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At least 1,711 records · Page 95Linked to original sources
USGS2015

Multilevel groundwater monitoring of hydraulic head and temperature in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho, 2011-13

From 2011 to 2013, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Project Office, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, collected depth-discrete measurements of fluid pressure and temperature in 11 boreholes located in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer. Each borehole was instrumented with a multilevel monitoring system (MLMS) consisting of a series of valved measurement ports, packer bladders, casing segments, and couplers. Multilevel monitoring at the INL has been ongoing since 2006 and this report summarizes data collected from 2011 to 2013 in 11 multilevel monitoring wells. Hydraulic head (head) and groundwater temperature data were collected from 11 multilevel monitoring wells, including 177 hydraulically isolated depth intervals from 448.0 to 1,377.6 feet below land surface. One port (port 3) within borehole USGS 134 was not monitored because of a valve failure. Head and temperature profiles reveal unique patterns for vertical examination of the aquifer’s complex basalt and sediment stratigraphy, proximity to aquifer recharge and discharge, and groundwater flow. These features contribute to some of the localized variability even though the general profile shape remained consistent over the period of record. Twenty-two major head inflections were described for 9 of 11 MLMS boreholes and almost always coincided with low‑permeability sediment layers and occasionally thick layers of dense basalt. However, the presence of a sediment layer or dense basalt layer was insufficient for identifying the location of a major head change within a borehole without knowing the true areal extent and relative transmissivity of the lithologic unit. Temperature profiles for boreholes completed within the Big Lost Trough indicate linear conductive trends; whereas, temperature profiles for boreholes completed within volcanic rift zones and near the southern boundary of the Idaho National Laboratory, indicate mostly convective heat transfer. Select boreholes along the southern boundary show a temperature reversal and cooler water deeper in the aquifer resulting from the vertical movement of groundwater. Vertical head and temperature change were quantified for each of the 11 multilevel monitoring systems. Vertical head gradients defined for the major inflections in the head profiles were as high as 2.9 feet per foot. In general, fractured basalt zones displayed relatively small vertical head differences and show a high occurrence within volcanic rift zones. Poor connectivity between fractures and higher vertical gradients were generally attributed to sediment layers and layers of dense basalt, or both. Groundwater temperatures in all boreholes ranged from 10.8 to 16.3 °C. Normalized mean head values were analyzed for all 11 multilevel monitoring wells for the period of record (2007–13). The mean head values suggest a moderately positive correlation among all boreholes and generally reflect regional fluctuations in water levels in response to seasonal climatic changes. Boreholes within volcanic rift zones and near the southern boundary (USGS 103, USGS 105, USGS 108, USGS 132, USGS 135, USGS 137A) display a temporal correlation that is strongly positive. Boreholes in the Big Lost Trough display some variations in temporal correlations that may result from proximity to the mountain front to the northwest and episodic flow in the Big Lost River drainage system. For example, during June 2012, boreholes MIDDLE 2050A and MIDDLE 2051 showed head buildup within the upper zones when compared to the June 2010 profile event, which correlates to years when surface water was reported for the Big Lost River several months preceding the measurement period. With the exception of borehole USGS 134, temporal correlation between MLMS wells completed within the Big Lost Trough is generally positive. Temporal correlation for borehole USGS 134 shows the least agreement with other MLMS boreholes located within the Big Lost Trough; however, borehole USGS 134 is close to the mountain front where tributary valley subsurface inflow is suspected.

Idaho↗
USGS2007

Flood of July 27-31, 2006, on the Grand River near Painesville, Ohio

Two separate weather systems produced storms resulting in more than 11 inches of rain in parts of Lake County, Ohio, on July 27-28, 2006. As a result of the storms and ensuing flooding caused by the weather systems, the counties of Lake, Geauga, and Ashtabula were declared Federal and State disaster areas, with damages estimated at $30 million and one fatality in Lake County. About 600 people were evacuated in Lake County. The U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging station at Grand River near Painesville, Ohio (station 04212100), had a record peak stage of 19.35 feet (elevation, 614.94 feet), with a record peak streamflow of 35,000 cubic feet per second, and an estimated recurrence interval of approximately 500 years. This report describes the meteorological factors that resulted in severe flooding on the Grand River near Painesville from July 27 to July 31, 2006, and addresses the damages caused by the storms and flooding. Peak-stage, peak-streamflow, and recurrence-interval data are reported for the Grand River near Painesville. A plot of high-water marks is also presented for the Grand River in a reach that includes the City of Painesville, Painesville Township, the Village of Fairport Harbor, and the Village of Grand River.

Open-File Report↗
USGS1999

Hydrogeologic assessment of the Sequim-Dungeness area, Clallam County, Washington

The Sequim-Dungeness area covers 116 square miles (mi 2 ) on the northern part of the Olympic Peninsula in northwestern Washington. The central part of this area (74 mi 2 ) was designated as a primary study area. During the past two decades, the population has rapidly increased, land use has changed from mostly agricultural to residential, and salmon populations in the Dungeness River have appreciably declined. The increasing competition for water combined with a close relation between ground water, the Dungeness River, and an extensive irrigation system has created a need for a better understanding of ground water and the relation between ground water and surface water in the study area. The Sequim-Dungeness area is underlain by as much as 2,000 feet of unconsolidated Quaternary deposits that are mostly of glacial origin. Interpretation of 10 hydrogeologic cross sections and lithologic logs of about 600 wells led to the delineation of three aquifers, two confining beds, and a lower unit of undifferentiated deposits. A bedrock unit at the bottom is considered the base of the ground-water system. Ground water in the study area is recharged from infiltration and percolation of precipitaton, percolation of unconsumed irrigation water, leakage from irrigation ditches, subsurface inflow through the southern study-area boundary, and leakage from streams. Average annual recharge for the study period (December 1995 to September 1997) was estimated to be 17.7 inches (in.) ( 151 cubic feet per second (ft 3 /s)). The distribution of recharge was 8.6 in. (74 ft3fs) from precipitation, 2.7 in. (23 ft 3 /s) from subsurface inflow, 3.1 in. (26 ft 3 /s) from irrigation, and 3.3 in. (28 ft 3 /s) from leakage from the Dungeness River. The 8.6 in. of recharge from precipitation is much higher than would be expected in an average year because average annual precipitation during the study period was about 28 in., which is 1.35 times higher than long-term average annual precipitation. The long-term average annual recharge from precipitation was estimated to be 5.4 in. (48 ft 3 /s). Ground water discharges as subsurface flow to saltwater bodies, flow to streams, flow to springs, and as withdrawals from wells. Subsurface flow to saltwater bodies and flow to springs were not estimated in this study. Estimated average annual discharge was 3.2 inches (in.) (27 ft 3 /s)) to the Dungeness River and 4.6 in. (39 ft 3 /s) to other streams in the study area. Gross withdrawals from wells in 1996 were estimated to be 1.0 in. (8.4 ft 3 /s). There was a small but statistically significant increase in nitrate concentrations in ground water from 1980 to 1996. Median concentrations in the primary study area were 0.37 milligrams per liter (mg/L) in 1980 and 0.46 mg/L in 1996. The areal pattern of elevated nitrate concentrations has not changed appreciably during the past 15 years. Elevated concentrations were found in a large area east of the Dungeness River and at scattered locations west of the Dungeness River. About 543,200 pounds of nitrogen are estimated to enter the ground-water system in the primary study area each year. Four sources account for about 85 percent of the nitrogen; residential fertilizers, septic systems, mineralization of soil organic matter, and agricultural fertilizers .. It appears that the four major sources are approximately equivalent in amounts of nitrogen. Concentrations of nitrate in the shallow aquifer were significantly higher under residential areas than under natural grasslands or forests. Median nitrate concentrations were 1.3 mg/L under residential areas, 0.55 mg/L under agricultural areas, and 0.12 mg/L under natural grasslands or forests.

Washington↗
USGS2015

Geospatial data for coal beds in the Powder River Basin, Wyoming and Montana

The purpose of this report is to provide geospatial data for various layers and themes in a Geographic Information System (GIS) format for the Powder River Basin, Wyoming and Montana. In 2015, as part of the U.S. Coal Resources and Reserves Assessment Project, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) completed an assessment of coal resources and reserves within the Powder River Basin, Wyoming and Montana. This report is supplemental to USGS Professional Paper 1809 and contains GIS data that can be used to view digital layers or themes, including the Tertiary limit of the Powder River Basin boundary, locations of drill holes, clinker, mined coal, land use and technical restrictions, geology, mineral estate ownership, coal thickness, depth to the top of the coal bed (overburden), and coal reliability categories. Larger scale maps may be viewed using the GIS data provided in this report supplemental to the page-size maps provided in USGS Professional Paper 1809. Additionally, these GIS data can be exported to other digital applications as needed by the user. The database used for this report contains a total of 29,928 drill holes, of which 21,393 are in the public domain. The public domain database is linked to the geodatabase in this report so that the user can access the drill-hole data through GIS applications. Results of this report are available at the USGS Energy Resources Program Web site, http://energy.usgs.gov/RegionalStudies/PowderRiverBasin.aspx .

Montana, Wyoming↗
USGS2025

Re-oligotrophy in the Upper Mississippi River, USA, occurred in just a few years

Ecological systems can undergo large changes and regime shifts that are either catastrophic, neutral, or desirable. Rivers worldwide have recently undergone desirable regime shifts related to re-oligotrophy, which is a notable and ongoing reduction in concentrations of total suspended solids (TSS), total N, total P, or phytoplankton. For example, the Upper Mississippi River, USA, has experienced major water-quality changes in multiple river reaches in recent decades. In this study, we sought to understand the timing and magnitude of re-oligotrophy in the Mississippi River over a 20-y period. We used 2 topological data analysis algorithms to address hypotheses related to the following questions: What were the order and timing of water-quality changes? What was the time period over which the major changes occurred? What was the magnitude of water-quality change before and after change points (i.e., specific years when water-quality conditions transitioned abruptly to new states)? We examined 6 water-quality state variables that defined the ecological regime for the Upper Mississippi River. In one river reach, we found that strong reductions in phytoplankton/chlorophyll a had occurred first (2008), followed by total P (2013), and last in TSS (2014). In a downriver reach, we found notable reductions for chlorophyll a (2007) but substantial increases in TSS (2013). In both reaches, the water-quality changes trended over ≥15 y, but the largest changes and a likely regime shift occurred in just 6 y. The timing (2007–2014) and range (~6 y) of water-quality changes were similar between the 2 river reaches, but the directionality of the regime shift indicated re-oligotrophy for the upstream reach and water-quality degradation for the downstream reach. Topological methods applied to long-term datasets can aid our understanding of re-oligotrophication and degradation processes and may help resource managers restore desirable regimes.

Freshwater Science↗
USGS2010

Large reservoirs: Chapter 17

Large impoundments, defined as those with surface area of 200 ha or greater, are relatively new aquatic ecosystems in the global landscape. They represent important economic and environmental resources that provide benefits such as flood control, hydropower generation, navigation, water supply, commercial and recreational fisheries, and various other recreational and esthetic values. Construction of large impoundments was initially driven by economic needs, and ecological consequences received little consideration. However, in recent decades environmental issues have come to the forefront. In the closing decades of the 20th century societal values began to shift, especially in the developed world. Society is no longer willing to accept environmental damage as an inevitable consequence of human development, and it is now recognized that continued environmental degradation is unsustainable. Consequently, construction of large reservoirs has virtually stopped in North America. Nevertheless, in other parts of the world construction of large reservoirs continues. The emergence of systematic reservoir management in the early 20th century was guided by concepts developed for natural lakes (Miranda 1996). However, we now recognize that reservoirs are different and that reservoirs are not independent aquatic systems inasmuch as they are connected to upstream rivers and streams, the downstream river, other reservoirs in the basin, and the watershed. Reservoir systems exhibit longitudinal patterns both within and among reservoirs. Reservoirs are typically arranged sequentially as elements of an interacting network, filter water collected throughout their watersheds, and form a mosaic of predictable patterns. Traditional approaches to fisheries management such as stocking, regulating harvest, and in-lake habitat management do not always produce desired effects in reservoirs. As a result, managers may expend resources with little benefit to either fish or fishing. Some locally expressed effects, such as turbidity and water quality, zooplankton density and size composition, or fish growth rates and assemblage composition, are the upshot of large-scale factors operating outside reservoirs and not under the direct control of reservoir managers. Realistically, abiotic and biotic conditions in reservoirs are shaped by factors working inside and outside reservoirs, with the relative importance of external factors differing among reservoirs. With this perspective, large reservoirs are viewed from a habitat standpoint within the framework of a conceptual model in which individual reservoir characteristics are influenced by both local- and landscape-scale factors (Figure 17.1). In the sections that follow, how each element of this hierarchical model influences habitat and fish assemblages in reservoirs is considered. Important in-reservoir habitat issues and reservoirs as part of larger systems, where reservoir management requires looking for real solutions outside individual reservoirs are described.

Book chapter↗
USGS2009

Hydrogeologic Framework, Groundwater Movement, and Water Budget in Tributary Subbasins and Vicinity, Lower Skagit River Basin, Skagit and Snohomish Counties, Washington

A study to characterize the groundwater-flow system in four tributary subbasins and vicinity of the lower Skagit River basin was conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey to assist Skagit County and the Washington State Department of Ecology in evaluating the effects of potential groundwater withdrawals and consumptive use on tributary streamflows. This report presents information used to characterize the groundwater and surface-water flow system in the subbasins, and includes descriptions of the geology and hydrogeologic framework of the subbasins; groundwater recharge and discharge; groundwater levels and flow directions; seasonal groundwater-level fluctuations; interactions between aquifers and the surface-water system; and a water budget for the subbasins. The study area covers about 247 mi2 along the Skagit River and its tributary subbasins (East Fork Nookachamps Creek, Nookachamps Creek, Carpenter Creek, and Fisher Creek) in southwestern Skagit County and northwestern Snohomish County, Washington. The geology of the area records a complex history of accretion along the continental margin, mountain building, deposition of terrestrial and marine sediments, igneous intrusion, and the repeated advance and retreat of continental glaciers. A simplified surficial geologic map was developed from previous mapping in the area, and geologic units were grouped into nine hydrogeologic units consisting of aquifers and confining units. A surficial hydrogeologic unit map was constructed and, with lithologic information from 296 drillers'logs, was used to produce unit extent and thickness maps and four hydrogeologic sections. Groundwater in unconsolidated aquifers generally flows towards the northwest and west in the direction of the Skagit River and Puget Sound. This generalized flow pattern is likely complicated by the presence of low-permeability confining units that separate discontinuous bodies of aquifer material and act as local groundwater-flow barriers. Groundwater-flow directions in the sedimentary aquifer likely reflect local topographic relief (radial flow from bedrock highs) and more regional westward flow from the mountains to the Puget Sound. The largest groundwater-level fluctuations observed during the monitoring period (October 2006 through September 2008) occurred in wells completed in the sedimentary aquifer, and ranged from about 3 to 27 feet. Water levels in wells completed in unconsolidated hydrogeologic units exhibited seasonal variations ranging from less than 1 to about 10 feet. Synoptic streamflow measurements made in August 2007 and June 2008 indicate a total groundwater discharge to creeks in the tributary subbasin area of about 13.15 and 129.6 cubic feet per second (9,520 and 93,830 acre-feet per year), respectively. Streamflow measurements illustrate a general pattern in which the upper reaches of creeks in the study area tended to gain flow from the groundwater system, and lower creek reaches tended to lose water. Large inflows from tributaries to major creeks in the study area suggest the presence of groundwater discharge from upland areas underlain by bedrock. The groundwater system within the subbasins received an average (September 1, 2006 to August 31, 2008) of about 92,400 acre-feet or about 18 inches of recharge from precipitation a year. Most of this recharge (65 percent) discharges to creeks, and only about 3 percent is withdrawn from wells. The remaining groundwater recharge (32 percent) leaves the subbasin groundwater system as discharge to the Skagit River and Puget Sound.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2026

Water-withdrawal and groundwater-level fluctuations, physical and infiltration characteristics of Ohio River sediment, and isotope-based estimates of water sources relative to a riverbank filtration system in an alluvial aquifer, Louisville, Kentucky, 2000–20

The U.S. Geological Survey and the Louisville Water Company, from 2000 to 2020, cooperatively investigated physical and hydrologic conditions in the Ohio River alluvial aquifer and adjacent riverbed sediments in the northeast part of Louisville, Kentucky, to increase knowledge of processes affecting water sources to collector wells during operation of a riverbank filtration system (RBF). The RBF, in 2020, included an initial collector well (CW1) completed in 1999 and a tunnel and collector well system (TCWS) composed of four collector wells (CW2–CW5) completed in late 2010 that were connected by a tunnel that routed water to a pumping station and a treatment plant. Daily mean water-withdrawal rates typically ranged from about 10.4 to 20.7 million gallons per day (Mgal/d) from 2005 to 2007, then were cyclic from 2008 to 2010 and ranged from as low as about 9 to 13 Mgal/d in winter-spring months up to about 19 to 20 Mgal/d in summer-autumn months. From 2011 through 2017, peak daily mean water-withdrawal rates from CW2–CW5 fluctuated between winter-spring lows of about 20–30 Mgal/d to summer-autumn peak rates of about 41.6 Mgal/d in 2013 to about 48.2 Mgal/d in 2012. From 2017 to 2020, TCWS peak daily mean water-withdrawal rates decreased from about 45.7 Mgal/d in 2017 to about 37.5 Mgal/d in 2020 and peak daily mean rates from CW1 ranged from about 20.7 Mgal/d in 2020 to about 21.6 Mgal/d in 2018. Periods in 2019–20 with tunnel pumping station daily mean water-withdrawal rates smaller than about 30 Mgal/d had generally stable water levels in CW2 and indicated the sustainable yield of the TCWS collector wells under the prevailing hydrologic conditions. Drawdown during July–August of 2008 and 2009 was associated with CW1, the sole operating collector well. Groundwater-flow directions outside the CW1 cone of depression during July–August of 2008 and 2009 were from areas near the alluvial valley margin toward the Ohio River and in 2009 toward Harrods Creek. Collector wells CW2 through CW5 derived water during 2011–19 surveys from surface-water infiltration, as indicated by drawdown that extended beneath the Ohio River and Harrods Creek. Increases in drawdown toward the alluvial valley margins in July–August of 2013 and 2015, compared with July 2011, indicated less available recharge from those flow directions and decreased yield of groundwater from the aquifer after progressively longer TCWS water withdrawals. Drawdown at CW2–CW5 and at observation wells between them lessened in October 2019 and indicated that onshore groundwater levels can recover when collector well withdrawals decrease. Overlapping cones of depression in 2011–15 potentiometric surfaces centered around CW2, CW3, CW4, and CW5, and drawdown along divides between those wells indicated well interference between collector wells. Well-interference effects increased during 2013 and 2015 survey periods, despite decreased water-withdrawal rates compared with July 2011, and expanded to include CW1 when its use resumed. Groundwater-level fluctuations in observation wells near the Ohio River were consistent with gradual depletion of groundwater yield during tunnel pumping station operation at river elevations of about 420 feet above the National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD 29) and enhanced recharge of the aquifer when river elevations were above flood stage of about 430 feet above NGVD 29. Groundwater-level declines in observation wells near the Ohio River were most apparent in summer and some autumn months between 2012 and 2017 during periods when tunnel pumping station mean daily water-withdrawal rates were about 35 Mgal/d or more. Periods of relatively stable groundwater levels during 2019–20 in observation wells between CW2–CW5, when tunnel pumping station water-withdrawal rates were about 30–33 Mgal/d or less, also indicated that the prevailing sustainable yield was about 30 Mgal/d or less. Wells associated with CW3 and CW4 had the largest increases in slopes of best-fit lines relating water-level difference to water-withdrawal rate between 2012 and 2020, an indication of decreased efficiencies of those wells to supply water or of changes in groundwater yield around the well. Increased slopes of best-fit lines relating water-level difference to water-withdrawal rate from 2019 to 2020, when groundwater levels were otherwise relatively stable, also indicated that the specific capacity of one or more TCWS collector wells may have declined during that period. Riverbed surface elevation, roughness, and hardness changes between hydroacoustic surveys indicated active accretion and erosion of bed sediment offshore from the riverbank filtration system in 2002–4. Riverbed hydraulic conductivity computed from 2013 to 2015 in tests at 11 sites ranged from 0.2 to 230 feet per day. Ten temporary piezometer sites with adjacent operating collector wells had drawdowns that ranged from about 4 to 11.7 feet and hammer blows greater than or equal to 49 counts, which indicated a relatively great density of alluvial sediments and the potential for diminished riverbed infiltration rates. Contributions of Ohio River infiltration to collector wells estimated from deuterium and oxygen-18 isotopic ratios in representative Ohio River and groundwater samples were considerably larger in warmer months than cooler months and ranged from 80–90 percent in CW1–CW5 in May 2020 to 100 percent in May 2019 at CW2, CW4, and CW5. Groundwater contributions to water withdrawals by collector wells increased in cooler autumn months and ranged from 40 percent at CW3 and CW5 in November 2020 to 70 percent at CW2, CW4, and CW5 in November–December 2019. November 2019 and November 2020 isotopic compositions of water from the collector wells had enriched deuterium and oxygen-18 isotopic ratios consistent with mixtures of evaporation-modified water from the Ohio River and meteoric-origin groundwater.

Indiana, Kentucky↗
USGS2018

Beyond the edge: Linking agricultural landscapes, stream networks, and best management practices

Despite much research and investment into understanding and managing nutrients across agricultural landscapes, nutrient runoff to freshwater ecosystems is still a major concern. We argue there is currently a disconnect between the management of watershed surfaces (agricultural landscape) and river networks (riverine landscape). These landscapes are commonly managed separately, but there is limited cohesiveness between agricultural landscape-focused research and river science, despite similar end goals. Interdisciplinary research into stream networks that drain agricultural landscapes is expanding but is fraught with problems. Conceptual frameworks are useful tools to order phenomena, reveal patterns and processes, and in interdisciplinary river science, enable the joining of multiple areas of understanding into a single conceptual–empirical structure. We present a framework for the interdisciplinary study and management of agricultural and riverine landscapes. The framework includes components of an ecosystems approach to the study of catchment–stream networks, resilience thinking, and strategic adaptive management. Application of the framework is illustrated through a study of the Fox Basin in Wisconsin, USA. To fully realize the goal of nutrient reduction in the basin, we suggest that greater emphasis is needed on where best management practices (BMPs) are used within the spatial context of the combined watershed–stream network system, including BMPs within the river channel. Targeted placement of BMPs throughout the riverine landscape would increase the overall buffering capacity of the system to nutrient runoff and thus its resilience to current and future disturbances.

Journal of Environmental Quality↗
USGS2007

First steps in developing a multimetric macroinvertebrate index for the Ohio River

The causes of degradation of aquatic systems are often complex and stem from a variety of human influences. Comprehensive, multimetric biological indices have been developed to quantify this degradation and its effect on aquatic communities, and measure subsequent recovery from anthropogenic stressors. Traditionally, such indices have concentrated on small-to medium-sized streams. Recently, however, the Ohio River Fish Index (ORFIn) was created to assess biotic integrity in the Ohio River. The goal of the present project was to begin developing a companion Ohio River multimetric index using benthic macroinvertebrates. Hester-Dendy multiplate samplers were used to evaluate benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in relation to a gradient of water quality disturbance, represented by varying distances downstream of industrial and municipal wastewater outfalls in the Ohio River. In August 1999 and 2000, samplers were set every 100 m downstream of outfalls (12 outfalls in 1999, 22 in 2000) for 300-1000 m, as well as at upstream reference sites. Candidate metrics (n = 55) were examined to determine which have potential to detect changes in water quality downstream of outfalls. These individual measures of community structure were plotted against distance downstream of each outfall to determine their response to water quality disturbance. Values at reference and outfall sites were also compared. Metrics that are ecologically relevant and showed a response to outfall disturbance were identified as potentially valuable in a multimetric index. Multiple box plots of index scores indicated greater response to outfall disturbance during periods of low-flow, and longitudinal river-wide trends. Evaluation of other types of anthropogenic disturbance, as well as continued analysis of the effects of chemical water quality on macroinvertebrate communities in future years will facilitate further development of a multimetric benthic macroinvertebrate index to evaluate biotic integrity in the Ohio River. Copyright ?? 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

River Research and Applications↗
USGS2014

Particle-tracking investigation of the retention of sucker larvae emerging from spawning grounds in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon

This study had two objectives: (1) to use the results of an individual-based particle-tracking model of larval sucker dispersal through the Williamson River delta and Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, to interpret field data collected throughout Upper Klamath and Agency Lakes, and (2) to use the model to investigate the retention of sucker larvae in the system as a function of Williamson River flow, wind, and lake elevation. This is a follow-up study to work reported in Wood and others (2014) in which the hydrodynamic model of Upper Klamath Lake was combined with an individual-based, particle-tracking model of larval fish entering the lake from spawning areas in the Williamson River. In the previous study, the performance of the model was evaluated through comparison with field data comprising larval sucker distribution collected in 2009 by The Nature Conservancy, Oregon State University (OSU), and the U.S. Geological Survey, primarily from the (at that time) recently reconnected Williamson River Delta and along the eastern shoreline of Upper Klamath Lake, surrounding the old river mouth. The previous study demonstrated that the validation of the model with field data was moderately successful and that the model was useful for describing the broad patterns of larval dispersal from the river, at least in the areas surrounding the river channel immediately downstream of the spawning areas and along the shoreline where larvae enter the lake. In this study, field data collected by OSU throughout the main body of Upper Klamath Lake, and not just around the Williamson River Delta, were compared to model simulation results. Because the field data were collected throughout the lake, it was necessary to include in the simulations larvae spawned at eastern shoreline springs that were not included in the earlier studies. A complicating factor was that the OSU collected data throughout the main body of the lake in 2011 and 2012, after the end of several years of larval drift collection in the Williamson River by the U.S. Geological Survey. Those larval drift data provided necessary boundary-condition information for the earlier studies, but there were no measured boundary conditions for larval input into model simulations during the years of this study (2011−12). Therefore, we developed a method to estimate a time series of larval drift in the Williamson River, and of the emergence of larvae from the gravel at the eastern shoreline springs, that captured the approximate timing of the larval pulse of the Lost River sucker (Deltistes luxatus) and shortnose sucker (Chasmistes brevirostris) and the relative magnitude of the pulses by species and spawning location. The method is not able to predict larval drift on any given day, but it can reasonably predict the approximate temporal progression of the larval drift through the season, based on counts of adult suckers returning to spawn. The accuracy in the timing of the larval pulses is not better than about plus or minus 5 days. Model results and field data were consistent in the basic progression of both catch per unit effort (CPUE) and larval length through time. The model simulation results also duplicated some of the characteristics of the spatial patterns of density in the field data, notably the tendency for high larval densities closer to the eastern and western shorelines. However, the model simulations could not explain high densities in the northern part of the lake or far into Ball Bay, locations that are far from the source of larvae in the Williamson River or eastern shoreline springs (as measured along the predominant transport pathways simulated in the model). This suggests the possibility of unaccounted-for spawning areas in the northern part of the lake and also that the period during which larvae are transported passively by the currents is shorter than the 46 days simulated in the model. Similarly, the progression of larval lengths in the field data is not a simple progression from smaller to larger fish away from sources in the river and springs, as simulated by the particle-tracking model; the smallest fish were caught at different times near the Williamson River, in the northwestern part of the lake, and in the southernmost part of the lake. This again suggests that fish may be spawning at places other than the river and eastern springs, that our understanding of larval transport is incomplete, or both. The model was used to run 96 numerical “experiments” in which lake elevation, river discharge, and wind forcing were varied systematically in order to investigate the sensitivity of particle retention to each variable, and with particular emphasis on the idea of managing lake elevation to control emigration. The estimates of particle retention cannot be equated directly to retention of fish larvae, primarily because there was no mortality included in the simulations, but the relative comparison of retention and emigration around the matrix of experimental conditions provided several “big picture” results: - Variables that cannot be controlled—winds and discharge—had the largest effect on retention. For example, at the lowest river discharge (20 cubic meters per second), simulated retention was high regardless of wind or lake elevation, whereas at the highest river discharge (100 cubic meters per second), retention was low regardless of wind or lake elevation. - When river discharge and wind were held constant, a higher elevation delayed the onset of the most rapid exit of particles by 1 (from the springs) to 4 (from the river) days, but did not determine overall retention. Only under the combination of conditions consisting of low discharge (50 cubic meters per second or less) and strong wind reversals for several days was there a consistent effect of lake elevation on overall retention several weeks into the simulation, and, under those conditions, retention was at the high end of the possible range regardless of lake elevation. - Under most combinations of conditions tested, after particles had been in the system for several days, the complex interaction between wind, elevation, and river discharge resulted in particle pathways, and therefore retention, being highly variable and unpredictable, at which point controlling lake elevation could not produce a predictable result. Therefore, on the basis of the model predictions, managing lake elevation probably is not a way to reliably provide any particular level of retention.

Oregon↗
USGS1992

Hydrogeology of the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system in the northern Midwest, United States with a section on ground-water quality

The Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system contains the most extensive and continuous aquifers in the northern Midwest of the United States. It is the source of water for many municipalities, industries, and rural water users. Since the beginning of ground-water development from the aquifer system in the late 1800's, hydraulic heads have declined hundreds of feet in the heavily pumped Chicago-Milwaukee area and somewhat less in other metropolitan areas. The U.S. Geological Survey has completed a regional assessment of this aquifer system within a 161,000-square-mile area encompassing northern Illinois, northwestern Indiana, Iowa, southeastern Minnesota, northern Missouri, and Wisconsin. Consolidated sedimentary rocks in the northern Midwest range in age from Precambrian to Cretaceous and crop out in generally concentric, arcuate patterns, dipping away from structural highs (arches) on the Precambrian basement in northern Minnesota and Wisconsin toward structural lows (basins) to the south and east. The sedimentary bedrock is generally overlain by a veneer of glacial drift. Thickness of the sedimentary sequence increases to about 5,000 feet in the Forest City basin of southwestern Iowa and to about 14,000 and more than 15,000 feet in the Illinois and Michigan basins, respectively. Cambrian and Ordovician age rocks, mainly marine sandstone and carbonate rocks, compose much of the sedimentary sequence and form the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system. The aquifer system lies on the Precambrian basement, regarded as a regional confining unit. Six hydrogeologic units are defined; they are arranged as alternating pairs of an aquifer and an overlying confining. unit. The units are named using the predominant geologic nomenclature of the upper Mississippi Valley, which includes most of the study area. In the southern quarter of the area, the hydrogeologic units consist of equivalent formations of the Ozark area (mostly carbonate rocks). The uppermost part of the aquifer system is the Maquoketa confining unit, which consists of the Maquoketa Shale and the underlying dolomite and shale of the Galena Dolomite and the Decorah, Platteville, and Glenwood Formations. The underlying St. Peter-Prairie du Chien-Jordan aquifer is an important source of ground water in the western part of the area in Iowa and Minnesota, where the uniform Jordan Sandstone is hydraulically connected to overlying fractured dolomite of the Prairie du Chien Group. The unit is less important in the eastern part of Wisconsin and Illinois because the Jordan Sandstone is absent and the Prairie du Chien Group is thin or absent due to pre-St. Peter Sandstone erosion. Equivalent rocks in northern Missouri-the Roubidoux Formation and the Gasconade and Eminence Dolomites-are mainly carbonate rocks that are somewhat permeable and contain some sandstone. The St. Lawrence and Franconia Formations underlying the St. Peter-Prairie du Chien-Jordan aquifer consist generally of silty and shaly, fine-grained, poorly sorted, and dolomitic sandstones that restrict vertical movement of ground water and form a regional confining unit. In the southern and eastern parts of the area, the Potosi and Derby-Doerun Dolomites and the upper part of the Davis Formation are the equivalent rocks (mainly carbonate rocks). In the east-central part of the area in Illinois and Wisconsin, the Ironton-Galesville aquifer forms the most important aquifer of the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system, contributing about one-third of the yield from wells in the aquifer system in the Chicago area. The aquifer terminates to the west, south, and east, where the sandstones grade into less permeable carbonate rocks in central Iowa, central Illinois, and northwestern Indiana, respectively. The underlying Eau Claire Formation and its partial equivalent to the southwest, the Bonneterre Formation, form an important confining unit above the Mount Simon aquifer throughout much of the study area. Siltstone and shale are fairly common in the upper part of the Eau Claire Formation but less so in its northernmost extent in Wisconsin. Dolomite content increases southward and westward, where a middle dolomite facies grades laterally into the Bonneterre in Missouri, southwestern Minnesota, extreme south-central Wisconsin, and possibly in western Iowa. The basal unit in the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system, the Mount Simon aquifer, is present throughout the study area, except where it is absent over local highs of the Precambrian basement. It consists primarily of the Mount Simon Sandstone in the north and its equivalent in northern Missouri, the Lamotte Sandstone. The underlying Hinckley Sandstone of Precambrian age is included in Minnesota, as is the overlying Elmhurst Sandstone Member of the Eau Claire Formation in northern Illinois. The aquifer increases greatly in thickness and the water is progressively more saline away from the northern structural highs toward the basins. Much of the movement and discharge of ground water in the northern Midwest occurs in local, unconfined, shallow flow systems within a few miles of points of recharge. The rest of the water is semiconfined or confined in intermediate or regional flow systems within the bedrock, where flow is deeper, slower, and traverses much longer distances from recharge areas to discharge areas. The major areas of recharge to regional confined flow are in northwestern Iowa, southeastern Minnesota, western, southern, and eastern Wisconsin, and northern Illinois. Although the rate of flow is small, significant recharge to the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system also occurs as leakage through the Maquoketa confining unit, where the vertical hydraulic gradient is downward. Ground water in much of the confined aquifer system moves laterally from recharge areas toward the major river valleys and Lake Michigan or down dip toward the structural basins. The longest flow paths extend as much as 400 miles from northwestern Iowa southeast toward the Illinois basin or to the Mississippi River and Missouri River valleys near their confluence. Other major confined flow is from eastern Wisconsin toward the Michigan basin and southward flow from northeastern Illinois toward the Illinois basin. Regional ground-water discharge from the aquifer system is mainly diffuse upward leakage from confined aquifers along flow paths toward the structural basins. Very saline water around and brines within the basins restrict regional flow into the basins, forcing ground water to discharge upward. Water in intermediate flow systems discharges upward to the major river valleys. Original heads of more than 100 feet above land surface were recorded in the aquifer system near Lake Michigan in eastern Wisconsin and at Dubuque, Iowa, along the Mississippi River. The Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system was developed rapidly in the late 1800's after the first deep well was drilled in Chicago in 1864. Many flowing wells were not controlled, which caused water levels in deep wells to decline, and many no longer flowed by the early 1900's. Heads in the aquifers have declined very little in most of the recharge or unconfined areas since ground-water withdrawal began, but major declines have occurred in confined areas. The largest declines in head are at Chicago, Illinois, Milwaukee and Green Bay, Wisconsin, and Mason City, Iowa, where the aquifer system is confined by the Maquoketa confining unit. The composite head in the aquifer system declined more than 900 feet in the deepest cones of depression in the Chicago area from 1864 to 1980 and about 375 feet in the cone at Milwaukee from 1880 to 1980. More than 200 feet of decline has occurred at Mason City. The head declined as much as 440 feet in Green Bay from 1886 to 1957, when the city discontinued use of its deep wells and began using water from Lake Michigan. The largest centers of pumping are in the Chicago and Twin Cities (Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota) metropolitan areas about 180 million gallons per day each in 1980. Pumpage exceeded 10 million gallons per day in only a few other areas in 1980. Ground water in the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system in the northern Midwest is characterized by an extreme range of mineralization, but its quality in most of the area is good. The major cations are calcium, magnesium, and sodium, and the major anions are bicarbonate, sulfate, and chloride. Sodium, sulfate, and chloride distributions are closely related to the distribution pattern of dissolved solids but not in the same proportion. Dissolved-solids concentration is generally less than 1,000 milligrams per liter in the recharge areas of Wisconsin, southern Minnesota, northeastern Iowa, and north-central Illinois where the aquifer system crops out or subcrops beneath glacial drift. Ground water there is the Ca-Mg-HC03 type, derived from and identical to that in the overlying glacial drift. In northwestern Iowa and southwestern Minnesota, the water in both the glacial drift and the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system is a Ca-Na-S04HC03 type, derived from oxidation of pyrite in the overlying Cretaceous Dakota Formation. Transition to higher dissolved solids in the confined areas commonly is accompanied by increased sulfate concentration and· the occurrence of Ca-Na-S04-type water. Salinity of the ground water increases progressively toward the .basins, where dissolved solids exceed 200,000 milligrams per liter. Saline water is present in the Mount Simon aquifer near Lake Michigan in eastern Wisconsin and northeastern Illinois but occurs in successively younger rocks to the east and south as they dip toward the basins. Similarly, salinity increases down dip in Iowa to the southwest and south; however, regional ground-water flow in Iowa is from northwest to southeast. Much of the ground water in the confined aquifer system is isotopically depleted in 0180 and OD with respect to modern precipitation-an indication that the water originated as precipitation in a much colder climate than the present and probably was derived from recharge of glacial meltwater. On the basis of o34S values for sulfur in sulfate, it is believed that isostatic loading from glacial ice over the Michigan basin reversed the hydraulic gradient to trend westward, opposite from the present gradient, causing saline water in the Michigan basin to discharge westward through the present recharge areas. Natural water-quality problems in the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system are mainly the high dissolved-solids concentrations and associated high concentrations of sulfate and chloride, which limit the use of the water for municipal and domestic purposes in much of the confined aquifer system in central and southern Illinois, Indiana, southern and western Iowa, and northern Missouri. Another concern is that radium activity exceeds normal background concentrations of a few picocuries per liter in much of the confined aquifer system in eastern Wisconsin, northeastern Illinois, and central Iowa. Other common problems are high hardness and locally excessive concentrations of iron and hydrogen sulfide.

Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Miss↗
USGS2016

Preliminary investigation of groundwater flow and trichloroethene transport in the Surficial Aquifer System, Naval Industrial Reserve Ordnance Plant, Fridley, Minnesota

Industrial practices at the Naval Industrial Reserve Ordnance Plant, in Fridley, Minnesota, caused soil and groundwater contamination. Some volatile organic compounds from the plant might have discharged to the Mississippi River, forced by the natural hydraulic gradient in the surficial aquifer system. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency included the Naval Industrial Reserve Ordnance Plant on the Superfund National Priorities List in 1989. This report describes a preliminary characterization of trichloroethene transport in the surficial and Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer systems at the Naval Industrial Reserve Ordnance Plant. The characterization first involved simulation of 2001 conditions using a model, followed by an application of this 2001 simulator to 2011 conditions. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of the Navy, used a steady-state, uniform-density groundwater flow model to simulate measured potentiometric heads in aquifer systems on August 20, 2001, and a single-phase, conservative, non-reactive, miscible transport model to simulate trichloroethene concentrations in aquifer systems measured in 2001. The U.S. Department of the Navy furnished trichloroethene source areas and trichloroethene source area concentrations to the U.S. Geological Survey for this model simulation. Furnished delineations were postulated and informed by data collected from 1995 to 2011. The groundwater flow simulation of August 20, 2001, was superior to the trichloroethene transport simulation at replicating measurements; simulated potentiometric heads matched 90 percent of measured potentiometric heads on August 20, within 2 feet at selected locations whereas simulated trichloroethene concentration contours of 3, 10, 100, 1000, and 10,000 micrograms per liter (µg/L) correctly bounded 52 percent of measured concentrations in 2001 at selected locations. The degree to which the simulated trichloroethene plume does not match trichloroethene measurements in the surficial aquifer system during the 2001 simulation may suggest that furnished trichloroethene source areas and trichloroethene source area concentrations did not accurately represent all trichloroethene sources in the hydrogeologic system. During the model simulation of 2001, trichloroethene discharged to the Mississippi River. A simulated 900-foot-long zone of benthic trichloroethene discharge flux existed in the shallow flow zone, across which simulated trichloroethene discharged from the surficial aquifer system to the Mississippi River at simulated trichloroethene concentrations that ranged from 3 µg/L to more than 100 µg/L. The Mississippi River was not sampled for volatile organic compounds in Fridley, Minn., from 1999 to 2016 (the publication of this report). Trichloroethene concentrations were measured in wells close to the Mississippi River in the surficial aquifer system on the downgradient side of the Naval Industrial Reserve Ordnance Plant groundwater flow field; for example, at well MS–43 in the shallow flow zone of the surficial aquifer system 280 feet east of the Mississippi River between December 1999 and August 2012, trichloroethene concentrations ranged from 130 to 220 µg/L. The 220-µg/L maximum concentration was reached in March 2003 and October 2006. The August 2012 concentration was 140 µg/L. The August 20, 2001, groundwater flow model simulator and the 2001 trichloroethene transport simulator were applied to a groundwater extraction and treatment system that existed in 2011. Furnished trichloroethene source areas and concentrations in the 2001 simulator were replaced with different, furnished, hypothetical source areas and concentrations. Forcing in 2001 was replaced with forcing in 2011. No trichloroethene concentrations greater than 3 µg/L were simulated as discharging to the Mississippi River during applications of the 2001 simulator to the 2011 groundwater extraction and treatment system. These applications were not intended to represent historical conditions. Differences between furnished and actual trichloroethene sources may explain differences between measurements and simulation results for the 2001 trichloroethene transport simulator. Causes of differences between furnished and actual trichloroethene sources may cause differences between hypothetical application results and the performance of the actual U.S. Department of the Navy groundwater extraction and treatment system at the Naval Industrial Reserve Ordnance Plant. Other limitations may also cause differences between application results and performance.

Minnesota↗
USGS1989

Flow and hydraulic characteristics of the Knik-Matanuska River estuary, Cook Inlet, southcentral Alaska

A study of the riverine-estuarine reach of the Knik and Matanuska Rivers provided flow and hydraulic data for use in the design of additional bridges over the rivers. Hydraulic analysis is complicated because: (1) the lower reaches of the rivers merge in a complex system of interconnected channels; and (2) this reach is subject to unsteady flow conditions resulting from a semidiurnal tide wave propagated up the channel through Knik Arm from Cook Inlet, whose tidal range is among the largest in the world. Analysis of flows for the Knik River is further complicated by the historic formation and outburst flooding of glacier-dammed Lake George in the Upper Knik River basin. Peak flows on the Knik River due to breakout floods were as much as seven times greater than peak flows of non-breakout floods. The U.S. Geological Survey 's branch-network flow model was used to simulate flows within the study reach. For the Knik River, simulated flows were within 10% of measured values in most cases. The model was also used to simulate the flow, stage, and velocity that would be expected in the various channels under different bridge configurations.

Alaska↗
USGS1994

White sturgeon spawning and rearing habitat in the lower Columbia River

Estimates of spawning habitat for white sturgeons Acipenser transmontanus in the tailraces of the four dams on the lower 470 km of the Columbia River were obtained by using the Physical Habitat Simulation System of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Instream Flow Incremental Methodology to identify areas with suitable water depths, water velocities, and substrates. Rearing habitat throughout the lower Columbia River was assessed by using a geographic information system to identify areas with suitable water depths and substrates. The lowering of spring and summer river discharges from hydropower system operation reduces the availability of spawning habitat for white sturgeons. The four dam tailraces in the study area differ in the amount and quality of spawning habitat available at various discharges; the differences are due to channel morphology. The three impoundments and the free-flowing Columbia River downstream from Bonneville Dam provide extensive areas that are physically suitable for rearing young-of-the-year and juvenile white sturgeons.

North American Journal of Fisheries Management↗
USGS2021

Precipitation-runoff processes in the Merced River Basin, Central California, with prospects for streamflow predictability, water years 1952–2013

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the California Department of Water Resources (DWR), has constructed a new spatially detailed Precipitation-Runoff Modeling System (PRMS) model for the Merced River Basin, California, which is a tributary of the San Joaquin River in California. Operated through an Object User Interface (OUI) with Ensemble Streamflow Prediction (ESP) and daily climate distribution preprocessing functionality, the model is calibrated primarily to simulate (and eventually, forecast) year-to-year variations of inflows to Lake McClure during the critical April–July snowmelt season. The model is intended to become part of a suite of methods used by DWR for estimating daily streamflow from the Merced River Basin, especially during the snowmelt season. This study describes the results of the application of an analysis tool that simulates responses to climate and land-use variations at a higher spatial resolution than previously available to DWR. A geographic information system was used to delineate the model domain, that is, areas draining to a single outlet at U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging station 11270900, Merced River below Merced Falls Dam, near Snell, CA (also known as California Data Exchange Center station MRC), and subdrainage areas, including four draining to internal gages used as calibration targets. Using this delineation, three contiguous subbasins were recognized and, along with the model domain and nested calibration targets, are the simulation units evaluated in this report. An auto-calibration tool, LUCA (Let Us CAlibrate), was used for each calibration node, from headwaters to basin outlet, and then parameters were manually adjusted to complete the calibration. The main objective was to match April–July snowmelt seasonal discharge values of simulated streamflow to observed (measured or reconstructed) discharge values. Calibration or validation periods used site-specific streamflows—mostly from October 1, 1988, through September 30, 2013—but differed according to the period-of-record available for the measurements collected at internal gages or reconstructed flows for the single outlet. The accuracy of the Merced PRMS streamflow simulations varied seasonally, as compared to observed values. Based on statistical results, the Merced PRMS model satisfactorily simulated snowmelt seasonal streamflows. April–July calibrations for all areas had small negative bias (not greater than 7 percent) and low relative error (less than 8 percent). Less satisfactory performance for other seasons was attributed to several factors: (1) high uncertainty in low or zero flows in summer and fall, (2) lack of accounting for basin withdrawals and anthropogenic water use, (3) unavailability and (or) inaccuracy of observed (measured) meteorological input data, and (4) uncertainty in reconstructed streamflow data. With some additional refinement, the Merced PRMS model may be used for forecasting seasonal and longer-term streamflow variations; evaluating forecasted and past climate and land cover changes; providing water-resource managers with a consistent and documented method for estimating streamflow at ungaged sites within the basin; and aiding environmental studies, hydraulic design, water management, and water-quality projects in the Merced River Basin.

California↗