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USGS1984

Water resources investigations in Mississippi, 1984-85

This report describes the activities of the Water Resources Division in Mississippi. It summarizes progress made in water-resources investigations and related activities in the current fiscal year ending September 30, 1984, and outlines the work to be accomplished during the fiscal year ending September 30, 1985. Its specific purpose is to inform cooperating State, local, and other Federal agencies about all activities of this Division in water investigations in Mississippi and to give those cooperators a better understanding of how their participation fits into the total USGS program of water resources investigations. (USGS)

Open-File Report↗
USGS1987

Water-resources activities of the Louisiana District in fiscal years 1986-87

The U.S. Geological Survey conducts three types of water resources activities in Louisiana - data collection, investigations, and research. These activities are conducted, in large part, through cooperation with other Federal, State, and local agencies. Water-resources activities undertaken from October 1, 1985 to September 30, 1987 are described. Specifically, the report presents information on organization of the District Office, cooperating agencies, data-collection activities, interpretive studies and research activities, new publications of the Louisiana District, and sources of information in the U.S. Geological Survey. For each activity, the following information is presented: project title, project number, study location, cooperating agency, project chief, project duration, problem, objective, approach, progress, and plans. (USGS)

Open-File Report↗
USGS2002

Lost, a desert river and its native fishes: A historical perspective of the lower Colorado River

The Colorado River had one of the most unique fish communities in the world. Seventy-five percent of those species were found no where else in the world. Settlement of the lower basin brought dramatic changes to both the river and its native fish. Those changes began more than 120 years ago as settlers began stocking nonnative fishes. By 1930, nonnative fish had spread throughout the lower basin and replaced native communities. All resemblance of historic river conditions faded with the construction of Hoover Dam in 1935 and other large water development projects. Today, few remember what the Colorado River was really like. Seven of the nine mainstream fishes are now federally protected as endangered. Federal and state agencies are attempting to recover these fish; however, progress has been frustrated due to the severity of human impact. This report presents testimony, old descriptions, and photographs describing the changes that have taken place in hopes that it will provide managers, biologists, and the interested public a better appreciation of the environment that shaped these unique fish.

Colorado River↗
USGS2023

Nonsalmonid gas bubble trauma investigations

From 2020 to 2023, a new spill program was implemented to aid the downstream passage of juvenile salmonids at mainstem dams on the Snake and Columbia rivers. Under this program, the total dissolved gas (TDG) cap was increased to 125% and monitoring of nonsalmonids for gas bubble trauma (GBT) became a requirement. The primary objective of this work and report was to measure the incidence and severity of GBT in nonsalmonids resulting from increased juvenile salmonid passage spill and associated levels of TDG during the spring spill period in 2023. Nonsalmonids were collected downstream from Bonneville, McNary, Ice Harbor, and Lower Granite dams and examined for the incidence and severity of GBT in 2023. Fish were collected at each location weekly (3 April to 20 June) during the spring spill period by backpack electrofishing and beach seining. Washington and Oregon State water quality agencies established minimum and target sample sizes for monitoring, but the minimum sample size of 50 fish and target sample size of 100 fish were not met in all weeks at individual projects due to high water flows and resulting low fish collections. Collected fish were examined for GBT according to the criteria and protocol established for the regional smolt monitoring program (SMP). TDG levels were often high relative to the 10-year average. GBT incidence rates and severity (according to SMP criteria) were low to moderate in most weeks. We found no apparent relationship between GBT incidence and TDG due to exposure history and interspecies susceptibility to elevated TDG that could not be quantified. GBT incidence rates exceeded the 15% threshold on two occasions below Ice Harbor Dam, triggering a reduction in spill under the State water quality standards. In the weeks immediately following the spill reductions, GBT incidence was zero or relatively low at this location. Sculpin (genus Cottus ) was the main species collected at all locations. As in past years, we did find GBT in non-SMP protocol areas, particularly in sculpin. The variability in GBT incidence rates is likely due to variability in environmental conditions, fish exposure history to TDG, and species sensitivity to TDG. Many of the species encountered in shallow shoreline habitats rear for extended times and probably do not seek the water depths that would help them reduce the effects of exposure to elevated TDG through depth compensation. Limited systematic sampling of TDG in the tailraces of each project showed that TDG can vary spatially within the tailrace and with percentage of water spilled. We investigated GBT progression and mortality in sculpin and threespine stickleback ( Gasterosteus aculeatus ) in laboratory experiments (Chapter Two of this report). Fish were tested at 120%, 125%, and 130% TDG. We found that sculpin are more sensitive to TDG than stickleback and that GBT and associated mortality progress faster in sculpin than in stickleback. GBT prevalence and severity increased through time at all TDG levels tested, but relationships between severity and exposure time were weak or nonexistent. GBT and mortality progressed more rapidly as TDG increased in both species. The SMP criteria used to rank GBT did not fully capture the incidence and severity of GBT in sculpin and stickleback compared to using criteria based on all areas of the fish. The lateral line, body, dorsal fin, and pectoral fins were common locations of GBT in sculpin at 120 and 125% TDG, but signs were more prevalent in all areas at 130% TDG. In stickleback, GBT was most common on the head and body at all TDG levels tested. Positive buoyancy of fish with severe GBT was observed in both species and may have consequences for similarly impaired fish in the wild. The proximate cause of GBT-related death in sculpin and stickleback was bubbles in the gills and heart, but unlike in other species, bubbles appeared rapidly just before the point of death. Our results help fill the information void GBT progression and mortality for sculpin and stickleback.

Oregon, Washington↗
USGS2021

The use of continuous water-quality time-series data to compute total phosphorus loadings for the Turkey River at Garber, Iowa, 2018–20

In support of nutrient reduction efforts, total phosphorus loads and yields were computed for the Turkey River at Garber, Iowa (U.S. Geological Survey station 05412500), for January 1, 2018, to April 30, 2020, based on continuously monitored turbidity sensor data. Sample data were used to create a total phosphorus turbidity-surrogate model. Streamflow-based total phosphorus models were used during periods of missing sensor data to obtain a more complete annual total phosphorus load. This report presents methods needed to accurately compute site-specific loads and track annual progress toward nutrient reduction goals within the State. Annual total phosphorus loads for the Turkey River at Garber, Iowa, were 1,740 and 1,490 U.S. short tons for 2018 and 2019, respectively, with annual yields ranging from 3.01 to 3.53 pounds per acre per year, compared to a mean statewide yield of 0.73 pound per acre per year needed to achieve the total phosphorus-reduction goal.

Iowa↗
USGS2003

Stream Bank Stability in Eastern Nebraska

Dredged and straightened channels in eastern Nebraska have experienced degradation leading to channel widening by bank failure. Degradation has progressed headward and affected the drainage systems upstream from the modified reaches. This report describes a study that was undertaken to analyze bank stability at selected sites in eastern Nebraska and develop a simplified method for estimating the stability of banks at future study sites. Bank cross sections along straight reaches of channel and geotechnical data were collected at approximately 150 sites in 26 counties of eastern Nebraska. The sites were categorized into three groups based on mapped soil permeability. With increasing permeability of the soil groups, the median cohesion values decreased and the median friction angles increased. Three analytical methods were used to determine if banks were stable (should not fail even when saturated), at risk (should not fail unless saturated), or unstable (should have already failed). The Culmann and Agricultural Research Service methods were based on the Coulomb equation and planar failure; an indirect method was developed that was based on Bishop's simplified method of slices and rotational failure. The maximum angle from horizontal at which the bank would be stable for the given soil and bank height conditions also was computed with the indirect method. Because of few soil shear-strength data, all analyses were based on the assumption of homogeneous banks, which was later shown to be atypical, at least for some banks. Using the Culmann method and assuming no soil tension cracks, 67 percent of all 908 bank sections were identified as stable, 32 percent were at risk, and 1 percent were unstable; when tension cracks were assumed, the results changed to 58 percent stable, 40 percent at risk, and 1 percent unstable. Using the Agricultural Research Service method, 67 percent of all bank sections were identified as stable and 33 percent were at risk. Using the indirect method, 62 percent of all bank sections were identified as stable and 31 percent were at risk; 3 percent were unstable, and 3 percent were outside of the range of the tables developed for the method. For each of the methods that were used, the largest percentage of stable banks and the smallest percentage of at risk banks was for the soil group with the lowest soil permeability and highest median cohesion values. A comparison of the expected stable bank angles for saturated conditions and the surveyed bank angles indicated that many of the surveyed bank angles were considerably less than the maximum expected stable bank angles despite the banks being classified as at risk or unstable. For severely degraded channels along straight reaches this was not expected. It was expected that they would have angles close to the maximum stable angle as they should have been failing from an oversteepened condition. Several explanations are possible. The channel reaches of some study sites have not yet been affected to a significant degree by degradation; study sites were selected throughout individual basins and severe degradation has not yet extended to some sites along upper reaches; and some reaches have experienced aggradation as degradation progresses upstream. Another possibility is that some bank sections have been affected by lateral migration processes, which typically result in shallow bank angles on the inside bend of the channel. Another possibility is that the maximum expected stable bank angles are too steep. The stability methods used were well established and in essential agreement with each other, and there was no reason to question the geometry data. This left non-representative soil data as a probable reason for computed stable bank angles that, at least in some cases, are overly steep. Based on an examination of the cohesion data, to which the stable bank-angle calculations were most sensitive, both vertical and horizontal variability in soil properti

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS2002

Land use change and effects on water quality and ecosystem health in the Lake Tahoe basin, Nevada and California: year-1 progress

As part of the requirements for the Geographic Research and Applications Prospectus grants, this Open-File Report is the second of two that resulted from the first year of the project. The first Open-File Report (OFR 01-418) introduced the project, reviewed the existing body of literature, and outlined the research approach. This document will present an update of the research approach and offer some preliminary results from multiple efforts, specifically, the production of historical digital orthophoto quadrangles, the development of the land use/land cover (LULC) classification system, the development of a temporal transportation layer, the classification of anthropogenic cover types from the IKONOS imagery, a preliminary evaluation of landscape ecology metrics (quantification of spatial and temporal patterns of ecosystem structure and function with appropriate indices) and their utility in comparing two LULC systems, and a new initiative in community-based science and facilitation.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2018

Natural and man-made hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI), in groundwater near a mapped plume, Hinkley, California—study progress as of May 2017, and a summative-scale approach to estimate background Cr(VI) concentrations

This report describes (1) work done between January 2015 and May 2017 as part of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI), background study and (2) the summative-scale approach to be used to estimate the extent of anthropogenic (man-made) Cr(VI) and background Cr(VI) concentrations near the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) natural gas compressor station in Hinkley, California. Most of the field work for the study was completed by May 2017. The summative-scale approach and calculation of Cr(VI) background were not well-defined at the time the USGS proposal for the background Cr(VI) study was prepared but have since been refined as a result of data collected as part of this study. The proposed summative scale consists of multiple items, formulated as questions to be answered at each sampled well. Questions that compose the summative scale were developed to address geologic, hydrologic, and geochemical constraints on Cr(VI) within the study area. Each question requires a binary (yes or no) answer. A score of 1 will be assigned for an answer that represents data consistent with anthropogenic Cr(VI); a score of –1 will be assigned for an answer that represents data inconsistent with anthropogenic Cr(VI). The areal extent of anthropogenic Cr(VI) estimated from the summative-scale analyses will be compared with the areal extent of anthropogenic Cr(VI) estimated on the basis of numerical groundwater flow model results, along with particle-tracking analyses. On the basis of these combined results, background Cr(VI) values will be estimated for “Mojave-type” deposits, and other deposits, in different parts of the study area outside the summative-scale mapped extent of anthropogenic Cr(VI).

California↗
USGS1903

Preliminary report on the geology and water resources of Nebraska west of the one hundred and third meridian

This report is based on field work of the season of 1897. It is designed mainly to furnish information in relation to the geologic structure and the prospects for underground waters. A general account will also be given of the surface waters and their present and prospective use for irrigation, etc. The region is the portion of Nebraska lying west of the one hundred and third meridian, comprising Sioux, Scotts Bluff, Banner, and Kimball counties, the western portions of Cheyenne and Boxbutte counties, and the central and western portion of Dawes County; in all, an area of 7,400 square miles, adjoined on the west by Wyoming, on the north by South Dakota, and on the south by Colorado. It lies on the Great Plains south of the Black Hills of South Dakota. The Scotts Bluff, Banner, and Cheyenne counties areas were· examined in detail, but time did not permit more than a general reconnaissance of the adjoining regions. I was assisted by Mr. C. A. Fisher, who obtained the data for the greater part of Kimball and Boxbutte counties. For several months I was accompanied by Prof. E. H. Barbour, the acting State geologist of Nebraska, who did much to further the progress of the work.

Nebraska↗
USGS1981

Water-resources investigations of the U.S. Geological Survey in Colorado: fiscal year 1981

The report provides an overview of water-resources data collection and hydrologic investigations in Colorado from October 1, 1980, to September 30, 1981. Most of the work is carried out in cooperation with 51 Federal, State, and local agencies. Data are being collected at 503 surface-water gaging stations, 161 surface-water quality stations, and 1,151 observation wells. Sixty-seven hydrologic investigations are underway and are described in the report by a map showing the location of the study area and a statement of the purpose, objective, approach, progress, and plans. Twelve of the investigations are statewide, 6 are regional, 9 are in the Missouri River basin, 8 in the Arkansas River basin, 6 in the Rio Grande basin, and 5 are multistate. Listed in the report are references to 9 data reports and 27 interpretive reports released or published in fiscal year 1980 as a result of water-resources investigations in Colorado. (USGS)

Open-File Report↗
USGS2014

Report of the Committee on Underground Waters, 1934–35

The annual report this year consists almost wholly of a brief summary of investigations in progress in different parts of the country. It is by no means complete, and the Chairman of the Committee will be glad to receive information in regard to investigations that have not been mentioned. The outstanding feature of the past year has been the focusing of public attention on problems of underground water, as a result of the drought-conditions, the activities of the National and State resource and planning surveys, and the creation of emergency-relief projects.

Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union↗
USGS2015

The 2011 Mineral, Virginia, earthquake and its significance for seismic hazards in eastern North America: overview and synthesis

The 23 August 2011 M w (moment magnitude) 5.7 ± 0.1, Mineral, Virginia, earthquake was the largest and most damaging in the central and eastern United States since the 1886 M w 6.8–7.0, Charleston, South Carolina, earthquake. Seismic data indicate that the earthquake rupture occurred on a southeast-dipping reverse fault and consisted of three subevents that progressed northeastward and updip. U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) "Did You Feel It?" intensity reports from across the eastern United States and southeastern Canada, rockfalls triggered at distances to 245 km, and regional groundwater-level changes are all consistent with efficient propagation of high-frequency seismic waves (∼1 Hz and higher) in eastern North America due to low attenuation. Reported damage included cracked or shifted foundations and broken walls or chimneys, notably in unreinforced masonry, and indicated intensities up to VIII in the epicentral area based on USGS "Did You Feel It?" reports. The earthquake triggered the first automatic shutdown of a U.S. nuclear power plant, located ∼23 km northeast of the main shock epicenter. Although shaking exceeded the plant's design basis earthquake, the actual damage to safety-related structures, systems, and components was superficial. Damage to relatively tall masonry structures 130 km to the northeast in Washington, D.C., was consistent with source directivity, soft-soil ground-motion amplification, and anisotropic wave propagation with lower attenuation parallel to the northeast-trending Appalachian tectonic fabric. The earthquake and aftershocks occurred in crystalline rocks within Paleozoic thrust sheets of the Chopawamsic terrane. The main shock and majority of aftershocks delineated the newly named Quail fault zone in the subsurface, and shallow aftershocks defined outlying faults. The earthquake induced minor liquefaction sand boils, but notably there was no evidence of a surface fault rupture. Recurrence intervals, and evidence for larger earthquakes in the Quaternary in this area, remain important unknowns. This event, along with similar events during historical time, is a reminder that earthquakes of similar or larger magnitude pose a real hazard in eastern North America.

Virginia↗
USGS1972

Geochemical Survey of Missouri: Plans and progress for sixth six-month period (January-June 1972)

This is the sixth in a series of reports issued at six-month intervals describing current results of a reconnaissance geochemical survey of the State of Missouri. The survey was begun in July, 1969 and is intended primarily to provide epidemiologists of the Environmental Health Surveillance Center of the University of Missouri with geochemical information in support of their studies on the role of environmental factors underlying human and animal health. Secondarily, the survey is regarded as a pilot venture in the area of environmental geochemistry of large and geologically diverse regions.

Missouri↗
USGS1980

Water-resources investigations of the U.S. Geological Survey in Colorado; fiscal year 1980

Water-resources data-collection activities for October 1, 1979, through September 30, 1980, are summarized for Colorado and bordering States. Fifty-four interpretive hydrologic investigations include: 9 statewide investigations, 6 regional investigations, 11 investigations in the Missouri River basin, 7 investigations in the Arkansas River basin, 3 investigations in the Rio Grande basin, 16 investigations in the Colorado River basin, and 2 multistate investigations. The summaries of the investigations consist of a map showing the location of the areas of investigations and a brief description of the investigation's purpose, objective, approach, progress, and plans.

Colorado↗
USGS2007

Proceedings of the Fourth Glacier Bay Science Symposium

Foreword Glacier Bay was established as a National Monument in 1925, in part to protect its unique character and natural beauty, but also to create a natural laboratory to examine evolution of the glacial landscape. Today, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve is still a place of profound natural beauty and dynamic landscapes. It also remains a focal point for scientific research and includes continuing observations begun decades ago of glacial processes and terrestrial ecosystems. In recent years, research has focused on glacial-marine interactions and ecosystem processes that occur below the surface of the bay. In October 2004, Glacier Bay National Park convened the fourth in a series of science symposiums to provide an opportunity for researchers, managers, interpreters, educators, students and the general public to share knowledge about Glacier Bay. The Fourth Glacier Bay Science Symposium was held in Juneau, Alaska, rather than at the Park, reflecting a desire to maximize attendance and communication among a growing and diverse number of stakeholders interested in science in the park. More than 400 people attended the symposium. Participants provided 46 oral presentations and 41 posters covering a wide array of disciplines including geology, glaciology, oceanography, wildlife and fisheries biology, terrestrial and marine ecology, socio-cultural research and management issues. A panel discussion focused on the importance of connectivity in Glacier Bay research, and keynote speakers (Gary Davis and Terry Chapin) spoke of long-term monitoring and ecological processes. These proceedings include 56 papers from the symposium. A summary of the Glacier Bay Science Plan-itself a subject of a meeting during the symposium and the result of ongoing discussions between scientists and resource managers-also is provided. We hope these proceedings illustrate the diversity of completed and ongoing scientific studies, conducted within the Park. To this end, we invited all presenters to submit brief technical summaries of their work, to capture the gist of their study and its main findings without an overload of details and methodology. We also asked authors to include a few words on the management implications of their work to help bridge the gap between scientists and managers in understanding how specific research questions may translate to management practice. Papers in this volume are laid out by subject matter, from terrestrial and freshwater subjects to glacial-marine geology, to the ecology of marine animals and ending with risk assessment, human impacts and science-management considerations. In summary, we hope the proceedings will serve as a useful reference to completed and ongoing studies in Glacier Bay National Park, and thereby provide park enthusiasts, scientists, and managers with a road map of scientific progress.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS1988

Bottom sediments and nutrients in the tidal Potomac system, Maryland and Virginia

The characteristics and distributions of near-surface bottom sediments and of nutrients in the sediments provide information on modern sediment and nutrient sources, sedimentation environments, and geochemical reactions in the tidal Potomac system, Maryland and Virginia. This information is fundamental to an improved understanding of sedimentation and eutrophication problems in the tidal Potomac system. The tidal Potomac system consists of 1,230 square kilometers of intertidal to subtidal Potomac mainstem and tributary streambed from the heads-of-tides to Chesapeake Bay. Tidal Potomac sediments are dominantly silt and clay except in local areas. An average sediment sample is about two-thirds silt and clay (fine) particles and one-third sand (coarse) particles. The mean of the median size of all samples is 6.60 phi, or 0.010 millimeters. Sorting generally is poor and the average sediment is skewed toward the fine tail of the size-distribution curve. Mean particle-size measures have large standard deviations. Among geomorphic units, two distinctly different size populations are found; fine (median phi about 9), and poorly sorted (sorting about 3) sediments in the channel and the smooth flat, and coarse (median phi about 2), and well sorted (sorting about 1) sediments in the shoreline flat and the irregular slope. Among mainstem hydrologic divisions, an average sediment from the river and the estuary division is coarser and more variable than an average sediment from the transition division. Substantial concentrations of total carbon, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus, and limited amounts of inorganic carbon, ammonia nitrogen and nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen occur in tidal Potomac sediments. An average tidal Potomac sediment sample weighing 1 kilogram contains about 21,000 milligrams of total carbon, 2,400 milligrams of total nitrogen, 1,200 milligrams of total phosphorus, 600 milligrams of inorganic carbon, 170 milligrams of ammonia nitrogen, and 2 milligrams of nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen. Total carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus have an average ratio by weight of 18:2:1 and an average ratio by atoms of 94:8:1. Nutrient concentrations and nutrient ratios have large ranges and standard deviations. Nutrient concentrations usually are closely related to particle size; large concentrations are characteristic of fine sediments in the channel and the smooth flat, and small concentrations are typical of coarse sediments in the shoreline flat and the irregular slope. Concentrations typically decrease from the river division to the estuary division. Mainstem and tributaries show no statistically significant difference in mean particle-size measures or mean nutrient concentrations. Tributaries do not contribute large quantities of sediment with diverse texture or nutrient content to the Potomac mainstem. Particle-size measures and nutrient concentrations in the mainstem are significantly related to hydrologic divisions and geomorphic units; that is, particle size and nutrients vary significantly along and across the Potomac mainstem. Lateral variations in particle size and nutrient content are more pronounced and contribute more to significant relations than longitudinal variations contribute. The mean values for the median particle size and for the percentage of sand indicate significant variations among hydrologic divisions for samples from a geomorphic unit, and among geomorphic units, for samples from a hydrologic division. Sediments of channels and smooth flats in the river division commonly are coarser than sediments of channels and smooth flats in the transition and the estuary divisions. Shoreline flats in the estuary division are coarser than shoreline flats in the river division. Shoreline flats and irregular slopes in each hydrologic division generally are significantly coarser than channels and smooth flats. Relations between particle-size measures and geomorphic units show progressively larger cor

Water Supply Paper↗