Traditional, Renewable, and Emerging
We provide the Nation with publicly available assessments of diverse geologic energy resources.
We provide the Nation with publicly available assessments of diverse geologic energy resources.
Energy Waste Science
We supply science about the wastes produced during energy production and ways of repurposing them.
We supply science about the wastes produced during energy production and ways of repurposing them.
The Energy-Water Nexus
We inform decisions at the intersection of water and energy resource development.
We inform decisions at the intersection of water and energy resource development.
Energy Security and Sustainability
We deliver science needed to plan a secure and sustainable energy economy.
We deliver science needed to plan a secure and sustainable energy economy.
Energy Resources Program
From transportation to electricity, energy resources are critical to keep the Nation running. We provide actionable science and tools to support decision-making related to all aspects of the energy resource lifecycle.
Our work includes assessing domestic and international oil, gas, geothermal and other geologic energy resources.
Our Data
Our Data
Explore our data about a broad array of energy resources and the environmental and societal impacts of their full life cycle.
Our Science
Our Science
Click each topic below to explore our research and impact.
News
USGS releases assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources in Woodford and Barnett shales
USGS releases assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources in Woodford and Barnett shales
USGS releases assessment of undiscovered gas resources in SW Wyoming’s Mesaverde Group and Lance Formation
USGS releases assessment of undiscovered gas resources in SW Wyoming’s Mesaverde Group and Lance Formation
USGS releases assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources under Santa Barbara County, California
USGS releases assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources under Santa Barbara County, California
Publications
Rare earth element potential in coal and coal ash in the U.S. Gulf Coast Rare earth element potential in coal and coal ash in the U.S. Gulf Coast
United States heavy reliance on imports of critical minerals (CMs), including rare earth elements (REEs), underscores the importance of development of domestic sources. The study objective was to quantify CM and REE concentrations in coal and coal ash in the US Gulf Coast region. CM and REE concentrations were measured for 118 samples from outcrops and 14 mines in the Gulf Coast. Results...
Bottom-up characterization of geologic methane emissions in the San Juan Basin in the southwestern USA Bottom-up characterization of geologic methane emissions in the San Juan Basin in the southwestern USA
Methane is a potent greenhouse gas that plays an important role in atmospheric chemistry and global warming. The current global methane budget has large uncertainties, and a better understanding of the budget would help to guide strategies for reducing anthropogenic emissions to fight climate change. Natural geologic methane emissions are a particularly poorly constrained source, with...
Depositional interplay between the Ancestral Rocky Mountains and Ouachita–Marathon–Sonora orogenies: Insights from provenance records in the late Paleozoic Marfa Basin, West Texas, U.S.A. Depositional interplay between the Ancestral Rocky Mountains and Ouachita–Marathon–Sonora orogenies: Insights from provenance records in the late Paleozoic Marfa Basin, West Texas, U.S.A.
The Marfa Basin in West Texas is a late Palaeozoic synorogenic depocenter associated with regional deformation linked to the Ancestral Rocky Mountains (ARM) and Ouachita–Marathon–Sonora (OMS) orogenies in southwestern Laurentia. Basin strata range in age from Middle Pennsylvanian to the middle Permian and include the Cieneguita, Alta, Pinto Canyon, Rose Mine and Mina Grande Formations...
Science
Geologic Mapping and Foundational Science
We deliver detailed mapping and foundational science about our Nation and world’s geology and geologic resources.
SBSC: Providing Unbiased Actionable Science & Information to Support Natural Resource Management Needs of the U.S. & Department of the Interior Priorities
The U.S. Geological Survey Southwest Biological Science Center (SBSC) is uniquely positioned in the Colorado River Basin to provide sound information, specialized expertise, and innovative tools to support the management and sustained use of natural resources on public and Tribal lands in the Southwest U.S.
WebDART: A Cutting-edge Web Tool that Evaluates Land Condition
WebDART is an online ecological assessment tool available to a wide audience that incorporates Landsat satellite remote sensing imagery, topography, geology, soil conditions, and rangeland geospatial and vegetation mapping to compare altered terrain with an unspoiled area that has similar characteristics in the same region. The tool gives resource managers, landowners, companies, and other...