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Search indexed USGS publications on groundwater, aquifers, geologic maps, mineral resources and earthquakes. Explore source records by subject and place.

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USGS1994

Overview of environmental and hydrogeologic conditions at King Salmon, Alaska

The Federal Aviation Administration is conducting preliminary environmental assessments at most of its present or former facilities in Alaska. Information about environmental conditions at King Salmon, Alaska are presented in this report. This report gives an overview of the geology, hydro- logy, and climate of the King Salmon area and describes general geohydrologic conditions. A thick alluvial aquifer underlies King Salmon and both ground water and surface water are plentiful in the area.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2024

Joint Agency Commercial Imagery Evaluation (JACIE) best practices for remote sensing system evaluation and reporting

Executive Summary The Joint Agency Commercial Imagery Evaluation (JACIE) partnership consists of six agencies representing the U.S. Government’s commitment to promoting the use of high-quality remotely sensed data to meet scientific and other Federal needs. These agencies are large consumers of remotely sensed data and bring extensive experience in the assessment and use of these data. The six agencies are as follows: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Geological Survey, and National Reconnaissance Office. JACIE was formed in 2001 to assess the quality of data from the nascent commercial high-resolution satellite industry. Since then, JACIE has expanded its purview to include data at various resolutions, including commercial and civil. The processes and techniques used by the JACIE agencies to assess data quality have been compiled within this report to share them across the agencies and with others who want to assess remotely sensed imagery data or understand how data are assessed and reported by JACIE.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2007

A human-dimensions review of human-wildlife disturbance: A literature review of impacts, frameworks, and management solutions

The following report was prepared for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Refuge System in support of their Comprehensive Conservation Planning (CCP) efforts by the Policy Analysis and Science Assistance Branch (PASA), Fort Collins Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey. While this document provides a summary of contemporary recreation management literature and methodologies, relevant to the subject of managing wildlife disturbances on national wildlife refuges, this document should be viewed as a starting point for management administrators. This document identifies general issues relating to wildlife disturbance and visitor impacts including a description of disturbance, recreational impacts, related human dimensions applications, management frameworks, and a general summary of management solutions. The section on descriptions of wildlife disturbance and impacts draws heavily from the report entitled 'Managing the Impacts of Visitor Use on Waterbirds -- A Literature Review of Impacts and Mitigation' (DeLong, 2002; Delong and Adamcik, in press) and is referenced in the text. This document is more comprehensive in its review of wildlife response to disturbance. This document is intended to discuss the human-dimensions aspect of wildlife disturbance, summarizing human dimensions and recreation management literature as it applies to this topic.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2013

Wind River watershed restoration. Annual report. November 2011 through October 2012

Introduction This report summarizes work by U.S. Geological Survey’s Columbia River Research Laboratory (USGS-CRRL) in the Wind River subbasin, from November 2011 through October 2012. Funding was provided by Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) under contract 55275. The primary focus of USGS activities during this time was tagging of parr steelhead Oncorhynchus mykiss with Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tags, and establishing a network of instream PIT tag interrogation systems (PTIS). The PIT-tagged parr steelhead will provide movement and life history data through recapture events and detections at instream PTIS systems, will contribute to estimates of adult steelhead returning to the Wind River, and aid in the evaluation of the removal of Hemlock Dam on Trout Creek steelhead populations. The Wind River Watershed project (BPA Project Number 1998-019-00) is a collaborative effort to restore wild steelhead in the Wind River, WA. The four partner agencies are the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), USGS-CRRL, and Underwood Conservation District (UCD). This partnership was established in the early 1990s with support from BPA, and has continued to conduct extensive habitat, research, monitoring, and coordination activities across the subbasin. The project works at multiple levels to identify and characterize key limiting habitat factors in the Wind River; restore degraded habitats and watershed processes; document fish populations, life histories, and interactions; investigate efficacy of restoration actions; and to share information across agency and non-agency boundaries. Long-term research in the Wind River has focused on assessments of steelhead/rainbow trout populations, relationships with introduced populations of spring Chinook salmon O. tshawytscha and brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis , and effects of habitat variables and habitat restoration on fish productivity. During the period covered by this report, we PIT tagged steelhead parr in headwater sections of the subbasin (Figure 1), maintained a PTIS in Trout Creek, installed a PTIS in the Wind River, and installed smaller scale PTISs in Trapper Creek, Paradise Creek, and the Wind River upstream of Paradise Creek (Figure 2). Additionally we maintained thermologgers to collect water temperature data near the PIT tagging sites. A statement of work (SOW) was submitted to BPA in October 2011 that outlined work to be performed by USGS-CRRL. The SOW was organized by Work Element (WE), with each describing a research task. This report summarizes the progress completed under each WE.

Washington↗

USGS1989

Directives, information sources, handbooks

This brochure provides a quick reference for obtaining the general-use handbooks and other information products that the Administrative Division generates to support USGS programs.

Report↗

USGS1996

A history of the Water Resources Division, U.S. Geological Survey; Volume VI, May 1, 1957 to June 30, 1966; the years of change

Luna B. Leopold became chief of the Water Resources Division in May 1957 and stepped down in January 1966 to resume his research'in geomorphology. Ernest L. Hendricks succeeded'Leopold as chief of the Division in May 1966. The dates May 1, 1957, and June 30,1966, bracket a period of profound change in the organization and programs and in the philosophy of operations of the Water Resource Division and indeed in the entire field of investigational hydrology both within and outside the Geological Survey. Leopold brought into his new position a conviction that water on and beneath the Earth's surface and the quality of both were interdependent parts of one water-resources system and that the organization and operation of WRD must change to reflect that oneness. He was also convinced that the research program of the Division was inadequate in scope, staff, and funding to meet the operational needs of the Division and the needs of the community of water-resources planners, developers, and administrators in the near and distant future. Leopold's vision of a Water Resources Division properly staffed to meet current and future technical challenges included the imposition of rigorous selection standards on new professional recruits and the development of specialized training in-house and at university undergraduate and graduate levels. The period of Leopold's administrative and technical leadership of the WRD was indeed the "Years of Change."

Report↗

USGS1969

Geochemical survey Of Missouri; plans and progress for first six-month period (July-December 1969)

This compilation briefly describes the objectives and purpose of a reconnaissance geochemical survey of Missouri, the results of the survey for the first 6 months, and the expenditures in funds and personnel for the present fiscal year and, as anticipated, for the fiscal year beginning on July 1, 1970. It is prepared primarily for the information of the Environmental Health Center of the University of Missouri in the interest of continuing communication at both the administrative and scientific levels.

Missouri↗

USGS2016

Predictive mapping of seabirds, pinnipeds and cetaceans off the Pacific Coast of Washington

About this report This report supports Washington-led marine spatial planning and responsible stewardship of natural and cultural resources by the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary. Washington state agencies and the sanctuary continually seek the best available science to improve management of marine uses and stewardship of resources (Etheridge et al., 2010; Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, 2015a). This report and associated data provide new, state- and sanctuary-requested information on seabird, pinniped, and cetacean distributions. Through spatial planning, information on species distributions can help to identify high-value conservation areas, minimize adverse effects of ocean uses and mitigate impacts of coastal hazards. Correspondingly, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has already begun to use the maps of predicted relative density presented in this report to identify ecologically important areas off the Pacific Coast of Washington and apply this information to plan for offshore renewable energy development. This is the culmination of three years of work to compile information on seabirds, pinnipeds, and cetaceans, and advance a modeling framework that can integrate data sets and develop accurate predictions of relative density for important species off the Pacific Coast of Washington. Previous reports, which evaluated existing datasets of at-sea observations (Menza et al., 2014; Kracker and Menza, 2015) and presented superseded versions of seabird models (Menza et al., 2015), provided base information for this report. In addition to the maps in this published report, all new seabird, pinniped and cetacean predictions will be made publicly available as digital geospatial data through the National Centers for Environmental Information. This research supports the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Coastal Zone Management Program, a voluntary partnership between the federal government and U.S. coastal and Great Lakes states and territories authorized by the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) of 1972 to address national coastal issues. The act provides the basis for protecting, restoring, and responsibly developing our nation’s diverse coastal communities and resources. To meet the goals of the CZMA, the national program takes a comprehensive approach to coastal resource management – balancing the often competing and occasionally conflicting demands of coastal resource use, economic development, and conservation. A wide range of issues are addressed through the program, including coastal development, water quality, public access, habitat protection, energy facility siting, ocean governance and planning, coastal hazards, and climate change. Accurate maps of seabird and marine mammal distributions are an important tool for making informed management decisions that affect all of these issues.

Washington↗

USGS2025

Acute heat stress and the extirpation of a threatened coral species from a remote, subtropical reef system

The ecological significance of the reef-building elkhorn coral, Acropora palmata , is threatened by heat-stress-induced mortality. The intensity and duration of the ocean heatwave affecting Dry Tortugas National Park in the summer of 2023 was historically unprecedented in its early timing and maximum temperatures reached and resulted in 100% A. palmata mortality. To understand the lethality of this event, we examined temperature data measured by in situ data loggers and estimated from satellites (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Coral Reef Watch) to investigate the timing of peak ocean temperatures and coral mortality. The in situ dataset revealed warmer water temperatures during the heatwave than those reported from the satellites, and the difference between the datasets was significantly pronounced during the summer. Our results support that, at least for this subtropical population, A. palmata may have an upper-threshold temperature that caused lethality faster than expected from the gradual accumulation of heat stress.

Florida↗

USGS2014

Bathymetry, acoustic backscatter, and seafloor character of Farallon Escarpment and Rittenburg Bank, northern California

In 2011, scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey’s Coastal and Marine Geology Program acquired bathymetry and acoustic-backscatter data along the upper slope of the Farallon Escarpment and Rittenburg Bank within the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary offshore of the San Francisco Bay area. The surveys were funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Deep Sea Coral Research and Technology Program to identify potential deep sea coral habitat prior to planned sampling efforts. Bathymetry and acoustic-backscatter data can be used to map seafloor geology (rock, sand, mud), and slope of the sea floor, both of which are useful for the prediction of deep sea coral habitat. The data also can be used for the prediction of sediment and contaminant budgets and transport, and for the assessment of earthquake and tsunami hazards. The surveys were conducted aboard National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Sanctuary Program’s 67-foot-long research vessel Fulmar outfitted with a U.S. Geological Survey 100-kHz Reson 7111 multibeam-echosounder system. This report provides the bathymetry and backscatter data acquired during these surveys, interpretive seafloor character maps in several formats, a summary of the mapping mission, maps of bathymetry and backscatter, and Federal Geographic Data Committee metadata.

California↗

USGS1977

A description of the index of active Florida water data collection stations and a user's guide for station or site information retrieval using computer program Findex H578

A computerized index of water-data collection activities and retrieval software to generate publication list of this information was developed for Florida. This system serves a vital need in the administration of the many and diverse water-data collection activities. Previously, needed data was very difficult to assemble for use in program planning or project implementation. Largely descriptive, the report tells how a file of computer card images has been established which contains entries for all sites in Florida at which there is currently a water-data-collection activity. Entries include information such as identification number, station name, location, type of site, county, information about data collection, funding, and other pertinent details. The computer program FINDEX selectively retrieves entries and lists them in a format suitable for publication. Updating the index is done routinely. (Woodard-USGS)

Open-File Report↗

USGS1979

Investigations by the U.S. Geological Survey of soil and moisture conservation on public domain lands, 1941-1964

The passage of the Taylor Grazing Act in 1934 marked the end of an era in the land policies in the United States in that disposal of the public lands by homesteading was terminated except under rigidly prescribed procedures, and the remaining public lands covering about 175 million acres in the western conterminous states were brought under regulatory authority for grazing use. In 1934 the lands were mostly in a severe state of deterioration as a result of overgrazing and drought. In addition to reducing numbers of livestock using the lands, successive programs of conservation practices were established of which the Soil and Moisture Conservation Program of the Department of the Interior is of particular interest here. The services of the Geological Survey, in an investigational and advisory capacity were enlisted in this program. The work of the Geological Survey has consisted of the collection of hydrologic data, investigations of range-water supplies to facilitate management and provide information for design of structures and land-treatment measures. Appraisal of the effects of treatment practices has also been an important activity. Conservation on the public domain involves mainly growing vegetation for forage and reducing erosion. The two elements are intimately related--accomplishment in one is usually reflected by an improvement in the other. Erosion is a serious problem on most of the public domain, but particularly in the Colorado River and Rio Grande basins where, despite low annual water yields, the public domain and similar lands on the Indian reservations contribute the major part of the sediment measured at the downstream gaging stations. In parts of the Missouri River basin also, erosion is obviously very active but the sediment yield contributed by the public domain cannot be as readily isolated. The reasons for the erosion are generally evident--the erodibility of the rock and soils and the sparsity of vegetation as a result of low precipitation, unfavorable soils, or past land use. How much is due to the land use is still controversial, resulting in many questions relative to planning corrective measures. The problem facing the early administrators of the Taylor Grazing Act to bring about proper use and conservation of the public domain was a difficult one because of the lack of records on actual grazing use in animal-unit months of the qualified allottees and the lack of data on treatment practices in an arid area. Reduction of grazing was imperative in some localities, but generally, it could not be brought about as rapidly as it should have been. Numbers of animal units in the grazing districts were reduced from about 3.6 million in 1941 to about 3.2 million in 1964, whereas the areas included in districts was increased about 3 percent. Reductions are still being made in certain areas where deterioration is evident. One of the earliest activities connected with management of the range was the development of water supplies to facilitate the distribution of grazing. The investigations needed for such development formed a large part of the early work in the Soil and Moisture program of the Geological Survey and has continued to be a major activity to the present time. Most of the work has involved investigations of sites for wells but has included also the investigation of proposed spring developments and collection of hydrologic data for use in reservoir design. Well-site investigations have been of two general types: (1) the investigation of a site selected by the land administration agency, and (2) an areal investigation covering entire grazing districts or units thereof. In each type of investigation, a study is made of the geology and the recharge conditions. Reports are prepared giving estimates of the depth of drilling required, the depth to water, the yield, and the quality of the water, together with other information on drilling conditions and developing. Springs are a significant so

Open-File Report↗

USGS1956

Memoranda reports on the geologic spot examinations of mines and prospects in Iran, February 1954, through June, 1955

A series of twenty-nine geological spot examinations of mines and prospects in Iran were carried out by Dr. Russell Gibson, Geologist, U.S. Geological Survey between February 1954 and June 1955. These studies were under the joint auspices of the U.S. Operation Mission of the International Cooperation Administration and the Iranian Ministry of National Economy. Dr. Gibson acted as Advisor in economic geology to both the Mission and the Government of Iran during this period. All mine or prospect visits including those two properties owned by private operators were made at the request of the agencies of the Government of Iran.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2010

Byproduct mineral commodities used for the production of photovoltaic cells

Rising fossil fuel costs, environmental concerns relating to global climate change, and Government policy to signifcantly increase our Nation's energy independence have placed greater emphasis on the generation of electricity from renewable sources, such as the Sun (light and heat), water, and wind, which for all intents and purposes are inexhaustible resources. Although the total amount of electricity generated from the direct conversion of sunlight through photovoltaic cells is relatively small compared with that from other forms of renewable energy, the rate of growth in the sector is signifcant. The total value of energy of photovoltaic cells produced worldwide increased to nearly 7 gigawatts (GW) in 2008 from 45 megawatts (MW) in 1990, a compound annual growth rate of about 30 percent. In the United States, manufacturing of photovoltaic cells has grown exponentially to about 480 MW in 2008, accounting for 6 percent of world production, from less than 10 MW of photovoltaic capacity in 1990 (Benner, 2007; U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration, 2010), a compound annual growth rate of approxi-mately 23 percent. A production capacity of 1 GW of electricity [or 8,760 gigawatthours1 (GWh)] is equivalent to the annual electricity requirements for roughly 800,000 average households in the United States (U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration, 2010). This estimate does not include losses of electricity, such as during transmission through power lines.

Circular↗

USGS2004

Geographic Information Office, Information Technology Office

The Geographic Information Office, Information Technology Office (ITO), operating under the Chief Technology Officer, directs the management of U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) information technology (IT) networks and systems supporting the telecommunications, computing, software applications management, and information technology security. The ITO supports IT activities across the nation and works closely with the Department of the Interior's (DOI), Office of the Chief Information Officer. For more information about ITO activities contact: Kevin Gallagher: Chief Technology Officer, Crystal Wilson: Administrative Assistant, Faye Lee: Senior Staff Assistant.

Fact Sheet↗

USGS2019

Escherichia coli in the Santa Cruz River in Tumacácori National Historical Park, Arizona

At Tumacácori National Historical Park in southern Arizona, resource managers are concerned about microbial pathogens in the Santa Cruz River that could pose a serious health risk to employees and visitors. The U.S. Geological Survey recently completed a comprehensive 3-year study of water quality in the Santa Cruz River watershed that investigated the possible sources of microbial contamination and how it relates to the amount of water and suspended sediment in the river. The results of this study help water managers and park administration better address this contamination and issue warnings to the public when the water is unsafe.

Arizona↗

USGS2017

A comparison of three federal datasets for thermoelectric water withdrawals in the United States for 2010

Historically, thermoelectric water withdrawal has been estimated by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) and the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) water-use compilations. Recently, the USGS developed models for estimating withdrawal at thermoelectric plants to provide estimates independent from plant operator-reported withdrawal data. This article compares three federal datasets of thermoelectric withdrawals for the United States in 2010: one based on the USGS water-use compilation, another based on EIA data, and the third based on USGS model-estimated data. The withdrawal data varied widely. Many plants had three different withdrawal values, and for approximately 54% of the plants the largest withdrawal value was twice the smallest, or larger. The causes of discrepancies among withdrawal estimates included definitional differences, definitional noise, and various nondefinitional causes. The uncertainty in national totals can be characterized by the range among the three datasets, from 5,640 m 3 /s (129 billion gallons per day [bgd]) to 6,954 m 3 /s (158 bgd), or by the aggregate difference between the smallest and largest values at each plant, from 4,014 m 3 /s (92 bgd) to 8,590 m 3 /s (196 bgd). When used to assess the accuracy of reported values, the USGS model estimates identify plants that need to be reviewed.

Journal of the American Water Resources Associatio↗

USGS2011

Surficial geology of the sea floor in Long Island Sound offshore of Orient Point, New York

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (CT DEP) are working cooperatively to map and interpret features of the sea floor along the northeastern coast of the United States. This report presents multibeam bathymetry and sidescan-sonar data obtained during NOAA survey H11446, which was conducted in a 12-km2 area in Long Island Sound offshore of Orient Point, NY. In addition, sediment and photographic data from 26 stations obtained during a USGS verification cruise are presented. Overall, the sea floor slopes gently seaward, but topography is more complex in sand-wave and boulder areas, which are evident in the multibeam and sidescan-sonar data from the study area. Sand waves generally have north-south-oriented crests with 10- to 20-m wavelengths. Sand-wave asymmetry indicates eastward net sediment transport in the east and westward net sediment transport in the northern and western parts of the study area. Areas with boulders on the sea floor are typically hummocky and are part of a glacial moraine system. Boulders are typically encrusted with seaweed, sponges, and anemones as shown in the bottom photography.

Open-File Report↗