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: 18470
Naturally occurring radionuclides in the ground water of southeastern Pennsylvania
Naturally occurring radionuclides in the ground water of southeastern Pennsylvania may pose a health hazard to some residents, especially those drinking water from wells drilled in the Chickies Quartzite. Water from 46 percent of wells sampled in the Chickies Quartzite and 7 percent of wells sampled in other geologic formations exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) maximum cont
Authors
Ronald A. Sloto
Evaluation of geophysical logs and slug tests, phase II, at AIW Frank/Mid-County Mustang Superfund Site, Chester County, Pennsylvania
Between September 1997 and October 1998, nine monitor wells were drilled at the AIW Frank/Mid-County Mustang Superfund Site in Chester County, Pa., to determine the horizontal and vertical distribution of contaminated ground water migrating from known contaminant sources. The U.S. Geological Survey conducted borehole geophysical logging and borehole television surveys in these boreholes to identif
Authors
R.W. Conger, D.J. Goode, R. A. Sloto
A reconnaissance study of the effect of irrigated agriculture on water quality in the Ogallala Formation, Central High Plains Aquifer
In 1998, the U.S. Geological Survey's National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program began a regional study of water quality in the High Plains aquifer. The High Plains aquifer underlies an area of about 174,000 square miles in parts of eight States. Because of its large size, the High Plains aquifer has been divided into three regions: the Southern High Plains, Central High Plains, and Norther
Authors
Peter B. McMahon
Arsenic in Ground-Water Resources of the United States
Arsenic is a naturally occurring element in rocks, soils, and the waters in contact with them. Recognized as a toxic element for centuries, arsenic today also is a human health concern because it can contribute to skin, bladder, and other cancers (National Research Council, 1999). Recently, the National Research Council (1999) recommended lowering the current maximum contaminant level (MCL) allowe
Authors
Alan H. Welch, Sharon A. Watkins, Dennis R. Helsel, Michael J. Focazio
Nutrients discharged to the Mississippi River from eastern Iowa watersheds, 1996-1997
The introduction of nutrients from chemical fertilizer, animal manure, wastewater, and atmospheric deposition to the eastern Iowa environment creates a large potential for nutrient transport in watersheds. Agriculture constitutes 93 percent of all land use in eastern Iowa. As part of the U.S. Geological Survey National Water Quality Assessment Program, water samples were collected (typically month
Authors
Kent Becher, Douglas J. Schnoebelen, Kimberlee K. Akers
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