Steven R Corsi
Biography
EDUCATION
B.S. in Physics, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, 1986
M.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Wisconsin, 1989
AREAS OF EXPERTISE
- Impact of aircraft and pavement deicers on aquatic ecosystems
- Evaluation of the effectiveness of airport deicer management systems
- Assessment of anthropogenic impact on stream water quality
- Aquatic toxicity evaluation
- Recreational water quality
- Surface water investigations of waterborne pathogens
ACCREDITATIONS AND AFFILIATIONS
- State of Wisconsin Licensed Professional Hydrologist
- Society of Toxicology and Chemistry
Science and Products
Evaluating chloride trends due to road-salt use and its impacts on water quality and aquatic organisms
Chloride, a key component of road salt, is soluble, highly mobile in water, and, at high concentrations, can be toxic to aquatic vegetation and wildlife. USGS scientists have been analyzing temporal, seasonal, and environmental trends in chloride concentrations across the U.S. to determine the effects that road salt may be having on water quality and aquatic organisms.
Evaluating the impacts of aircraft deicers in runoff from General Mitchell International Airport, Milwaukee, Wis.
Chemicals used to deice planes at General Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee may be entering nearby streams in concentrations that may be harmful to aquatic life. This project will investigate the toxicity of decing chemicals, evaluate their impact on receiving streams, and assess changes in water quality in response to the implementation of deicer management at General Mitchell...
Beach health in Wisconsin
Beach water-quality (beach health) data are collected for both coastal and inland Wisconsin beaches. These data are collected and analyzed by multiple agencies throughout Wisconsin including local health departments, universities, state agencies, and federal agencies including the USGS.
Environmental factors and risk estimation for waterborne pathogens at three Great Lakes beaches
The goals of this study were to quantify pathogen concentrations in water at three Lake Michigan beaches, identify environmental factors that influence pathogen occurrence and variability, and to estimate health risks for recreational swimmers.
Year-round presence of neonicotinoid insecticides in tributaries to the Great Lakes, USA
To better characterize the transport of neonicotinoid insecticides to the world's largest freshwater ecosystem, monthly samples (October 2015–September 2016) were collected from 10 major tributaries to the Great Lakes, USA. For the monthly tributary samples, neonicotinoids were detected in every month sampled and five of the six target...
Hladik, Michelle; Corsi, Steven; Kolpin, Dana W.; Baldwin, Austin K.; Blackwell, Brett R.; Cavallin, Jenna E. Response to comment on “Primary sources and toxicity of PAHs in Milwaukee-area streambed sediments”—The authors' reply
No abstract available.
Baldwin, Austin K.; Corsi, Steven; Lutz, Michelle A; Ingersoll, Christopher G.; Dorman, Rebecca A.; Magruder, Christopher; Magruder, Matthew An “EAR” on environmental surveillance and monitoring: A case study on the use of Exposure–Activity Ratios (EARs) to prioritize sites, chemicals, and bioactivities of concern in Great Lakes waters
Current environmental monitoring approaches focus primarily on chemical occurrence. However, based on concentration alone, it can be difficult to identify which compounds may be of toxicological concern and should be prioritized for further monitoring, in-depth testing, or management. This can be problematic because toxicological characterization...
Blackwell, Brett R.; Ankley, Gerald T.; Corsi, Steven; DeCicco, Laura; Houck, Kieth A.; Judson, Richard S.; Li, Shibin; Martin, Matthew T.; Murphy, Elizabeth; Schroeder, Anthony L.; Smith, Edwin R.; Swintek, Joe; Villeneuve, Daniel L. Hydrologic, land cover, and seasonal patterns of waterborne pathogens in Great Lakes tributaries
Great Lakes tributaries are known to deliver waterborne pathogens from a host of sources. To examine the hydrologic, land cover, and seasonal patterns of waterborne pathogens (i.e. protozoa (2), pathogenic bacteria (4) human viruses, (8) and bovine viruses (8)) eight rivers were monitored in the Great Lakes Basin over 29 months from February 2011...
Lenaker, Peter L.; Corsi, Steven; Borchardt, Mark A.; Spencer, Susan K.; Baldwin, Austin K.; Lutz, Michelle A. Primary sources and toxicity of PAHs in Milwaukee-area streambed sediment
High concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in streams can be a significant stressor to aquatic organisms. To understand the likely sources and toxicity of PAHs in Milwaukee-area streams, streambed sediment samples from 40 sites and parking lot dust samples from 6 sites were analyzed for 38 parent PAHs and 25 alkylated PAHs....
Baldwin, Austin K.; Corsi, Steven R.; Lutz, Michelle A.; Ingersoll, Christopher G.; Dorman, Rebecca A.; Magruder, Christopher; Magruder, Matthew Microplastics in 29 Great Lakes tributaries (2014-15)
This dataset describes the quantity and morphology of floating microplastics in 29 Great Lakes tributaries in 6 states. Samples were collected in spring 2014 – spring 2015. Each tributary was sampled three to four times, capturing low-flow and runoff-event conditions. Sampling and analysis methods are described in the .xml metadata file.These data...
Baldwin, Austin K.; Corsi, Steven; Mason, Sherri A. Plastic debris in 29 Great Lakes tributaries: Relations to watershed attributes and hydrology
Plastic debris is a growing contaminant of concern in freshwater environments, yet sources, transport, and fate remain unclear. This study characterized the quantity and morphology of floating micro- and macroplastics in 29 Great Lakes tributaries in six states under different land covers, wastewater effluent contributions, population densities,...
Baldwin, Austin K.; Corsi, Steven; Mason, Sherri A. Quantification of human-associated fecal indicators reveal sewage from urban watersheds as a source of pollution to Lake Michigan
Sewage contamination of urban waterways from sewer overflows and failing infrastructure is a major environmental and public health concern. Fecal coliforms (FC) are commonly employed as fecal indicator bacteria, but do not distinguish between human and non-human sources of fecal contamination. Human Bacteroides and humanLachnospiraceae,...
Olds, Hayley T.; Dila, Deborah K.; Bootsma, Melinda J.; Corsi, Steven; McLellan, Sandra L. Organic contaminants in Great Lakes tributaries: Prevalence and potential aquatic toxicity
Organic compounds used in agriculture, industry, and households make their way into surface waters through runoff, leaking septic-conveyance systems, regulated and unregulated discharges, and combined sewer overflows, among other sources. Concentrations of these organic waste compounds (OWCs) in some Great Lakes tributaries indicate a high...
Baldwin, Austin K.; Corsi, Steven R.; De Cicco, Laura A.; Lenaker, Peter L.; Lutz, Michelle A; Sullivan, Daniel J.; Richards, Kevin D. Comparative evaluation of statistical and mechanistic models of Escherichia coli at beaches in southern Lake Michigan
Statistical and mechanistic models are popular tools for predicting the levels of indicator bacteria at recreational beaches. Researchers tend to use one class of model or the other, and it is difficult to generalize statements about their relative performance due to differences in how the models are developed, tested, and used. We describe a...
Safaie, Ammar; Wendzel, Aaron; Ge, Zhongfu; Nevers, Meredith; Whitman, Richard L.; Corsi, Steven R.; Phanikumar, Mantha S. Predicting recreational water quality advisories: A comparison of statistical methods
Epidemiological studies indicate that fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) in beach water are associated with illnesses among people having contact with the water. In order to mitigate public health impacts, many beaches are posted with an advisory when the concentration of FIB exceeds a beach action value. The most commonly used method of measuring FIB...
Brooks, Wesley R.; Corsi, Steven R.; Fienen, Michael N.; Carvin, Rebecca B. Human and bovine viruses and bacteria at three Great Lakes beaches: Environmental variable associations and health risk
Waterborne pathogens were measured at three beaches in Lake Michigan, environmental factors for predicting pathogen concentrations were identified, and the risk of swimmer infection and illness was estimated. Waterborne pathogens were detected in 96% of samples collected at three Lake Michigan beaches in summer, 2010. Samples were quantified for...
Corsi, Steven R.; Borchardt, Mark A.; Carvin, Rebecca B.; Burch, Tucker R; Spencer, Susan K.; Lutz, Michelle A.; McDermott, Colleen M.; Busse, Kimberly M.; Kleinheinz, Gregory; Feng, Xiaoping; Zhu, Jun
Urban Stream Contamination Increasing Rapidly Due to Road Salt
Average chloride concentrations often exceed toxic levels in many northern United States streams due to the use of salt to deice winter pavement, and the frequency of these occurrences nearly doubled in two decades.