W. Scott McBride has been employed by the USGS since 1989. He has a B.S. degree in Environmental Science from the University of South Florida. His interests are primarily in water quality, sediment, geochemistry, and groundwater. Since 2005, he has participated in and managed several watershed studies from the Lutz, Florida office, including studies of the Withlacoochee River, Lake Panasoffkee, and Tsala Apopka Lake. He is currently studying sediment discharges from Lake Okeechobee to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie Rivers and the sources and ages of flow in the Lower Floridan aquifer in central Florida. Mr. McBride is also the project chief for the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) program in Florida. Recent NAWQA work in the state includes assessments of the water quality of the Upper Floridan, Biscayne, and surficial aquifers at public supply wells. He began his career with the USGS at the Ocala Water Quality and Research Laboratory as a Physical Science Technician. He is currently an instructor with the USGS Water Quality Field Methods course in Denver, Colorado.
Science and Products
Documenting the multiple facets of a subsiding landscape from coastal cities and wetlands to the continental shelf
Land subsidence is a settling, sinking, or collapse of the land surface. In the southeastern United States, subsidence is frequently observed as sinkhole collapse in karst environments, wetland degradation and loss in coastal and other low-lying areas, and inundation of coastal urban communities. Human activities such as fluid extraction, mining, and overburden alteration can cause or exacerbate s
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Caribbean-Florida Water Science Center (CFWSC), Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Water Science Center, South Atlantic Water Science Center (SAWSC), St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center
Determination of recharge areas that supply decades old groundwater to creeks inhabited by the threatened Okaloosa darter
The Okaloosa darter (Etheostoma okaloosae) is a diminutive, perch-like, benthic fish that inhabits only six small, clear, and shallow creek systems that flow almost entirely within Eglin Air Force Base in the panhandle of northwest Florida. Listed as Endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in 1973, improvements in erosion control and habitat restoration led to the Okaloosa darter
Groundwater chemistry, hydrogeologic properties, bioremediation potential, and three-dimensional numerical simulation of the sand and gravel aquifer at Naval Air Station Whiting Field, near Milton, Florida, 2015–20
The U.S. Geological Survey completed a study between 2015 and 2020 of groundwater contamination in the sand and gravel aquifer at a Superfund site in northwestern Florida. Groundwater-quality samples were collected from representative monitoring wells located along a groundwater-flow pathway and analyzed in the field and laboratory. In general, ambient groundwater in the sand and gravel aquifer is
Relations between total phosphorus and orthophosphorus concentrations and rainfall, surface-water discharge, and groundwater levels in Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation, Florida, 2014–16
The Seminole Tribe of Florida (the Tribe) is partnering with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to develop a numeric phosphorus criterion for the 52,000-acre Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation (BCSIR), which is located downgradient of the Everglades Agricultural Area, and of other public and private lands, in southeastern Hendry County and northwestern Broward County in southern Florida
Groundwater levels, geochemistry, and water budget of the Tsala Apopka Lake system, west-central Florida, 2004–12
Tsala Apopka Lake is a complex system of lakes and wetlands, with intervening uplands, located in Citrus County in west-central Florida. It is located within the 2,100 square mile watershed of the Withlacoochee River, which drains north and northwest towards the Gulf of Mexico. The lake system is managed by the Southwest Florida Water Management District as three distinct “pools,” which from upstr
Sources of groundwater and characteristics of surface-water recharge at Bell, White, and Suwannee Springs, Florida, 2012–13
Discharge from springs in Florida is sourced from aquifers, such as the Upper Floridan aquifer, which is overlain by an upper confining unit that locally can have properties of an aquifer. Water levels in aquifers are affected by several factors, such as precipitation, recharge, and groundwater withdrawals, which in turn can affect discharge from springs. Therefore, identifying groundwater sources
Depth-dependent groundwater quality sampling at City of Tallahassee test well 32, Leon County, Florida, 2013
Public-supply wells sometimes produce water of less than desirable quality because contaminants can migrate to the open interval of wells through preferential pathways. If these pathways can be identified, zones that produce poor quality water can be excluded during the well-construction process. The U.S. Geological Survey has developed geophysical testing methods that can be used to delineate zon
Simulations of Groundwater Flow and Particle Tracking Analysis in the Area Contributing Recharge to a Public-Supply Well near Tampa, Florida, 2002-05
Shallow ground water in the north-central Tampa Bay region, Florida, is affected by elevated nitrate concentrations, the presence of volatile organic compounds, and pesticides as a result of groundwater development and intensive urban land use. The region relies primarily on groundwater for drinking-water supplies. Sustainability of groundwater quality for public supply requires monitoring and und
Surface-Water and Groundwater Interactions along the Withlacoochee River, West-Central Florida
A study of the Withlacoochee River watershed in west-central Florida was conducted from October 2003 to March 2007 to gain a better understanding of the hydrology and surface-water and groundwater interactions along the river. The Withlacoochee River originates in the Green Swamp area in north-central Polk County and flows northerly through seven counties, emptying into the Gulf of Mexico. This st
Vulnerability of a public supply well in a karstic aquifer to contamination
To assess the vulnerability of ground water to contamination in the karstic Upper Floridan aquifer (UFA), age-dating tracers and selected anthropogenic and naturally occurring compounds were analyzed in multiple water samples from a public supply well (PSW) near Tampa, Florida. Samples also were collected from 28 monitoring wells in the UFA and the overlying surficial aquifer system (SAS) and inte
Chemical Characteristics, Water Sources and Pathways, and Age Distribution of Ground Water in the Contributing Recharge Area of a Public-Supply Well near Tampa, Florida, 2002-05
In 2001, the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program of the U.S. Geological Survey began a series of studies on the transport of anthropogenic and natural contaminants (TANC) to public-supply wells. The main goal of the TANC program was to better understand the source, transport, and receptor factors that control contaminant movement to public-supply wells in representative aquifers of t
Non-USGS Publications**
Katz, B.G., Crandall, C.A., McBride, W.S., and Berndt, M.P., 2006, Use of multiple tracers and geochemical modeling to assess vulnerability of a public supply well in the karstic Upper Floridan aquifer, [abs.]: 2006 National Monitoring Conference: Concurrent Session F: F3-Assessing Ground Water Vulnerability Through Mechanistic Methods II, May 7-11, 2006, San Jose, California.
Katz, B.G., McBride, W.S., Crandall, C.A., and Eberts, S.M., 2007, Using isotopic and other chemical tracers to assess age distribution and contaminant movement in ground water in the contributing recharge area to a public supply well., [abs.]: 2007 GSA Denver Annual Meeting, October 28-31, 2007, Denver, Colorado.
**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
- Publications
Documenting the multiple facets of a subsiding landscape from coastal cities and wetlands to the continental shelf
Land subsidence is a settling, sinking, or collapse of the land surface. In the southeastern United States, subsidence is frequently observed as sinkhole collapse in karst environments, wetland degradation and loss in coastal and other low-lying areas, and inundation of coastal urban communities. Human activities such as fluid extraction, mining, and overburden alteration can cause or exacerbate sByNatural Hazards Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Caribbean-Florida Water Science Center (CFWSC), Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Water Science Center, South Atlantic Water Science Center (SAWSC), St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science CenterDetermination of recharge areas that supply decades old groundwater to creeks inhabited by the threatened Okaloosa darter
The Okaloosa darter (Etheostoma okaloosae) is a diminutive, perch-like, benthic fish that inhabits only six small, clear, and shallow creek systems that flow almost entirely within Eglin Air Force Base in the panhandle of northwest Florida. Listed as Endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in 1973, improvements in erosion control and habitat restoration led to the Okaloosa darterGroundwater chemistry, hydrogeologic properties, bioremediation potential, and three-dimensional numerical simulation of the sand and gravel aquifer at Naval Air Station Whiting Field, near Milton, Florida, 2015–20
The U.S. Geological Survey completed a study between 2015 and 2020 of groundwater contamination in the sand and gravel aquifer at a Superfund site in northwestern Florida. Groundwater-quality samples were collected from representative monitoring wells located along a groundwater-flow pathway and analyzed in the field and laboratory. In general, ambient groundwater in the sand and gravel aquifer isRelations between total phosphorus and orthophosphorus concentrations and rainfall, surface-water discharge, and groundwater levels in Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation, Florida, 2014–16
The Seminole Tribe of Florida (the Tribe) is partnering with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to develop a numeric phosphorus criterion for the 52,000-acre Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation (BCSIR), which is located downgradient of the Everglades Agricultural Area, and of other public and private lands, in southeastern Hendry County and northwestern Broward County in southern FloridaGroundwater levels, geochemistry, and water budget of the Tsala Apopka Lake system, west-central Florida, 2004–12
Tsala Apopka Lake is a complex system of lakes and wetlands, with intervening uplands, located in Citrus County in west-central Florida. It is located within the 2,100 square mile watershed of the Withlacoochee River, which drains north and northwest towards the Gulf of Mexico. The lake system is managed by the Southwest Florida Water Management District as three distinct “pools,” which from upstrSources of groundwater and characteristics of surface-water recharge at Bell, White, and Suwannee Springs, Florida, 2012–13
Discharge from springs in Florida is sourced from aquifers, such as the Upper Floridan aquifer, which is overlain by an upper confining unit that locally can have properties of an aquifer. Water levels in aquifers are affected by several factors, such as precipitation, recharge, and groundwater withdrawals, which in turn can affect discharge from springs. Therefore, identifying groundwater sourcesDepth-dependent groundwater quality sampling at City of Tallahassee test well 32, Leon County, Florida, 2013
Public-supply wells sometimes produce water of less than desirable quality because contaminants can migrate to the open interval of wells through preferential pathways. If these pathways can be identified, zones that produce poor quality water can be excluded during the well-construction process. The U.S. Geological Survey has developed geophysical testing methods that can be used to delineate zonSimulations of Groundwater Flow and Particle Tracking Analysis in the Area Contributing Recharge to a Public-Supply Well near Tampa, Florida, 2002-05
Shallow ground water in the north-central Tampa Bay region, Florida, is affected by elevated nitrate concentrations, the presence of volatile organic compounds, and pesticides as a result of groundwater development and intensive urban land use. The region relies primarily on groundwater for drinking-water supplies. Sustainability of groundwater quality for public supply requires monitoring and undSurface-Water and Groundwater Interactions along the Withlacoochee River, West-Central Florida
A study of the Withlacoochee River watershed in west-central Florida was conducted from October 2003 to March 2007 to gain a better understanding of the hydrology and surface-water and groundwater interactions along the river. The Withlacoochee River originates in the Green Swamp area in north-central Polk County and flows northerly through seven counties, emptying into the Gulf of Mexico. This stVulnerability of a public supply well in a karstic aquifer to contamination
To assess the vulnerability of ground water to contamination in the karstic Upper Floridan aquifer (UFA), age-dating tracers and selected anthropogenic and naturally occurring compounds were analyzed in multiple water samples from a public supply well (PSW) near Tampa, Florida. Samples also were collected from 28 monitoring wells in the UFA and the overlying surficial aquifer system (SAS) and inteChemical Characteristics, Water Sources and Pathways, and Age Distribution of Ground Water in the Contributing Recharge Area of a Public-Supply Well near Tampa, Florida, 2002-05
In 2001, the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program of the U.S. Geological Survey began a series of studies on the transport of anthropogenic and natural contaminants (TANC) to public-supply wells. The main goal of the TANC program was to better understand the source, transport, and receptor factors that control contaminant movement to public-supply wells in representative aquifers of tNon-USGS Publications**
Katz, B.G., Crandall, C.A., McBride, W.S., and Berndt, M.P., 2006, Use of multiple tracers and geochemical modeling to assess vulnerability of a public supply well in the karstic Upper Floridan aquifer, [abs.]: 2006 National Monitoring Conference: Concurrent Session F: F3-Assessing Ground Water Vulnerability Through Mechanistic Methods II, May 7-11, 2006, San Jose, California.Katz, B.G., McBride, W.S., Crandall, C.A., and Eberts, S.M., 2007, Using isotopic and other chemical tracers to assess age distribution and contaminant movement in ground water in the contributing recharge area to a public supply well., [abs.]: 2007 GSA Denver Annual Meeting, October 28-31, 2007, Denver, Colorado.**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.
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