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Publications

Dive into our publications and explore the science from the Environmental Health Program (Toxic Substances Hydrology and Contaminant Biology).

Filter Total Items: 3746

Reply to comment by T. N. Narasimhan on “A method to estimate groundwater depletion from confining layers”

We thank T. N. Narasimhan for his comment on our paper [Konikow and Neuzil, 2007] and for extending the discussion with a historical perspective, additional examples, and some considerations we did not discuss, including implications for water management. We support and agree with the thrust of his comments.
Authors
Christopher E. Neuzil, Leonard F. Konikow

Cardiopulmonary responses of intratracheally instilled tire particles and constituent metal components

Tire and brake wear particles contain transition metals, and contribute to near-road PM. We hypothesized that acute cardiopulmonary injury from respirable tire particles (TP) will depend on the amount of soluble metals. Respirable fractions of two types of TP (TP1 and TP2) were analyzed for water and acid-leachable metals using ICP-AES. Both TP types contained a variety of transition metals, inclu
Authors
R.R. Gottipolu, E. R. Landa, M.C. Schladweiler, J.K. McGee, A.D. Ledbetter, J.H. Richards, G.J. Wallenborn, U.P. Kodavanti

The effect of terrace geology on ground-water movement and on the interaction of ground water and surface water on a mountainside near Mirror Lake, New Hampshire, USA

The west watershed of Mirror Lake in the White Mountains of New Hampshire contains several terraces that are at different altitudes and have different geologic compositions. The lowest terrace (FSE) has 5 m of sand overlying 9 m of till. The two next successively higher terraces (FS2 and FS1) consist entirely of sand and have maximum thicknesses of about 7 m. A fourth, and highest, terrace (FS3) l
Authors
T. C. Winter, D.C. Buso, P.C. Shattuck, P. T. Harte, D. A. Vroblesky, D.J. Goode

Impairment of the reproductive potential of male fathead minnows by environmentally relevant exposures to 4-nonylphenolf

The synthetic organic compound 4-nonylphenol (NP) has been detected in many human-impacted surface waters in North America. In this study, we examined the ability of NP to alter reproductive competence in male fathead minnows after a 28 day flow-through exposure in a range of environmentally relevant concentrations bracketing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency toxicity-based NP chronic expos
Authors
H.L. Schoenfuss, S.E. Bartell, T.B. Bistodeau, R.A. Cediel, K.J. Grove, Larry Zintek, K. E. Lee, L. B. Barber

Susceptibility to enhanced chemical migration from depression-focused preferential flow, High Plains aquifer

Aquifer susceptibility to contamination is controlled in part by the inherent hydrogeologic properties of the vadose zone, which includes preferential-flow pathways. The purpose of this study was to investigate the importance of seasonal ponding near leaky irrigation wells as a mechanism for depression-focused preferential flow and enhanced chemical migration through the vadose zone of the High Pl
Authors
Jason J. Gurdak, Michelle Ann Walvoord, Peter B. McMahon

Transport and fate of nitrate at the ground-water/surface-water interface

Although numerous studies of hyporheic exchange and denitrification have been conducted in pristine, high-gradient streams, few studies of this type have been conducted in nutrient-rich, low-gradient streams. This is a particularly important subject given the interest in nitrogen (N) inputs to the Gulf of Mexico and other eutrophic aquatic systems. A combination of hydrologic, mineralogical, chemi
Authors
L.J. Puckett, C. Zamora, H. Essaid, J.T. Wilson, H.M. Johnson, M.J. Brayton, J. R. Vogel

Peat porewater chloride concentration profiles in the Everglades during wet/dry cycles from January 1996 to June 1998: Field measurements and theoretical analysis

Water quality is a key aspect of the Everglades Restoration Project, the largest water reclamation and ecosystem management project proposed in the United States. Movement of nutrients and contaminants to and from Everglades peat porewater could have important consequences for Everglades water quality and ecosystem restoration activities. In a study of Everglades porewater, we observed complex, se
Authors
M.M. Reddy, M.B. Reddy, K.L. Kipp, A. Burman, Peter Schuster, P.S. Rawlik

Differences in evaporation between a floating pan and class a pan on land

Research was conducted to develop a method for obtaining floating pan evaporation rates in a small (less than 10,000 m2) wetland, lagoon, or pond. Floating pan and land pan evaporation data were collected from March 1 to August 31, 2005, at a small natural wetland located in the alluvium of the Canadian River near Norman, Oklahoma, at the U.S. Geological Survey Norman Landfill Toxic Substances Hyd
Authors
J.R. Masoner, D.I. Stannard, S. C. Christenson

Low-Level detections of halogenated volatile organic compounds in groundwater: Use in vulnerability assessments

Concentrations of halogenated volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were determined by gas chromatography (GC) with an electron-capture detector (GC-ECD) and by gas chromatography with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) in 109 groundwater samples from five study areas in the United States. In each case, the untreated water sample was used for drinking-water purposes or was from a monitoring well in an area nea
Authors
Niel Plummer, E. Busenberg, S. M. Eberts, L. M. Bexfield, C. J. Brown, L.S. Fahlquist, B. G. Katz, M.K. Landon

Potential for 4-n-nonylphenol biodegradation in stream sediments

The potential for in situ biodegradation of 4-nonylphenol (4-NP) was investigated in three hydrologically distinct streams impacted by wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in the United States. Microcosms were prepared with sediments from each site and amended with [U-ring-14C]4-n-nonylphenol (4-n-NP) as a model test substrate. Microcosms prepared with sediment collected upstream of the WWTP outfal
Authors
P. M. Bradley, L. B. Barber, D.W. Kolpin, P. B. McMahon, F. H. Chapelle

Isotopic variations of dissolved copper and zinc in stream waters affected by historical mining

Zinc and Cu play important roles in the biogeochemistry of natural systems, and it is likely that these interactions result in mass-dependent fractionations of their stable isotopes. In this study, we examine the relative abundances of dissolved Zn and Cu isotopes in a variety of stream waters draining six historical mining districts located in the United States and Europe. Our goals were to (1) d
Authors
David M. Borrok, David Nimick, Richard B. Wanty, William I. Ridley

Mercury, trace elements and organic constituents in atmospheric fine particulate matter, Shenandoah National Park, Virginia, USA: A combined approach to sampling and analysis

Compliance with U.S. air quality regulatory standards for atmospheric fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is based on meeting average 24 hour (35 μ m−3) and yearly (15 μg m−3) mass‐per‐unit‐volume limits, regardless of PM2.5 composition. Whereas this presents a workable regulatory framework, information on particle composition is needed to assess the fate and transport of PM2.5 and determine potential
Authors
A. Kolker, M.A. Engle, W. H. Orem, J.E. Bunnell, H.E. Lerch, D. P. Krabbenhoft, M.L. Olson, J.D. McCord