on the sources of water to public-supply wells, ponds, streams, and coastal areas; transport and discharge of nitrogen and contaminants of emerging concern derived from domestic and municipal wastewater disposal; fate and transport of...
Preliminary Research into the Causes of Iron Fouling in Water at Roadway Construction Sites
The USGS and the New Hampshire Department of Transportation are conducting preliminary research into the causes of iron fouling in water at roadway construction sites where blasted bedrock is used as on-site fill material.
Towards Understanding the Impact of Drought on the Arsenic Hazard for the Private Domestic Well Population in the United States
The USGS and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are examining the potential effects of droughts on the arsenic hazard in private well water across the Nation.
Linking environmental and public health data to evaluate health effects of arsenic exposure from domestic and public supply wells
Everyone needs clean drinking water in order to thrive. The US EPA and public water purveyors in the US work together in adherence with the Safe Drinking Water Act to make water safe for public consumption. The recent media coverage of lead in public drinking water supplies in Flint, Michigan, and schools in many cities with aging infrastructure throughout the US has raised public...
Camp and River in Dinosaur National Monument
View looking upstream from the hiking trail at Dinosaur national monument. Shows Brown's Park, our camp and the boats, beach, river, scenic background with cottonwoods
A meander in the Green River at Brown's Park
A view looking down on the river from the hills above camp. View is upstream and shows a nice river meander with a point bar and scenic hills in the background. This is in Brown's Park.
A view looking down on the river from the hills above camp. View is upstream and shows a nice river meander with a point bar and scenic hills in the background. This is in Brown's Park.
Gates of Lodore looming from Brown's Park
The scenic view of the Gates of Lodore from Brown's Park. The Green River through Brown's Park is very calm, slow moving water, with canyon walls and up ahead looms the scar where the river has eroded it's way down through the mountains.
The scenic view of the Gates of Lodore from Brown's Park. The Green River through Brown's Park is very calm, slow moving water, with canyon walls and up ahead looms the scar where the river has eroded it's way down through the mountains.
Uinta formation on a misty morning
A great examples of the crossbeds in the Uinta Formation, a quarzite dating back to the PreCambrian, on a beautiful sunny morning with mist hanging above the river as the sun rises.
A great examples of the crossbeds in the Uinta Formation, a quarzite dating back to the PreCambrian, on a beautiful sunny morning with mist hanging above the river as the sun rises.
Majestic eagle
A close-up of a bald eagle hanging out on a cliff along the Green River in swallow canyon
A close-up of a bald eagle hanging out on a cliff along the Green River in swallow canyon
SCREE rafts going through Swallow Canyon
Two of the SCREE rafts heading downstream through Swallow Canyon
Two of the SCREE rafts heading downstream through Swallow Canyon
Cliff Swallow Nests in Swallow Canyon
A group of cliff swallow nests made from mud in the river in Swallow Canyon. Many of the nests have birds in them and can be identified by their yellow beaks sticking out.
A group of cliff swallow nests made from mud in the river in Swallow Canyon. Many of the nests have birds in them and can be identified by their yellow beaks sticking out.
Pelicans in Brown's Park
A flock of pelicans in the water in Brown's Park.
A flock of pelicans in the water in Brown's Park.
Immediately downstream of Flaming Gorge Dam
View looking upstream at Flaming Gorge Dam from the boat launch area
View looking upstream at Flaming Gorge Dam from the boat launch area
Green River Downstream of Flaming Gorge Dam
View looking downstream from just below the boat launch at Flaming Gorge Dam.
View looking downstream from just below the boat launch at Flaming Gorge Dam.
Science and Products
Coproduced Science Linking Environmental and Public-Health Data to Evaluate Drinking Water Arsenic Exposure on Birth Outcomes
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists teamed up with public-health epidemiologists to probe for associations between arsenic in drinking water and human-birth outcomes. They reported a modest inverse relation between birth weight and arsenic exposure. Findings indicate that future research efforts using individual-level exposure data such as measured arsenic concentrations in tap water could...
USGS Publications on the Water Resources of Cape Cod and Southeastern Massachusetts
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has been investigating groundwater and surface-water resources on Cape Cod for more than 50 years. Recent studies have focused on the sources of water to public-supply wells, ponds, streams, and coastal areas; transport and discharge of nitrogen and contaminants of emerging concern derived from domestic and municipal wastewater disposal; fate and transport of...
Preliminary Research into the Causes of Iron Fouling in Water at Roadway Construction Sites
The USGS and the New Hampshire Department of Transportation are conducting preliminary research into the causes of iron fouling in water at roadway construction sites where blasted bedrock is used as on-site fill material.
Towards Understanding the Impact of Drought on the Arsenic Hazard for the Private Domestic Well Population in the United States
The USGS and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are examining the potential effects of droughts on the arsenic hazard in private well water across the Nation.
Linking environmental and public health data to evaluate health effects of arsenic exposure from domestic and public supply wells
Everyone needs clean drinking water in order to thrive. The US EPA and public water purveyors in the US work together in adherence with the Safe Drinking Water Act to make water safe for public consumption. The recent media coverage of lead in public drinking water supplies in Flint, Michigan, and schools in many cities with aging infrastructure throughout the US has raised public...
Camp and River in Dinosaur National Monument
View looking upstream from the hiking trail at Dinosaur national monument. Shows Brown's Park, our camp and the boats, beach, river, scenic background with cottonwoods
View looking upstream from the hiking trail at Dinosaur national monument. Shows Brown's Park, our camp and the boats, beach, river, scenic background with cottonwoods
A meander in the Green River at Brown's Park
A view looking down on the river from the hills above camp. View is upstream and shows a nice river meander with a point bar and scenic hills in the background. This is in Brown's Park.
A view looking down on the river from the hills above camp. View is upstream and shows a nice river meander with a point bar and scenic hills in the background. This is in Brown's Park.
Gates of Lodore looming from Brown's Park
The scenic view of the Gates of Lodore from Brown's Park. The Green River through Brown's Park is very calm, slow moving water, with canyon walls and up ahead looms the scar where the river has eroded it's way down through the mountains.
The scenic view of the Gates of Lodore from Brown's Park. The Green River through Brown's Park is very calm, slow moving water, with canyon walls and up ahead looms the scar where the river has eroded it's way down through the mountains.
Uinta formation on a misty morning
A great examples of the crossbeds in the Uinta Formation, a quarzite dating back to the PreCambrian, on a beautiful sunny morning with mist hanging above the river as the sun rises.
A great examples of the crossbeds in the Uinta Formation, a quarzite dating back to the PreCambrian, on a beautiful sunny morning with mist hanging above the river as the sun rises.
Majestic eagle
A close-up of a bald eagle hanging out on a cliff along the Green River in swallow canyon
A close-up of a bald eagle hanging out on a cliff along the Green River in swallow canyon
SCREE rafts going through Swallow Canyon
Two of the SCREE rafts heading downstream through Swallow Canyon
Two of the SCREE rafts heading downstream through Swallow Canyon
Cliff Swallow Nests in Swallow Canyon
A group of cliff swallow nests made from mud in the river in Swallow Canyon. Many of the nests have birds in them and can be identified by their yellow beaks sticking out.
A group of cliff swallow nests made from mud in the river in Swallow Canyon. Many of the nests have birds in them and can be identified by their yellow beaks sticking out.
Pelicans in Brown's Park
A flock of pelicans in the water in Brown's Park.
A flock of pelicans in the water in Brown's Park.
Immediately downstream of Flaming Gorge Dam
View looking upstream at Flaming Gorge Dam from the boat launch area
View looking upstream at Flaming Gorge Dam from the boat launch area
Green River Downstream of Flaming Gorge Dam
View looking downstream from just below the boat launch at Flaming Gorge Dam.
View looking downstream from just below the boat launch at Flaming Gorge Dam.
*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