Richard L. Smith, Ph.D.
Dr. Richard L. Smith is an Emeritus Microbial Ecologist with expertise in biogeochemistry with the USGS Water Resources Mission Area.
Dr. Richard L. Smith is a microbial ecologist with expertise in biogeochemistry. His research interests have focused upon quantifying in situ rates of microbial processes within aquatic environments and the factors controlling these processes, particularly within the context of the ecosystem. One major study topic has been carbon and nitrogen cycling in groundwater and at the groundwater-surface water interface. These studies have also included characterizing the physiological state of groundwater bacteria, the effect bacteria have upon aquifer geochemistry, developing techniques to assess microbial processes in situ, nitrogen cycling, and bioremediation. Other research areas include biogeochemical processes in freshwater lakes and rivers, agricultural drainages, and in an amictic Antarctic lake.
Education
- BS (Biology) Western Michigan University, 1974
- MS (Biology) Western Michigan University, 1976
- PhD (Microbial Ecology) Michigan State University, 1981
Work Experience
- Postdoc. NRC Postdoctoral Fellow, US Geological Survey, Menlo Park, CA 1981-1983
- Research Hydrologist. USGS, Arvada, CO, 1983-1988
- Research Hydrologist. USGS, Boulder, CO, 1988-2016
- Research Hydrologist. Earth System Processes Division, USGS, Boulder, CO, 2016-2019
- Emeritus Scientist. Earth System Processes Division, USGS, Boulder, CO, 2019-present
Professional affiliations or activities
- American Society for Microbiology
- American Society of Limnology and Oceanography
- American Geophysical Union
- International Society for Microbial Ecology
- Geological Society of America
- International Committee of the Symposium for Subsurface Microbiology, 1999-present
- Executive Committee AGU Biogeosciences Section, 1999-2004
- AGU Award Committee for Excellence in Science Journalism Features, 2000-2004
- AGU Award Committee for Excellence in Science Journalism News, 2000-2004
- USGS Water Resour. Div. Ecology Research Advisor, 1998-2000; Assistant Ecology Research Advisor, 1994-1997
- Co-chair, 1999 International Symposium on Subsurface Microbiology
Honors, awards
- 2020: Geologic Society of America Fellowship
- 2011-2018: USGS, Performance Awards
- 2005: USGS, Superior Service Award
- 2002: USGS, Meritorious Service Award
- 1999 & 2001: USGS, STAR Award
- 1998: AGU Editor’s Citation for Excellence in Refereering
- 1981: National Acad. Sci. Postdoctoral Fellowship
Patents
- U.S. Patent, Small-Scale Hydrogen Oxidizing Denitrifying Bioreactor for Treatment of Nitrate-Contaminated Drinking Water
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 98
Sedimentation and bathymetric change in San Pablo Bay: 1856-1983 Sedimentation and bathymetric change in San Pablo Bay: 1856-1983
A long-term perspective of erosion and deposition in San Francisco Bay is vital to understanding and managing wetland change, harbor and channel siltation, and other sediment-related phenomena such as particle and particle-associated substance (pollutants, trace metals, etc.) transport and deposition. A quantitative comparison of historical hydrographic surveys provides this perspective...
Authors
Bruce Jaffe, Richard Smith, Laura Torresan
A nowcast model for tides and tidal currents in San Francisco Bay, California A nowcast model for tides and tidal currents in San Francisco Bay, California
National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) installed Physical Oceanographic Real-Time System (PORTS) in San Francisco Bay, California to provide observations of tides, tidal currents, and meteorological conditions. PORTS data are used for optimizing vessel operations, increasing margin of safety for navigation, and guiding hazardous material spill prevention and...
Authors
Ralph Cheng, Richard E. Smith
Regional interpretation of water-quality monitoring data Regional interpretation of water-quality monitoring data
We describe a method for using spatially referenced regressions of contaminant transport on watershed attributes (SPARROW) in regional water-quality assessment. The method is designed to reduce the problems of data interpretation caused by sparse sampling, network bias, and basin heterogeneity. The regression equation relates measured transport rates in streams to spatially referenced...
Authors
Richard Smith, Gregory E. Schwarz, Richard Alexander
Bottom boundary layer in south San Francisco Bay, California Bottom boundary layer in south San Francisco Bay, California
Detailed velocity distributions within the benthic turbulent boundary layer were measured by a Broad Band Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (BB-ADCP) in South San Francisco Bay, California. In "mode 5", the BB-ADCP was able to measure velocity in 5 cm increments. The validation of these measurements was achieved by comparing the BB-ADCP measurements with the velocities measured by a...
Authors
Ralph Cheng, Jeffrey Gartner, Richard Smith
Seasonal/yearly salinity variations in San Francisco Bay Seasonal/yearly salinity variations in San Francisco Bay
The ability of resource agencies to manage fish, wildlife and freshwater supplies of San Francisco Bay estuary requires an integrated knowledge of the relations between the biota and their physical environment. A key factor in these relations is the role of salinity in determining both the physical and the biological character of the estuary. The saltiness of the water, and particularly...
Authors
David H. Peterson, Daniel Cayan, Michael D. Dettinger, Jeanne DiLeo, Stephen Hager, Noah Knowles, Frederic Nichols, Laurence Schemel, Richard Smith, Reginald Uncles
Autotrophic, hydrogen-oxidizing, denitrifying bacteria in groundwater, potential agents for bioremediation of nitrate contamination Autotrophic, hydrogen-oxidizing, denitrifying bacteria in groundwater, potential agents for bioremediation of nitrate contamination
Addition of hydrogen or formate significantly enhanced the rate of consumption of nitrate in slurried core samples obtained from an active zone of denitrification in a nitrate-contaminated sand and gravel aquifer (Cape Cod, Mass.). Hydrogen uptake by the core material was immediate and rapid, with an apparent Km of 0.45 to 0.60 μM and a Vmax of 18.7 nmol cm-3 h-1 at 30°C. Nine strains of...
Authors
Richard Smith, M.L. Ceazan, Myron Brooks
Regional estimates of the amount of U.S. agricultural land located in watersheds with poor water quality Regional estimates of the amount of U.S. agricultural land located in watersheds with poor water quality
No abstract available.
Authors
Richard Smith, Gregory E. Schwarz, Richard Alexander
Correction of stream quality trends for the effects of laboratory measurement bias Correction of stream quality trends for the effects of laboratory measurement bias
We present a statistical model relating measurements of water quality to associated errors in laboratory methods. Estimation of the model allows us to correct trends in water quality for long-term and short-term variations in laboratory measurement errors. An illustration of the bias correction method for a large national set of stream water quality and quality assurance data shows that...
Authors
Richard Alexander, Richard Smith, Gregory E. Schwarz
Aspects of the biogeochemistry of methane in Mono Lake and the Mono Basin of California Aspects of the biogeochemistry of methane in Mono Lake and the Mono Basin of California
Above-ambient levels of methane and higher hydrocarbons were detected in the atmosphere of the Mono Basin. These gases emanated from several different sources, including natural gas seeps (thermogenic and biogenic), and methanogenic activity in sediments. Seeps were distributed over nearly 33% of the lake bottom and were also present in the exposed former lakebed. They originated from...
Authors
Ronald Oremland, Laurence G. Miller, Charles Colbertson, S.W. Robinson, Richard Smith, Derek Lovley, Michael Whiticar, G. King, Ronald Kiene, Niels Iversen, Melinda Sargent
Effect of treated-sewage contamination upon bacterial energy charge, adenine nucleotides, and DNA content in a sandy aquifer on Cape Cod Effect of treated-sewage contamination upon bacterial energy charge, adenine nucleotides, and DNA content in a sandy aquifer on Cape Cod
Changes in adenylate energy charge (ECA) and in total adenine nucleotides (AT) and DNA content (both normalized to the abundance of free-living, groundwater bacteria) in response to carbon loading were determined for a laboratory-grown culture and for a contaminated aquifer. The latter study involved a 3-km-long transect through a contaminant plume resulting from continued on-land...
Authors
David Metge, Myron Brooks, Richard Smith, Ronald Harvey
Hydrogeochemistry of rivers and lakes Hydrogeochemistry of rivers and lakes
This chapter has three principal objectives: (1) to summarize the present chemical composition of North American surface waters and point out any discernible trends with time; (2) to review chemical and biochemical principles and processes that control natural water composition, and the ways in which these may be involved in attaining the particular chemical compositions and trends that...
Authors
John Hem, Adrian Demayo, Richard Smith
County-level estimates of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer use in the United States, 1945 to 1985 County-level estimates of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer use in the United States, 1945 to 1985
Estimates of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer use were made for counties in the United States for the period 1945 to 1985. County fertilizer use estimates were obtained through the disaggregation of state-level fertilizer use in proportion to the amount of state fertilized acreage reported to exist in counties. Numerical values of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer use by county are...
Authors
Richard Alexander, Richard Smith
Non-USGS Publications**
Smith, R. L., Kent, D. B., Repert, D. A., and Böhlke, J.K., 2017, Anoxic nitrate reduction coupled with iron oxidation and attenuation of dissolved arsenic and phosphate in a sand and gravel aquifer, Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 196:102-120, doi: http//dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2016.09.025.
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 98
Sedimentation and bathymetric change in San Pablo Bay: 1856-1983 Sedimentation and bathymetric change in San Pablo Bay: 1856-1983
A long-term perspective of erosion and deposition in San Francisco Bay is vital to understanding and managing wetland change, harbor and channel siltation, and other sediment-related phenomena such as particle and particle-associated substance (pollutants, trace metals, etc.) transport and deposition. A quantitative comparison of historical hydrographic surveys provides this perspective...
Authors
Bruce Jaffe, Richard Smith, Laura Torresan
A nowcast model for tides and tidal currents in San Francisco Bay, California A nowcast model for tides and tidal currents in San Francisco Bay, California
National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) installed Physical Oceanographic Real-Time System (PORTS) in San Francisco Bay, California to provide observations of tides, tidal currents, and meteorological conditions. PORTS data are used for optimizing vessel operations, increasing margin of safety for navigation, and guiding hazardous material spill prevention and...
Authors
Ralph Cheng, Richard E. Smith
Regional interpretation of water-quality monitoring data Regional interpretation of water-quality monitoring data
We describe a method for using spatially referenced regressions of contaminant transport on watershed attributes (SPARROW) in regional water-quality assessment. The method is designed to reduce the problems of data interpretation caused by sparse sampling, network bias, and basin heterogeneity. The regression equation relates measured transport rates in streams to spatially referenced...
Authors
Richard Smith, Gregory E. Schwarz, Richard Alexander
Bottom boundary layer in south San Francisco Bay, California Bottom boundary layer in south San Francisco Bay, California
Detailed velocity distributions within the benthic turbulent boundary layer were measured by a Broad Band Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (BB-ADCP) in South San Francisco Bay, California. In "mode 5", the BB-ADCP was able to measure velocity in 5 cm increments. The validation of these measurements was achieved by comparing the BB-ADCP measurements with the velocities measured by a...
Authors
Ralph Cheng, Jeffrey Gartner, Richard Smith
Seasonal/yearly salinity variations in San Francisco Bay Seasonal/yearly salinity variations in San Francisco Bay
The ability of resource agencies to manage fish, wildlife and freshwater supplies of San Francisco Bay estuary requires an integrated knowledge of the relations between the biota and their physical environment. A key factor in these relations is the role of salinity in determining both the physical and the biological character of the estuary. The saltiness of the water, and particularly...
Authors
David H. Peterson, Daniel Cayan, Michael D. Dettinger, Jeanne DiLeo, Stephen Hager, Noah Knowles, Frederic Nichols, Laurence Schemel, Richard Smith, Reginald Uncles
Autotrophic, hydrogen-oxidizing, denitrifying bacteria in groundwater, potential agents for bioremediation of nitrate contamination Autotrophic, hydrogen-oxidizing, denitrifying bacteria in groundwater, potential agents for bioremediation of nitrate contamination
Addition of hydrogen or formate significantly enhanced the rate of consumption of nitrate in slurried core samples obtained from an active zone of denitrification in a nitrate-contaminated sand and gravel aquifer (Cape Cod, Mass.). Hydrogen uptake by the core material was immediate and rapid, with an apparent Km of 0.45 to 0.60 μM and a Vmax of 18.7 nmol cm-3 h-1 at 30°C. Nine strains of...
Authors
Richard Smith, M.L. Ceazan, Myron Brooks
Regional estimates of the amount of U.S. agricultural land located in watersheds with poor water quality Regional estimates of the amount of U.S. agricultural land located in watersheds with poor water quality
No abstract available.
Authors
Richard Smith, Gregory E. Schwarz, Richard Alexander
Correction of stream quality trends for the effects of laboratory measurement bias Correction of stream quality trends for the effects of laboratory measurement bias
We present a statistical model relating measurements of water quality to associated errors in laboratory methods. Estimation of the model allows us to correct trends in water quality for long-term and short-term variations in laboratory measurement errors. An illustration of the bias correction method for a large national set of stream water quality and quality assurance data shows that...
Authors
Richard Alexander, Richard Smith, Gregory E. Schwarz
Aspects of the biogeochemistry of methane in Mono Lake and the Mono Basin of California Aspects of the biogeochemistry of methane in Mono Lake and the Mono Basin of California
Above-ambient levels of methane and higher hydrocarbons were detected in the atmosphere of the Mono Basin. These gases emanated from several different sources, including natural gas seeps (thermogenic and biogenic), and methanogenic activity in sediments. Seeps were distributed over nearly 33% of the lake bottom and were also present in the exposed former lakebed. They originated from...
Authors
Ronald Oremland, Laurence G. Miller, Charles Colbertson, S.W. Robinson, Richard Smith, Derek Lovley, Michael Whiticar, G. King, Ronald Kiene, Niels Iversen, Melinda Sargent
Effect of treated-sewage contamination upon bacterial energy charge, adenine nucleotides, and DNA content in a sandy aquifer on Cape Cod Effect of treated-sewage contamination upon bacterial energy charge, adenine nucleotides, and DNA content in a sandy aquifer on Cape Cod
Changes in adenylate energy charge (ECA) and in total adenine nucleotides (AT) and DNA content (both normalized to the abundance of free-living, groundwater bacteria) in response to carbon loading were determined for a laboratory-grown culture and for a contaminated aquifer. The latter study involved a 3-km-long transect through a contaminant plume resulting from continued on-land...
Authors
David Metge, Myron Brooks, Richard Smith, Ronald Harvey
Hydrogeochemistry of rivers and lakes Hydrogeochemistry of rivers and lakes
This chapter has three principal objectives: (1) to summarize the present chemical composition of North American surface waters and point out any discernible trends with time; (2) to review chemical and biochemical principles and processes that control natural water composition, and the ways in which these may be involved in attaining the particular chemical compositions and trends that...
Authors
John Hem, Adrian Demayo, Richard Smith
County-level estimates of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer use in the United States, 1945 to 1985 County-level estimates of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer use in the United States, 1945 to 1985
Estimates of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer use were made for counties in the United States for the period 1945 to 1985. County fertilizer use estimates were obtained through the disaggregation of state-level fertilizer use in proportion to the amount of state fertilized acreage reported to exist in counties. Numerical values of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer use by county are...
Authors
Richard Alexander, Richard Smith
Non-USGS Publications**
Smith, R. L., Kent, D. B., Repert, D. A., and Böhlke, J.K., 2017, Anoxic nitrate reduction coupled with iron oxidation and attenuation of dissolved arsenic and phosphate in a sand and gravel aquifer, Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 196:102-120, doi: http//dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2016.09.025.
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.