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Source-linked reports with geographic coverage including Washington.

At least 1,747 records · Page 97Linked to original sources
USGS1952

Floods in western Washington--Frequency and magnitude in relation to drainage basin characteristics

This report presents a method of determining the magnitude and frequency of expected floods applicable for any area in western Washington (fig. 1). A composite frequency curve was developed that expresses the relation to mean annual floods of floods having recurrence intervals from 1.03 to 50 yr. This composite frequency curve was based on the combined frequency curves for all gaging stations in the region with 5 or more years of record. Records for 131 stations, with drainage areas ranging from l to 2,700 sq mL, and recorded flood peaks ranging from 30 to 210,000 cfs were combined to obtain the composite curve. An equation was derived expressing the relationship between mean annual floods and basin characteristics. Those basin characteristics that may easily be determined from topographic maps and that significantly affect the peak discharge were compiled for all streams in the region on which 5 or more years of stream-flow records are available. These basin characteristics were correlated with mean annual flood of the streams, and as a result of this correlation a formula for the computation of the mean annual flood for any basin was derived. The limitations of the formula and its probable accuracy are discussed in the report. Included in the report are curves of magnitude and frequency of floods at all gaging stations in the region with 15 or more years of record. Also included is an enveloping curve of the maximum recorded discharges in the region.

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USGS1951

Geology of the eastern part of the Centralia - Chehalis coal district, Lewis and Thurston Counties, Washington

This report gives the results of geologic investigations made in 1948 and 1949 in the eastern part of the Centralia-Chehalis coal district of southwest Washington. Detailed geologic mapping and stratigraphic studies were supplemented by core drilling. The core drilling tested the thickness and physical character of the individual coal beds and aided in determining the continuity of the beds. It is hoped that the information on coal resources thus obtained will provide basic data useful in the development and utilization of the coal, which furnished one of the natural bases for the potential industrial growth of this region. Exploratory drilling for oil and gas has been thus far unsuccessful and suggests that geological conditions in the area mapped are not favorable for the accumulation of petroleum; the geologic information obtained during this investigation may, however, be helpful in delimiting areas in other parts of western Washington that may be favorable for exploratory drilling.

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USGS1950

Western Molybdenum Company mine, Chewelah district, Stevens County, Washington

The Western Molybdenum Company mine was opened many years ago to obtain copper. The only production was several cars of crude copper ore shipped during World War I. An unsuccessful attempt to produce molybdenum was made in 1939-1941. The deposit consists of steeply dipping, northeast-striking veins in monzonite and marble, carrying molybdenite, pyrite, chalcopyrite, scheelite, and some quartz. Northwest- striking faults cut and offset the veins as much as 10 feet. The main vein, which contains all the known ore, is developed by four levels to a depth of 293 feet. It contains ore shoots from a few inches to 4 feet wide and up to 130 feet long, carrying about 1 percent MoS 2 , 1 percent Cu, and 0.15 percent W0 3 .

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USGS1948

A report upon the Grand Coulee Fish Maintenance Project 1939-1947

The construction or Grand Coulee Dam, on the upper Columbia River, involved the loss of 1,140 lineal miles of spawning and rearing stream to the production of anadromous fishes. The fact that the annual value of these fish runs to the nation was estimated at $250,000 justified reasonable expenditures to assure their perpetuation. It was found economically infeasible to safely collect and pass adult fish upstream and fingerling fish downstream at the dam because of the tremendous flow of the river and the 320 foot vertical difference in elevation between forebay and tailrace. The Grand Coulee Fish-Maintenance Project, undertaken by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in 1939, consisted in relocating the anadroumous runs of the upper Columbia River to four major tributaries entering below the Grand Coulee damsite. These streams were believed capable of supporting several times their existing, badly depleted, run. The plan was predicated upon the assumption that the relocated runs, in conformity with their "homing tendency", would return to the lower tributaries rather than attempt to reach their ancestral spawning grounds above Grand Coulee Dam. This interim report covers the history and accomplishments of the Grand Coulee Fish-Maintenance Project through the initial period of relocating the rune as well as the first four years of the permanent program. Results obtained to date indicate conclusive success in diverting the upper Columbia fish runs into the accessible lower tributaries. The results also indicate, less conclusively, that - in spite of many existing handicaps - the upper Columbia salmon and steelhead runs may be rehabilitated through the integrated program of natural and artificial propagation incorporated in the Grand Coulee Fish-Maintenance Project.

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USGS1945

Columnaris as a disease of cold-water fishes

A natural outbreak of columnaris disease among wild adult and hatchery-reared fingerling salmon in the State of Washington is described. The disease is identified by the recovery of the causative organism, Bacillus columnaris Davis, which may be readily identified by its characteristic action in forming columns on the surfaces of infected material held in a water mount on a microscope slide. The gross lesions vary in appearance according to the particular organ affected but are formed, essentially, by the progressive necrosis and disintegration of the tissues. The tissues primarily affected are skin, body musculature, and the gills. Cultivation of the causative organism in tryptone solutions is recorded. Controlled, laboratory-induced infections indicate that among the cold-water fishes, columnaris disease is of little consequence to fingerlings at water temperatures below 55° F., but becomes highly pathogenic at temperatures in excess of 70° F. Between these temperature thresholds, the degree and severity of the infection is markedly influenced by factors adverse to the host. No effective control measures have been found.

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USGS1945

Water utilization in the Nooksack River, Washington

The primary purpose of the investigation of the water resources of the Nooksack River was land classification. The Nooksack basin lies largely within the Mt. Baker National Forest and a considerable area of public lands will be involved in any plan for the ultimate development of its water power. Surveys on a scale of 1:24,000 and 1:31,680 were made from the mouth of the Nooksack River upstream to include such stretches of ell streams in the basin as appear to have sufficient flow and head or storage possibilities to attract future power development. A dam site on the main stream and one on South Fork were mapped on a scale of 400 feet to the inch. A dam site on the main stream near Deming was mapped in 1938 by the U.S. Engineers. Areas within the basin not covered by these surveys are largely shown on quadrangle maps, The lower basin has been mapped on a scale of one inch to the mile, and the upper basin on a scale of one quarter inch to the mile (Mt. Baker district). These surveys and a brief record of discharge on the principal streams of the basin together with a general reconnaissance form the basis of this report. It outlines roughly a plan of development showing the potential power of the Nooksack River and its tributaries, and considers briefly the problems of flood control and irrigation within the basin.

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