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Georgia's Ground-Water Resources and Monitoring Network, 2008

Ground water is an abundant resource in Georgia, providing 1.45 billion gallons per day, or 22 percent, of the total freshwater used (including thermoelectric) in the State (Fanning, 2003). Contrasting geologic features and landforms of the physiographic provinces of Georgia affect the quantity and quality of ground water throughout the State. Most ground-water withdrawals are in the Coastal Plain in the southern one-half of the State, where aquifers are highly productive. For a more complete discussion of the State's ground-water resources, see Leeth and others (2005).

Fact Sheet↗

Research on pathogens at Great Lakes beaches: sampling, influential factors, and potential sources

The overall mission of this work is to provide science-based information and methods that will allow beach managers to more accurately make beach closure and advisory decisions, understand the sources and physical processes affecting beach contaminants, and understand how science-based information can be used to mitigate and restore beaches and protect the public. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in collaboration with many Federal, State, and local agencies and universities, has conducted research on beach health issues in the Great Lakes Region for more than a decade. The work consists of four science elements that align with the USGS Beach Health Initiative Mission: real-time assessments of water quality; coastal processes; pathogens and source tracking; and data analysis, interpretation, and communication. The ongoing or completed research for the pathogens and source tracking topic is described in this fact sheet.

Great Lakes;Lake Erie;Lake Huron;Lake Michigan↗

Metallogenic map of volcanogenic massive-sulfide occurrences in New Mexico

New Mexico volcanogenic massive-sulfide occurrences, which typically contain pyrite and pyrrhotite accompanied by variable amounts of base-metal sulfides and precious metals, are found within mainly subaqueous, compositionally bimodal metavolcanic successions of Early to Middle Proterozoic age that are exposed primarily in the north-central part of the state. Host rocks include both mafic and felsic volcanic rocks or their volcaniclastic equivalents, silica-rich chemical sediments, and locally developed carbonate horizons. Some host rocks display variably preserved relict volcanic and (or) sedimentary textures, but the majority are metamorphic rocks having original textures and mineralogies substantially changed. In addition, many host rocks experienced significant premetamorphic chemical alteration that further obscures their origins. For these reasons, the "Host rock lithology" column in table 1 first lists a metamorphic rock description and them, in parentheses, suggests a possible volcanic or chemical-sediment protolith. With the exception of the Pecos mine and a subsurface deposit partially outlined by recent drilling at Jones Hill, New Mexico occurrences shown on this map do not exhibit enough of the classic features of volcanogenic massive-sulfide deposits to make their classification (or origins) unequivocal. Nonetheless, these occurrences are included because they might be genetically, spatially, chronologically, or in some combination of ways related to volcamogenic massive-sulfide-forming systems and are therefore deserving of further study. The following two sections 1) outline the general geologic setting and character of New Mexico’s Proterozoic volcanic terranes, which host volcamogemic massive-sulfide occurrences, and 2) describe the general features of two occurrences--the Pecos mine and Jones Hill--which display the most complete and convincing collection of "classic" volcanogenic massive-sulfide features of any of the New Mexico examples.

New Mexico↗

Ground-water withdrawals and changes in water levels in the Houston District, Texas

During 1975-79, total withdrawals of ground water in the Houston district decreased by 9.7 percent. This percentage represents a decrease from 505 million gallons per day (22.1 cubic meters per second) during 1975, to 456 million gallons per day (20.0 cubic meters per second) during 1979. The decrease resulted from an increased use of surface water that became available from Lake Livingston on the Trinity River during late 1976. During 1975-79, withdrawals of ground water decreased in the Pasadena, Katy, Baytown-La Porte, Johnson Space Center, Texas City, and Alta Loma areas but increased in the Houston area. The decreased withdrawals in the Katy area resulted partly from a small decrease in the acreage of rice planted, but mostly from a decrease in water needed for irrigation during 1979. The pumping of ground water increased in the Houston area because of the growth in population. From spring 1975 to spring 1980, water levels rose in the southeastern one-half of the district and declined in the northwestern one-half. The maximum rise of water levels in wells in the Chicot aquifer was 110 feet (33.5 meters); the maximum rise in wells in the Evangeline aquifer was 150 feet (45.7 meters). The maximum decline of water levels in wells in the Chicot aquifer was 60 feet (18.3 meters); the maximum decline in wells in the Evangeline aquifer was 70 feet (21.3 meters). No significant changes occurred in the chloride concentration in water from wells in the Alta Loma area during 1975-79. The concentration of chloride in water from a well completed in the middle part of the Chicot aquifer at Hitchcock is increasing, probably because of updip migration of the freshwater-saltwater interface.

Open-File Report↗

Preliminary hydrogeologic assessment of a ground-water contamination area in Wolcott, Connecticut

Contamination of ground water by volatile organic compounds and inorganic constituents has been identified at a number of industrial sites in the Town of Wolcott, Connecticut. Contamination is also present at a municipal landfill in the City of Waterbury that is upgradient from the industrial sites in the local ground-water-flow system. The study area, which lies in the Western Highlands of Connecticut, is in the Mad River Valley, a tributary to the Naugatuck River. Geohydrologic units (aquifer materials) include unconsolidated glacial sediments (surficial materials) and fractured crystalline (metamorphic) bedrock. Surficial materials include glacial till, coarse-grained andfine-grained glacial stratified deposits, and postglacial floodplain alluvium and swamp deposits. The ground-water-flow system in the surficial aquifer is complex because the hydraulic properties of the surficial materials are highly variable. In the bedrock aquifer, ground water moves exclusively through fractures. Hydrologic characteristics of the crystalline bedrock-degree of confinement, hydraulic conductivity, storativity, and porosity-are poorly defined in the study area. Further study is needed to adequately assess ground-water flow and contaminant migration under current or past hydrologic conditions. All known water-supply wells in the study area obtain water from the bedrock aquifer. Twenty households in a hillside residential area on Tosun Road currently obtain drinking water from private wells tapping the bedrock aquifer. The extent of contamination in the bedrock aquifer and the potential for future contamination from known sources of contamination in the surficial aquifer is of concern to regulatory agencies. Previous investigations have identified ground-water contamination by volatile organic compounds at the Nutmeg Valley Road site area. Contamination has been associated with on-site disposal of heavy metals, chlorinated and non-chlorinated volatile organic compounds, and cyanide. Concentrations of volatile organic compounds detected in water samples collected from bedrock wells during 1981-95 at the Nutmeg Valley Road site area show a general downward trend through time. Water samples collected from wells completed in surficial materials were not collected systematically, and a trend in concentration cannot be identified.

Open-File Report↗

Measurement of peak discharge at width contractions by indirect methods

This chapter describes procedures for measuring peak discharges using open-channel width contractions. Field and office procedures limited to this method are described. The discharge equation based on the continuity and energy equations between an approach cross section and the contracted section under a bridge or contraction is given. Contractions are classified into four geometric types. Discharge coefficients and computation procedures are given with a complete facsimile example of computation of a contracted-opening measurement. Additional procedures are given for multiple-opening contractions.

Techniques of Water-Resources Investigations↗

Treatment of East Bay, Alger County, Michigan, with toxaphene for control of sea lampreys

An experiment was conducted to determine whether toxaphene can be used to eradicate lake-dwelling sea lampreys and to determine its effect on fish populations. In East Bay, a 78-acre lake on the Sucker River, Alger County, Mich., an estimated concentration of 100 parts per billion was maintained for 14 days. The sea lamprey larvae were more resistant to toxaphene than were the fish, but a complete kill was indicated. One year after treatment, sea lampreys were absent from the lake, while the fish population had recovered.

Resource Publication↗

Coal and cremation at the Tschudi burn, Chan Chan, Northern Peru

Analyses of a 20-30 cm thick, completely combusted ash at the 25 ?? 70 m Tschudi burn at Chan Chan, northern Peru??, contain 52-55 wt% SiO2, 180-210 ppm zirconium and are consistent with coal ash. Soil geochemistry across the burn showed elevated calcium and phosphorus content, possible evidence for reported human cremation. A calcined, 5 g, 4.5 cm skull fragment recovered from the burn was confirmed as human by protein radioimmunoassay (pRIA). X-ray diffraction showed that the bone had been heated to 520??C. The burn took place c. ad 1312-1438 based on interpretation of a 14C date on carbonized plant tinder. ?? 2008 University of Oxford.

Archaeometry↗

In vitro detection and quantification of botulinum neurotoxin type E activity in avian blood

Botulinum neurotoxin serotype E (BoNT/E) outbreaks in the Great Lakes region cause large annual avian mortality events, with an estimated 17,000 bird deaths reported in 2007 alone. During an outbreak investigation, blood collected from bird carcasses is tested for the presence of BoNT/E using the mouse lethality assay. While sensitive, this method is labor-intensive and low throughput and can take up to 7 days to complete. We developed a rapid and sensitive in vitro assay, the BoTest Matrix E assay, that combines immunoprecipitation with high-affinity endopeptidase activity detection by Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) to rapidly quantify BoNT/E activity in avian blood with detection limits comparable to those of the mouse lethality assay. On the basis of the analysis of archived blood samples ( n = 87) collected from bird carcasses during avian mortality investigations, BoTest Matrix E detected picomolar quantities of BoNT/E following a 2-h incubation and femtomolar quantities of BoNT/E following extended incubation (24 h) with 100% diagnostic specificity and 91% diagnostic sensitivity.

Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, ↗

Strategies for managing the effects of urban development on streams

Urban development remains an important agent of environmental change in the United States. The U.S. population grew by 17 percent from 1982 to 1997, while urbanized land area grew by 47 percent, suggesting that urban land consumption far outpaced population growth (Fulton and others, 2001; Sierra Club, 2003; American Farmland Trust, 2009). Eighty percent of Americans now live in metropolitan areas. Each American effectively occupies about 20 percent more developed land (for housing, schools, shopping, roads, and other related services) than 20 years ago (Markham and Steinzor, 2006). Passel and Cohn (2008) predict a dramatic 48 percent increase in the population of the United States from 2005 to 2050. The advantages and challenges of living in these developed areas—convenience, congestion, employment, pollution—are part of the day-to-day realities of most Americans. Nowhere are the environmental changes associated with urban development more evident than in urban streams. The U.S. Geological Survey's National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program investigation of the effects of urban development on stream ecosystems (EUSE) during 1999–2004 provides the most spatially comprehensive analysis of stream impacts of urban development that has been completed in the United States. A nationally consistent study design was used in nine metropolitan areas of the United States—Portland, Oregon; Salt Lake City, Utah; Birmingham, Alabama; Atlanta, Georgia; Raleigh, North Carolina; Boston, Massachusetts; Denver, Colorado; Dallas, Texas; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A summary report published as part of the EUSE study describes several of these impacts on urban streams ( Coles and others, 2012 ).

Alabama;Colorado;Georgia;Massachusetts;North Carol↗

Selected water-quality data from the Cedar River and Cedar Rapids well fields, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 2006-10

The Cedar River alluvial aquifer is the primary source of municipal water in the Cedar Rapids, Iowa area. Municipal wells are completed in the alluvial aquifer approximately 40 to 80 feet below land surface. The City of Cedar Rapids and the U.S. Geological Survey have been conducting a cooperative study of the groundwater-flow system and water quality of the aquifer since 1992. Cooperative reports between the City of Cedar Rapids and the U.S. Geological Survey have documented hydrologic and water-quality data, geochemistry, and groundwater models. Water-quality samples were collected for studies involving well field monitoring, trends, source-water protection, groundwater geochemistry, surface-water-groundwater interaction, and pesticides in groundwater and surface water. Water-quality analyses were conducted for major ions (boron, bromide, calcium, chloride, fluoride, iron, magnesium, manganese, potassium, silica, sodium, and sulfate), nutrients (ammonia as nitrogen, nitrite as nitrogen, nitrite plus nitrate as nitrogen, and orthophosphate as phosphorus), dissolved organic carbon, and selected pesticides including two degradates of the herbicide atrazine. Physical characteristics (alkalinity, dissolved oxygen, pH, specific conductance and water temperature) were measured in the field and recorded for each water sample collected. This report presents the results of routine water-quality data-collection activities from January 2006 through December 2010. Methods of data collection, quality-assurance, and water-quality analyses are presented. Data include the results of water-quality analyses from quarterly sampling from monitoring wells, municipal wells, and the Cedar River.

Iowa↗

Mineral investigations between Khamis Mushayt and Bi'r Idimah, Saudi Arabia

Mineral investigations between Khamis Mushayt and Bi'r Idimah in the Asir quadrangle, sheet 1-217 (Brown and Jackson, 1959) began September 24, 1964 and ended November 20. Total distance travelled was 6264 kilometers. Sixteen camps were set, and 483 samples of various geologic materials, principally wadi sands, laterite, and gossan, were taken. Not all the area originally scheduled to be covered was examined, owing principally to more time being spent on scheelite and laterite than originally planned. No work was done in the area covered by the two 1:50,000 mosaics numbered 9E and 8E. They will be blocked out in January 1965. The area completed includes parts or all of the 1:50,000 scale mosaics numbered 8B, 8C, 8D, 8F, 9B, 9C, 9D, and 9F. No megascopic indication of an exploitable mineral deposit of any type, except the small occurrences of marble cited in the October 1964 report and slate already in use, was discovered. A previously unknown ancient working was found, but it is small. Unless spectro-chemical analysis of samples discloses anomalously great amounts of some element, the area examined must be considered as unfavorable for ore deposits, except possibly the gossan exposed south of Bi'r Idimah.

Open-File Report↗

Lithologic, natural-gamma, grain-size, and well-construction data for Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio

Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, in southwestern Ohio, overlies a buried-valley aquifer. The U.S. Geological Survey installed 35 observation wells at 13 sites on the base from fall 1988 through spring 1990. Fourteen of the wells were completed in bedrock; the remaining wells were completed in unconsolidated sediments. Split-spoon and bedrock cores were collected from all of the bedrock wells. Shelby-tube samples were collected from four wells. The wells were drilled by either the cable-tool or rotary method. Data presented in this report include lithologic and natural-gamma logs, and, for selected sediment samples, grain-size distributions of permeability. Final well-construction details, such as the total depth of well, screened interval, and grouting details, also are presented.

Ohio↗

Multilevel groundwater monitoring of hydraulic head and temperature in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho, 2011-13

From 2011 to 2013, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Project Office, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, collected depth-discrete measurements of fluid pressure and temperature in 11 boreholes located in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer. Each borehole was instrumented with a multilevel monitoring system (MLMS) consisting of a series of valved measurement ports, packer bladders, casing segments, and couplers. Multilevel monitoring at the INL has been ongoing since 2006 and this report summarizes data collected from 2011 to 2013 in 11 multilevel monitoring wells. Hydraulic head (head) and groundwater temperature data were collected from 11 multilevel monitoring wells, including 177 hydraulically isolated depth intervals from 448.0 to 1,377.6 feet below land surface. One port (port 3) within borehole USGS 134 was not monitored because of a valve failure. Head and temperature profiles reveal unique patterns for vertical examination of the aquifer’s complex basalt and sediment stratigraphy, proximity to aquifer recharge and discharge, and groundwater flow. These features contribute to some of the localized variability even though the general profile shape remained consistent over the period of record. Twenty-two major head inflections were described for 9 of 11 MLMS boreholes and almost always coincided with low‑permeability sediment layers and occasionally thick layers of dense basalt. However, the presence of a sediment layer or dense basalt layer was insufficient for identifying the location of a major head change within a borehole without knowing the true areal extent and relative transmissivity of the lithologic unit. Temperature profiles for boreholes completed within the Big Lost Trough indicate linear conductive trends; whereas, temperature profiles for boreholes completed within volcanic rift zones and near the southern boundary of the Idaho National Laboratory, indicate mostly convective heat transfer. Select boreholes along the southern boundary show a temperature reversal and cooler water deeper in the aquifer resulting from the vertical movement of groundwater. Vertical head and temperature change were quantified for each of the 11 multilevel monitoring systems. Vertical head gradients defined for the major inflections in the head profiles were as high as 2.9 feet per foot. In general, fractured basalt zones displayed relatively small vertical head differences and show a high occurrence within volcanic rift zones. Poor connectivity between fractures and higher vertical gradients were generally attributed to sediment layers and layers of dense basalt, or both. Groundwater temperatures in all boreholes ranged from 10.8 to 16.3 °C. Normalized mean head values were analyzed for all 11 multilevel monitoring wells for the period of record (2007–13). The mean head values suggest a moderately positive correlation among all boreholes and generally reflect regional fluctuations in water levels in response to seasonal climatic changes. Boreholes within volcanic rift zones and near the southern boundary (USGS 103, USGS 105, USGS 108, USGS 132, USGS 135, USGS 137A) display a temporal correlation that is strongly positive. Boreholes in the Big Lost Trough display some variations in temporal correlations that may result from proximity to the mountain front to the northwest and episodic flow in the Big Lost River drainage system. For example, during June 2012, boreholes MIDDLE 2050A and MIDDLE 2051 showed head buildup within the upper zones when compared to the June 2010 profile event, which correlates to years when surface water was reported for the Big Lost River several months preceding the measurement period. With the exception of borehole USGS 134, temporal correlation between MLMS wells completed within the Big Lost Trough is generally positive. Temporal correlation for borehole USGS 134 shows the least agreement with other MLMS boreholes located within the Big Lost Trough; however, borehole USGS 134 is close to the mountain front where tributary valley subsurface inflow is suspected.

Idaho↗

Variability in older forest structure in western Oregon

The goal of this report is to assist Federal land managers in developing realistic structural targets for young forests for which the development of late-successional and old-growth (LSOG) characteristics is a long-term management objective (i.e., in Late-Successional Reserves established under the Northwest Forest Plan). A unique LSOG structural database was created using complete inventories, or censuses (i.e., 100% timber cruise records), of all conifer trees > 1 ft diameter from 586 recently harvested older forests on five Bureau of Land Management (BLM) districts in western Oregon. The average area of each of the 586 inventoried older forests, 28.1 ac, clearly reflected the spatial scales typical of forest management units on Federal lands covered by the Northwest Forest Plan. All told, the LSOG database contains conifer tree census data for over 16,400 ac of LSOG forests. Ecoregion-level variability in LSOG forest structure was compared and contrasted for sites contained in the LSOG database. The spatial variability of trees and snags at 14 LSOG sites was characterized using structural data collected along one or more long (396-2178 ft) belt transects at each site.

Open-File Report↗

System characterization report on PRecursore IperSpettrale della Missione Applicativa (PRISMA)

Executive Summary This report addresses system characterization of the Italian Space Agency’s PRecursore IperSpettrale della Missione Applicativa (PRISMA) and is part of a series of system characterization reports produced and delivered by the U.S. Geological Survey Earth Resources Observation and Science Cal/Val Center of Excellence. These reports present and detail the methodology and procedures for characterization; present technical and operational information about the specific sensing system being evaluated; and provide a summary of test measurements, data retention practices, data analysis results, and conclusions. The Earth Resources Observation and Science Cal/Val Center of Excellence system characterization team completed data analyses to characterize the geometric (band to band and image to image), radiometric, and spatial performances. Results of these analyses indicate that PRISMA has a band-to-band geometric performance in the range of −0.046 to 0.040 pixel; an image-to-image geometric performance (relative to the Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager) in the range of −60.791 meters (m; −2.03 pixels) to 299.541 m (9.98 pixels); a radiometric performance in the range of −0.037 to −0.001 in offset and 1.026 to 1.274 in slope; and a spatial performance with a relative edge response in the range of 0.56 to 0.63, full width at half maximum in the range of 1.84 to 1.97 pixels, and a modulation transfer function at a Nyquist frequency in the range of 0.054 to 0.096. Regarding fairly large geometric accuracy, the following explanation is provided to help the reader. The geometric accuracy required for PRISMA is a 200-m circular error at 90 percent (CE90) without ground control points (GCPs), a 15-m CE90 using GCPs is documented in the PRISMA mission overview (Agenzia Spaziale Italiana, 2021). The PRISMA images used for the current system characterization were georeferenced without using any GCPs; thus, the 200-m geometric accuracy requirement is applied. Beginning in 2022, a worldwide GCP database will be used in the PRISMA product processing chain, which will improve georeferencing accuracy to meet the 15-m CE90 requirement.

Open-File Report↗

Selected low-flow frequency statistics for continuous-record streamgage locations in Maryland, 2010

According to a 2008 report by the Governor's Advisory Committee on the Management and Protection of the State's Water Resources, Maryland's population grew by 35 percent between 1970 and 2000, and is expected to increase by an additional 27 percent between 2000 and 2030. Because domestic water demand generally increases in proportion to population growth, Maryland will be facing increased pressure on water resources over the next 20 years. Water-resources decisions should be based on sound, comprehensive, long-term data and low-flow frequency statistics from all available streamgage locations with unregulated streamflow and adequate record lengths. To provide the Maryland Department of the Environment with tools for making future water-resources decisions, the U.S. Geological Survey initiated a study in October 2009 to compute low-flow frequency statistics for selected streamgage locations in Maryland with 10 or more years of continuous streamflow records. This report presents low-flow frequency statistics for 114 continuous-record streamgage locations in Maryland. The computed statistics presented for each streamgage location include the mean 7-, 14-, and 30-consecutive day minimum daily low-flow dischages for recurrence intervals of 2, 10, and 20 years, and are based on approved streamflow records that include a minimum of 10 complete climatic years of record as of June 2010. Descriptive information for each of these streamgage locations, including the station number, station name, latitude, longitude, county, physiographic province, and drainage area, also is presented. The statistics are planned for incorporation into StreamStats, which is a U.S. Geological Survey Web application for obtaining stream information, and is being used by water-resource managers and decision makers in Maryland to address water-supply planning and management, water-use appropriation and permitting, wastewater and industrial discharge permitting, and setting minimum required streamflows to protect freshwater biota and ecosystems.

Open-File Report↗

Dam-breach analysis and flood-inundation mapping for Lakes Ellsworth and Lawtonka near Lawton, Oklahoma

Dams provide beneficial functions such as flood control, recreation, and reliable water supplies, but they also entail risk: dam breaches and resultant floods can cause substantial property damage and loss of life. The State of Oklahoma requires each owner of a high-hazard dam, which the Federal Emergency Management Agency defines as dams for which failure or misoperation probably will cause loss of human life, to develop an emergency action plan specific to that dam. Components of an emergency action plan are to simulate a flood resulting from a possible dam breach and map the resulting downstream flood-inundation areas. The resulting flood-inundation maps can provide valuable information to city officials, emergency managers, and local residents for planning the emergency response if a dam breach occurs. Accurate topographic data are vital for developing flood-inundation maps. This report presents results of a cooperative study by the city of Lawton, Oklahoma, and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to model dam-breach scenarios at Lakes Ellsworth and Lawtonka near Lawton and to map the potential flood-inundation areas of such dam breaches. To assist the city of Lawton with completion of the emergency action plans for Lakes Ellsworth and Lawtonka Dams, the USGS collected light detection and ranging (lidar) data that were used to develop a high-resolution digital elevation model and a 1-foot contour elevation map for the flood plains downstream from Lakes Ellsworth and Lawtonka. This digital elevation model and field measurements, streamflow-gaging station data (USGS streamflow-gaging station 07311000, East Cache Creek near Walters, Okla.), and hydraulic values were used as inputs for the dynamic (unsteady-flow) model, Hydrologic Engineering Center's River Analysis System (HEC-RAS). The modeled flood elevations were exported to a geographic information system to produce flood-inundation maps. Water-surface profiles were developed for a 75-percent probable maximum flood scenario and a sunny-day dam-breach scenario, as well as for maximum flood-inundation elevations and flood-wave arrival times for selected bridge crossings. Some areas of concern near the city of Lawton, if a dam breach occurs at Lakes Ellsworth or Lawtonka, include water treatment plants, wastewater treatment plants, recreational areas, and community-services offices.

Oklahoma↗