Publications

Current analytical capabilities are allowing scientists to identify possible contaminants in the environment that were previously unmonitored or were present at concentrations too low for detection. New scientific evidence about the exposure pathways and potential impacts of some of these compounds on human or environmental health is regularly being published (Woodling et al., 2006; Drewes et al.,

In 2007, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with Bowie Mining Company, initiated a study to characterize the streamflow and streamflow gain-loss in a reach of Hubbard Creek in Delta County, Colorado, in the vicinity of a mine-permit area planned for future coal mining. Premining streamflow characteristics and streamflow gain-loss variation were determined so that pre- and postmining gain-l

During spring 2004, the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the National Park Service and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service collected and analyzed snowpack samples for 65 sites in the Rocky Mountain region from New Mexico to Montana. Snowpacks were sampled from late February through early April and generally had well-below-average- to near-average snow-water equivalent. Reg

In 2003, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with Colorado Springs City Engineering, began a study to evaluate the influence of urbanization on stream ecosystems. To accomplish this task, invertebrate, fish, stream discharge, habitat, water-chemistry, and land-use data were collected from 13 sites in the Fountain Creek basin from 2003 to 2005. The Hydrologic Index Tool was used to calculate

Because of the historical deposition of mill tailings in flood plains, the process of determining total maximum daily loads for streams in an area like the Park City mining district of Utah is complicated. Understanding the locations of metal loading to Silver Creek and the relative importance of these locations is necessary to make science-based decisions. Application of tracer-injection and syno

Exploration for and production of coalbed methane has increased substantially in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States since the 1990s. During 1999-2004, annual production of natural gas (coalbed methane) from the Raton Basin in Las Animas County, Colorado, increased from 28,129,515 to 80,224,130 thousand cubic feet, and the annual volume of ground water coproduced by coalbed methane well

Nutrient compounds of nitrogen and phosphorus were investigated in streams and rivers sampled as part of the U.S. Geological Survey National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program. Nutrient data were collected in 20 NAWQA study units during 1992-95, 16 study units during 1996-98, and 15 study units during 1999-2001. To facilitate comparisons among sampling sites with variable sampling frequency,

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with Colorado Springs Utilities, the Colorado Water Conservation Board, and the El Paso County Water Authority, began a study in 2004 to (1) apply a stream-aquifer model to Monument Creek, (2) use the results of the modeling to develop a transit-loss accounting program for Monument Creek, (3) revise the existing transit-loss accounting program for Fountai

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted a study from 2002 through 2003 through its National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program to determine the effects of urbanization on the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of stream ecosystems along the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. The objectives of the study were to (1) examine physical, chemical, and biological responses at s

Organochlorine compounds and current-use pesticides were measured in snow and lake-sediment samples from Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado and Glacier National Park in Montana to determine their occurrence and distribution in high-elevation aquatic ecosystems. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the National Park Service, collected snow samples at eight sites in Rocky Mountain N

This report describes the effects of urbanization on physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of stream ecosystems in 28 basins along an urban land-use gradient in the South Platte River Basin, Colorado and Wyoming, from 2002 through 2003. Study basins were chosen to minimize natural variability among basins due to factors such as geology, elevation, and climate and to maximize coverage

The Raton Basin in southern Colorado and northern New Mexico is undergoing increased development of its coalbed-methane resources. Annual production of methane from coalbeds in the Raton Basin in Huerfano and Las Animas Counties, Colorado, increased from about 28,000,000 thousand cubic feet from 478 wells to about 80,000,000 thousand cubic feet from 1,543 wells, during 1999-2004. Annual ground-wat