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At least 343 records · Page 19Linked to original sources
USGS2010

First-order controls of extreme-storm impacts on the Mississippi-Alabama Barrier-Island chain

Predicting the morphological impacts and associated hazards of extreme storms on barrier islands is facilitated by examining historical poststorm images and identifying the predominant alongshore and cross-shore patterns of erosion and deposition for different island segments. Morphological changes on the Mississippi–Alabama barrier-island chain produced by 12 Category 3 and stronger hurricanes since 1852 were analyzed to investigate whether barrier-island responses to extreme storms are controlled primarily by local geomorphic conditions or primarily by storm characteristics. Results of those analyses demonstrate that (1) antecedent topography and geomorphic conditions (island width, land elevations, nearshore bathymetry, subaqueous-boundary conditions) tend to exert greater control on local barrier-island impacts than storm parameters (path, intensity, wind speeds, water levels, shelf duration), and (2) types and alongshore patterns of storm overwash and island breaching are commonly repeated for the same island segments. Even when impact patterns are identical, magnitudes of sequential impacts, such as the inland distance of sediment transport, are unequal and are controlled by storm parameters (water levels, wind speeds) that influence wave heights, overwash-flow depths, and current velocities.

Alabama, Mississippi↗
USGS2015

Rethinking the longitudinal stream temperature paradigm: region-wide comparison of thermal infrared imagery reveals unexpected complexity of river temperatures

Prevailing theory suggests that stream temperature warms asymptotically in a downstream direction, beginning at the temperature of the source in the headwaters and leveling off downstream as it converges to match meteorological conditions. However, there have been few empirical examples of longitudinal patterns of temperature in large rivers due to a paucity of data. We constructed longitudinal thermal profiles (temperature versus distance) for 53 rivers in the Pacific Northwest (USA) using an extensive dataset of remotely sensed summertime river temperatures and classified each profile into one of five patterns of downstream warming: asymptotic (increasing then flattening), linear (increasing steadily), uniform (not changing), parabolic (increasing then decreasing), or complex (not fitting other classes). We evaluated (1) how frequently profiles warmed asymptotically downstream as expected, and (2) whether relationships between river temperature and common hydroclimatic variables differed by profile class. We found considerable diversity in profile shape, with 47% of rivers warming asymptotically, and 53% having alternative profile shapes. Water temperature did not warm substantially over the course of the river for coastal parabolic and uniform profiles, and for some linear and complex profiles. Profile classes showed no clear geographical trends. The degree of correlation between river temperature and hydroclimatic variables differed among profile classes, but there was overlap among classes. Water temperature in rivers with asymptotic or parabolic profiles was positively correlated with August air temperature, tributary temperature and velocity, and negatively correlated with elevation, August precipitation, gradient, and distance upstream. Conversely, associations were less apparent in rivers with linear, uniform, or complex profiles. Factors contributing to the unique shape of parabolic profiles differed for coastal and inland rivers, where downstream cooling was influenced locally by climate or cool water inputs, respectively. Potential drivers of shape for complex profiles were specific to each river. These thermal patterns indicate diverse thermal habitats that may promote resilience of aquatic biota to climate change. Without this spatial context, climate change models may incorrectly estimate loss of thermally suitable habitat.

California, Idaho, Oregon, Washington↗
USGS2014

Origins and delineation of saltwater intrusion in the Biscayne aquifer and changes in the distribution of saltwater in Miami-Dade County, Florida

Intrusion of saltwater into parts of the shallow karst Biscayne aquifer is a major concern for the 2.5 million residents of Miami-Dade County that rely on this aquifer as their primary drinking water supply. Saltwater intrusion of this aquifer began when the Everglades were drained to provide dry land for urban development and agriculture. The reduction in water levels caused by this drainage, combined with periodic droughts, allowed saltwater to flow inland along the base of the aquifer and to seep directly into the aquifer from the canals. The approximate inland extent of saltwater was last mapped in 1995. An examination of the inland extent of saltwater and the sources of saltwater in the aquifer was completed during 2008–2011 by using (1) all available salinity information, (2) time-series electromagnetic induction log datasets from 35 wells, (3) time-domain electromagnetic soundings collected at 79 locations, (4) a helicopter electromagnetic survey done during 2001 that was processed, calibrated, and published during the study, (5) cores and geophysical logs collected from 8 sites for stratigraphic analysis, (6) 8 new water-quality monitoring wells, and (7) analyses of 69 geochemical samples. The results of the study indicate that as of 2011 approximately 1,200 square kilometers (km 2 ) of the mainland part of the Biscayne aquifer were intruded by saltwater. The saltwater front was mapped farther inland than it was in 1995 in eight areas totaling about 24.1 km 2 . In many of these areas, analyses indicated that saltwater had encroached along the base of the aquifer. The saltwater front was mapped closer to the coast than it was in 1995 in four areas totaling approximately 6.2 km 2 . The changes in the mapped extent of saltwater resulted from improved spatial information, actual movement of the saltwater front, or a combination of both. Salinity monitoring in some of the canals in Miami-Dade County between 1988 and 2010 indicated influxes of saltwater, with maximum salinities ranging from 1.4 to 32 practical salinity units (PSU) upstream of the salinity control structures. Time-series electromagnetic induction log data from monitoring wells G–3601, G–3608, and G–3701, located adjacent to the Biscayne, Snapper Creek, and Black Creek Canals, respectively, and upstream of the salinity control structures, indicated shallow influxes of conductive water in the aquifer that likely resulted from leakage of brackish water or saltwater from these canals. The determination that saltwater influxes were recent is supported by the similarity in the oxygen and hydrogen stable isotope composition in samples from the Snapper Creek Canal, 1.6 kilometers (km) inland of a salinity control structure, and in samples from well G–3608, which is adjacent to the canal, as well as by the relative ages of the water sampled from well G–3608 and other wells open to the aquifer below the saltwater interface. Historical and recent salinity information from the Card Sound Road Canal, monitoring well FKS8 located adjacent to the canal, and the 2001 helicopter electromagnetic survey indicated that saltwater may occasionally leak from this canal as far inland as 15 km. This leakage may be prevented or reduced by a salinity control structure that was installed in May 2010. Saltwater also may have leaked from the Princeton Canal. Results of geochemical sampling and analysis indicate a close correspondence between droughts and saltwater intrusion. Tritium/helium-3 apparent (piston-flow) ages determined from samples of saltwater with chloride concentrations of about 1,000 milligrams per liter (mg/L) or greater generally corresponded to a period during which droughts were frequent. Comparison of average daily air temperatures in Miami, Florida, with estimates of recharge temperatures determined from the dissolved gas composition in water samples indicated that saltwater likely entered the aquifer in April or early May when water levels are typically at their lowest during the year. Conversely, most of the samples of freshwater with chloride concentrations less than about 1,000 mg/L indicate recharge temperatures corresponding to air temperatures in mid to late May when rainfall and water levels in the aquifer increase, and the piston-flow ages of these samples correspond to wet years. The piston-flow ages of freshwater samples generally were younger than ages of samples of saltwater. Saltwater samples that were depleted in boron, magnesium, potassium, sodium, and sulfate, and enriched in calcium relative to the concentrations theoretically produced by freshwater/seawater mixing, generally were found to be associated with areas where saltwater had recently intruded. The calcium to (bicarbonate + sulfate) molar ratios (Ca/(HCO 3 +SO 4 )) of these samples generally were greater than 1. Saltwater samples from some of the monitoring wells, however, indicated little or no enrichment or depletion of these ions relative to the theoretical freshwater/seawater mixing line, and the Ca/(HCO 3 +SO 4 ) molar ratios of these samples generally were less than 1. Results indicated that aquifer materials are approaching equilibrium with seawater at these well locations.

Florida↗
USGS1985

Water resources and effects of development in Hernando County, Florida

In spite of the hill and valley terrain in the Brooksville Ridge area of Hernando County, Florida, little surface drainage occurs within the county. Recharge to the Floridan aquifer system occurs as infiltration of precipitation within the county or as ground-water flow from Sumter County to the east and Pasco County to the south. Discharge is principally to the Gulf of Mexico, but some ground water flows north into Citrus County before it reaches the Gulf. The Floridan aquifer system is generally unconfined. Water quality is generally good except near the coast where high chloride occurs. Water from the Floridan aquifer system accounted for 87 percent of the water used for irrigation, industry, and rural and public supply in 1982. Sixty-seven percent of this water was used by industry. Rock mining, the major industry, used 99 percent of the industrial water. The anticipated increase in population in the county between 1982 and 2000 will increase demand for water primarily from public water-supply systems. This higher demand will cause about a 1 percent reduction in flow from Weeki Wachee Springs, but little change in lake levels or saltwater intrusion will occur if the projected additional supplies are developed far enough inland from the coast. (USGS)

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗
USGS2019

Potential for increased inundation in flood-prone regions of southeast Florida in response to climate and sea-level changes in Broward County, Florida, 2060–69

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with Broward County Environmental Planning and Resilience Division, has developed county-scale and local-scale groundwater/surface-water models to study the potential for increased inundation and flooding in eastern Broward County that are due to changes in future climate and sea-level rise. These models were constructed by using MODFLOW 2005, with the surface-water system represented by using the Surface-Water Routing process and a new Urban Runoff process. The local-scale model allowed the use of finer grid resolution in a selected area of the county, whereas the county-scale model provided boundary conditions for the local-scale model and insight into the hydrologic behavior of the larger system. The aquifer layering, properties, and boundaries relied heavily on a previous three-dimensional variable-density solute-transport model of the same area developed by the U.S. Geological Survey. The surface-water system within these new models actively simulates a part of the extensive canal network by using level-pool routing and active structure operations within the Surface-Water Routing process. These models were used to simulate a historical base-case period (1990–99) by using measured data and regional climate model rainfall and potential evapotranspiration output. The simulated flow and water-level results generally captured the behavior of the hydrologic system. A future period (2060–69) was simulated by using regional climate model rainfall and potential evapotranspiration output representing a wetter and drier future and low, intermediate, and high sea-level rise projections. The results were used to evaluate the potential effects on the surface-water drainage system, coastal-structure operation, and wet-season groundwater levels. Future period simulations using the county-scale model indicate that (1) the effects of the changing climate and sea level are much more evident in eastern and coastal areas of Broward County compared to western areas, with increases in groundwater level nearly equivalent to sea-level rise; (2) coastal groundwater-level increases are distributed farther inland in the wetter future scenarios than in the drier future scenarios; (3) water levels at the westernmost groundwater station locations exhibited little change caused by sea-level rise and showed more dependence on changes in precipitation; (4) there was a reduced west-to-east groundwater gradient with increasing sea-level rise; and (5) increased downstream tidal stage at the S–13 structure resulted in increased reliance on the pump to control upstream inland canal stages. Future simulations using the local-scale model indicate similar behavior as seen in the county-scale model: (1) the coastal areas exhibited the largest impacts in groundwater levels in the future scenarios; (2) the westernmost, interior areas exhibited little change during the future scenarios; and (3) there was an increased reliance on the pump at the S–13 coastal structure but to a lesser extent than indicated in the county-scale model because of the reduced temporal scale of the local-scale model. Possible adaptation and mitigation strategies were simulated to evaluate the county-scale and local-scale models’ ability to simulate hydrologic changes. Alterations to S–13 pump operations within the county-scale model were tested, and results indicate a reduced effect of sea-level rise inland of the control structure, but the affected area is spatially limited. The concept of using pumps to reduce the local groundwater levels in two neighborhood-sized areas was tested by using the local-scale model. The MODFLOW 2005 Drain package was used to remove groundwater by using drainage elevations set to zero, 1 foot, and 2 feet above average wet-season groundwater levels. Area 1 was well connected to coastal boundaries, and a high rate of groundwater removal was required, whereas the rate of groundwater removal required was greatly reduced in Area 2, which is less connected to tidal boundaries. Water for these scenarios was assumed to be pumped to tide with no downstream effects.

Florida↗
USGS1960

Water management, agriculture, and ground-water supplies

Encyclopedic data on world geography strikingly illustrate the drastic inequity in the distribution of the world's water supply. About 97 percent of the total volume of water is in the world's oceans. The area of continents and islands not under icecaps, glaciers, lakes, and inland seas is about 57.5 million square miles, of which 18 million (36 percent) is arid to semiarid. The total world supply of water is about 326.5 million cubic miles, of which about 317 million is in the oceans and about 9.4 million is in the land areas. Atmospheric moisture is equivalent to only about 3,100 cubic miles of water. The available and accessible supply of ground water in the United States is somewhat more than 53,000 cubic miles (about 180 billion acre ft). The amount of fresh water on the land areas of the world at any one time is roughly 30,300 cubic miles and more than a fourth of this is in large fresh-water lakes on the North American Continent. Annual recharge of ground water in the United States may average somewhat more than 1 billion acre-feet yearly, but the total volume of ground water in storage is equivalent to all the recharge in about the last 160 years. This accumulation of ground water is the nation's only reserve water resource, but already it is being withdrawn or mined on a large scale in a few areas. The principal withdrawals of water in the United States are for agriculture and industry. Only 7.4 percent of agricultural land is irrigated, however; so natural soil moisture is the principal source of agricultural water, and on that basis agriculture is incomparably the largest water user. In view of current forecasts of population and industrial expansion, new commitments of water for agriculture should be scrutinized very closely, and thorough justification should be required. The 17 Western States no longer contain all the large irrigation developments. Nearly 10 percent of the irrigated area is in States east of the western bloc, chiefly in several Southeastern States. Ground water is not completely 'self-renewing' because, where it is being mined, the reserve is being diminished and the reserve would be renewed only if pumping were stopped. Water is being mined at the rate of 5 million acre-feet per year in Arizona and 6 million in the High Plains of Texas. In contrast, water has been going into storage in the Snake River Plain of Idaho, where deep percolation from surface-water irrigation has added about 10 million acre-feet of storage since irrigation began. Situations in California illustrate problems of land subsidence resulting from pumping and use of water, and deterioration of ground-water reservoirs due to sea-water invasion. Much water development in the United States has been haphazard and rarely has there been integrated development of ground water and surface water. Competition is sharpening and new codes of water law are in the making. New laws, however, will not prevent the consequences of bad management. An important task for water management is to recognize the contingencies that may arise in the future and to prepare for them. The three most important tasks at hand are to make more efficient use of water, to develop improved quantitative evaluations of water supplies arid their quality, and to develop management practices which are based on scientific hydrology.

Circular↗
USGS2012

Maps of estimated nitrate and arsenic concentrations in basin-fill aquifers of the southwestern United States

Human-health concerns and economic considerations associated with meeting drinking-water standards motivated a study of the vulnerability of basin-fill aquifers to nitrate contamination and arsenic enrichment in the southwestern United States. Statistical models were developed by using the random forest classifier algorithm to predict concentrations of nitrate and arsenic across a model grid representing about 190,600 square miles of basin-fill aquifers in parts of Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The statistical models, referred to as classifiers, reflect natural and human-related factors that affect aquifer vulnerability to contamination and relate nitrate and arsenic concentrations to explanatory variables representing local- and basin-scale measures of source and aquifer susceptibility conditions. Geochemical variables were not used in concentration predictions because they were not available for the entire study area. The models were calibrated to assess model accuracy on the basis of measured values. Only 2 percent of the area underlain by basin-fill aquifers in the study area was predicted to equal or exceed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency drinking-water standard for nitrate as N (10 milligrams per liter), whereas 43 percent of the area was predicted to equal or exceed the standard for arsenic (10 micrograms per liter). Areas predicted to equal or exceed the drinking-water standard for nitrate include basins in central Arizona near Phoenix; the San Joaquin Valley, the Santa Ana Inland, and San Jacinto Basins of California; and the San Luis Valley of Colorado. Much of the area predicted to equal or exceed the drinking-water standard for arsenic is within a belt of basins along the western portion of the Basin and Range Physiographic Province that includes almost all of Nevada and parts of California and Arizona. Predicted nitrate and arsenic concentrations are substantially lower than the drinking-water standards in much of the study area-about 93 percent of the area underlain by basin-fill aquifers was less than one-half the standard for nitrate as N (5.0 milligrams per liter), and 50 percent was less than one-half the standard for arsenic (5.0 micrograms per liter). The predicted concentrations and the improved understanding of the susceptibility and vulnerability of southwestern basin-fill aquifers to nitrate contamination and arsenic enrichment can be used by water managers as a qualitative tool to assess and protect the quality of groundwater resources in the Southwest.

Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New ↗
USGS2015

Evaluation of airborne lidar elevation surfaces for propagation of coastal inundation: the importance of hydrologic connectivity

Detailed information about coastal inundation is vital to understanding dynamic and populated areas that are impacted by storm surge and flooding. To understand these natural hazard risks, lidar elevation surfaces are frequently used to model inundation in coastal areas. A single-value surface method is sometimes used to inundate areas in lidar elevation surfaces that are below a specified elevation value. However, such an approach does not take into consideration hydrologic connectivity between elevation grids cells resulting in inland areas that should be hydrologically connected to the ocean, but are not. Because inland areas that should drain to the ocean are hydrologically disconnected by raised features in a lidar elevation surface, simply raising the water level to propagate coastal inundation will lead to inundation uncertainties. We took advantage of this problem to identify hydrologically disconnected inland areas to point out that they should be considered for coastal inundation, and that a lidar-based hydrologic surface should be developed with hydrologic connectivity prior to inundation analysis. The process of achieving hydrologic connectivity with hydrologic-enforcement is not new, however, the application of hydrologically-enforced lidar elevation surfaces for improved coastal inundation mapping as approached in this research is innovative. In this article, we propagated a high-resolution lidar elevation surface in coastal Staten Island, New York to demonstrate that inland areas lacking hydrologic connectivity to the ocean could potentially be included in inundation delineations. For inland areas that were hydrologically disconnected, we evaluated if drainage to the ocean was evident, and calculated an area exceeding 11 ha (~0.11 km 2 ) that could be considered in inundation delineations. We also assessed land cover for each inland area to determine the type of physical surfaces that would be potentially impacted if the inland areas were considered as part of a coastal inundation. A visual analysis indicated that developed, medium intensity and palustrine forested wetland land cover types would be impacted for those locations. This article demonstrates that hydrologic connectivity is an important factor to consider when inundating a lidar elevation surface. This information is needed for inundation monitoring and management in sensitive coastal regions.

Remote Sensing↗
USGS2002

Numerical simulation of ground-water withdrawals in the southern Lihue Basin, Kauai, Hawaii

Numerical simulations indicate that ground-water withdrawals from the Hanamaulu and Puhi areas of the southern Lihue Basin will result in a decline in water levels and reductions in base flows of streams near proposed new water-supply wells. Most of the changes will be attained within 10 to 20 years of the start of pumping. Except for areas such as Puhi and Kilohana, the freshwater lens in most inland areas of the southern Lihue Basin is thick and model simulations indicate that changes in water level and the position of the freshwater- saltwater interface in response to pumping will be small relative to the present thickness of the freshwater lens. Effects of the proposed withdrawals on streamflow depend on withdrawal rate and proximity of the wells to streams. Placing pumped wells away from streams with low base flow and toward streams with high base flow can reduce the relative effect on individual streams. Simulation of the 0.42-million-gallon-per-day increase in withdrawal projected for 2000 indicates that the resulting changes in water levels and interface position, relative to conditions prior to the withdrawal increase, will be small, and that stream base flow will be reduced by less than 10 percent. Simulation of the 0.83-million-gallon-per-day withdrawal projected for 2010 indicates further thinning of the freshwater lens in the Puhi area, where the lens already may be thin, as well as base-flow reduction in Nawiliwili Stream. Simulation of an alternative distribution of the 0.83-million-gallon-per-day withdrawal indicates that the effects can be reduced by shifting most of the new withdrawal to the Hanamaulu area where the freshwater lens is thicker and stream base flows are greater. Simulation of the 1.16-million-gallon-per-day increase in withdrawal projected for 2020 indicates that if withdrawal is distributed only among Hana-maulu wells 1, 3, and 4, and Puhi well 5A, further thinning of the already-thin freshwater lens in the Puhi area would occur. Such a distribution would also exceed the maximum draft recommended by the water-systems standards used in Hawaii. Another simulation in which part of the 1.16 million gallons per day was distributed among three additional hypothetical wells in the Hanamaulu area showed that the pumping effects could be shifted from the Puhi area to the Hanamaulu area, where the freshwater lens is thicker, but that base flow in Hanamaulu Stream may decrease by as much as 16 percent.

Hawaii↗
USGS2024

Estimating domestic self-supplied water use in Rhode Island, 2014–21

Water withdrawal from private groundwater wells is often unaccounted for in water planning studies, and water from private wells can be a source of exposure to environmental contaminants. The sizes of populations that depend on private wells for domestic water use and the amounts of water that are withdrawn from these wells are generally poorly represented in data collection efforts because of the challenges of locating, metering, or gathering withdrawal information from individual property owners. To address this problem, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Rhode Island Water Resources Board, estimated the volume of water withdrawn from domestic self-supply wells and the populations who use them for the State of Rhode Island at a 30-meter pixel spatial resolution and one-month temporal resolution between July 2014 and June 2021. The number of people reliant on domestic self-supply wells has increased in Rhode Island over the study period; however, the statewide estimate of total water withdrawal has not statistically increased. Withdrawals from private wells are largest in the inland areas of the western part of the State, and the towns of Scituate and Charlestown have the highest estimated withdrawals. Statewide monthly withdrawals ranged from 3.987 million gallons per day in March 2018 to 7.767 million gallons per day in September 2016. The median per capita domestic water use rate was 46.0 gallons per capita per day.

Rhode Island↗
USGS2025

Approximate inland extent of saltwater intrusion at the base of the Biscayne aquifer, Miami-Dade County, Florida, 2022

Miami-Dade County is part of a densely populated urban corridor in southeastern Florida. The Biscayne aquifer serves as Miami-Dade County’s primary drinking water source and is characterized by highly permeable karstic limestone and carbonate sand. The aquifer’s coastal location and permeable nature make it susceptible to saltwater intrusion. Monitoring the current inland extent and the rate of movement of the saltwater front in the aquifer can inform management strategies for conserving the long-term sustainability of the county’s water supply. In the 1950s, the U.S. Geological Survey published a map of the inland extent of saltwater intrusion in the Biscayne aquifer and has continued to update this map to monitor changes over time, with the most recent update published in 2018. An updated map has been created showing the approximate inland extent of saltwater intrusion in the Biscayne aquifer in eastern Miami-Dade County in 2022, with the 2018 extent shown for comparison. The inland extent of saltwater intrusion was mapped through the interpretation of borehole electromagnetic induction logs and measurements of chloride and specific conductance in groundwater samples. The location of the saltwater interface at the base of the Biscayne aquifer was represented by the 1,000-milligram-per-liter isochlor. This report describes changes in the location of the saltwater interface from 2018 to 2022. By 2022, the saltwater interface had moved farther inland in both the northern and southern parts of the county, advancing by as much as 0.3 kilometer in the north and up to 0.8 kilometer in the Model Land Area to the south. However, it remained relatively unchanged from its 2018 position in the east-central part of the county.

Florida↗
USGS2026

The Zooplankton International Geospatial (ZIG) dataset: A global repository of spatiotemporal freshwater zooplankton community composition data from lakes and reservoirs to support ecological research

Zooplankton transfer substantial energy in aquatic food webs and are used as indicators of environmental change. Syntheses of zooplankton community dynamics globally require datasets that span a wide range of environmental gradients; however, these datasets are limited due to methodological differences across programs, taxonomic inconsistencies, and a lack of standardized metadata. To reconcile these challenges, we created the Zooplankton International Geospatial (ZIG) dataset, which includes original zooplankton, water physical and chemical variables, and lake morphometric data from 311 inland lakes and reservoirs. ZIG includes waterbodies ranging in size from 0.005 to 82,100 km 2 and spanning broad latitudinal (−47.26 to 64.90) and longitudinal ranges (−165.04 to 176.53). Temporal coverage for individual waterbodies ranges between 1 and 60 yr with sampling frequency ranging from annually to weekly. With its extensive coverage and content, we consider ZIG to be a cornerstone for future investigations of global scale lake biodiversity change.

Limnology & Oceanography - Letters↗
USGS2019

Examining progress toward achieving the Ten Steps of the Rome Declaration on Responsible Inland Fisheries

Inland capture fisheries provide food for nearly a billion people and are important in the livelihoods of millions of households worldwide. Although there are limitations to evaluating many of the contributions made by inland capture fisheries, there is growing recognition by the international community that these services make critical contributions, most notably to food security and livelihoods in rural populations in those low-income countries with extensive freshwater resources. With the increasing appreciation of the key role of inland fisheries to the health and well-being of human populations globally, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and Michigan State University convened the 2015 global conference, Freshwater, fish, and the future – cross-sectoral approaches to sustain livelihoods, food security, and aquatic ecosystems. What emerged from the interactions between inland fisheries scientists, resource managers, policy makers, and community representatives from across the world, was a forward-looking call-to-action culminating with the 2015 Rome Declaration “Ten Steps to Responsible Inland Fisheries” (FAO and MSU 2016). Four years after this landmark conference and Declaration, we seek to advance discussion on the “Ten Steps,” namely, what successful implementation looks like, assess current examples of implementation, suggest potential signals of progress, and provide some specific, indicative examples of progress for each step. While there are promising signs of progress, we conclude that there remains a strong need to galvanize momentum for sustained action to ensure that inland fish and fisheries are accounted for and incorporated into broader water resource management discussions and frameworks.

Fish and Fisheries↗
USGS2021

Documentation and mapping of flooding from the January and March 2018 nor’easters in coastal New England

In January and March 2018, coastal Massachusetts experienced flooding from two separate nor’easters. To put the January and March floods into historical context, the USGS computed statistical stillwater elevations. Stillwater elevations recorded in January 2018 in Boston (9.66 feet relative to the North American Vertical Datum of 1988) have an annual exceedance probability of between 2 and 1 percent (between a 50- and 100-year recurrence interval). Stillwater elevations recorded in March 2018 in Boston (9.17 feet relative to the North American Vertical Datum of 1988) have an annual exceedance probability of between 4 and 2 percent (between a 25- and 50-year recurrence interval). Flood maps show that the area inundated by the January storm is slightly more extensive than that of the March storm, reflecting the respective profiles of the two storms. On the basis of a limited dataset, the attenuation of peak water levels was estimated as a function of the hydraulic distance inland and the starting stillwater elevation computed for the flood within 0.6 foot of what was measured in the field. A simple one-dimensional model was calibrated using flood elevation data collected after the January flood, and the results of the model were validated using flood elevation data collected after the March flood to model the attenuation of the flood elevations as the storms move inland.

Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, ↗
USGS1981

Paleoclimatic implications of Late Pleistocene marine ostracodes from the St. Lawrence lowlands.

Using modern zoogeographic data and inferred temperature ranges for Champlain Sea ostracode species, bottom water paleotemperatures were estimated for three phases of deposition of this inland sea. The temporal distribution of these and other environmentally diagnostic species in Champlain Sea deposits reveals a significant local climatic change in the Champlain Valley from frigid/subfrigid to cold-temperate marine conditions about 11 000 to 10 600 yr BP. Oceanographic changes in the Champlain Sea are correlated with major deglaciation events recorded in the North Atlantic.-from Author

Micropaleontology↗
USGS2019

Heavy mineral sands resources in China

About 200 known coastal deposits of heavy mineral sands (HMS) occur in China, in which considerable mineral resources of titanium, zircon, rare earth elements, and thorium exist in the forms of ilmenite, rutile, zircon, and monazite. More than 20 of these HMS deposits are reported as having been or are actively being mined in China during the past three decades, of which 12 have been reported to have industrial resources. Commercially important deposits occur almost entirely in Cenozoic beach and sand dune deposits, principally along China’s eastern coast (e.g., Shandong Province) and southern coast (e.g., Guangxi, Guangdong, Hainan, and Fujian provinces), and particularly on Hainan island. There are also important deposits of HMS along coastal areas of Taiwan. China has the largest share of the world’s economic ilmenite resources in HMS deposits (31%). A variety of igneous and associated metamorphic rocks along the coastal areas of China provided an abundant source of heavy minerals for the formation of the HMS occurrences. Studies of titanium-rich HMS deposits have shown that ilmenite is mostly sourced from igneous rocks. For example, 40% of the bedrock of Hainan island consists of Triassic and Cretaceous granites emplaced into rocks of the Cathyasia Block, and all of the HMS districts on the island lie no more than 15 km downstream from a Middle Triassic suite of syenite to granite intrusions. The southern coastal regions of Guangdong and Guangxi provinces are dominated by Jurassic granodiorite, biotite granite, two-mica granite, and A-type granite, with minor gabbro and syenite. Identified accessory minerals in the Jurassic alkaline granitoids include zircon, apatite, allanite, titanite, magnetite, ilmenite, monazite, and niobite. Thus, multiple plutons are in proximity to the Cenozoic coastal plain and are available as bedrock sources for the detrital titanium minerals, zircon, and monazite. More than 100 HMS deposits and prospects have been identified in Shandong Province, consisting of more than 20 varieties of heavy minerals in quartz sand, which include zircon, ilmenite, rutile, monazite, magnetite, xenotime, and gold (in general order of abundance) derived from Precambrian metamorphic basement and Mesozoic intrusions. Of these minerals, zircon, magnetite, gold, and quartz sand have economic significance. The quartz sands are used by the glass and construction industries. The placers mainly occur in and adjacent to the littoral zones of the northern and southern coasts of the Jiaodong Peninsula in Shandong province. Seven beach placer, HMS prospective areas have been delineated in coastal areas of the peninsula. Due to nearly exhausted placer reserves in the Chinese coastal zones, as well as increased environmental restrictions, future prospecting for heavy minerals will likely focus on ancient beach systems in China’s inland sedimentary basins. Also, offshore deposits of HMS in shallow coastal waters are other potential sources of heavy minerals, such as the Baoding Sea zircon-titanium, minerals-rich placer under development near Wanning on Hainan. Similarly, there is potential for offshore HMS deposits in shallow waters of the entire coastal area of southern Taiwan that remains to be fully evaluated. Reconnaissance sampling along Taiwan island’s coasts has revealed the potential for extensive, high-grade HMS accumulations nearshore.

Book chapter↗
USGS2021

The Holocene dynamics of Ryder Glacier and ice tongue in north Greenland

The northern sector of the Greenland Ice Sheet is considered to be particularly susceptible to ice mass loss arising from increased glacier discharge in the coming decades. However, the past extent and dynamics of outlet glaciers in this region, and hence their vulnerability to climate change, are poorly documented. In the summer of 2019, the Swedish icebreaker Oden entered the previously unchartered waters of Sherard Osborn Fjord, where Ryder Glacier drains approximately 2 % of Greenland's ice sheet into the Lincoln Sea. Here we reconstruct the Holocene dynamics of Ryder Glacier and its ice tongue by combining radiocarbon dating with sedimentary facies analyses along a 45 km transect of marine sediment cores collected between the modern ice tongue margin and the mouth of the fjord. The results illustrate that Ryder Glacier retreated from a grounded position at the fjord mouth during the Early Holocene ( > 10.7±0.4 ka cal BP) and receded more than 120 km to the end of Sherard Osborn Fjord by the Middle Holocene ( 6.3±0.3 ka cal BP), likely becoming completely land-based. A re-advance of Ryder Glacier occurred in the Late Holocene, becoming marine-based around 3.9±0.4 ka cal BP. An ice tongue, similar in extent to its current position was established in the Late Holocene (between 3.6±0.4 and 2.9±0.4 ka cal BP) and extended to its maximum historical position near the fjord mouth around 0.9±0.3 ka cal BP. Laminated, clast-poor sediments were deposited during the entire retreat and regrowth phases, suggesting the persistence of an ice tongue that only collapsed when the glacier retreated behind a prominent topographic high at the landward end of the fjord. Sherard Osborn Fjord narrows inland, is constrained by steep-sided cliffs, contains a number of bathymetric pinning points that also shield the modern ice tongue and grounding zone from warm Atlantic waters, and has a shallowing inland sub-ice topography. These features are conducive to glacier stability and can explain the persistence of Ryder's ice tongue while the glacier remained marine-based. However, the physiography of the fjord did not halt the dramatic retreat of Ryder Glacier under the relatively mild changes in climate forcing during the Holocene. Presently, Ryder Glacier is grounded more than 40 km seaward of its inferred position during the Middle Holocene, highlighting the potential for substantial retreat in response to ongoing climate change.

Ryder Glacier↗
USGS2008

Coast salish and U.S. Geological Survey: Tribal journey water quality project

The ancestral waters of the Coast Salish People, the Salish Sea, comprise a large inland sea contained within both United States (Puget Sound) and Canadian (Georgia Strait) territory. The Salish Sea is home to more than 220 species of fish, 29 species of marine mammals, more than 40 species of commercial and recreationally harvested invertebrates, and numerous resident and migratory bird species (Washington Sea Grant Program, 2000). Unfortunately, at least 60 of these marine based species are listed as threatened, endangered or of concern (Fraser and others, 2006), many of which sustained Coast Salish for millennia and are of essential cultural importance. The cumulative impacts of human activities and climate change are deteriorating coastal ecosystems and accelerating the loss of ecologically and culturally important marine resources. Watershed modifications, coastal development and industrial activities are altering river and tidal flow, sediment transport, and nutrient delivery all across the region, leading to the break down of ecosystem functions and decreasing biodiversity, thus changing the face of the Salish Sea. A cooperative trans-boundary partnership between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and the Government of Canada has identified Salish Sea indicators of health. Several of these indicators have been noted as having degrading quality including urbanization and forest change, river, stream, and lake quality, marine species at risk, toxics in harbor seals, and marine water quality conditions (USEPA, 2008). The functioning of the Salish Sea ecosystem is increasingly threatened by ever more frequent observations and expanding zones of anoxia. The complexities of monitoring, protecting, and restoring such a large and diverse geographical area are exacerbated by a political border. The Coast Salish Peoples and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) have commenced on a partnership to examine water quality throughout the Georgia Straits and Puget Sound, blending tradition and science, in response to this deterioration of coastal environments and loss of essential habitats and marine resources of cultural and ecological importance throughout the ancestral waters of the Salish Sea. This report describes the Coast Salish Tribal Journey Water Quality Project, its inception, the results of the 2008 Tribal Journey project, lessons learned, and recommendations for future directions.

Report↗