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USGS2024

Geospatial PDF map of the compilation of GIS data for the mineral industries and related infrastructure of Africa

Introduction In 2021, the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) National Minerals Information Center (NMIC) completed the project titled "Compilation of geospatial data for the mineral industries and related infrastructure of Africa." This project aimed to leverage the expertise and capabilities of the NMIC to collect, synthesize, and interpret geospatial data to inform on the extractive resources of the African region and expand the NMIC's understanding on the impact of mineral industry of African nations in the global economy. The African region, which comprises the independent nations that make up the African continent and its associated islands and dependencies, consists of a total of 58 mineral producing countries. The primary objective of this effort was to create a fully attributed Geographic Information System (GIS) portraying existing mining infrastructure, resources, and development capacity across Africa along with the related infrastructure capable of supporting current (for the reference year 2018) and future extractive industry operations in the region. The compiled GIS geodatabase with supporting documentation including comprehensive metadata was published as a USGS data release titled "Compilation of Geospatial Data (GIS) for the Mineral Industries and Related Infrastructure of Africa." This georeferenced portable document format (GeoPDF) map sheet presents a new geographic information product containing a partial representation of the GIS data. This GeoPDF map provides a visual comparison of the distribution of mineral industry and related infrastructure GIS data, which contributes to a deeper understanding of the intersections and complexities of the extractive industries within Africa.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2023

Responses of juvenile mussels to metals in sediment and water of the Tri-State Mining District

The U.S. Geological Survey and collaborators from EcoAnalysts, Inc., completed field and laboratory studies during 2016–19 to evaluate the toxicity of metals to freshwater mussels in streams draining the Tri-State Mining District. This project consisted of (1) sampling and analysis of metals in water and sediment, (2) surveys of mussel assemblages at sites with suitable mussel habitat, (3) toxicity tests with juvenile mussels exposed to zinc or to a mixture of metals (zinc, lead, and cadmium) in water, and (4) toxicity tests to evaluate the contributions of metals in sediment and metals in overlying water to toxic effects on mussels. Field sampling at sites in the Spring River and Neosho River and their tributaries demonstrated wide ranges of metal contamination in water and sediment. Zinc was the predominant toxic metal in water, and concentrations of lead and cadmium were much lower. Mussel areal density and species richness were greater at reference sites with low sediment metal concentrations (for example, zinc, 29–141 micrograms per gram) than at test sites that had higher concentrations of sediment zinc (416–3,420 micrograms per gram) as a result of effects of upstream mining activity. Juvenile mussels were highly sensitive to zinc in water in 12-week toxicity tests compared to previous water-only tests, and adding low levels of waterborne lead and cadmium typical of their occurrence in Tri-State Mining District streams produced greater toxicity. Thresholds for mussel toxicity were at or less than waterborne metal concentrations detected in Tri-State Mining District streams, and sites with waterborne metal concentrations exceeding thresholds had decreased mussel density and decreased mussel species richness. The 12-week toxicity tests with juvenile mussels in Tri-State Mining District sediments also demonstrated negative mussel responses with metal exposure. Thresholds for reductions in survival, growth, or biomass were at sediment metal concentrations less than thresholds reported for previous 4-week tests. We documented strong associations between reduced survival in laboratory tests and reduced species richness in community surveys. Attempts to estimate combined toxicity thresholds for metals in sediment and overlying water were not successful. These inconclusive results may be attributable to several factors, including (1) unexpected losses of waterborne metals from solution, (2) differences in sensitivity of different age/size classes of juvenile mussels, (3) disruption of sediment-water equilibria and changes in metal bioavailability, and (4) behavioral or physiological responses allowing juvenile mussels to temporarily reduce or avoid metal exposure. We also observed differences in metal toxicity thresholds between sediment toxicity tests started with different ages/sizes of test organisms. A followup study that combined exposure to Tri-State Mining District sediments with exposures to multiple levels of waterborne metals demonstrated toxic effects of sediments with low metal concentrations; however, some treatments also indicated unexpected reversals of concentration-response trends and reduced toxicity in treatments that had high metal concentrations in overlying water. These unusual responses may reflect development of physiological tolerance to metal toxicity by induction of metal-binding proteins (for example, metallothionein) in response to high metal levels in water. Results of laboratory and field studies indicated strong associations between metal exposure in Tri-State Mining District streams and toxic effects on juvenile freshwater mussels. Mussel community characteristics corresponded to differences in metal concentrations in sediment and water among Tri-State Mining District sampling sites. Responses of juvenile mussels in 12-week water and sediment exposures were strongly correlated with the status of mussel assemblages in Tri-State Mining District streams. The combined results support the hypothesis that exposure to metals from historical mining activities adversely affects freshwater mussel communities in the Spring River/Neosho River drainage.

Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma↗

USGS2013

Alaska Geochemical Database, Version 2.0 (AGDB2)–Including “best value” data compilations for rock, sediment, soil, mineral, and concentrate sample mediaI

The Alaska Geochemical Database Version 2.0 (AGDB2) contains new geochemical data compilations in which each geologic material sample has one “best value” determination for each analyzed species, greatly improving speed and efficiency of use. Like the Alaska Geochemical Database (AGDB, http://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/637/) before it, the AGDB2 was created and designed to compile and integrate geochemical data from Alaska in order to facilitate geologic mapping, petrologic studies, mineral resource assessments, definition of geochemical baseline values and statistics, environmental impact assessments, and studies in medical geology. This relational database, created from the Alaska Geochemical Database (AGDB) that was released in 2011, serves as a data archive in support of present and future Alaskan geologic and geochemical projects, and contains data tables in several different formats describing historical and new quantitative and qualitative geochemical analyses. The analytical results were determined by 85 laboratory and field analytical methods on 264,095 rock, sediment, soil, mineral and heavy-mineral concentrate samples. Most samples were collected by U.S. Geological Survey personnel and analyzed in U.S. Geological Survey laboratories or, under contracts, in commercial analytical laboratories. These data represent analyses of samples collected as part of various U.S. Geological Survey programs and projects from 1962 through 2009. In addition, mineralogical data from 18,138 nonmagnetic heavy-mineral concentrate samples are included in this database. The AGDB2 includes historical geochemical data originally archived in the U.S. Geological Survey Rock Analysis Storage System (RASS) database, used from the mid-1960s through the late 1980s and the U.S. Geological Survey PLUTO database used from the mid-1970s through the mid-1990s. All of these data are currently maintained in the National Geochemical Database (NGDB). Retrievals from the NGDB were used to generate most of the AGDB data set. These data were checked for accuracy regarding sample location, sample media type, and analytical methods used. This arduous process of reviewing, verifying and, where necessary, editing all U.S. Geological Survey geochemical data resulted in a significantly improved Alaska geochemical dataset. USGS data that were not previously in the NGDB because the data predate the earliest U.S. Geological Survey geochemical databases, or were once excluded for programmatic reasons, are included here in the AGDB2 and will be added to the NGDB. The AGDB2 data provided here are the most accurate and complete to date, and should be useful for a wide variety of geochemical studies. The AGDB2 data provided in the linked database may be updated or changed periodically.

Alaska↗

USGS2018

Hydrogeology of, simulation of groundwater flow in, and potential effects of sea-level rise on the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system in the vicinity of Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, New Jersey

The Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge encompasses more than 47,000 acres of New Jersey coastal habitats, including salt marshes, freshwater wetlands, tidal wetlands, barrier beaches, woodlands, and swamps. The refuge is along the Atlantic Flyway and provides breeding habitat for fish, migratory birds, and other wildlife species. The refuge area may be threatened by global climate change, including sea-level rise (SLR). The Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system underlies the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. Groundwater is an important source of freshwater flow into the refuge, but information about the interaction of surface water and groundwater in the refuge area and the potential effects of SLR on the underlying aquifer system is limited. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), conducted a hydrologic assessment of the refuge in New Jersey and developed a groundwater flow model to improve understanding of the geohydrology of the refuge area and to serve as a tool to evaluate changes in groundwater-level altitudes that may result from a rise in sea level. Groundwater flow simulations completed for this study include a calibrated baseline simulation that represents 2005–15 hydraulic conditions and three SLR scenarios―20, 40, and 60 centimeters (cm) (0.656, 1.312, and 1.968 feet, respectively). Results of the three SLR simulations indicate that the water table in the unconfined Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system in the refuge area will rise, resulting in increased discharge of fresh groundwater to freshwater wetlands and streams. As sea level rises, simulated groundwater discharge to the salt marsh, bay, and ocean is projected to decrease. Flow from the salt marsh, bay, and ocean to the overlying surface water is projected to increase as sea level rises. The simulated movement of the freshwater-seawater interface as sea level rises depends on the hydraulic-head gradient. In the center of the Forsythe model area, topographic relief is 23 feet (ft) and the hydraulic-head gradient is 0.0033. In the center of the Forsythe model area, the simulated interface moved inland about 600 ft and downward about 15 ft from the baseline simulation to scenario 3 as a result of a SLR of 60 cm. In the southern part of the Forsythe model area, the topography is flatter (relief of 8 ft) and the hydraulic-head gradient is smaller (0.001). In the southern part of the Forsythe model study area, the simulated interface in this area is projected to move inland about 200 ft from the baseline simulation to scenario 3 and does not move downward.

New Jersey↗

USGS2020

Mapping climate change resistant vernal pools in the northeastern U.S.

Vernal pools are seasonal wetlands that provide important breeding habitat for a variety of amphibian species. As future climate projections indicate warmer growing seasons and earlier seasonal increases in evapotranspiration, some managers of vernal pools have expressed concern that pools may dry earlier in the season, potentially interfering with completion of amphibian life cycles. In this context, a subset of pools might function as hydrologic refugia by providing wetland habitat later into the year under relatively dry conditions, thus supporting species persistence even as summer conditions become warmer and droughts more frequent. This study used approximately 3,000 field observations of inundation from 450 pools in the northeastern United States—located from West Virginia to Maine—to train machine-learning models for predicting the likelihood of pool inundation. Inputs to these models included pool size, day of the year, climate conditions, short-term weather patterns, and attributes of the landscapes in which pools were embedded. Predictions of pool wetness were generated on a daily time step from late April through late July using three short-term weather scenarios (dry, wet, and average) under historical climate conditions and four sets of downscaled climate projections (2050s and 2080s under Representative Concentration Pathways 4.5 and 8.5). The modeling and inundation prediction process was replicated using four inundation thresholds on wetted area and depth. Model outputs can enable users to examine the inundation thresholds, time points, weather scenarios, and future climate projections most relevant to their management needs. Together with long-term monitoring of individual pools at the site scale, this regional-scale study can support amphibian conservation by helping to identify subsets of pools that may be most likely to function as hydrologic refugia from changing climate conditions.

Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachuse↗

USGS2021

Informing future condition scenario planning for habitat specialists of the imperiled pine rockland ecosystem of South Florida

This project evaluated habitat conditions for two species found in the imperiled pine rockland ecosystem—the Rim Rock Crowned Snake ( Tantilla oolitica ) and the Key Ring-Necked Snake ( Diadophis punctatus acricus ). The Rim Rock Crowned Snake historically occurred in eastern Miami-Dade County (hereafter, mainland) as well as throughout the Florida Keys, whereas the Key Ring-Necked Snake occurs only in lower Florida Keys (Enge et al. 2004; Mays and Enge 2016). Both species are very elusive, small (< 20 cm in length) and primarily fossorial. Pine rockland habitat is rapidly disappearing in South Florida, with < 3 percent of its original extent remaining. Saltwater intrusion from hurricanes and sea-level rise (SLR), and human development pose the greatest threats to the longevity of this ecosystem which, in turn, places species that are endemic to this unique habitat at risk of extinction. The Rim Rock Crowned Snake and the Key Ringed-Necked Snake are being considered for listing by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). To aid the agency’s decision, it must be able to forecast species’ responses to potential future environmental conditions, as well as to different conservation and management actions. Yet, the information needed to complete these forecasts—such as population trends, life history traits, habitat use, and future land use and climate conditions—is often lacking for most rare species. This is especially problematic for assessments of species resiliency to changes in climate and land use. When these types of data are lacking, information on habitat quality can be used to help determine how a species will respond to change. First, this project gathered current and historical records for both species from various sources such as museum specimens, inventories, and other personal account. Then, we identified potential future changes in habitat that could result from different management actions, such as habitat acquisition or restoration, and environmental conditions, such as changes in the frequency and intensity of tropical storms and rates of SLR. Researchers then explored the potential impacts of these habitat condition changes on the Rim Rock Crowned Snake and Key Ring-Necked Snake. This information can be used by the USFWS to help make decisions about the need to protect these species under the Endangered Species Act and could inform the conservation, management, and recovery of other at-risk species found in the pine rockland ecosystem. This work supports the Secretary of Interior’s priority to create a conservation stewardship legacy by using science to identify best practices to manage land and water resource and adapt to changes in the environment.

Florida↗

USGS2024

Using citizen scientists to collect oxygen and hydrogen isotope data in southern Nevada

What is Citizen Science? Citizen science programs provide a means for Federal and non-Federal government agencies to make science more engaging, transparent, and accessible by partnering with the public for the purpose of problem solving, data collection, and monitoring. Public volunteers become directly involved in local research, thereby engaging in scientific projects. The public has already been included in existing citizen science programs that cover a broad range of disciplines, such as ecology, hydrology, and tectonics. Citizen science advances research while simultaneously fostering a sense of involvement and interest from the public. Beginning in 2017, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and National Park Service collaborated with private, non-profit partners to inventory, survey, and rehabilitate springs in Clark County, Nevada. The USGS maintains the National Water Information System (NWIS), a publicly available online database of water-resources data for the Nation, and the agency is interested in using citizen science to add geochemical data from springs in southern Nevada. From 2021 to 2023, the USGS directly worked with citizen science partners, including the Springs Stewardship Institute and the Friends of Nevada Wilderness, to collect stable isotope and tritium samples from southern Nevada springs. The citizen science volunteers were provided the training and supplies for proper sample collection by USGS staff. As the citizen science partners traveled and hiked to the remote spring sites to complete spring surveys and perform restoration activities, they collected stable isotope and tritium samples for the USGS. Samples were shipped to national USGS laboratories for analysis, and the results were uploaded to the NWIS database (U.S. Geological Survey, 2024).

Nevada↗

USGS1983

Preliminary thermal-maturity map of the Cameo and Fairfield or equivalent coal zone in the Piceance Creek Basin, Colorado

This map was prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy's Western Gas Sands Project and was constructed to show the thermal maturity of the Upper Cretaceous Mesaverde Formation (or Group) in the Piceance Creek Basin. The ability of a source rock to generate oil and gas is directly related to its kerogen content and thermal maturity; hence, thermal maturity is commonly used as an exploration tool. This publication consists of two parts: a coal rank map for the basinwide Cameo and Fairfield or equivalent coal zone and three cross sections showing the variation in a coal rank for the entire Mesaverde. Structure contours on the map show the top of the Rollins Sandstone Member of the Mesaverde Formation and its equivalent the Trout Creek Sandstone Member of the Iles Formation of the Mesaverde Group, which immediately underlie the Cameo and Fairfield zone. The structure contours show the fairly strong correlation between structure and coal rank in the basin, suggesting that maximum overburden was the key factor in determining the coal ranks. Even in the southern part of the basin where extensive plutonism occurred during the Oligocene, coal ranks still generally follow structure; indicating that the plutons had little affect on the coals. On the cross sections both the top of the Rollins and Trout Creek, and the top of the Mesaverde Formation/Group are shown. A complete analysis of the entire Mesaverde in the basin would require more information than is presently available.

Colorado↗

USGS2007

Strategic Plan for the North American Breeding Bird Survey: 2006-2010

Executive Summary The mission of the North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) is to provide scientifically credible measures of the status and trends of North American bird populations at continental and regional scales to inform biologically sound conservation and management actions. Determining population trends, relative abundance, and distributions of North American avifauna is critical for identifying conservation priorities, determining appropriate conservation actions, and evaluating those actions. The BBS program, jointly coordinated by the U.S. Geological Survey and Environment Canada’s Canadian Wildlife Service, provides the U.S. and Canadian Federal governments, state and provincial agencies, other conservation practitioners, and the general public with science-based avian population trend estimates and other information for regional and national species’ population assessments. Despite the demonstrated value of the BBS for furthering avian conservation across North America, its importance is often underappreciated, and it is underfunded compared with many other government-supported programs that report on status of the environment. Today, BBS resources, adjusted for inflation, are below the amount allocated in the 1970s and are still only sufficient to support two biologists. Yet the number of routes, participants, data, and data requests has quadrupled. Data and information management and delivery requirements and security concerns, non-existent in 1966, impose further demands on BBS resources. In addition, the Mexican expansion of the BBS offers new hope for a truly continental approach to avian conservation, but also brings additional challenges. Meeting the goals of this plan will take cooperation among myriad stakeholders; yet, even with collaboration, most objectives of this plan will be unattainable if BBS program support is not increased. The BBS developed this strategic plan to help set priorities and identify resources required for the program to continue to meet the evolving needs of the conservation community for information on bird population change. By setting clear goals, strategies, and measures of success, this plan provides a cohesive framework and vision for maintenance and development of the BBS. The plan identifies two major goals for the BBS, with a number of strategies and objectives to achieve these goals. Over the next 5 years, progress made in addressing each long-term goal and its associated 5-year strategies and objectives will gage the plan’s success. Specific actions, projected outcomes, and measures of success related to accomplishing these are outlined in Table 1, with a timeline in Table 2. The two main goals for the program, with a summary of the strategies to achieve them, are: Goal 1: Collect scientifically credible measures of the status and trends of North American bird populations at continental and regional scales. The North American Breeding Bird Survey will continue to support North American natural resource conservation through the collection of scientifically credible measures of the status and trends of continental bird populations. While doing this, the BBS will work to improve the science behind the program to better meet its mission and the changing needs of the avian conservation community. In partnership with collaborators, the BBS will address detection probability bias and habitat bias, improve analytical methods, and more fully assess and account for observer quality. Moreover, the BBS will improve the quality and breadth of avian population data through strategic increases in route density and the establishment of a Mexican BBS program. Goal 2: Ensure BBS data and analytical results are widely available and easily accessible for use by the avian conservation and management communities. At the heart of the BBS lies a four-million-record database containing more than 40 years of data on more than 600 bird species. These data are of no value if not well maintained, appropriately analyzed, and widely and easily accessible. The USGS has greatly improved data management and accessibility in recent years. Trend estimates were first made available via the Internet in the mid-1990s, followed closely by the raw data with baseline metadata and standard operating procedures. Nevertheless, numerous enhancements to data management and the usability of BBS results will greatly improve the ability of the BBS to serve avian conservation goals. The BBS needs to ensure that BBS data and results presented on the web site use the best data-management practices and statistical methods, with adequate documentation for users to understand them and any differences between different trend estimates. Moreover, the BBS needs to increase communication with BBS partners and stakeholders to ensure that it continues to meet the avian population status and trends needs of the conservation community and to encourage the development of new products. Working with collaborators, the BBS will develop tools for integrating environmental parameters like habitat change into the analyses, and for integrating BBS data with other avian survey results. In addition, the BBS will continue to improve data and database management through the incorporation of additional data and data fields, such as georeferenced stop locations and more complete metadata for the raw data and results, thus enhancing the uses that can be made of the data.

Circular↗

USGS2017

Design and methods of the Midwest Stream Quality Assessment (MSQA), 2013

During 2013, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment Project (NAWQA), in collaboration with the USGS Columbia Environmental Research Center, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) National Rivers and Streams Assessment (NRSA), and the EPA Office of Pesticide Programs assessed stream quality across the Midwestern United States. This Midwest Stream Quality Assessment (MSQA) simultaneously characterized watershed and stream-reach water-quality stressors along with instream biological conditions, to better understand regional stressor-effects relations. The MSQA design focused on effects from the widespread agriculture in the region and urban development because of their importance as ecological stressors of particular concern to Midwest region resource managers. A combined random stratified selection and a targeted selection based on land-use data were used to identify and select sites representing gradients in agricultural intensity across the region. During a 14-week period from May through August 2013, 100 sites were selected and sampled 12 times for contaminants, nutrients, and sediment. This 14-week water-quality “index” period culminated with an ecological survey of habitat, periphyton, benthic macroinvertebrates, and fish at all sites. Sediment was collected during the ecological survey for analysis of sediment chemistry and toxicity testing. Of the 100 sites, 50 were selected for the MSQA random stratified group from 154 NRSA sites planned for the region, and the other 50 MSQA sites were selected as targeted sites to more evenly cover agricultural and urban stressor gradients in the study area. Of the 50 targeted sites, 12 were in urbanized watersheds and 21 represented “good” biological conditions or “least disturbed” conditions. The remaining 17 targeted sites were selected to improve coverage of the agricultural intensity gradient or because of historical data collection to provide temporal context for the study. This report provides a detailed description of the MSQA study components, including surveys of ecological conditions, routine water sampling, deployment of passive polar organic compound integrative samplers, and stream sediment sampling at all sites. Component studies that were completed to provide finer scale temporal data or more extensive analysis at selected sites, included continuous water-quality monitoring, daily pesticide sampling, laboratory and in-stream water toxicity testing efforts, and deployment of passive suspended-sediment samplers.

Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michiga↗

USGS2013

Vegetation classification and mapping, Vicksburg National Military Park, Mississippi

Executive Summary The National Park Service (NPS) Gulf Coast Inventory and Monitoring Network, with the support of the National Park Service Vegetation Inventory completed vegetation classification and mapping for Vicksburg National Military Park (VICK), in Warren County, Mississippi, from 2004 to 2010. VICK is one of more than 250 NPS units to be covered by the Vegetation Inventory. Methods and procedures follow those of the NPS Vegetation Inventory as of August, 2012 ( http://science.nature.nps.gov/im/inventory/veg/index.cfm ). Ecologists collected floristic and environmental data from 45 vegetation field plots and classified and described 13 plant community types corresponding to US National Vegetation Classification (USNVC) associations from these data. This classification was used to map 712 hectares (1,698 acres) of Vicksburg National Military Park, in ten map classes corresponding to vegetation associations and two non-vegetated land cover classes, from a digital orthomosaic created from 1:24,000 color infrared aerial photographs and digital elevation model (DEM) data. Methods used to delineate stands varied according to vegetation type and were a combination of incorporating stand boundaries from an existing map, new “heads-up” interpretation and modeling of digital environmental spatial data. A thematic accuracy assessment collected vegetation data from 118 field observations stratified across the vegetation classes. The overall accuracy of the vegetation map was estimated to be 60.5% at the thematic level of USNVC association and 92.4% at the thematic level of USNVC group. Estimates of areas of vegetation types, as adjusted for mapping error, were calculated for all types mapped and/or observed during the thematic accuracy assessment. An important finding of this study is that the composition of the forests of VICK is substantially different from that described by earlier, more qualitative, accounts. Implications of these findings and possible applications of the data for resource monitoring and management are presented. This report summarizes the methods and general results of the Vegetation Inventory for Vicksburg National Military Park. Appendices include descriptions of vegetation types, a field key to the types, a list of plant species, and accuracy assessment contingency tables. This report is supplemented by the project data, which include: spatial database containing map polygon attributes. Geospatial products are in Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) projection, Zone 15, using the North American Datum of 1983. all field data (plot, observation point, and accuracy assessment point) stored in a Microsoft Access database metadata for all digital products The data and reports produced by this investigation reside at: https://irma.nps.gov/App/ and/or at: http://biology.usgs.gov/npsveg/

Mississippi↗

USGS2014

Sedimentation survey of Lago Dos Bocas, Utuado, Puerto Rico, January 2010

Lago Dos Bocas reservoir was completed in 1942 to provide water for hydroelectric power generation along the northern coast of Puerto Rico. The reservoir had an original storage capacity of 37.50 million cubic meters (Mm3). The dam is located about 9 kilometers (km) northeast of the town of Utuado, immediately downstream of the original confluence of the Río Grande de Arecibo and the Río Caonillas (fig. 1). The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) owns and operates the Lago Dos Bocas reservoir, and since 1996, the reservoir has become an essential part of the Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority (PRASA) North Coast Superaqueduct Project. The Superaqueduct is supplied by controlled releases for hydroelectric power generation that replenish the public-supply raw-water intake pool located about 10 km downstream from the Lago Dos Bocas Dam (fig. 1). As of 2005, the Superaqueduct supplies about 4.03 cubic meters per second (m 3 /s) (348,192 cubic meters per day [m 3 /d]) of potable water to communities along the northern coast, from Arecibo to the San Juan metropolitan area. Because of the importance of the reservoir to the North Coast Superaqueduct, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with PRASA, conducted a sedimentation survey of Lago Dos Bocas in January 2009. The results of this survey were used to estimate the useful life and the firm yield of the reservoir, and evaluate the need to dredge the reservoir.

Puerto Rico↗

USGS2012

Bathymetry and digital elevation models of Coyote Creek and Alviso Slough, South San Francisco Bay, California

In 2010, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center completed three cruises to map the bathymetry of the main channel and shallow intertidal mudflats in the southernmost part of south San Francisco Bay. The three surveys were merged to generate comprehensive maps of Coyote Creek (from Calaveras Point east to the railroad bridge) and Alviso Slough (from the bay to the town of Alviso) to establish baseline bathymetry prior to the breaching of levees adjacent to Alviso and Guadalupe Sloughs as part of the South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project ( http://www.southbayrestoration.org ). Since 2010, the USGS has conducted fourteen additional surveys to monitor bathymetric change in this region as restoration progresses. The bathymetric surveys were conducted using the state-of-the-art research vessel R/V Parke Snavely outfitted with an interferometric sidescan sonar for swath mapping in extremely shallow water. This publication provides high-resolution bathymetric data collected by the USGS. For the 2010 baseline survey we have merged the bathymetry with aerial lidar data that were collected for the USGS during the same time period to create a seamless, high-resolution digital elevation model (DEM) of the study area. The series of bathymetric datasets are provided at 1 m resolution and the 2010 bathymetric/topographic DEM at 2 m resolution. The data are formatted as both X, Y, Z text files and ESRI Arc ASCII files that are accompanied by Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) compliant metadata.

California↗

USGS2000

Overview of the Texas Source Water Assessment Project

The 1996 Amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act require, for the first time, that each state prepare a source water assessment for all PWS. Previously, Federal regulations focused on sampling and enforcement with emphasis on the quality of delivered water. These Amendments emphasize the importance of protecting the source water. States are required to determine the drinking-water source, the origin of contaminants monitored or the potential contaminants to be monitored, and the intrinsic susceptibility of the source water. Under the amendments to the Act, States must create SWAP Programs. The programs must include an individual source water assessment for each public water system regulated by the State. These assessments will determine whether an individual drinking water source is susceptible to contamination. During 1997?99, TNRCC and USGS staff met as subject-matter working groups to develop an approach to conducting Source Water Susceptibility Assessments (SWSA) and a draft workplan. The draft workplan was then presented to and reviewed by various stakeholder and technical advisory groups. Comments and suggestions from these groups were considered, and a final workplan was produced and presented to the EPA. After EPA approval, work formally began on the Texas SWAP Project. The project has an expected completion date of September 2002. At that time, initial SWSA of all Texas public water supplies should be complete. Ground-water supplies can be considered susceptible if a possible source of contamination (PSOC) exists in the contributing area for the public-supply well field or spring, the contaminant travel time to the well field or spring is short, and the soil zone, vadose zone, and aquifer-matrix materials are unlikely to adequately attenuate the contaminants associated with the PSOC. In addition, particular types of land use/cover within the contributing area may cause the supply to be deemed more susceptible to contamination. Finally, detection of various classes of constituents in water from wells in the vicinity of a public supply well may indicate susceptibility of the public-supply well even though there may be no identifiable PSOC or land use activity. Surface-water supplies are by nature susceptible to contamination from both point and non-point sources. The degree of susceptibility of a PWS to contamination can vary and is a function of the environmental setting, water and wastewater management practices, and land use/cover within a water supply's contributing watershed area. For example, a PWS intake downstream from extensive urban development may be more susceptible to non-point source contamination than a PWS intake downstream from a forested, relatively undeveloped watershed. Surface-water supplies are also susceptible to contamination from point sources, which may include permitted discharges, as well as accidental spills or other introduction of contaminants.

Texas↗

USGS2013

Topographic and hydrographic GIS datasets for the Afghan Geological Survey and U.S. Geological Survey 2013 mineral areas of interest

Afghanistan is endowed with a vast amount of mineral resources, and it is believed that the current economic state of the country could be greatly improved through investment in the extraction and production of these resources. In 2007, the “Preliminary Non-Fuel Resource Assessment of Afghanistan 2007” was completed by members of the U.S. Geological Survey and Afghan Geological Survey (Peters and others, 2007). The assessment delineated 20 mineralized areas for further study using a geologic-based methodology. In 2011, a follow-on data product, “Summaries and Data Packages of Important Areas for Mineral Investment and Production Opportunities of Nonfuel Minerals in Afghanistan,” was released (Peters and others, 2011). As part of this more recent work, geologic, geohydrologic, and hyperspectral studies were carried out in the areas of interest (AOIs) to assess the location and characteristics of the mineral resources. The 2011 publication included a dataset of 24 identified AOIs containing subareas, a corresponding digital elevation model (DEM), elevation contours, areal extent, and hydrography for each AOI. In 2012, project scientists identified five new AOIs and two subareas in Afghanistan. These new areas are Ahankashan, Kandahar, Parwan, North Bamyan, and South Bamyan. The two identified subareas include Obatu-Shela and Sekhab-ZamtoKalay, both located within the larger Kandahar AOI. In addition, an extended Kandahar AOI is included in the project for water resource modeling purposes. The dataset presented in this publication consists of the areal extent of the five new AOIs, two subareas, and the extended Kandahar AOI, elevation contours at 100-, 50-, and 25-meter intervals, an enhanced DEM, and a hydrographic dataset covering the extent of the new study area. The resulting raster and vector layers are intended for use by government agencies, developmental organizations, and private companies in Afghanistan to assist with mineral assessments, monitoring, management, and investment.

Open-File Report↗

USGS1969

Blood protozoa of free-living birds

Blood protozoa were first reported from wild birds in 1884. Since then numerous surveys throughout the world have demonstrated their presence in a wide variety of hosts and localities with continuing designations of new species. Taxonomic determinations include parasites in the genera Plasmodium, Haemoproteus, Leucocytozoon, Babesia, Lankesterella and Trypanosoma. Transmission of Plasmodium by mosquitoes was demonstrated with a bird parasite before these insects were proven as vectors of human malaria. All the genera under consideration require an insect vector to complete their life-cycles and susceptible vectors have been demonstrated. Most experimental work on the blood protozoa of birds has been carried on with captive birds. An extensive volume of research has been conducted on Plasmodium because of its close similarity to malaria in man. Field studies that would provide information on the epizootiology of occurrence of these parasites in wild populations have been very limited, mainly confined to single blood film surveys. Such data are inadequate to provide an understanding of true prevalence or incidence or of factual knowledge of their impact on the wild population. Mechanisms for procuring such information are available in some cases and can be developed to fit other situations. Isodiagnosis, inoculation of blood from wild birds into susceptible captive hosts, has revealed a prevalence of over 60 % for Plasmodium in situations where microscope examination of single peripheral blood preparations yielded less than 1 %. Culture of bone marrow collected by biopsy demonstrates high prevalence of trypanosomes even when none are evident from microscopic examination of blood. Often preparations of tissues collected at necropsy reveal Leucocytozoon and Lankesterella when examination of peripheral blood gave no indication of infection. Methods developed by bird ringers provide techniques for obtaining repeat examinations of free-living birds that can yield further pertinent data. The use that has been made of these techniques, beyond the mere procurement of a single blood film, is reviewed from the standpoint of providing knowledge of the epizootiology of the blood protozoa of birds and their further potential is projected.

Book chapter↗

USGS2026

Factors affecting benthic macroinvertebrate health in the City of Roanoke, Virginia, 2020–2023

Major waterways in the City of Roanoke (City) have failed to meet Virginia’s aquatic life designated use since 1996. Segments of the upper Roanoke River lack healthy benthic macroinvertebrate communities which prompted a total maximum daily load (TMDL) study by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (VDEQ) to identify the most probable stressor(s) causing the impairment. Excess fine sediment was identified as the most probable stressor impairing benthic macroinvertebrates on portions of the Roanoke River in 2006, and a watershed implementation plan published in 2016 required communities within the impaired watershed to implement projects that would reduce the load of fine sediment entering the Roanoke River. Additional benthic macroinvertebrate sampling and stream habitat assessments along the Roanoke River and Tinker Creek (a tributary to the Roanoke River that flows through the City) revealed continued impaired conditions, and subsequent stressor identification analysis was completed in 2023. Samples collected downstream of the City on the Roanoke River and Tinker Creek generally showed more impaired conditions relative to samples collected at locations upstream of the City. Based on this evaluation, sediment and sediment-bound polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were identified as probable stressors while specific conductance, total nitrogen, and sediment metals were possible stressors in Tinker Creek; however, only a sediment TMDL target was identified to address impaired benthic macroinvertebrate communities. In the Roanoke River upstream of the Niagara Dam, sediment and total phosphorus were identified as probable stressors, sediment polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and sediment PCB were considered possible stressors; however, the TMDL target was only for total phosphorus. The City partnered with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in 2016 to continuously monitor water quality and streamflow conditions on a major tributary of Tinker Creek, Lick Run, and by 2020, four similar monitoring stations were installed on the Roanoke River and Tinker Creek near the locations of benthic macroinvertebrate sampling. Monitored parameters included streamflow and/or gage height (water level), water temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, and turbidity. Turbidity is a measure of the relative clarity of the water and was previously used to model suspended-sediment concentrations at the monitoring stations. The City also contracted Kirk Environmental, LLP (KE) to collect benthic macroinvertebrate samples and stream habitat assessments near the locations of the water-quality monitoring stations. Identified benthic macroinvertebrates were used to calculate the Virginia Stream Condition Index (SCI), a multi-metric index composed of eight biological attributes that represent elements of the structure and function of the benthic macroinvertebrate community that measure diversity, composition, and tolerance to pollution. Study objective: In this report, benthic macroinvertebrate samples and stream habitat assessment scores collected at four locations on the Roanoke River and Tinker Creek by KE and the VDEQ between 2020 and 2023 were compared to measured water-quality and streamflow conditions prior to sampling to evaluate patterns between benthic macroinvertebrate health, water quality, and hydrology.

Virginia↗

USGS1999

Digital data for the geologic framework of the Alaska Peninsula, southwest Alaska, and the Alaska Peninsula terrane

These digital databases are the result of the compilation and reinterpretation of published and unpublished 1:250,000- and 1:63,360-scale mapping. The map area covers approximately 62,000 sq km (23,000 sq mi) in land area and encompasses much of 13 1:250,000-scale quadrangles on the Alaska Peninsula in southwestern Alaska. The compilation was done as part of the U.S. Geological Survey's Alaska Mineral Resource Assessment project (AMRAP), whose goal was create and assemble geologic, geochemical, geophysical, and other data in order to perform mineral resource assessments on a quadrangle, regional or statewide basis. The digital data here was created to assist in the completion of a regional mineral resource assessment of the Alaska Peninsula. Mapping on the Alaska Peninsula under AMRAP began in 1977 in the Chignik and Sutwik Island 1:250,000 quadrangles (Detterman and others, 1981). Continued mapping in the Ugashik, bristol bay, and northwestern Karluk quadrangles (Detterman and others, 1987) began in 1979, followed by the Mount Katmai, eastern Naknek, and northwestern Afognak quadrangles (Riehle and others, 1987; Riehle and others, 1993), the Port Moller, Stepovak bay, and Simeonof Island quadrangles (Wilson and others, 1995) beginning in 1983. Work in the Cold bay and False Pass quadrangles (Wilson and others, 1992 [Superseded by Wilson and others 1997, but not incorporated herein]) began in 1986. The reliability of the geologic mapping is variable, based, in part, on the field time spent in each area of the map, the available support, and the quality of the existing base maps. In addition, our developing understanding of the geology of the Alaska Peninsula required revision of earlier maps, such as the Chignik and Sutwik Island quadrangles map (Detterman and others, 1981) to reflect this new knowledge. We have revised the stratigraphic nomenclature (Detterman and others, 1996) and our assignment of unit names to some rocks has been changed. All geologic maps on which this compilation is based were published using the Universal Transverse Mercator projection (UTM; Zones 3, 4, and 5). because of the distortions use of the UTM projection would produce on a map of small scale and large area, the plot and graphics files derived from this data are plotted using a more appropriate Albers Equal-area projection for publication.

Alaska↗