Skip to main content
Advanced Search

Filters: Tags: Water quality (X) > Types: Map Service (X) > Extensions: Project (X)

127 results (13ms)   

Filters
Date Range
Extensions
Types
Contacts
Categories
Tag Types
Tag Schemes
View Results as: JSON ATOM CSV
thumbnail
PROBLEM The valley‐fill aquifer in the lower Fall Creek valley (designated as aquifer 4, fig. 1), within the Towns of Dryden and Groton, was mapped by Miller (2000) and identified as one of 17 unconsolidated aquifers in Tompkins County that need to be studied in more detail. The east end of the valley (near the Tompkins and Cortland County border) is on the backside of a large morainal plug, which is part of the Valley Heads Moraine. A large system of springs discharge from the backside of the moraine and forms part of the headwaters to Fall Creek. The valley‐fill aquifer thins and pinches out to the west (figs. 1 and 2)— where the valley is floored by bedrock and becomes a “hanging valley” to Cayuga Lake trough....
thumbnail
Introduction Recent trends analysis examining the effectiveness of tidal wetland regulations and the regulatory program of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) revealed that the regulations and regulatory program were highly effective in stemming the historic "fill and build" activities. However, the trends also revealed that tidal wetlands—specifically, low marshes—were disappearing. To help determine the cause(s) of this loss, the NYSDEC, in collaboration with Stony Brook University's School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), established a monitoring program in 2008 that has been conducted on and in the tidal wetlands of East Creek,...
thumbnail
Problem - The purpose of this project is to create a watershed GIS (Geographic Information System) to support the comprehensive cleanup and restoration of Onondaga Lake that is underway. A GIS is a computer system capable of capturing, storing, analyzing, and displaying geographically referenced information; that is, data identified according to location. Given the broad scope of the Onondaga Lake Partnership's (OLP) mission, a GIS is a powerful tool that can organize, store, and share information pertinent to the management of the natural resources of the Onondaga Lake watershed. The OLP GIS will be used for land use planning, resource management, scientific monitoring, and data presentation. The project has...
thumbnail
Problem – Currently, swim advisories or closings are issued by beach managers based on standards for concentrations of bacterial indicators such as Escherichia coli (E. coli). Standard culture methods for these bacteria take at least 18-24 hours before results are available. At most Great Lakes beaches, the beach is posted with an advisory or closing or is determined to be acceptable for swimming on the basis of the previous day’s E. coli concentration. Sanitary conditions may change overnight and even throughout the day (Boehm and others, 2002) making decisions made from previous days information incorrect. Because of this time-lag issue, water-resource managers are seeking solutions that provide near real-time...
Categories: Data, Project; Types: Downloadable, Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, Shapefile; Tags: Contaminants, Microbial, Contaminants, Microbial, Contaminants, Natural, Contaminants, Natural, Contaminants, Organic, All tags...
thumbnail
Significant changes in nitrogen loads to Jamaica Bay have likely occurred with progressive improvements to Water Pollution Control Plants (WCWPs) that discharge into the Bay. Data available from the New York City Department of Environmental Protection and others will be used to determine loads from WPCPs, combined sewer overflows, and the atmosphere. Selected wells within the USGS water quality database, including those near the landfills that are immediately adjacent to Jamaica Bay, will be used to determine concentrations of nutrients in shallow ground water that enter the bay from ground water seepage. To facilitate evaluation of ground water loads, an existing USGS Finite element model that simulates sub...
thumbnail
Water scarcity is a growing concern in Texas, where surface water is derived almost entirely from rainfall. Changes in air temperature and precipitation patterns associated with global climate change are anticipated to regionally affect the quality and quantity of inland surface waters and consequently their suitability as habitat for freshwater life. In addition to directly affecting resident organisms and populations, these changes in physicochemical traits of aquatic habitats may favor the establishment of harmful invasive species. As conflicts over the use of water resources grow in intensity, this information will become important for fish and wildlife managers to anticipate impacts of climate change on trust...
thumbnail
Introduction High nitrate concentrations are a common concern among many purveyors, including the Suffolk County Water Authority (SCWA), the largest supplier of water to residents in Suffolk County. Typically, the amount of nitrate in groundwater is related to land use, where the greatest concentrations are observed in agricultural regions. In many areas, the nitrate concentration has increased steadily in recent years, even in areas that are no longer farmed and are now sewered. A statistical analysis for trends of over 20 years in nitrate concentration data from SCWA wells is needed to determine the susceptibility of supply-wells to exceed the Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) for nitrate. This information is essential...
Categories: Data, Project; Types: Downloadable, Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, Shapefile; Tags: Contaminants, Natural, Contaminants, Natural, Contaminants, natural, Cooperative Water Program, GW Model, All tags...
thumbnail
Background The North Atlantic Coastal Plain (NACP) covers a land area of approximately 34,000 mi 2 along the eastern seaboard of the United States from Long Island, N.Y., southward to the northern portion of North Carolina. This area is underlain by a thick wedge of sedimentary deposits that form a complex groundwater system in which the sands and gravels function as confined aquifers, and the silts and clays function as confining units. These confined aquifers of the NACP constitute a major source of water for public and domestic supply for the nearly 27 million people living in the region, as well as being important source of water for industrial and agricultural purposes. Increases in population and changes...
Categories: Data, Project; Types: Downloadable, Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, Shapefile; Tags: Cooperative Water Program, Delaware, Focused Assessments, Focused Assessments, Focused Assessments, All tags...
thumbnail
Background Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is the hereditary material in organisms that contains the biological instructions for building and maintaining them. The chemical structure of DNA is the same for all organisms, but differences exist in the order of the DNA building blocks, known as base pairs. Unique sequences provide a means to identify individual species and detect their presence within aquatic or terrestrial environments. Environmental DNA (eDNA) is nuclear or mitochondrial DNA that is shed from an organism into the environment. Sources of eDNA include feces, mucous, and gametes; shed skin; and carcasses. In aquatic environments, eDNA is diluted and distributed by currents and other hydrological processes....
thumbnail
Problem - In August 2000, eleven sites were sampled from 9 streams within the Croton watershed for pharmaceuticals and other organic compounds associated with wastewater as part of a national study of these compounds in streams receiving wastewater discharges. Results from the national study indicated that streams in the Croton Reservoir downstream of sewage treatment plants had concentrations of target compounds. Detected compounds included pharmaceuticals, detergent degradates, insecticides, caffeine, and other organic compounds (Kolpin and others, 2002). The results indicate that these compounds are commonly present in streams below wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Many of these compounds have not been...
thumbnail
Southern Nevada Water Authority will add new modeling and analytical capabilities to tools developed as part of a previous WaterSMART Climate Analysis Tools Grant that assessed impacts of climate change on water quality and sediment transport in Lake Mead. Project results are intended to increase an understanding of how water quality characteristics and nutrient levels in Lake Mead may be affected by climate change.
thumbnail
Researchers with U.S. Geological Survey Water Science Centers in Iowa, Kansas and Massachusetts collaborated to conduct a comprehensive literature search of both published and ongoing research (2000-present) that sheds light on the interactions between climate change, agriculture and water quality across the combined geographies of the Eastern Tallgrass Prairie and Big Rivers LCC and neighboring Upper Midwest and Great Lakes LCC. Project investigators compiled the information in a resource library by geographic location, providing an organized structure for future examination of all research related to interactions between climate change, agriculture and water quality in these two regions.
thumbnail
An Iowa State University research team in collaboration with Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge and other partners has discovered that strategically adding a little bit of prairie back onto the agricultural landscape can result in many benefits – for water and soil quality, habitat for wildlife and pollinators, as well as opportunities for biomass production. With assistance from ETPBR member USDA Farm Service Agency, research has shown how small amounts of native prairie vegetation integrated within corn and soybean row crops produce environmental benefits at levels disproportionately greater than their extent and in a cost effective manner. The project has now transitioned to demonstration and evaluation of the...
Categories: Data, Project; Types: Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, OGC WMS Service; Tags: 2013, 2014, Academics & scientific researchers, Applications and Tools, Conservation Design, All tags...
thumbnail
Problem The shallow groundwater of Nassau and Suffolk Counties is prone to contamination from current land-use, including agricultural, residential, and recreational. The aquifer system of Long Island is highly susceptible to human-derived contamination, in particular, because the soils and underlying sediments are generally composed of sandy, permeable materials that allow contaminants to move readily from the land surface into the groundwater below. Of increasing concern are the human-derived contaminants stemming from past and present uses of pesticides. In addition to the threat of direct runoff to adjacent waterbodies, pesticide transport through the shallow aquifer from inland sources may discharge to the...
thumbnail
Problem The discharge of freshwater and associated loading of nutrients and other dissolved constituents from the Long Island aquifer system to surrounding estuaries and their tributaries are increasingly recognized as critical factors in the health of these ecosystems. However, further work is needed to scientifically characterize these factors and present them to the public in an appropriate manner. Many organizations have undertaken assessments of this discharge and loading for discrete groundwater source areas and (or) receiving surface waters, applying a variety of techniques and assumptions. In part, this is because there is no delineation of recharge areas to the island’s groundwater-fed streams and estuaries...
Categories: Data, Project; Types: Downloadable, Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, Shapefile; Tags: Basin & Hydrogeologic Characterization, Basin & Hydrogeologic Characterization, Climate Change, Climate Research and Development, ClimateChange, All tags...
thumbnail
Problem - Plastic debris pollution in freshwater ecosystems is becoming a major ecosystem and public health concern. Plastic pollution is now identified as the most abundant anthropogenic debris and it is found throughout all marine environments, comprising 60-80% of all floating debris (Eriksen et al., 2013). This debris can have a lasting effect on marine life through ingestion or entanglement (Laist, 1987). Recent studies in small tributaries and freshwater environments (Baldwin, 2016) indicate microplastic pollution is pervasive across all hydrologic environments. Mike Antidormi using a net sampler to collect a microplastic sample Microscope used for size, colors, and count for microplastics analyisis...
thumbnail
Background Heavy metals, phosphorus, and organic contaminants in water and sediments of the lower Genesee River, resulted in the designation of fourteen beneficial uses as impaired in the Rochester Embayment Area of Concern (AOC). The benthic macroinvertebrate community or “benthos” Beneficial Use Impairment (BUI) was designated as degraded in the Genesee River because the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) impairment metrics generally identified slight to moderate impacts through the 1990s and 2000s. Accumulation of “sediments on more suitable substrates” and “contaminants in sediment of the Genesee River related to past municipal and industrial waste-water treatment plant discharges...
thumbnail
Problem Sediment transport is a serious concern in the upper Esopus Creek watershed. The creek is a well-documented source of sediment and turbidity to the Ashokan Reservoir, which is part of the New York City water supply system. During the last 2 decades there has been a series of stream stabilization and sediment reduction projects completed in the upper Esopus Creek watershed intended to reduce the suspended sediment load and turbidity levels delivered to the reservoir. During the last 7 years there has been a concerted effort to measure the effect of these projects on turbidity and suspended sediment. There is currently a large, long-term turbidity and suspended sediment study underway within the upper Esopus...
thumbnail
Introduction Ongoing efforts to improve the health of New York's South Shore Estuary Reserve (SSER) require continuously recorded water-quality data to understand the short-term effects of stormwater runoff and other pollution sources. To document the diel and tidal variability of water quality in the western bays of the SSER, the USGS monitors select physical and chemical parameters at two sites within the SSER. One site, station 01310740 on Reynolds Channel at Point Lookout, is near the estuary mouth and operated in cooperation with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) and Town of Hempstead Department of Conservation & Waterways. The second, station 01311143...
thumbnail
INTRODUCTION Naturally occurring methane has been noted at some locations in the upper Devonian shale bedrock and in overlying glacial deposits in parts of Broome, Tioga, and Chemung Counties in south-central New York State (Williams, 2010). Systematic sampling of water wells for dissolved methane is needed to determine if the topographic and hydrogeologic setting of a well is related to methane occurrence. Objective and Study Area - The objective of this study is to characterize the natural occurrence of dissolved methane gas in groundwater from water wells within four different topographic and hydrogeologic settings (upland and major valley areas where bedrock is confined or unconfined by glacial deposits)....
Categories: Data, Project; Types: Downloadable, Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, Shapefile; Tags: Broome County, Chemung County, Completed, Contaminants, Natural, Contaminants, Natural, All tags...