Publications
Below is a list of available Colorado Water Science Center publications and published products.
Filter Total Items: 762
Using spatially detailed water-quality data and solute-transport modeling to improve support total maximum daily load development
Spatially detailed mass-loading studies and solute-transport modeling using OTIS (One-dimensional Transport with Inflow and Storage) demonstrate how natural attenuation and loading from distinct and diffuse sources control stream water quality and affect load reductions predicted in total maximum daily loads (TMDLs). Mass-loading data collected during low-flow from Cement Creek (a low-pH, metal-ri
Authors
Katherine Walton-Day, Robert L. Runkel, Briant A. Kimball
Assessing the relative bioavailability of DOC in regional groundwater systems
It has been hypothesized that the degree to which a hyperbolic relationship exists between concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and dissolved oxygen (DO) in groundwater may indicate the relative bioavailability of DOC. This hypothesis was examined for 73 different regional aquifers of the United States using 7745 analyses of groundwater compiled by the National Water Assessment (NAWQA)
Authors
Francis H. Chapelle, Paul M. Bradley, Celeste A. Journey, Peter B. McMahon
Characterizing invertebrate traits in wadeable streams of the contiguous US: differences among ecoregions and land uses
Much is known about invertebrate community traits in basins across Europe, but no comprehensive description of traits exists for the continental US. Little is known about the trait composition of invertebrates in reference or least-disturbed basins of the US, how trait composition varies among ecoregions, or how consistently traits respond to land use. These elements are essential to development o
Authors
Robert E. Zuellig, Travis S. Schmidt
Use of classes based on redox and groundwater age to characterize the susceptibility of principal aquifers to changes in nitrate concentrations, 1991 to 2010
The National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program of the U.S. Geological Survey is using multiple approaches to measure and explain trends in concentrations of nitrate in principal aquifers of the United States. Near decadal sampling of selected well networks is providing information on where long-term changes in nitrate concentrations have occurred. Because those studies do not include all th
Authors
P. B. McMahon
Water-quality assessment and macroinvertebrate data for the Upper Yampa River watershed, Colorado, 1975 through 2009
A study was initiated in 2009 by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with Routt County, the Colorado Water Conservation Board, and the City of Steamboat Springs, to compile and analyze historic water-quality data and assess water-quality conditions in the Upper Yampa River watershed (UYRW) in northwestern Colorado. Water-quality data for samples collected by federal, state, and local
Authors
Nancy J. Bauch, Jennifer L. Moore, Keelin R. Schaffrath, Jean A. Dupree
Preliminary assessment of sources of nitrogen in groundwater at a biosolids-application area near Deer Trail
Concentrations of dissolved nitrite plus nitrate increased fairly steadily in samples from four shallow groundwater monitoring wells after biosolids applications to nonirrigated farmland began in 1993. The U.S. Geological Survey began a preliminary assessment of sources of nitrogen in shallow groundwater at part of the biosolids-application area near Deer Trail, Colorado, in 2005 in cooperation wi
Authors
Tracy J.B. Yager, Peter B. McMahon
Demonstration optimization analyses of pumping from selected Arapahoe aquifer municipal wells in the west-central Denver Basin, Colorado, 2010–2109
Declining water levels caused by withdrawals of water from wells in the west-central part of the Denver Basin bedrock-aquifer system have raised concerns with respect to the ability of the aquifer system to sustain production. The Arapahoe aquifer in particular is heavily used in this area. Two optimization analyses were conducted to demonstrate approaches that could be used to evaluate possible f
Authors
Edward R. Banta, Suzanne S. Paschke
Influence of permafrost distribution on groundwater flow in the context of climate-driven permafrost thaw: Example from Yukon Flats Basin, Alaska, United States
Understanding the role of permafrost in controlling groundwater flow paths and fluxes is central in studies aimed at assessing potential climate change impacts on vegetation, species habitat, biogeochemical cycling, and biodiversity. Recent field studies in interior Alaska show evidence of hydrologic changes hypothesized to result from permafrost degradation. This study assesses the hydrologic con
Authors
Michelle Ann Walvoord, Clifford I. Voss, Tristan P. Wellman
Comparison of 2008-2009 water years and historical water-quality data, upper Gunnison River Basin, Colorado
Population growth and changes in land use have the potential to affect water quality and quantity in the upper Gunnison River Basin. In 1995, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management, City of Gunnison, Colorado River Water Conservation District, Crested Butte South Metropolitan District, Gunnison County, Hinsdale County, Mount Crested Butte Water and San
Authors
Patricia A. Solberg, Bryan Moore, Ty D. Blacklock
Geodatabase of sites, basin boundaries, and topology rules used to store drainage basin boundaries for the U.S. Geological Survey, Colorado Water Science Center
This geodatabase and its component datasets are part of U.S. Geological Survey Digital Data Series 650 and were generated to store basin boundaries for U.S. Geological Survey streamgages and other sites in Colorado. The geodatabase and its components were created by the U.S. Geological Survey, Colorado Water Science Center, and are used to derive the numeric drainage areas for Colorado that are in
Authors
Jean A. Dupree, Richard M. Crowfoot
Digital database architecture and delineation methodology for deriving drainage basins, and a comparison of digitally and non-digitally derived numeric drainage areas
The drainage basin is a fundamental hydrologic entity used for studies of surface-water resources and during planning of water-related projects. Numeric drainage areas published by the U.S. Geological Survey water science centers in Annual Water Data Reports and on the National Water Information Systems (NWIS) Web site are still primarily derived from hard-copy sources and by manual delineation of
Authors
Jean A. Dupree, Richard M. Crowfoot
Estimated probabilities and volumes of postwildfire debris flows—A prewildfire evaluation for the Pikes Peak area, El Paso and Teller Counties, Colorado
Debris flows are fast-moving, high-density slurries of water, sediment, and debris that can have enormous destructive power. Although debris flows, triggered by intense rainfall or rapid snowmelt on steep hillsides covered with erodible material, are a common geomorphic process in some unburned areas, a wildfire can transform conditions in a watershed with no recent history of debris flows into co
Authors
John G. Elliott, Barbara C. Ruddy, Kristine L. Verdin, Keelin R. Schaffrath