Publications
Dive into our publications and explore the science from the Environmental Health Program (Toxic Substances Hydrology and Contaminant Biology).
Filter Total Items: 4094
Reactive transport modeling of geochemical controls on secondary water quality impacts at a crude oil spill site near Bemidji, MN
Anaerobic biodegradation of organic amendments and contaminants in aquifers can trigger secondary water quality impacts that impair groundwater resources. Reactive transport models help elucidate how diverse geochemical reactions control the spatiotemporal evolution of these impacts. Using extensive monitoring data from a crude oil spill site near Bemidji, Minnesota (USA), we implemented a compreh
Authors
Gene-Hua Crystal Ng, Barbara A. Bekins, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli, Mary Jo Baedecker, Philip C. Bennett, Richard T. Amos, William N. Herkelrath
Hydrogeochemical effects of a bulkhead in the Dinero mine tunnel, Sugar Loaf mining district, near Leadville, Colorado
The Dinero mine drainage tunnel is an abandoned, draining mine adit near Leadville, Colorado, that has an adverse effect on downstream water quality and aquatic life. In 2009, a bulkhead was constructed (creating a mine pool and increasing water-table elevations behind the tunnel) to limit drainage from the tunnel and improve downstream water quality. The goal of this study was to document changes
Authors
Katherine Walton-Day, Taylor J. Mills
Agencies collaborate, develop a cyanobacteria assessment network
Cyanobacteria are a genetically diverse group of photosynthetic microorganisms that occupy a broad range of habitats on land and water all over the world. They release toxins that can cause lung and skin irritation, alter the taste and odor of potable water, and cause human and animal illness. Cyanobacteria blooms occur worldwide, and climate change may increase the frequency, duration, and extent
Authors
Blake A. Schaeffer, Keith A. Loftin, Richard P. Stumpf, P. Jeremy Werdell
Potential estrogenic effects of wastewaters on gene expression in Pimephales promelas and fish assemblages in streams of southeastern New York
Direct linkages between endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) from municipal and industrial wastewaters and impacts on wild fish assemblages are rare. The levels of plasma vitellogenin (Vtg) and Vtg messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) in male fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) exposed to wastewater effluents and dilutions of 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2), estrogen activity, and fish assemblages in 1
Authors
Barry P. Baldigo, Scott D. George, Patrick J. Phillips, Joceyln D. C. Hemming, Nancy D. Denslow, Kevin J. Kroll
Effects and quantification of acid runoff from sulfide-bearing rock deposited during construction of Highway E18, Norway
The Highway E18 between the cities of Grimstad and Kristiansand, southern Norway, constructed in the period 2006–2009, cuts through sulfide-bearing rock. The geology of this area is dominated by slowly-weathering gneiss and granites, and oxidation of fresh rock surfaces can result in acidification of surface water. Sulfide-containing rock waste from excavations during construction work was therefo
Authors
Atle Hindar, D. Kirk Nordstrom
Photoreduction of Hg(II) and photodemethylation of methylmercury: the key role of thiol sites on dissolved organic matter
This study examined the kinetics of photoreduction of Hg(II) and photodemethylation of methylmercury (MeHg+) attached to, or in the presence of, dissolved organic matter (DOM). Both Hg(II) and MeHg+ are principally bound to reduced sulfur groups associated with DOM in many freshwater systems. We propose that a direct photolysis mechanism is plausible for reduction of Hg(II) bound to reduced sulfur
Authors
Jeffrey D. Jeremiason, Joshua C. Portner, George R. Aiken, Amber J. Hiranaka, Michelle T. Dvorak, Khuyen T. Tran, Douglas E. Latch
Widespread occurrence of (per)chlorate in the Solar System
Perchlorate (ClO− 4 ) and chlorate (ClO− 3 ) are ubiquitous on Earth and ClO− 4 has also been found on Mars. These species can play important roles in geochemical processes such as oxidation of organic matter and as biological electron acceptors, and are also indicators of important photochemical reactions involving oxyanions; on Mars they could be relevant for human habitability both in terms of
Authors
W. Andrew Jackson, Alfonso F Davila, Derek W. G. Sears, John D. Coates, Christopher P. McKay, Meaghan Brundrett, Nubia Estrada, John K. Böhlke
Interpretation of hydraulic conductivity in a fractured-rock aquifer over increasingly larger length dimensions
A comparison of the hydraulic conductivity over increasingly larger volumes of crystalline rock was conducted in the Piedmont physiographic region near Bethesda, Maryland, USA. Fluid-injection tests were conducted on intervals of boreholes isolating closely spaced fractures. Single-hole tests were conducted by pumping in open boreholes for approximately 30 min, and an interference test was conduct
Authors
Allen M. Shapiro, Jeffery Ladderud, Richard M. Yager
Stable carbon isotope fractionation during bacterial acetylene fermentation: Potential for life detection in hydrocarbon-rich volatiles of icy planet(oid)s
We report the first study of stable carbon isotope fractionation during microbial fermentation of acetylene (C2H2) in sediments, sediment enrichments, and bacterial cultures. Kinetic isotope effects (KIEs) averaged 3.7 ± 0.5‰ for slurries prepared with sediment collected at an intertidal mudflat in San Francisco Bay and 2.7 ± 0.2‰ for a pure culture of Pelobacter sp. isolated from these sediments.
Authors
Laurence Miller, Shaun Baesman, Ron Oremland
Genetic structure, diversity, and interisland dispersal in the endangered Mariana Common Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus guami)
The Mariana Common Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus guami) is a highly endangered taxon, with fewer than 300 individuals estimated to occur in the wild. The subspecies is believed to have undergone population declines attributable to loss of wetland habitats on its native islands in the Mariana Islands. We analyzed mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences (control region and ND2 genes) and nuclear microsat
Authors
Mark P. Miller, Thomas D. Mullins, Susan M. Haig, Leilani L. Takano, Karla Garcia
Mycobacterial infection in Northern snakehead (Channa argus) from the Potomac River catchment
The Northern snakehead, Channa argus (Cantor), is a non-native predatory fish that has become established regionally in some temperate freshwater habitats within the United States. Over the past decade, Northern snakehead populations have developed within aquatic ecosystems throughout the eastern USA, including the Potomac River system within Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C. Since this spec
Authors
Christine L. Densmore, Luke R. Iwanowicz, Anne Henderson, Deborah D. Iwanowicz, J.S. Odenkirk
Interactive effects of climate change with nutrients, mercury, and freshwater acidification on key taxa in the North Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative region
The North Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative LCC (NA LCC) is a public–private partnership that provides information to support conservation decisions that may be affected by global climate change (GCC) and other threats. The NA LCC region extends from southeast Virginia to the Canadian Maritime Provinces. Within this region, the US National Climate Assessment documented increases in air t
Authors
Alfred E. Pinkney, Charles T. Driscoll, David C. Evers, Michael J. Hooper, Jeffrey Horan, Jess W. Jones, Rebecca S. Lazarus, Harold G. Marshall, Andrew Milliken, Barnett A. Rattner, John J. Schmerfeld, Donald W. Sparling