Kyle Blasch, Ph.D.
Dr. Kyle Blasch is the Acting Regional Director for the Northwest – Pacific Islands Region (DOI Regions 9 and 12) at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
Dr. Blasch provides leadership for the activities at seven science centers and approximately 800 employees that conduct a wide array of impartial, multi- and interdisciplinary research and monitoring on natural-resource issues in the states of Hawai’i, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Western Montana and the United States Pacific Territories of American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Marianas.
Prior to joining the Region, Kyle served as the Director of the Idaho Water Science Center Director, COVID19 Response Coordinator, Acting Deputy Regional Director, and Acting Deputy Director of the WMA Office of Planning and Programming.
Kyle started his career with the USGS in 1999 as a Research Hydrologist and has continued dabbling with stream permanence, ecodrought, remote sensing, vadose zone processes, and ground water processes.
Professional Experience
1994 - Present - United States Air Force Reserves, Bioenvironmental Engineer
Education and Certifications
Ph.D., Hydrology and Water Resources, University of Arizona
M.S., Meteorology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
B.S., Civil/Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
B.S., Earth Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Affiliations and Memberships*
American Geophysical Union (AGU)
American Water Resources Association (AWRA)
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 28
Streamflow contributions from tribal lands to major river basins of the United States
While many studies on tribal water resources of individual tribal lands in the United States (US) have been conducted, the importance of tribal water resources at a national scale has largely gone unrecognized because their combined totals have not been quantified. Thus, we sought to provide a numerical estimate of major water budget components on tribal lands within the conterminous US...
Authors
Kyle W. Blasch, Stephen Hundt, Patrick Wurster, Roy Sando, Antony Berthelote
Using remote sensing to characterize and compare evapotranspiration from different irrigation regimes in the Smith River Watershed of central Montana
According to the 2005 U.S. Geological Survey national water use compilation, irrigation is the second largest use of fresh water in the United States, accounting for 37%, or 484.48 million cubic meters per day, of total freshwater withdrawal. Accurately estimating the amount of water withdrawals and actual consumptive water use (the difference between water withdrawals and return flow)...
Authors
Roy Sando, Rodney R. Caldwell, Kyle W. Blasch
Implications of projected climate change for groundwater recharge in the western United States
Existing studies on the impacts of climate change on groundwater recharge are either global or basin/location-specific. The global studies lack the specificity to inform decision making, while the local studies do little to clarify potential changes over large regions (major river basins, states, or groups of states), a scale often important in the development of water policy. An...
Authors
Thomas Meixner, Andrew H. Manning, David A. Stonestrom, Diana M. Allen, Hoori Ajami, Kyle W. Blasch, Andrea E. Brookfield, Christopher L. Castro, Jordan F. Clark, David Gochis, Alan L. Flint, Kirstin L. Neff, Rewati Niraula, Matthew Rodell, Bridget R. Scanlon, Kamini Singha, Michelle Ann Walvoord
Predicting alpine headwater stream intermittency: a case study in the northern Rocky Mountains
This investigation used climatic, geological, and environmental data coupled with observational stream intermittency data to predict alpine headwater stream intermittency. Prediction was made using a random forest classification model. Results showed that the most important variables in the prediction model were snowpack persistence, represented by average snow extent from March through...
Authors
Roy Sando, Kyle W. Blasch
Regional groundwater-flow model of the Redwall-Muav, Coconino, and alluvial basin aquifer systems of northern and central Arizona
A numerical flow model (MODFLOW) of the groundwater flow system in the primary aquifers in northern Arizona was developed to simulate interactions between the aquifers, perennial streams, and springs for predevelopment and transient conditions during 1910 through 2005. Simulated aquifers include the Redwall-Muav, Coconino, and basin-fill aquifers. Perennial stream reaches and springs...
Authors
D. R. Pool, Kyle W. Blasch, James B. Callegary, Stanley A. Leake, Leslie F. Graser
Methodology to assess water presence on speleothems during periods of low precipitation, with implications for recharge sources - Kartchner Caverns, Arizona
Beginning in January 2005, recharge processes and the presence of water on speleothems were monitored in Kartchner Caverns during a 44-month period when annual rainfall rates were 6 to 18 percent below the long-term mean. Electrical-resistance sensors designed to detect the presence of water were used to identify ephemeral streamflow in the channels overlying the cave as well as the...
Authors
Kyle W. Blasch
Environmental controls on drainage behavior of an ephemeral stream
Streambed drainage was measured at the cessation of 26 ephemeral streamflow events in Rillito Creek, Tucson, Arizona from August 2000 to June 2002 using buried time domain reflectometry (TDR) probes. An unusual drainage response was identified, which was characterized by sharp drainage from saturation to near field capacity at each depth with an increased delay between depths. We...
Authors
Kyle W. Blasch, T.P.A. Ferré, Jasper A. Vrugt
Distinguishing sources of ground water recharge by using δ2H and δ18O
Stable isotope values of hydrogen and oxygen from precipitation and ground water samples were compared by using a volumetrically based mixing equation and stable isotope gradient to estimate the season and location of recharge in four basins. Stable isotopes were sampled at 11 precipitation sites of differing elevation during a 2-year period to quantify seasonal stable isotope...
Authors
Kyle W. Blasch, Jeannie R. Bryson
Estimated infiltration, percolation, and recharge rates at the Rillito Creek focused recharge investigation site, Pima County, Arizona
A large fraction of ground water stored in the alluvial aquifers in the Southwest is recharged by water that percolates through ephemeral stream-channel deposits. The amount of water currently recharging many of these aquifers is insufficient to meet current and future demands. Improving the understanding of streambed infiltration and the subsequent redistribution of water within the...
Authors
John P. Hoffmann, Kyle W. Blasch, Don R. Pool, Matthew A. Bailey, James B. Callegary
Thermal Methods for Investigating Ground-Water Recharge
Recharge of aquifers within arid and semiarid environments is defined as the downward flux of water across the regional water table. The introduction of recharging water at the land surface can occur at discreet locations, such as in stream channels, or be distributed over the landscape, such as across broad interarroyo areas within an alluvial ground-water basin. The occurrence of...
Authors
Kyle W. Blasch, Jim E. Constantz, David A. Stonestrom
Geophysical Methods for Investigating Ground-Water Recharge
While numerical modeling has revolutionized our understanding of basin-scale hydrologic processes, such models rely almost exclusively on traditional measurements?rainfall, streamflow, and water-table elevations?for calibration and testing. Model calibration provides initial estimates of ground-water recharge. Calibrated models are important yet crude tools for addressing questions about...
Authors
Ty P.A. Ferre, Andrew Binley, Kyle W. Blasch, James B. Callegary, Steven M. Crawford, James B. Fink, Alan L. Flint, Lorraine E. Flint, John P. Hoffmann, John A. Izbicki, Marc T. Levitt, Donald R. Pool, Bridget R. Scanlon
Hydrogeology of the upper and middle Verde River watersheds, central Arizona
The upper and middle Verde River watersheds in central Arizona are primarily in Yavapai County, which in 1999 was determined to be the fastest growing rural county in the United States; by 2050 the population is projected to more than double its current size (132,000 in 2000). This study combines climatic, surface-water, ground-water, water-chemistry, and geologic data to describe the...
Authors
Kyle W. Blasch, John P. Hoffmann, Leslie F. Graser, Jeannie R. Bryson, Alan L. Flint
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 28
Streamflow contributions from tribal lands to major river basins of the United States
While many studies on tribal water resources of individual tribal lands in the United States (US) have been conducted, the importance of tribal water resources at a national scale has largely gone unrecognized because their combined totals have not been quantified. Thus, we sought to provide a numerical estimate of major water budget components on tribal lands within the conterminous US...
Authors
Kyle W. Blasch, Stephen Hundt, Patrick Wurster, Roy Sando, Antony Berthelote
Using remote sensing to characterize and compare evapotranspiration from different irrigation regimes in the Smith River Watershed of central Montana
According to the 2005 U.S. Geological Survey national water use compilation, irrigation is the second largest use of fresh water in the United States, accounting for 37%, or 484.48 million cubic meters per day, of total freshwater withdrawal. Accurately estimating the amount of water withdrawals and actual consumptive water use (the difference between water withdrawals and return flow)...
Authors
Roy Sando, Rodney R. Caldwell, Kyle W. Blasch
Implications of projected climate change for groundwater recharge in the western United States
Existing studies on the impacts of climate change on groundwater recharge are either global or basin/location-specific. The global studies lack the specificity to inform decision making, while the local studies do little to clarify potential changes over large regions (major river basins, states, or groups of states), a scale often important in the development of water policy. An...
Authors
Thomas Meixner, Andrew H. Manning, David A. Stonestrom, Diana M. Allen, Hoori Ajami, Kyle W. Blasch, Andrea E. Brookfield, Christopher L. Castro, Jordan F. Clark, David Gochis, Alan L. Flint, Kirstin L. Neff, Rewati Niraula, Matthew Rodell, Bridget R. Scanlon, Kamini Singha, Michelle Ann Walvoord
Predicting alpine headwater stream intermittency: a case study in the northern Rocky Mountains
This investigation used climatic, geological, and environmental data coupled with observational stream intermittency data to predict alpine headwater stream intermittency. Prediction was made using a random forest classification model. Results showed that the most important variables in the prediction model were snowpack persistence, represented by average snow extent from March through...
Authors
Roy Sando, Kyle W. Blasch
Regional groundwater-flow model of the Redwall-Muav, Coconino, and alluvial basin aquifer systems of northern and central Arizona
A numerical flow model (MODFLOW) of the groundwater flow system in the primary aquifers in northern Arizona was developed to simulate interactions between the aquifers, perennial streams, and springs for predevelopment and transient conditions during 1910 through 2005. Simulated aquifers include the Redwall-Muav, Coconino, and basin-fill aquifers. Perennial stream reaches and springs...
Authors
D. R. Pool, Kyle W. Blasch, James B. Callegary, Stanley A. Leake, Leslie F. Graser
Methodology to assess water presence on speleothems during periods of low precipitation, with implications for recharge sources - Kartchner Caverns, Arizona
Beginning in January 2005, recharge processes and the presence of water on speleothems were monitored in Kartchner Caverns during a 44-month period when annual rainfall rates were 6 to 18 percent below the long-term mean. Electrical-resistance sensors designed to detect the presence of water were used to identify ephemeral streamflow in the channels overlying the cave as well as the...
Authors
Kyle W. Blasch
Environmental controls on drainage behavior of an ephemeral stream
Streambed drainage was measured at the cessation of 26 ephemeral streamflow events in Rillito Creek, Tucson, Arizona from August 2000 to June 2002 using buried time domain reflectometry (TDR) probes. An unusual drainage response was identified, which was characterized by sharp drainage from saturation to near field capacity at each depth with an increased delay between depths. We...
Authors
Kyle W. Blasch, T.P.A. Ferré, Jasper A. Vrugt
Distinguishing sources of ground water recharge by using δ2H and δ18O
Stable isotope values of hydrogen and oxygen from precipitation and ground water samples were compared by using a volumetrically based mixing equation and stable isotope gradient to estimate the season and location of recharge in four basins. Stable isotopes were sampled at 11 precipitation sites of differing elevation during a 2-year period to quantify seasonal stable isotope...
Authors
Kyle W. Blasch, Jeannie R. Bryson
Estimated infiltration, percolation, and recharge rates at the Rillito Creek focused recharge investigation site, Pima County, Arizona
A large fraction of ground water stored in the alluvial aquifers in the Southwest is recharged by water that percolates through ephemeral stream-channel deposits. The amount of water currently recharging many of these aquifers is insufficient to meet current and future demands. Improving the understanding of streambed infiltration and the subsequent redistribution of water within the...
Authors
John P. Hoffmann, Kyle W. Blasch, Don R. Pool, Matthew A. Bailey, James B. Callegary
Thermal Methods for Investigating Ground-Water Recharge
Recharge of aquifers within arid and semiarid environments is defined as the downward flux of water across the regional water table. The introduction of recharging water at the land surface can occur at discreet locations, such as in stream channels, or be distributed over the landscape, such as across broad interarroyo areas within an alluvial ground-water basin. The occurrence of...
Authors
Kyle W. Blasch, Jim E. Constantz, David A. Stonestrom
Geophysical Methods for Investigating Ground-Water Recharge
While numerical modeling has revolutionized our understanding of basin-scale hydrologic processes, such models rely almost exclusively on traditional measurements?rainfall, streamflow, and water-table elevations?for calibration and testing. Model calibration provides initial estimates of ground-water recharge. Calibrated models are important yet crude tools for addressing questions about...
Authors
Ty P.A. Ferre, Andrew Binley, Kyle W. Blasch, James B. Callegary, Steven M. Crawford, James B. Fink, Alan L. Flint, Lorraine E. Flint, John P. Hoffmann, John A. Izbicki, Marc T. Levitt, Donald R. Pool, Bridget R. Scanlon
Hydrogeology of the upper and middle Verde River watersheds, central Arizona
The upper and middle Verde River watersheds in central Arizona are primarily in Yavapai County, which in 1999 was determined to be the fastest growing rural county in the United States; by 2050 the population is projected to more than double its current size (132,000 in 2000). This study combines climatic, surface-water, ground-water, water-chemistry, and geologic data to describe the...
Authors
Kyle W. Blasch, John P. Hoffmann, Leslie F. Graser, Jeannie R. Bryson, Alan L. Flint
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government