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At least 919 records · Page 51Linked to original sources
USGS2022

Hydrologic recovery after wildfire: A framework of approaches, metrics, criteria, trajectories, and timescales

Deviations in hydrologic processes due to wildfire can alter streamflows across the hydrograph, spanning peak flows to low flows. Fire-enhanced changes in hydrologic processes, including infiltration, interception, and evapotranspiration, and the resulting streamflow responses can affect water supplies, through effects on the quantity, quality, and timing of water availability. Post-fire shifts in hydrologic processes can also alter the timing and magnitude of floods and debris flows. The duration of hydrologic deviations from a pre-fire condition or function, sometimes termed hydrologic recovery, is a critical concern for land, water, and emergency managers. We reviewed and summarized terminology and approaches for defining and assessing hydrologic recovery after wildfire, focusing on statistical and functional definitions. We critically examined advantages and drawbacks of current recovery assessment methods, outline challenges to determining recovery, and call attention to selected opportunities for advancement of post-fire hydrologic recovery assessment. Selected challenges included hydroclimatic variability, post-fire land management, and spatial and temporal variability. The most promising opportunities for advancing assessment of hydrologic recovery include: (1) combining statistical and functional recovery approaches, (2) using a greater diversity of post-fire observations complemented with hydrologic modeling, and (3) defining optimal assemblages of recovery metrics and criteria for common hydrologic concerns and regions.

Journal of Hydrology and Hydromechanics↗
USGS2020

Integrated hydro-terrestrial modeling: Development of a national capability

Water is one of our most important natural resources and is essential to our national economy and security. Multiple federal government agencies have mission elements that address national needs related to water. Each water-related agency champions a unique science and/or operational mission focused on advancing a portion of the nation’s ability to meet our water-related challenges, often in close collaboration with scientists from the academic community. These diverse mission needs have engendered a rich and extensive base of water-related data and modeling capabilities. While useful for their intended purposes, these capabilities are not well integrated to address complex regional problems and overarching national problems. These major investments by several federal agencies and their scientific partners, however, lay the foundation for an integrated hydro-terrestrial modeling and data infrastructure that will enhance knowledge, understanding, prediction, and management of the nation’s diverse water challenges.

Report↗
USGS2023

Comprehensive inventory of habitat assessment and evaluation datasets to support Deepwater Horizon mesophotic and deep benthic communities

This report is part of the NOAA Mesophotic and Deep Benthic Communities (MDBC) Series of publications that share the results of work conducted by the Deepwater Horizon MDBC restoration projects. The 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill was an unprecedented event. Approximately 3.2 million barrels of oil were released into the deep ocean over nearly three months. The plume of oil moved throughout the water column, formed surface slicks that cumulatively covered an area the size of Virginia, and washed oil onto at least 1,300 miles of shoreline habitats. More than 770 square miles (2,000 square kilometers) of deep benthic habitat surrounding the Deepwater Horizon wellhead and 4-square miles of the Pinnacles mesophotic reef complex, located at the edge of the continental shelf, were injured by the oil spill. Under the Oil Pollution Act, state and federal natural resource trustees conducted a Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA). The Trustees assessed damages, quantifying the unprecedented injuries to natural resources and lost services. They also developed a programmatic restoration plan to restore injured resources and compensate the public for lost services. In April 2016, a settlement was finalized that included up to $8.8 billion in funding for the Deepwater Horizon Trustees to restore the natural resource injuries caused by the oil spill as described in their programmatic restoration plan, Final Programmatic Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan and Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement. The Deepwater Horizon Open Ocean Trustee Implementation Group is responsible for restoring natural resources and their services within the Open Ocean Restoration Area that were injured by the oil spill. The Open Ocean Trustees include NOAA, Department of the Interior, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and U.S. Department of Agriculture. In 2019, the Open Ocean Trustee Implementation Group committed more than $126 million to implement four restoration projects to address the injury to MDBC. The MDBC projects are: mapping, Ground-truthing, and Predictive Habitat Modeling; Habitat Assessment and Evaluation; Coral Propagation Technique Development; and Active Management and Protection. NOAA and the Department of the Interior are implementing the projects, in cooperation with a range of partners, over eight years. Together, the projects take a phased approach to meet the challenges involved in restoring deep-sea habitats. Challenges to restoration include a limited scientific understanding of these communities, limited experience with restoration at the depths at which these communities occur, and remote locations that limit accessibility. More information about Deepwater Horizon restoration and the MDBC restoration projects is available at: www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov.

Gulf of Mexico↗
USGS2024

Dust management at an active construction area impacts monarch distribution

The North American population of monarch butterflies ( Danaus plexippus) is experiencing dramatic declines, necessitating investigations into challenges facing this species that can be resolved through management actions. For instance, dust made airborne by heavy equipment driving along a dirt road can settle on roadside vegetation, resulting in reduced use by monarchs. Dust accumulation on areas where floral nectaries such as leaves, stems, and flowers may be present could reduce the ability of pollinators, such as monarchs, to access nectar from flowering plants needed during migration. One such challenge was observed on Poplar Island, an island restoration project located in the Maryland portion of the Chesapeake Bay, USA. To determine if road watering would result in notable reductions of dust accumulation on adjacent roadside vegetation, and if such a reduction in dust would affect monarch use of treated habitat, water was applied via spraying to sections of the roadway during the 2022 fall migration period. Treatment areas where water was applied to the road were found to have significant reductions in dust accumulation ( P ≤0.001) as well as significantly higher use by monarchs ( P = 0.002), relative to non-watered control areas. While these results indicate potential utility of road watering to support monarchs at sites with high dust accumulation, numerous additional elements such as water usage and logistical constraints must also be considered. While limited in scope, these data do provide a notable proof-of-concept for managing this issue at other sites and can be built upon with further research.

Maryland↗
USGS2025

3D Converted wave reverse time migration imaging

We describe a newly developed method for recovering high-resolution images of seismic discontinuities, such as subducting slabs, in 3D. Our method makes use of converted S → P or P → S waves observed by dense arrays of seismometers to infer the locations and relative strengths of seismic discontinuities at depth in a target region. Observed direct and converted waves are backpropagated to their times of origin. The time-reversed wavefield is then separated into its constituent P and S components via the Helmholtz decomposition, and those separated wavefields are used to compute imaging functions that characterize the locations and relative strengths of seismic discontinuities. Imaging functions may be designed to use either S → P or P → S waves, so that users can target those arrivals expected to be most dominant in a given dataset. We have previously demonstrated the efficacy of our method in two dimensions, and we now present a 3D implementation of our technique which addresses the significant computational challenges posed by the size of volumetric wavefield data in three dimensions. Through a series of synthetic examples, we demonstrate that our method is capable of recovering the fine scale structure of a subducting slab given realistic station coverage and earthquake sources. We investigate optimal seismic station geometries for our technique and explore image interpretability in regions with poor data coverage. We find that linear station geometries yield more optimal, interpretable imaging functions than collections of small arrays can. We also show that our method can successfully recover bothS → P or P → S images when realistic shear earthquake sources are used, and we explore the additional computational challenges presented by the high frequency content of S waves. Our results demonstrate the potential for our technique to recover high-resolution information about subducting slabs in real-world regions, given that relatively sparse seismic arrays with only approximately 100 stations are capable of recovering interpretable imaging functions from just a few realistic earthquake sources for multiple discontinuities at significant depth in an area of approximately 400~sq~km.

Seismica↗
USGS2013

Detection of tamarisk defoliation by the northern tamarisk beetle based on multitemporal Landsat 5 thematic mapper imagery.

The spread of tamarisk ( Tamarix spp., also known as saltcedar) is a significant ecological disturbance in western North America and has long been targeted for control, leading to the importation of the northern tamarisk beetle ( Diorhabda carinulata ) as a biological control agent. Following its initial release along the Colorado River near Moab, Utah in 2004, the beetle has successfully established and defoliated tamarisk across much of the upper Colorado River Basin. However, the spatial distribution and seasonal timing of defoliation are complex and difficult to quantify over large areas. To address this challenge, we tested and compared two remote sensing approaches to mapping tamarisk defoliation: Disturbance Index (DI) and a decision tree method called Random Forest (RF). Based on multitemporal Landsat 5 TM imagery for 2006-2010, changes in DI and defoliation probability from RF were calculated to detect tamarisk defoliation along the banks of Green, Colorado, Dolores and San Juan rivers within the Colorado Plateau area. Defoliation mapping accuracy was assessed based on field surveys partitioned into 10 km sections of river and on regions of interest created for continuous riparian vegetation. The DI method detected 3711 ha of defoliated area in 2007, 7350 ha in 2008, 10,457 ha in 2009 and 5898 ha in 2010. The RF method detected much smaller areas of defoliation but proved to have higher accuracy, as demonstrated by accuracy assessment and sensitivity analysis, with 784 ha in 2007, 960 ha in 2008, 934 ha in 2009, and 1008 ha in 2010. Results indicate that remote sensing approaches are likely to be useful for studying spatiotemporal patterns of tamarisk defoliation as the tamarisk leaf beetle spreads throughout the western United States.

Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming↗
USGS2025

Salinas Valley integrated hydrologic and reservoir operations models, Monterey and San Luis Obispo Counties, California

The area surrounding the Salinas Valley groundwater basin in Monterey and San Luis Obispo Counties of California is a highly productive agricultural area, contributes significantly to the local economy, and provides a substantial portion of vegetables and other agricultural commodities to the Nation. This region of California provides about half of the Nation’s lettuce, celery, broccoli, and spinach each year. Thus, this agricultural area provides significant volumes of agricultural products not just for California but the entire United States. Changes in population and increased agricultural development, which includes a shift toward more water-intensive crops, and climate variability, have put increasing demand on both surface water and groundwater resources in the valley. This has resulted in water management challenges in the Salinas Valley that are predominantly related to distribution of water supply throughout the basin. Where and when the water is present in the surface and subsurface does not coincide with where and when the water is needed. To deal with the distribution issue, historically water has been used conjunctively in the valley. Conjunctive use is a water management strategy that coordinates surface water and groundwater use to maximize water availability. Groundwater is used throughout the Salinas Valley to meet water demands when surface water supplies are insufficient. Availability of surface water is constrained by climate. Precipitation and streamflow vary seasonally and year to year. Although there are two reservoirs in the Salinas Valley to capture and store water during wet periods, the only conveyance of reservoir water to coastal agricultural areas is the Salinas River. Increasing demand on groundwater and surface water resources throughout the Salinas Valley has resulted in undesirable effects of unsustainable water use, such as surface water depletion, groundwater level declines, storage depletion in the principal aquifers, and seawater intrusion. To address these escalating issues, local communities, water management agencies, and groundwater sustainability agencies are evaluating how to sustainably manage both their surface water and groundwater resources. To meet water demands and reduce undesirable effects of unsustainable water use, continued conjunctive management of surface water and groundwater would ideally incorporate strategies to deal with increases in demand and a variable climate. To evaluate the challenging water management issues in the Salinas Valley, the U.S. Geological Survey, Monterey County Water Resource Agency, and the Salinas Valley Basin Groundwater Sustainability Agency developed a comprehensive suite of models that represent the Salinas Valley Hydrogeologic system called the Salinas Valley System Model. The Salinas Valley Geologic Framework was developed to characterize the subsurface using various topographic and geologic data sources, including information on hydrogeologic units, their surfaces and extents, geologic structures, lithology, and elevations from borehole data and cross sections, as well as details on faults and existing models. The Salinas Valley Watershed Model simulates the entire Salinas River watershed. Monthly surface water inflows into the integrated hydrologic model domain were simulated using the Salinas Valley Watershed Model. The historical model uses historical climate data, water and land use data, and reservoir releases to simulate agricultural operations, including landscape water demands, diversions, and reclaimed wastewater. The operational model adds an embedded reservoir operations framework to the simulation of the historical model that allows specified operational rules to simulate reservoir releases and changes in reservoir storage. The operational model assumes current reservoir operations and constant land use, which differs from historical conditions. Thus, the operational model is a hypothetical baseline model that can be used by local water managers to evaluate and quantify potential benefits of water supply projects. Together, the geologic framework, watershed, historical, and operational models form a tool that can be used to simulate irrigated agriculture and associated reservoir operations of the integrated hydrologic system of the Salinas Valley.

EarthArXiv↗
USGS2004

Designing monitoring programs in an adaptive management context for regional multiple species conservation plans

Increasing numbers of regional, multiple species conservation plans have been developed in California since the early 1990s. However, building effective monitoring and adaptive management programs to support these plans has remained a challenge. In addition to collecting data on the status of resources and the results of management actions, monitoring programs for these plans need to resolve critical uncertainties and channel information into effective decisionmaking. Because of the broad goals of many regional conservation plans, monitoring programs need to address ecosystem integrity and biodiversity while also tracking species ?covered? by plan permits. In this document we provide a step-by-step procedure for developing effective monitoring programs in an adaptive management context. The guidance provided here has been gleaned from experience with large multiple species plans in southern California. The process begins with clearly defining program objectives, partitioning the program into manageable but meaningful pieces, and developing management-oriented conceptual models of system function. Then, based on the objectives and conceptual models, monitoring recommendations and critical uncertainties can be identified and a coordinated program designed. We include practical examples and insights from programs in southern California and discuss the evolution of monitoring and adaptive management programs through three successive stages: 1) inventorying resources and identifying relationships; 2) pilot testing of long-term monitoring and resolving critical management uncertainties; and 3) implementing long-term monitoring and adaptive management. Ultimately, the success of regional conservation planning depends on the ability of monitoring programs to confront the challenges of adaptively managing and monitoring complex ecosystems and diverse arrays of sensitive species.

Technical Report↗
USGS1994

U.S. Geological Survey yearbook, fiscal year 1993: At work across the Nation

The need for earth science has never been more paramount. The devastating flooding of the Mississippi River this past year, strikingly portrayed on the cover and discussed in detail in this report (p. 37-42), was a sobering reminder of nature's elemental power. As a Nation, we face many environmental and economic challenges, such as natural hazards, that can be addressed effectively only through science. Water quality, resource assessments, climate change, and toxic wastes are all critical issues that can best be dealt with when approached from a sound scientific base. The goal of the U.S. Geological Survey is to provide hydrologic, geologic, and topographic information and understanding that contribute to the wise management of the Nation's natural resources and that promote the health, safety, and well-being of all Americans. FY1993 has proven to be a particularly challenging one for the USGS. We entered into a time of transition from the long-term leadership of Director Dallas Peck and Associate Director Doyle Frederick to the appointment of a new director. We thank Dallas and Doyle for their many years of service and for their support during the transition.

Yearbook↗
USGS2005

Chapter K: Progress in the Evaluation of Alkali-Aggregate Reaction in Concrete Construction in the Pacific Northwest, United States and Canada

The supply of aggregates suitable for use in construction and maintenance of infrastructure in western North America is a continuing concern to the engineering and resources-management community. Steady population growth throughout the region has fueled demand for high-quality aggregates, in the face of rapid depletion of existing aggregate resources and slow and difficult permitting of new sources of traditional aggregate types. In addition to these challenges, the requirement for aggregates to meet various engineering standards continues to increase. In addition to their physical-mechanical properties, other performance characteristics of construction aggregates specifically depend on their mineralogy and texture. These properties can result in deleterious chemical reactions when aggregate is used in concrete mixes. When this chemical reaction-termed 'alkali-aggregate reaction' (AAR)-occurs, it can pose a major problem for concrete structures, reducing their service life and requiring expensive repair or even replacement of the concrete. AAR is thus to be avoided in order to promote the longevity of concrete structures and to ensure that public moneys invested in infrastructure are well spent. Because the AAR phenomenon is directly related to the mineral composition, texture, and petrogenesis of the rock particles that make up aggregates, an understanding of the relation between the geology and the performance of aggregates in concrete is important. In the Pacific Northwest, some aggregates have a moderate to high AAR potential, but many others have no or only a low AAR potential. Overall, AAR is not as widespread or serious a problem in the Pacific Northwest as in other regions of North America. The identification of reactive aggregates in the Pacific Northwest and the accurate prediction of their behavior in concrete continue to present challenges for the assessment and management of geologic resources to the owners and operators of pits and quarries and to the users of the concrete aggregates mined from these deposits. This situation is complicated by the length of time typically required for AAR to become noticeable in concrete construction in the Pacific Northwest, commonly on such a scale that other deterioration mechanisms may have masked the effects of AAR. Distinguishing between the effects of AAR and those related to other problems in concrete is important for understanding the nature and severity of AAR throughout the Pacific Northwest. Furthermore, developing an understanding of the extent of the problem will assist efforts to maximize the intelligent and stewardly use of aggregate resources in the Pacific Northwest. This chapter illustrates the current 'state of the art' of AAR studies in the Pacific Northwest, a region with a common geologic heritage as well as many distinct geologic elements. The optimal use of aggregates in the construction of concrete structures that will achieve their design life is possible through an understanding of the engineering and geologic properties of these aggregates and of their geologic setting.

Bulletin↗
USGS2005

Geography for a Changing World - A science strategy for the geographic research of the U.S. Geological Survey, 2005-2015

This report presents a science strategy for the geographic research of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for the years 2005-2015. The common thread running through the vision, mission, and science goals presented in the plan is that USGS geographers will provide national leadership to understand coupled human-environmental systems in the face of land change and will deliver pertinent information to decisionmakers on the vulnerability and resilience of these systems. We define land change science as the study of the human and environment dynamics that give rise to changed land use, cover, and surface form. A number of realities shape the strategic context of this plan: The Department of Interior Strategic Plan focuses on meeting society’s resource needs and sustaining the Nation’s life support systems, underscoring the importance of characterizing and understanding coupled human-environmental systems. In redefining its mission in the mid-1990s, the USGS envisions itself as an integrated natural science and information agency. The USGS will assume a national leadership role in the use of science to develop knowledge about the web of relations that couple biophysical and human systems and translate this knowledge into unbiased, reliable information that meets important societal information needs. The following trends will influence USGS geography-oriented science activities over the next decade. Most of the emerging earth science issues that the USGS will address are geographic phenomena. A growing international concern for aligning society’s development activities with environmental limits has led to an articulation of a science agenda associated with global environmental change, vulnerability, and resilience. Earth science investigations have evolved toward the study of very large areas, and the resulting huge volumes of data are challenging to manage and understand. Finally, scientists and the public face the challenge of gaining intelligent insights about geographic and environmental processes from these data, with the ultimate goal of guiding resource-management decisions. The first four science goals in the plan support understanding the human and environmental dynamics of land change. Each science goal has an associated set of strategic actions to achieve the goal. These goals and actions are consistent with national science priorities and the Department of Interior and USGS missions, take advantage of existing expertise, and lead to the strengthening of critical geographic research capacities that do not exist in other USGS disciplines.

Circular↗
USGS2010

Western Mineral and Environmental Resources Science Center--providing comprehensive earth science for complex societal issues

Minerals in the environment and products manufactured from mineral materials are all around us and we use and come into contact with them every day. They impact our way of life and the health of all that lives. Minerals are critical to the Nation's economy and knowing where future mineral resources will come from is important for sustaining the Nation's economy and national security. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Mineral Resources Program (MRP) provides scientific information for objective resource assessments and unbiased research results on mineral resource potential, production and consumption statistics, as well as environmental consequences of mining. The MRP conducts this research to provide information needed for land planners and decisionmakers about where mineral commodities are known and suspected in the earth's crust and about the environmental consequences of extracting those commodities. As part of the MRP scientists of the Western Mineral and Environmental Resources Science Center (WMERSC or 'Center' herein) coordinate the development of national, geologic, geochemical, geophysical, and mineral-resource databases and the migration of existing databases to standard models and formats that are available to both internal and external users. The unique expertise developed by Center scientists over many decades in response to mineral-resource-related issues is now in great demand to support applications such as public health research and remediation of environmental hazards that result from mining and mining-related activities. Western Mineral and Environmental Resources Science Center Results of WMERSC research provide timely and unbiased analyses of minerals and inorganic materials to (1) improve stewardship of public lands and resources; (2) support national and international economic and security policies; (3) sustain prosperity and improve our quality of life; and (4) protect and improve public health, safety, and environmental quality. The MRP supports approximately 40 USGS research specialists who utilize cooperative agreements with universities, industry, and other governmental agencies to support their collaborative research and information exchange. Scientists of the WMERSC study how and where non-fuel mineral resources form and are concentrated in the earth's crust, where mineral resources might be found in the future, and how mineral materials interact with the environment to affect human and ecosystem health. Natural systems (ecosystems) are complex - our understanding of how ecosystems operate requires collecting and synthesizing large amounts of geologic, geochemical, biologic, hydrologic, and meteorological information. Scientists in the Center strive to understand the interplay of various processes and how they affect the structure, composition, and health of ecosystems. Such understanding, which is then summarized in publicly available reports, is used to address and solve a wide variety of issues that are important to society and the economy. WMERSC scientists have extensive national and international experience in these scientific specialties and capabilities - they have collaborated with many Federal, State, and local agencies; with various private sector organizations; as well as with foreign countries and organizations. Nearly every scientific and societal challenge requires a different combination of scientific skills and capabilities. With their breadth of scientific specialties and capabilities, the scientists of the WMERSC can provide scientifically sound approaches to a wide range of societal challenges and issues. The following sections describe examples of important issues that have been addressed by scientists in the Center, the methods employed, and the relevant conclusions. New directions are inevitable as societal needs change over time. Scientists of the WMERSC have a diverse set of skills and capabilities and are proficient in the collection and integration of

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USGS2013

U.S. Geological Survey climate and land use change science strategy—A framework for understanding and responding to global change

Executive Summary The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), a nonregulatory Federal science agency with national scope and responsibilities, is uniquely positioned to serve the Nation’s needs in understanding and responding to global change, including changes in climate, water availability, sea level, land use and land cover, ecosystems, and global biogeochemical cycles. Global change is among the most challenging and formidable issues confronting our Nation and society. Scientists agree that global environmental changes during this century will have far-reaching societal implications (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 2007; U.S. Global Change Research Program, 2009). In the face of these challenges, the Nation can benefit greatly by using natural science information in decisionmaking. Since the passage of the U.S. Global Change Research Act of 1990, the USGS has made substantial scientific contributions to understanding the interactive living and nonliving components of the Earth system. USGS natural science activities have led to fundamental advances in observing and understanding climate and land-cover change and the effects these changes have on ecosystems, natural-resource availability, and societal sustainability. Most of these major advances were pursued in partnership with other organizations within and outside the Department of the Interior. The inherent value of partnerships with other U.S. Global Change Research Program agencies and natural-resource managers is emphasized in all aspects of the planning and implementation of this Science Strategy for the coming decade. Over the next 10 years, the USGS will make substantial contributions to understanding how Earth systems interact, respond to, and cause global change. The USGS will work with science partners, decisionmakers, and resource managers at local to international levels (including Native American tribes) to improve understanding of past and present change; develop relevant forecasts; and identify those lands, resources, and communities most vulnerable to global change processes. Science will play an essential role in helping communities and land and resource managers understand local to global implications, anticipate effects, prepare for changes, and reduce the risks associated with decisionmaking in a changing environment. USGS partners and stakeholders will benefit from the data, predictive models, and decision-support products and services resulting from the implementation of this strategy. This Science Strategy recognizes core USGS strengths that are applied to key societal problems. It establishes seven goals for USGS global change science and strategic actions that may be implemented in the short term (1–5 years) and the longer term (5–10 years) to improve our understanding of the following areas of inquiry: Rates, causes, and impacts of past global changes; The global carbon cycle; Biogeochemical cycles and their coupled interactions; Land-use and land-cover change rates, causes, and consequences; Droughts, floods, and water availability under changing land-use and climatic conditions; Coastal response to sea-level rise, climatic change, and human development; and Biological responses to global change. In addition to the seven thematic goals, we address the central role of monitoring in accordance with the USGS Science Strategy recommendation that global change research should rely on existing “…decades of observational data and long-term records to interpret consequences of climate variability and change to the Nation’s biological populations, ecosystems, and land and water resources” (U.S. Geological Survey, 2007, p. 19). We also briefly describe specific needs and opportunities for coordinating USGS global change science among USGS Mission Areas and address the need for a comprehensive and sustained communications strategy.

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USGS2013

U.S. Geological Survey Energy and Minerals science strategy: A resource lifecycle approach

Executive Summary The economy, national security, and standard of living of the United States depend heavily on adequate and reliable supplies of energy and mineral resources. Based on population and consumption trends, the Nation’s use of energy and minerals can be expected to grow, driving the demand for ever broader scientific understanding of resource formation, location, and availability. In addition, the increasing importance of environmental stewardship, human health, and sustainable growth places further emphasis on energy and mineral resources research and understanding. Collectively, these trends in resource demand and the interconnectedness among resources will lead to new challenges and, in turn, require cutting-edge science for the next generation of societal decisions. The long and continuing history of U.S. Geological Survey contributions to energy and mineral resources science provide a solid foundation of core capabilities upon which new research directions can grow. This science strategy provides a framework for the coming decade that capitalizes on the growth of core capabilities and leverages their application toward new or emerging challenges in energy and mineral resources research, as reflected in five interrelated goals. Goal 1.—Understand fundamental Earth processes that form energy and mineral resources Goal 2.—Understand the environmental behavior of energy and mineral resources and their waste products Goal 3.—Provide inventories and assessments of energy and mineral resources Goal 4.—Understand the effects of energy and mineral development on natural resources and society Goal 5.—Understand the reliability and availability of energy and mineral supplies Within each goal, multiple actions are identified. The level of specificity and complexity of these actions varies, consistent with the reality that even a modest refocus can yield large payoffs in the near term whereas more ambitious plans may take years to reach fruition. As such, implementation of these actions is largely dependent on available resources and the sequencing of prerequisite steps. This science strategy places an emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration and leveraging of expertise across the U.S. Geological Survey and with external partners.

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USGS2015

The water-energy nexus: An earth science perspective

Water availability and use are closely connected with energy development and use. Water cannot be delivered to homes, businesses, and industries without energy, and most forms of energy development require large amounts of water. The United States faces two significant and sometimes competing challenges: to provide sustainable supplies of freshwater for humans and ecosystems and to ensure adequate sources of energy for future generations. This report reviews the complex ways in which water and energy are interconnected and describes the earth science data collection and research that can help the Nation address these important challenges. The earth sciences have been a cornerstone in developing our current understanding of the water-energy nexus. A full understanding of the nexus, however, is limited by uncertainty in our knowledge of fundamental issues, such as the quantity of freshwater that is available, the amount of water that is used in energy development, the effects that emerging energy development technologies have on water quality and quantity, and the amount of energy required to treat and deliver freshwater. Enhanced data collection and research can improve our understanding of these important issues and thereby lay the groundwork for informed resource management. Relevant earth science issues analyzed and discussed herein include freshwater availability; water use; ecosystems health; assessment of saline water resources; assessment of fossil-fuel, uranium, and geothermal resources; subsurface injection of wastewater and carbon dioxide and related induced seismicity; climate change and its effect on water availability and energy production; byproducts and waste streams of energy development; emerging energy-development technologies; and energy for water treatment and delivery.

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USGS2016

Get your science used—Six guidelines to improve your products

Introduction Natural scientists, like many other experts, face challenges when communicating to people outside their fields of expertise. This is especially true when they try to communicate to those whose background, knowledge, and experience are far distant from that field of expertise. At a recent workshop, experts in risk communication offered insights into the communication challenges of probabilistic hazard products, suggested tips, and shared their strategies for making products that a targeted audience can understand and use. Although the workshop was held to broaden the understanding and use of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Seismic Hazard Maps (NSHM), the workshop outcomes presented in this report can benefit anyone who develops products based on technical information. On the basis of research and practice into how people think, use tools, make decisions, and understand scientific/technical information, the social and behavioral scientists, marketers, and social-impact designers at the NSHM workshop provided remarkably consistent guidelines to develop successful science products, such as text, maps, and other products. In this report the guidelines are numbered for clarity, but they can be applied repeatedly, piecemeal, or out of order to fit each project and your resources.

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USGS2021

U.S. Geological Survey migratory bird science, 2020–21

Bird conservation as an endeavor engages a broad range of partners and a coordinated effort across State and Federal agencies, nongovernment organizations, universi­ties and, at times, international partnerships. To understand information needs and respond to the many challenges in bird conservation, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scien­tists participate in Flyway committees, on Joint Venture boards and working groups, in professional organizations, and in other conservation partnerships. These activities con­nect USGS scientists to conservation partners with whom they work to address substantial challenges. More than one hundred USGS scientists are dedicated to the scientific study of migratory birds. This report presents the current (2021) representative breadth of activities of USGS scientists supporting the con­servation and management of migratory birds. Ninety USGS scientists contributed to the project descriptions and other information detailing the work of the USGS. The science herein is organized and presented thematically by research strengths and by management topics. The report emphasizes the geographic framework of the North American Flyway councils through which USGS engages regularly with Federal and State government agencies and others who are responsible for managing migratory bird populations.

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