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Publications

Browse more than 150,000 publications authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS.  Publications available are: USGS-authored journal articles, series reports, book chapters, other government publications, and more.

Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center Publications

Filter Total Items: 3244

Comparison of the results of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to mass-spectrometry based analytical methods for six unregulated contaminants in source water and finished drinking-water samples

Regulatory entities, such as the Minnesota Department of Health, monitor public water systems for conformance with Federal and State monitoring requirements and water-quality standards. Although some contaminants have Federal and (or) State regulations and guidance values, many contaminants, such as pesticides and pharmaceuticals, are unregulated in that only non-enforceable health-based guidance
Authors
Aliesha L. Krall, Sarah M. Elliott, Jane R. de Lambert, Stephen W. Robertson

FY22 Technical Report: Evaluation of fish passage for assessment of invasive carp deterrents at locks in the upper Mississippi River

FY22 Technical Report for the project, "Evaluation of fish passage for assessment of invasive carp deterrents at locks in the Upper Mississippi River." This document describes specific methods, highlights, and results that show how progress towards meeting objectives in a timely manner.
Authors
Andrea K. Fritts, Joshua Abner, Mark W. Fritts, James T. Lamer, Mark Cornish

Sediment and nutrient retention on a reconnected floodplain of an Upper Mississippi River tributary, 2013–2018

The connection of rivers with their floodplains has been greatly reduced in agricultural drainage basins, especially in the Upper Mississippi River Basin. The restriction of the Mississippi River from its floodplain has reduced the sediment trapping and nutrient deposition capabilities of the floodplain, exacerbating water quality problems in the river and in downstream waterbodies. A small part o
Authors
Lynn A. Bartsch, Rebecca M. Kreiling, Lance R. Gruhn, Jessica D. Garrett, William B. Richardson, Greg M. Nalley

Hydrological and lock operation conditions associated with paddlefish and bigheaded carp dam passage on a large and small scale in the Upper Mississippi River (Pools 14–18)

Movement and dispersal of migratory fish species is an important life-history characteristics that can be impeded by navigation dams. Although habitat fragmentation may be detrimental to native fish species, it might act as an effective and economical barrier for controlling the spread of invasive species in riverine systems. Various technologies have been proposed as potential fish deterrents at
Authors
Dominique D. Turney, Andrea K. Fritts, Brent C. Knights, Jonathan M. Vallazza, Douglas Appel, James T. Lamar

Recommendations regarding water level management to achieve ecological goals in the Upper Mississippi River System

The Water Level Management Regional Coordinating Committee tasked an ad hoc group to employ structured decision making (SDM) practices to reach partnership agreement around a set of basic recommendations as to when, where, and why WLM should be used as an ecosystem restoration tool in the UMRS. Between April 2021 and August 2021, the Upper Mississippi River Basin Association (UMRBA; www.umrba.org)
Authors
Patricia J. Heglund, Lauren Salvato, Danelle M. Larson, Aaron McFarlane

Early treatment of white-nose syndrome is necessary to stop population decline

Since its introduction to North America, white-nose syndrome has been associated with declines greater than 90% in several bat species, prompting the development of treatments to reduce disease-related mortality. As treatment application is scaled up, predicting responses at the population level will help in the development of management plans.We develop a model allowing for the implementation of
Authors
John Forrest Grider, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Evan H. Campbell Grant, Riley F. Bernard, Robin E. Russell

Geomorphic controls on floodplain connectivity, ecosystem services, and sensitivity to climate change: An example from the lower Missouri River

Floodplains of large rivers are exploited for agricultural production, industrial and municipal development, and transportation infrastructure. Recently, increased frequency of costly floods has prompted consideration of whether offsetting benefits might accrue from management of floodplains for ecosystem services. We employed a simple inundation model for 800 km of the Lower Missouri River, USA,
Authors
R. B. Jacobson, Kristen L. Bouska, Edward Bulliner, Garth A. Lindner, Craig Paukert

Exposure and effects of bioaccumulative contaminants of emerging concern in tree swallows nesting across the Laurentian Great Lakes

Contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) are a loosely defined group of chemicals whose wide-spread usage or presence in the environment has occurred more recently or for which there has been relatively little research done until recently. Many of these CECs are not currently regulated. The National Toxicology Program within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimates that about 2000
Authors
Christine M. Custer, Thomas W. Custer, Paul Dummer

Contaminants of emerging concern in the Great Lakes: Science to inform management practices for protecting the health and integrity of wildlife populations from adverse effects: GLRI action plan I, focus area 1, goal 5

Executive Summary: Under Action Plan I (2010-2014) of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI), Federal and Academic partners began an investigation of the presence and distribution of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) in the Great Lakes and potential impacts on fish and wildlife. The term CECs is applied to a broad range of chemicals that are currently in use but for which we currently
Authors
Daniel L. Villeneuve, Steven R. Corsi, Christine M. Custer, W. Edward Johnson, Stephanie L. Hummel, Heiko L. Schoenfuss, Edward J. Perkins, Sarah A. Zack

Loss of street trees predicted to cause 6000 L/tree increase in leaf-on stormwater runoff for Great Lakes urban sewershed

Urban forests are recognized as a nature-based solution for stormwater management. This study assessed the underlying processes and extent of runoff reduction due to street trees with a paired-catchment experiment conducted in two sewersheds of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. Computer models are flexible, fast, and low-cost options to generalize and assess the hydrologic processes determined in field stud
Authors
Robert C. Coville, James Kruegler, William R. Selbig, Satoshi Hirabayashi, Stephen Loheid, William Avery, William Shuster, Ralph J. Haefner, Bryant C. Scharenbroch, Theodore A. Endreny, Dave Nowak

What is a stand? Assessing the variability of composition and structure in floodplain forest ecosystems across spatial scales in the Upper Mississippi River

The forest stand typically represents relatively homogenous forest conditions; the forest stand is generally the unit at which forest attributes are assessed, summarized, and subsequently managed. However, some ecosystems, such as the floodplain forests of the Upper Mississippi River (UMR), can exhibit high variability at fine spatial scales that can confound prescription development, implementati
Authors
Marcella Windmuller-Campione, Laura F. Reuling, Molly Van Appledorn, Daniel M. Nilesen, Andrew R. Meier

Ecological status and trends of the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers

Executive SummaryThis report assesses the status and trends of selected ecological health indicators of the Upper Mississippi River System (UMRS) based on the data collected and analyzed by the Long Term Resource Monitoring element of the Upper Mississippi River Restoration program, supplemented with data from other sources. This report has four objectives: providing a brief introduction of the UM
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