Publications
This list of Water Resources Mission Area publications includes both official USGS publications and journal articles authored by our scientists. A searchable database of all USGS publications can be accessed at the USGS Publications Warehouse.
Filter Total Items: 18465
Environmental factors influencing the distribution and salvage of young delta smelt: a comparison of factors occurring in 1996 and 1999
The delta smelt (Hypomesus transpacificus) is listed as a threatened species under both the Federal Endangered Species Act (FESA) and the California Endangered Species Act. Through formal consultation under Section 7 of the FESA, USBR and DWR received a Biological Opinion from the USFWS, which allows for the incidental take of delta smelt arising through operation of the Central Valley Project and
Authors
Matthew Nobriga, Zach Hymanson, Rick Oltmann
Occurrence, distribution, and concentration of hydrocarbons in and near the Shell Valley Aquifer, North Dakota
Water samples from 27 wells completed in and near the Shell Valley aquifer were analyzed for benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (BTEX), polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), and pentachlorophenol (PCP) using the enzyme-linked immunoassay method. The analyses indicated the presence of PAH, PCB, and PCP in the study area. However, an individual compound at
Authors
Wayne R. Berkas
Estimated water withdrawals and use in Pennsylvania, 1995
In practical terms, water use is divided into two basic types: instream use and offstream use. Instream use is water used in its natural channel, basin, or behind a dam and includes activities such as fishing, boating, and other recreational activities. Instream use also includes hydroelectric power generation. Off-stream use is water pumped or diverted from its natural channel, basin, or aquifer.
Authors
Russell A. Ludlow, William A. Gast
Determining the occurrence of pesticides and volatile organic compounds in public water-supply source waters in Texas
No abstract available.
Authors
B.J. Mahler
Summary of the major water-quality findings from the Eastern Iowa Basins study unit of the National Water-Quality Assessment Program
An integrated assessment of the water quality in streams and aquifers in the Wapsipinicon, Iowa, Cedar, and Skunk River basins was conducted in 1996 through 1998 as part of the Eastern Iowa Basins (EIWA) study unit of the U.S. Geological Survey's National Water-Quality Assessment Program (NAWQA). The EIWA study unit is one of 59 study units across the Nation designed to assess the status and trend
Authors
Stephen J. Kalkhoff
Pesticides in ground water of the United States, 1992-1996
During the first cycle of the National Water Quality Assessment (1992–1996), ground water in 20 of the nation's major hydro-logic basins was analyzed for 90 pesticide compounds (pesticides and degradates). One or more of the pesticide compounds examined were detected at 48.4% of the 2485 ground water sites sampled. However, approximately 70% of the sites where pesticides were detected, two or more
Authors
Dana W. Kolpin, Jack E. Barbash, Robert J. Gilliom
Importance of the Mississippi River Basin for investigating agricultural–chemical contamination of the hydrologic cycle
This special issue is devoted to recent and ongoing research relating to the fate and transport of agricultural chemicals in the Mississippi River Basin by the US Geological Survey Toxic Substances Hydrology (Toxics) Program. The Mississippi River Basin drains approximately 3 200 000 km2 representing 41% of the United States. This is the largest river in the United States and the third largest in
Authors
Dana W. Kolpin
Occurrence and load of selected herbicides and metabolites in the lower Mississippi River
Analyses of water samples collected from the Mississippi River at Baton Rouge, Louisiana, during 1991–1997 indicate that hundreds of metric tons of herbicides and herbicide metabolites are being discharged annually to the Gulf of Mexico. Atrazine, metolachlor, and the ethane-sulfonic acid metabolite of alachlor (alachlor ESA) were the most frequently detected herbicides and, in general, were prese
Authors
Gregory M. Clark, Donald A. Goolsby
Methods of analysis by the U.S. Geological Survey National Water Quality Laboratory-Determination of whole-water recoverable arsenic, boron, and vanadium using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry
Analysis of in-bottle digestate by using
the inductively coupled plasma?mass
spectrometric (ICP?MS) method has been
expanded to include arsenic, boron, and
vanadium. Whole-water samples are
digested by using either the hydrochloric acid
in-bottle digestion procedure or the nitric acid
in-bottle digestion procedure. When the
hydrochloric acid in-bottle digestion
procedure is used, chloride
Authors
John R. Garbarino
The Amazon reveals its secrets--partly
The role of the tropics in global climate change during glacial cycles is hotly debated in paleoclimate cycles today. Records from South America have not provided a clear picture of tropical climate change. In his Perspective, Betancourt highlights the study by Maslin and Burns, who have deduced the outflow of the Amazon over the past 14,000 years. This may serve as a proxy that integrates hydrolo
Authors
Julio L. Betancourt
Public water-supply use in Kansas, 1987–97
Annual State reporting requirements yield data on public water-supply use in Kansas. data is essential for responsible and effective use of the information by various State agencies. This fact sheet describes water-use data evaluation, illustrates variations in public-supply water use from 1987 through 1997, and documents improvements in water conservation efforts among Kansas public water supplie
Authors
Joan F. Kenny
Trends in surface-water quality during implementation of best-management practices in Mill Creek and Muddy Run Basins, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
Analyses of water samples collected over a 5-year period (1993-98) in the Mill Creek and Muddy Run Basins during implementation of agricultural best-management practices (BMP’s) indicate statistically significant trends in the concentrations of several nutrient species and in nonfilterable residue (suspended solids). The strongest trends identified were those indicated by a more than 50- percent d
Authors
Edward H. Koerkle