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Publications

Publications are the cornerstone of the Pennsylvania Water Science Center’s dissemination of scientific data and conclusions. 

Filter Total Items: 939

Dissolved metals and associated constituents in abandoned coal-mine discharges, Pennsylvania, USA. Part 2: Geochemical controls on constituent concentrations

Water-quality data for discharges from 140 abandoned mines in the Anthracite and Bituminous Coalfields of Pennsylvania reveal complex relations among the pH and dissolved solute concentrations that can be explained with geochemical equilibrium models. Observed values of pH ranged from 2.7 to 7.3 in the coal-mine discharges (CMD). Generally, flow rates were smaller and solute concentrations were gr
Authors
C.A. Cravotta

The effect of terrace geology on ground-water movement and on the interaction of ground water and surface water on a mountainside near Mirror Lake, New Hampshire, USA

The west watershed of Mirror Lake in the White Mountains of New Hampshire contains several terraces that are at different altitudes and have different geologic compositions. The lowest terrace (FSE) has 5 m of sand overlying 9 m of till. The two next successively higher terraces (FS2 and FS1) consist entirely of sand and have maximum thicknesses of about 7 m. A fourth, and highest, terrace (FS3) l
Authors
T. C. Winter, D.C. Buso, P.C. Shattuck, P. T. Harte, D. A. Vroblesky, D.J. Goode

Downflow limestone beds for treatment of net-acidic, oxic, iron-laden drainage from a flooded Anthracite Mine, Pennsylvania, USA: 1. Field evaluation

Passive-treatment systems that route acidic mine drainage (AMD) through crushed limestone and/or organic-rich substrates have been used to remove the acidity and metals from various AMD sources, with a wide range of effects. This study evaluates treatment of net-acidic, oxic, iron-laden AMD with limestone alone, and with organic-rich compost layered with the limestone. In the fall of 2003, a treat
Authors
C.A. Cravotta, S.J. Ward

Downflow limestone beds for treatment of net-acidic, oxic, iron-laden drainage from a flooded anthracite mine, Pennsylvania, USA: 2. Laboratory evaluation

Acidic mine drainage (AMD) containing elevated concentrations of dissolved iron and other metals can be neutralized to varying degrees by reactions with limestone in passive treatment systems. We evaluated the chemical and mineralogical characteristics and the effectiveness of calcitic and dolomitic limestone for the neutralization of net-acidic, oxic, iron-laden AMD from a flooded anthracite mine
Authors
C.A. Cravotta, S.J. Ward, J. M. Hammarstrom

Laboratory and field evaluation of a flushable oxic limestone drain for treatment of net-acidic drainage from a flooded anthracite mine, Pennsylvania, USA

This paper demonstrates the use of dissolution-rate data obtained in the laboratory to indicate the potential quality of effluent from a field-scale oxic limestone drain (OLD) treatment system for neutralization of dilute acidic mine drainage (AMD). Effluent from the Reevesdale Mine South Dip Tunnel, a large source of AMD and base flow to the Wabash Creek and Little Schuylkill River in the Souther
Authors
C.A. Cravotta

Regression Equations for Estimating Flood Flows at Selected Recurrence Intervals for Ungaged Streams in Pennsylvania

Regression equations were developed for estimating flood flows at selected recurrence intervals for ungaged streams in Pennsylvania with drainage areas less than 2,000 square miles. These equations were developed utilizing peak-flow data from 322 streamflow-gaging stations within Pennsylvania and surrounding states. All stations used in the development of the equations had 10 or more years of reco
Authors
Mark A. Roland, Marla H. Stuckey

User's Guide to the Water-Analysis Screening Tool (WAST): A Tool for Assessing Available Water Resources in Relation to Aquatic-Resource Uses

A water-analysis screening tool (WAST) was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey, in partnership with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, to provide an initial screening of areas in the state where potential problems may exist related to the availability of water resources to meet current and future water-use demands. The tool compares water-use information to an initial scr
Authors
Marla H. Stuckey, James L. Kiesler

Changes in streamflow, concentrations, and loads in selected nontidal basins in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, 1985-2006

Water-quality and streamflow data from 34 sites in nontidal parts of the Chesapeake Bay watershed are presented to document annual nutrient and sediment loads and trends for 1985 through 2006, as part of an annual evaluation of water-quality conditions by the U.S. EPA Chesapeake Bay Program. This study presents the results of trends analysis for streamflow, loads, and concentrations. Annual mean f
Authors
Michael J. Langland, Douglas Moyer, Joel Blomquist

Analysis of flood-magnitude and flood-frequency data for streamflow-gaging stations in the Delaware and North Branch Susquehanna River Basins in Pennsylvania

The Delaware and North Branch Susquehanna River Basins in Pennsylvania experienced severe flooding as a result of intense rainfall during June 2006. The height of the flood waters on the rivers and tributaries approached or exceeded the peak of record at many locations. Updated flood-magnitude and flood-frequency data for streamflow-gaging stations on tributaries in the Delaware and North Branch S
Authors
Mark A. Roland, Marla H. Stuckey

Concentrations of selected pharmaceuticals and antibiotics in south-central Pennsylvania waters, March through September 2006

This report presents environmental and quality-control data from analyses of 15 pharmaceutical and 31 antibiotic compounds in water samples from streams and wells in south-central Pennsylvania. The analyses are part of a study by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) to define concentrations of selected emerging contam
Authors
Connie A. Loper, J. Kent Crawford, Kim L. Otto, Rhonda L. Manning, Michael T. Meyer, Edward T. Furlong

Contamination in fractured-rock aquifers: Research at the former Naval Air Warfare Center, West Trenton, New Jersey

The U.S. Geological Survey and cooperators are studying chlorinated solvents in a fractured sedimentary rock aquifer underlying the former Naval Air Warfare Center (NAWC), West Trenton, New Jersey. Fractured-rock aquifers are common in many parts of the United States and are highly susceptible to contamination, particularly at industrial sites. Compared to 'unconsolidated' aquifers, there can be m
Authors
Daniel J. Goode, Claire R. Tiedeman, Pierre J. Lacombe, Thomas E. Imbrigiotta, Allen M. Shapiro, Francis H. Chapelle

Drought-trigger ground-water levels in Chester County, Pennsylvania, for the period of record ending May 2006

This report presents the results of a study by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Chester County Water Resources Authority (CCWRA), to update the drought-trigger water levels for the Chester County observation-well network. The Chester County observation-well network was established in 1973 through a cooperative agreement between the CCWRA and the USGS to monitor local grou
Authors
Peter J. Cinotto