Reports
Science Quality and Integrity
The USGS provides unbiased, objective, and impartial scientific information upon which our audiences, including resource managers, planners, and other entities, rely.
The USGS provides unbiased, objective, and impartial scientific information upon which our audiences, including resource managers, planners, and other entities, rely.
Browse more than 82,000 reports authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS and refine search by topic, location, year, and advanced search.
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Green infrastructure in the Great Lakes—Assessment of performance, barriers, and unintended consequences
The Great Lakes Basin covers around 536,393 square kilometers, and the Great Lakes hold more than 5,400 cubic miles of water, accounting for more than 20 percent of the world’s fresh surface water supply. The Great Lakes provide a source of drinking water to tens of millions of people in Canada and the United States and support one of the most diverse ecosystems in the world. Increasing urbanizati
Authors
Nancy T. Baker, Daniel J. Sullivan, William R. Selbig, Ralph J. Haefner, David C. Lampe, E. Randall Bayless, Michael R. McHale
System characterization report on the Amazônia-1 multispectral sensor
Executive SummaryThis report addresses system characterization of the Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais Amazônia-1 satellite and is part of a series of system characterization reports produced and delivered by the U.S. Geological Survey Earth Resources Observation and Science Cal/Val Center of Excellence. These reports present and detail the methodology and procedures for characterization;
Authors
James C. Vrabel, Gregory L. Stensaas, Cody Anderson, Jon Christopherson, Minsu Kim, Seonkyung Park
Water-quality data and trends in the Rapid Creek Basin, South Dakota, 1970–2020
Surface-water-quality data in the Rapid Creek Basin in South Dakota were compiled to assess basic trends in the water quality of Rapid Creek. Spatial and temporal patterns in water quality were described for major ions, sediment, total suspended solids, nutrients, field measurements, bacteria, and select metals for the period of 1970–2020, and a water-quality trend analysis was completed for sites
Authors
Wyatt S. Tatge, Galen K. Hoogestraat, Rochelle A. Nustad
Hydrologic conditions in Kansas, water year 2021
The U.S. Geological Survey maintains a network of hydrologic monitoring stations across Kansas in cooperation with Federal, State, Tribal, and local agencies. During water year 2021, this network included 230 real-time surface water data collection sites, referred to as “streamgages.” A water year is the 12-month period from October 1 through September 30 and is designated by the calendar year in
Authors
Kyle A. Puls
Streamflow—Water year 2021
The maps and graphs in this summary describe national streamflow conditions for water year 2021 (a water year is the period from October 1 to September 30 and is designated by the year in which it ends; for example, water year 2021 was from October 1, 2020, to September 30, 2021) in the context of streamflow ranks relative to the 92-year period of water years 1930–2021. Annual runoff in the Nation
Authors
Xiaodong Jian, David M. Wolock, Harry F. Lins, Ronald J. Henderson, Steven J. Brady
Glacial geology and hydrogeology of valley-fill aquifers in the Oneonta area, Otsego and Delaware Counties, New York
The glacial geology and hydrogeology of valley-fill aquifers and their surrounding uplands are described within a 112-square-mile area in southern Otsego and northwestern Delaware Counties, New York, centered around the City of Oneonta. The major valleys include those of the Susquehanna River, Otego Creek, Charlotte Creek, and Schenevus Creek. A variety of data were analyzed to provide a broad pic
Authors
Paul M. Heisig, P. Jay Fleisher
Water-quality conditions and constituent loads, water years 2013–19, and water-quality trends, water years 1983–2019, in the Scituate Reservoir drainage area, Rhode Island
The Scituate Reservoir is the primary source of drinking water for more than 60 percent of the population of Rhode Island. From October 1, 1982, to September 30, 2019, water years (WYs) 1983–2019 (a water year is the period between October 1 and September 30 and is designated by the year in which it ends), the Providence Water Supply Board maintained a fixed-frequency sampling program at 37 statio
Authors
Alana B. Spaetzel, Kirk P. Smith
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
Using microbial source tracking to identify fecal contamination sources in South Oyster Bay on Long Island, New York
The U.S. Geological Survey worked in cooperation with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to assess the potential sources of fecal contamination entering South Oyster Bay, a shallow embayment on the southern shore of Long Island, New York. Water samples are routinely collected by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation in the bay and analyzed for fecal c
Authors
Tristen N. Tagliaferri, Shawn C. Fisher, Christopher M. Kephart, Natalie Cheung, Ariel P. Reed, Robert J. Welk
Research to inform passage spacing for migratory amphibians and to evaluate efficacy and designs for open elevated road segment (ERS) passages
This is a multifaceted project that includes three main areas of research targeted to inform effective crossing systems for migratory amphibians, a large group of species which are at very high risk from negative impacts from roads within their habitats (Glista et al. 2008, Hamer and McDonnell 2008, Semlitsch 2008, Brehme et al. 2018). The three projects presented in this report are:1) Movement di
Authors
Cheryl S. Brehme, Stephanie Barnes, Brittany Ewing, Cassie Vaughan, Michael Hobbs, Charles Tornaci, Philip Robert Gould, Sarah Holm, Hanna Sheldon, Robert N. Fisher
U.S. Geological Survey Benchmark Glacier Project
The U.S. Geological Survey Benchmark Glacier Project combines decades of direct glaciological data with remote sensing data to advance the quantitative understanding of glacier-climate interactions. The global loss of glaciers, and consequent implications for water resources, sea level rise, and ecosystem function underscores the importance of U.S. Geological Survey glaciology research to facilit
Authors
Caitlyn Florentine, Lisa McKeon