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At least 1,603 records · Page 89Linked to original sources
USGS1978

Evaluation and design of a streamflow-data network in Washington

A method of evaluating the transferability of streamflow information by regional regression analysis was applied in Washington to several streamflow variables. The annual mean and annual standard deviation were chosen to represent the development potential of the water resource, while the mean, standard deviation, and the 50-year recurrence interval of the annual flood series were chosen to represent flood potential. Low-flow characteristics were not used because of the inability to model them by regression analysis. Ephemeral streams in the vicinity of the Columbia Plateau were ignored for the same reason. The results of the study indicate that the standard errors of estimate of the regression relations were good approximations of the medians of the Bayesian distributions of estimates of inaccuracy and that for the streamflow variables used in the study, little if any improvement can be expected in the regression relations by the collection of additional streamflow data. Improved transferability of streamflow information for these variables has a prerequisite of more accurate information-transfer models. It is therefore recommended that the future streamflow-data network contain only those streamflow stations needed to provide data for (1) the design or operation of water-resources projects, (2) the investigation and study of water resources, and (3) monitoring long-term trends in streamflow.

Washington↗
USGS1945

Ground-water resources of the El Paso area, Texas

El Paso, Tex., and Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico, and the industries in -that area draw their water supplies from wells, most of which are from 600 to 800 feet deep. In 1906, the estimated average pumpage there was about 1,000,000 gallons a day, and by 1935 it had increased to 15,400,000 gallons a day. The water-bearing beds, consisting of sand and gravel interbedded wire clay, tie in the deep structural trough known as the Hueco bolson, between the Organ and Franklin Mountains on the west, the Hueco, Finlay, and Malone Mountains on the east, the Tularosa Basin on the north, and the mountain ranges of Mexico on the south. From the gorge above El Paso to that beginning near Fort Quitman, about 90 miles southeast .of El Paso, the Rio Grande has eroded a flat-bottomed, steepwalled valley, 6 to 8 miles wide and 225 to 350 feet deep. No other large drainage channels have been developed on the bolson. The valley is known as the El Paso Valley, and the uneroded upland part of the bolson is called the Mesa. In the lowest parts of the El Paso Valley, the water-table is nearly at the surface. The quality of the underground water in the valley varies greatly both vertically and laterally. To a depth of about 400 to 500 feet it is in general too highly mineralized for municipal use, but between about. 500 and 900 feet good water may be obtained from several beds. In the beds between 500 and 900 feet the water level in wells is in places as. much as 20 feet lower than that in the shallow beds. Beneath the Mesa the water level .varies from about 200 feet beneath the surface, where the ground elevation is least, to about 400 feet. where it is highest. The water beneath the Mesa in general is of satisfactory quality and contains less than 500 parts per million of dissolved solids. Two cones of depression in the water table have been formed by the pumping near El Paso--one m the vicinity of the Mesa well field, the other around the Montana well field in the valley. The water released from storage by the formation of the cone centering in the Mesa field was calculated at 22,000 acre-feet, but the total pumpage was estimated to have been 90,000 acre-feet. Thus, about one-fourth of the total pumpage was taken from storage; the remaining three-fourths and apparently was taken from recharge. About 210,000 acre-feet of water has been pumped from the cone of depression in the El Paso Valley in and near El Paso. The volume of this cone could not be determined because there are artesian conditions in this area. Computations were made of the amount of water that would be recovered from storage if, for a distance of 10 miles north of the Mesa well field, the water level in a series of wells were drawn down the same amount as the present drawdown in the wells in that field. The water that would be recovered from storage in the formation 0f this depression in the ground water surface was calculated at about 130,000 acre-feet, the equivalent of about 70 years' supply at the 1935 rate of pumping.It is, of course, available in addition to the annual recharge. The sudden increase in 1924 in the saltwater content of the water from El Paso well 3 (well 52), in the Montana well field, was shown to be the result of a leak in the casing at a depth of about 127 feet, and the well was successfully repaired during the investigation. However, the chloride content of all of the wells in the field has been increasing gradually. This may indicate that salty water is being pulled in from considerable distances or that the barriers between the fresh-water-bearing beds and the saltwater-bearing beds above-them are not capable of preventing vertical movement of the ground water. The fact that in the valley the static water level in the shallow beds yielding poor water is higher than that in the deeper beds is disquieting, and if the level in the lower beds continues to decline, seepage from the river will eventually force the shallow highly mineralized water

Water Supply Paper↗
USGS1976

Developing a state water plan: Ground-water conditions in Utah, spring of 1976

This report is the thirteenth in a series of annual reports that describe ground-water conditions in Utah. Reports in this series, prepared cooperatively by the U.S. Geological Survey and the Utah Division of Water Resources, provide data to enable interested parties to keep abreast of changing ground-water conditions. This report, like the others (see references, p. 16), contains information on well construction, ground-water withdrawals, water-level changes, and related changes in precipitation and streamflow. Supplementary data such as graphs showing chemical quality of water and maps showing water-table configuration are included in reports of this series only for those years or areas for which applicable data are available and are important to a discussion of changing ground-water conditions. This report includes individual discussions of selected major areas of ground-water withdrawal in the State for the calendar year 1975. Water-level fluctuations, however, are described for the period spring 1975 to spring 1976. Much of the data used in this report were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Division of Water Rights, Utah Department of Natural Resources.

Utah↗
USGS2016

Hydrological conditions and evaluation of sustainable groundwater use in the Sierra Vista Subwatershed, Upper San Pedro Basin, southeastern Arizona

This study assessed progress toward achieving sustainable groundwater use in the Sierra Vista Subwatershed of the Upper San Pedro Basin, Arizona, through evaluation of 14 indicators of sustainable use. Sustainable use of groundwater in the Sierra Vista Subwatershed requires, at a minimum, a stable rate of groundwater discharge to, and thus base flow in, the San Pedro River. Many of the 14 indicators are therefore related to long-term or short-term effects on base flow and provide us with a means to evaluate groundwater discharge to and base flow in the San Pedro River. The indicators were based primarily on 10 to 20 years of data monitoring in the subwatershed, ending in 2012, and included subwatershedwide indicators, riparian-system indicators, San Pedro River indicators, and springs indicators. Groundwater management actions including voluntary retirement of irrigation pumping in the subwatershed resulted in about a 5,100 acre-feet (acre-ft) reduction in net human use from 2002 to 2012. Subwatershed population increased more than 10,000 during the same period. Most of the reduction occurred during 2002–07 and included reductions in groundwater pumping and increases in managed recharge; net human use varied annually by a few hundred acre-ft during 2007–12. The groundwater budget for 2012 showed a deficit of about 5,000 acre-ft, although the total water-budget uncertainty was about 5,500 acre-ft. In the vicinity of the U.S. Army’s Fort Huachuca, regional-aquifer water levels were in steady decline beginning in at least the mid-1990s (in older wells since at least the early-1970s), as the cone of depression centered on the Sierra Vista and Fort Huachuca pumping centers continued to deepen. This was evident in the individual water levels on Fort Huachuca, as well as from the horizontal hydraulic gradients that extend from the pumping centers toward the San Pedro and Babocomari Rivers. Basin water levels in wells southeast of Sierra Vista, away from the river, were also experiencing declines, while some water levels closer to the river were rising. Near-stream vertical gradients along the San Pedro River showed no clear increasing or decreasing trends that would indicate a shift in the direction of subsurface flow between the riverbed and the alluvial aquifer, or a trend in the magnitude of groundwater/surface-water exchange. Annual streamflow permanence data showed no clear change in streamflow permanence trends in any of the river reaches, other than those related to precipitation trends. Similarly, the single-day, dry-season, wet-dry streamflow analysis of all subwatershed river reaches indicated no change in condition over the past 14 years, with the exception of the Hereford reach, which has seen a statistically significant increase in wetted length. Dry-season, alluvial-aquifer water levels in the Hereford reach also showed a statistically significant increase. These improvements are attributed to the end of irrigation pumping in the area. Although data indicate that the length of the Fairbank North wetted reach may be in decline, it is not yet statistically significant. Stable-isotope data indicated reduced groundwater discharge to the Babocomari River in the vicinity of the Babocomari River near Tombstone gaging station and to the San Pedro River near the San Pedro River at Palominas gaging station and near the Lewis Springs DCP stage recorder. The Babocomari River near Tombstone gaging station is downgradient of the major pumping centers. The change in isotopic signature at the Lewis Springs stage recorder could have been the result of alterations in groundwater/surface-water interactions there caused by beaver damming of the river. Base flow in the San Pedro River declined over the periods of record at the three San Pedro River gaging stations in the subwatershed (Palominas, Charleston, and Tombstone), as well as at the Babocomari River near Tombstone gaging station. Precipitation declined slightly from the 1990s to the 2000s, although there is no statistically significant trend in subwatershed precipitation from 1991 to 2012. The occurrence of large winter discharge events appeared to decline and that of large summer discharge events appeared to increase over this same period. Data for physical parameters, general chemistry, nutrient species, select trace elements, and suspended sediment were collected at San Pedro River at Charleston stream-gaging station. These data were summarized over time and analyzed in relation to discharge and season as a means to assess trends over the period of analysis. Federal and State of Arizona drinking-water and human-contact standards were all met and few exceedances occurred for the ecological thresholds investigated. Several constituents showed a significant trend over the period of analysis, but only concentration and flux data for total phosphate, orthophosphate, total nitrogen, suspended sediment, and sulfate were suitable to be used in a weighted regression analysis that statistically accounted for time, discharge, and season. Sulfate concentrations and flux showed a significant downward trend over the period of analysis, whereas total phosphorus and ortho-phosphate showed a relatively small magnitude upward trend relative to standards. Suspended sediment concentrations and flux both showed a significant downward trend in the 1980s, an effect attributed to reduction of cattle in the subwatershed at about this time, and (or) increased cottonwood ( Populus fremontii ) and willow ( Salix goodingii ) recruitment, and (or) the curtailment of sand and gravel mining adjacent to the San Pedro River with the designation of the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area in 1988. A spike in sediment flux in 2006 may be attributable to the more than 100 debris flows in the Huachuca Mountains during the summer monsoon of that year. Spring discharge along the San Pedro River generally increased at three sites proximate to the Sierra Vista treated effluent recharge facility and varied somewhat with climate at two other sites. Median annual discharge at the recharge facility peaked in 2006, and at Murray Springs and Horsethief Spring, downgradient of the recharge facility, in 2009. Sampling for trace organic compounds in flow from springs was carried out using both discrete sampling and passive sampling methods. Spring samples thus collected showed the presence of trace-organic compounds. Lewis Springs (background site) had the least number of detections, whereas Murray Springs, located directly downgradient of the City of Sierra Vista’s treated effluent recharge facility, had the greatest number of detections of all the springs. Discrete samples from the recharge facility had more than twice the detections found in discrete samples from Murray Spring and at much higher concentrations. Few similar trace-organic compounds were detected at both the springs and the treated effluent recharge facility, and the number of detections did not increase during the collection period. Limitations of the study prevented the determination of trace-organic concentration in passive samplers and also prevented linking trace organic compounds detected at the treated effluent recharge facility with compounds detected from the springs. In particular, trace organic compounds could also derive from other sources such as septic systems. Looking at the subwatershed as a whole, base flow was in decline along the entire river reach, but determination of the specific cause of the decline was beyond the scope of this report. Conditions in the area from the municipal pumping center of Sierra Vista and Fort Huachuca northeast to the river (from about the Charleston to Tombstone gaging stations) were more commonly in decline than in regions further south. Both long-term indicators, such as regional aquifer groundwater levels and horizontal gradients, and the isotope analysis indicated that groundwater discharge to the river and thus base flow may continue to decline in that area. South of Charleston, indicators were more mixed. Some indicators in the Hereford reach suggest groundwater discharge to the San Pedro River may be increasing there, whereas some indicators in the Palominas reach suggest groundwater discharge to the river there may be declining.

Arizona↗
USGS2011

Crims Island-Restoration and monitoring of juvenile salmon rearing habitat in the Columbia River Estuary, Oregon, 2004-10

Under the 2004 Biological Opinion for operation of the Federal Columbia River Power System released by the National Marine Fisheries Service, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), and the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) were directed to restore more than 4,047 hectares (10,000 acres) of tidal marsh in the Columbia River estuary by 2010. Restoration of Crims Island near Longview, Washington, restored 38.1 hectares of marsh and swamp in the tidal freshwater portion of the lower Columbia River. The goal of the restoration was to improve habitat for juveniles of Endangered Species Act (ESA)-listed salmon stocks and ESA-listed Columbian white-tailed deer. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) monitored and evaluated the fisheries and aquatic resources at Crims Island in 2004 prior to restoration (pre-restoration), which began in August 2004, and then post-restoration from 2006 to 2009. This report summarizes pre- and post-restoration monitoring data used by the USGS to evaluate project success. We evaluated project success by examining the interaction between juvenile salmon and a suite of broader ecological measures including sediments, plants, and invertebrates and their response to large-scale habitat alteration. The restoration action at Crims Island from August 2004 to September 2005 was to excavate a 0.6-meter layer of soil and dig channels in the interior of the island to remove reed canary grass and increase habitat area and tidal exchange. The excavation created 34.4 hectares of tidal emergent marsh where none previously existed and 3.7 hectares of intertidal and subtidal channels. Cattle that had grazed the island for more than 50 years were relocated. Soil excavated from the site was deposited in upland areas next to the tidal marsh to establish an upland forest. Excavation deepened and widened an existing T-shaped channel to increase tidal flow to the interior of the island. The western arm of the existing 'T-channel' was extended westward and connected to Bradbury Slough to create a second outlet to the main river. New intertidal channels were constructed from the existing 'T-channel' and tidal mudflats became inundated at high tide to increase rearing habitat for juvenile salmonids. The restoration action resulted in a 95-percent increase in available juvenile salmon rearing habitat. We collected juvenile salmon and other fishes at Crims Island and a nearby reference site using beach seines and fyke nets annually from March through August during all years. Benthic invertebrates were collected with sediment corers and drift invertebrates were collected with neuston nets. Juvenile salmon stomach contents were sampled using lavage. Vegetation and sediments characteristics were surveyed and we conducted a topographic/bathymetric survey using a RTK (real time kinematic) GPS (global positioning system). The fish assemblage at Crims Island, composed primarily of threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus), non-native banded killifish (Fundulus diaphanus), peamouth chub (Mylocheilus caurinus), subyearling Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) (hereinafter referred to as subyearlings), and small numbers of juvenile chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta), did not differ appreciably pre- and post-restoration. Subyearlings were the primary salmonid collected and were seasonally abundant from April through May during all years. The abundance of juvenile salmon declined seasonally as water temperature exceeded 20 degrees C in the Reference site by mid-June; however, subyearlings persisted at the Mainstem site and in subtidal channels of the Restoration site through the summer in water temperatures exceeding 22 degrees C. Residence times of subyearlings in Crims Island backwaters generally were short consisting of one or two tidal cycles. Median residence time was longer in the Restoration site than in the Reference site pre- and post-restoration. Small (mean = 55.7 millimeters) subyea

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS1974

Streamflow measurement network review for hydroelectric power applications in Brazil

This review of selected segments of the stream-gaging network of Brazil was undertaken by the writer in March and April, 1973, pursuant to an agreement between Companhia de Pesquisa de Recursos Minerais (CPRM) and Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A. (ELETROBRAS) as a part of the cooperative program of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and CPRM under the auspices of the Ministerio das Minas e Energia (MME) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Its primary purpose is to provide an evaluation of the adequacy of streamflow data on streams which are being considered for or are already being utilized for hydroelectric power sources. Some comments are included pertaining to the general coverage hydrologic network. These comments were generated by the examination of the streamflow data useful for power purposes because all gaging stations form a part of the total network for hydrologic investigations. Present plans are that the entire network will eventually be operated by or under the jurisdiction of the MME through the Departamento National de Aguas e Energia Eletrica (DNAEE). Brazil is a large country, larger than the conterminous United States, and it has been engaged in hydrologic investigations for more than 50 years. The network has been maintained by Federal agencies, State agencies, power companies, and consulting firms and until recently no organizational mechanism existed to coordinate the various activities or to establish uniform standards of data collection, computation, and publication. It is estimated that stage and/or discharge data have been collected at 2,500 or more sites in Brazil. Because there has been no centralized publication system, it has not been possible to locate with assurance all measurement sites or to ascertain precisely the types and quality of the data collected or available. For these reasons the suggestions outlined in this report are expected to be modified on the basis of local need and site information, which may not have been evident at the time of the review. For example, specific suggestions have been made to discontinue some stations which appear superfluous or which essentially duplicate other stations. In other instances additions to the network have been proposed. There may be reasons for the continued operation of a given station which cannot be discerned from the available literature. Also coverage may have been established in an area but the evidence has not yet appeared in print. DEAEE is currently (1973) working diligently to overcome a backlog of data computation and publication. Brazil is currently developing at a rapid rate with electric power demands increasing at a 12% annually, a reflection of the tremendous growth of the economy. With this rate of increase likely to continue for the foreseable future, it goes without saying that hydrologic information needed tomorrow must be collected today.

Open-File Report↗
USGS1996

Snowpack chemistry at selected sites in northwestern Colorado during spring 1995

Samples of the alpine and subalpine snowpack were collected in and near the headwater basins of the Yampa River in northwestern Colorado during maximum annual accumulation of snowpack in spring 1995. Sampling protocol at seven selected sites at more than 2,500 meters above sea level divided the snowpack into two distinct strata to enable separate chemical analyses of upper and lower layers of the annual snow cover. These two layers correspond to the early snow season beginning in September until December 12, 1994, and the remainder of the season from January 1 until the sampling date in spring 1995. At one site these two strata were resampled at closely spaced intervals defining substrata to observe variance within the two strata dividing the snow season. Analytical results of snowpack chemistry are presented in support of investigations of seasonal effects on ion concentrations in the snowpack. Chemical concentrations of major anions and cations, dissolved organic carbon, and alkalinity; measured pH; calculated charge balance between anions and cations; the stable-sulfur isotope ratio (34S/32S); and summary statistics of chemical concentrations are tabulated. Sampling sites are plotted on a map of the area. Spatial distributions of the concentrations of the hydrogen, nitrate, and sulfate ions and stable- sulfur isotope ratios also are mapped. Several unusual, late-season, snowfall events occurred during April and May of 1995 after the snowpack was sampled at most of the seven sites in the study area. Consequently, a considerable fraction of the total annual snowpack was not sampled. At one site, the full snowpack was sampled again in June, after the late-spring storms, for comparison to the chemistry of the snowpack sampled earlier in April. Precipitation chemistry from a National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP) collector located near the site is presented for comparison of the chemistry of the late-season snow to that of the typical annual snowpack season.

Open-File Report↗
USGS1985

Hydrologic description of the Tamarack Wildlife area and vicinity, Logan County, Colorado, and simulated effects of possible water-management activities

The stream-aquifer system of the Tamarack Wildlife Area and vicinity in Logan County, Colorado, is described using analyses of water level, water temperature, and specific conductance data. Correlation analysis indicated that water levels in the flood plain relate better to those in the river than those in the upgradient valley meadow. Water table surfaces showed that water moves parallel to the river with a small gradient toward the river. Water temperature data for the river had a large annual fluctuation. The temperature of well water from 0 feet below land surface had no fluctuation. The temperature of sloughs and shallow groundwater had intermediate fluctuations. Specific conductance data ranged from 264 microsiemens/cm at 25 C in sandhill wells to 1,540 microsiemens in the river. A groundwater flow model and simplified slough-temperature model showed that additional groundwater pumpage or lower river stage caused by upstream diversions would decrease groundwater inflow to the slough, with a corresponding water temperature decrease. A simulated artificial recharge project would increase groundwater inflow to the slough and increase water temperature in the slough. The simulation of a plan to pump groundwater to create wildlife-habitat ponds indicated that this would cause stream depletions each month, except during the nonpumping period, June through August. (USGS)

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS1990

Ground-water levels and quality at Crex Meadows Wildlife Area, Burnett County, Wisconsin

During 1984, above-normal ground-water levels flooded the fields and basements in the vicinity of the Crex Meadows Wildlife Area. In response to concerns of neighboring farmers and homeowners, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Geological Survey began a cooperative study to assess ground-water conditions in the area and to determine the causes of above-normal ground-water levels in and around the Crex Meadows Wildlife Area. Data from an inventory of water levels in the Crex Meadows area measured in 1935 and 1937 were compared with data collected in 1986 and 1987. The comparison indicates that 1986 water levels were 5 to 10 feet higher throughout the area than in 1935 and 1937. Water levels declined about 5 feet throughout much of the area during 1987 and were only 0–5 feet higher than in the late 1930's. Hydrographs of water levels measured from 1985 to the fall of 1987 also indicate that water levels rose in 1985 and 1986 and fell abruptly in 1987. Water levels in two wells, one in northern Burnett County and the other in Polk County, were compared to those in the wildlife area to determine whether the wetland impoundments contributed significantly to above-normal water levels measured in 1986 or whether levels were high throughout northwestern Wisconsin. Water-levels at long-term observation wells Bt-2 (1936–present) and Pk-40 (1951–present) (13 miles northeast and 20 miles southeast of Crex Meadows, respectively) during 1986 were the highest of record. Long-term discharge records for the St. Croix River upstream (Danbury) and downstream (St. Croix Falls) from Crex Meadows indicate that the river reached its highest historical discharge volume during 1986. Hydrographs showing cumulative departure from mean annual precipitation at two stations (Danbury and St. Croix Falls) indicate that the above-normal ground-water levels in 1986 were preceded by several years of above-normal precipitation. It is probable that the above-normal ground-water levels and surface- water discharge throughout the area can be attributed to above-normal precipitation. Groundwater- level fluctuations corresponded directly to variations in precipitation during 1985–87. Chemical analyses of water samples from 20 observation wells indicate that calcium and bicarbonate are the predominant ions in ground water in the Crex Meadows area. Iron concentrations ranged from 45 to 45,000 micrograms per liter, and 17 of 20 samples exceeded the 300-micrograms-per-liter recommended drinking-water standard of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Wisconsin↗
USGS2001

Ground-water conditions in Utah, spring of 2001

This is the thirty-eighth in a series of annual reports that describe ground-water conditions in Utah. Reports in this series, published cooperatively by the U.S. Geological Survey and the Utah Department of Natural Resources, Division of Water Resources and Division of Water Rights, provide data to enable interested parties to maintain awareness of changing ground-water conditions. This report, like the others in the series, contains information on well construction, ground-water withdrawal from wells, water-level changes, precipitation, streamflow, and chemical quality of water. Information on well construction included in this report refers only to wells constructed for new appropriations of ground water. Supplementary data are included in reports of this series only for those years or areas which are important to a discussion of changing ground-water conditions and for which applicable data are available. This report includes individual discussions of selected significant areas of ground-water development in the State for calendar year 2000. Most of the reported data were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Utah Department of Natural Resources, Division of Water Rights and Division of Water Resources.

Utah↗
USGS2000

Ground-water conditions in Utah, spring of 2000

This is the thirty-seventh in a series of annual reports that describe ground-water conditions in Utah. Reports in this series, published cooperatively by the U.S. Geological Survey and the Utah Department of Natural Resources, Division of Water Resources and Division of Water Rights, provide data to enable interested parties to maintain awareness of changing ground-water conditions. This report, like the others in the series, contains information on well construction, ground-water withdrawal from wells, water-level changes, precipitation, streamflow, and chemical quality of water. Information on well construction included in this report refers only to wells constructed for new appropriations of ground water. Supplementary data are included in reports of this series only for those years or areas which are important to a discussion of changing ground-water conditions and for which applicable data are available. This report includes individual discussions of selected significant areas of ground-water development in the State for calendar year 1999. Most of the reported data were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Utah Department of Natural Resources, Divisions of Water Rights and Water Resources.

Utah↗
USGS1984

Average annual precipitation and runoff for Arkansas, 1951-80

Ten intercomparison studies to determine the accuracy of pH and specific-conductance measurements, using dilute-nitric acid solutions, were managed by the U.S. Geological Survey for the National Atmospheric Deposition Program and the National Trends Network precipitation networks. These precipitation networks set quality-control goals for site-operator measurements of pH and specific conductance. The accuracy goal for pH is plus or minus 0.1 pH unit; the accuracy goal for specific conductance is plus or minus 4 microsiemens per centimeter at 25 degrees Celsius. These intercomparison studies indicated that an average of 65 percent of the site-operator pH measurements and 79 percent of the site-operator specific-conductance measurements met the quality-control goal. A statistical approach that is resistant to outliers was used to evaluate and illustrate the results obtained from these intercomparisons.

Arkansas↗
USGS1977

Developing a state water plan: Ground-water conditions in Utah, spring of 1977

This report is the fourteenth in a series of annual reports that describe ground-water conditions in Utah. Reports in this series, prepared cooperatively by the U.S. Geological Survey and the Utah Division of Water Resources, provide data to enable interested parties to keep abreast of changing ground-water conditions. This report, like the others (see references, p. 16), contains information on well construction, ground-water withdrawals, water-level changes, and related changes in precipitation and streamflow. Supplementary data such as graphs showing chemical quality of water and maps showing water-table configuration are included in reports of this series only for those years or areas for which applicable data are available and are important to a discussion of changing ground-water conditions. This report includes individual discussions of selected major areas of ground-water withdrawal in the State for the calendar year 1976. Water-level fluctuations, however, are described for the period spring 1976 to spring 1977. Much of the data used in this report were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Division of Water Rights, Utah Department of Natural Resources.

Utah↗
USGS1995

Water-resources data network evaluation for Monterey County, California; Phase 2, northern and coastal areas of Monterey County

This report presents an evaluation of water- resources data-collection networks in the northern and coastal areas of Monterey County, California. This evaluation was done by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Monterey County Flood Control and Water Conservation District to evaluate precipitation, surface water, and ground water monitoring networks. This report describes existing monitoring networks in the study areas and areas where possible additional data-collection is needed. During this study, 106 precipitation-quantity gages were identified, of which 84 were active; however, no precipitation-quality gages were identified in the study areas. The precipitaion-quantity gages were concentrated in the Monterey Peninsula and the northern part of the county. If the number of gages in these areas were reduced, coverage would still be adequate to meet most objectives; however, additional gages could improve coverage in the Tularcitos Creek basin and in the coastal areas south of Carmel to the county boundary. If collection of precipitation data were expanded to include monitoring precipitation quality, this expanded monitoring also could include monitoring precipitation for acid rain and pesticides. Eleven continuous streamflow-gaging stations were identified during this study, of which seven were active. To meet the objectives of the streamflow networks outlined in this report, the seven active stations would need to be continued, four stations would need to be reactivated, and an additional six streamflow-gaging stations would need to be added. Eleven stations that routinely were sampled for chemical constituents were identified in the study areas. Surface water in the lower Big Sur River basin was sampled annually for total coli- form and fecal coliform bacteria, and the Big Sur River was sampled monthly at 16 stations for these bacteria. Routine sampling for chemical constituents also was done in the Big Sur River basin. The Monterey County Flood Control and Water Conservation District maintained three networks in the study areas to measure ground-water levels: (1) the summer network, (2) the monthly network, and (3) the annual autumn network. The California American Water Company also did some ground-water-level monitoring in these areas. Well coverage for ground-water monitoring was dense in the seawater-intrusion area north of Moss Landing (possibly because of multiple overlying aquifers), but sparse in other parts of the study areas. During the study, 44 sections were identified as not monitored for ground-water levels. In an ideal ground-water-level network, wells would be evenly spaced, except where local conditions or correlations of wells make monitoring unnecessary. A total of 384 wells that monitor ground-water levels and/or ground-water quality were identified during this study. The Monterey County Flood Control and Water Conservation District sampled ground-water quality monthly during the irrigation season to monitor seawater intrusion. Once each year (during the summer), the wells in this network were monitored for chlorides, specific conductance, and nitrates. Additional samples were collected from each well once every 5 years for complete mineral analysis. The California Department of Health Services, the California American Water Company, the U.S. Army Health Service at Ford Ord, and the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District also monitored ground-water quality in wells in the study areas. Well coverage for the ground-water- quality networks was dense in the seawater- intrusion area north of Moss Landing, but sparse in the rest of the study areas. During this study, 54 sections were identified as not monitored for water quality.

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS2007

Wave-driven spatial and temporal variability in sea-floor sediment mobility in the Monterey Bay, Cordell Bank, and Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuaries

Wind and wave patterns affect many aspects of continental shelves and shorelines geomorphic evolution. Although our understanding of the processes controlling sediment suspension on continental shelves has improved over the past decade, our ability to predict sediment mobility over large spatial and temporal scales remains limited. The deployment of robust operational buoys along the U.S. West Coast in the early 1980s provides large quantities of high-resolution oceanographic and meteorologic data. By 2006, these data sets were long enough to clearly identify long-term trends and compute statistically significant probability estimates of wave and wind behavior during annual and interannual climatic cycles (that is, El Niño and La Niña). Wave-induced sediment mobility on the shelf and upper slope off central California was modeled using synthesized oceanographic and meteorologic data as boundary input for the Delft SWAN model, sea-floor grain-size data provided by the usSEABED database, and regional bathymetry. Differences in waves (heights, periods, and directions) and winds (speeds and directions) between El Niño and La Niña months cause temporal and spatial variations in peak wave-induced bed shear stresses. These variations, in conjunction with spatially heterogeneous unconsolidated sea-floor sedimentary cover, result in predicted sediment mobility widely varying in both time and space. These findings indicate that these factors have significant consequences for both geological and biological processes.

California↗
USGS2003

Use of the Hydrological Simulation Program-FORTRAN and bacterial source tracking for development of the fecal coliform total maximum daily load (TMDL) for Accotink Creek, Fairfax County, Virginia

Impairment of surface waters by fecal coliform bacteria is a water-quality issue of national scope and importance. Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act requires that each State identify surface waters that do not meet applicable water-quality standards. In Virginia, more than 175 stream segments are on the 1998 Section 303(d) list of impaired waters because of violations of the water-quality standard for fecal coliform bacteria. A total maximum daily load (TMDL) will need to be developed by 2006 for each of these impaired streams and rivers by the Virginia Departments of Environmental Quality and Conservation and Recreation. A TMDL is a quantitative representation of the maximum load of a given water-quality constituent, from all point and nonpoint sources, that a stream can assimilate without violating the designated water-quality standard. Accotink Creek, in Fairfax County, Virginia, is one of the stream segments listed by the State of Virginia as impaired by fecal coliform bacteria. Watershed modeling and bacterial source tracking were used to develop the technical components of the fecal coliform bacteria TMDL for Accotink Creek. The Hydrological Simulation Program-FORTRAN (HSPF) was used to simulate streamflow, fecal coliform concentrations, and source-specific fecal coliform loading in Accotink Creek. Ribotyping, a bacterial source tracking technique, was used to identify the dominant sources of fecal coliform bacteria in the Accotink Creek watershed. Ribotyping also was used to determine the relative contributions of specific sources to the observed fecal coliform load in Accotink Creek. Data from the ribotyping analysis were incorporated into the calibration of the fecal coliform model. Study results provide information regarding the calibration of the streamflow and fecal coliform bacteria models and also identify the reductions in fecal coliform loads required to meet the TMDL for Accotink Creek. The calibrated streamflow model simulated observed streamflow characteristics with respect to total annual runoff, seasonal runoff, average daily streamflow, and hourly stormflow. The calibrated fecal coliform model simulated the patterns and range of observed fecal coliform bacteria concentrations. Observed fecal coliform bacteria concentrations during low-flow periods ranged from 25 to 800 colonies per 100 milliliters, and peak concentrations during storm-flow periods ranged from 19,000 to 340,000 colonies per 100 milliliters. Simulated source-specific contributions of fecal coliform bacteria to instream load were matched to the observed contributions from the dominant sources, which were cats, deer, dogs, ducks, geese, humans, muskrats, and raccoons. According to model results, an 89-percent reduction in the current fecal coliform load delivered from the watershed to Accotink Creek would result in compliance with the designated water-quality goals and associated TMDL.

Virginia↗
USGS1988

Effect of erosion-control structures on sediment and nutrient transport, Edgewood Creek drainage, Lake Tahoe basin, Nevada, 1981-83

Three sites in the Edgewood Creek basin with a combined drainage area of about 1.2 sq mi were selected to assess the effect of erosion-control structures along Nevada State Highway 207, on sediment and nutrient transport. The flow at site one is thought to have been largely unaffected by urban development, and was completely unaffected by erosion control structures. The flow at site two was from a basin affected by urban development and erosion control structures. Site three was downstream from the confluence of streams measured at sites one and two. Most data on streamflow and water quality were collected between June 1981 and May 1983 to assess the hydrologic characteristics of the three sites. As a result of the erosion control structures, mean annual concentrations of total sediment were reduced from about 24,000 to about 410 mg/l at site two and from about 1,900 to about 190 ml/l at site three. Sediment loads were reduced from about 240 to about 10 tons/year at site two and from about 550 to about 110 tons/year at site three. At site one, in contrast, mean concentrations and loads remained low throughout the study period. At site two, sediment particle size changed from predominately coarse prior to construction, to predominately fine thereafter; at site three, it changed from about half coarse sediments to predominately fine. Mean concentration and loads of total iron also were significantly reduced after construction at sites two and three, whereas mean concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus species did not change appreciably. (Author 's abstract)

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS1978

Historical profile, Quality of Water Laboratories, U. S. Geological Survey

During the period 1918 to 1973 the U.S. Geological Survey, Water Resources Division, established 22 District-type water quality laboratories. These facilities provided the analytical capability and water-quality information for hydrologic investigations and the national baseline inventory of chemical, physical, fluvial sediment, and biological characteristics of surface and ground waters in the United States. Prior to 1950, most methods used in the laboratory were gravimetric, colorimetric, or titrimetric. Flame photometric equipment was common to most laboratories in the 1950's, and the atomic absorption spectrophotometer was added to larger laboratories in the 1960's. In the late 1960's, the first of the automatic analyzers was installed. Total annual production averaged about 480 adjusted complete analyses during the early years 1919-28, about 7,800 in 1946, and about 50,000 in 1970. Budget estimates for the majority of laboratories ranged from $25,000 to $50,000 (1940-50) and $75,000 to $300,000 (1965-73). Beginning in 1972, major functions of the 22 laboratories have been combined into two comprehensive highly-automated facilities located at Denver (Arvada), Colo., and Atlanta (Doraville), Ga. These laboratories comprise the Central Laboratory System for the U.S. Geological Survey. (Woodard-USGS)

Open-File Report↗