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Search indexed USGS publications on groundwater, aquifers, geologic maps, mineral resources and earthquakes. Explore source records by subject and place.

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At least 217 records · Page 12Linked to original sources
USGS2014

Basin-scale simulation of current and potential climate changed hydrologic conditions in the Lake Michigan Basin, United States

The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) is the largest public investment in the Great Lakes in two decades. A task force of 11 Federal agencies developed an action plan to implement the initiative. The U.S. Department of the Interior was one of the 11 agencies that entered into an interagency agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as part of the GLRI to complete scientific projects throughout the Great Lakes basin. The U.S. Geological Survey, a bureau within the Department of the Interior, is involved in the GLRI to provide scientific support to management decisions as well as measure progress of the Great Lakes basin restoration efforts. This report presents basin-scale simulated current and forecast climatic and hydrologic conditions in the Lake Michigan Basin. The forecasts were obtained by constructing and calibrating a Precipitation-Runoff Modeling System (PRMS) model of the Lake Michigan Basin; the PRMS model was calibrated using the parameter estimation and uncertainty analysis (PEST) software suite. The calibrated model was used to evaluate potential responses to climate change by using four simulated carbon emission scenarios from eight general circulation models released by the World Climate Research Programme’s Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 3. Statistically downscaled datasets of these scenarios were used to project hydrologic response for the Lake Michigan Basin. In general, most of the observation sites in the Lake Michigan Basin indicated slight increases in annual streamflow in response to future climate change scenarios. Monthly streamflows indicated a general shift from the current (2014) winter-storage/snowmelt-pulse system to a system with a more equally distributed hydrograph throughout the year. Simulated soil moisture within the basin illustrates that conditions within the basin are also expected to change on a monthly timescale. One effect of increasing air temperature as a result of the changing climate was the appreciable increase in the length of the growing season in the Lake Michigan Basin. The increase in growing season will cause an increase in evapotranspiration across the Lake Michigan Basin, which will directly affect soil moisture and late growing season streamflows. Output from the Lake Michigan Basin PRMS model is available through an online dynamic web mapping service available at (http://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2014/5175/). The map service includes layers for the each of the 8 global climate models and 4 carbon emission scenarios combinations for 12 hydrologic model state variables. The layers are pre-rendered maps of annual hydrologic response from 1977 through 2099 that provide an easily accessible online method to examine climate change effects across the Lake Michigan Basin.

Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin↗
USGS2007

GIS data for the Seaside, Oregon, Tsunami Pilot Study to modernize FEMA flood hazard maps

A Tsunami Pilot Study was conducted for the area surrounding the coastal town of Seaside, Oregon, as part of the Federal Emergency Management's (FEMA) Flood Insurance Rate Map Modernization Program (Tsunami Pilot Study Working Group, 2006). The Cascadia subduction zone extends from Cape Mendocino, California, to Vancouver Island, Canada. The Seaside area was chosen because it is typical of many coastal communities subject to tsunamis generated by far- and near-field (Cascadia) earthquakes. Two goals of the pilot study were to develop probabilistic 100-year and 500-year tsunami inundation maps using Probabilistic Tsunami Hazard Analysis (PTHA) and to provide recommendations for improving tsunami hazard assessment guidelines for FEMA and state and local agencies. The study was an interagency effort by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Geological Survey, and FEMA, in collaboration with the University of Southern California, Middle East Technical University, Portland State University, Horning Geoscience, Northwest Hydraulics Consultants, and the Oregon Department of Geological and Mineral Industries. The pilot study model data and results are published separately as a geographic information systems (GIS) data report (Wong and others, 2006). The flood maps and GIS data are briefly described here.

Oregon↗
USGS1999

Estimating the magnitude of peak flows for streams in Maine for selected recurrence intervals

This report gives estimates of, and presents techniques for estimating, the magnitude of peak flows for streams in Maine for recurrence intervals of 2, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, and 500 years. A flowchart in this report guides the user to the appropriate estimates and (or) estimating techniques for a site on a specific stream. Section 1, 'Estimates of peak flows and maximum recorded flows at USGS streamflow-gaging stations,' contains peak-flow estimates and the maximum recorded flows at 98 U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) streamflow-gaging stations. In the development of the peak-flow estimates at gaging stations, a new generalized skew coefficient was calculated for Maine. This single statewide value of 0.029 (with a standard error of prediction of 0.297) is more accurate for Maine than the national skew isoline map in Bulletin 17B of the Interagency Advisory Committee on Water Data. Two techniques are presented to estimate the peak flows for ungaged, unregulated streams in rural drainage basins. These two techniques were developed using generalized least squares regression procedures at 70 USGS gaging stations in Maine and eastern New Hampshire. Section 2, 'Estimating peak flows for ungaged, unregulated streams in rural drainage basins,' uses the final explanatory variables of drainage area and basin wetlands. The average standard error of prediction for the 100-year peak flow regression equation in section 2 was 48.6 percent to -32.7 percent. Drainage area was the only explanatory variable used in section 3, 'Estimating peak flows for ungaged, unregulated streams in rural drainage basins - Simplified technique.' The average standard error of prediction for the 100-year peak flow regression equation in section 3 was 80.3 percent to -44.5 percent. Section 4 of the report describes techniques for estimating peak flows for ungaged sites on gaged, unregulated streams in rural drainage basins. Section 5, 'Estimating peak flows for ungaged, unregulated streams in urbanized drainage basins,' describes regression equations for use when a drainage basin is urbanized. These urban regression equations come from a previous USGS nationwide study. As stated in section 6, because peak flows on regulated streams are dependent on variable human actions, estimating peak flows at ungaged sites on regulated streams is beyond the scope of this report.

Maine↗
USGS2008

Hazard information management during the autumn 2004 reawakening of Mount St. Helens volcano, Washington

The 2004 reawakening of Mount St. Helens quickly caught the attention of government agencies as well as the international news media and the public. Immediate concerns focused on a repeat of the catastrophic landslide and blast event of May 18, 1980, which remains a vivid memory for many individuals. Within several days of the onset of accelerating seismicity, media inquiries increased exponentially. Personnel at the U.S. Geological Survey, the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network, and the Gifford Pinchot National Forest soon handled hundreds of press inquiries and held several press briefings per day. About one week into the event, a Joint Information Center was established to help maintain a consistent hazard message and to provide a centralized information source about volcanic activity, hazards, area closures, and media briefings. Scientists, public-affairs specialists, and personnel from emergency-management, health, public-safety, and land-management agencies answered phones, helped in press briefings and interviews, and managed media access to colleagues working on science and safety issues. For scientists, in addition to managing the cycle of daily fieldwork, challenges included (1) balancing accurate interpretations of data under crisis conditions with the need to share information quickly, (2) articulating uncertainties for a variety of volcanic scenarios, (3) minimizing scientific jargon, and (4) frequently updating and effectively distributing talking points. Success of hazard information management during a volcanic crisis depends largely on scientists’ clarity of communication and thorough preplanning among interagency partners. All parties must commit to after-action evaluation and improvement of communication plans, incorporating lessons learned during each event.

Washington↗
USGS2018

Nearshore single-beam bathymetry data collected in 2015, Dauphin Island, Alabama

Dauphin Island, Alabama, is a barrier island located in the northern Gulf of Mexico that supports local residences, tourism, commercial infrastructure, and historic Fort Gaines. During the past decade, Dauphin Island was affected by several major hurricanes—Hurricanes Ivan (2004), Katrina (2005), and Isaac (2012)—and storms, along with sea-level rise, continue to present a threat to island stability. State and Federal managers are using a scientific approach to identify, formulate, and implement a long-term plan to provide restoration options for Dauphin Island, thereby helping increase its resilience against future storms and sea-level rise. Island morphology, including current bathymetry and shoreline data, is one scientific domain being investigated in an effort to produce a comprehensive restoration plan funded by an interagency grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund . In August 2015, the U.S. Geological Survey ( USGS ) St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center ( SPCMSC ), in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, Mobile District, and the State of Alabama, conducted bathymetric surveys of the nearshore waters surrounding Dauphin Island. This report provides a detailed methodology for the data acquisition and post-processing of 1,165-line kilometers (km) of single-beam bathymetry data collected under the USGS–SPCMSC Alabama Barrier Island Restoration Study . These data were acquired and processed under USGS field activity number 2015–326–FA . Data are provided in three datums: (1) the International Terrestrial Reference Frame of 2000, ellipsoid height (from –47.04 meters (m) to –29.36 m); (2) the North American Datum of 1983, CORS96 realization (NAD83 (CORS96)) horizontal, and the North American Vertical Datum 1988 GEOID12A vertical (from –0.24 m to –17.33 m); and (3) NAD83 (CORS96) horizontal, and mean lower low water vertical (from –0.12 m to –17.93 m). The x,y,z point datasets, trackline shapefiles, digital and handwritten Field Activity Collection Systems logs, one 50-m digital elevation model, and formal Federal Geographic Data Committee metadata are obtainable from the Data Downloads page or the associated USGS data release .

Alabama↗
USGS2009

Estimation of Flood Discharges at Selected Recurrence Intervals for Streams in New Hampshire

This report provides estimates of flood discharges at selected recurrence intervals for streamgages in and adjacent to New Hampshire and equations for estimating flood discharges at recurrence intervals of 2-, 5-, 10-, 25-, 50-, 100-, and 500-years for ungaged, unregulated, rural streams in New Hampshire. The equations were developed using generalized least-squares regression. Flood-frequency and drainage-basin characteristics from 117 streamgages were used in developing the equations. The drainage-basin characteristics used as explanatory variables in the regression equations include drainage area, mean April precipitation, percentage of wetland area, and main channel slope. The average standard error of prediction for estimating the 2-, 5-, 10-, 25-, 50-, 100-, and 500-year recurrence interval flood discharges with these equations are 30.0, 30.8, 32.0, 34.2, 36.0, 38.1, and 43.4 percent, respectively. Flood discharges at selected recurrence intervals for selected streamgages were computed following the guidelines in Bulletin 17B of the U.S. Interagency Advisory Committee on Water Data. To determine the flood-discharge exceedence probabilities at streamgages in New Hampshire, a new generalized skew coefficient map covering the State was developed. The standard error of the data on new map is 0.298. To improve estimates of flood discharges at selected recurrence intervals for 20 streamgages with short-term records (10 to 15 years), record extension using the two-station comparison technique was applied. The two-station comparison method uses data from a streamgage with long-term record to adjust the frequency characteristics at a streamgage with a short-term record. A technique for adjusting a flood-discharge frequency curve computed from a streamgage record with results from the regression equations is described in this report. Also, a technique is described for estimating flood discharge at a selected recurrence interval for an ungaged site upstream or downstream from a streamgage using a drainage-area adjustment. The final regression equations and the flood-discharge frequency data used in this study will be available in StreamStats. StreamStats is a World Wide Web application providing automated regression-equation solutions for user-selected sites on streams.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2018

Insights from long-term ungrazed and grazed watersheds in a salt desert Colorado Plateau ecosystem

Dryland ecosystems cover over 41% of the earth’s land surface, and living within these important ecosystems are approximately 2 billion people, a large proportion of whom are subsistence agropastoralists. Improper grazing in drylands can negatively impact ecosystem productivity, soil conservation, hydrologic processes, downstream water quantity and quality, and ultimately human health and economic well-being. Concerns regarding the degraded state of western US rangelands in the 1950s resulted in an interagency committee to study the effects of land use on runoff and erosion processes. In 1953, a federal research group established four paired watersheds in western Colorado to study the interaction of grazing by domestic livestock, runoff, and sediment yield. Exclusion of livestock from half of the watersheds dramatically reduced runoff and sediment yield after the first 10 yr—primarily due to changes in ground cover but not vegetation. Here, we report results of repeated soils and vegetation assessments of the experimental watersheds after more than 50 yr of grazing exclusion. Results show that many of the differences in soil conditions between grazed and ungrazed watersheds observed in the 1950s and 1960s were still present in 2004, despite reduced numbers of livestock: few differences in vegetation cover but large differences in biological soil crusts, soil stability, soil compaction, and soil biogeochemistry. There were differences among soil types in response to grazing history, especially soil lichen cover and soil organic matter, nitrogen, and sodium. Comparisons of ground cover measured in 2004 with those measured in 1953, 1966, and 1972 suggest much of the differences between grazed and ungrazed watersheds likely were driven by high sheep numbers during droughts in the 1950s. Persistence of these differences, despite large reductions in stocking rates , suggest the combination of overgrazing and drought may have pushed these salt desert ecosystems into a persistent, degraded ecological state.

Salt Desert Colorado Plateau Ecosystem↗
USGS2007

Simulation of flow and habitat conditions under ice, Cache la Poudre River - January 2006

The U.S. Forest Service authorizes the occupancy and use of Forest Service lands by various projects, including water storage facilities, under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act. Federal Land Policy and Management Act permits can be renewed at the end of their term. The U.S. Forest Service analyzes the environmental effects for the initial issuance or renewal of a permit and the terms and conditions (for example, mitigations plans) contained in the permit for the facilities. The U.S. Forest Service is preparing an environmental impact statement (EIS) to determine the conditions for the occupancy and use for Long Draw Reservoir on National Forest System administered lands. The scope of the EIS includes evaluating current operations and effects to fish habitat of an ongoing winter release of 0.283 m3 /s (10 ft3 /s) from headwater reservoirs as part of a previously issued permit. The field conditions observed during this study included this release. The U.S. Forest Service entered into an interagency agreement (05-IA-11021000-030) with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Fort Collins Science Center to perform analysis of fish habitat and flow relationships in the Cache la Poudre River during winter ice-over conditions using a twodimensional hydrodynamic model. The U.S. Forest Service selected the Fort Collins Science Center for this task because of their expertise in developing two-dimensional hydraulic models for habitat modeling applications. This report transmits model results to the U.S. Forest Service to analyze the effects of alternative flow scenarios at a site on the mainstem Cache la Poudre River in Larimer County, Colorado, near Kinikinik (40° 42' 44.16" N. lat, 105° 44' 30.70" W. log), as shown in figure 1. It will be used in pending environmental analyses and decisions for the occupancy and use of the Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forest by water storage facilities. The water management scenarios of interest in this study are related to releasing water from Chambers and Barnes Meadows Reservoirs, based on the assumption that winter flow augmentation can increase potential fish habitat. Figure 2 shows the relationship between Chambers, Barnes Meadows, and Long Draw Reservoirs. At the time this study was proposed, existing flow simulation results showed that the channel constraints imposed by existing artificial low-head dikes would have little or no effect on the hydrodynamics of the river at the low flow levels that were to be evaluated. The Kinikinik study site contains deep pools, riffles, and runs. This diversity of habitat types made it ideal for assessing the effects of altered flow on fish habitat under ice in the main stem Cache la Poudre River. Thus, the Kinikinik site was selected for this study of winter habitat conditions. The preexisting topographic and hydrologic data collected at this site enabled data collection efforts for this study to focus on describing streamflow and ice cover during the winter months. A two-dimensional hydrodynamic model, River2D (Steffler and Blackburn, 2002), was used to simulate flow conditions under the ice cover that was observed January 24, 2006. The objectives of this study are (1) to describe the extent and thickness of ice cover, (2) simulate depth and velocity under ice at the study site for observed and reduced flows, and (3) to quantify fish habitat in this portion of the mainstem Cache la Poudre River for the current winter release schedule as well as for similar conditions without the 0.283 m 3 /s winter release.

Colorado↗
USGS2002

Flow-frequency characteristics of Vermont streams

The safe and economical design of infrastructure in and near waterways and the effective management of flood-hazard areas require information on streamflow that may not be readily available. This report provides estimates of flow-frequency characteristics for gaged streams in Vermont and describes methods for estimating flow-frequency characteristics for ungaged streams. The flow-frequency characteristics investigated are the magnitude of peak discharges at recurrence intervals of 2, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, and 500 years, and the magnitude of daily-mean discharges exceeded 25, 50, and 75 percent of the time. Peak-flow frequency characteristics for gaged streams were computed following the guidelines in Bulletin 17B of the U.S. Interagency Advisory Committee on Water Data. To determine the peak-flow exceedance probabilities at stream-gaging stations in Vermont, a new generalized skew coefficient map for the State was developed. This new map has greater resolution and more current data than the existing National map. The standard error of the new map is 0.269. Two methods of extending streamflow record were applied to improve estimates of peak-flow frequency for streams with short flow records (10 to 15 years) in small drainage areas (sites less than 15 square miles). In the first method, a two-station comparison, data from a long-record site was used to adjust the frequency characteristics at the short-record site. This method was applied to 31 crest-stage gages--stations at which only instantaneous peak discharges are determined--in Vermont. The second method used rainfall-runoff modeling. Precipitation and evapotranspiration data from 1948 to 1999 for numerous climate data-collection sites were used as input to a model to simulate flows at 10 stream-gaging stations in Vermont. Also, methods are described to estimate flow-frequency characteristics for ungaged and unregulated rural streams in Vermont. The peak-flow estimating methods were developed by generalized-least-squares regression procedures with data from 138 U.S. Geological Survey stream-gaging stations in Vermont and in adjacent areas of New York, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Quebec. The flow-duration (daily flow exceeded a given percentage of the time) estimating methods were developed by ordinary-least-squares regression procedures with data from 81 stream-gaging stations in Vermont and adjacent states.

Vermont↗
USGS1996

Resource assessment of the Bureau of Land Management's Winnemucca District and Surprise Resource Area, Northwest Nevada and Northeast California; geology and its relation to resource genesis

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is a party to joint interagency Memorandum of Understandings (MOUs) with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) to coordinate resource assessments and evaluations of BLM administered lands. Resource assessments of BLM Resource Areas, that are conducted by the USGS under these MOUs, assist the BLM in meeting inventory and evaluation, resource-management planning, and other management requirements of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA). This report is one of several to be generated as part of a resource assessment of BLMadministered lands in northwest Nevada and northeast California. The project area is composed of three contiguous BLM Resource Areas (RAs), totalling 13.5 million acres, in northwest Nevada and northeast California (figs. 1, 2). The SonomaGerlach and Paradise-Denio Resource Areas in northwest Nevada together comprise the BLM's Winnemucca District. The Surprise RA is located in extreme northwest Nevada and northeast California and is part of the BLM's Susanville District, which is administered by the BLM's California state office. Henceforth in this report, the project area will be referred to as the Winnemucca-Surprise Resource Assessment Area (WSRAA). Sources of geologic data used in this compilation include the state geologic maps of Nevada (Stewart and Carlson, 1978) and California (Jennings, 1977). Other regional, largerscale geologic maps of the area that were used include the 1:250,000 scale Nevada county geologic maps (Willden, 1964; Bonham, 1969; Willden and Speed, 1974; Johnson, 1977), l:125,000-scale geologic quadrangle maps (Ferguson and others, 1951, 1952; Muller and others, 1951), 1:62,500-scale geologic quadrangle maps (Gilluly, 1967; Silberling and Wallace, 1967; Wallace and others, 1969a, b) and several 1:48,000- and 1:24,000-scale geologic quadrangle maps (e.g., Erickson and Marsh, 1974 b, c; Vikre, 1985b; Theodore, 1991 a, b; 1994; Doebrich, 1994, 1995; Jones, in press a, b). The geology of the WSRAA records a complex history of Paleozoic and Mesozoic accretionary and plutonic events followed by Tertiary extensional tectonism and magmatism. This report chronologically outlines sedimentologic, magmatic, and tectonic events that shaped the geology of the WSRAA and relates these events to the genesis and distribution of the region's mineral and non-mineral resources. This is the initial report of several scheduled to be prepared on the WSRAA. Others reports include geochemistry, geophysics, hydrothermal alteration classification using Landsat Thematic Mapper imagery, assessment of metallic mineral resources, assessment of non-metallic mineral resources, and assessment of oil and gas resources.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2023

National preparedness strategy & action plan for potentially hazardous near-Earth objects and planetary defense

Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) are asteroids and comets that orbit the Sun, but have orbits that can bring them into Earth’s neighborhood—within 30 million miles of Earth’s orbit. Planetary defense is “applied planetary science” to address the NEO impact risks on Earth. This National Preparedness Strategy and Action Plan for Near-Earth Objects and Planetary Defense (2023 Planetary Defense Strategy) updates the United States’ first comprehensive Near-Earth Object Preparedness Strategy and Action Plan, released in 2018. The 2023 Planetary Defense Strategy builds on existing efforts by Federal Departments and Agencies to address the hazard of near-Earth object impacts, includes evaluation of where progress has been made since 2018, and focuses future work on planetary defense across the U.S. government. The 2023 Planetary Defense Strategy maintains and updates the core five goals of the 2018 Strategy and Action Plan, while adding a sixth goal to improve governance and interagency coordination on planetary defense issues across Federal Departments and Agencies for the decade ahead. The 2023 Planetary Defense Strategy focuses on six goals: • Goal 1: Enhance NEO detection, tracking, and characterization capabilities. • Goal 2: Improve NEO modeling, prediction, and information integration. • Goal 3: Develop technologies for NEO deflection and disruption missions. • Goal 4: Increase international cooperation on NEO preparation. • Goal 5: Strengthen and routinely exercise NEO impact emergency procedures and action protocols. • Goal 6: Improve U.S. governance of planetary defense through new interagency collaboration.

Report↗
USGS2003

U.S. Geological Survey Greater Everglades Science Program: 2002 Biennial Report

Introduction The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducts scientific investigations in south Florida to improve society’s understanding of the environment and assist in the sustainable use, protection, and restoration of the Everglades and other ecosystems within the region. The investigations summarized in this document have been carried out under the Greater Everglades Science Program (previously known as the South Florida Ecosystem Program), which is part of the USGS Place-Based Studies initiative. The USGS Placed-Based Studies initiative is a nationwide program that concentrates on areas with severe environmental problems. Through interdisciplinary investigations the Program provides sound scientific information on which to base informed resource management decisions. Individuals from all the USGS programs (hydrology, geology, biology, mapping) work together with other scientists to cover the diverse scientific disciplines involved in this complex and challenging task. The Greater Everglades Science Program began in 1995 as one of the initial Place-Based Studies programs and serves as a model for similar future collaborative studies. Placed-Based Studies are also being conducted in the San Francisco Bay area, Chesapeake Bay, the Platte River, Greater Yellowstone, Salton Sea, and the Mojave Desert. The South Florida Ecosystem Program is part of a coordinated federal effort, under the South Florida Ecosystem Restoration Task Force. The Task Force was started in 1993, through interagency agreement, to coordinate the efforts of the agencies within six federal departments. In 1996, statutory authority formalized the Task Force and expanded it to include tribal, state, and local governments. The Task Force conducts its activities through the South Florida Ecosystem Working Group and teams, such as the Science Coordination Team. A Science Plan and Integrated Financial Plans are established to focus efforts and prevent duplicative efforts by the agencies.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2003

Peak-flow frequency estimates for U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations in Connecticut

Annual peak-flow data from 128 U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations in Connecticut with at least 10 consecutive years of record were used to estimate peak-flow magnitudes for 1.5-, 2-, 10-, 25-, 50-, 100- and 500-year recurrence intervals (exceedance probabilities of 0.67, 0.50, 0.10, 0.04, 0.02, 0.01, and 0.002, respectively). Peak-flow frequency analyses of annual peak flows through the 2001 water year were performed using the procedures in the publication 'Guidelines for Determining Flood-Flow Frequency,' commonly referred to as Bulletin 17B, by the Interagency Advisory Committee on Water Data (1982). A generalized skew coefficient of 0.34, with a standard error of prediction of 0.51, was developed to improve peak-flow frequency estimates in the state; this replaces the generalized skew coefficients for Connecticut shown in Bulletin 17B.

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS2020

Aquatic invasive species in the Chesapeake Bay drainage—Research-based needs and priorities of U.S. Geological Survey partners and collaborators

Executive Summary The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is revising the Chesapeake Bay-based science plan to align it with recent U.S. Department of Interior and USGS science priorities that include, as stated in the plan, providing “an integrated understanding of the factors affecting fish habitat, fish health, and landscape conditions” in Chesapeake Bay and its watershed. A report of partner agencies’ needs and priorities related to aquatic invasive species (AIS) science was identified as an informational gap; a report would help to further development of the science program related to aquatic animal health and habitat. This objective was addressed through review of pertinent documentation and conversations with representatives of State, Federal, and regional agencies with vested interests in AIS management in Chesapeake Bay and the Chesapeake Bay drainage area, and this document was produced to summarize the related findings. All agencies and organizations (13) reported that AIS are of general concern, with most stakeholder groups reporting AIS-related issues to be of high priority, including invasive fishes and invertebrates, invasive plants, and microbes including aquatic animal pathogens. Invasive fishes are of great concern to all partner agencies. Channa argus (northern snakehead) and Ictalurus furcatus (blue catfish) are high priority and represent the two most named AIS of concern for these agencies. Nine of 10 stakeholder groups listed northern snakehead as a high priority species, and 6 listed blue catfish as a high priority species as well. Pylodictis olivaris (flathead catfish), invasive crayfish species , and dressenid mussels were also prioritized by multiple partner groups, each receiving specific mention by at least 3 of the 10 stakeholder groups in discussions or documents. Invasive carp, such as Hypophthalmichthys molatrix (silver carp), also received mention by multiple agencies (3 of the 10 stakeholder groups) because these fish represent priority AIS in nearby watersheds and a threat for introduction and dissemination within the Chesapeake Bay watershed from these neighboring regions. Invasive plants are among priority species, and Hydrilla verticillata (hydrilla) topped the list. Hydrilla was reported as a priority species by 5 of the stakeholder groups queried. Trapa natans and T. bispinosa (water chestnut), Phragmites australis (common reed), and Lythrum salicaria (purple loosestrife) were also among the aquatic invasive plants that were prioritized by multiple partner agencies. Multiple stakeholder groups (5 of the 10 groups) also considered Didymosphenia geminata (didymo) and various aquatic animal pathogens among their priority AIS for management considerations. Science needs that were recurrently indicated by stakeholders to support management of invasive species include Technology to enhance biosurveillance capability, such as reliable environmental DNA based detection methodology; Risk assessment modeling to forewarn of and prioritize AIS-related threats; Increased information and intervention methods related to vectors and pathways of AIS introductions; Increased information about the biology and life history of AIS, including information related to trophic interactions, health and disease, and distribution and abundance; and Potential applications of mitigation strategies, including genetically based biocontrol mechanisms. Potential next steps to address the science needs include Development of biosurveillance and risk assessment tools for identification of AIS in proactive management; Development of proactive management techniques to prevent AIS introductions through recognized vectors and pathways; Development of interagency biosurveillance programs to best utilize personnel, funds, and other resources among interested agencies and organizations; Investigations to address life history, consequences, and movement/dissemination of top priority invasive species in the region; Investigations to determine the potential for novel mitigation technologies, such as the application of synthetic biological (genetic) control methods; and Investigations with focus on emerging and high priority AIS in the region, including fishes (blue catfish, flathead catfish, northern snakehead), invertebrates (invasive crayfish and mollusks) and plants (hydrilla, water chestnut, phragmites).

Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, West Virginia, Penns↗
USGS2023

National Civil Applications Center

Introduction The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Civil Applications Center (NCAC) analyzes remote-sensing data from the Intelligence Community (IC) and the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) to support public safety missions and to study land-surface and environmental changes. The NCAC provides remotely sensed images to USGS scientists and other civilian Federal agencies; the images come from intelligence and military sensors, referred to as U.S. National Imagery Systems (USNIS), and unclassified commercial satellite data purchased by the DOD. Often these data are referred to as Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT), which is defined in U.S. Code, title 10, section 467 as “the exploitation and analysis of imagery and geospatial information to describe, assess, and visually depict physical features and geographically referenced activities on or about the earth. Geospatial intelligence consists of imagery, imagery intelligence, and geospatial information.” The NCAC also provides the secretariat with staff and manages the U.S. interagency Civil Applications Committee (CAC), which oversees and facilitates the appropriate civilian uses of overhead remote-sensing technology and data collected by military and intelligence systems and commercial sources. Funded by the USGS National Land Imaging Program, the NCAC operates facilities in Reston, Virginia, and Lakewood, Colorado.

Fact Sheet↗
USGS2000

Recent research on the hydrodynamics of the Sacramento - San Joaquin River Delta and north San Francisco Bay

This article presents an overview of recent findings from hydrodynamic research on circulation and mixing in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Delta) (Figure 1) and North San Francisco Bay (North Bay) (Figure 2). For the purposes of this article, North Bay includes San Pablo Bay, Carquinez Strait, and Suisun Bay. The findings presented are those gained from field studies carried out by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), as part of the Interagency Ecological Program (IEP), and Stanford University beginning about 1993. The premise behind these studies was that a basic understanding of circulation and mixing patterns in the Bay and Delta is an essential part of understanding how biota and water quality are affected by natural hydrologic variability, water appropriation, and development activities. Data collected for the field studies described in this article have significantly improved our understanding of Bay and Delta hydrodynamics. Measured flows ,in the Delta have provided valuable information on how water moves through the Delta's network of channels and how export pumping affects flows. Studies of the shallows and shallow-channel exchange processes conducted in Honker Bay have shown that the water residence time in Honker Bay is much shorter than previously reported (on the order of hours to several tidal cycles instead ofweeks). Suisun Bay studies have provided data on hydrodynamic transport and accumulation mechanisms that operate primarily in the channels. The Suisun Bay studies have caused us to revise our understanding of residual circulation in the channels of North Bay and of "entrapment" mechanisms in the low salinity zone. Finally, detailed tidal and residual (tidally averaged) time-scale studies of the mechanisms that control gravitational circulation in the estuary show that density-driven transport in the channels is governed by turbulence time-scale (seconds) interactions between the mean flow and stratification. The hydrodynamic research summarized in this article spans a range of estuarine environments (deep water channels to shallow water habitats and brackish water to freshwater) at time scales that range from seconds to years.

California↗
USGS2024

One Health best practice case study: Advancing national One Health coordination in the United States through the One Health zoonotic disease prioritization process

The U.S. government advances One Health coordination through the best practices of jointly developing shared priorities and utilizing formalized coordination platforms to connect partners from public health, agriculture, wildlife, environment, and other sectors at the national, subnational (e.g. state, tribal, local, and territorial), and non-governmental levels (e.g. academia, industry, non-governmental organizations, and the public) levels. Coordinated efforts were strengthened through the U.S. One Health Zoonotic Disease Prioritization (OHZDP) workshop in 2017, which led to the prioritization of eight zoonotic diseases and development of next steps and action plans for One Health collaboration across federal agencies (Prioritizing Zoonotic Diseases for Multisectoral, One Health Collaboration in the United States, 2017). This One Health best practice was used to prioritize the top endemic and emerging zoonoses of greatest concern for the United States, identify gaps, and define plans for U.S. government One Health collaboration to address the priority zoonotic diseases. Multiple actions that strengthened One Health coordination were enacted, including establishing the One Health Federal Interagency COVID-19 Coordination (OH-FICC) group. To further advance One Health in the United States, Congress mandated that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of the Interior, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture collaborate to develop the National One Health Framework to Address Zoonotic Diseases and Advance Public Health Preparedness in the United States as well as formalize a One Health, multisectoral coordination mechanism, the United States One Health Coordination Unit at the federal level (Appropriations Committee Report, 2021; Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023). Enhancing national level One Health coordination in the United States has also helped advance collaboration with subnational and non-governmental levels to address timely One Health issues.

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