As Deputy Regional Director for the USGS Northwest-Pacific Islands Region, Patty Toccalino helps oversee 7 USGS Science Centers in the Region, works with Centers to broadly share their science, and helps find solutions to their challenges.
Patty Toccalino is the Deputy Regional Director for the USGS Northwest-Pacific Islands region which encompasses Department of the Interior Regions 9 and 12. Patty shares responsibility with the Regional Director for planning, directing, and evaluating all science and operational activities within 7 Ecosystems and Water Science Centers located in Hawaii, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.
Prior to joining the Region, Patty served as the principal advisor to the Program Coordinator for the USGS National Water Quality Program (NWQP) on all aspects of NWQP planning, funding, and communications with partners and stakeholders.
Patty’s scientific expertise lies at the interfaces between environmental chemistry, toxicology, risk assessment, and the fate and transport of contaminants in the environment. She led an interagency collaborative effort to evaluate the occurrence and potential human-health significance of unregulated contaminants in the Nation’s water resources, including chemical mixtures and emerging contaminants, and briefed Congressional staff on findings.
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...
New Water-Quality Directions
As the USGS Water Resources Mission Area looks to the future, we are updating our water programs to meet 21st century water-resource challenges. As part of these updates, we are integrating the National Water Quality Assessment Project's water-resource monitoring, assessment, trends, modeling, and forecasting activities into new WMA programs.
National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA)
Our surface water, groundwater, and aquatic ecosystems are priceless resources, used by people across the Nation for drinking, irrigation, industry, and recreation. The National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Project is a leading source of scientific data and knowledge for development of science-based policies and management strategies to improve and protect our water resources.
Drinking Water and Source Water Research
Reliable drinking water is vital for the health and safety of all Americans. The USGS monitors and assesses the quality of the water used as a source for our nation's drinking water needs.
Public Supply Wells
Are you among the more than 100 million people in the U.S. who relies on a public-supply well for your drinking water? Although the quality of finished drinking water from public water systems is regulated by the EPA, long-term protection and management of the raw groundwater tapped by public-supply wells requires an understanding of the occurrence of contaminants in this invisible, vital resource...
Surface-Water Quality and Ecology
Research by the USGS National Water Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Project on water quality of rivers and streams covers a broad range of topics, from nonpoint pollution issues to vulnerability of aquatic ecosystems. Dive in and find out more about current water-quality conditions, how and where water quality is changing, and the latest information on pesticides, nutrients, and other contaminants.
National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA): 1991-2012
In 1991, Congress established the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Project to address where, when, why, and how the Nation's water quality has changed, or is likely to change in the future, in response to human activities and natural factors. This page discusses the first two decadal cycles of NAWQA research from 1991 through 2012.
Small Decadal–Scale Changes in Pesticides in Groundwater
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists have completed the most comprehensive evaluation to date (2014) of decadal–scale changes in pesticide concentrations in groundwater of the United States. Such assessments are essential for tracking long–term responses to changes in pesticide use and land–management practices.
USGS Health-Based Screening Levels Available Online
A U.S. Geological Survey USGS Health-Based Screening Level (HBSL) Web site includes human-health benchmarks for 351 contaminants (79 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs), 117 EPA Human Health Benchmarks for Pesticides (HHBPs), and 155 USGS HBSLs). The Web site also provides detailed toxicity information used to calculate HBSLs. A comprehensive update of the...
Science and Products
- Publications
- Science
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...New Water-Quality Directions
As the USGS Water Resources Mission Area looks to the future, we are updating our water programs to meet 21st century water-resource challenges. As part of these updates, we are integrating the National Water Quality Assessment Project's water-resource monitoring, assessment, trends, modeling, and forecasting activities into new WMA programs.National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA)
Our surface water, groundwater, and aquatic ecosystems are priceless resources, used by people across the Nation for drinking, irrigation, industry, and recreation. The National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Project is a leading source of scientific data and knowledge for development of science-based policies and management strategies to improve and protect our water resources.Drinking Water and Source Water Research
Reliable drinking water is vital for the health and safety of all Americans. The USGS monitors and assesses the quality of the water used as a source for our nation's drinking water needs.Public Supply Wells
Are you among the more than 100 million people in the U.S. who relies on a public-supply well for your drinking water? Although the quality of finished drinking water from public water systems is regulated by the EPA, long-term protection and management of the raw groundwater tapped by public-supply wells requires an understanding of the occurrence of contaminants in this invisible, vital resource...Surface-Water Quality and Ecology
Research by the USGS National Water Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Project on water quality of rivers and streams covers a broad range of topics, from nonpoint pollution issues to vulnerability of aquatic ecosystems. Dive in and find out more about current water-quality conditions, how and where water quality is changing, and the latest information on pesticides, nutrients, and other contaminants.National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA): 1991-2012
In 1991, Congress established the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Project to address where, when, why, and how the Nation's water quality has changed, or is likely to change in the future, in response to human activities and natural factors. This page discusses the first two decadal cycles of NAWQA research from 1991 through 2012.Small Decadal–Scale Changes in Pesticides in Groundwater
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists have completed the most comprehensive evaluation to date (2014) of decadal–scale changes in pesticide concentrations in groundwater of the United States. Such assessments are essential for tracking long–term responses to changes in pesticide use and land–management practices.USGS Health-Based Screening Levels Available Online
A U.S. Geological Survey USGS Health-Based Screening Level (HBSL) Web site includes human-health benchmarks for 351 contaminants (79 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs), 117 EPA Human Health Benchmarks for Pesticides (HHBPs), and 155 USGS HBSLs). The Web site also provides detailed toxicity information used to calculate HBSLs. A comprehensive update of the... - Data
- Multimedia
*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