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At least 1,711 records · Page 95Linked to original sources
USGS2019

Exxon Valdez oil spill long-term herring research and monitoring program final report

This study includes annual field surveys of Ichthyophonus, viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus, and erythrocytic necrosis virus in adult and juvenile Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii) in Prince William Sound, Alaska and several reference populations in Alaska, British Columbia, and Washington. Results from controlled experimental studies with Ichthyophonus indicated that: • Pacific herring could become infected after repeated feedings on simulated infected offal, • Gross external signs of ichthyophoniasis can persist for extended periods without causing direct host mortality, • A novel tool (chromogenic in situ hybridization) was developed to confirm the presence of Ichthyophonus in histological sections, • A circulating stage of Ichthyophonus was detected in the blood of infected hosts, • Ichthyophonus remains viable in a fish carcass for up to 4 weeks and remains infectious for at least 5 days post mortem, • Six distinct genetic types of Ichthyophonus were identified in different hosts throughout the world, • Tissue explant culture was confirmed to be more sensitive than qPCR for detecting low - intensity Ichthyophonus infections directly from fish tissues. Results from controlled experimental studies with viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus indicated that: • Cooler temperatures are more conducive to viral hemorrhagic septicemia epizootics in Pacific herring, • A blocking ELISA was developed to detect fish antibodies to viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus, • A more sensitive plaque neutralization test was optimized to detect herring neutralizing antibodies to viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus, • The relative susceptibility of Pacific herring to other viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus genotypes was assessed, experimental spill-over, amplification, and spill-back was demonstrated between Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) and Pacific herring, • The efficacy of homologous and heterologous DNA vaccines against viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus was demonstrated in Pacific herring. Controlled experimental studies with erythrocytic necrosis virus resulted in the development of a conventional PCR technique that is capable of the virus in the blood and the development of a quantitative PCR technique that is capable of detecting the virus in any herring tissues.

Report↗
USGS2002

Use of soil leachates to define the extent of brine-contaminated soils at the USGS petroleum environmental research site "B", Osage County, northeastern Oklahoma

Soils at an active oil production site with a history of surface releases of produced water were investigated to determine the chemical signature of salt contamination and the spatial distribution of soil salinity in relation to areas of obvious salt scarring. Grab samples of shallow soil (0-15 cm) and selected soil profiles to depths of 0.6 to 1.7 m were collected onsite and offsite using a 5-cm diameter stainless steel soil auger. Air dried and disaggregated soil from 15 cm intervals (100 g) was mixed with 100 ml of distilled-deionized water to dissolve readily soluble salts. After 24 hours the water was separated by centrifugation followed by filtration through a 0.45 micrometer membrane. Specific conductance was measured immediately. Dissolved chloride (Cl) and sulfate (SO4) were initially estimated with Cl titration strips and turbidimetric measurements respectively. More accurate measurements of dissolved Cl, SO4, and bromide (Br) were later performed by ion chromatography. Brine-contaminated soil was indicated by (1) unusually elevated Cl concentrations or relatively low ratios of conductance/Cl in aqueous leachates compared to leachates of uncontaminated soils, and (2) ratios of Cl/Br in leachates (250± 30) that fall within the range of Cl/Br ratios measured in local produced waters (220-320). Leachates of background soils from the area were characterized by low conductance (sandy soils) or dissolved solids dominated by sulfates (shaley soils). At the study site, the surface (0-15 cm) distribution of elevated soil salinity was largely confined to areas of obvious salt scarring. Within the area of salt scars, elevated salinity persisted to depths of refusal by manual augering. The technique will be applied to deeper samples obtained by mechanical augering or direct push techniques.

Oklahoma↗
USGS2002

Preliminary geophysical characterization of two oil production sites, Osage County, Oklahoma - Osage Skiatook Petroleum Environmental Research Project

Ground electromagnetic and dc resistivity geophysical surveys were used to interpret the subsurface distribution of salinized soil, water, and bedrock at two sites (A and B) and to characterize the larger scale hydrologic setting. Measurements were made on grids of about 1000 square meters using a very shallow penetrating (less than 10 m) electromagnetic (EM) geophysical system (EM31). At site A, high subsurface conductivities (more than 100 millisiemens per meter) found below disposal ponds extended down the local hydrologic gradient to below the normal level of near by Lake Skiatook. At site B, areas of highest subsurface electrical conductivity were offset about 10 m from the center of salt scars. The area of high subsurface electrical conductivity extends in the subsurface below the normal level of Skiatook Lake. DC resistivity soundings were made in and around the two sites in order to characterize deeper (30-60 m) electrical properties of the subsurface lithology and ground water. These soundings indicate that the tight shale that dominates the local lithology is moderately electrically conductive (5 milliseimems per meter). DC soundings done in several areas at the Skiatook Lake shoreline indicate an electrically conductive (less than 10 millisiemens per meter) zone exists below the shore even away from the oil production sites. This conductive zone may indicate a mixing between fresh lake water and local ground water that has high dissolved solids. Borehole geophysical logs at site B and laboratory rock property measurements are currently being used to refine interpretation of ground geophysical measurements.

Oklahoma↗
USGS2002

Impact of oil production releases on soil chemical properties at the Osage-Skiatook Petroleum Environmental Research Project Site

A site characterization study was conducted at an old oil production area where highest activity occurred during the 1930's. Two site locations referred to as OSPER are along the shoreline of Skiatook Lake northwest of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Crude oil and brine water releases have impacted soils, surface and ground water, and the Oak cross-timber ecosystem. Local effects include soil salinization with destruction of plant cover and soil texture, and resultant deep erosion. Stress on affected vegetation is prevalent, but some grass revegetation has occurred. Surface soil samples and vertical profile cores to four feet have been collected and analyzed for salinity, organic matter, petroleum hydrocarbons, texture, nitrates, and dehydrogenase activity. Native grass re-establishment was inversely related to soil salinity and extent of erosion. As expected oil wastes increased the soil organic matter, greatly over surface controls near 0.3%.. Natural soil nitrates were at a low level near 0.2 ppm, but sufficient to support native grasses.

Oklahoma↗
USGS2002

Hydrologic controls on the subsurface transport of oil-field brine at the Osage-Skiatook Petroleum Environmental Research (OSPER) B Site, Oklahoma

As a part of a multidisciplinary study of the impact of oil wells and oil production on the environment, we are investigating the hydrology of the OSPER B site, which is located at Skiatook Lake in Osage County, Oklahoma. Salt and crude oil from oil well brine pits and accidental releases from oil tank batteries have contaminated soil, ground water, and surface water at this site. Preliminary coring near a brine pit at the site showed that beneath 0.5-2 meters of surficial deposits (fill, soil, colluvium, and alluvium), a layer of tight shale that is at least 6 meters thick underlies the site. The land slopes down from the pit at about a 1:10 slope to the lake, which is located about 20 meters from the pit. We found no evidence to date that the brine has penetrated into the shale. Field cores and water level measurements in boreholes indicated that the surficial deposits were often saturated above the shale, which was powder dry. We hypothesize that water from precipitation infiltrates into the permeable surficial deposits, ponds above the low-permeability shale, and moves laterally toward the lake in the surface layer. Dissolved salt from prior spills present in the surface layer is transported down slope to the lake during and following precipitation events. Chemical analyses of water samples collected from boreholes indicate that salt water that collects in the brine pit also moves into the surface layer and flows to the lake. Overland flow and transport of brine also occurs in response to intense rainfall events. Evapotranspiration concentrates the subsurface brine in dry periods. Our field work indicates that the surfacial deposits are very heterogeneous, and as a result there are preferential pathways for subsurface transport of water and contaminants from the pit to the lake. Our results indicate that near-surface, transient processes dominate the contaminant hydrology at this site.

Oklahoma↗
USGS2020

Fisheries research and monitoring activities of the Lake Erie Biological Station, 2019

A comprehensive understanding of fish populations and their interactions is the cornerstone of modern fishery management and the basis for Fish Community Goals and Objectives for Lake Erie (Ryan et al. 2003). This report is responsive to U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) obligations via Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Great Lakes Council of Lake Committees (CLC) to provide scientific information in support of fishery management. Goals for the USGS Great Lakes Deepwater Fish Assessment and Ecological Studies in 2019 were to monitor long-term changes in the fish community and population dynamics of key fishes of interest to management agencies. Specific to Lake Erie, expectations of this agreement were sustained investigations of native percids, forage (prey) fish populations, and Lake Trout. Our 2019 deepwater program operations began in April and concluded in December, and utilized trawl, gillnet, hydroacoustic, lower trophic sampling, and telemetry methods. This work resulted in 88 bottom trawls covering 65 ha of lake-bottom and catching 24,140 fish totaling 3,622 kg during three separate trawl surveys in the West and Central basins of Lake Erie. Overnight gillnet sets (n=44) for cold water species were performed at 42 unique locations in the West and East basins of Lake Erie. A total of 8.0 km of gillnet was deployed during these surveys, which caught 286 fish, 114 of which were native coldwater species: Lake Trout, Burbot, and Lake Whitefish. USGS hydroacoustic surveys in 2019 produced 240 km of transects, and lower trophic sampling provided data from zooplankton samples (n=21) and water quality profiles (n=21) to populate a database maintained by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (OMNRF), Ohio Division of Natural Resources (ODNR), Michigan Division of Natural Resources (MDNR), Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC), and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC). USGS also assisted CLC member agencies with deployment and maintenance of the Great Lakes Acoustic Telemetry Observation System (GLATOS) throughout all three Lake Erie sub-basins, supporting multiple coordinated telemetry investigations. In 2019, Lake Trout investigations included annual gill net surveys and acoustic telemetry of spawning migration and habitat use in coordination with OMNRF, NYSDEC, and PFBC. Results from Lake Trout investigations were reported in the Coldwater Task Group annual report to the Great Lakes Fishery Commission (GLFC) and the CLC (Coldwater Task Group 2020). Likewise, interagency forage fish assessments conducted with hydroacoustics were summarized and reported in the Forage Task Group annual report (Forage Task Group 2020). This report presents biomass-based summaries of fish communities in western Lake Erie derived from USGS bottom trawl surveys conducted from 2013 to 2019 during June and September. The survey design provided temporal and spatial coverage that did not exist in the historic interagency trawl database, and thus complemented the August ODNR-OMNRF effort to reinforce stock assessments with more robust data. Analyses herein evaluated trends in: total biomass, abundance of dominant predator and forage species, non-native species composition, biodiversity and community structure. Data from this effort can be explored interactively online (https://lebs.shinyapps.io/western-basin/), and are accessible for download (https://doi.org/10.5066/P9LL6YOR, Keretz et al. 2020). Annual survey data are added to these sources as the data become available.

Lake Erie↗
USGS2021

Fisheries research and monitoring activities of the Lake Erie Biological Station, 2020

This report presents biomass-based summaries of fish communities in the West Basin of Lake Erie derived from USGS bottom trawl surveys conducted from 2013 to 2020 during June and September. The survey design provided temporal and spatial coverage that did not exist in the interagency trawl database, and thus complemented the August ODNR-OMNRF effort to reinforce stock assessments with more robust data. Analyses herein evaluated trends in: total biomass, abundance of dominant predator and forage species, non-native species composition, biodiversity and community structure. Data from this effort can be explored interactively online (https://lebs.shinyapps.io/western-basin/), and are accessible for download (https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/item/6013031fd34e162231fed756, Keretz et al. 2021). Annual survey data are added to these sources as the data become available.

Lake Erie↗