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At least 1,189 records · Page 66Linked to original sources
USGS2004

Tectonics and metallogenesis of Proterozoic rocks of the Reading Prong

Detailed geologic mapping, petrography, and major and trace-element analyses of Proterozoic rocks from the Greenwood Lake Quadrangle, New York are compared with chemical analyses and stratigraphic information compiled for the entire Reading Prong. A persistent regional stratigraphy is evident in the mapped area whose geochemistry indicates protoliths consistent with a back-arc marginal basin sequence. The proposed marginal basin may have been floored by an older sialic basement and overlain by a basin-fill sequence consisting of a basal tholeiitic basalt, basic to intermediate volcanic or volcaniclastic rocks and carbonate sediments, a bimodal calc-alkaline volcanic sequence, and finally volcaniclastic, marine, and continental sediments. The presence of high-chlorine biotite and scapolite may indicate circulation of brine fluids or the presence of evaporite layers in the sequence. Abundant, stratabound magnetite deposits with a geologic setting very unlike that of cratonic, Proterozoic banded-iron formations are found throughout the proposed basin sequence. Associated with many of the magnetite deposits is unusual uranium and rare-earth element mineralization. It is proposed here that these deposits formed in an exhalative, volcanogenic, depositional environment within an extensional back-arc marginal basin. Such a tectonic setting is consistent with interpretations of protoliths in other portions of the Reading Prong, the Central Metasedimentary Belt of the Canadian Grenville Province, and recent interpretation of the origin of the Franklin lead-zinc deposits, suggesting a more cohesive evolving arc/back-arc tectonic model for the entire Proterozoic margin of the north-eastern portion of the North American craton. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Journal of Geodynamics↗
USGS2015

Chemicals of emerging concern in water and bottom sediment in the Great Lakes Basin, 2012: collection methods, analytical methods, quality assurance, and study data

In synoptic surveys of surface-water quality across the United States, a large group of organic chemicals associated with agricultural, household, and industrial waste have been detected. These chemicals are referred to collectively as chemicals of emerging concern (CECs) and include prescription drugs and antibiotics, over-the-counter medications, reproductive hormones, personal-care products, detergent metabolites, and flame retardants. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) collaborated with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on a study to identify the presence of CECs in water and bottom-sediment samples collected during 2012 at 66 sites throughout the Great Lakes Basin. The 2012 effort is part of a long-term study that was initiated in 2010. The purposes of this report are to document the collection and analytical methods, provide the quality-assurance data and analyses, and provide the water and bottom-sediment data for this study of CECs in the Great Lakes Basin for 2012. A previous report documents data collected during 2010 and 2011. The methods used for chemical analyses were identical between the 2010–11 and 2012 studies, with the exception that a method to determine nontarget chemicals was used during 2010–11. The data from this study are published as a USGS Data Series Report to ensure adequate documentation of the original methods and provide a citable source for study data. This report contains no interpretations of the study data. The chemical data are as reported by the laboratory and have not been censored or adjusted unless otherwise noted. Field measurements were recorded and samples were collected in April and May and in September 2012, by U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency personnel. Study sites included tributaries to the Great Lakes located near Duluth, Minnesota; King, Wisconsin; Green Bay, Wis.; Detroit, Michigan; Monroe, Mich.; Toledo, Ohio, and Rochester, New York. Water and bottom-sediment samples were analyzed at the USGS National Water Quality Laboratory in Denver, Colorado, for a broad suite of CECs. During this 2012 study, 140 environmental and 8 field duplicate samples of surface water and wastewater effluent, 1 field blank water sample, and 5 field spike water samples were collected or prepared. Water samples were analyzed at the USGS National Water Quality Laboratory using laboratory schedule 4433 for wastewater indicators, research method 8244 for pharmaceuticals, and laboratory schedule 4434 for steroid hormones, sterols, and bisphenol A. For wastewater indicators in unfiltered water, 61 of the 68 chemicals analyzed using laboratory schedule 4433 had detectable concentrations ranging from 0.002 to 64.4 micrograms per liter. Thirty-eight of the 48 chemicals analyzed using research method 8244 for pharmaceuticals in unfiltered water had detectable concentrations ranging from 0.002 to 3.32 micrograms per liter. Twelve of the 20 chemicals analyzed using laboratory schedule 4434 for steroid hormones, sterols, and bisphenol A in unfiltered water had detectable concentrations ranging from 0.43 to 120,000 nanograms per liter. During this study, 53 environmental samples, 4 field duplicate samples, and 8 field spike samples of bottom sediment and laboratory matrix-spike samples were analyzed for a wide variety of CECs at the USGS National Water Quality Laboratory using laboratory schedule 5433 for wastewater indicators; research method 6434 for steroid hormones, sterols, and bisphenol A; and research method 9008 for human-use pharmaceuticals and antidepressants. Forty of the 57 chemicals analyzed using laboratory schedule 5433 had detectable concentrations ranging from 1 to 49,000 micrograms per kilogram. Fourteen of the 20 chemicals analyzed using research method 6434 had detectable concentrations ranging from 0.04 to 24,940 nanograms per gram. Ten of the 20 chemicals analyzed using research method 9008 had detectable concentrations ranging from 0.59 to 197.5 micrograms per kilogram. Five of the 11 chemicals analyzed using research method 9008 had detectable concentrations ranging from 1.16 to 25.0 micrograms per kilogram.

Great Lakes Basin↗
USGS2016

Surficial geological tools in fluvial geomorphology: Chapter 2

Increasingly, environmental scientists are being asked to develop an understanding of how rivers and streams have been altered by environmental stresses, whether rivers are subject to physical or chemical hazards, how they can be restored, and how they will respond to future environmental change. These questions present substantive challenges to the discipline of fluvial geomorphology, especially since decades of geomorphologic research have demonstrated the general complexity of fluvial systems. It follows from the concept of complex response that synoptic and short-term historical views of rivers will often give misleading understanding of future behavior. Nevertheless, broadly trained geomorphologists can address questions involving complex natural systems by drawing from a tool box that commonly includes the principles and methods of geology, hydrology, hydraulics, engineering, and ecology.

Book chapter↗
USGS2003

Pharmaceuticals, hormones, personal-care products, and other organic wastewater contaminants in water resources: Recent research activities of the U.S. Geological Survey's toxic substances hydrology program

Recent decades have brought increasing concerns for potential contamination of water resources that could inadvertently result during production, use, and disposal of the numerous chemicals offering improvements in industry, agriculture, medical treatment, and even common household products. Increasing knowledge of the environmental occurrence or toxicological behavior of these contaminants from various studies in Europe, United States, and elsewhere has resulted in increased concern for potential adverse environmental and human health effects (Daughton and Ternes, 1999). Ecologists and public health experts often have incomplete understandings of the toxicological significance of many of these contaminants, particularly long-term, low-level exposure and when they occur in mixtures with other contaminants (Daughton and Ternes, 1999; Kümmerer, 2001). In addition, these ‘emerging contaminants’ are not typically monitored or assessed in ambient water resources. The need to understand the processes controlling the transport and fate of these contaminants in the environment, and the lack of knowledge of the significance of long-term exposures have increased the need to study environmental occurrence down to trace (nanogram per liter) levels. Furthermore, the possibility that mixtures of environmental contaminants may interact synergistically or antagonistically has increased the need to characterize the types of mixtures that are found in our waters. The U.S. Geological Survey’s Toxic Substances Hydrology Program (Toxics Program) is developing information and tools on emerging water-quality issues that will be used to design and improve water-quality monitoring and assessment programs of the USGS and others, and for proactive decision-making by industry, regulators, the research community, and the public (http://toxics.usgs.gov/regional/emc.html). This research on emerging water-quality issues includes a combination of laboratory work to develop new analytical capabilities as well as field work on the occurrence, fate, and effects of these contaminants.

Geohealth News↗
USGS1984

Hydrology and land use in Van Buren County, Michigan

This report gives the results of an investigation to determine the chemical and physical characteristics of ground and surface water in Van Buren County and to relate these characteristics to the agricultural use of land. Chemical inputs to the hydrologic system, including those from precipitation, animal wastes, septic tanks, and fertilizers, are assessed. Land-use, geologic setting, and hydrologic conditions are given as a necessary framework for interpretations. The land surface in Van Buren county in southwestern Michigan is flat to rolling, and ranges in altitude from 580 to 1,050 feet. About 30,000 acres or 7.4 percent of land is irrigated. Annual precipitation ranges from 34 to 36 inches. Two rivers--the Paw Paw and South Branch Black--drain most of the county. During this study, the maximum discharge of the Paw Paw River was 2,500 cubic feet per second; the minimum discharge was 202 cubic feet per second. The average discharge of the South Branch Black River during a 17- year period of record has been 106 cubic feet per second. Glacial deposits are the principal source of ground-water supplies. These deposits range in thickness from 100 to 600 feet and consist of till, outwash, and materials of lacustrine and eolian origin. In places the deposits fill buried valleys that are as much as 400 feet deep. The Coldwater Shale of Mississippian age, which underlies the glacial deposits, is mostly shale and usually yields only small amounts of salty water. Of the glacial deposits, outwash is the most productive aquifer. Most domestic wells obtain water from outwash at depths ranging from 15 to 160 feet. Irrigation wells capable of yielding 1,000 gallons per minute generally are about 200 feet deep. In places in the western part of the county, glacial deposits, which are several hundred feet thick, are mostly clay and yield little or no water. Areal variations in the chemical and physical characteristics of ground and surface water are related to land use and chemical inputs to the hydrologic system. Information on fertilizer application, septic-tank discharges, animal wastes, and precipitation and dry fallout show that 72.7 percent of nitrogen input is from fertilizer, 21.3 percent from precipitation and dry fallout, 4.5 percent from animal wastes, and 1.5 percent from septic tanks. Streams and lakes generally contain a calcium bicarbonate type water. The dissolved-solids concentration of streams ranged from 56 to 749 milligrams per liter, and that of lakes, from 28 to 310 milligrams per liter. Water of streams is hard but at most locations is suitable for most uses. Total nitrogen concentrations as high as 15 milligrams per liter were found at two sites. Pesticides (Simazine and Atrazine) were detected at some sites. Relationships between land use and water quality of streams indicate that the nitrate yield of land increases as the percentage of crop land, pasture, and feeding operation increases in a drainage area. Water of lakes also is suitable for most uses, although Alachlor, Atrazine, Silvex, Simazine, Treflan, or 2,4-D were detected in 26 samples. Ground water is of a calcium bicarbonate type, although sodium, sulfate, and chloride are the predominant ions at some locations. Dissolved-solids concentrations ranged from 112 to 878 milligrams per liter; concentrations of trace metals exceeding those common in water were detected at some locations. Nitrate concentrations in the southern eight townships were generally higher than in the northern ten townships; water from 22 percent of the wells in the southern townships exceeded the 10 milligrams per liter drinking-water standard of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. High nitrate concentrations probably are related to fertilizer applications, but equally important seems to be the quantity of irrigation water applied. Oil-field activity in the northern part of the county seems to have increased the chloride concentrations of ground water in some places. Model simulations of the ground-water flow system matched measured conditions if hydraulic conductivities of 10 to 35 feet per day and a recharge rate of 11.8 inches per year were used. Simulations of 500 gallons per minute pumping from an unconfined aquifer indicated only 2 to 3 feet of drawdown in the vicinity of the pumping well. Similar pumping from a confined aquifer, however, produced about 10 feet of drawdown. Simulations of increased pumping for the irrigated area in the southern part of the county indicated that significant drawdown might be expected in some parts.

Michigan↗
USGS1997

Water-quality assessment of the Ozark Plateaus study unit, Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma- habitat data and characteristics at selected sites, 1993-95

The characterization of instream and riparian habitat is part of the multiple lines of evidence used by the U.S. Geological Survey's National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program to assess the water quality of streams. In the NAWQA Program, integrated physical, chemical, and biological assessments are used to describe water-quality conditions. The instream and riparian habitat data are collected at sites selected for surface-water chemistry analyses and biological assessment. Instream and riparian habitat data are structured in a nested scheme—at sampling reach, segment, and basin scales. The habitat data were collected in the Ozark Plateaus study unit at 41 sites during 1993-95. Thirteen of these sites, representative of selected combinations of physiography, land use, and basin size, have longitudinal, transverse, and quarter point vegetation plot surveys in addition to the Level I survey measurements (reach length, depth, velocity, dominant substrate, embeddedness, and vegetation quarter points, for example) recommended by the NAWQA Program protocols. These habitat data were from onsite measurements, U.S. Geological Survey topographic maps, and a geographic information system. The analyses of the habitat data indicates substantial differences between sites of differing physiography and basin-scale land-use activities. The basins range from 46.4 to 4,318 square kilometers and have stream orders from 2 to 6. All streams studied are a riffle/pool type, and most have cobble that is less than 50 percent embedded as the dominant streambed substrate. Of the three physiographic sections studied, the Boston Mountains have the largest mean segment and sideslope gradients, basin relief, woody species diversity, and stream depths when compared with sites of similar size. Channel sinuosities, mean velocities, and canopy angles are largest at sites in the Springfield Plateau physiographic section. The sites in the Salem Plateau physiographic section have the largest woody vegetation densities and mean channel widths. Sites in basins with predominantly agricultural land use tend to have more open canopies, steeper segment gradients, and more sinuous stream channels than the forested sites. Sites in predominantly forested basins tend to have deeper and swifter flow, smaller channel widths, and more dense woody riparian vegetation (at small basins) than the agricultural sites.

Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma↗
USGS2000

Diagenesis of the Purington Shale in the Illinois Basin and implications for the diagenetic state of sedimentary rocks of shallow Paleozoic basins

The clay minerals, micas, and feldspars of the Pennsylvanian-age Purington Shale have been more diagenetically active than generally recognized. They have undergone diagenetic changes comparable to those of Cenozoic and Mesozoic sedimentary rocks buried three to four times as deeply and heated to approximately twice the temperature. The Purington Shale on the Western Shelf of the Illinois Basin has experienced maximum burial of ???1.0 km and was never heated to more than 60??C, except for a very brief time at about 80??C. The illite/smectite (I/S) of the Purington Shale has ???90% illite. The chemical compositions of the feldspar assemblage in the 0.09-0.063-mm fraction differ from most modern detrital suites of feldspars but are similar to diagenetic sequences described by others from much greater burial depths and are extensively, but not completely, albitized. The simplest interpretation of the apparently advanced stage of diagenesis is that the diagenetic processes have been operating at less pressure and lower temperature but for a longer time; an example of low-temperature, time-dependent diagenesis. By similar reasoning, the apparently anomalously advanced maturity of all of the sedimentary rocks in the relatively shallow Illinois Basin is explained. This generalization should be considered for all shallow Paleozoic basins and should influence (1) exploration for petroleum, (2) use of modal and chemical analyses for determining provenance, and (3) use of chemical composition of shales as proxy for crustal evolution.

Journal of Geology↗
USGS1985

Correlation of ash-flow tuffs

Discrimination and correlation of ash-flow sheets is important in structurally complex, long-lived volcanic fields where such sheets provide the best keys to the regional stratigraphic framework. Three-dimensional complexities resulting from pulsatory eruptions, sectorial emplacement, mechanical sorting during outflow, thermal and compositional zoning of magmas, the physical zoning of cooling units, and structural and erosional disruption can make such correlation and discrimination difficult. When lithologic, magnetic, petrographic, chemical, and isotopic criteria for correlating ash-flow sheets are critically evaluated, many problems and pitfalls can be identified. Distinctive phenocrysts, pumice clasts, and lithic fragments are among the more reliable criteria, as are high-precision K-Ar ages and thermal remanent magnetization (TRM) directions in unaltered welded tuff. Chemical correlation methods should rely principally upon welded or nonwelded pumice blocks, not upon the ash-flow matrix, which is subject to fractionation, mixing, and contamination during emplacement. Compositional zoning of most large sheets requires that many samples be analyzed before phenocryst, glass, or whole-rock chemical trends can be used confidently as correlation criteria.

Geological Society of America Bulletin↗
USGS2022

Geochemical investigations of selected Eastern United States watersheds affected by acid deposition

The effects of acid deposition on surface waters in eastern United States watersheds having similar size, physiography, climate and land use are related to the composition of the underlying bedrock. Watersheds developed on greenstone, calcareous shale, sandstone, granite, and schist differ in their ability to neutralize acid deposition. Surface waters in watersheds developed on greenstone and calcareous shale are not discernably affected by acidification. Wastersheds developed on sand-stone have little capacity to neutralize acid rain; consequently, stream acidity is similar to that of precipitation. Watersheds developed on granite and schist are intermediate in their capacity to neutralize acid deposition. Bedrock composition appears to be the major property controlling surface-water chemistry in these systems; hydrologic flow paths and the nature of surficial materials and vegetation also influence chemical responses to acid deposition in watersheds.

Journal of the Geological Society↗
USGS2007

Restoration technology branch

The mission of Leetown Science Center (LSC), Restoration Technology Branch (RTB) is to conduct research needed to restore or protect the chemical, physical and biological integrity of desirable aquatic systems.

Fact Sheet↗
USGS2008

Fischer-assays of oil-shale drill cores and rotary cuttings from the greater Green River basin, southwestern Wyoming

Chapter 1 of this CD–ROM is a database of digitized Fischer (shale-oil) assays of cores and cuttings from boreholes drilled in the Eocene Green River oil shale deposits in southwestern Wyoming. Assays of samples from some surface sections are also included. Most of the Fischer assay analyses were made by the former U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) at its laboratory in Laramie, Wyoming. Other assays, made by institutional or private laboratories, were donated to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and are included in this database as well as Adobe PDF-scanned images of some of the original laboratory assay reports and lithologic logs prepared by USBM geologists. The size of this database is 75.2 megabytes and includes information on 971 core holes and rotary-drilled boreholes and numerous surface sections. Most of these data were released previously by the USBM and the USGS through the National Technical Information Service but are no longer available from that agency. Fischer assays for boreholes in northeastern Utah and northwestern Colorado have been published by the USGS. Additional data include geophysical logs, groundwater data, chemical and X-ray diffraction analyses, and other data. These materials are available for inspection in the office of the USGS Central Energy Resources Team in Lakewood, Colorado. The digitized assays were checked with the original laboratory reports, but some errors likely remain. Other information, such as locations and elevations of core holes and oil and gas tests, were not thoroughly checked. However, owing to the current interest in oil-shale development, it was considered in the public interest to make this preliminary database available at this time. Chapter 2 of this CD–ROM presents oil-yield histograms of samples of cores and cuttings from exploration drill holes in the Eocene Green River Formation in the Great Divide, Green River, and Washakie Basins of southwestern Wyoming. A database was compiled that includes about 47,000 Fischer assays from 186 core holes and 240 rotary drill holes. Most of the oil yield data are from analyses performed by the former U.S. Bureau of Mines oil shale laboratory in Laramie, Wyoming, with some analyses made by private laboratories. Location data for 971 Wyoming oil-shale drill holes are listed in a spreadsheet that is included in the CD–ROM. These Wyoming Fischer assays and histograms are part of a much larger collection of oil-shale information, including geophysical and lithologic logs, water data, chemical and X-ray diffraction analyses on the Green River oil-shale deposits in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming held by the U.S. Geological Survey. Because of an increased interest in oil shale, this CD–ROM containing Fischer assay data and oil-yield histograms for the Green River oil-shale deposits in southwestern Wyoming is being released to the public. Microsoft Excel spreadsheets included with Chapter 2 contain the Fischer assay data from the 426 holes and data on the company name and drill-hole name, and location. Histograms of the oil yields obtained from the Fischer assays are presented in both Grapher and PDF format. Fischer assay text data files are also included in the CD–ROM.

Wyoming↗
USGS1997

Chemical data for bottom sediment, lake water, bottom-sediment pore water, and fish in Mountain Creek Lake, Dallas, Texas, 1994-96

Mountain Creek Lake is a reservoir adjacent to two U.S. Department of the Navy facilities, the Naval Weapons Industrial Reserve Plant and the Naval Air Station in Dallas, Texas. A Resource Conservation and Recovery Act Facility Investigation found ground-water plumes containing chlorinated solvents on both facilities. These findings led to a U.S. Geological Survey study of Mountain Creek Lake adjacent to both facilities between June 1994 and August 1996. Bottom sediments, lake water, bottom-sediment pore water, and fish were collected for chemical analysis.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2010

Chemical Constituents in Groundwater from Multiple Zones in the Eastern Snake River Plain Aquifer at the Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho, 2005-08

From 2005 to 2008, the U.S. Geological Survey's Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Project office, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, collected water-quality samples from multiple water-bearing zones in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer. Water samples were collected from six monitoring wells completed in about 350-700 feet of the upper part of the aquifer, and the samples were analyzed for major ions, selected trace elements, nutrients, selected radiochemical constituents, and selected stable isotopes. Each well was equipped with a multilevel monitoring system containing four to seven sampling ports that were each isolated by permanent packer systems. The sampling ports were installed in aquifer zones that were highly transmissive and that represented the water chemistry of the top four to five model layers of a steady-state and transient groundwater-flow model. The model's water chemistry and particle-tracking simulations are being used to better define movement of wastewater constituents in the aquifer. The results of the water chemistry analyses indicated that, in each of four separate wells, one zone of water differed markedly from the other zones in the well. In four wells, one zone to as many as five zones contained radiochemical constituents that originated from wastewater disposal at selected laboratory facilities. The multilevel sampling systems are defining the vertical distribution of wastewater constituents in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer and the concentrations of wastewater constituents in deeper zones in wells Middle 2051, USGS 132, and USGS 103 support the concept of groundwater flow deepening in the southwestern part of the INL.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS1959

Geology and uranium-vanadium deposits of the slick rock district, San Miguel and Dolores counties, Colorado

Sedimentary rocks known in the Slick Rock district in southwestern Colorado range in age from Devonian (?) to Cretaceous, and aggregate about 13,000 feet in maximum thickness. Important uranium-vanadium production has come from deposits in the Salt Wash member of the Morrison formation of Late Jurassic age. The sedimentary rocks are gently folded in the Dolores and Glade anticlines and the Disappointment syncline, and are cut by the Dolores fault zone in the north part of the district and by the Glade fault zone in the south part of the district . Principal fracture sets are oriented approximately parallel to the major faults. Detrital hematite, magnetite, and ilmenite in rocks of the Morrison formation not affected by epigenetic alteration contain appreciable amounts of several of the elements found in the ore deposits . Epigenetic alteration processes have bleached large volumes of rock and largely destroyed these minerals. Such alteration is spatially associated with the Dolores fault zone. Most of the known ore deposits are in the north part of the Slick Rock district in a belt called the Dolores ore zone. The zone lies along the Dolores fault zone but is wider than the fault zone. All known deposits are associated with abundant carbonaceous plant material. Uranium-vanadium deposits in the district are chiefly tabular to lenticular and are roughly parallel to the sedimentary bedding. Some ore bodies, however, are narrow, elongate, and curve sharply across bedding; these bodies have been called "rolls" by the miners. Mineral zoning is evident in some roll bodies; carbonates, goethite (altered from pyrite), selenides, and sulfides are commonly found in concentric layers at the concave edge of rolls. This zoning, and the relationship of roll ore bodies to sedimentary structures and lithology, suggest that ore was deposited at an interface between two solutions, possibly cool connate water and a warmer ore solution. On a district scale, copper and lead are distinctly most abundant in the ore deposits within and immediately adjacent to the Dolores fault zone, and less abundant in deposits toward the edge of the zone. Uranium-vanadium deposits in the district occur only in sandstone that is considered to be epigenetically altered, and the most extensive epigenetic changes have occurred close to ore bodies. It is concluded that ground water, heated and set into circulation near the end of Cretaceous time by igneous intrusions in the La Sal and other centers on the Colorado Plateau, picked up elements from sedimentary rocks where they had been faulted and fractured, and deposited the elements at solution interfaces where accumulations of carbonaceous material provided favorable chemical conditions for precipitation.

Colorado, Utah↗