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USGS2017

The 3D Elevation Program national indexing scheme

The 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) acquires high-resolution elevation data for the Nation. This program has been operating under an opportunity-oriented approach, acquiring light detection and ranging (lidar) projects of varying sizes scattered across the United States. As a result, the national 3DEP elevation layer is subject to data gaps or unnecessary overlap between adjacent collections. To mitigate this problem, 3DEP is adopting a strategic, systematic approach to national data acquisition that will create efficiencies in efforts to achieve nationwide elevation data coverage and help capture additional Federal and non-Federal investments resulting from advance awareness of proposed acquisitions and partnership opportunities. The 3DEP Working Group, an interagency group managed by the USGS, has agreed that all future 3DEP collections within the lower 48 States should be coordinated by using a 1-kilometer by 1-kilometer tiling scheme for the conterminous United States. Fiscal Year 2018 is being considered a transition year, and in Fiscal Year 2019 the national indexing scheme will be fully implemented, so that all 3DEP-supported projects will be acquired and delivered in the national indexing scheme and projected into the Albers Equal Area projection.

Fact Sheet↗
USGS1891

Index to the known fossil insects of the world, including myriapods and arachnids

With the view of furthering study in the too neglected field of fossil insects, I transmit herewith for publication the card catalogue of described fossil insects which I have used for twenty years and kept constantly up to date, and which has greatly facilitated my own researches. It is believed to be practically complete. At least where insects are figured, and in many other cases where they are the first or only references from a given locality, entries are given where only the genus, the family, or even the order is mentioned. This has been done because the early literature of fossil insects is essentially vague and general, but it should not for that reason be wholly overlooked ; and to-day our knowledge of the occurrence of insects of a particular locality, even when of recent discovery, is not infrequently confined to statements of a general nature, which, if not brought to view or mind in a list like this, would be lost sight of, while their recognition may lead to further local investigation, to the earlier benefit of science. It is in no sense a systematic catalogue, and except occasionally in the notes contains no immediate results of investigation. No questions of synonymy are settled. The entries are made as the authors quoted gave them, with only the corrections of spelling required; it follows that the same insect appears at several points, to which the student is referred by full cross-references, and that more than one insect may (though probably rarely does) figure under one name. In one or two such instances, where the same name has been given by inadvertence to two totally different creatures, the later one is separated from the earlier. For convenience' sake, the entries are grouped into large sections, nearly identical with those I have employed in my systematic review of fossil insects (Bulletin 31, U. S. Geological Survey), by which method the insects from the Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary rocks are kept distinct; but otherwise the entries are purely alphabetical under the orders. It should be noticed, however, that the vague references to groups higher than genera are brought together at the beginning of each alphabet, first the most vague, and then those which permit some alphabetization. In these cases the primary or secondary alphabetization is first by authors, second by dates, and in all cases where under one entry there is more than one date the order therein is chronological. In a previous bulletin (Bulletin 69, U. S. Geological Survey) is given a complete bibliography of the literature from which these entries are taken, and the two works are thus complementary to each other.

Bulletin↗
USGS1981

Gulf of Mexico summary report 2, August 1981: A revision of Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas activities in the Gulf of Mexico and their onshore impacts: A summary report, September 1980

The Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) continues to be the most intensively developed offshore oil- and gas-producing region in the world. With the development of technology, exploration, development, and production are being extended to include areas off the coast of southwest Florida and deep-water areas near the Mississippi River Delta. Development in both areas requires careful analyses of local considerations. The hydrocarbon potential of the region, while not well established in the frontier portions, generally remains favorable. A total of 482 fields have been discovered to date in the federally regulated part of the Gulf of Mexico. Reserve estimates have been made for the 435 producing fields in the region. Through December 31, 1980, those fields have produced 5.0 billion barrels of oil and condensate, and 48.7 trillion cubic feet of gas. Remaining recoverable reserves are 3.1 billion barrels of oil and 40.2 trillion cubic feet of gas. Estimates of undiscovered recoverable resources for the Gulf of Mexico are 6.6 billion barrels of oil and 71.9 trillion cubic feet of gas. Since enactment of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act in 1953, there have been 42 oil and gas lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico. An average of three lease sales per year are scheduled through 1986. Since 1953, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has leased 3,119 tracts in the Gulf of Mexico; 1,825 leases are currently active. The distribution of leased tracts exhibits a regionwide pattern as shown by Lease Sales A62, 62, A66, and 66. Proposed Lease Sales 67, 69, 72, and 74 will probably continue that pattern. Tracts off the coast of southwest Florida in the Charlotte Harbor, Howell Hook, and Pulley Ridge Areas will be offered in upcoming sales. Operations on tracts in deepwater areas slated for future sales may require additional technology. Exploration, development, and production in the Gulf of Mexico Region are continuing at a rapid pace throughout the Gulf of Mexico. Between January 1, 1980, and April 15, 1981, 197 initial plans of exploration and 165 supplemental plans of exploration were submitted to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). During the same period, 107 initial and 131 supplemental plans of development/production were submitted to the USGS. As of May 1981, there were 121 offshore mobile drilling units operating in the Gulf of Mexico. Pipelines continue to be the preferred mode of transport for Gulf of Mexico OCS oil and gas production. Pipeline additions to the existing network average 69 miles (111 km) per month. At any given time, numerous pipeline projects are under way in the Gulf of Mexico. To supplement OCS oil and gas production several deepwater port projects, designed to handle imported crude oil, are being planned or constructed in the region. The process of transportation planning in the Gulf of Mexico is done by industry and government through BLM's Intergovernmental Planning Program and its Regional Technical Working Group (RTWG). The RTWG has completed the First Edition Gulf of Mexico Regional Transportation Management Plan. The nearshore and onshore facilities in the Gulf of Mexico service both the domestic onshore and offshore oil and gas industry as well as the global market. Most of the major centers along the Gulf Coast, including Houston, Corpus Christi, Galveston, Beaumont, Port Arthur, and Freeport, Texas; New Orleans, Lake Charles, Lafayette, Baton Rouge, Morgan City, and Houma, Louisiana; Pascagoula, Mississippi; Mobile, Alabama; and Port Manatee, Florida, have ties to the offshore industry. A wide array of services and support industries, ranging from small independent vendors to major international manufacturing contractors, can be found within the region. Profiles of selected centers reveal typical industries and patterns of activity that are characteristic throughout the Gulf Coast region.

Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas↗
USGS1963

Preliminary report on the geology and hydrology of Mortandad Canyon near Los Alamos, New Mexico, with reference to disposal of liquid low-level radioactive waste

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission and the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, selected the upper part of Mortandad Canyon near Los Alamos, New Mexico for a site for disposal of treated liquid low-level radioactive waste. This report summarizes the part of a study of the geology and hydrology that was done from October 1960 through June 1961. Additional work is being continued. Mortandad Canyon is a narrow east-southeast-trending canyon about 9? miles long that heads on the central part of the Pajarito Plateau at an altitude of about 7,340 feet. The canyon is tributary to the Rio Grande. The drainage area of the part of Mortandad Canyon that was investigated is about 2 square miles, and the total drainage area is about 4.9 square miles. The Pajarito Plateau is capped by the Bandelier Tuff of Pleistocene age. Mortandad Canyon is cut in the Bandelier, and alluvium covers the floor of the canyon to depths ranging from less than 1 foot to as much as 100 feet. The Bandelier is underlain by silt, sand, conglomerate, and interbedded basalt of the Santa Fe Group of Miocene, Pliocene, and Pleistocene(?) age. Some ground water is perched in the alluvium in the canyon; however, the top of the main aquifer is in the Santa Fe Group at a depth of about 990 feet below the canyon floor. Joints in the Bandelier Tuff probably were caused by shrinkage of the tuff during cooling. The joints range in width from hairline cracks to fissures several inches wide. Water can infiltrate along the open joints where the Bandelier is at the surface; however, soil, alluvial fill, and autochthonous clay inhibit infiltration on the tops of mesas and probably in the alluvium-floored canyons also. Thirty-three test holes, each less than 100 feet deep, were drilled in 10 lies across Mortandad Canyon from the western margin of the study area to just west of the Los Alamos-Santa Fe County line. Ten of the holes were cased for observation wells to measure water levels and collect water samples from the alluvium. Twenty-three of the holes were cased to seal out water and were used as access tubes to accommodate a neutron-neutron probe for determining the moisture content of the alluvium and tuff. The source of recharge for the perched ground-water body in the alluvium in Mortandad Canyon is the precipitation in the drainage area of the canyon. During the winter of 1960-61, a snowpack 1-2 feet thick accumulated in the narrow shaded upper part of the canyon. The alluvium below the snowpack received some recharge because of diurnal melting during the winter. In March 1961 the snowmelt water saturated most of the thin alluvium in the upper part of the canyon, and a surface stream began to flow on the alluvium. The maximum flow of the stream was about 250 gpm (gallons per minute). Water from the stream infiltrated the alluvium at the front of the stream and in the reach upstream from the front. A ground-water mound was formed beneath the channel by water infiltrating from the stream. The front of the stream and the front of the ground-water mound advanced eastward to about the middle of the area studied. From this point eastward, the alluvium was thick enough to absorb and transmit the amount of flow in 1961. Late in April the front of the stream retreated, and by the first of May the flow stopped. During and after this period the ground-water mound decayed, and ground-water levels declined in the upper part of the canyon as water drained into the channel and downgradient through the alluvium. The amount of recharge was small in the wide lower part of the canyon during the period of study. The rise in ground-water levels and the increase in moisture content of the alluvium in the lower part of the canyon indicate that water moved downgradient by underflow through the alluvium from the recharge area in the upper part of the canyon. Moisture measurements indicate that only a little water moved into the underlyin

Open-File Report↗
USGS2010

Visualizing NetCDF Files by Using the EverVIEW Data Viewer

Over the past few years, modelers in South Florida have started using Network Common Data Form (NetCDF) as the standard data container format for storing hydrologic and ecologic modeling inputs and outputs. With its origins in the meteorological discipline, NetCDF was created by the Unidata Program Center at the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, in conjunction with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and other organizations. NetCDF is a portable, scalable, self-describing, binary file format optimized for storing array-based scientific data. Despite attributes which make NetCDF desirable to the modeling community, many natural resource managers have few desktop software packages which can consume NetCDF and unlock the valuable data contained within. The U.S. Geological Survey and the Joint Ecosystem Modeling group, an ecological modeling community of practice, are working to address this need with the EverVIEW Data Viewer. Available for several operating systems, this desktop software currently supports graphical displays of NetCDF data as spatial overlays on a three-dimensional globe and views of grid-cell values in tabular form. An included Open Geospatial Consortium compliant, Web-mapping service client and charting interface allows the user to view Web-available spatial data as additional map overlays and provides simple charting visualizations of NetCDF grid values.

Fact Sheet↗
USGS2016

Report A: Fish and habitat assessment in Rock Creek, Klickitat County, Washington, June 2013-December 2015

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Yakama Nation have collaborated in the Rock Creek subbasin, southeastern, Washington since 2009 to assess steelhead (Oncorynchus mykiss) populations and habitat conditions. Rock Creek, flows south to the Columbia River at river kilometer (rkm) 368. During 2015, a habitat survey was conducted, and monitoring of Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT)-tagged salmonids in the Rock Creek subbasin continued. Two multiplexing PIT-tag interrogation systems (PTISs) were installed in Rock Creek in the fall of 2009 to evaluate timing and degree of salmonid movement, smolting success, stray rates, and other life history attributes. These have been monitored every year since, during the spring, fall, and winter months. Returning adult steelhead detection histories are summarized from past Rock Creek PIT-tagging efforts. Detection histories and detection efficiencies were used to estimate a smolt-to-adult return rate (SAR) for Rock Creek PIT-tagged steelhead (tagged from 2009 to 2012) that ranged from 2.2% to 5.5%. Additionally, a SAR was also estimated for Rock Creek PIT-tagged steelhead returning to Bonneville Dam, Columbia River (rkm 235). The SAR rate to Bonneville Dam was always higher (2.4% to 10.4%), indicating straying of adults to other sites for spawning potentially further upstream or in other tributaries, or pre-spawn mortality. Twenty-two Rock Creek PIT-tagged steelhead were detected returning to Rock Creek and 35 were detected at Bonneville Dam from past tagging efforts (2009 – 2012). Monitoring of the Rock Creek PTISs [Rock Creek Lower (RCL) and Rock Creek Squaw (RCS)] provide evidence for PIT-tagged salmonid use from fish tagged outside of Rock Creek subbasin (out-of-basin) origins. A total of 82 out-of-basin PIT-tagged fish have been detected at the Rock Creek PTISs since installation. The habitat survey was conducted in Rock Creek from September 16 to October 7, 2015. The survey started at rkm 2 and continued upstream to rkm 29.3, and included portions of the major tributaries, ranging from 1 to 9 rkm survey length upstream from their confluence. During the survey, we measured the lengths of all dry and non-pool wet sections, and for pools: the length, wetted width, average residual depth, maximum residual depth, and temperature. During the 2015 survey of Rock Creek, 38% of the river between rkm 2 and 29 was classified as dry, with a higher relative proportion (57%) of dry being in the lower river section (rkm 2-13) than the upper river section (33%, rkm 14-22). This was higher than during survey years 2010 to 2012, which ranged from 29% to 43% in the lower river. As a result of the increase in dry area the percent of non-pool wet habitat was less (22%) than previous years (range 34% to 43%), as well as the percent of pools (21%). However, more river kilometers were surveyed in the lower river section (rkm 2-13) than previous years. For the 2015 survey length (rkm 2 to 29), 19% was classified as pools and 43% was non-pool wet. This work informs potential restoration actions by identifying the persistent pools across years and in years of low water flow (i.e., 2015). This work also provides a baseline to evaluate effectiveness of future restoration actions. Potential restoration actions could include headwater and upland restoration to improve base flows and pool habitat enhancement, through increased structure and vegetation plantings for increased cover. The Rock Creek steelhead population remains to be an important cultural resource for the Rock Creek Band of the Yakama Nation Tribe. The Rock Creek steelhead population is part of the Cascades Eastern Slope major population group (MPG), one of four MPGs contributing to the Middle Columbia steelhead distinct population segment (DPS). The National Marine Fisheries Service recovery plan for Rock Creek (NMFS 2009a) identifies an overall biological recovery goal for Rock Creek steelhead to contribute to recovery of the Mid-Columbia D

Washington↗
USGS2010

Vegetation classification and distribution mapping report: Canyon de Chelly National Monument

Executive Summary: The classification and distribution mapping of the vegetation of Canyon de Chelly National Monument (CACH) and surrounding environment was accomplished through a multi-agency effort between 2003 and 2007. The National Park Service’s Southern Colorado Plateau Network facilitated the team that conducted the work, which comprised the U.S. Geological Survey’s Southwest Biological Science Center and Fort Collins Science Center, Navajo Natural Heritage Program, Northern Arizona University, and NatureServe. The project team described 48 plant communities for CACH—35 of which were described from quantitative classification based on field-relevé data collected in 2004. Five additional plant communities were based on field relevés collected in a previous study. The team derived four additional plant communities from field observations during the photointerpretation phase of the project, and field documented them during accuracy assessment. The National Vegetation Classification Standard served as a conceptual framework for assigning these plant communities to the alliance and association level. Ten of the 48 plant communities were designated “park specials”, that is, plant communities with insufficient data to describe them as new alliances or associations. The project team also developed a spatial vegetation map database representing CACH, with three different map-class schemas: base, group, and management map classes. The base map classes represented the finest level of spatial detail. Photointerpreters delineated initial polygons through manual interpretation of 2003/2004 1:12,000-scale true color aerial photography supplemented by occasional computer screen digitizing on a mosaic of digitized aerial photos. These polygons were labeled with base map classes during photointerpretation. Field visits verified interpretation concepts. The vegetation map database includes • ? 53 base map classes, which consist of associations and park specials classified with the quantitative analysis • ? additional associations noted during photointerpretation • ? non-vegetated land cover, such as infrastructure, land use, and geological land cover. The base map classes consist of 4,718 polygons in the project area. A field-based accuracy assessment of the base map classes showed the overall accuracy to be 50.8% The group map classes represent aggregations of the base map classes, approximating the group level of the National Vegetation Classification Standard, Version 2 (Federal Geographic Data Committee 2008). Terrestrial ecological systems, as described by NatureServe (Comer et al. 2003), were used as a first approximation of the group level. The project team identified 16 group map classes in this project. The overall accuracy of the group map classes was determined using the same accuracy assessment data as for the base map classes. The overall accuracy of the group representation of vegetation was 79.9%. In consultation with park staff, the team developed management map classes that consisted of park-defined groupings of base map classes and were intended to represent a balance between maintaining required accuracy and providing a focus on vegetation of particular interest or import to park managers. The 28 management map classes have an overall accuracy of 77.1%. While the main products of this project are the vegetation classification and the vegetation map database, a number of ancillary geographic information system and digital database products were also produced that can be used independently, or to augment the main products. These products include shapefiles of the location of field-collected data and relational databases of field-collected data.

Report↗
USGS2002

A bibliography of terrain modeling (geomorphometry), the quantitative representation of topography: Supplement 4.0

Terrain modeling, the practice of ground-surface quantification, is an amalgam of Earth science, mathematics, engineering, and computer science. The discipline is known variously as geomorphometry (or simply morphometry), terrain analysis, and quantitative geomorphology. It continues to grow through myriad applications to hydrology, geohazards mapping, tectonics, sea-floor and planetary exploration, and other fields. Dating nominally to the co-founders of academic geography, Alexander von Humboldt (1808, 1817) and Carl Ritter (1826, 1828), the field was revolutionized late in the 20th Century by the computer manipulation of spatial arrays of terrain heights, or digital elevation models (DEMs), which can quantify and portray ground-surface form over large areas (Maune, 2001). Morphometric procedures are implemented routinely by commercial geographic information systems (GIS) as well as specialized software (Harvey and Eash, 1996; Köthe and others, 1996; ESRI, 1997; Drzewiecki et al., 1999; Dikau and Saurer, 1999; Djokic and Maidment, 2000; Wilson and Gallant, 2000; Breuer, 2001; Guth, 2001; Eastman, 2002). The new Earth Surface edition of the Journal of Geophysical Research, specializing in surficial processes, is the latest of many publication venues for terrain modeling. This is the fourth update of a bibliography and introduction to terrain modeling (Pike, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1999) designed to collect the diverse, scattered literature on surface measurement as a resource for the research community. The use of DEMs in science and technology continues to accelerate and diversify (Pike, 2000a). New work appears so frequently that a sampling must suffice to represent the vast literature. This report adds 1636 entries to the 4374 in the four earlier publications1. Forty-eight additional entries correct dead Internet links and other errors found in the prior listings. Chronicling the history of terrain modeling, many entries in this report predate the 1999 supplement. Coverage is representative from about 1800 through early–mid 2002. Papers increasingly are published exclusively or in duplicate on the Internet's World Wide Web; the dates given here for Web addresses (URLs) that lack a print publication indicate a Web site's last update or my last access of it. The bibliography is arranged alphabetically and thus is not readily summarized. This introduction cites about 500 entries, a third of them grouped under 24 morphometric topics, as a guide to the listing's contents. Continuing the practice of previous bibliographies in the series to provide more information on a few applications (see summary of past topics in Pike, 2000a), this report elaborates further on topographic data, putative new parameters, tectonic geomorphology/neo-orometry, biogeography, ice-cap morphometry, results from the Mars Global DEM, landslide-hazard mapping, terrain modeling as physics, Hack's law, and broad-scale computer visualization. The literature of some of these subjects is large, and none of the summaries is intended to more than introduce the topic and comment on some of the current contributions of terrain modeling. Closing the essay is a discussion of pre-1900 papers that trace the evolution of ridge-line and watercourse quantification by descriptive geometry, as well as comments on some new books and an on-line bulletin board.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2018

Unmanned aerial systems capabilities of the U.S. Geological Survey Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Unmanned aerial system (UAS) technology provides a rapid and low-cost solution for mapping coastal environments and assessing short- and long-term changes. The interdisciplinary nature of the data collected and the breadth of applications make UAS technology applicable to multiple scientific investigations. The Aerial Imaging and Mapping (AIM) group at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center provides UAS services to scientists to advance the science mission of the Coastal-Marine Hazards and Resources Program. Scientists at the Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center use UASs to acquire imagery of coastal and wetland environments, which is then used to produce detailed topographic and visual reflectance datasets. UAS technology supports the work of geologists, engineers, physical scientists, geographers, and geochemists who study coastal erosion, sediment transport, storm impacts, habitats, biomass, and marsh stability.

Fact Sheet↗
USGS2005

The life cycle of a mineral deposit: a teacher's guide for hands-on mineral education activities

This teacher's guide defines what a mineral deposit is and how a mineral deposit is identified and measured, how the mineral resources are extracted, and how the mining site is reclaimed; how minerals and mineral resources are processed; and how we use mineral resources in our every day lives. Included are 10 activitybased learning exercises that educate students on basic geologic concepts; the processes of finding, identifying, and extracting the resources from a mineral deposit; and the uses of minerals. The guide is intended for K through 12 Earth science teachers and students and is designed to meet the National Science Content Standards as defined by the National Research Council (1996). To assist in the understanding of some of the geology and mineral terms, see the Glossary (appendix 1) and Minerals and Their Uses (appendix 2). The process of finding or exploring for a mineral deposit, extracting or mining the resource, recovering the resource, also known as beneficiation, and reclaiming the land mined can be described as the “life cycle” of a mineral deposit. The complete process is time consuming and expensive, requiring the use of modern technology and equipment, and may take many years to complete. Sometimes one entity or company completes the entire process from discovery to reclamation, but often it requires multiple groups with specialized experience working together. Mineral deposits are the source of many important commodities, such as copper and gold, used by our society, but it is important to realize that mineral deposits are a nonrenewable resource. Once mined, they are exhausted, and another source must be found. New mineral deposits are being continuously created by the Earth but may take millions of years to form. Mineral deposits differ from renewable resources, such as agricultural and timber products, which may be replenished within a few months to several years.

General Information Product↗
USGS2004

Monitoring Colonias Development along the United States-Mexico Border: A Process Application using GIS and Remote Sensing in Douglas, Arizona, and Agua Prieta, Sonora

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) have developed a joint project to create Internet-enabled geographic information systems (GIS) that will help cities along the United States-Mexico border deal with issues related to colonias. HUD defines colonias as rural neighborhoods in the United States-Mexico border region that lack adequate infrastructure or housing and other basic services. They typically have high poverty rates that make it difficult for residents to pay for roads, sanitary water and sewer systems, decent housing, street lighting, and other services through assessment. Many Federal agencies recognize colonias designations and provide funding assistance. It is the intention of this project to empower Arizona-Sonora borderland neighborhoods and community members by recognizing them as colonias. This recognition will result in eligibility for available economic subsidies and accessibility to geospatial tools and information for urban planning. The steps to achieve this goal include delineation of colonia-like neighborhoods, identification of their urbanization over time, development of geospatial databases describing their infrastructure, and establishment of a framework for distributing Web-based GIS decision support systems. A combination of imagery and infrastructure information was used to help delineate colonia boundaries. A land-use change analysis, focused on urbanization in the cities over a 30-year timeframe, was implemented. The results of this project are being served over the Internet, providing data to the public as well as to participating agencies. One of the initial study areas for this project was the City of Douglas, Ariz., and its Mexican sister-city Agua Prieta, Sonora, which are described herein. Because of its location on the border, this twin-cities area is especially well suited to international manufacturing and commerce, which has, in turn, led to an uncontrolled spread of colonias. The USGS worked with local organizations in developing the Web-based GIS database. Community involvement ensured that the database and map server would meet the current and long-term needs of the communities and end users. Partners include Federal agencies, State agencies, county officials, town representatives, universities, and youth organizations, as well as interested local advocacy groups and individuals. A significant component of this project was development of relationships and partnerships in the border towns for facilitating binational approaches to land management.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2021

Food, culture and climate

The Social Sciences Coordinating Committee (SSCC) is one of multiple Interagency Groups that support the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP). USGCRP began as a Presidential initiative in 1989 and was mandated by Congress through the U.S. Global Change Research Act of 1990 “to assist the Nation and the world to understand, assess, predict, and respond to human-induced and natural processes of global change.” USGCRP is overseen by the Subcommittee on Global Change Research, composed of representatives from each of USGCRP’s 13 member agencies. The mission of the SSCC is to foster the integration of the methods, findings, and disciplinary perspectives of the social, behavioral, and economic sciences, along with interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches that include these sciences, into USGCRP activities. The SSCC serves as a social science resource to other USGCRP interagency working groups, the Subcommittee on Global Change Research, and other USGCRP activities such as the National Climate Assessment. The SSCC’s Food, Culture, and Climate webinar series (held from September 14 to October 12, 2021) highlighted the ways in which social science research can elucidate the role of climate change in socio-cultural systems. It drew attention to the humanistic frameworks that underpin social scientific understanding of the ways individuals, households, and communities experience climate change. In particular, the seminars explored how the impacts of climate change are felt and understood by individuals and communities, how they interact with other stressors, and how they amplify existing inequities and vulnerabilities. This understanding is vital not only to the production of scientific knowledge, but also to the use of that knowledge in practice. This report provides a summary of the key takeaways from this webinar series. The webinar series organizers identified recurrent themes and salient points that emerged in conversations across the three events. Here, central issues of the discussions on the relationships among food, culture, and climate, as well as the role that social science plays in elucidating them, are synthesized and highlighted. Recordings of the webinar series are available online from USGCRP.

Webinar Series Report↗
USGS2026

Appendix 6: Overview of iPOM 2.0: Updates to wolf abundance estimation in Montana

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (MFWP) uses the integrated Patch Occupancy Model (iPOM) to estimate statewide and regional wolf abundance. During the early years of recovery, wolf abundance was tracked using minimum counts. As the population increased, limitations of this method became apparent, motivating development of a model-based approach for estimating abundance. iPOM development began in 2006, was operationalized in 2013, and has been used in its current form (iPOM 1.0) since 2021. Since its inception, iPOM has been developed and presented as an adaptive modeling framework intended to evolve as new data and analytical methods become available1. Here, we briefly present ongoing work to produce the next iteration of iPOM, hereafter iPOM 2.0, and summarize major model updates and resulting preliminary wolf abundance estimates. iPOM uses models for occupancy, territory size, and pack size, along with monitoring data collected by MFWP wolf specialists and potential wolf sightings reported by deer and elk hunters during the 5-week general rifle season each Nov-Dec. These monitoring data, wolf sightings, and covariates for habitat and survey effort are used to model occupancy of packs on a statewide grid of 600-km 2 cells. The area used by wolves is then estimated as each cell’s occupancy estimate multiplied by grid cell area. iPOM estimates pack abundance by dividing this area by predicted territory sizes, and in-pack wolf abundance by multiplying pack abundance by estimated group size. This is combined with a lone wolf rate to estimate total wolf abundance (see Sells et al. 1 for a full description of iPOM 1.0). This technical summary provides a high-level overview of the proposed iPOM updates and their implications for wolf abundance estimates. The estimates presented here represent results as of June 2026 and are provided to inform upcoming discussions surrounding harvest management and regulations (e.g., season dates, quotas, methods). Results are preliminary and remain subject to final model refinement and peer review.

Montana↗
USGS2022

COSMOS Ground-Motion Simulation Working Group workshops #1 and #2

These 2 workshops were held in response to interest generated from sessions on the use of simulated earthquake ground motions at the 2020 and 2021 Consortium of Organizations for Strong Motion Observation Systems (COSMOS) Technical Sessions. The discussions at the Technical Sessions highlighted desires to promote the use of simulated earthquake ground motions for engineering applications and the need to coordinate efforts to validate and disseminate the data. Our first workshop focused on curating and disseminating simulated earthquake ground-motion data. Our second workshop focused on validating simulated ground-motions for engineering applications. Both workshops included a few invited presentations from providers (ground-motion simulators) and engineering user perspectives followed by open discussions. About 100 people participated in each of the workshops.

Report↗
USGS2011

Non-native fish control below Glen Canyon Dam - Report from a structured decision-making project

This report describes the results of a structured decision-making project by the U.S. Geological Survey to provide substantive input to the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) for use in the preparation of an Environmental Assessment concerning control of non-native fish below Glen Canyon Dam. A forum was created to allow the diverse cooperating agencies and Tribes to discuss, expand, and articulate their respective values; to develop and evaluate a broad set of potential control alternatives using the best available science; and to define individual preferences of each group on how to manage the inherent trade-offs in this non-native fish control problem. This project consisted of two face-to-face workshops, held in Mesa, Arizona, October 18-20 and November 8-10, 2010. At the first workshop, a diverse set of objectives was discussed, which represented the range of concerns of those agencies and Tribes present. A set of non-native fish control alternatives ('hybrid portfolios') was also developed. Over the 2-week period between the two workshops, four assessment teams worked to evaluate the control alternatives against the array of objectives. At the second workshop, the results of the assessment teams were presented. Multi-criteria decision analysis methods were used to examine the trade-offs inherent in the problem, and allowed the participating agencies and Tribes to express their individual judgments about how those trade-offs should best be managed in Reclamation`s selection of a preferred alternative. A broad array of objectives was identified and defined, and an effort was made to understand how these objectives are likely to be achieved by a variety of strategies. In general, the objectives reflected desired future conditions over 30 years. A rich set of alternative approaches was developed, and the complex structure of those alternatives was documented. Multi-criteria decision analysis methods allowed the evaluation of those alternatives against the array of objectives, with the values of individual agencies and tribes deliberately preserved. Trout removal strategies aimed at the Paria to Badger Rapid reach (PBR), with a variety of permutations in deference to cultural values, and with backup removal at the Little Colorado River reach (LCR) if necessary, were identified as top-ranking portfolios for all agencies and Tribes. These PBR/LCR removal portfolios outperformed LCR-only removal portfolios, for cultural reasons and for effectiveness - the probability of keeping the humpback chub population above a desired threshold was estimated to be higher under the PBR/LCR portfolios than the LCR-only portfolios. The PBR/LCR removal portfolios also outperformed portfolios based on flow manipulations, primarily because of the effect of sport fishery and wilderness recreation objectives, as well as cultural objectives. The preference for the PBR/LCR removal portfolios was quite robust to variation in the objective weights and to uncertainty about the underlying dynamics, at least over the ranges of uncertainty investigated. Examination of the effect of uncertainty on the recommended outcomes allowed us to complete a 'value of information' analysis. The results of this analysis led to an adaptive strategy that includes three possible long-term management actions (no action; LCR removal; or PBR removal) and seeks to reduce uncertainty about the following two issues: the degree to which rainbow trout limit chub populations, and the effectiveness of PBR removal to reduce trout emigration downstream into Marble and eastern Grand Canyons, where the largest population of humpback chub exist. In the face of uncertainty about the effectiveness of PBR removal, a case might be made for including flow manipulations in an adaptive strategy, but formal analysis of this case was not conducted. The full set of conclusions described above is not definitive, however. This analysis described in this report is a simplified depiction of the t

Open-File Report↗
USGS2015

Experimental infection of snakes with Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola causes pathological changes that typify snake fungal disease

Snake fungal disease (SFD) is an emerging skin infection of wild snakes in eastern North America. The fungus Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola is frequently associated with the skin lesions that are characteristic of SFD, but a causal relationship between the fungus and the disease has not been established. We experimentally infected captive-bred corn snakes ( Pantherophis guttatus ) in the laboratory with pure cultures of O. ophiodiicola . All snakes in the infected group ( n = 8) developed gross and microscopic lesions identical to those observed in wild snakes with SFD; snakes in the control group ( n = 7) did not develop skin infections. Furthermore, the same strain of O. ophiodiicola used to inoculate snakes was recovered from lesions of all animals in the infected group, but no fungi were isolated from individuals in the control group. Monitoring progression of lesions throughout the experiment captured a range of presentations of SFD that have been described in wild snakes. The host response to the infection included marked recruitment of granulocytes to sites of fungal invasion, increased frequency of molting, and abnormal behaviors, such as anorexia and resting in conspicuous areas of enclosures. While these responses may help snakes to fight infection, they could also impact host fitness and may contribute to mortality in wild snakes with chronic O. ophiodiicola infection. This work provides a basis for understanding the pathogenicity of O. ophiodiicola and the ecology of SFD by using a model system that incorporates a host species that is easy to procure and maintain in the laboratory. IMPORTANCE Skin infections in snakes, referred to as snake fungal disease (SFD), have been reported with increasing frequency in wild snakes in the eastern United States. While most of these infections are associated with the fungus Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola , there has been no conclusive evidence to implicate this fungus as a primary pathogen. Furthermore, it is not understood why the infections affect different host populations differently. Our experiment demonstrates that O. ophiodiicola is the causative agent of SFD and can elicit pathological changes that likely impact fitness of wild snakes. This information, and the laboratory model we describe, will be essential in addressing unresolved questions regarding disease ecology and outcomes of O. ophiodiicola infection and helping to conserve snake populations threatened by the disease. The SFD model of infection also offers utility for exploring larger concepts related to comparative fungal virulence, host response, and host-pathogen evolution.

mBio↗
USGS1974

Water in the Great Basin region; Idaho, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming

The Great Basin Region is defined to include the drainage of the Great Basin physiographic section (Fennman, 1931) in Idaho, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming. In October 1966, the President’s Water Resources Council requested that a comprehensive framework study be made in the Great Basin Region under the leadership of the Pacific Southwest Interagency Committee. The study, which included evaluation of the water resources of the region and guidelines for future study and development, was completed June 30, 1971. Results of the study received limited distribution. The purpose of this atlas is to make available to the public the hydrologic data (including a general appraisal) that were compiled for the comprehensive framework study. Most of the work was done by a water-resources work group consisting of members from several Federal and State agencies under the chairmanship of Thomas E. Eakin of the U.S. Geological Survey. This atlas contains some data not included in the framework study. The data presented herein are reconnaissance in nature and should be used with discretion. The maps are highly generalized and are intended only to illustrate the regional distribution of the supply and general chemical quality of the water. Sources of more detailed information on the hydrology of specific parts of the Great Basin region are listed in the selected references.

Idaho, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming↗
USGS2026

What is the (real) rate of soil health practice adoption? Making sense of three data sources

Conservation stakeholders looking to quantify the impact of their investments to increase soil health practice adoption over time often face challenges in interpreting practice adoption data due to discrepancies in language and results among data sources. Similarly, efforts to estimate environmental outcomes of practice adoption, such as water quality and greenhouse gas emissions, can vary depending on different practice adoption input data. To help make sense of different adoption data sources, we compared county-level adoption data for winter cover crops (WCC), no-till (NT), and reduced tillage (RT) in three areas of the United States with contrasting climates and production systems: central Illinois (CIL), southern Illinois (SIL), and western New York (WNY). We analyzed data available during 2015 through 2022 from the Operational Tillage Information System (OpTIS, remote sensing), US Census of Agriculture (AgCensus, a farmer survey), and, specifically in Illinois, the Illinois Soil Conservation Transect Survey (Transect, a roadside survey). The magnitude of differences between the datasets depended on the practice and geographic location. For example, OpTIS and AgCensus tillage data were much more similar in Illinois (average difference of less than 4 percentage points) compared to New York (average differences of 20 percentage points). Similarly, there was less variability and smaller differences between OpTIS and AgCensus WCC data in Illinois compared to WNY. AgCensus tended to report lower WCC adoption for Illinois and greater adoption in WNY compared to OpTIS. All data sources agreed that the rate of change in tillage practices is slow (mainly –1% to 1%) and that adoption of WCC is low (assuming linear growth, it could take nearly a century to reach 50% WCC adoption in CIL). Differences among the datasets were attributed to definitional inconsistencies for RT and NT and how WCC data were acquired. For example, the AgCensus asks if a WCC was planted, whereas OpTIS and Transect evaluate the presence of a standing WCC. Data sources also reflect different time periods (calendar years or crop years) and types of cropland assessed (corn [ Zea mays L.], soybean [ Glycine max {L.} Merr.], or all cropland). We propose two recommendations to improve interpretation and consistency: (1) a working group to harmonize definitions and protocols and develop educational materials for data users, and (2) a research effort that integrates different adoption data types and produces publicly available adoption data at HUC-10 and county scales. Such activities could help improve data access and utility for evidence-based conservation decision-making and enhance the accuracy of environmental models that rely on adoption data as input.

Journal of Soil and Water Conservation↗