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USGS1965

Calcium, sodium, sulfate, and chloride in stream water of the western conterminous United States to 1957

This Hydrologic Atlas shows concentrations of calcium, sodium (or sodium plus potassium), sulfate, and chloride in stream water of 11 of the Western States, regardless of the sources from which the mineral constituents came. The maps are, in a sense, a historical summary, showing concentrations observed to 1956 and reported in published references. Data on chemical quality of stream water has been obtained at various times and at various places; for no single year does the record even approach complete coverage of the area shown on the maps. It was necessary, therefore, to combine the records of many years in order to achieve this summary.

Hydrologic Atlas↗

USGS2006

Estimating landslide losses - preliminary results of a seven-State pilot project

Introduction: In 2001, the U.S. Geological Survey Landslide Hazards Program provided funding for seven State geological surveys to report on the status of landslide investigation strategies in each of their States, and to suggest improved ways to approach the tracking of landslides, their effects, losses associated with the landslides, and hazard mitigation strategies. Each State was to provide a draft report suggesting innovative ways to track landslides, and to participate in subsequent workshops. A workshop was convened in June 2003 in Lincoln, Neb., to discuss the results and future strategies on how best to incorporate the seven pilot projects into one methodology that all of the 50 States could adopt. The seven individual reports produced by the State surveys are published here to put forth a forum for discussion of the varying methods of tracking landslides. The goal is to eventually adopt a single, universally applied methodology to track landslides that will provide a consistent framework for collecting data on landslide damage and economic impact. Participating States include: California (James Davis, Jack McMillan); Kentucky (Jim Cobb, John Kiefer, John Rockaway); Nebraska (Mark Kuzila, Duane Eversoll); Ohio (Thomas Berg, Jon Rockaway), Oregon (John Beaulieu, Yumei Wang, Renee Summers, Jon Hofmeister); Pennsylvania (Jay Parrish, Helen Delano); Utah (Richard Allis, Francis Ashland). The USGS personnel involved in the planning and meeting facilitation are Paula Gori, Peter Lyttle, and John Pallister. The general USGS strategy to address landslide loss reduction was developed with input from State geological surveys, the engineering-geology consulting community, and academic investigators. The strategy was reviewed by the National Research Council, 2004), is summarized in USGS Circular 1244 (Spiker and Gori, 2003) and is endorsed by the AASG. This pilot study, conducted by seven State geological surveys, examines the feasibility of collecting accurate and reliable information on economic losses associated with landslides. Each State survey examined the availability, distribution, and inherent uncertainties of economic loss data in their study areas. Their results provide the basis for identifying the most fruitful methods of collecting landslide loss data nationally, using methods that are consistent and provide common goals. These results can enhance and establish the future directions of scientific investigation priorities by convincingly documenting landslide risks and consequences that are universal throughout the 50 States. This report is organized as follows: A general summary of the pilot project history, goals, and preliminary conclusions from the Lincoln, Neb. workshop are presented first. Internet links are then provided for each State report, which appear on the internet in PDF format and which have been placed at the end of this open-file report. A reference section follows the reports, and, lastly, an Appendix of categories of landslide loss and sources of loss information is included for the reader's information. Please note: The Oregon Geological Survey has also submitted a preliminary report on indirect loss estimation methodology, which is also linked with the others. Each State report is unique and presented in the form in which it was submitted, having been independently peer reviewed by each respective State survey. As such, no universal 'style' or format has been adopted as there have been no decisions on which inventory methods will be recommended to the 50 states, as of this writing. The reports are presented here as information for decision makers, and for the record; although several reports provide recommendations on inventory methods that could be adopted nationwide, currently no decisions have been made on adopting a uniform methodology for the States.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2020

Focus areas for data acquisition for potential domestic resources of 11 critical minerals in the conterminous United States, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico—Aluminum, cobalt, graphite, lithium, niobium, platinum-group elements, rare earth elements, tantalum, tin, titanium, and tungsten

In response to a need for information on potential domestic sources of critical minerals, the Earth Mapping Resources Initiative (Earth MRI) was established to identify and prioritize areas for acquisition of new geologic mapping, geophysical data, and elevation data to improve our knowledge of the geologic framework of the United States. Phase 1 of Earth MRI concentrated on those geologic terranes favorable for hosting the rare earth elements (REEs). Phase 2 continued to address the REEs and also identified focus areas for potential domestic sources of 10 more of the 35 critical minerals on the U.S. critical minerals list (aluminum, cobalt, graphite, lithium, niobium, platinum-group elements, tantalum, tin, titanium, tungsten). This report describes the methodology, data sources, and summary results for mineral systems that host these 11 critical minerals in the conterminous United States, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico; Alaska is covered in a separate report. The mineral systems framework adopted for this study links critical mineral commodities to families of genetically related mineral deposit types. The mineral systems approach is an efficient approach, providing a simultaneous evaluation of geologic terranes through aggregation of genetically related mineral deposit types that are much larger than individual ore deposits. Geologic, geochemical, topographic, and geophysical mapping provided by Earth MRI will document geologic features that reflect the extent of individual mineral systems and provide information about critical mineral deposits that may not have been recognized previously. Each critical mineral commodity is discussed in terms of importance to the Nation’s economy, modes of occurrence, mineral systems, and deposit types along with maps and tables listing examples of focus areas for each critical mineral. Important mineral systems for these critical minerals include chemical weathering systems for aluminum (bauxite); placer systems for titanium and REEs; metamorphic systems for graphite; mafic magmatic systems for platinum-group elements and cobalt; lacustrine evaporite and porphyry tin systems for lithium; and copper-molybdenum-gold (Cu-Mo-Au) systems for tungsten. REEs occur in many different mineral systems. Focus areas were developed by scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey in collaboration with scientists from State geological surveys and other institutions. This first national-scale compilation of focus areas represents an initial step in addressing the Nation’s critical mineral needs by screening areas for acquisition of new data to provide the geologic framework necessary for identifying domestic sources of critical minerals.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2022

Focus areas for data acquisition for potential domestic resources of 13 critical minerals in the conterminous United States and Puerto Rico — Antimony, barite, beryllium, chromium, fluorspar, hafnium, helium, magnesium, manganese, potash, uranium, vanadium, and zirconium

The Earth Mapping Resources Initiative (Earth MRI) is conducted in phases to identify areas for acquiring new geologic framework data to identify potential domestic resources of the 35 mineral materials designated as critical minerals for the United States. This report describes the data sources and summary results for 13 critical minerals evaluated in the conterminous United States and Puerto Rico during phase 3 of the study (antimony, barite, beryllium, chromium, fluorspar, hafnium, helium, magnesium, manganese, potash, uranium, vanadium, and zirconium). Phases 1 and 2 of the Earth MRI addressed aluminum, cobalt, graphite, lithium, niobium, platinum-group elements (PGEs), rare earth elements (REEs), tantalum, tin, titanium, and tungsten. Critical minerals in Alaska are covered in a separate report. No focus areas for phase 3 critical minerals are delineated for Hawaii. The geologic, geochemical, topographic, and geophysical mapping provided by the Earth MRI documents geologic features that reflect the extent of individual mineral systems and provides information about critical mineral deposits that may not have been previously considered. The mineral-systems approach links critical mineral commodities to deposit types that represent the manifestations of large mineral systems. Each of the 13 critical mineral commodities for phase 3 of the Earth MRI is discussed in terms of its importance to the Nation’s economy, modes of occurrence, mineral systems, and deposit types, and is accompanied by maps and tables listing examples of focus areas in the conterminous United States and Puerto Rico. Examples of important mineral systems for this group of 13 critical minerals include basin brine path systems for barite and fluorspar, Carlin-type systems and Coeur d’Alene systems for antimony, chemical weathering and volcanogenic seafloor systems for manganese, Climax-type systems for beryllium, mafic magmatic systems for chromium, marine evaporite systems for potash and magnesium, meteoric recharge systems for uranium, petroleum systems for helium, and placer systems for zirconium and hafnium.

Open-File Report↗

USGS1975

Data summary of June-July 1975 floods in eastern North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota

Torrential rains during late June and early July 1975, combined with wet antecedent conditions, caused severe flooding, mainly along the lower reaches of the Sheyenne and Maple Rivers and their tributaries in North Dakota, and in the Buffalo and Wild Rice River basins in Minnesota. The Red River of the North from the Fargo-Moorhead area to the Halstad, Minnesota area was also severely flooded. Because much of the region is extremely flat, large areas of the two States were inundated by flood waters. Damage, mostly agricultural, was widespread and damage estimates exceeded a quarter of a billion dollars. Local, State, and Federal officials need factual information to evaluate, coordinate, and manage programs concerned with flood losses. The purpose of this report is to provide quickly a summary of some of the basic data collected on the June-July 1975 floods. Only a part of the information collected by the U.S. Geological Survey on the extent and magnitude of the floods is presented. This information includes the magnitude and frequency of the instantaneous maximum stages (water-surface elevations) and flow rates for 62 sites, measured sediment loads at 7 sites, and hydrographs of daily mean flow at 6 sites. Additional streamflow information associated with the floods will be provided subsequently in annual data releases of the Geological Survey. The report also describes availability of graphic or photographic data depicting the areal extent of inundation. Those data may be obtained from the Applications Assistance Branch, EROS Data Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Sioux Falls, S. Dak. 57198. Only a minimal amount of rainfall data are summarized in this report to aid in documenting the flood event. These data were provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), U.S. Department of Commerce, and by the Minnesota State Office of Climatology. This assistance in providing the data and in reviewing the form of its presentation is appreciated.

Minnesota, North Dakota↗

USGS2015

Summary of the Ahankashan Area of Interest

This report summarizes and interprets results of the work in the Ahankashan Area of Interest in northwestern Afghanistan and four study areas—the Ahankashan Prospect Area, Syahsang-Kushkak, Taghab-Soni, and Zakak-e ‘Olya—delineated for their potential undiscovered mineral occurrences with specific emphasis on porphyry copper and related occurrence types. The Area of Interest is underlain by rocks of three different geologic domains that cross from east to west—the Band-e-Bayan Block/Central Pamirs Domain in the south, the Hindu Kush Domain in the Paropamisus Mountains, and the Afghan Turkestan Domain in the north. The domains are sutured remnants of Tethyan tectonic elements. Interpretation of the geologic maps indicates the presence of thrust faults, strike-slip faults, and granitic intrusions emplaced in ground prepared by faulting. Thrust faulting was followed by strike-slip faulting and then followed by magmatic intrusions. Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer data were used to map minerals that have been altered by hydrothermal fluids typically associated with mineralization to delineate new potential occurrences of copper, gold, and silver. Propylitic-, argillic-, and phyllic-altered intrusive rocks are found in the area, as well as very minor amounts of hydrothermal silica-rich rocks. This area of interest is vastly underexplored and contains only seven known mineral occurrences, of which the Ahankashan copper (gold) skarn occurrence is the best known. Gold has been found in stream sediments near the Ahankashan skarn, in the Taghab-Soni study area, and possibly other parts of the Area of Interest, suggesting potential for at least small-scale placer occurrences.

Ahankashan Area of Interest↗

USGS2000

Water-resources-related information for the St. Croix Reservation and vicinity, Wisconsin

The St. Croix Chippewa Tribe is interested in documenting water-quality conditions in lakes and streams adjacent to their Reservation lands in northwestern Wisconsin and developing management plans to protect these water resources. This report provides the Tribe with a retrospective summary and analysis of available water-resources-related information for their Reservation and vicinity. The study area is divided into four main watersheds: Big Round Lake, Clam River at Clam Lake Outlet, Yellow River at Danbury, and Loon Creek at Danbury. The Clam River Watershed includes the subwatersheds of Bashaw and Sand Lakes. The Yellow River Watershed includes the subwatersheds of Big Sand and Gaslyn Lakes. In all, 41 surface-water studies or reports that include information relevant to the study area were identified. Most of the surface-water studies were regional or statewide summaries. Fifteen of these studies include lake information and 36 include stream information. Twenty-eight of the studies include water-quality data and 16 include information describing aquatic biology. Water- and sediment-quality data were obtained for 80 lakes and 23 streams in the study area. Lake information includes data for 101 water-quality characteristics from nearly 4,300 water and sediment analyses of samples collected between 1972 and 1998. Stream information summarized in this report includes data for 135 water-quality characteristics and nearly 4,500 water and sediment analyses of samples collected at 23 sites between 1964 and 1999. A total of 41 ground-water studies or reports that include information relevant to the study area were identified. Most of the ground-water studies were regional or statewide summaries. Of the 41 studies, 33 include water-quality information, 9 include information regarding water use, and 23 provide descriptions of geology and aquifer characteristics relevant to the study area. Water-quality information for 773 wells was compiled. Most of the sampled wells were used for drinking water, and most of the drinking-water wells represent domestic supplies. Water-quality data summarized in this report represent 270 characteristics and more than 10,300 analyses of samples collected from drinking-water wells between 1911 and 1999; however, most of the water-quality data were collected after about 1990.

Wisconsin↗

USGS2019

Summary of climatic, geographic, geologic, and available hydrologic data and identification of data gaps for the Black Bear Creek watershed of the Pawnee Nation Tribal Jurisdictional Area, Oklahoma

The Pawnee Nation is compiling a comprehensive water-management plan for the Pawnee Nation Tribal Jurisdictional Area in north-central Oklahoma. One of the first steps needed in preparing such a plan is a summary and analysis of available hydrologic data and reports that have been published for the area. In phase I of a three-phase, watershed-based approach to summary and analysis of water resources of the Pawnee Nation, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Pawnee Nation and Bureau of Indian Affairs, conducted a literature search and data analysis for the Black Bear Creek watershed within the Pawnee Nation Tribal Jurisdictional Area, referred to herein as the “Black Bear Creek study area.” This report summarizes the available data for the Black Bear Creek study area. Climatic, geographic, geologic, water-use, and hydrologic data from previously published reports or databases were collected and analyzed for this report. Because of the limited amount of groundwater-quality data for the study area, a field collection of groundwater levels and water samples was conducted. Sixteen wells were identified, and groundwater levels were measured at each well. Eight wells were sampled, and water properties, major ions, and nutrients were measured. Overall, there are few long-term monitoring stations to help determine trends of surface-water quality, groundwater quality, and groundwater levels across the study area. Establishing and maintaining long-term streamflow, surface-water-quality, groundwater-level, and groundwater-quality monitoring sites would greatly increase the understanding of the water resources in the Black Bear Creek study area. Additionally, water-use estimates would be greatly improved by metering groundwater withdrawals. Establishing hydrologic and water-quality trends and having improved estimates of water use can aid decision makers in the stewardship of the water resources in this area. This report can aid the Pawnee Nation in prioritization of future projects and serve as a background document for the development of a jurisdiction-wide comprehensive water-management plan.

Oklahoma↗

USGS2012

Tabulated Transmissivity and Storage Properties of the Floridan Aquifer System in Florida and Parts of Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama

A goal of the U.S. Geological Survey Groundwater Resources Program is to assess the availability of fresh water within each of the principal aquifers in the United States with the greatest groundwater withdrawals. The Floridan aquifer system (FAS), which covers an area of approximately 100,000 square miles in Florida and parts of Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and South Carolina, is one such principal aquifer, having the fifth largest groundwater withdrawals in the Nation, totaling 3.64 billion gallons per day in 2000. Compilation of FAS hydraulic properties is critical to the development and calibration of groundwater flow models that can be used to develop water budgets spatially and temporally, as well as to evaluate resource changes over time. Wells with aquifer test data were identified as Upper Floridan aquifer (UFA), Lower Floridan aquifer (LFA), Floridan aquifer system (FAS, Upper Floridan with some middle and/or Lower Floridan), or middle Floridan confining unit (MCU), based on the identification from the original database or report description, or comparison of the open interval of the well with previously published maps. This report consolidates aquifer hydraulic property data obtained from multiple databases and reports of the U.S. Geological Survey, various State agencies, and the Water Management Districts of Florida, that are compiled into tables to provide a single information source for transmissivity and storage properties of the FAS as of October 2011. Transmissivity calculated from aquifer pumping tests and specific-capacity data are included. Values for transmissivity and storage coefficients are intended for use in regional or sub regional groundwater flow models; thus, any tests (aquifer pumping tests and specific capacity data) that were conducted with packers or for open intervals less than 30 feet in length are excluded from the summary statistics and tables of this report, but are included in the database. The transmissivity distribution from the aquifer pumping tests is highly variable. The transmissivity based on aquifer pumping tests (from 1,045 values for the UFA and FAS) ranges from 8 to about 9,300,000 square feet per day (ft 2 /d) and values of storage coefficient (646 reported) range from 3x10 -9 to 0.41. The 64 transmissivity values for the LFA range from about 130 to 4,500,000 ft 2 /d, and the 17 storage coefficient values range from 7x10 -8 to 0.03. The 14 transmissivity values for the MCU range from 1 to about 600,000 ft 2 /d and the 10 storage coefficient values range from 8x10 -8 to 0.03. Transmissivity estimates for the UFA and FAS for 442 specific capacity tests range from approximately 200 to 1,000,000 ft 2 /d.

Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina↗

USGS2022

WHISPers—Providing situational awareness of wildlife disease threats to the Nation—A fact sheet for the biosurveillance community

Solutions for emerging infectious disease and bioterror threats can be improved by incorporating integrated biodefense strategies, including improved surveillance for animal and zoonotic diseases, strong national leadership, and effective management tools. Active biosurveillance for disease events is key to early detection, warning, and overall situational awareness and enables better communication, coordination, decision making, and data-driven responses. The national biosurveillance infrastructure has well-established channels for human and domestic animal health data through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and U.S. Department of Agriculture, and State, county, and local authorities. Wildlife disease information, however, has been more challenging to acquire and access, in part, due to the comparatively small infrastructure and resources dedicated to wildlife health and also because regulatory authority for wildlife and wildlife health is split among Federal, State, Tribal, and indigenous natural resource authorities. To address these issues, the Wildlife Health Information Sharing Partnership-event reporting system (WHISPers; https://whispers.usgs.gov ) was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey National Wildlife Health Center to promote collaboration and sharing of wildlife health information and to provide situational awareness and timely information about wildlife disease threats. WHISPers is a free science gateway and data portal that provides interactive query, display, reporting, and export capabilities for wildlife health event summary information.

Fact Sheet↗

USGS2016

Summary of SPT based field case history data of CETIN (2016) database

This report provides documentation of the Cetin et al. (2016) field performance case histories, probabilistic maximum likelihood assessment and the sources of differences between the liquefaction triggering resistance estimations (CRR values) of the widely used liquefaction triggering relationships of Seed et al. (1985), Cetin et al. (2004, 2016) and Boulanger and Idriss (2012). Cetin et al. (2016-a) presented a concise summary of the improved database and the updated triggering relationships. For the sake of completeness, as part of Chapter 2 of this report, Cetin et al. (2016-a) manuscript is re-presented, as edited to include the electronic supplements, and a broader and more detailed documentation of all of case histories. This broader and more detailed documentation along with the interpretations of other researchers is presented in Appendix A. Similarly, site response analyses details and results from Cetin (2000) is re-presented in Appendix B. To enable the readers to quickly refer to Cetin and Seed (2004), it is also included in Appendix C. The sources of differences between the liquefaction triggering resistance estimations (CRR values) of the widely used liquefaction triggering relationships of Seed et al. (1985), Cetin et al. (2004) and Boulanger and Idriss (2012) were discussed in Cetin et al. (2016-b). Again, for the sake of completeness, as part of Chapter 3 of this report, Cetin et al. (2016-b) manuscript is re-presented, as edited to the include of electronic supplements, and a detailed response to issues addressed by Idriss and Boulanger (2012). Also, the technical response letter (Cetin, 2014) prepared at the request of the members of the NRC Committee on the State of the Art and Practice in Earthquake Induced Soil Liquefaction Assessment, is given in Appendix D, which is helpful to follow the technical discussions. This report is intended only as a concise summary of a vast amount of data. The interpretations presented are those of the research team. A more detailed description of some of the details of the methods and procedures used to evaluate and analyze these field performance case histories is also presented in Cetin (2000) and Cetin et al. (2000) though the final evaluations presented in this report are the most recent interpretations undertaken under these current studies.

Report↗

USGS1972

Summary of floods in the United States during 1967

This report describes the most outstanding floods in the United States during 1967. The two most destructive floods occurred in August in east-central Alaska and in September and October in southern Texas. In east-central Alaska, heavy rain on August 8-17 produced record-breaking floods near Fairbanks. Peak discharges on some streams in the area were from two to four times the 50-yea.r flood. Flood damage was estimated to have been $85 million, and six lives were lost. Torrential rains produced by Hurricane Beulah caused record-breaking floods on many streams in a 50,000-square-mile area in southern Texas and northeastern Mexico in September and October. As much as 25.5 inches of rain was measured at ESSA Weather Bureau stations in the period September 19-25. Major flooding occurred in the basins of the Guadalupe, San Antonio, Mission, Arkansas, and Nueces Rivers and in many small coastal basins in Texas ; on the Rio Grande and its floodways ; and in the Rio Alamo and Rio San Juan basins in Mexico. Peak discharges at several sites in Texas were more than three times the magnitude of a 50-year flood. Total damage in Texas due to wind, rain, stream flooding, sheet flow, ponding, and tidal flooding was $167 million. In addition to the two floods mentioned above, 27 others of lesser magnitude are considered important enough to be included in this annual flood summary.

Water Supply Paper↗

USGS1970

Summary of floods in the United States during 1964

This report describes the most outstanding floods in the United States during 1984. The four most damaging floods during the year were in December in the Far Western States, in March along the Ohio River, in September in central and northern Florida and southern Georgia, and in June in northwestern Montana. The floods of December in the Far Western States were the most damaging in the history of the area. Record-breaking discharges occurred in an unusually large area Oregon, northern California, western Nevada and Idaho, end southern Washington. Forty-seven lives were lost, and damage amounted to several hundred million dollars. Two storms in early March along the Ohio River caused maximum discharges of record on many streams in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana and also high dis- charges in parts of Illinois, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. Eighteen lives were lost, and flood damage was about /$100 million. In September, Hurricane Dora, the first hurricane of record to cross north- eastern Florida from the Atlantic Ocean, caused outstanding floods in northern Florida and southern Georgia. Flood damage exceeded $100 million. The most severe floods of record in northwestern Montana occurred on both sides of the Continental Divide following heavy rains in early June. Thirty lives were lost, and flood damage was about /$55 million. About /$6 million damage resulted from severe flooding in a small area in the Papillion Creek basin, in eastern Nebraska, in early June. In the last half of September, floods from torrential rains in three areas in Texas caused about $1 million damage. In addition to the floods mentiond above, 21 others of lesser magnitude are considered important enough to be included in this annual summary

Water Supply Paper↗

USGS1965

Summary of floods in the United States during 1961

This report describes the most outstanding floods in the United States during 1961. The most damaging floods during the year were those caused by snowmelt in March and April in the upper Mississippi River basin and those accompanying Hurricane Carla in September. Hurricane Carla traveled northward along the east edge of Texas and then northeastward through southeastern Oklahoma, northwestern Arkansas, southeastern Missouri, and central Illinois. Heavy rains and floods occurred east of the hurricane's path in Texas and west of its path for the remainder of its journey. Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia had moderate to severe floods in February and March from a series of large-area rainstorms. Many maximum peak discharges occurred, and streams remained at high stages for periods longer than any known before. Property damage was high and four lives were lost. Extensive flooding took place in May from southeastern Kansas and northeastern Oklahoma through northern Arkansas, southern Missouri, northern Kentucky, and the southern parts of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. Maximum discharges occurred at many sites throughout the area. Heavy flooding was experienced on Kootenai River at Bonners Ferry, Idaho, in May and June. These floods were noteworthy for their duration. The most tragic flood of the year was in July in Charleston, W. Va. A small area cloudburst flood caused 22 deaths and damage of more than \$1 million. Severe flooding occurred in December in the Tombigbee River, Pearl River, and Pascagoula River basins in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama. Much damage resulted, and from two to three thousand persons were evacuated from large flooded areas. In addition to the floods mentioned above, 19 others of lesser magnitude are considered important enough to be included in this annual summary.

Water Supply Paper↗

USGS2015

Translating climate change effects on species into everyday language: an example of more driving and less fishing

Climate change is expected to result in widespread changes in species distributions (e.g., shifting, shrinking, expanding species ranges; e.g., Parmesan and Yohe, 2003), especially for freshwater fish species (Heino et al. 2009). Although anglers and other resource users could be greatly affected by changes in species distributions, predicted changes are rarely reported in ways that can be easily understood by the general public. In contrast, climate science that more directly affects human welfare or livelihoods is often more readily communicated to the general public because it is of greater concern or closely related to everyday life. For example, most people can readily interpret how increases in the number of “hot” days above a given temperature threshold might affect their lives, and property owners in coastal areas can use predictive maps to determine how they might be affected by sea level rise (for more examples, see the Third National Assessment of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency at globalchange.gov ). However, the effects of climate change on species are usually reported to the general public using summary metrics or maps designed to communicate concepts that are not normally encountered in everyday life, including changes in habitat suitability, range shifts, or increasing risks from disease or extreme events (e.g., National Audubon Society 2009; Groffman et al. 2014). Though these metrics are necessary, meaningful, and understood by scientists, many people lack the necessary training and background to readily understand them. Further, scientists and nonscientists alike may struggle to convert these metrics into a currency that directly affects day-to-day life. Climate science is a complex issue, and we argue that when communicating potential responses of vegetation, fish, and wildlife to nonscientists, creative thinking with respect to the currency of communication will facilitate discussions between scientists, policy makers, and the public. We posit that with some additional thought and relatively simple summaries, the responses of fish and other species to climate change can be translated into everyday language that will facilitate climate science communication. Although such translations are rare, one example of this type of creativity is the translation from changes in habitat suitability for tree species to potential reductions in maple syrup production (West over 2012), which is arguably more interesting and understandable for the general public. Similar translations could be especially important for communicating climate change effects on game fish and other species that are socially and economically important to large groups of people. We demonstrate this translation by communicating the potential effects of climate change on the distribution of a coldwater fish species, the eastern Brook Trout Salvelinus fontinalis . Rather than communicating the potential forecasted contraction of the Brook Trout's distribution in terms of habitat loss, we report the predicted increases in the driving distance to streams likely offering Brook Trout angling opportunities under a climate change scenario. Travel costs based on distance have been widely used to value ecosystem services such as angling under climate change scenarios (e.g., Pendleton and Mendelsohn 1998; Mendelsohn and Markowski 1999; Ahn et al. 2000) but, to the best of our knowledge, have not been used for communicating potential changes to the public despite the intrinsic link to everyday life.

New York, Pennsylvania↗

USGS1983

Map showing characteristics of lode gold in the Medford 1 degree by 2 degrees Quadrangle, Oregon-California

About 500 lode gold occurrences, prospects, and mines have been reported from the Medford 1 o x 2 o quadrangle, Oregon-California. Summary descriptions of individual lode gold deposits and districts which include those occurrences in the Medford 1 o x 2 o quadrangle have been published by Brooks and Ramp (1968) and Hotz (1971) and by others cited in the reference lists in these two publications. As part of the Medford CUSMAP project between 1974 and 1980, some of these deposits were examined in the field during geologic mapping and geochemical sampling and most of the available information on individual deposits was compiled into a CRIB computer file (Computerized Resource Information Bank). This report is a summary of the more pertinent geologic and economic characteristics of the lode gold deposits for use in the resource evaluation part of the Medford CUSMAP project. The significant features described include the distribution of deposits and their relation to gross geologic and lithologic features, production information, mineralogy of the ore and gangue, gold-silver ratios, and speculations on possible genetic models for some types of deposits.

California, Oregon↗

USGS1971

Summary of floods in the United States during 1966

This report describes the outstanding floods in the United States during 1966. The four most destructive floods occurred during March-April in the Red River of the North basin in northwestern Minnesota, during April-May in northeastern Texas, in August, in east-central Nebraska, and in December, in the Southwestern United States. For the second consecutive year, there was severe flooding in the Red River of the North basin in Minnesota during ,the spring snowmelt period. Unseasonally warm temperature caused rapid melting of a heavy snow cover, with water equivalent ranging from 5 to 7 inches, which covered .the northern two-thirds of the basin. Peak discharges were maximum of record at three gaging sites having periods of record ranging from 20 to 30 years, ,and peak discharges exceeded 50-year floods at nine sites. Damage from the flood was estimated at $10 million. In the period April 22-29, from 20 to 26 inches of rain fell in parts of the Sabine River basin in northeastern Texas. and high rates of runoff occurred from the headwaters of the Sulphur River southward .to the Trinity River basin. Flood damage was estimated at $12 million, and at least 25 persons lost their lives. Severe floods occurred along the Loup River ,and its tributaries in east-central Nebraska on August 12-14. The .peak discharge at nearly all gaging stations in the flood area exceeded the previous maximum of record. The floods we re caused by heavy rains of from 13 to 17 inches in about 24 hours. The storm was the most widespread in the area since 1896 and may have exceeded the area of the 1896 storm. The floods were unusual because of the consistently high discharges throughout a large flood area. Flood damage was estimated at $11 million. In early December a storm moved eastward from the Pacific coast in southern California into Southwestern United States. Intense precipitation occurred around the mountain ranges of south-central California and in and extending from southeastern Nevada across the southwestern corner of Utah to the Grand Canyon and southward to the mountains of central Arizona. Discharges on many streams exceeded the previous maximums known, and the flood was particularly damaging because of the large area involved. In .addition to these four floods, 19 others of lesser magnitude are considered important enough to be included in this annual summary.

Water Supply Paper↗

USGS1968

Summary of floods in the United States during 1962

This report describes the most outstanding floods in the United Spates during 1962. The most damaging floods during the year occurred in February in southern Idaho and northern Nevada and Utah, and during the latter part of February and the early part of March in Kentucky and in the Cumberland River basin in Tennessee. The floods in Idaho and adjacent areas of Nevada and Utah resulted from a combination of prolonged low-intensity rainfall, moderate amounts of snow on low-altitude areas, a period of high temperatures, and a glaze of ice over deeply frozen ground. The floods affected some of the most valuable agricultural land in the region and some of the most heavily populated areas in Idaho. Damage in Idaho was estimated at more than \$7 million. The floods in Kentucky and Tennessee were caused by two storms; precipitation exceeded 7 inches at places during the second storm. Damage in Kentucky totaled about \$7 million. Recordbreaking snowmelt floods occurred in March and April in southeastern South Dakota and adjacent areas. Many peak discharges were much greater than those that can be expected to occur on an average of once in 25 years. Peak discharges on the Floyd River and the Big Sioux River were the greatest snowmelt floods since 1881. Damage in South Dakota was estimated at \$4 million. Heavy rains during May and intense rains in early June caused flooding in Minnesota on tributaries of the Red River of the North. Peak discharges exceeded previous maximums at some areas in the basins of the Buffalo, Clearwater, and Wild Rice Rivers. Damage from the floods of May and June in Minnesota was about \$5 million. The greatest flood since 1920 in Rapid City, S. Dak., caused at out $600,000 damage in July. The great runoff of 3,300 cubic feet per second, from a relatively small area downstream from Pactola Reservoir, resulted from rainfall having an intensity greater than that for a 100-year recurrence interval. Floods caused almost \$3 million damage in three river basins' in western Florida in September. The greatest damage was in Sarasota where from 3 to 7 feet of water flooded homes and stores. About 70,000 acres of farmland and woodland was inundated. Unusual floods of September in southern Arizona flooded areas up to 10 miles wide. Damage, which totaled about \$3 million, was almost entirely to farms, as the flood area is sparsely populated. In addition to the floods just mentioned, 15 others of lesser magnitude are considered outstanding enough to be included in this annual summary.

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