Sample records for lake turkana water

  1. A multi-source satellite data approach for modelling Lake Turkana water level: Calibration and validation using satellite altimetry data

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Velpuri, N.M.; Senay, G.B.; Asante, K.O.

    2012-01-01

    Lake Turkana is one of the largest desert lakes in the world and is characterized by high degrees of interand intra-annual fluctuations. The hydrology and water balance of this lake have not been well understood due to its remote location and unavailability of reliable ground truth datasets. Managing surface water resources is a great challenge in areas where in-situ data are either limited or unavailable. In this study, multi-source satellite-driven data such as satellite-based rainfall estimates, modelled runoff, evapotranspiration, and a digital elevation dataset were used to model Lake Turkana water levels from 1998 to 2009. Due to the unavailability of reliable lake level data, an approach is presented to calibrate and validate the water balance model of Lake Turkana using a composite lake level product of TOPEX/Poseidon, Jason-1, and ENVISAT satellite altimetry data. Model validation results showed that the satellitedriven water balance model can satisfactorily capture the patterns and seasonal variations of the Lake Turkana water level fluctuations with a Pearson's correlation coefficient of 0.90 and a Nash-Sutcliffe Coefficient of Efficiency (NSCE) of 0.80 during the validation period (2004-2009). Model error estimates were within 10% of the natural variability of the lake. Our analysis indicated that fluctuations in Lake Turkana water levels are mainly driven by lake inflows and over-the-lake evaporation. Over-the-lake rainfall contributes only up to 30% of lake evaporative demand. During the modelling time period, Lake Turkana showed seasonal variations of 1-2m. The lake level fluctuated in the range up to 4m between the years 1998-2009. This study demonstrated the usefulness of satellite altimetry data to calibrate and validate the satellite-driven hydrological model for Lake Turkana without using any in-situ data. Furthermore, for Lake Turkana, we identified and outlined opportunities and challenges of using a calibrated satellite-driven water balance

  2. Evaluating the Impact of Gilgel Gibe Dam on the Lake Turkana Water Levels: An Illustration from an Endorheic Lake in Africa

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Velpuri, N.; Senay, G. B.

    2010-12-01

    Lake Turkana is one of the lakes in the Great Rift Valley, Africa. This lake has no outlet hence it is considered as closed or endorheic lake. To meet the demand of electricity in the east African region, Ethiopia is currently building Gilgel Gibe-III dam on the Omo River, which supplies up to 80% of the inflows to the Lake Turkana. On completion, this dam would be the tallest dam in Africa with a height of 241 m. As Lake Turkana is highly dependent on the inflows from the Omo River, the construction of this dam could potentially pose a threat to the downstream river valley and to Lake Turkana. This hydroelectric project is arguably one of the most controversial projects in the region. The impact of the dam on the lake is evaluated using Remote Sensing datasets and hydrologic modeling. First, lake water levels (1998-2007) were estimated using the Simplified Lake Water Balance (SLAB) approach which takes in satellite based rainfall estimates, modeled runoff and evapotranspiration data over the Turkana basin. Modeled lake levels were validated against TOPEX/POSIEDON/Jason-1 satellite altimeter data. Validation results showed that the model could capture observed trends and seasonal variations in lake levels. The fact that the lake is endorheic makes it easy to model the lake levels. Using satellite based estimates for the years 1998-2009, future scenarios for rainfall and evapotranspiration were generated using the Monte Carlo simulation approach and the impact of Gilgel Gibe-III dam on the Lake Turkana water levels is evaluated using SLAB approach. Preliminary results indicate that the impact of the dam on the lake would vary with the initial water level in the lake at the time of dam commissioning. It was found that during the initial period of dam/reservoir filling the lake level would drop up to 2-3 m (95% confidence interval). However, on average the lake would stabilize within 10 years from the date of commissioning. The variability within the lake levels due

  3. Assessing the potential hydrological impact of the Gibe III Dam on Lake Turkana water level using multi-source satellite data

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Velpuri, Naga Manohar; Senay, Gabriel B.

    2012-01-01

    Lake Turkana, the largest desert lake in the world, is fed by ungauged or poorly gauged river systems. To meet the demand of electricity in the East African region, Ethiopia is currently building the Gibe III hydroelectric dam on the Omo River, which supplies more than 80% of the inflows to Lake Turkana. On completion, the Gibe III dam will be the tallest dam in Africa with a height of 241 m. However, the nature of interactions and potential impacts of regulated inflows to Lake Turkana are not well understood due to its remote location and unavailability of reliable in-situ datasets. In this study, we used 12 years (1998–2009) of existing multi-source satellite and model-assimilated global weather data. We use calibrated multi-source satellite data-driven water balance model for Lake Turkana that takes into account model routed runoff, lake/reservoir evapotranspiration, direct rain on lakes/reservoirs and releases from the dam to compute lake water levels. The model evaluates the impact of Gibe III dam using three different approaches such as (a historical approach, a knowledge-based approach, and a nonparametric bootstrap resampling approach) to generate rainfall-runoff scenarios. All the approaches provided comparable and consistent results. Model results indicated that the hydrological impact of the dam on Lake Turkana would vary with the magnitude and distribution of rainfall post-dam commencement. On average, the reservoir would take up to 8–10 months, after commencement, to reach a minimum operation level of 201 m depth of water. During the dam filling period, the lake level would drop up to 2 m (95% confidence) compared to the lake level modelled without the dam. The lake level variability caused by regulated inflows after the dam commissioning were found to be within the natural variability of the lake of 4.8 m. Moreover, modelling results indicated that the hydrological impact of the Gibe III dam would depend on the initial lake level at the time of

  4. New insights on water level variability for Lake Turkana for the past 15 ka and at 150 ka from relict beaches

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Forman, S. L.; Wright, D.

    2015-12-01

    Relict beaches adjacent to Lake Turkana provide a record of water level variability for the Late Quaternary. This study focused on deciphering the geomorphology, sedimentology, stratigraphy and 14C chronology of strand plain sequences in the Kalokol and Lothagam areas. Nine >30 m oscillations in water level were documented between ca. 15 and 4 ka. The earliest oscillation between ca. 14.5 and 13 ka is not well constrained with water level to at least 70 m above the present surface and subsequently fell to at least 50 m. Lake level increased to ~ 90 m between ca. 11.2 and 10.4 ka, post Younger Dryas cooling. Water level fell by >30 m by 10.2 ka, with another potential rise at ca. 8.5 ka to >70 m above current level. Lake level regressed by > 40 m at 8.2 ka coincident with cooling in the equatorial Eastern Atlantic Ocean. Two major >70 m lake level oscillations centered at 6.6 and 5.2 ka may reflect enhanced convection with warmer sea surface temperatures in the Western Indian Ocean. The end of the African Humid Period occurred from ca. 8.0 to 4.5 ka and was characterized by variable lake level (± > 40 m), rather than one monotonic fall in water level. This lake level variability reflects a complex response to variations in the extent and intensity of the East and West African Monsoons near geographic and topographic limits within the catchment of Lake Turkana. Also, for this closed lake basin excess and deficits in water input are amplified with a cascading lake effect in the East Rift Valley and through the Chew Bahir Basin. The final regression from a high stand of > 90 m began at. 5.2 ka and water level was below 20 m by 4.5 ka; and for the remainder of the Holocene. This sustained low stand is associated with weakening of the West African Monsoon, a shift of the mean position of Congo Air Boundary west of the Lake Turkana catchment and with meter-scale variability in lake level linked to Walker circulation across the Indian Ocean. A surprising observation is

  5. STS-65 Earth observation of Omo River Delta, Lake Turkana in Ethiopia / Kenya

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1994-01-01

    STS-65 Earth observation taken aboard Columbia, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 102, is of Omo River Delta and Lake Turkana in Ethiopia / Kenya. The Omo Delta at the north end of Lake Turkana (Rudolph) is one of the long-term environmental study sites of the Space Shuttle program. The environmental interest in this instance is the documentation of the delta's extension into the lake. This delta extension, or aggradation, is felt to be the result of large-scale soil erosion in the recently deforested areas of Ethiopia in the watershed of the Omo River. Using digitized, rectified, machine-classified, and mensurated NASA photography, it has been determined that the Omo Delta has increased in area by approximately 400% to about 1,800 square kilometers since it was first photographed during the Gemini program in 1965. This photograph documents the long-term and increasing turbidity of Lake Turkana and the continuing delta extension southward by both the northwest and northeast distributaries of the Om

  6. Modeling the Hydrological Regime of Turkana Lake (Kenya, Ethiopia) by Combining Spatially Distributed Hydrological Modeling and Remote Sensing Datasets

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Anghileri, D.; Kaelin, A.; Peleg, N.; Fatichi, S.; Molnar, P.; Roques, C.; Longuevergne, L.; Burlando, P.

    2017-12-01

    Hydrological modeling in poorly gauged basins can benefit from the use of remote sensing datasets although there are challenges associated with the mismatch in spatial and temporal scales between catchment scale hydrological models and remote sensing products. We model the hydrological processes and long-term water budget of the Lake Turkana catchment, a transboundary basin between Kenya and Ethiopia, by integrating several remote sensing products into a spatially distributed and physically explicit model, Topkapi-ETH. Lake Turkana is the world largest desert lake draining a catchment of 145'500 km2. It has three main contributing rivers: the Omo river, which contributes most of the annual lake inflow, the Turkwel river, and the Kerio rivers, which contribute the remaining part. The lake levels have shown great variations in the last decades due to long-term climate fluctuations and the regulation of three reservoirs, Gibe I, II, and III, which significantly alter the hydrological seasonality. Another large reservoir is planned and may be built in the next decade, generating concerns about the fate of Lake Turkana in the long run because of this additional anthropogenic pressure and increasing evaporation driven by climate change. We consider different remote sensing datasets, i.e., TRMM-V7 for precipitation, MERRA-2 for temperature, as inputs to the spatially distributed hydrological model. We validate the simulation results with other remote sensing datasets, i.e., GRACE for total water storage anomalies, GLDAS-NOAH for soil moisture, ERA-Interim/Land for surface runoff, and TOPEX/Poseidon for satellite altimetry data. Results highlight how different remote sensing products can be integrated into a hydrological modeling framework accounting for their relative uncertainties. We also carried out simulations with the artificial reservoirs planned in the north part of the catchment and without any reservoirs, to assess their impacts on the catchment hydrological

  7. Earthshots: Satellite images of environmental change – Lake Turkana, Kenya and Ethiopia

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    ,

    2013-01-01

    Ethiopia is constructing a series of dams on the Omo River. The Gibe I and Gibe II dams are completed, and the Gibe III dam began filling its reservoir in 2015. Studies are ongoing to understand the interactions between regulated flows as a result of the dams and rainfall on the water levels of Lake Turkana. Scientists use many years’ worth of data to get a better understanding of the lake’s natural variability and how that variability might be affected by dams, irrigation, and rainfall.

  8. Trace Elements in Water, Sediments and the Elongate Tigerfish Hydrocynus forskahlii (Cuvier 1819) from Lake Turkana, Kenya Including a Comprehensive Health Risk Analysis.

    PubMed

    Otachi, Elick O; Plessl, Christof; Körner, Wilfried; Avenant-Oldewage, Annemariè; Jirsa, Franz

    2015-09-01

    This study presents the distribution of 17 major and trace elements in surface water, sediments and fish tissues from Lake Turkana, Kenya. Eight sediment and ten water samples from the west bank of the lake, as well as 34 specimens of the elongate tigerfish Hydrocynus forskahlii caught in that region were examined. It is the first report for Li, Rb, Sr, Mo from the lake and the first report on most of the trace elements for this fish species. The concentrations of elements in the water and sediments showed no sign of pollution. In fish muscle, Li, Zn and Cd showed relatively high abundances, with mean concentrations of 206, 427 and 0.56 mg/kg dw, respectively. The calculated target hazard quotient values for Li, Zn, Sr and Cd were 138.7, 1.9, 4.1 and 0.76, respectively; therefore the consumption of these fish poses a health risk to humans in the area.

  9. Omo River Delta, Lake Turkana, Ethiopia/Kenya border, Africa

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1991-01-01

    As a result of land clearing operations in the local area, the Omo River Delta (4.5N, 36.0E) at the north end of Lake Turkana, on the Ethiopia/Kenya border has become enlarged through topsoil erosion. The delta measured 800 sq. km. in 1981 doubled to 1,600 sq. km. by 1988 and was up to 1,800 sq. km. in 1991. This is the same area where the Leaky Anthropological Team discovered the earliest remains of human ancestors.

  10. Using multi-source satellite data for lake level modelling in ungauged basins: A case study for Lake Turkana, East Africa

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Velpuri, N.M.; Senay, G.B.; Asante, K.O.

    2011-01-01

    Managing limited surface water resources is a great challenge in areas where ground-based data are either limited or unavailable. Direct or indirect measurements of surface water resources through remote sensing offer several advantages of monitoring in ungauged basins. A physical based hydrologic technique to monitor lake water levels in ungauged basins using multi-source satellite data such as satellite-based rainfall estimates, modelled runoff, evapotranspiration, a digital elevation model, and other data is presented. This approach is applied to model Lake Turkana water levels from 1998 to 2009. Modelling results showed that the model can reasonably capture all the patterns and seasonal variations of the lake water level fluctuations. A composite lake level product of TOPEX/Poseidon, Jason-1, and ENVISAT satellite altimetry data is used for model calibration (1998-2000) and model validation (2001-2009). Validation results showed that model-based lake levels are in good agreement with observed satellite altimetry data. Compared to satellite altimetry data, the Pearson's correlation coefficient was found to be 0.81 during the validation period. The model efficiency estimated using NSCE is found to be 0.93, 0.55 and 0.66 for calibration, validation and combined periods, respectively. Further, the model-based estimates showed a root mean square error of 0.62 m and mean absolute error of 0.46 m with a positive mean bias error of 0.36 m for the validation period (2001-2009). These error estimates were found to be less than 15 % of the natural variability of the lake, thus giving high confidence on the modelled lake level estimates. The approach presented in this paper can be used to (a) simulate patterns of lake water level variations in data scarce regions, (b) operationally monitor lake water levels in ungauged basins, (c) derive historical lake level information using satellite rainfall and evapotranspiration data, and (d) augment the information provided by the

  11. Additional results on palaeomagnetic stratigraphy of the Koobi Fora Formation, east of Lake Turkana (Lake Rudolf), Kenya

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hillhouse, J.W.; Ndombi, J.W.M.; Cox, A.; Brock, A.

    1977-01-01

    The magnetostratigraphy of the hominid-bearing sediments exposed east of Lake Turkana has been strengthened by new palaeomagnetic results. Ages obtained from several tuffs by the 40Ar/39Ar method suggest an approxmate match between the observed magnetozones and the geomagnetic polarity time scale; however, the palaeomagnetic results are also compatible with a younger chronology suggested by conventional K-Ar dating of the KBS Tuff. ?? 1977 Nature Publishing Group.

  12. Evolution of Lake Turkana level at the end of the African Humid Period: modalities and forcings

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nutz, A.; Schuster, M.

    2015-12-01

    The African Humid Period (AHP), ca. 11,000 to 5,000 years ago, is a major phase that had significant impacts on the environments, ecosystems, and human occupation of Africa over several millennia. One of the most marked aspects stemming from an increase in rainfall during this climate period was the creation of numerous regional lakes and the recording of highstands for these waterbodies. The termination of the AHP is known to have been time-transgressive depending on the location, being either abrupt or gradual, thereby highlighting the complex interaction among multiple forcings and responses. Lake Turkana is one of the great lakes of the East African Rift where chronology of the AHP termination has already been investigated. In this study, the delta complex of the Turkwel River is analyzed using trajectory analysis in order to provide modalities of lake level decline during that time. Trajectories reveal six slightly descending (slope gradient: >0° to 0.4°) plateaus separated by four abrupt steps having higher slope gradients (1° to 3.8°). These abrupt steps reveal repeated short-lived strong increases in the rate of lake level decline that are superimposed on the relatively steady lake level decrease characterizing this period. This marks a stepwise forced regression at the end of the AHP in the Lake Turkana. We correlate the short-lived increases in the rate of lake level decline with short-lived abrupt decreases of solar irradiance. Through the termination of the AHP, the abrupt decreases in solar irradiance modulated the continuous precessional-based reduction of solar insulation that drastically impacted monsoon activity (i.e. rainfall) and led to variations in lake levels as a response. This suggests that short-term solar variability is able to modulate longer-term orbitally-driven climate trends having significant impacts in terms of hydrology and the regional continental environments.

  13. New radiocarbon dates for terminal Pleistocene and early Holocene settlements in West Turkana, northern Kenya

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Beyin, Amanuel; Prendergast, Mary E.; Grillo, Katherine M.; Wang, Hong

    2017-07-01

    The Turkana Basin in northern Kenya is located in an environmentally sensitive region along the eastern African Rift system. Lake Turkana's sensitivity to fluctuations in precipitation makes this an ideal place to study prehistoric human adaptations during key climatic transitions. Here we present eleven radiocarbon dates from two recently excavated sites in West Turkana, Kokito 01 and Kokito 02. The sites span the Pleistocene-Holocene transition, a time of fluctuating lake levels and novel cultural responses within the region. Several scenarios are laid out for the interpretation of site chronologies, and these are discussed with reference to the terminal Pleistocene and early Holocene chronological record for the region. Given the paucity of well-dated sites from this timespan in the Turkana Basin, the new radiocarbon dates are an important step toward establishing human settlement history and associated cultural developments in the region.

  14. Wind-driven Water Bodies : a new paradigm for lake geology

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nutz, A.; Schuster, M.; Ghienne, J. F.; Roquin, C.; Bouchette, F. A.

    2015-12-01

    In this contribution we emphasize the importance in some lakes of wind-related hydrodynamic processes (fair weather waves, storm waves, and longshore, cross-shore and bottom currents) as a first order forcing for clastics remobilization and basin infill. This alternative view contrasts with more classical depositional models for lakes where fluvial-driven sedimentation and settling dominates. Here we consider three large lakes/paleo-lakes that are located in different climatic and geodynamic settings: Megalake Chad (north-central Africa), Lake Saint-Jean (Québec, Canada), and Lake Turkana (Kenya, East African Rift System). All of these three lake systems exhibit well developed modern and ancient high-energy littoral morphosedimentary structures which directly derive from wind-related hydrodynamics. The extensive paleo-shorelines of Megalake Chad are composed of beach-foredune ridges, spits, wave-dominated deltas, barriers, and wave-ravinment surface. For Lake Saint-Jean the influence of wind is also identified below the wave-base at lake bottom from erosional surfaces, and sediment drifts. In the Lake Turkana Basin, littoral landforms and deposits are identified for three different time intervals (today, Holocene, Plio-Pleistocene) evidencing that wind-driven hydrodynamics can be preserved in the geological record. Moreover, a preliminary global survey suggests that numerous modern lakes (remote sensing) and paleo-lakes (bibliographic review) behave as such. We thus coin the term "Wind-driven Water Bodies" (WWB) to refer to those lake systems where sedimentation (erosion, transport, deposition) is dominated by wind-induced hydrodynamics at any depth, as it is the case in the marine realm for shallow seas. Integrating wind forcing in lake models has strong implications for basin analysis (paleoenvironments and paleoclimates restitutions, resources exploration), but also for coastal engineering, wildlife and reservoirs management, or leisure activities.

  15. Predicting Species’ Vulnerability in a Massively Perturbed System: The Fishes of Lake Turkana, Kenya

    PubMed Central

    Gownaris, Natasha J.; Pikitch, Ellen K.; Ojwang, William O.; Michener, Robert; Kaufman, Les

    2015-01-01

    Background and Trophic Diversity Study Lake Turkana is an understudied desert lake shared by Kenya and Ethiopia. This system is at the precipice of large-scale changes in ecological function due to climate change and economic development along its major inflowing river, the Omo River. To anticipate response by the fish community to these changes, we quantified trophic diversity for seven ecological disparate species (Alestes baremose, Hydrocynus forskalli, Labeo horie, Lates niloticus, Oreochromis niloticus, Synodontis schall, and Tilapia zillii) using stable isotopes. Based on their marked morphological differentiation, we postulated that dietary niches of these species would be similar in size but show little overlap. The degree of trophic diversity varied greatly among the species studied, refuting our hypothesis regarding dietary niche size. Oreochromis niloticus and L. niloticus had the highest trophic diversity and significantly larger dietary niches than T. zillii, A. baremose and H. forskalli. Low overlap among the dietary niches of the seven species, with the exception of the synodontid catfish S. schall, is consistent with our second hypothesis. Predicting Species’ Vulnerability Breeding vulnerability was highest among those species with the lowest trophic diversity. We predict that in suffering two strikes against them, A. baremose, H. forskalli, T. zillii, and L. horie will be most affected by the highly altered Lake Turkana ecosystem and that O. niloticus, L. niloticus and S. schall will be least affected. Low vulnerability among O. niloticus and L. niloticus is promising for the future of the lake’s fishery, but the third most important fishery species (L. horie) will be highly vulnerable to impending ecosystem change. T. zillii should be treated as separate from O. niloticus in the fishery given higher sensitivity and a different ecological role. We see potential for expansion of the fishery for S. schall but don’t recommend the development of

  16. Influence of Plio-Pleistocene basin hydrology on the Turkana hominin enamel carbonate δ(18)O values.

    PubMed

    Quinn, Rhonda L

    2015-09-01

    Stable oxygen isotopes of hominin enamel carbonate (δ(18)OEC) provide a window into aspects of past drinking behavior and diet, body size, breastfeeding and weaning, mobility, and paleoclimate. It is tempting to compare all hominins across time and space in order to gauge species-level adaptations to changing environments and niche separation between those living sympatrically. Basinal, sub-basinal, and micro-environmental differences, however, may exert an influence on variation in enamel carbonate isotopic values that must be reconciled before hominin species across Africa can be meaningfully compared. Plio-Pleistocene Turkana hominin δ(18)OEC values show a considerable spread, potentially revealing many intrinsic and extrinsic contributing factors operating on different scales. In this study, I examine Turkana hominin δ(18)OEC values relative to identity (taxon, tooth type and number, body size of taxon), dietary (δ(13)C value, Turkana coeval and modern mammalian δ(18)OEC values), and contextual (time, depositional environment) information of each specimen and collection locality and discuss various potential influences. Turkana hominin δ(18)OEC values may primarily reflect differences in imbibed water sources (lake vs. river) as a function of evolving basin hydrology. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. The temporal and spatial distribution of upper crustal faulting and magmatism in the south Lake Turkana rift, East Africa

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Muirhead, J.; Scholz, C. A.

    2017-12-01

    During continental breakup extension is accommodated in the upper crust largely through dike intrusion and normal faulting. The Eastern branch of the East African Rift arguably represents the premier example of active continental breakup in the presence magma. Constraining how faulting is distributed in both time and space in these regions is challenging, yet can elucidate how extensional strain localizes within basins as rifting progresses to sea-floor spreading. Studies of active rifts, such as the Turkana Rift, reveal important links between faulting and active magmatic processes. We utilized over 1100 km of high-resolution Compressed High Intensity Radar Pulse (CHIRP) 2D seismic reflection data, integrated with a suite of radiocarbon-dated sediment cores (3 in total), to constrain a 17,000 year history of fault activity in south Lake Turkana. Here, a set of N-S-striking intra-rift faults exhibit time-averaged slip-rates as high as 1.6 mm/yr, with the highest slip-rates occurring along faults within 3 km of the rift axis. Results show that strain has localized into a zone of intra-rift faults along the rift axis, forming an approximately 20 km-wide graben in central parts of the basin. Subsurface structural mapping and fault throw profile analyses reveal increasing basin subsidence and fault-related strain as this faulted graben approaches a volcanic island in the center of the basin (South Island). The long-axis of this island trends north-south, and it contains a number of elongate cones that support recent emplacement of N-S-striking dike intrusions, which parallel recently active intra-rift faults. Overall, these observations suggest strain localization into intra-rift faults in the rift center is likely a product of both volcanic loading and the mechanical and thermal effects of diking along the rift axis. These results support the establishment of magmatic segmentation in southern Lake Turkana, and highlight the importance of magmatism for focusing upper

  18. Exploring the Middle Pleistocene Lake Suguta Sr-isotope Stratigraphic record

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vonhof, Hubert; Junginger, Annett; Agmon, Nadav; Trauth, Martin

    2017-04-01

    Several studies into the Quaternary stratigraphic record of the Sr-isotope composition of paleolake Turkana in the East African Rift System (EARS) show how variation of climate left a signal of changing lacustrine Sr isotope values. This Sr isotope signal was captured in the lacustrine fossil record of the Turkana Basin, and can be a useful chemostratigraphic tool (e.g. Joordens et al., 2011; van der Lubbe et al., submitted). Such lacustrine Sr-isotope changes are believed to be paced by orbital-forced insolation cyclicity, and interpreted to be the result of changing contribution of run-off from different sub-catchments of lake Turkana, as climate change shifted regional rainfall patterns. Here, we present a first set of data from a middle Pleistocene stratigraphical sequence in the Suguta Valley, South of the Turkana Basin in the EARS. This sequence spans a couple of sedimentological cycles that potentially represent precession-forced lake level variation. In this setting, the Sr-isotope data do not vary in phase with these sedimentological cycles, but demonstrate a long trend of Sr isotope change. This may suggest that the catchment configuration of the Suguta Valley in the Mid Pleistocene was less suitable to record precession-forced hydroclimate change in Lacustrine Sr isotope ratios. This may have implications for the Turkana Basin Sr isotope record as well, because the two basins are believed to have been hydrologically connected in the Middle Pleistocene. references: 1)Joordens, J.C.A. et al., 2011. An astronomically-tuned climate framework for hominins in the Turkana Basin. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 307, 1-8. 2)van der Lubbe et al., submitted. Gradual or abrupt? Changes in water source of Lake Turkana (Kenya) during the African Humid Period inferred from Sr isotope ratios

  19. Hydatid disease in the Turkana District of Kenya, IV. The prevalence of Echinococcus granulosus infections in dogs, and observations on the role of the dog in the lifestyle of the Turkana.

    PubMed

    Macpherson, C N; French, C M; Stevenson, P; Karstad, L; Arundel, J H

    1985-02-01

    The prevalence of Echinococcus granulosus in dogs in the Turkana District of Kenya was 39.4% of 695 examined. Of these, 98 (35.8%) had heavy Echinococcus worm burdens (10(3)-5 X 10(4) ), while 54 (19.7%) and 122 (44.5%) had medium (201-1000) and light (1-200) burdens. The possible sources of these infections are discussed. The prevalence rate differed in various parts of the district, ranging from 63.5% in the northwest, where the highest incidence of human hydatidosis also occurs, to nil along the shores of Lake Turkana. Infection rates of 32.0% and 16.7% were recorded at Lokitaung (north-east) and Lodwar (central), while in the south 48.9% of dogs harboured Echinococcus. This latter figure is surprising as the area has a low incidence of human hydatidosis. The Turkana keep a large number of dogs, and the reasons for this and the social role of the dog in the district is discussed. No difference in susceptibility was found between Turkana-type dogs and those of mixed breeds from Nairobi when they were experimentally infected with hydatid protoscolices from man, camels, cattle, sheep and goats. However, it proved difficult to infect the Turkana-type of dogs with viable protoscolices of cattle origin. The reasons for this and its epidemiological implications remain unclear. It is suggested that droughts, which affect Turkana every six to ten years, may play an important role in the perpetuation of hydatid disease in the area.

  20. The existence of Dracunculus medinensis (Linnaeus, 1758) in Turkana, Kenya.

    PubMed

    Macpherson, C N

    1981-01-01

    Dracontiasis has been previously reported in southern Sudan, northern Uganda and north-west Eritrea but this is the first report of autochthonous cases in Turkana, Kenya. Five Turkana tribesmen, three females from the same family, one young boy and an adult male were being treated for guinea-worm at the dispensary in Lokichogio, northern Turkana District. The three women had recently returned from southern Sudan, where the disease is endemic, but the two male tribesmen had only lived in and around the Lokichogio region. The methods used in obtaining water from water-holes dug in dry river beds provide an ideal situation for Dracunculus transmission amongst the tribesmen; this parasite may therefore become a problem in this remote impoverished area.

  1. A ~600 kyr duration Early Pleistocene record from the West Turkana (Kenya) HSPDP drill site: elemental XRF variability to reconstruct climate change in Turkana Boy's backyard

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stockhecke, M.; Beck, C. C.; Brown, E. T.; Cohen, A.; Deino, A. L.; Feibel, C. S.; Sier, M.

    2015-12-01

    Outcrops in the Kenyan and Ethiopian rift valleys document repeated occurrences of freshwater lakes and wooded landscapes over the past 4 million years at locations that are currently seasonally-dry savanna. Studies of the rich fossil records, in combination with outcropping lacustrine sequences, led to major breakthroughs in our knowledge of driving factors in human evolution. However, study of continuous drill core from ancient lake basins provides a basis for to unravel East African climate dynamics in an unseen fashion. The Hominin Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project (HSPDP), and the related Olorgesailie Drilling Project, recovered ~2 km of drill core since 2012. A major project goal is characterization of East African paleoclimate in order to evaluate its impact on hominin evolution. XRF core scanning data provide a means of evaluating records of past environmental conditions continuously and at high resolution. However, the HSPDP records contain complex lithologies reflecting repeated episodes of inundation and desiccation of the lake basins. Nevertheless, careful data evaluation based on detailed lithostratigraphy, which includes smear-slide microscopic analyses and X-radiographic images, allows disentanglement of complex signals and robust identification of continuous sequences for any cyclostratigraphic and statistical analysis. At the HSPDP Turkana Basin site a 175.6 m-long core the covers the Early Pleistocene time window during which hominids first expanded out of Africa and marine records document reorganization of tropical climate and the development of the strong Walker circulation. This drill site carries particular interest as it is located in only 2.5 km from the location of one of the most complete hominin skeletons ever recovered (Turkana Boy). Here we present a methodological approach to address the highly variable lithostratigraphy of the East African records to establish comprehensive and environmentally meaningful paleoclimate timeseries

  2. Plio-Pleistocene facies environments from the KBS Member, Koobi Fora Formation: implications for climate controls on the development of lake-margin hominin habitats in the northeast Turkana Basin (northwest Kenya).

    PubMed

    Lepre, Christopher J; Quinn, Rhonda L; Joordens, Josephine C A; Swisher, Carl C; Feibel, Craig S

    2007-11-01

    Climate change is hypothesized as a cause of major events of Plio-Pleistocene East African hominin evolution, but the vertically discontinuous and laterally confined nature of the relevant geological records has led to difficulties with assessing probable links between the two. High-resolution sedimentary sequences from lacustrine settings can provide comprehensive data of environmental changes and detailed correlations with well-established orbital and marine records of climate. Hominin-bearing deposits from Koobi Fora Ridge localities in the northeast Turkana Basin of Kenya are an archive of Plio-Pleistocene lake-margin sedimentation though significant developmental junctures of northern African climates, East African environments, and hominin evolution. This study examines alluvial channel and floodplain, nearshore lacustrine, and offshore lacustrine facies environments for the approximately 136-m-thick KBS Member (Koobi Fora Formation) exposed at the Koobi Fora Ridge. Aspects of the facies environments record information on the changing hydrosedimentary dynamics of the lake margin and give insights into potential climatic controls. Seasonal/yearly climate changes are represented by the varve-like laminations in offshore mudstones and the slickensides, dish-shaped fractures, and other paleosol features overprinted on floodplain strata. Vertical shifts between facies environments, however, are interpreted to indicate lake-level fluctuations deriving from longer-term, dry-wet periods in monsoonal rainfall. Recurrence periods for the inferred lake-level changes range from about 10,000 to 50,000 years, and several are consistent with the average estimated timescales of orbital precession ( approximately 20,000 years) and obliquity ( approximately 40,000 years). KBS Member facies environments from the Koobi Fora Ridge document the development of lake-margin hominin habitats in the northeast Turkana Basin. Environmental changes in these habitats may be a result of

  3. The Response of Eastern African Terrestrial Environments to the Mid-Pleistocene Climate Transition: Paleosol Isotopic Evidence from the Turkana Basin, Kenya

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Quinn, R.; Lepre, C. J.

    2017-12-01

    Heightened aridity and C4 grass expansion are recorded in Africa during the Mid-Pleistocene Climate Transition (MPCT, 1.3-0.7 Ma), potentially as consequences of decreasing atmospheric CO2. Whether all of Africa responded to the MPCT in the same manner is unclear. Recent studies of a Malawi Basin lake core and paleosols show abundant C3 flora across the MPCT. African climate change is often suggested as a primary cause of hominin speciation, extinction, and technological innovations. Competing environmental-based evolutionary hypotheses propose increased aridity, humidity pulses, and climatic variability as influences of water availability and vegetation structure in Plio-Pleistocene hominin habitats. The Turkana Basin in northern Kenya preserves a rich fossil record of hominins from 4.3-0.7 Ma and offers high-resolution age control via paleomagnetic stratigraphy, isotopic geochronology, and tephrostratigraphy. Turkana's large paleosol isotopic database demonstrates a gradual increase in C4 grass abundance and aridity from 4-1 Ma. Faunal evidence for increasing abundances of C4 grazers corroborates the spread of C4 grasslands from 2-1 Ma. However, there is a dearth of terrestrial environmental records after 1.5 Ma and through the MPCT at Turkana, during which time eastern Africa witnessed the extinction of Paranthropus and the disperal of genus Homo. Here we report a stable isotopic (δ13C, δ18O) record of paleosol carbonates from the Turkana Basin from 1.4 to 0.7 Ma. Based on our findings and comparisons with comparable datasets from other hominin locales, we suggest that eastern African environments responded to the MPCT in a phased shift from south to north, possibly as a consequence of the compression of the ITCZ during glacial maxima and/or to changes to the Indian Ocean Dipole.

  4. A leaf wax biomarker record of early Pleistocene hydroclimate from West Turkana, Kenya

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lupien, R. L.; Russell, J. M.; Feibel, C.; Beck, C.; Castañeda, I.; Deino, A.; Cohen, A. S.

    2018-04-01

    Climate is thought to play a critical role in human evolution; however, this hypothesis is difficult to test due to a lack of long, high-quality paleoclimate records from key hominin fossil locales. To address this issue, we analyzed organic geochemical indicators of climate in a drill core from West Turkana, Kenya that spans ∼1.9-1.4 Ma, an interval that includes several important hominin evolutionary transitions. We analyzed the hydrogen isotopic composition of terrestrial plant waxes (δDwax) to reconstruct orbital-timescale changes in regional hydrology and their relationship with global climate forcings and the hominin fossil record. Our data indicate little change in the long-term mean hydroclimate during this interval, in contrast to inferred changes in the level of Lake Turkana, suggesting that lake level may be responding dominantly to deltaic progradation or tectonically-driven changes in basin configuration as opposed to hydroclimate. Time-series spectral analyses of the isotopic data reveal strong precession-band (21 kyr) periodicity, indicating that regional hydroclimate was strongly affected by changes in insolation. We observe an interval of particularly high-amplitude hydrologic variation at ∼1.7 Ma, which occurs during a time of high orbital eccentricity hence large changes in processionally-driven insolation amplitude. This interval overlaps with multiple hominin species turnovers, the appearance of new stone tool technology, and hominin dispersal out of Africa, supporting the notion that climate variability played an important role in hominin evolution.

  5. Sensitivity of the East African rift lakes to climate variability

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Olaka, L.; Trauth, M. H.

    2009-04-01

    Lakes in the East African Rift have provided excellent proxies to reconstruct past climate changes in the low latitudes. The lakes occupy volcano-tectonic depressions with highly variable climate and hydrological setting, that present a good opportunity to study the climatic and hydrogeological influences on the lake water budget. Previous studies have used lake floor sediments to establish the sensitivity of the East African rift lakes. This study focuses on geomorphology and climate to offer additional or alternative record of lake history that are key to quantifying sensitivity of these lakes as archives to external and internal climatic forcings. By using the published Holocene lake areas and levels, we analyze twelve lakes on the eastern arm of the East African rift; Ziway, Awassa, Turkana, Suguta, Baringo, Nakuru, Elmenteita, Naivasha, Natron, Manyara and compare with Lake Victoria, that occupies the plateau between the east and the western arms of the rift. Using the SRTM data, Hypsometric (area-altitude) analysis has been used to compare the lake basins between latitude 80 North and 30 South. The mean elevation for the lakes, is between 524 and 2262 meters above sea level, the lakes' hypsometric integrals (HI), a measure of landmass volume above the reference plane, vary from 0.31 to 0.76. The aridity index (Ai), defined as Precipitation/ Evapotranspiration, quantifies the water available to a lake, it encompasses land cover and climatic effects. It is lowest (arid) in the basin between the Ethiopian rift and the Kenyan rift and at the southern termination of the Kenyan Rift in the catchments of lake Turkana, Suguta, Baringo and Manyara with values of 0.55, 0.43, 0.43 and 0.5 respectively. And it is highest (wet) in the catchments of, Ziway, Awassa, Nakuru and Naivasha as 1.33,1.03 and 1.2 respectively, which occupy the highest points of the rift. Lake Victoria has an index of 1.42 the highest of these lakes and receives a high precipitation. We use a

  6. Leaf wax biomarker reconstruction of Early Pleistocene hydrological variation during hominin evolution in West Turkana, Kenya

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lupien, R.; Russell, J. M.; Cohen, A. S.; Feibel, C. S.; Beck, C.; Castañeda, I. S.

    2016-12-01

    Climate change is thought to play a critical role in human evolution; however, this hypothesis is difficult to test due to a lack of long, high-quality paleoclimate records from key hominin fossil locales. To address this issue, we examine Plio-Pleistocene lake sediment drill cores from East Africa that were recovered by the Hominin Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project, an international effort to study the environment in which our hominin ancestors evolved and dispersed. With new data we test various evolutionary hypotheses, such as the "variability selection" hypothesis, which posits that high-frequency environmental variations selected for generalist traits that allowed hominins to expand into variable environments. We analyzed organic geochemical signals of climate in lake cores from West Turkana, Kenya, which span 1.87-1.38 Ma and contain the first fossils from Homo erectus. In particular, we present a compound-specific hydrogen isotopic analysis of terrestrial plant waxes (δDwax) that records regional hydrology. The amount effect dominates water isotope fractionation in the tropics; therefore, these data are interpreted to reflect mean annual rainfall, which affects vegetation structure and thus, hominin habitats. The canonical view of East Africa is that climate became drier and increasingly felt high-latitude glacial-interglacial cycles during the Plio-Pleistocene. However, the drying trend seen in some records is not evident in Turkana δDwax, signifying instead a climate with a steady mean state. Spectral and moving variance analyses indicate paleohydrological variations related to both high-latitude glaciation (41 ky cycle) and local insolation-forced monsoons (21 ky cycle). An interval of particularly high-amplitude rainfall variation occurs at 1.7 Ma, which coincides with the intensification of the Walker Circulation. These results identify high- and low-latitude controls on East African paleohydrology during Homo erectus evolution. In particular, the

  7. Geomorphic controls on hydrology and vegetation in an arid basin: Turkana district, northern Kenya

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Coppinger, K.D.; Doehring, D.O.; Schimel, D.S.

    1985-01-01

    As part of a broad ecological study of Kenyan pastoralist adaptation to periodic drought, a study was done to determine how arid region geomorphology affects hydrology and subsequently vegetative patterns. In this study area, 100 kilometers south of Lake Turkana, it appears that irregular precipitation is stored in bajada sediments and is available to deeply rooted vegetation over long periods of time. This vegetation provides a relatively constant food source for people's herds of browsers, the camels and goats, whereas cattle, which graze mainly on grasses, are significant producers only during wet seasons. Field observations suggest that the mountain andmore » abutting pediment soils are too shallow to store appreciable water. However, greater quantities of water are stored in the deeper bajada sediments adjacent to the pediment where pastoralists dig temporary wells in ephemeral channels during wet seasons. Density of tree growth is greater along channels, and highest canopy cover values are found about the pediment-bajada interface. Geohydrologic processes in this area provide the basis for continuous occupation by the desert people, in contrast to recurring famines in adjacent areas, by enhancing the growth of woody vegetation.« less

  8. Grip strength and body composition in Turkana pastoralist children and adolescents.

    PubMed

    Little, Michael A

    2017-03-01

    In an earlier study, age changes and sex differences in grip strength were documented for adult Turkana pastoralists of Kenya (Little and Johnson, 1986). The objective here is to characterize age changes and sex differences in grip strength of Turkana children and adolescents in the context of arm lean tissue composition, and in comparison with other African, African-American, and non-Western populations. Anthropometric measurements, derived body composition values, and grip strength measures (maximum voluntary contraction) were taken on a sample of 232 nomadic Turkana pastoralist children (94 boys and 138 girls) aged 3 to 21 years. Relationships were tested between grip strength (in Newtons) and mid-upper arm (brachium) lean tissue cross-sectional areas. Comparisons were made among several different ethnic groups. Turkana children and adolescents had low arm muscle (derived lean tissue) and grip strength values when compared with U.S. NHANES percentile references. Girls' percentile rankings were greater than boys' percentile rankings for muscle and for grip strength. Both boys and girls were intermediate when compared with other non-Western populations and U.S. strength grip reference values. Correlations between grip strength and arm lean tissue areas were highly significant for both boys and girls. The greater relative muscle size and grip strength values of late adolescent girls compared to boys is consistent with an earlier study of adults. The difference is likely to result from greater physical subsistence activity and greater access to food in girls than in boys. Several suggestions are given to explain why Turkana youths have relatively small muscle sizes. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  9. Water-Quality and Lake-Stage Data for Wisconsin Lakes, Water Year 2006

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Rose, W.J.; Garn, H.S.; Goddard, G.L.; Marsh, S.B.; Olson, D.L.; Robertson, Dale M.

    2007-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with local and other agencies, collects data at selected lakes throughout Wisconsin. These data, accumulated over many years, provide a data base for developing an improved understanding of the water quality of lakes. To make these data available to interested parties outside the USGS, the data are published annually in this report series. The locations of water-quality and lake-stage stations in Wisconsin for water year 2006 are shown in figure 1. A water year is the 12-month period from October 1 through September 30. It is designated by the calendar year in which it ends. Thus, the period October 1, 2005 through September 30, 2006 is called 'water year 2006.' The purpose of this report is to provide information about the chemical and physical characteristics of Wisconsin lakes. Data that have been collected at specific lakes, and information to aid in the interpretation of those data, are included in this report. Data collected include measurements of in-lake water quality and lake stage. Time series of Secchi depths, surface total phosphorus and chlorophyll a concentrations collected during non-frozen periods are included for all lakes. Graphs of vertical profiles of temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, and specific conductance are included for sites where these parameters were measured. Descriptive information for each lake includes: location of the lake, area of the lake's watershed, period for which data are available, revisions to previously published records, and pertinent remarks. Additional data, such as streamflow and water quality in tributary and outlet streams of some of the lakes, are published in another volume: 'Water Resources Data-Wisconsin, 2006.' Water-resources data, including stage and discharge data at most streamflow-gaging stations, are available through the World Wide Web on the Internet. The Wisconsin Water Science Center's home page is at http://wi.water.usgs.gov/. Information on the

  10. An Early Pleistocene high-resolution paleoclimate reconstruction from the West Turkana (Kenya) HSPDP drill site

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stockhecke, Mona; Beck, Catherine; Brown, Erik T.; Cohen, Andrew; Deocampo, Daniel M.; Feibel, Craig S.; Pelletier, Jon D.; Rabideaux, Nathane M.; Sier, Mark

    2016-04-01

    The Hominin Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project (HSPDP), and the related Olorgesailie Drilling Project (ODP), recovered ~2 km of drill core since 2012. At the HSPDP West Turkana Kaitio (WTK) site a 216 m-long core that covers the Early Pleistocene time window (1.3 to 1.87 Ma) during which hominids first expanded out of Africa and marine records document reorganization of tropical climate and the development of the strong Walker circulation. WTK carries particular interest for paleoclimate and paleoenvironmental reconstructions as it is located only 2.5 km from the location of one of the most complete hominin skeletons ever recovered (Nariokotome Boy). XRF core scanning data provide a means of evaluating records of past environmental conditions continuously and at high resolution. However, the record contains complex lithologies reflecting repeated episodes of inundation and desiccation along a dynamic lake margin. Here we present a methodological approach to address the highly variable lithostratigraphy of the East African records to establish comprehensive paleoclimate timeseries. The power spectrum of the presented hydroclimate record peaks at Milankovitch cycles, qualifying HSPDP drill cores from the Turkana Basin to be used as high-resolution Early Pleistocene paleoclimate archive. Comparing these data with marine climate reconstructions sheds light into athmospheric processes and continental climate dynamics.

  11. Water-Quality and Lake-Stage Data for Wisconsin Lakes, Water Year 2007

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wisconsin Water Science Center Lake-Studies Team: Rose, W. J.; Garn, H.S.; Goddard, G.L.; Marsh, S.B.; Olson, D.L.; Robertson, Dale M.

    2008-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with local and other agencies, collects data at selected lakes throughout Wisconsin. These data, accumulated over many years, provide a data base for developing an improved understanding of the water quality of lakes. To make these data available to interested parties outside the USGS, the data are published annually in this report series. The locations of water-quality and lake-stage stations in Wisconsin for water year 2007 are shown in figure 1. A water year is the 12-month period from October 1 through September 30. It is designated by the calendar year in which it ends. Thus, the period October 1, 2005 through September 30, 2007 is called 'water year 2007.' The purpose of this report is to provide information about the chemical and physical characteristics of Wisconsin lakes. Data that have been collected at specific lakes, and information to aid in the interpretation of those data, are included in this report. Data collected include measurements of in-lake water quality and lake stage. Time series of Secchi depths, surface total phosphorus and chlorophyll a concentrations collected during non-frozen periods are included for all lakes. Graphs of vertical profiles of temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, and specific conductance are included for sites where these parameters were measured. Descriptive information for each lake includes: location of the lake, area of the lake?s watershed, period for which data are available, revisions to previously published records, and pertinent remarks. Additional data, such as streamflow and water quality in tributary and outlet streams of some of the lakes, are published in another volume: 'Water Resources Data-Wisconsin, 2007.'

  12. Water-quality and lake-stage data for Wisconsin lakes, water year 2014

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Manteufel, S. Bridgett; Robertson, Dale M.

    2017-05-25

    IntroductionThe U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with local and other agencies, collects data at selected lakes throughout Wisconsin. These data, accumulated over many years, provide a database for developing an improved understanding of the water quality of lakes. To make these data available to interested parties outside the USGS, the data are published annually in this report series. The locations of water-quality and lake-stage stations in Wisconsin for water year 2014 are shown in figure 1. A water year is the 12-month period from October 1 through September 30. It is designated by the calendar year in which it ends. Thus, the periodOctober 1, 2013, through September 30, 2014, is called “water year 2014.”The purpose of this report is to provide information about the chemical and physical characteristics of Wisconsin lakes. Data that have been collected at specific lakes, and information to aid in the interpretation of those data, are included in this report. Data collected include measurements of in-lake water quality and lake stage. Time series of Secchi depths, surface total phosphorus, and chlorophyll a concentrations collected during nonfrozen periods are included for many lakes. Graphs of vertical profiles of temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, and specific conductance are included for sites where these parameters were measured. Descriptive information for each lake includes the location of the lake, area of the lake’s watershed, period for which data are available, revisions to previously published records, and pertinent remarks. Additional data, such as streamflow and water quality in tributary and outlet streams of some of the lakes, are published online at http://nwis.waterdata.usgs.gov/wi/nwis.Water-resources data, including stage and discharge data at most streamflow-gaging stations, are available online. The Wisconsin Water Science Center’s home page is at https://www.usgs.gov/centers/wisconsin-water-science-center. Information

  13. Comparison of effects of breast-feeding practices on birth-spacing in three societies: nomadic Turkana, Gainj, and Quechua.

    PubMed

    Gray, S J

    1994-01-01

    Variation in the duration and pattern of breast-feeding contributes significantly to inter-population differences in fertility. In this paper, measures of suckling frequency and intensity are used to compare the effects of breast-feeding practices on the duration of lactational amenorrhoea, and on the length of the birth interval in three prospective studies undertaken during the 1980s, among Quechua Indians of Peru, Turkana nomads of Kenya, and Gainj of Papua New Guinea. In all three societies, lactation is prolonged well into the second year postpartum, and frequent, on-demand breast-feeding is the norm. However, the duration of lactational amenorrhoea and the length of birth intervals vary considerably. Breast-feeding patterns among Gainj and Turkana are similar, but Turkana women resume menses some 3 months earlier than do the Gainj. The average birth interval among the Gainj exceeds that of nomadic Turkana by over 15 months. Suckling activity decreases significantly with increasing age of nurslings among both Gainj and Quechua, but not among Turkana. Earlier resumption of menses among Turkana women may be linked to the unpredictable demands of the pastoral system, which increase day-to-day variation in the number of periods of on-demand breast-feeding, although not in suckling patterns. This effect is independent of the age of infants. The short birth intervals of Turkana women, relative to those of the Gainj, may be related to early supplementation of Turkana nurslings with butterfat and animals' milk, which reduces energetic demands on lactating women at risk of negative energy balance.

  14. Childhood disability in Turkana, Kenya: Understanding how carers cope in a complex humanitarian setting

    PubMed Central

    Nyapera, Velma; Mwenda, Victoria; Kisia, James; Rono, Hilary; Palmer, Jennifer

    2016-01-01

    Background Although the consequences of disability are magnified in humanitarian contexts, research into the difficulties of caring for children with a disability in such settings has received limited attention. Methods Based on in-depth interviews with 31 families, key informants and focus group discussions in Turkana, Kenya, this article explores the lives of families caring for children with a range of impairments (hearing, vision, physical and intellectual) in a complex humanitarian context characterised by drought, flooding, armed conflict, poverty and historical marginalisation. Results The challenging environmental and social conditions of Turkana magnified not only the impact of impairment on children, but also the burden of caregiving. The remoteness of Turkana, along with the paucity and fragmentation of health, rehabilitation and social services, posed major challenges and created opportunity costs for families. Disability-related stigma isolated mothers of children with disabilities, especially, increasing their burden of care and further limiting their access to services and humanitarian programmes. In a context where social systems are already stressed, the combination of these factors compounded the vulnerabilities faced by children with disabilities and their families. Conclusion The needs of children with disabilities and their carers in Turkana are not being met by either community social support systems or humanitarian aid programmes. There is an urgent need to mainstream disability into Turkana services and programmes. PMID:28730061

  15. Water-quality and lake-stage data for Wisconsin lakes, water year 1996

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    ,

    1997-01-01

    The purpose of this report is to provide information about the physical and chemical characteristics of Wisconsin lakes. Data that have been collected at specific lakes, and information to aid in the interpretation of those data, are included in this report. Data collected includes measurements of lake stage and in-lake water quality. Graphs of Secchi depths, surface totalphosphorus and chlorophyll-a concentrations versus time are included for lakes with two or more years of data. Graphs of vertical profiles of temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, and specific conductance are included for sites where these parameters were measured. Descriptive information for each lake includes: location of the lake, drainage area of the lake's watershed, period for which data are available, revisions to previously published records, and pertinent remarks. Additional data, such as streamflow and water quality in tributary and outlet streams of some of the lakes, are published in another volume: "Water Resources Data-Wisconsin, 1996."

  16. Water quality of Lake Austin and Town Lake, Austin, Texas

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Andrews, F.L.; Wells, F.C.; Shelby, W.J.

    1988-01-01

    Lake Austin and Town Lake are impoundments on the Colorado River in Travis County, central Texas, and are a source of water for municipal industrial water supplies, electrical-power generation, and recreation for more than 500,000 people in the Austin metropolitan area. Small vertical temperature variations in both lakes were attributed to shallow depths in the lakes and short retention times of water in the lakes during the summer months. The largest areal variations in dissolved oxygen generally occur in Lake Austin during the summer as a result of releases of water from below the thermocline in Lake Travis. Except formore » iron, manganese, and mercury, dissolved concentrations of trace elements in water collected from Lake Austin and Town Lake did not exceed the primary or secondary drinking water standards set by the US Environmental Protection Agency. Little or no effect of stormwater runoff on temperature, dissolved oxygen, or minor elements could be detected in either Lake Austin or Town Lake. Little seasonal or areal variation was noted in nitrogen concentrations in Lake Austin or Town lake. Total phosphorus concentrations generally were small in both lakes. Increased concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus were detected after storm runoff inflow in Town Lake, but not in Lake Austin; densities of fecal-coliform bacteria increased in Lake Austin and Town Lake, but were substantially greater in Town Lake than in Lake Austin. 18 refs., 38 figs., 59 tabs.« less

  17. Water-quality and lake-stage data for Wisconsin lakes, water years 2012–2013

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Manteufel, S. Bridgett; Robertson, Dale M.

    2017-05-25

    IntroductionThe U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with local and other agencies, collects data at selected lakes throughout Wisconsin. These data, accumulated over many years, provide a data base for developing an improved understanding of the water quality of lakes. To make these data available to interested parties outside the USGS, the data are published annually in this report series. The locations of water-quality and lake-stage stations in Wisconsin for water year 2012 are shown in figure 1. A water year is the 12-month period from October 1 through September 30. It is designated by the calendar year in which it ends. Thus, the period October 1, 2011 through September 30, 2012, is called “water year 2012.”The purpose of this report is to provide information about the chemical and physical characteristics of Wisconsin lakes. Data that have been collected at specific lakes, and information to aid in the interpretation of those data, are included in this report. Data collected include measurements of in-lake water quality and lake stage. Time series of Secchi depths, surface total phosphorus and chlorophyll a concentrations collected during non-frozen periods are included for all lakes. Graphs of vertical profiles of temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, and specific conductance are included for sites where these parameters were measured. Descriptive information for each lake includes: location of the lake, area of the lake’s watershed, period for which data are available, revisions to previously published records, and pertinent remarks. Additional data, such as streamflow and water quality in tributary and outlet streams of some of the lakes, are published online at http://nwis.waterdata.usgs.gov/wi/nwis.Water-resources data, including stage and discharge data at most streamflow-gaging stations, are available online. The Wisconsin Water Science Center’s home page is at https://www.usgs.gov/centers/wisconsin-water-science-center. Information on

  18. Lake-level variability and water availability in the Great Lakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wilcox, Douglas A.; Thompson, Todd A.; Booth, Robert K.; Nicholas, J.R.

    2007-01-01

    In this report, we present recorded and reconstructed (pre-historical) changes in water levels in the Great Lakes, relate them to climate changes of the past, and highlight major water-availability implications for storage, coastal ecosystems, and human activities. 'Water availability,' as conceptualized herein, includes a recognition that water must be available for human and natural uses, but the balancing of how much should be set aside for which use is not discussed. The Great Lakes Basin covers a large area of North America. The lakes capture and store great volumes of water that are critical in maintaining human activities and natural ecosystems. Water enters the lakes mostly in the form of precipitation and streamflow. Although flow through the connecting channels is a primary output from the lakes, evaporation is also a major output. Water levels in the lakes vary naturally on timescales that range from hours to millennia; storage of water in the lakes changes at the seasonal to millennial scales in response to lake-level changes. Short-term changes result from storm surges and seiches and do not affect storage. Seasonal changes are driven by differences in net basin supply during the year related to snowmelt, precipitation, and evaporation. Annual to millennial changes are driven by subtle to major climatic changes affecting both precipitation (and resulting streamflow) and evaporation. Rebounding of the Earth's surface in response to loss of the weight of melted glaciers has differentially affected water levels. Rebound rates have not been uniform across the basin, causing the hydrologic outlet of each lake to rise in elevation more rapidly than some parts of the coastlines. The result is a long-term change in lake level with respect to shoreline features that differs from site to site. The reconstructed water-level history of Lake Michigan-Huron over the past 4,700 years shows three major high phases from 2,300 to 3,300, 1,100 to 2,000, and 0 to 800

  19. Water-quality and lake-stage data for Wisconsin lakes, water years 2008−2011

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Manteufel, S. Bridgett; Olson, Daniel L.; Robertson, Dale M.; Goddard, Gerald L.

    2016-09-30

    The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with local and other agencies, collects data at selected lakes throughout Wisconsin. These data, accumulated over many years, provide a data base for developing an improved understanding of the water quality of lakes. To make these data available to interested parties outside the USGS, the data are published annually in this report series.The purpose of this report is to provide information about the chemical and physical characteristics of Wisconsin lakes during water years 2008–2011. A water year is the 12-month period from October 1 through September 30. It is designated by the calendar year in which it ends. Thus, the period October 1, 2007 through September 30, 2008 is called "water year 2008." Data that have been collected at specific lakes, and information to aid in the interpretation of those data, are presented in this report for water years from 2008–2011. Data collected include measurements of in-lake water quality and lake stage. Time series of Secchi depths, surface total phosphorus and chlorophyll a concentrations collected during non-frozen periods are included for all lakes. Graphs of vertical profiles of temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, and specific conductance are included for sites where these parameters were measured. Descriptive information for each lake includes: location of the lake, area of the lake’s watershed, period for which data are available, revisions to previously published records, and pertinent remarks. Additional data, such as streamflow and water quality in tributary and outlet streams of some of the lakes, are available via the "USGS Annual Water Data Report" Web site: http://wdr.water.usgs.gov/.

  20. Inter-group violence among early Holocene hunter-gatherers of West Turkana, Kenya.

    PubMed

    Mirazón Lahr, M; Rivera, F; Power, R K; Mounier, A; Copsey, B; Crivellaro, F; Edung, J E; Maillo Fernandez, J M; Kiarie, C; Lawrence, J; Leakey, A; Mbua, E; Miller, H; Muigai, A; Mukhongo, D M; Van Baelen, A; Wood, R; Schwenninger, J-L; Grün, R; Achyuthan, H; Wilshaw, A; Foley, R A

    2016-01-21

    The nature of inter-group relations among prehistoric hunter-gatherers remains disputed, with arguments in favour and against the existence of warfare before the development of sedentary societies. Here we report on a case of inter-group violence towards a group of hunter-gatherers from Nataruk, west of Lake Turkana, which during the late Pleistocene/early Holocene period extended about 30 km beyond its present-day shore. Ten of the twelve articulated skeletons found at Nataruk show evidence of having died violently at the edge of a lagoon, into which some of the bodies fell. The remains from Nataruk are unique, preserved by the particular conditions of the lagoon with no evidence of deliberate burial. They offer a rare glimpse into the life and death of past foraging people, and evidence that warfare was part of the repertoire of inter-group relations among prehistoric hunter-gatherers.

  1. Estimation of lake water - groundwater interactions in meromictic mining lakes by modelling isotope signatures of lake water.

    PubMed

    Seebach, Anne; Dietz, Severine; Lessmann, Dieter; Knoeller, Kay

    2008-03-01

    A method is presented to assess lake water-groundwater interactions by modelling isotope signatures of lake water using meteorological parameters and field data. The modelling of delta(18)O and deltaD variations offers information about the groundwater influx into a meromictic Lusatian mining lake. Therefore, a water balance model is combined with an isotope water balance model to estimate analogies between simulated and measured isotope signatures within the lake water body. The model is operated with different evaporation rates to predict delta(18)O and deltaD values in a lake that is only controlled by weather conditions with neither groundwater inflow nor outflow. Comparisons between modelled and measured isotope values show whether the lake is fed by the groundwater or not. Furthermore, our investigations show that an adaptation of the Craig and Gordon model [H. Craig, L.I. Gordon. Deuterium and oxygen-18 variations in the ocean and the marine atmosphere. In Stable Isotopes in Oceanographic Studies and Paleotemperature, Spoleto, E. Tongiorgi (Ed.), pp. 9-130, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Laboratorio di Geologia Nucleare, Pisa (1965).] to specific conditions in temperate regions seems necessary.

  2. Water-quality and lake-stage data for Wisconsin lakes, water year 2005

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Rose, W.J.; Garn, H.S.; Goddard, G.L.; Marsh, S.B.; Olson, D.L.; Robertson, Dale M.

    2006-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with local and other agencies, collects data at selected lakes throughout Wisconsin. These data, accumulated over many years, provide a data base for developing an improved understanding of the water quality of lakes. The purpose of this report is to provide information about the chemical and physical charac-teristics of Wisconsin lakes. Data that have been collected at specific lakes, and information to aid in the interpretation of those data, are included in this report. Data collected include measure-ments of in-lake water quality and lake stage. Time series graphs of Secchi depths, surface total phosphorus and chlorophyll a concentrations collected during non-frozen periods are included for all lakes. Graphs of vertical profiles of temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, and specific conductance are included for sites where these parameters were measured. Descriptive infor-mation for each lake includes: location of the lake, area of the lake's watershed, period for which data are available, revisions to previously published records, and pertinent remarks.

  3. Turkana Children's Sociocultural Practices of Pastoralist Lifestyles and Science Curriculum and Instruction in Kenyan Early Childhood Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ng'asike, John Teria

    2010-01-01

    This dissertation discusses the findings of an ethnographic exploratory study of Turkana nomadic pastoralist children's sociocultural practices of their everyday lifestyles and science curriculum and instruction in Kenyan early childhood curriculum. The study uses the findings from Turkana elders to challenge the dominant society in Kenya that…

  4. Water-quality and lake stage data for Wisconsin lakes, water year 2000

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    ,

    2001-01-01

    Water-resources data, including stage and discharge data at most streamflow-gaging stations, are available throught the World Wide Web on the Internet. The Wisconsin District's home page is at http://wi.water.usgs.gov/. Information on the Wisconsin District's Lakes Program is found atwi.water.usgs.gov/lake/index.html.

  5. Water-quality and lake-stage data for Wisconsin Lakes, water year 2003

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Rose, W.J.; Garn, H.S.; Goddard, G.L.; Olson, D.L.; Robertson, Dale M.

    2004-01-01

    Water-resources data, including stage and discharge data at most streamflow-gaging stations, are available throught the World Wide Web on the Internet. The Wisconsin District's home page is at http://wi.water.usgs.gov/. Information on the Wisconsin District's Lakes Program is found at wi.water.usgs.gov/lake/index.html and wi.water.usgs.gov/projects/ index.html.

  6. Water-quality and lake-stage data for Wisconsin lakes, water year 1999

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Olson, D.L.; Elder, J.F.; Garn, H.S.; Goddard, G.L.; Mergener, E.A.; Robertson, Dale M.; Rose, W.J.

    2000-01-01

    Water-resources data, including stage and discharge data at most streamflow-gaging stations, are available throught the World Wide Web on the Internet. The Wisconsin District's home page is at http://wi.water.usgs.gov/. Information on the Wisconsin District's Lakes Program is found at wi.water.usgs.gov/lake/index.html.

  7. Water-quality and lake-stage data for Wisconsin lakes, water year 2001

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    lead by Rose, W. J.; Elder, J.F.; Garn, H.S.; Goddard, G.L.; Mergener, E.A.; Olson, D.L.; Robertson, Dale M.

    2001-01-01

    Water-resources data, including stage and discharge data at most streamflow-gaging stations, are available throught the World Wide Web on the Internet. The Wisconsin District's home page is at http://wi.water.usgs.gov/. Information on the Wisconsin District's Lakes Program is found at wi.water.usgs.gov/lake/index.html.

  8. Characterization of lake water and ground water movement in the littoral zone of Williams Lake, a closed-basin lake in North central Minnesota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Schuster, P.F.; Reddy, M.M.; LaBaugh, J.W.; Parkhurst, R.S.; Rosenberry, D.O.; Winter, T.C.; Antweiler, Ronald C.; Dean, W.E.

    2003-01-01

    Williams Lake, Minnesota is a closed-basin lake that is a flow-through system with respect to ground water. Ground-water input represents half of the annual water input and most of the chemical input to the lake. Chemical budgets indicate that the lake is a sink for calcium, yet surficial sediments contain little calcium carbonate. Sediment pore-water samplers (peepers) were used to characterize solute fluxes at the lake-water-ground-water interface in the littoral zone and resolve the apparent disparity between the chemical budget and sediment data. Pore-water depth profiles of the stable isotopes ??18O and ??2H were non-linear where ground water seeped into the lake, with a sharp transition from lake-water values to ground-water values in the top 10 cm of sediment. These data indicate that advective inflow to the lake is the primary mechanism for solute flux from ground water. Linear interstitial velocities determined from ??2H profiles (316 to 528 cm/yr) were consistent with velocities determined independently from water budget data and sediment porosity (366 cm/yr). Stable isotope profiles were generally linear where water flowed out of the lake into ground water. However, calcium profiles were not linear in the same area and varied in response to input of calcium carbonate from the littoral zone and subsequent dissolution. The comparison of pore-water calcium profiles to pore-water stable isotope profiles indicate calcium is not conservative. Based on the previous understanding that 40-50 % of the calcium in Williams Lake is retained, the pore-water profiles indicate aquatic plants in the littoral zone are recycling the retained portion of calcium. The difference between the pore-water depth profiles of calcium and ??18O and ??2H demonstrate the importance of using stable isotopes to evaluate flow direction and source through the lake-water-ground-water interface and evaluate mechanisms controlling the chemical balance of lakes. Published in 2003 by John Wiley

  9. Release and survival of Echinococcus eggs in different environments in Turkana, and their possible impact on the incidence of hydatidosis in man and livestock.

    PubMed

    Wachira, T M; Macpherson, C N; Gathuma, J M

    1991-03-01

    In Turkana, Kenya, a prevalence of hydatidosis of nearly 10% has been recorded among the pastoralists yet their livestock have a much lower prevalence of the disease. The present study investigated the release from dogs and subsequent survival of Echinococcus eggs in Turkana huts, water-holes and in the semi-arid environment. The results were compared with the survival of eggs of Taenia hydatigena and T. saginata. The study was repeated under the cooler and moister conditions found in Maasailand where livestock have a greater incidence of hydatid disease than in Turkana but where the incidence in man is ten times lower. The average number of Echinococcus eggs per proglottid is 823. Nine percent of these remain in proglottids 15 minutes after release from a dog and the released eggs lose their viability in less than two, 48 and 300 hours in the sun, huts and water in Turkana respectively: the major influencing factor being temperature. The greater survival of eggs in the houses, coupled with the fact that dogs congregate for most of the day in the small houses facilitating a close man:dog contact, provide ideal conditions for the transmission of the parasite to man. The hostile environmental conditions and lack of contact between dogs and livestock contributes to the lower infection rate in livestock. Conversely in Maasailand, Echinococcus eggs survive in the environment for longer than three weeks and in addition, dogs are used for herding. This partly explains the higher infection rate among Maasai livestock but the low human infection rate remains arcane and requires further study.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

  10. Mapping Prosopis spp. within the Tarach water basin, Turkana, Kenya using Sentinel-2 imagery

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ng, Wai-Tim; Immitzer, Markus; Floriansitz, Matthias; Vuolo, Francesco; Luminari, Luigi; Adede, Chrisgone; Wahome, Raphael; Atzberger, Clement

    2016-10-01

    Prosopis spp. are a fast growing invasive tree originating from the American dry zones, introduced to Kenya in the 1970s for the restoration of degraded pastoral lands after prolonged droughts and overgrazing. Its deep rooting system is capable of tapping into the ground water table reducing its dependency on rain water and increasing its drought tolerance. It is believed that the Prosopis invasion was eased by a hybridization process, described as the Prosopis Juliflora - Prosopis Pallida complex, suggesting that introduced Prosopis spp. evolved into a hybrid, specifically adapted to the environmental conditions, rendering it a superior and aggressive competitor to endemic species. In many dry lands in Kenya Prosopis has expanded rapidly and has become challenging to control. On the other hand, in some cases, an economic use seems possible. In both cases, detailed and accurate maps are necessary to support stakeholders and design management strategies. The aim of this study is to map the distribution of Prosopis spp. in a selected area in north-west Turkana (Kenya), covering a section of the Tarach water basin. The study is funded by the European Union through the National Drought Management Authority (NDMA) in Kenya, and the main purpose is to assess the potential production of Prosopis pods, which can be used to manufacture emergency livestock feeds to support animals during drought events. The classification was performed using novel Sentinel-2 data through a non-parametric Random Forest classifier. A selection of reference sites was visited in the field and used to train the classifier. Very high classification accuracies were obtained.

  11. Hydrogeologic setting, water budget, and preliminary analysis of ground-water exchange at Lake Starr, a seepage lake in Polk County, Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Swancar, Amy; Lee, T.M.; O'Hare, T. M.

    2000-01-01

    Lake Starr, a 134-acre seepage lake of multiple-sinkhole origin on the Lake Wales Ridge of central Florida, was the subject of a detailed water-budget study from August 1996 through July 1998. The study monitored the effects of hydrogeologic setting, climate, and ground-water pumping on the water budget and lake stage. The hydrogeologic setting of the Lake Starr basin differs markedly on the two sides of the lake. Ground water from the surficial aquifer system flows into the lake from the northwest side of the basin, and lake water leaks out to the surficial aquifer system on the southeast side of the basin. Lake Starr and the surrounding surficial aquifer system recharge the underlying Upper Floridan aquifer. The rate of recharge to the Upper Floridan aquifer is determined by the integrity of the intermediate confining unit and by the downward head gradient between the two aquifers. On the inflow side of the lake, the intermediate confining unit is more continuous, allowing ground water from the surficial aquifer system to flow laterally into the lake. Beneath the lake and on the southeast side of the basin, breaches in the intermediate confining unit enhance downward flow to the Upper Floridan aquifer, so that water flows both downward and laterally away from the lake through the ground-water flow system in these areas. An accurate water budget, including evaporation measured by the energy-budget method, was used to calculate net ground-water flow to the lake, and to do a preliminary analysis of the relation of net ground-water fluxes to other variables. Water budgets constructed over different timeframes provided insight on processes that affect ground-water interactions with Lake Starr. Weekly estimates of net ground-water flow provided evidence for the occurrence of transient inflows from the nearshore basin, as well as the short-term effects of head in the Upper Floridan aquifer on ground-water exchange with the lake. Monthly water budgets showed the effects

  12. Comparison of the hydrogeology and water quality of a ground-water augmented lake with two non-augmented lakes in northwest Hillsborough County, Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Metz, Patricia A.; Sacks, Laura A.

    2002-01-01

    The hydrologic effects associated with augmenting a lake with ground water from the Upper Floridan aquifer were examined in northwest Hillsborough County, Florida, from June 1996 through May 1999. The hydrogeology, ground-water flow patterns, water budgets, and water-quality characteristics were compared between a lake that has been augmented for more than 30 years (Round Lake) and two nearby nonaugmented lakes (Dosson Lake and Halfmoon Lake). Compared to the other study lakes, Round Lake is in a more leakage-dominated hydrogeologic setting. The intermediate confining unit is thin or highly breached, which increases the potential for vertical ground-water flow. Round Lake has the least amount of soft, organic lake-bottom sediments and the lake bottom has been dredged deeper and more extensively than the other study lakes, which could allow more leakage from the lake bottom. The area around Round Lake has experienced more sinkhole activity than the other study lakes. During this study, three sinkholes developed around the perimeter of the lake, which may have further disrupted the intermediate confining unit.Ground-water flow patterns around Round Lake were considerably different than the nonaugmented lakes. For most of the study, groundwater augmentation artificially raised the level of Round Lake to about 2 to 3 feet higher than the adjacent water table. As a result, lake water recharged the surficial aquifer around the entire lake perimeter, except during very wet periods when ground-water inflow occurred around part of the lake perimeter. The non-augmented lakes typically had areas of ground-water inflow and areas of lake leakage around their perimeter, and during wet periods, ground-water inflow occurred around the entire lake perimeter. Therefore, the area potentially contributing ground water to the non-augmented lakes is much larger than for augmented Round Lake. Vertical head loss within the surficial aquifer was greater at Round Lake than the other study

  13. Lakes and lake-like waters of the Hawaiian Archipelago

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Maciolek, J.A.

    1982-01-01

    This summary of Hawaiian lacustrine limnology is based on 12 years of field and literature surveys of archipelagic inland waters. Lakes here are distinguished from other standing waters by limits on surface oceanic area (> 0.1 ha) and depth (> 2 m), and by the absence of flatural surface oceanic connection. A variety of extinct and existing water bodies, sometimes referred to as lakes, are noted. Six lakes are described. Five of them are in crater basins, 3 are freshwater, and 2 are elevated (highest = 3969 m). The scarcity of elevated lakes results from general permeability of the substrata. Among the 6 lakes, surface areas range from 0.22 to 88 ha and maximum depths from 3 to 248 m. Naturally occurring aquatic biota generally is low in species diversity except for phytoplankton; fishes and submersed vascular plants are absent. Two lowland lakes, freshwater Green (Wai a Pele) and saline Kauhak6, are described for the first time. Profundal Kauhak6, 248 m deep, has a surface area of only 0.35 ha, which results in an extraordinary relative depth of 370%. It is permanently stratified, a condition apparently due primarily to the unique morphometry of its basin. 

  14. Water-Balance Model to Simulate Historical Lake Levels for Lake Merced, California

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Maley, M. P.; Onsoy, S.; Debroux, J.; Eagon, B.

    2009-12-01

    Lake Merced is a freshwater lake located in southwestern San Francisco, California. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, an extended, severe drought impacted the area that resulted in significant declines in Lake Merced lake levels that raised concerns about the long-term health of the lake. In response to these concerns, the Lake Merced Water Level Restoration Project was developed to evaluate an engineered solution to increase and maintain Lake Merced lake levels. The Lake Merced Lake-Level Model was developed to support the conceptual engineering design to restore lake levels. It is a spreadsheet-based water-balance model that performs monthly water-balance calculations based on the hydrological conceptual model. The model independently calculates each water-balance component based on available climate and hydrological data. The model objective was to develop a practical, rule-based approach for the water balance and to calibrate the model results to measured lake levels. The advantage of a rule-based approach is that once the rules are defined, they enhance the ability to then adapt the model for use in future-case simulations. The model was calibrated to historical lake levels over a 70-year period from 1939 to 2009. Calibrating the model over this long historical range tested the model over a variety of hydrological conditions including wet, normal and dry precipitation years, flood events, and periods of high and low lake levels. The historical lake level range was over 16 feet. The model calibration of historical to simulated lake levels had a residual mean of 0.02 feet and an absolute residual mean of 0.42 feet. More importantly, the model demonstrated the ability to simulate both long-term and short-term trends with a strong correlation of the magnitude for both annual and seasonal fluctuations in lake levels. The calibration results demonstrate an improved conceptual understanding of the key hydrological factors that control lake levels, reduce uncertainty

  15. Water-quality and Llake-stage data for Wisconsin Lakes, Water Year 2004

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Rose, W.J.; Garn, H.S.; Goddard, G.L.; Marsh, S.B.; Olson, D.L.; Robertson, Dale M.

    2005-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with local and other agencies, collects data at selected lakes throughout Wisconsin. These data, accumulated over many years, provide a data base for developing an improved understanding of the water quality of lakes. To make these data available to interested parties outside the USGS, the data are published annually in this report series. The locations of water-quality and lake-stage stations in Wisconsin for water year 2004 are shown in figure 1. A water year is the 12-month period from October 1 through September 30. It is designated by the calendar year in which it ends. Thus, the period October 1, 2003 through September 30, 2004 is called 'water year 2004.' The purpose of this report is to provide information about the chemical and physical characteristics of Wisconsin lakes. Data that have been collected at specific lakes, and information to aid in the interpretation of those data, are included in this report. Data collected include measurements of in-lake water quality and lake stage. Time series of Secchi depths, surface total phosphorus and chlorophyll a concentrations collected during non-frozen periods are included for all lakes. Graphs of vertical profiles of temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, and specific conductance are included for sites where these parameters were measured. Descriptive information for each lake includes: location of the lake, area of the lake's watershed, period for which data are available, revisions to previously published records, and pertinent remarks. Additional data, such as streamflow and water quality in tributary and outlet streams of some of the lakes, are published in another volume: 'Water Resources Data-Wisconsin, 2004.' Water-resources data, including stage and discharge data at most streamflow-gaging stations, are available throught the World Wide Web on the Internet. The Wisconsin Water Science Center's home page is at http://wi.water.usgs.gov/. Information on the

  16. Water balance of a lake with floodplain buffering: Lake Tana, Blue Nile Basin, Ethiopia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dessie, Mekete; Verhoest, Niko E. C.; Pauwels, Valentijn R. N.; Adgo, Enyew; Deckers, Jozef; Poesen, Jean; Nyssen, Jan

    2015-03-01

    Lakes are very important components of the earth's hydrological cycle, providing a variety of services for humans and ecosystem functioning. For a sustainable use of lakes, a substantial body of knowledge on their water balance is vital. We present here a detailed daily water balance analysis for Lake Tana, the largest lake in Ethiopia and the source of the Blue Nile. Rainfall on the lake is determined by Thiessen polygon procedure, open water evaporation is estimated by the Penman-combination equation and observed inflows for the gauged catchments as well as outflow data at the two lake outlets are directly used. Runoff from ungauged catchments is estimated using a simple rainfall-runoff model and runoff coefficients. Hillslope catchments and floodplains are treated separately, which makes this study unique compared to previous water balance studies. Impact of the floodplain on the lake water balance is analyzed by conducting scenario-based studies. We found an average yearly abstraction of 420 × 106 m3 or 6% of river inflows to the lake by the floodplain in 2012 and 2013. Nearly 60% of the inflow to the lake is from the Gilgel Abay River. Simulated lake levels compare well with the observed lake levels (R2 = 0.95) and the water balance can be closed with a closure error of 82 mm/year (3.5% of the total lake inflow). This study demonstrates the importance of floodplains and their influence on the water balance of the lake and the need of incorporating the effects of floodplains and water abstraction for irrigation to improve predictions.

  17. Survival of lake trout eggs and fry reared in water from the upper Great Lakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Mac, Michael J.; Edsall, Carol Cotant; Seelye, James G.

    1985-01-01

    As part of continuing studies of the reproductive failure of lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) in Lake Michigan, we measured the survival of lake trout eggs and fry of different origins and reared in different environments. Eggs and milt were stripped from spawning lake trout collected in the fall of 1980 from southeastern Lake Michigan, northwestern Lake Huron, south central Lake Superior, and from hatchery brood stock. Eggs from all sources were incubated, and the newly hatched fry were reared for 139 days in lake water from each of the three upper Great Lakes and in well water. Survival of eggs to hatching at all sites was lowest for those from Lake Michigan (70% of fertilized eggs) and highest for eggs from Lake Superior (96%). Comparisons of incubation water from the different lakes indicated that hatching success of eggs from all sources was highest in Lake Huron water, and lowest in Lake Michigan water. The most notable finding was the nearly total mortality of fry from eggs of southeastern Lake Michigan lake trout. At all sites, the mean survival of Lake Michigan fry through 139 days after hatching was only 4% compared to near 50% for fry from the other three sources. In a comparison of the rearing sites, little influence of water quality on fry survival was found. Thus, the poor survival was associated with the source of eggs and sperm, not the water in which the fry were reared.

  18. Water quality of Lake Austin and Town Lake, Austin, Texas

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Andrews, Freeman L.; Wells, Frank C.; Shelby, Wanda J.; McPherson, Emma

    1988-01-01

    Water-quality data collected from Lake Austin and Town Lake, following runoff, generally were not adequate to fully determine the effects of runoff on the lakes. Data collection should not to be limited to fixed-station sampling following runoff, and both lakes need to be sampled simultaneously as soon as possible following significant precipitation.

  19. Hydrological processes and the water budget of lakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Winter, Thomas C.; Lerman, Abraham; Imboden, Dieter M.; Gat, Joel R.

    1995-01-01

    Lakes interact with all components of the hydrological system: atmospheric water, surface water, and groundwater. The fluxes of water to and from lakes with regard to each of these components represent the water budget of a lake. Mathematically, the concept of a water budget is deceptively simple: income equals outgo, plus or minus change in storage. In practice, however, measuring the water fluxes to and from lakes accurately is not simple, because understanding of the various hydrological processes and the ability to measure the various hydrological components are limited.

  20. 33 CFR 162.136 - Connecting waters from Lake Huron to Lake Erie; anchorage grounds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... to Lake Erie; anchorage grounds. 162.136 Section 162.136 Navigation and Navigable Waters COAST GUARD... REGULATIONS § 162.136 Connecting waters from Lake Huron to Lake Erie; anchorage grounds. (a) In the Detroit...: There is an authorized anchorage in Canadian waters just above Fighting Island and an authorized...

  1. 33 CFR 162.136 - Connecting waters from Lake Huron to Lake Erie; anchorage grounds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... to Lake Erie; anchorage grounds. 162.136 Section 162.136 Navigation and Navigable Waters COAST GUARD... REGULATIONS § 162.136 Connecting waters from Lake Huron to Lake Erie; anchorage grounds. (a) In the Detroit...: There is an authorized anchorage in Canadian waters just above Fighting Island and an authorized...

  2. 33 CFR 162.136 - Connecting waters from Lake Huron to Lake Erie; anchorage grounds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... to Lake Erie; anchorage grounds. 162.136 Section 162.136 Navigation and Navigable Waters COAST GUARD... REGULATIONS § 162.136 Connecting waters from Lake Huron to Lake Erie; anchorage grounds. (a) In the Detroit...: There is an authorized anchorage in Canadian waters just above Fighting Island and an authorized...

  3. 33 CFR 162.136 - Connecting waters from Lake Huron to Lake Erie; anchorage grounds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... to Lake Erie; anchorage grounds. 162.136 Section 162.136 Navigation and Navigable Waters COAST GUARD... REGULATIONS § 162.136 Connecting waters from Lake Huron to Lake Erie; anchorage grounds. (a) In the Detroit...: There is an authorized anchorage in Canadian waters just above Fighting Island and an authorized...

  4. The influence of irrigation water on the hydrology and lake water budgets of two small arid-climate lakes in Khorezm, Uzbekistan

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Scott, J.; Rosen, Michael R.; Saito, L.; Decker, D.L.

    2011-01-01

    Little is known regarding the origins and hydrology of hundreds of small lakes located in the western Uzbekistan province of Khorezm, Central Asia. Situated in the Aral Sea Basin, Khorezm is a productive agricultural region, growing mainly cotton, wheat, and rice. Irrigation is provided by an extensive canal network that conveys water from the Amu Darya River (AD) throughout the province. The region receives on average 10 cm/year of precipitation, yet potential evapotranspiration exceeds this amount by about 15 times. It was hypothesized that the perennial existence of the lakes of interest depends on periodic input of excess irrigation water. This hypothesis was investigated by studying two small lakes in the region, Tuyrek and Khodjababa. In June and July 2008, surface water and shallow groundwater samples were collected at these lake systems and surrounding communities and analyzed for δ2H, δ18O, and major ion hydrochemistry to determine water sources. Water table and lake surface elevations were monitored, and the local aquifer characteristics were determined through aquifer tests. These data and climate data from a Class A evaporation pan and meteorological stations were used to estimate water budgets for both lakes. Lake evaporation was found to be about 0.7 cm/day during the study period. Results confirm that the waters sampled at both lake systems and throughout central Khorezm were evaporated from AD water to varying degrees. Together, the water budgets and stable isotope and major ion hydrochemistry data suggest that without surface water input from some source (i.e. excess irrigation water), these and other Khorezm lakes with similar hydrology may decrease in volume dramatically, potentially to the point of complete desiccation.

  5. Quality of ground water around Vadnais Lake and in Lambert Creek watershed, and interaction of ground water with Vadnais Lake, Ramsey County, Minnesota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Ruhl, J.F.

    1994-01-01

    The results of the seepage analysis and ground-water quality evaluation indicate that the effect of the quality of the surrounding ground water on the quality of Vadnais Lake probably was small. Ground water that discharged to the lake generally had lower concentrations of calcium, magnesium, bicarbonate, and total dissolved solids than the lake. The mixing of ground water with the lake slightly diluted the lake with respect to these constituents.

  6. Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA)

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    The Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement between the U.S. and Canada addresses critical environmental health issues in the Great Lakes region. It's a model of binational cooperation to protect water quality. It was first signed in 1972 and amended in 2012.

  7. Establishment patterns of water-elm at Catahoula Lake, Louisiana

    Treesearch

    Karen S. Doerr; Sanjeev Joshi; Richard F. Keim

    2015-01-01

    At Catahoula Lake in central Louisiana, an internationally important lake for water fowl, hydrologic alterations to the surrounding rivers and the lake itself have led to an expansion of water-elm (Planera aquatic J.F. Gmel.) into the lake bed. In this study, we used dendrochronology and aerial photography to quantify the expansion of water-elm in the lake and identify...

  8. The effects of using ground water to maintain water levels of Cedar Lake, Wisconsin

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    McLeod, R.S.

    1980-01-01

    There were no identifiable changes in measured physical and chemical characteristics of lake water during sustained pumping of ground water into the lake, nor were there identifiable changes in the number or makeup of the phytoplankton community. Differences in physical and chemical characteristics of lake water and ground water added to the lake probably were not great enough to cause changes within the lake.

  9. The importance of ground water in the Great Lakes Region

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Grannemann, N.G.; Hunt, R.J.; Nicholas, J.R.; Reilly, T.E.; Winter, T.C.

    2000-01-01

    Ground water is a major natural resource in the Great Lakes Region that helps link the Great Lakes and their watershed. This linkage needs to be more fully understood and quantified before society can address some of the important water-resources issues in the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes constitute the largest concentration of unfrozen fresh surface water in the western hemisphere—about 5,440 mi3. Because the quantity of water in the lakes is so large, ground water in the Great Lakes Basin is often overlooked when evaluating the hydrology of the region. Ground water, however, is more important to the hydrology of the Great Lakes and to the health of ecosystems in the watershed than is generally recognized.Although more than 1,000 mi3 of ground water are stored in the basin—a volume of water that is approximately equal to that of Lake Michigan—development of the groundwater resource must be carefully planned. Development of the ground-water resource removes water from storage and alters the paths of ground-water flow. Ground water that normally discharges to streams, lakes, and wetlands can be captured by pumping (the most common form of development), which may deplete or reduce inflows to the Great Lakes.Ground water is important to ecosystems in the Great Lakes Region because it is, in effect, a large, subsurface reservoir from which water is released slowly to provide a reliable minimum level of water flow to streams, lakes, and wetlands. Ground-water discharge to streams generally provides good quality water that, in turn, promotes habitat for aquatic animals and sustains aquatic plants during periods of low precipitation. Because of the slow movement of ground water, the effects of surface activities on ground-water flow and quality can take years to manifest themselves. As a result, issues relative to ground water are often seemingly less dire than issues related to surface water alone.Ground water is a major natural resource in the Great Lakes Region

  10. Acidification of lake water due to drought

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mosley, L. M.; Zammit, B.; Jolley, A. M.; Barnett, L.

    2014-04-01

    Droughts are predicted to increase in many river systems due to increased demand on water resources and climate variability. A severe drought in the Murray-Darling Basin of Australia from 2007 to 2009 resulted in unprecedented declines in water levels in the Lower Lakes (Ramsar-listed ecosystem of international importance) at the end of the river system. The receding water exposed large areas (>200 km2) of sediments on the lake margins. The pyrite (FeS2) in these sediments oxidised and generated high concentrations of acidity. Upon rewetting of the exposed sediments, by rainfall or lake refill, surface water acidification (pH 2-3) occurred in several locations (total area of 21.7 km2). High concentrations of dissolved metals (Al, As, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Zn), which greatly exceeded aquatic ecosystem protection guidelines, were mobilised in the acidic conditions. In many areas neutralisation of the surface water acidity occurred naturally during lake refill, but aerial limestone dosing was required in two areas to assist in restoring alkalinity. However acidity persists in the submerged lake sediment and groundwater several years after surface water neutralisation. The surface water acidification proved costly to manage and improved water management in the Murray-Darling Basin is required to prevent similar events occurring in the future.

  11. Lake water quality mapping from Landsat

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Scherz, J. P.

    1977-01-01

    In the project described remote sensing was used to check the quality of lake waters. The lakes of three Landsat scenes were mapped with the Bendix MDAS multispectral analysis system. From the MDAS color coded maps, the lake with the worst algae problem was easily located. The lake was closely checked, and the presence of 100 cows in the springs which fed the lake could be identified as the pollution source. The laboratory and field work involved in the lake classification project is described.

  12. Evaluation of ground-water flow and hydrologic budget for Lake Five-O, a seepage lake in northwestern Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Grubbs, J.W.

    1995-01-01

    Temporal and spatial distributions of ground-water inflow to, and leakage from Lake Five-O, a softwater, seepage lake in northwestern Florida, were evaluated using hydrologic data and simulation models of the shallow ground-water system adjacent to the lake. The simulation models indicate that ground-water inflow to the lake and leakage from the lake to the ground-water system are the dominant components in the total inflow (precipitation plus ground-water inflow) and total outflow (evaporation plus leakage) budgets of Lake Five-O. Simlulated ground-water inflow and leakage were approximately 4 and 5 times larger than precipitation inputs and evaporative losses, respectively, during calendar years 1989-90. Exchanges of water between Lake Five-O and the ground-water system were consistently larger than atmospheric-lake exchanges. A consistent pattern of shallow ground-water inflow and deep leakage was also evident throughout the study period. The mean time of travel from ground-water that discharges at Lake Five-O (time from recharge at the water table to discharge at the lake) was estimated to be within a range of 3 to 6 years. Flow-path evaluations indicated that the intermediate confining unit probably has a negligible influence on the geochemistry of ground-water inflow to Lake Five-O. The hydrologic budgets and flow-path evaluations provide critical information for developing geochemical budgets for Lake Five-O and for improving the understanding of the relative importance of various processes that regulate the acid-neutralizing capacity of softwater seepage lakes in Florida.

  13. Water quality of Lake Tuscaloosa and streamflow and water quality of selected tributaries to Lake Tuscaloosa, Alabama, 1982-86

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Slack, L.J.

    1987-01-01

    Lake Tuscaloosa, created in 1969 by the impoundment of North River, provides the primary water supply for Tuscaloosa, Alabama , and surrounding areas. This report describes the percent contribution of major tributaries to the mean inflow to the lake; water quality; and changes in water quality in the lake and selected tributaries. During base flow, about 60% of the total flow into Lake Tuscaloosa is contributed by Binion and Carroll Creeks, which drain only 22% of the Lake Tuscaloosa basin. Binion and Carroll Creek basins are underlain primarily by sand and gravel deposits of the Coker Formation. Mean inflow to the lake was 1,150 cu ft/sec during 1983, a wet year, and 450 cu ft/sec during 1985, a relatively dry year. More than 80% of the total inflow during both years was contributed by North River and Binion, Cripple, and Carroll Creeks. About 59% was contributed by North River during those years. Except for pH, sulfate, and dissolved and total recoverable iron and manganese, the water quality of the tributaries is generally within drinking water limits and acceptable for most uses. The water quality of Lake Tuscaloosa is generally within drinking water limits and acceptable for most uses. The maximum and median concentrations of sulfate increased every year at the dam from 1979 to 1985 (7.2 to 18 mg/L and 6.2 to 14 mg/L, respectively). The dissolved solids concentrations for water at the dam have varied (1979-86) from 27 to 43 mg/L; the sulfate, 5.2 to 18 mg/L; and the dissolved iron, 10 to 250 micrograms/L--all within the recommended drinking water limits. However, concentrations of dissolved manganese and total recoverable iron and manganese at the dam commonly exceeded the recommended drinking water limits. In November 1985, after the summer warmup and increase in biological activity, the water quality at five depth profiles sites on Lake Tuscaloosa was acceptable for most uses, generally. However, a dissolved oxygen concentration of 1 mg/L or less was

  14. Long-Term Variability of Satellite Lake Surface Water Temperatures in the Great Lakes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gierach, M. M.; Matsumoto, K.; Holt, B.; McKinney, P. J.; Tokos, K.

    2014-12-01

    The Great Lakes are the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth that approximately 37 million people depend upon for fresh drinking water, food, flood and drought mitigation, and natural resources that support industry, jobs, shipping and tourism. Recent reports have stated (e.g., the National Climate Assessment) that climate change can impact and exacerbate a range of risks to the Great Lakes, including changes in the range and distribution of certain fish species, increased invasive species and harmful algal blooms, declining beach health, and lengthened commercial navigation season. In this study, we will examine the impact of climate change on the Laurentian Great Lakes through investigation of long-term lake surface water temperatures (LSWT). We will use the ATSR Reprocessing for Climate: Lake Surface Water Temperature & Ice Cover (ARC-Lake) product over the period 1995-2012 to investigate individual and interlake variability. Specifically, we will quantify the seasonal amplitude of LSWTs, the first and last appearances of the 4°C isotherm (i.e., an important identifier of the seasonal evolution of the lakes denoting winter and summer stratification), and interpret these quantities in the context of global interannual climate variability such as ENSO.

  15. Water pollution control technology and strategy for river-lake systems: a case study in Gehu Lake and Taige Canal.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Yimin; Zhang, Yongchun; Gao, Yuexiang; Zhang, Houhu; Cao, Jianying; Cai, Jinbang; Kong, Xiangji

    2011-07-01

    The Taoge water system is located in the upstream of Taihu Lake basin and is characterized by its multi-connected rivers and lakes. In this paper, current analyses of hydrology, hydrodynamics and water pollution of Gehu Lake and Taige Canal are presented. Several technologies are proposed for pollution prevention and control, and water environmental protection in the Taihu Lake basin. These included water pollution control integration technology for the water systems of Gehu Lake, Taige Canal and Caoqiao River. Additionally, river-lake water quality and quantity regulation technology, ecological restoration technology for polluted and degraded water bodies, and water environmental integration management and optimization strategies were also examined. The main objectives of these strategies are to: (a) improve environmental quality of relative water bodies, prevent pollutants from entering Gehu Lake and Taige Canal, and ensure that the clean water after the pre-treatment through Gehu Lake is not polluted before entering the Taihu Lake through Taige Canal; (b) stably and efficiently intercept and decrease the pollution load entering the lake through enhancing the river outlet ecological system structure function and water self-purifying capacity, and (c) designate Gehu Lake as a regulation system for water quality and water quantity in the Taoge water system and thus guarantee the improvement of the water quality of the inflow into Taihu Lake.

  16. A Global Observatory of Lake Water Quality

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tyler, Andrew N.; Hunter, Peter D.; Spyrakos, Evangelos; Neil, Claire; Simis, Stephen; Groom, Steve; Merchant, Chris J.; Miller, Claire A.; O'Donnell, Ruth; Scott, E. Marian

    2017-04-01

    Our planet's surface waters are a fundamental resource encompassing a broad range of ecosystems that are core to global biogeochemical cycling, biodiversity and food and energy security. Despite this, these same waters are impacted by multiple natural and anthropogenic pressures and drivers of environmental change. The complex interaction between physical, chemical and biological processes in surface waters poses significant challenges for in situ monitoring and assessment and this often limits our ability to adequately capture the dynamics of aquatic systems and our understanding of their status, functioning and response to pressures. Recent developments in the availability of satellite platforms for Earth observation (including ESA's Copernicus Programme) offers an unprecedented opportunity to deliver measures of water quality at a global scale. The UK NERC-funded GloboLakes project is a five-year research programme investigating the state of lakes and their response to climatic and other environmental drivers of change through the realization of a near-real time satellite based observatory (Sentinel-3) and archive data processing (MERIS, SeaWiFS) to produce a 20-year time-series of observed ecological parameters and lake temperature for more than 1000 lakes globally. However, the diverse and complex optical properties of lakes mean that algorithm performance often varies markedly between different water types. The GloboLakes project is overcoming this challenge by developing a processing chain whereby algorithms are dynamically selected according to the optical properties of the lake under observation. The development and validation of the GloboLakes processing chain has been supported by access to extensive in situ data from more than thirty partners around the world that are now held in the LIMNADES community-owned data repository developed under the auspices of GloboLakes. This approach has resulted in a step-change in our ability to produce regional and

  17. Michigan lakes: An assessment of water quality

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Minnerick, R.J.

    2004-01-01

    Michigan has more than 11,000 inland lakes, that provide countless recreational opportunities and are an important resource that makes tourism and recreation a $15-billion-dollar per-year industry in the State (Stynes, 2002). Knowledge of the water-quality characteristics of inland lakes is essential for the current and future management of these resources.Historically the U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) jointly have monitored water quality in Michigan's lakes and rivers. During the 1990's, however, funding for surface-water-quality monitoring was reduced greatly. In 1998, the citizens of Michigan passed the Clean Michigan Initiative to clean up, protect, and enhance Michigan's environmental infrastructure. Because of expanding water-quality-data needs, the MDEQ and the USGS jointly redesigned and implemented the Lake Water-Quality Assessment (LWQA) Monitoring Program (Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, 1997).

  18. The springs of Lake Pátzcuaro: chemistry, salt-balance, and implications for the water balance of the lake

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Bischoff, James L.; Israde-Alcántara, Isabel; Garduno-Monroy, Victor H.; Shanks, Wayne C.

    2004-01-01

    Lake Pa??tzcuaro, the center of the ancient Tarascan civilization located in the Mexican altiplano west of the city of Morelia, has neither river input nor outflow. The relatively constant lake-salinity over the past centuries indicates the lake is in chemical steady state. Springs of the south shore constitute the primary visible input to the lake, so influx and discharge must be via sub-lacustrine ground water. The authors report on the chemistry and stable isotope composition of the springs, deeming them representative of ground-water input. The springs are dominated by Ca, Mg and Na, whereas the lake is dominated by Na. Combining these results with previously published precipitation/rainfall measurements on the lake, the authors calculate the chemical evolution from spring water to lake water, and also calculate a salt balance of the ground-water-lake system. Comparing Cl and ??18O compositions in the springs and lake water indicates that 75-80% of the spring water is lost evaporatively during evolution toward lake composition. During evaporation Ca and Mg are lost from the water by carbonate precipitation. Each liter of spring water discharging into the lake precipitates about 18.7 mg of CaCO3. Salt balance calculations indicate that ground water input to the lake is 85.9??106 m3/a and ground water discharge from the lake is 23.0??106 m3/a. Thus, the discharge is about 27% of the input, with the rest balanced by evaporation. A calculation of time to reach steady-state ab initio indicates that the Cl concentration of the present day lake would be reached in about 150 a. ?? 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Perchlorate in Lake Water from an Operating Diamond Mine.

    PubMed

    Smith, Lianna J D; Ptacek, Carol J; Blowes, David W; Groza, Laura G; Moncur, Michael C

    2015-07-07

    Mining-related perchlorate [ClO4(-)] in the receiving environment was investigated at the operating open-pit and underground Diavik diamond mine, Northwest Territories, Canada. Samples were collected over four years and ClO4(-) was measured in various mine waters, the 560 km(2) ultraoligotrophic receiving lake, background lake water and snow distal from the mine. Groundwaters from the underground mine had variable ClO4(-) concentrations, up to 157 μg L(-1), and were typically an order of magnitude higher than concentrations in combined mine waters prior to treatment and discharge to the lake. Snow core samples had a mean ClO4(-) concentration of 0.021 μg L(-1) (n=16). Snow and lake water Cl(-)/ClO4(-) ratios suggest evapoconcentration was not an important process affecting lake ClO4(-) concentrations. The multiyear mean ClO4(-) concentrations in the lake were 0.30 μg L(-1) (n = 114) in open water and 0.24 μg L(-1) (n = 107) under ice, much below the Canadian drinking water guideline of 6 μg L(-1). Receiving lake concentrations of ClO4(-) generally decreased year over year and ClO4(-) was not likely [biogeo]chemically attenuated within the receiving lake. The discharge of treated mine water was shown to contribute mining-related ClO4(-) to the lake and the low concentrations after 12 years of mining were attributed to the large volume of the receiving lake.

  20. Monitoring the water balance of Lake Victoria, East Africa, from space

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Swenson, Sean; Wahr, John

    2009-05-01

    SummaryUsing satellite gravimetric and altimetric data, we examine trends in water storage and lake levels of multiple lakes in the Great Rift Valley region of East Africa for the years 2003-2008. GRACE total water storage estimates reveal that water storage declined in much of East Africa, by as much as 60 {mm}/{year}, while altimetric data show that lake levels in some large lakes dropped by as much as 1-2 m. The largest declines occurred in Lake Victoria, the Earth's second largest freshwater body. Because the discharge from the outlet of Lake Victoria is used to generate hydroelectric power, the role of human management in the lake's decline has been questioned. By comparing catchment water storage trends to lake level trends, we confirm that climatic forcing explains only about 50decline. This analysis provides an independent means of assessing the relative impacts of climate and human management on the water balance of Lake Victoria that does not depend on observations of dam discharge, which may not be publically available. In the second part of the study, the individual components of the lake water balance are estimated. Satellite estimates of changes in lake level, precipitation, and evaporation are used with observed lake discharge to develop a parameterization for estimating subsurface inflows due to changes in groundwater storage estimated from satellite gravimetry. At seasonal timescales, this approach provides closure to Lake Victoria's water balance to within 17 {mm}/{month}. The third part of this study uses the water balance of a downstream water body, Lake Kyoga, to estimate the outflow from Lake Victoria remotely. Because Lake Kyoga is roughly 20 times smaller in area than Lake Victoria, its water balance is strongly influenced by inflow from Lake Victoria. Lake Kyoga has been shown to act as a linear reservoir, where its outflow is proportional to the height of the lake. This model can be used with satellite altimetric lake levels to estimate a

  1. Wind effects on water and salt loss in playa lakes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Torgersen, T.

    1984-10-01

    The theory behind wind stress induced setup of water surface slope on a playa lake is reviewed. Due to the low gradient of the bottom in most playa lakes (1-20 cm km -1), the advance and retreat of lake waters due to wind stress can expose or cover many square kilometers. It is even possible for the surface slope to exceed the bottom slope and thereby create a "roving" lake. Such water movements can transport lake water over undersaturated "shore" sediments and water can therefore infiltrate and be lost without an increase in lake salinity. This case is demonstrated with data from Lake George, New South Wales, Australia. Such wind effects need to be examined for their relation to the diagenesis of sediments, the composition of the bitterns, and the salt budget of playa lakes.

  2. Compounding Impacts of Climate Change and Increased Human Water Withdrawal on Urmia Lake Water Availability

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Alborzi, A.; Moftakhari, H.; Azaranfar, A.; Mallakpour, I.; Ashraf, B.; AghaKouchak, A.

    2017-12-01

    In recent decades, climate change and increase in human water withdrawal, combined, have caused ecological degradation in several terminal lakes worldwide. Among them, the shallow and hyper-saline Urmia Lake in Iran has experienced about 6 meters drawdown in lake level and 80% reduction in surface area. Here, we assess the imposed stress on Urmia Basin's water availability and Lake's ecological condition in response to coupled climate change and human-induced water withdrawal. A generalized river basin decision support system model consisting network flow is developed to simulate the basin-lake interactions under a wide range of scenarios. This model explicitly includes water management infrastructure, reservoirs, and irrigation and municipal water use. Studied scenarios represent a wide range of historic climate and water use scenarios including a historical baseline, future increase in water demand, and also improved water efficiency. In this presentation, we show the lake's water level, as a measure of lake's ecological health, under the compounding effects of the climate condition (top-down) and water use (bottom-up) scenarios. This method illustrates what combinations lead to failure in meeting the lake's ecological level.

  3. Lake levels, streamflow, and surface-water quality in the Devils Lake area, North Dakota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wiche, Gregg J.

    1996-01-01

    The Devils Lake Basin is a 3,810-square-mile (mi2) closed basin (fig. 1) in the Red River of the North Basin. About 3,320 mi2 of the total 3,810 mi2 is tributary to Devils Lake; the remainder is tributary to Stump Lake.Since glaciation, the lake level of Devils Lake has fluctuated from about 1,457 feet (ft) above sea level (asl), the natural spill elevation of the lake to the Sheyenne River, to 1,400 ft asl (Aronow, 1957). Although no documented records of lake levels are available before 1867, Upham (1895, p. 595), on the basis of tree-ring chronology, indicated that the lake level was 1,441 ft asl in 1830. Lake levels were recorded sporadically from 1867 to 1901 when the U.S. Geological Survey established a gaging station on Devils Lake. From 1867 to the present (1996), the lake level has fluctuated between a maximum of 1,438.4 ft asl in 1867 and a minimum of 1,400.9 ft asl in 1940 (fig. 2). On July 31, 1996, the lake level was 1,437.8 ft asl, about 15.2 ft higher than the level recorded in February 1993 and the highest level in about 120 years.Since 1993, the lake level of Devils Lake (fig. 2) has risen rapidly in response to above-normal precipitation from the summer of 1993 to the present, and 30,000 acres of land around the lake have been flooded. The above-normal precipitation also has caused flooding elsewhere in the Devils Lake Basin. State highways near Devils Lake are being raised, and some local roads have been closed because of flooding.In response to the flooding, the Devils Lake Basin Interagency Task Force, comprised of many State and Federal agencies, was formed in 1995 to find and propose intermediate (5 years or less) solutions to reduce the effects of high lake levels. In addition to various planning studies being conducted by Federal agencies, the North Dakota State Water Commission has implemented a project to store water on small tracts of land and in the chain of lakes (Sweetwater Lake, Morrison Lake, Dry Lake, Mikes Lake, Chain Lake

  4. Extreme drought causes distinct water acidification and eutrophication in the Lower Lakes (Lakes Alexandrina and Albert), Australia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Siyue; Bush, Richard T.; Mao, Rong; Xiong, Lihua; Ye, Chen

    2017-01-01

    Droughts are set to increase in frequency and magnitude with climate change and water extraction, and understanding their influence on ecosystems is urgent in the Holocene. Low rainfall across the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB) of Australia resulted in an unprecedented water level decline in the Lower Lakes (Lakes Alexandrina and Albert) at the downstream end of the river system. A comprehensive data covering pre-drought (2004-2006), drought (2007-2010) and post-drought (2010-2013) was firstly used to unravel drought effects on water quality in the contrasting main parts and margins of the two Lakes, particularly following water acidification resulting from acid sulfate soil oxidation. Salinity, nutrients and Chl-a significantly increased during the drought in the Lake main waterbody, while pH remained stable or showed minor shifts. In contrast to the Lake Alexandrina, total dissolved solid (TDS) and electrical conductivity (EC) during the post-drought more than doubled the pre-drought period in the Lake Albert as being a terminal lake system with narrow and shallow entrance. Rewetting of the exposed pyrite-containing sediment resulted in very low pH (below 3) in Lake margins, which positively contributed to salinity increases via SO42- release and limestone dissolution. Very acidic water (pH 2-3) was neutralised naturally by lake refill, but aerial limestone dosing was required for neutralisation of water acidity during the drought period. The Lower Lakes are characterized as hypereutrophic with much higher salinity, nutrient and algae concentrations than guideline levels for aquatic ecosystem. These results suggest that, in the Lower Lakes, drought could cause water quality deterioration through water acidification and increased nutrient and Chl-a concentrations, more effective water management in the lake catchment is thus crucial to prevent the similar water quality deterioration since the projected intensification of droughts. A comparative assessment on lake

  5. Evaporation and transport of water isotopologues from Greenland lakes: The lake size effect

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feng, Xiahong; Lauder, Alex M.; Posmentier, Eric S.; Kopec, Ben G.; Virginia, Ross A.

    2016-01-01

    Isotopic compositions of evaporative flux from a lake are used in many hydrological and paleoclimate studies that help constrain the water budget of a lake and/or to infer changes in climate conditions. The isotopic fluxes of evaporation from a water surface are typically computed using a zero dimensional (0-D) model originally conceptualized by Craig and Gordon (1965). Such models generally have laminar and turbulent layers, assume a steady state condition, and neglect horizontal variations. In particular, the effect of advection on isotopic variations is not considered. While this classical treatment can be used for some sections of large open surface water bodies, such as an ocean or a large lake, it may not apply to relatively small water bodies where limited fetch does not allow full equilibration between air from land and the water surface. Both horizontal and vertical gradients in water vapor concentration and isotopic ratios may develop over a lake. These gradients, in turn, affect the evaporative fluxes of water vapor and its isotopic ratios, which is not adequately predicted by a 0-D model. We observed, for the first time, the vertical as well as horizontal components of vapor and isotopic gradients as relatively dry and isotopically depleted air advected over the surfaces of several lakes up to a 5 km fetch under winds of 1-5 m/s in Kangerlussuaq, Greenland. We modeled the vapor and isotopic distribution in air above the lake using a steady state 2-D model, in which vertical diffusive transport balances horizontal advection. The model was verified by our observations, and then used to calculate evaporative fluxes of vapor and its isotopic ratios. In the special case of zero wind speed, the model reduces to 1-D. Results from this 1-D model are compared with those from the 2-D model to assess the discrepancy in isotopic fluxes between advection and no advection conditions. Since wind advection above a lake alters the concentrations, gradients, and

  6. Hydrology and water quality of Shell Lake, Washburn County, Wisconsin, with special emphasis on the effects of diversion and changes in water level on the water quality of a shallow terminal lake

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Juckem, Paul F.; Robertson, Dale M.

    2013-01-01

    Shell Lake is a relatively shallow terminal lake (tributaries but no outlets) in northwestern Wisconsin that has experienced approximately 10 feet (ft) of water-level fluctuation over more than 70 years of record and extensive flooding of nearshore areas starting in the early 2000s. The City of Shell Lake (City) received a permit from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources in 2002 to divert water from the lake to a nearby river in order to lower water levels and reduce flooding. Previous studies suggested that water-level fluctuations were driven by long-term cycles in precipitation, evaporation, and runoff, although questions about the lake’s connection with the groundwater system remained. The permit required that the City evaluate assumptions about lake/groundwater interactions made in previous studies and evaluate the effects of the water diversion on water levels in Shell Lake and other nearby lakes. Therefore, a cooperative study between the City and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) was initiated to improve the understanding of the hydrogeology of the area and evaluate potential effects of the diversion on water levels in Shell Lake, the surrounding groundwater system, and nearby lakes. Concerns over deteriorating water quality in the lake, possibly associated with changes in water level, prompted an additional cooperative project between the City and the USGS to evaluate efeffects of changes in nutrient loading associated with changes in water levels on the water quality of Shell Lake. Numerical models were used to evaluate how the hydrology and water quality responded to diversion of water from the lake and historical changes in the watershed. The groundwater-flow model MODFLOW was used to simulate groundwater movement in the area around Shell Lake, including groundwater/surface-water interactions. Simulated results from the MODFLOW model indicate that groundwater flows generally northward in the area around Shell Lake, with flow locally converging

  7. Estimating ground-water exchange with lakes using water-budget and chemical mass-balance approaches for ten lakes in ridge areas of Polk and Highlands counties, Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sacks, L.A.; Swancar, Amy; Lee, T.M.

    1998-01-01

    Water budget and chemical mass-balance approaches were used to estimate ground-water exchange with 10 lakes in ridge areas of Polk and Highlands Counties, Florida. At each lake, heads were monitored in the surficial aquifer system and deeper Upper Floridan aquifer, lake stage and rainfall were measured continuously, and lakes and wells were sampled three times between October 1995 and December 1996. The water-budget approach computes net ground-water flow (ground-water inflow minus outflow) as the residual of the monthly waterbudget equation. Net ground-water flow varied seasonally at each of the 10 lakes, and was notably different between lakes, illustrating short-term differences in ground-water fluxes. Monthly patterns in net ground-water flow were related to monthly patterns of other hydrologic variables such as rainfall, ground-water flow patterns, and head differences between the lake and the Upper Floridan aquifer. The chemical mass-balance approach combines the water budget and solute or isotope mass-balance equations, and assumes steady-state conditions. Naturally occurring tracers that were analyzed for include calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride, and bromide, the isotopes deuterium and oxygen-18. Chloride and sodium were the most successful solute tracers; however, their concentrations in ground water typically varied spatially, and in places were similar to that in lake water, limiting their sensitivity as tracers. In contrast, the isotopes were more robust tracers because the isotopic composition of ground water was relatively uniform and was distinctly different from the lake water. Groundwater inflow computed using the chemical massbalance method varied significantly between lakes, and ranged from less than 10 to more than 150 inches per year. Both water-budget and chemical mass-balance approaches had limitations, but the multiple lines of evidence gained using both approaches improved the understanding of the role of ground water in the

  8. Water quality of least-impaired lakes in eastern and southern Arkansas

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Justus, B.

    2010-01-01

    A three-phased study identified one least-impaired (reference) lake for each of four Arkansas lake classifications: three classifications in the Mississippi Alluvial Plain (MAP) ecoregion and a fourth classification in the South Central Plains (SCP) ecoregion. Water quality at three of the least-impaired lakes generally was comparable and also was comparable to water quality from Kansas and Missouri reference lakes and Texas least-impaired lakes. Water quality of one least-impaired lake in the MAP ecoregion was not as good as water quality in other least-impaired lakes in Arkansas or in the three other states: a probable consequence of all lakes in that classification having a designated use as a source of irrigation water. Chemical and physical conditions for all four lake classifications were at times naturally harsh as limnological characteristics changed temporally. As a consequence of allochthonous organic material, oxbow lakes isolated within watersheds comprised of swamps were susceptible to low dissolved oxygen concentrations to the extent that conditions would be limiting to some aquatic biota. Also, pH in lakes in the SCP ecoregion was <6.0, a level exceeding current Arkansas water-quality standards but typical of black water systems. Water quality of the deepest lakes exceeded that of shallow lakes. N/P ratios and trophic state indices may be less effective for assessing water quality for shallow lakes (<2 m) than for deep lakes because there is an increased exposure of sediment (and associated phosphorus) to disturbance and light in the former. ?? 2009 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

  9. Water quality of least-impaired lakes in eastern and southern Arkansas.

    PubMed

    Justus, Billy

    2010-09-01

    A three-phased study identified one least-impaired (reference) lake for each of four Arkansas lake classifications: three classifications in the Mississippi Alluvial Plain (MAP) ecoregion and a fourth classification in the South Central Plains (SCP) ecoregion. Water quality at three of the least-impaired lakes generally was comparable and also was comparable to water quality from Kansas and Missouri reference lakes and Texas least-impaired lakes. Water quality of one least-impaired lake in the MAP ecoregion was not as good as water quality in other least-impaired lakes in Arkansas or in the three other states: a probable consequence of all lakes in that classification having a designated use as a source of irrigation water. Chemical and physical conditions for all four lake classifications were at times naturally harsh as limnological characteristics changed temporally. As a consequence of allochthonous organic material, oxbow lakes isolated within watersheds comprised of swamps were susceptible to low dissolved oxygen concentrations to the extent that conditions would be limiting to some aquatic biota. Also, pH in lakes in the SCP ecoregion was <6.0, a level exceeding current Arkansas water-quality standards but typical of black water systems. Water quality of the deepest lakes exceeded that of shallow lakes. N/P ratios and trophic state indices may be less effective for assessing water quality for shallow lakes (<2 m) than for deep lakes because there is an increased exposure of sediment (and associated phosphorus) to disturbance and light in the former.

  10. Hydrology and water quality of Park Lake, south-central Wisconsin

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Kammerer, P.A.

    1996-01-01

    Park Lake extends to the northeast from the village of Pardeeville in Columbia County (fig. 1). Local residents perceive water-quality problems in the lake that include excessive algae and aquatic plant growth. Algae and plant growth in a lake are controlled, in part, by the availability of phosphorus in the water. However, no measurements of phosphorus enter- ing the lake or of other factors that affect lake-water quality had been made, and available data on water quality were limited to 2 years of measurements at one site in the lake in 1986- 87. To obtain the data and in- formation needed to address the water-quality problems at Park Lake and to develop a management plan that would limit the input of phosphorus to the lake, the U.S. Geologi- cal Survey, in cooperation with the Park Lake Management District, studied the hydrology of the lake and collected data needed to determine sources and amount of phosphorus en- tering the lake. This Fact Sheet summarizes the results of that study. Data collected during the study were published in a separate report (Holmstrom and others, 1994, p. 70-85).

  11. Multi-Elements in Waters and Sediments of Shallow Lakes: Relationships with Water, Sediment, and Watershed Characteristics.

    PubMed

    Kissoon, La Toya T; Jacob, Donna L; Hanson, Mark A; Herwig, Brian R; Bowe, Shane E; Otte, Marinus L

    2015-06-01

    We measured concentrations of multiple elements, including rare earth elements, in waters and sediments of 38 shallow lakes of varying turbidity and macrophyte cover in the Prairie Parkland (PP) and Laurentian Mixed Forest (LMF) provinces of Minnesota. PP shallow lakes had higher element concentrations in waters and sediments compared to LMF sites. Redundancy analysis indicated that a combination of site- and watershed-scale features explained a large proportion of among-lake variability in element concentrations in lake water and sediments. Percent woodland cover in watersheds, turbidity, open water area, and macrophyte cover collectively explained 65.2 % of variation in element concentrations in lake waters. Sediment fraction smaller than 63 µm, percent woodland in watersheds, open water area, and sediment organic matter collectively explained 64.2 % of variation in element concentrations in lake sediments. In contrast to earlier work on shallow lakes, our results showed the extent to which multiple elements in shallow lake waters and sediments were influenced by a combination of variables including sediment characteristics, lake morphology, and percent land cover in watersheds. These results are informative because they help illustrate the extent of functional connectivity between shallow lakes and adjacent lands within these lake watersheds.

  12. Multi-Elements in Waters and Sediments of Shallow Lakes: Relationships with Water, Sediment, and Watershed Characteristics

    PubMed Central

    Jacob, Donna L.; Hanson, Mark A.; Herwig, Brian R.; Bowe, Shane E.; Otte, Marinus L.

    2015-01-01

    We measured concentrations of multiple elements, including rare earth elements, in waters and sediments of 38 shallow lakes of varying turbidity and macrophyte cover in the Prairie Parkland (PP) and Laurentian Mixed Forest (LMF) provinces of Minnesota. PP shallow lakes had higher element concentrations in waters and sediments compared to LMF sites. Redundancy analysis indicated that a combination of site- and watershed-scale features explained a large proportion of among-lake variability in element concentrations in lake water and sediments. Percent woodland cover in watersheds, turbidity, open water area, and macrophyte cover collectively explained 65.2 % of variation in element concentrations in lake waters. Sediment fraction smaller than 63 µm, percent woodland in watersheds, open water area, and sediment organic matter collectively explained 64.2 % of variation in element concentrations in lake sediments. In contrast to earlier work on shallow lakes, our results showed the extent to which multiple elements in shallow lake waters and sediments were influenced by a combination of variables including sediment characteristics, lake morphology, and percent land cover in watersheds. These results are informative because they help illustrate the extent of functional connectivity between shallow lakes and adjacent lands within these lake watersheds. PMID:26074657

  13. Water Quality and Hydrology of Silver Lake, Barron County, Wisconsin, With Special Emphasis on Responses of a Terminal Lake to Changes in Phosphorus Loading and Water Level

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Robertson, Dale M.; Rose, William J.; Fitzpatrick, Faith A.

    2009-01-01

    Silver Lake is typically an oligotrophic-to-mesotrophic, soft-water, terminal lake in northwestern Wisconsin. A terminal lake is a closed-basin lake with surface-water inflows but no surface-water outflows to other water bodies. After several years with above-normal precipitation, very high water levels caused flooding of several buildings near the lake and erosion of soil around much of the shoreline, which has been associated with a degradation in water quality (increased phosphorus and chlorophyll a concentrations and decreased water clarity). To gain a better understanding of what caused the very high water levels and degradation in water quality and collect information to better understand the lake and protect it from future degradation, the U.S. Geological Survey did a detailed study from 2004 to 2008. This report describes results of the study; specifically, lake-water quality, historical changes in water level, water and phosphorus budgets for the two years monitored in the study, results of model simulations that demonstrate how changes in phosphorus inputs affect lake-water quality, and the relative importance of changes in hydrology and changes in the watershed to the water quality of the lake. From 1987 to about 1996, water quality in Silver Lake was relatively stable. Since 1996, however, summer average total phosphorus concentrations increased from about 0.008 milligrams per liter (mg/L) to 0.018 mg/L in 2003, before decreasing to 0.011 mg/L in 2008. From 1996 to 2003, Secchi depths decreased from about 14 to 7.4 feet, before increasing to about 19 feet in 2008. Therefore, Silver Lake is typically classified as oligotrophic to mesotrophic; however, during 2002-4, the lake was classified as mesotrophic to eutrophic. Because productivity in Silver Lake is limited by phosphorus, phosphorus budgets for the lake were constructed for monitoring years 2005 and 2006. The average annual input of phosphorus was 216 pounds: 78 percent from tributary and

  14. A Revised Holocene History of Lake Kivu, East Africa

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Votava, J. E.; Johnson, T. C.; Hecky, R. E.

    2013-12-01

    The great lakes of the East African Rift valley are a vast chain of lakes formed in a region of active tectonics. These large, deep lakes are relatively old and many (e.g. Tanganyika, Malawi, and Turkana) have greatly influenced our understanding of terrestrial, tropical East African paleoclimate. Lake Kivu (max depth, 485m) sits at the heart of these rift lakes, north of Lake Tanganyika between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda (roughly 250 km west of Lake Victoria). At over 1,400 meters in elevation, this 2,060 km2 mesotrophic lake has a complex stratification regime imposed by hydrothermal springs and deep waters supersaturated at STP in CO2 and CH4 gasses. The active Virunga Volcanoes to the north of the lake supply heated, high-salinity waters below 280 meters water depth maintaining the modern crenogenic meromixis. Based on detailed studies of diatom assemblages and bulk sedimentology, previous workers have suggested this hydrothermal activity began roughly 5,000 years BP. Unfortunately, dating and stratigraphic correlations of these original cores from the 1970 Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution's expedition have been problematic. Here we offer an improved chronology and new carbonate analyses from cores recovered in 2012 and 2013. Our AMS radiocarbon ages come from six terrigeneous macrofossils spanning the last 9,100 years (cal BP). These ages suggest a rather high sedimentation rate on the order of 70cm/kyr, and hence, our 8 m-long core provides us with a high-resolution lake history for the past 10,000 years. Most notable over the past 5,000 years in the lake history is the repeated onset and cessation of carbonate deposition, punctuated by organic-rich intervals. Earlier studies of the Woods Hole cores placed the onset of carbonate deposition at ca. 11,000 years BP suggesting changes in lake hydrology (i.e. closed to open), while the abrupt cessation of carbonate was dated at ca. 5,000 years BP and attributed to the beginning of

  15. Water quality and bathymetry of Sand Lake, Anchorage, Alaska

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Donaldson, Donald E.

    1976-01-01

    Sand Lake, a dimictic lowland lake in Anchorage, Alaska, has recently become as urban lake. Analyses indicate that the lake is oligotrophic, having low dissolved solids and nutrient concentrations. Snowmelt runoff from an adjacent residential area, however, has a dissolved-solids concentration 10 times that of the main body of Sand Lake. Lead concentrations in the runoff exceed known values from other water in the ANchorage area, including water samples taken beneath landfills. The volume of the snowmelt runoff has not been measured. The data presented can be used as a baseline for water-resource management. (Woodard-USGS)

  16. Groundwater and surface-water interactions near White Bear Lake, Minnesota, through 2011

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Jones, Perry M.; Trost, Jared J.; Rosenberry, Donald O.; Jackson, P. Ryan; Bode, Jenifer A.; O'Grady, Ryan M.

    2013-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the White Bear Lake Conservation District, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and other State, county, municipal, and regional planning agencies, watershed organizations, and private organizations, conducted a study to characterize groundwater and surface-water interactions near White Bear Lake through 2011. During 2010 and 2011, White Bear Lake and other lakes in the northeastern part of the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area were at historically low levels. Previous periods of lower water levels in White Bear Lake correlate with periods of lower precipitation; however, recent urban expansion and increased pumping from the Prairie du Chien-Jordan aquifer have raised the question of whether a decline in precipitation is the primary cause for the recent water-level decline in White Bear Lake. Understanding and quantifying the amount of groundwater inflow to a lake and water discharge from a lake to aquifers is commonly difficult but is important in the management of lake levels. Three methods were used in the study to assess groundwater and surface-water interactions on White Bear Lake: (1) a historical assessment (1978-2011) of levels in White Bear Lake, local groundwater levels, and their relation to historical precipitation and groundwater withdrawals in the White Bear Lake area; (2) recent (2010-11) hydrologic and water-quality data collected from White Bear Lake, other lakes, and wells; and (3) water-balance assessments for White Bear Lake in March and August 2011. An analysis of covariance between average annual lake-level change and annual precipitation indicated the relation between the two variables was significantly different from 2003 through 2011 compared with 1978 through 2002, requiring an average of 4 more inches of precipitation per year to maintain the lake level. This shift in the linear relation between annual lake-level change and annual precipitation

  17. Plio-Pleistocene magnetostratigraphy of the Turkana basin, Kenya

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lepre, C. J.; Quinn, R.; Feibel, C. S.; Brown, F. H.; Kent, D. V.

    2012-12-01

    Archaeological and fossil sites from the Turkana basin provide a unique record of important human evolutionary junctures, which have been linked to terrestrial environmental change as a consequence of late Cenozoic climate phenomenon. However, because of low geochronological resolution, spatial discontinuities, and the episodic nature of sedimentation in the half-graben basins of the East African Rift System, it has been difficult to directly connect the terrestrial sites with marine archives of Pliocene and Pleistocene climate. For the purpose of addressing these issues, a magnetic polarity stratigraphy and a corresponding geochronology are presented for 12 sampling sites spanning about 400 m of continental sediments that crop out in eastern (Areas 118 and 130 of the Karari ridge, Areas 102 and 104 of the Koobi Fora ridge, Areas 107 and 123 of Bara Hasuma) and western (Kokiselei, Naiyena Engol, Kalochoro, Lomekwi, South Turkwel, and Kanapoi) parts of the Turkana basin. Characteristic magnetizations isolated through thermal demagnetization experiments on mudstone specimens pass reversal tests and are indistinguishable in mean direction regardless if samples were collected from ancient fluvial floodplain or lacustrine strata of correlative stratigraphic intervals. The sequence of the composite paleomagnetic reversal stratigraphy consists of 15 magnetozones that vary from less than a meter to tens of meters thick and can be unambiguously correlated within limits of the previously established tephrochronology to the Gilbert through Matuyama portion of the Geomagnetic Polarity Time Scale dated to about 4.0-1.5 Ma. Sedimentation rates through lacustrine intervals (e.g., 22-29 cm/kyr) are comparable with high-fidelity marine cores. This factor coupled with copious amounts of magnetic mineral detritus from basin-bounding rift volcanics probably contributes to a high natural remanent magnetization of the sediments and the recording of temporally brief magnetozones (e

  18. Coastal groundwater/surface-water interactions: a Great Lakes case study

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Neff, Brian P.; Haack, Sheridan K.; Rosenberry, Donald O.; Savino, Jacqueline F.; Lundstrom, Scott C.

    2006-01-01

    Key similarities exist between marine and Great Lakes coastal environments. Water and nutrient fluxes across lakebeds in the Great Lakes are influenced by seiche and wind set-up and set-down, analogous to tidal influence in marine settings. Groundwater/surface-water interactions also commonly involve a saline-fresh water interface, although in the Great-Lakes cases, it is groundwater that is commonly saline and surface water that is fresh. Evapotranspiration also affects nearshore hydrology in both settings. Interactions between groundwater and surface water have recently been identified as an important component of ecological processes in the Great Lakes. Water withdrawals and the reversal of the groundwater/surface water seepage gradient are also common to many coastal areas around the Great Lakes. As compared to surface water, regional groundwater that discharges to western Lake Erie from Michigan is highly mineralized. Studies conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey at Erie State Game Area in southeastern Michigan, describe groundwater flow dynamics and chemistry, shallow lake-water chemistry, and fish and invertebrate communities. Results presented here provide an overview of recent progress of ongoing interdisciplinary studies of Great Lakes nearshore systems and describe a conceptual model that identifies relations among geologic, hydrologic, chemical, and biological processes in the coastal habitats of Lake Erie. This conceptual model is based on analysis of hydraulic head in piezometers at the study site and chemical analysis of deep and shallow coastal groundwater.

  19. Discharge, water temperature, and selected meteorological data for Vancouver Lake, Vancouver, Washington, water years 2011-13

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Foreman, James R.; Marshall, Cameron A.; Sheibley, Rich W.

    2014-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey partnered with the Vancouver Lake Watershed Partnership in a 2-year intensive study to quantify the movement of water and nutrients through Vancouver Lake in Vancouver, Washington. This report is intended to assist the Vancouver Lake Watershed Partnership in evaluating potential courses of action to mitigate seasonally driven blooms of harmful cyanobacteria and to improve overall water quality of the lake. This report contains stream discharge, lake water temperature, and selected meteorological data for water years 2011, 2012, and 2013 that were used to develop the water and nutrient budgets for the lake.

  20. Spatial and temporal variations in the relationship between lake water surface temperatures and water quality - A case study of Dianchi Lake.

    PubMed

    Yang, Kun; Yu, Zhenyu; Luo, Yi; Yang, Yang; Zhao, Lei; Zhou, Xiaolu

    2018-05-15

    Global warming and rapid urbanization in China have caused a series of ecological problems. One consequence has involved the degradation of lake water environments. Lake surface water temperatures (LSWTs) significantly shape water ecological environments and are highly correlated with the watershed ecosystem features and biodiversity levels. Analysing and predicting spatiotemporal changes in LSWT and exploring the corresponding impacts on water quality is essential for controlling and improving the ecological water environment of watersheds. In this study, Dianchi Lake was examined through an analysis of 54 water quality indicators from 10 water quality monitoring sites from 2005 to 2016. Support vector regression (SVR), Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Back Propagation Artificial Neural Network (BPANN) methods were applied to form a hybrid forecasting model. A geospatial analysis was conducted to observe historical LSWTs and water quality changes for Dianchi Lake from 2005 to 2016. Based on the constructed model, LSWTs and changes in water quality were simulated for 2017 to 2020. The relationship between LSWTs and water quality thresholds was studied. The results show limited errors and highly generalized levels of predictive performance. In addition, a spatial visualization analysis shows that from 2005 to 2020, the chlorophyll-a (Chla), chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total nitrogen (TN) diffused from north to south and that ammonia nitrogen (NH 3 -N) and total phosphorus (TP) levels are increases in the northern part of Dianchi Lake, where the LSWT levels exceed 17°C. The LSWT threshold is 17.6-18.53°C, which falls within the threshold for nutritional water quality, but COD and TN levels fall below V class water quality standards. Transparency (Trans), COD, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and Chla levels present a close relationship with LSWT, and LSWTs are found to fundamentally affect lake cyanobacterial blooms. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All

  1. Controls of inherited lithospheric heterogeneity on rift linkage: Numerical and analog models of interaction between the Kenyan and Ethiopian rifts across the Turkana depression

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Brune, Sascha; Corti, Giacomo; Ranalli, Giorgio

    2017-09-01

    Inherited rheological structures in the lithosphere are expected to have large impact on the architecture of continental rifts. The Turkana depression in the East African Rift connects the Main Ethiopian Rift to the north with the Kenya rift in the south. This region is characterized by a NW-SE trending band of thinned crust inherited from a Mesozoic rifting event, which is cutting the present-day N-S rift trend at high angle. In striking contrast to the narrow rifts in Ethiopia and Kenya, extension in the Turkana region is accommodated in subparallel deformation domains that are laterally distributed over several hundred kilometers. We present both analog experiments and numerical models that reproduce the along-axis transition from narrow rifting in Ethiopia and Kenya to a distributed deformation within the Turkana depression. Similarly to natural observations, our models show that the Ethiopian and Kenyan rifts bend away from each other within the Turkana region, thus forming a right-lateral step over and avoiding a direct link to form a continuous N-S depression. The models reveal five potential types of rift linkage across the preexisting basin: three types where rifts bend away from the inherited structure connecting via a (1) wide or (2) narrow rift or by (3) forming a rotating microplate, (4) a type where rifts bend towards it, and (5) straight rift linkage. The fact that linkage type 1 is realized in the Turkana region provides new insights on the rheological configuration of the Mesozoic rift system at the onset of the recent rift episode.

  2. Hydrology and water quality of East Lake Tohopekaliga, Osceola County, Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Schiffer, Donna M.

    1987-01-01

    East Lake Tohopekaliga, one of the major lakes in central Florida, is located in the upper Kissimmee River basin in north-east Osceola County. It is one of numerous lakes in the upper basin used for flood control, in addition to recreation and some irrigation of surrounding pasture. This report is the fourth in a series of lake reconnaissance studies in the Kissimmee River basin prepared in cooperation with the South Florida Water Management District. The purpose of the report is to provide government agencies and the public with a brief summary of the lake 's hydrology and water quality. Site information is given and includes map number, site name, location, and type of data available (specific conductivity, pH, alkalinity, turbidity, color, dissolved oxygen, hardness, dissolved chlorides, dissolved sodium, dissolved calcium, dissolved magnesium, dissolved potassium, nitrogen, ammonia, nitrates, carbon and phosphorus). The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) maintained a lake stage gaging station on East Lake Tohopekaliga from 1942 to 1968. The South Florida Water Management District has recorded lake stage since 1963. Periodic water quality samples have been collected from the lake by the South Florida Water Management District and USGS. Water quality and discharge data have been collected for one major tributary to the lake, Boggy Creek. Although few groundwater data are available for the study area, results of previous studies of the groundwater resources of Osceola County are included in this report. To supplement the water quality data for East Lake Tohopekaliga, water samples were collected at selected sites in November 1982 (dry season) and in August 1983 (rainy season). Samples were taken at inflow points, and in the lake, and vertical profiles of dissolved oxygen and temperature were measured in the lake. A water budget from an EPA report on the lake is also included. (Lantz-PTT)

  3. Water footprint concept for a sustainable water resources management in Urmia Lake basin, Iran

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jabbari, Anahita; Jarihani, Ben; Rezaie, Hossein; Aligholiniya, Tohid; Rasouli, Negar

    2015-04-01

    The fast shrinkage of Urmia Lake in West Azerbaijan, Iran is one of the most important environmental change hotspots. The dramatic water level reduction (up to 6 meters) has influential environmental, socio-economic and health impacts on Urmia plain and its habitants. The decline is generally blamed on a combination of drought, increased water diversion for irrigated agriculture within the lake's watershed and land use mismanagement. The Urmia Lake sub basins are the agricultural cores of the region and the agricultural activities are the major water consuming sections of the basin. Land use changes and mismanagement in the land use decisions and policies is one of the most important factors in lake shrinkage in recent decades. Fresh water is the main source of water for agricultural usages in the basin. So defining a more low water consuming land use pattern will put less pressure on limited water resources. The above mentioned fact in this study has been assessed through water footprint concept. The water footprint concept (as a quantitative measure showing the appropriation of natural resources) is a comprehensive indicator that can have a crucial role in efficient land use management. In order to evaluate the water use patterns, the water footprint of wheat (as a traditional crop) and apple (recently most popular) have been compared and the results have been discussed in the aspect of the impacts on Lake Urmia demands and its dramatic drying process. Results showed that, higher blue water consumption in such a regions that have severe blue water scarcity, is a major issue and the water consuming pattern must be modified to meet the lake demands. Lower blue water consumption through regionalizing crops for each area is an efficient solution to meet lake demands and consume lower amounts of blue water. So the proper land use practices can be an appropriate method to rescue the lake in a long time period.

  4. Lateral and subsurface flows impact arctic coastal plain lake water budgets

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Koch, Joshua C.

    2016-01-01

    Arctic thaw lakes are an important source of water for aquatic ecosystems, wildlife, and humans. Many recent studies have observed changes in Arctic surface waters related to climate warming and permafrost thaw; however, explaining the trends and predicting future responses to warming is difficult without a stronger fundamental understanding of Arctic lake water budgets. By measuring and simulating surface and subsurface hydrologic fluxes, this work quantified the water budgets of three lakes with varying levels of seasonal drainage, and tested the hypothesis that lateral and subsurface flows are a major component of the post-snowmelt water budgets. A water budget focused only on post-snowmelt surface water fluxes (stream discharge, precipitation, and evaporation) could not close the budget for two of three lakes, even when uncertainty in input parameters was rigorously considered using a Monte Carlo approach. The water budgets indicated large, positive residuals, consistent with up to 70% of mid-summer inflows entering lakes from lateral fluxes. Lateral inflows and outflows were simulated based on three processes; supra-permafrost subsurface inflows from basin-edge polygonal ground, and exchange between seasonally drained lakes and their drained margins through runoff and evapotranspiration. Measurements and simulations indicate that rapid subsurface flow through highly conductive flowpaths in the polygonal ground can explain the majority of the inflow. Drained lakes were hydrologically connected to marshy areas on the lake margins, receiving water from runoff following precipitation and losing up to 38% of lake efflux to drained margin evapotranspiration. Lateral fluxes can be a major part of Arctic thaw lake water budgets and a major control on summertime lake water levels. Incorporating these dynamics into models will improve our ability to predict lake volume changes, solute fluxes, and habitat availability in the changing Arctic.

  5. SURFACE WATER AND GROUND WATER QUALITY MONITORING FOR RESTORATION OF URBAN LAKES IN GREATER HYDERABAD, INDIA

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mohanty, A. K.

    2009-12-01

    SURFACE WATER AND GROUND WATER QUALITY MONITORING FOR RESTORATION OF URBAN LAKES IN GREATER HYDERABAD, INDIA A.K. Mohanty, K. Mahesh Kumar, B. A. Prakash and V.V.S. Gurunadha Rao Ecology and Environment Group National Geophysical Research Institute, (CSIR) Hyderabad - 500 606, India E-mail:atulyakumarmohanty@yahoo.com Abstract: Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority has taken up restoration of urban lakes around Hyderabad city under Green Hyderabad Environment Program. Restoration of Mir Alam Tank, Durgamcheruvu, Patel cheruvu, Pedda Cheruvu and Nallacheruvu lakes have been taken up under the second phase. There are of six lakes viz., RKPuramcheruvu, Nadimicheruvu (Safilguda), Bandacheruvu Patelcheruvu, Peddacheruvu, Nallacheruvu, in North East Musi Basin covering 38 sq km. Bimonthly monitoring of lake water quality for BOD, COD, Total Nitrogen, Total phosphorous has been carried out for two hydrological cycles during October 2002- October 2004 in all the five lakes at inlet channels and outlets. The sediments in the lake have been also assessed for nutrient status. The nutrient parameters have been used to assess eutrophic condition through computation of Trophic Status Index, which has indicated that all the above lakes under study are under hyper-eutrophic condition. The hydrogeological, geophysical, water quality and groundwater data base collected in two watersheds covering 4 lakes has been used to construct groundwater flow and mass transport models. The interaction of lake-water with groundwater has been computed for assessing the lake water budget combining with inflow and outflow measurements on streams entering and leaving the lakes. Individual lake water budget has been used for design of appropriate capacity of Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) on the inlet channels of the lakes for maintaining Full Tank Level (FTL) in each lake. STPs are designed for tertiary treatment i.e. removal of nutrient load viz., Phosphates and Nitrates. Phosphates are

  6. Chemical data for bottom sediment, lake water, bottom-sediment pore water, and fish in Mountain Creek Lake, Dallas, Texas, 1994-96

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Jones, S.A.; Van Metre, P.C.; Moring, J.B.; Braun, C.L.; Wilson, J.T.; Mahler, B.J.

    1997-01-01

    Mountain Creek Lake is a reservoir adjacent to two U.S. Department of the Navy facilities, the Naval Weapons Industrial Reserve Plant and the Naval Air Station in Dallas, Texas. A Resource Conservation and Recovery Act Facility Investigation found ground-water plumes containing chlorinated solvents on both facilities. These findings led to a U.S. Geological Survey study of Mountain Creek Lake adjacent to both facilities between June 1994 and August 1996. Bottom sediments, lake water, bottom-sediment pore water, and fish were collected for chemical analysis.

  7. Groundwater and surface water interaction in flow-through gravel pit lakes.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nella Mollema, Pauline; Antonellini, Marco

    2015-04-01

    Gravel pits are excavated in aquifers to fulfill the need for construction materials. Flow-through lakes form when the gravel pits are below the water table and fill with groundwater. In certain areas there are more than 60 of these lakes close together and their presence changes the drainage patterns and water- and hydrochemical budgets of a watershed. In flow-through gravel pit lakes, groundwater mixes with surface water and interacts with the atmosphere; outflow occurs only via groundwater. The lifespan of gravel pit lakes may be up to thousands of years as their depth to surface ratio is typically large and sedimentation rates are low. We have studied two gravel pit lake systems, a fluvial freshwater system in the Netherlands and a coastal brackish lake system in Italy. One Dutch gravel pit lake studied in detail is in part artificially replenished with Meuse River water for drinking water production that occurs downstream of the lake by water pumps. The Italian gravel pit lakes are fed by brackish groundwater that is a mix of freshwater from precipitation, Apennine Rivers and brackish (Holocene) Adriatic Sea water. Here, the drainage system of the low lying land enhances groundwater flow into the lake. Surface water evaporation is larger in temperate and Mediterranean climates than the actual evapotranspiration of pre-existing grassland and forests. The lakes, therefore, cause a loss of freshwater. The creation of water surfaces allows algae and other flora and fauna to develop. In general, water becomes gradually enriched in certain chemical constituents on its way through the hydrological cycle, especially as groundwater due to water-rock interactions. When groundwater ex-filtrates into gravel pit lakes, the natural flow of solutes towards the sea is interrupted. Hydrochemical analysis of ground- and surface waters, as well as chemical analysis of lake bottom sediments and stable H and O isotope data, show that gravel pit lake water is characterized (among

  8. Stable water isotopic composition of the Antarctic subglacial Lake Vostok: implications for understanding the lake's hydrology.

    PubMed

    Ekaykin, Alexey A; Lipenkov, Vladimir Y; Kozachek, Anna V; Vladimirova, Diana O

    2016-01-01

    We estimated the stable isotopic composition of water from the subglacial Lake Vostok using two different sets of samples: (1) water frozen on the drill bit immediately after the first lake unsealing and (2) water frozen in the borehole after the unsealing and re-drilled one year later. The most reliable values of the water isotopic composition are: -59.0 ± 0.3 ‰ for oxygen-18, -455 ± 1 ‰ for deuterium and 17 ± 1 ‰ for d-excess. This result is also confirmed by the modelling of isotopic transformations in the water which froze in the borehole, and by a laboratory experiment simulating this process. A comparison of the newly obtained water isotopic composition with that of the lake ice (-56.2 ‰ for oxygen-18, -442.4 ‰ for deuterium and 7.2 ‰ for d-excess) leads to the conclusion that the lake ice is very likely formed in isotopic equilibrium with water. In turn, this means that ice is formed by a slow freezing without formation of frazil ice crystals and/or water pockets. This conclusion agrees well with the observed physical and chemical properties of the lake's accreted ice. However, our estimate of the water's isotopic composition is only valid for the upper water layer and may not be representative for the deeper layers of the lake, so further investigations are required.

  9. Hydrochemical determination of source water contributions to Lake Lungo and Lake Ripasottile (central Italy)

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Archer, Claire; Noble, Paula; Kreamer, David; Piscopo, Vincenzo; Petitta, Marco; Rosen, Michael R.; Poulson, Simon R.; Piovesan, Gianluca; Mensing, Scott

    2017-01-01

    Lake Lungo and Lake Ripasottile are two shallow (4-5 m) lakes located in the Rieti Basin, central Italy, that have been described previously as surface outcroppings of the groundwater table. In this work, the two lakes as well as springs and rivers that represent their potential source waters are characterized physio-chemically and isotopically, using a combination of environmental tracers. Temperature and pH were measured and water samples were analyzed for alkalinity, major ion concentration, and stable isotope (δ2H, δ18O, δ13C of dissolved inorganic carbon, and δ34S and δ18O of sulfate) composition. Chemical data were also investigated in terms of local meteorological data (air temperature, precipitation) to determine the sensitivity of lake parameters to changes in the surrounding environment. Groundwater represented by samples taken from Santa Susanna Spring was shown to be distinct with SO42- and Mg2+ content of 270 and 29 mg/L, respectively, and heavy sulfate isotopic composition(δ34S=15.2 ‰ and δ18O=10‰). Outflow from the Santa Susanna Spring enters Lake Ripasottile via a canal and both spring and lake water exhibits the same chemical distinctions and comparatively low seasonal variability. Major ion concentrations in Lake Lungo are similar to the Vicenna Riara Spring and are interpreted to represent the groundwater locally recharged within the plain. The δ13CDIC exhibit the same groupings as the other chemical parameters, providing supporting evidence of the source relationships. Lake Lungo exhibited exceptional ranges of δ13CDIC (±5 ‰) and δ2H, δ18O (±5 ‰ and ±7 ‰, respectively), attributed to sensitivity to seasonal changes. The hydrochemistry results, particularly major ion data, highlight how the two lakes, though geographically and morphologically similar, represent distinct hydrochemical facies. These data also show a different response in each lake to temperature and precipitation patterns in the basin that may be attributed

  10. Assessment of water availability and demand in Lake Guiers , Senegal.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sambou, D.; Weihrauch, D.; Hellwing, V.; Diekkrüger, B.; Höllermann, B.; Gaye, A. T.

    2015-12-01

    Assessment of water availability and demand in Lake Guiers, SenegalWater resources are critical to economic growth and social development. In most African countries, supply of drinking water to satisfy population needs is a key issue because of population growth and climate and land use change. During the last three decades, increasing population, changing patterns of water demand, and concentration of population and economic activities in urban areas has pressurize Senegal's freshwater resources. To overcome this deficit, Senegal turned, to the exploitation of the Lake Guiers. It is the sole water reservoir which can be used extensively as a stable freshwater. Its water is use for irrigating crops and sugar refinery and as a drinking water resource for urban centres, including Dakar, the capital city of Senegal, as well as for the local population and animal herds. To ensure sustainability, a greater understanding of Lake Guiers's water resources and effective management of its use will be required. In this study we developed and quantified future water situation (water availability and demand) in Lake Guiers under scenarios of climate change and population growth until 2050, using the water management model WEAP (Water Evaluation And Planning system). The results show that the pressure on Lake Guiers's water resources will increase, leading to greater competition between agriculture and municipal demand site. Decreasing inflows due to climate change will aggravate this situation. WEAP results offer basis to assister lake Guiers water resources manager for an efficient long-term planning and management. Keywords: climate change, population growth , IWRM, Lake Guiers, Senegal

  11. Patterns of organochlorine contamination in lake trout from Wisconsin waters of the Great Lakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Miller, Michael A.; Madenjian, Charles P.; Masnado, Robert G.

    1992-01-01

    To investigate spatial and temporal patterns of organochlorine contamination in lake trout from Wisconsin waters of the Great Lakes, we examined laboratory contaminant analysis data of muscle tissue samples from Lake Michigan (n=317) and Lake Superior (n=53) fish. Concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), chlordane, and dieldrin, reported as mg/kg wet weight in 620 mm to 640 mm mean length Lake Michigan lake trout, decreased over time. Mean total PCB concentration declined exponentially from 9.7 in 1975 to 1.9 in 1990. Total chlordane concentration declined 63 percent from 0.48 in 1983 to 0.18 in 1990, and dieldrin declined 52 percent during this same period, from 0.21 to 0.10. The bioaccumulation rate of PCBs is significantly lower for lake trout inhabiting Lake Michigan's midlake reef complex, compared to lake trout from the nearshore waters of western Lake Michigan. Organochlorine compound concentrations were greater in Lake Michigan lake trout than Lake Superior fish. Lake Superior lean lake trout and siscowet exhibited similar rates of PCB bioaccumulation despite major differneces in muscle tissue lipid content between the two subspecies. The lack of a significant difference in the PCB bioaccumulation rates of lean trout and siscowet suggests that lipid content may not be an important factor influencing PCB bioaccumulation in lake trout, within the range of lipid concentrations observed. Relative concentrations of the various organochlorine contaminants found in lake trout were highly correlated, suggesting similar mass balance processes for these compounds. Evidence presented revealing spatial and temporal patterns of organochlorine contamination may be of value in reestablishing self-sustaining populations of lake trout in Lake Michigan.

  12. Improvements in lake water budget computations using Landsat data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Gervin, J. C.; Shih, S. F.

    1979-01-01

    A supervised multispectral classification was performed on Landsat data for Lake Okeechobee's extensive littoral zone to provide two types of information. First, the acreage of a given plant species as measured by satellite was combined with a more accurate transpiration rate to give a better estimate of evapotranspiration from the littoral zone. Second, the surface area coupled by plant communities was used to develop a better estimate of the water surface as a function of lake stage. Based on this information, more detailed representations of evapotranspiration and total water surface (and hence total lake volume) were provided to the water balance budget model for lake volume predictions. The model results based on information derived from satellite demonstrated a 94 percent reduction in cumulative lake stage error and a 70 percent reduction in the maximum deviation of the lake stage.

  13. Water Quality Investigations at Lake Merritt in Oakland, California

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Carter, G.; Casino, C.; Johnson, K.; Huang, J.; Le, A.; Truisi, V. M.; Turner, D.; Yanez, F.; Yu, J. F.; Unigarro, M.; Vue, G.; Garduno, L.; Cuff, K.

    2005-12-01

    Lake Merritt is a saltwater tidal lagoon that forms a portion of a wildlife refuge in downtown Oakland, California. The general area was designated as the nation's first wildlife refuge in 1869, and is currently the home to over 90 species of migrating waterfowl, as well as a variety of aquatic wildlife. Situated within an area composed of compacted marine sediment located near the center of Oakland, Lake Merritt also serves as a major local catchment basin, receiving significant urban runoff from a 4,650 acre local watershed through 60 storm drains and four culverted creeks. Due to factors related to its geographical location, Lake Merritt has suffered from poor water quality at various times throughout its history. In fact, in May of 1999 the US Environmental Protection Agency designated Lake Merritt as a body of water whose beneficial uses are impaired, mainly due to high levels of trash and low levels of dissolved oxygen. As a contribution to continuing efforts to monitor and assess water quality of the Lake, we began a water quality investigation during the Summer of 2005, which included the measurement of dissolved oxygen concentrations of samples collected near its surface at over 85 different locations. These measurements were made using a sensor attached to a PASCO data- logger. The sensor measures the electric current produced by a chemical reaction in its probe, which is composed of a platinum cathode and a silver anode surrounded by an electrolyte solution. Results of these measurements were statistically analyzed, mapped, and then used in assessing the quality of Lake Merritt's water, particularly in relation to supporting aquatic biota. Preliminary analysis of results obtained so far indicates that the highest quality waters in Lake Merritt occur in areas that are closest to a source of San Francisco Bay water, as well as those areas nearby where water circulation is robust. Significantly high levels of dissolved oxygen were measured in an area that

  14. Evaluating Capability of Devils Lake Emergency Outlets in Lowering Lake Water Levels While Controlling flooding Damage to Downstream

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Scanlon, B. R.; Zhang, Z.; Sun, A.; Save, H.; Mueller Schmied, H.; Wada, Y.; Doll, P. M.; Eisner, S.

    2016-12-01

    Devils Lake is an endorheic lake locate in the Red River of the North Basin with a natural outlet at a level of 444.7 meters above the sea level flowing into the Sheyenne River. Historical accumulation of salts has dramatically increased the concentration of salts in the lake, particularly of the sulfates, that are much greater than the surrounding water bodies. Since 1993, the lake water level has risen by nearly 10 meters and caused extensive flooding in the surrounding area, and greatly increased the chance of natural spillage to the Sheyenne River. To mitigate Devils Lake flooding and to prevent its natural spillage, two outlets were constructed at the west and east sides of the lake to drain the water to the Sheyenne River in a controlled fashion. However, pumping water from Devils Lake has degraded water quality of the Sheyenne River. In an earlier study, we coupled Soil and Water Assessment Tools (SWAT) and CE-QUAL-W2 models to investigate the changes of sulfate distribution as the lake water level rises. We found that, while operating the two outlets has lowered Devils Lake water level by 0.7 meter, it has also significantly impaired the Sheyenne River water quality, increasing the Sheyenne River average sulfate concentration from 105 to 585 mg l-1 from 2012 to 2014 In this study, we investigate the impact of the outlets on the Sheyenne River floodplain by coupling SWAT and HEC-RAS model. The SWAT model performed well in simulating daily streamflow in the Sheyenne River with R2>0.56 and ENS > 0.52. The simulated water depths and floodplain by HEC-RAS model for the Sheyenne River agreed well with observations. Operating the outlets from April to October can draw down the Devil Lake water level by 0.45 m, but the drained water would almost double the extension of the Sheyenne River floodplain and elevate the sulfate concentration in the Sheyenne River above the 450 mg l-1 North Dakota sulfate concentration standard for stream class I. Operating the outlets is

  15. Evaluating Capability of Devils Lake Emergency Outlets in Lowering Lake Water Levels While Controlling flooding Damage to Downstream

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shabani, A.; Zhang, X.

    2017-12-01

    Devils Lake is an endorheic lake locate in the Red River of the North Basin with a natural outlet at a level of 444.7 meters above the sea level flowing into the Sheyenne River. Historical accumulation of salts has dramatically increased the concentration of salts in the lake, particularly of the sulfates, that are much greater than the surrounding water bodies. Since 1993, the lake water level has risen by nearly 10 meters and caused extensive flooding in the surrounding area, and greatly increased the chance of natural spillage to the Sheyenne River. To mitigate Devils Lake flooding and to prevent its natural spillage, two outlets were constructed at the west and east sides of the lake to drain the water to the Sheyenne River in a controlled fashion. However, pumping water from Devils Lake has degraded water quality of the Sheyenne River. In an earlier study, we coupled Soil and Water Assessment Tools (SWAT) and CE-QUAL-W2 models to investigate the changes of sulfate distribution as the lake water level rises. We found that, while operating the two outlets has lowered Devils Lake water level by 0.7 meter, it has also significantly impaired the Sheyenne River water quality, increasing the Sheyenne River average sulfate concentration from 105 to 585 mg l-1 from 2012 to 2014 In this study, we investigate the impact of the outlets on the Sheyenne River floodplain by coupling SWAT and HEC-RAS model. The SWAT model performed well in simulating daily streamflow in the Sheyenne River with R2>0.56 and ENS > 0.52. The simulated water depths and floodplain by HEC-RAS model for the Sheyenne River agreed well with observations. Operating the outlets from April to October can draw down the Devil Lake water level by 0.45 m, but the drained water would almost double the extension of the Sheyenne River floodplain and elevate the sulfate concentration in the Sheyenne River above the 450 mg l-1 North Dakota sulfate concentration standard for stream class I. Operating the outlets is

  16. Sediment deposition and selected water-quality characteristics in Cedar Lake and Lake Olathe, Northeast Kansas, 2000

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Mau, D.P.

    2002-01-01

    The Lake Olathe watershed, located in northeast Kansas, was investigated using bathymetric survey data and reservoir bottom-sediment cores to determine sediment deposition, water-quality trends, and transport of nutrients (phosphorus and nitrogen species), selected trace elements, selected pesticides, and diatoms as indicators of eutrophic (organic-enriched and depleted oxygen supply) conditions. To determine sediment deposition and loads, bathymetric data from Cedar Lake and Lake Olathe, both located in the Lake Olathe watershed, were collected in 2000 and compared to historical topographic data collected when the lakes were built. Approximately 338 acre-feet of sediment deposition has occurred in Cedar Lake since dam closure in 1938, and 317 acre-feet has occurred at Lake Olathe since 1956. Mean annual sediment deposition was 5.45 acre-feet per year (0.89 acre-feet per year per square mile) for Cedar Lake and 7.0 acre-feet per year (0.42 acre-feet per year per square mile) for Lake Olathe. Mean annual sediment loads for the two reservoirs were 9.6 million pounds per year for Cedar Lake and 12.6 million pounds per year for Lake Olathe. Mean concentrations of total phosphorus in bottom-sediment samples from Cedar Lake ranged from 1,370 to 1,810 milligrams per kilogram, and concentrations in bottom-sediment samples from Lake Olathe ranged from 588 to 1,030 milligrams per kilogram. The implication of large total phosphorus concentrations in the bottom sediment of Cedar Lake is that inflow into Cedar Lake is rich in phosphorus and that adverse water-quality conditions could affect water quality in downstream Lake Olathe through discharge of water from Cedar Lake to Lake Olathe via Cedar Creek. Mean annual phosphorus loads transported from the Lake Olathe watershed were estimated to be 14,700 pounds per year for Cedar Lake and 9,720 pounds per year for Lake Olathe. The mean annual phosphorus yields were estimated to be 3.74 pounds per acre per year for Cedar Lake and 0

  17. Chemical quality of surface waters in Devils Lake basin, North Dakota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Swenson, Herbert; Colby, Bruce R.

    1955-01-01

    Devils Lake basin, a closed basin in northeastern North Dakota, covers about 3,900 square miles of land, the topography of which is morainal and of glacial origin. In this basin lies a chain of waterways, which begins with the Sweetwater group and extends successively through Mauvais Coulee, Devils Lake, East Bay Devils Lake, and East Devils Lake, to Stump Lake. In former years when lake levels were high, Mauvais Coulee drained the Sweetwater group and discharged considerable water into Devils Lake. Converging coulees also transported excess water to Stump Lake. For at least 70 years prior to 1941, Mauvais Coulee flowed only intermittently, and the levels of major lakes in this region gradually declined. Devils Lake, for example, covered an area of about 90,000 acres in 1867 but had shrunk to approximately 6,500 acres by 1941. Plans to restore the recreational appeal of Devils Lake propose the dilution and eventual displacement of the brackish lake water by fresh water that would be diverted from the Missouri River. Freshening of the lake water would permit restocking Devils Lake with fish. Devils and Stump Lake have irregular outlines and numerous windings and have been described as lying in the valley of a preglacial river, the main stem and tributaries of which are partly filled with drift. Prominent morainal hills along the south shore of Devils Lake contrast sharply with level farmland to the north. The mean annual temperature of Devils Lake basin ranges between 36 ? and 42 ? F. Summer temperatures above 100 ? F and winter temperatures below -30 ? Fare not uncommon. The annual precipitation for 77 years at the city of Devils Lake averaged 17.5 inches. Usually, from 75 to 80 percent of the precipitation in the basin falls during the growing season, April to September. From 1867 to 1941 the net fall of the water surface of Devils Lake was about 38 feet. By 1951 the surface had risen fully 14 feet from its lowest altitude, 1,400.9 feet. Since 1951, the level has

  18. New considerations on the stratigraphy and environmental context of the oldest (2.34 Ma) Lokalalei archaeological site complex of the Nachukui Formation, West Turkana, northern Kenya Rift

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tiercelin, Jean-Jacques; Schuster, Mathieu; Roche, Hélène; Brugal, Jean-Philippe; Thuo, Peter; Prat, Sandrine; Harmand, Sonia; Davtian, Gourguen; Barrat, Jean-Alix; Bohn, Marcel

    2010-09-01

    At the northwest end of the Lake Turkana Basin (northern Kenya Rift), intensive fieldwork conducted on the Plio-Pleistocene fluvio-lacustrine Nachukui Formation by the National Museums of Kenya and the West Turkana Archaeological Project (WTAP), led to the discovery of more than 50 archaeological sites aged between 2.4 and 0.7 Ma. Among them is the Lokalalei archaeological site complex, which includes the two oldest archaeological sites (2.34 Ma) found in the Kenyan segment of the East African Rift System. The environmental background of the two sites was described as a succession of ephemeral streams with floodplain palaeosols in which the archaeological sites are situated, bordering the western bank of a large axial meandering river flowing southward. The Lokalalei 1 (LA1) and Lokalalei 2C (LA2C) archaeological sites are of extreme importance in terms of knowledge of hominins' knapping activities. The stratigraphic position of the LA1 and LA2C sites as well as implications on the technical differences between the two sites have been successively discussed by Roche et al. (1999), Brown and Gathogo (2002), and Delagnes and Roche (2005). In terms of stratigraphic position, Lokalalei 2C was estimated to be slightly higher in the section (i.e. younger) than Lokalalei 1. An alternative stratigraphic correlation was proposed by Brown and Gathogo (2002), who suggested that LA2C site should have been approximately 100,000 years younger than LA1. New considerations on the stratigraphy and environmental context of the Lokalalei sites have been developed following controversy on the stratigraphic position and time interval between the LA1 and LA2C sites. High-resolution lithostratigraphic work based on bed-to-bed field correlations, facies sedimentology and tephra geochemistry confirms that the LA2C site is slightly higher in the section than the LA1 site by about 11.20 m. This represents a time interval of ˜74,000 years based on an assumed sedimentation rate of 152 mm

  19. Spatial changes of the evaporation/inflow ratio of lake water deduced from surface water isotopes in Bangongcuo, western Tibet

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wen, R.; Tian, L.; Weng, Y.; Qu, D.

    2013-12-01

    Oxygen isotope analysis provides a practical approach to understand the regional hydrologic cycle and to reconstruct the paleoclimate and paleoenvironment from lacustrine sediment. The large number of inland lakes on the northern part of the Tibetan Plateau provides the opportunity for this work, and an understanding of the isotope variation of the lake water in the water cycle is vital for this purpose. A water isotope sampling network was set up in the Banggongcuo Lake basin in western Tibet in 2009 that measured precipitation, lake water, and river water. Two years of collecting isotope data, together with AWS observations at the Ngari station in the basin, allowed for a study of lake water isotope variations in the water cycle in narrow Banggongcuo Lake. Observations showed much higher water δ18O in the closed lake due to the strong evaporation fractionation process when compared with local precipitation. An obvious spatial change of lake water δ18O was also found, varying from about -4.9‰ in the east to about +0.9‰ in the west. This spatial change is largely due to the fact that the main river water input to the lake is on the eastern part of the lake, while the lake water evaporates out gradually westward. This phenomenon also matches the spatial change of lake water chemical components. We simulate the gradual evaporation of the lake water using an isotope evaporation fractionation model, in an effort to quantitatively estimate the E/I ratio (evaporation to total lake water inflow) in different parts of the lake. From the observation lake water δ18O, we estimate that the E/I ratio is about 42~60% in the eastern part of the lake and increases to 76~87% in the western part.

  20. Summary of surface-water quality, ground-water quality, and water withdrawals for the Spirit Lake Reservation, North Dakota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Vining, Kevin C.; Cates, Steven W.

    2006-01-01

    Available surface-water quality, ground-water quality, and water-withdrawal data for the Spirit Lake Reservation were summarized. The data were collected intermittently from 1948 through 2004 and were compiled from U.S. Geological Survey databases, North Dakota State Water Commission databases, and Spirit Lake Nation tribal agencies. Although the quality of surface water on the reservation generally is satisfactory, no surface-water sources are used for consumable water supplies. Ground water on the reservation is of sufficient quality for most uses. The Tokio and Warwick aquifers have better overall water quality than the Spiritwood aquifer. Water from the Spiritwood aquifer is used mostly for irrigation. The Warwick aquifer provides most of the consumable water for the reservation and for the city of Devils Lake. Annual water withdrawals from the Warwick aquifer by the Spirit Lake Nation ranged from 71 million gallons to 122 million gallons during 2000-04.

  1. Hydrogeology, hydrologic budget, and water chemistry of the Medina Lake area, Texas

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lambert, Rebecca B.; Grimm, Kenneth C.; Lee, Roger W.

    2000-01-01

    A three-phase study of the Medina Lake area in Texas was done to assess the hydrogeology and hydrology of Medina and Diversion Lakes combined (the lake system) and to determine what fraction of seepage losses from the lake system might enter the regional ground-water-flow system of the Edwards and (or) Trinity aquifers. Phase 1 consisted of revising the geologic framework for the Medina Lake area. Results of field mapping show that the upper member of the Glen Rose Limestone underlies Medina Lake and the intervening stream channel from the outflow of Medina Lake to the midpoint of Diversion Lake, where the Diversion Lake fault intersects Diversion Lake. A thin sequence of strata consisting primarily of the basal nodular and dolomitic members of the Kainer Formation of the Edwards Group, is present in the southern part of the study area. On the southern side of Medina Lake, the contact between the upper member of the Glen Rose Limestone and the basal nodular member is approximately 1,000 feet above mean sea level, and the contact between the basal nodular member and the dolomitic member is approximately 1,050 feet above mean sea level. The most porous and permeable part of the basal nodular member is about 1,045 feet above mean sea level. At these altitudes, Medina Lake is in hydrologic connection with rocks in the Edwards aquifer recharge zone, and Medina Lake appears to lose more water to the ground-water system along this bedding plane contact. Hydrologic budgets calculated during phase 2 for Medina Lake, Diversion Lake, and Medina/Diversion Lakes combined indicate that: (1) losses from Medina and Diversion Lakes can be quantified; (2) a portion of those losses are entering the Edwards aquifer; and (3) losses to the Trinity aquifer in the Medina Lake area are minimal and within the error of the hydrologic budgets. Hydrologic budgets based on streamflow, precipitation, evaporation, and change in lake storage were used to quantify losses (recharge) to the ground-water

  2. Impacts of population growth and economic development on water quality of a lake: case study of Lake Victoria Kenya water.

    PubMed

    Juma, Dauglas Wafula; Wang, Hongtao; Li, Fengting

    2014-04-01

    Anthropogenic-induced water quality pollution is a major environmental problem in freshwater ecosystems today. As a result of this, eutrophication of lakes occurs. Population and economic development are key drivers of water resource pollution. To evaluate how growth in the riparian population and in the gross domestic product (GDP) with unplanned development affects the water quality of the lake, this paper evaluates Lake Victoria Kenyan waters basin. Waters quality data between 1990 and 2012 were analyzed along with reviews of published literature, papers, and reports. The nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N), soluble phosphorus (PO4-P), chlorophyll a, and Secchi transparencies were evaluated as they are key water quality indicators. The NO3-N increased from 10 μg l(-1) in 1990 to 98 μg 1(-1) in 2008, while PO4-P increased from 4 μg l(-1) in 1990 to 57 μg l(-1) in 2008. The population and economic growth of Kenya are increasing with both having minimums in 1990 of 24.143 million people and 12.18 billion US dollars, to maximums in 2010 of 39.742 million people and 32.163 billion US dollars, respectively. A Secchi transparency is reducing with time, indicating an increasing pollution. This was confirmed by an increase in aquatic vegetation using an analysis of moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) images of 2000 and 2012 of Kenyan waters. This study found that increasing population and GDP increases pollution discharge thus polluting lakes. One of major factors causing lake water pollution is the unplanned or poor waste management policy and service.

  3. Continuous water-quality monitoring to improve lake management at Lake Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge

    Treesearch

    Michelle Moorman; Tom Augspurger

    2016-01-01

    The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has partnered with U.S. Geological Survey to establish 2 continuous water-quality monitoring stations at Lake Mattamuskeet. Stations on the east and west side of the lake measure water level, clarity, dissolved oxygen, pH, temperature, salinity, and conductivity.

  4. Hydrology and simulation of ground-water flow, Lake Point, Tooele County, Utah

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Brooks, Lynette E.

    2006-01-01

    Water for new residential development in Lake Point, Utah may be supplied by public-supply wells completed in consolidated rock on the east side of Lake Point. Ground-water flow models were developed to help understand the effect the proposed withdrawal will have on water levels, flowing-well discharge, spring discharge, and ground-water quality in the study area. This report documents the conceptual and numerical ground-water flow models for the Lake Point area.The ground-water system in the Lake Point area receives recharge from local precipitation and irrigation, and from ground-water inflow from southwest of the area. Ground water discharges mostly to springs. Discharge also occurs to evapotranspiration, wells, and Great Salt Lake. Even though ground water discharges to Great Salt Lake, dense salt water from the lake intrudes under the less-dense ground water and forms a salt-water wedge under the valley. This salt water is responsible for some of the high dissolved-solids concentrations measured in ground water in Lake Point.A steady-state MODFLOW-2000 ground-water model of Tooele Valley adequately simulates water levels, ground-water discharge, and ground-water flow direction observed in Lake Point in 1969 and 2002. Simulating an additional 1,650 acre-feet per year withdrawal from wells causes a maximum projected drawdown of about 550 feet in consolidated rock near the simulated wells and drawdown exceeding 80 feet in an area encompassing most of the Oquirrh Mountains east of Lake Point. Drawdown in most of Lake Point ranges from 2 to 10 ft, but increases to more than 40 feet in the areas proposed for residential development. Discharge to Factory Springs, flowing wells, evapotranspiration, and Great Salt Lake is decreased by about 1,100 acre-feet per year (23 percent).The U.S. Geological Survey SUTRA variable-density ground-water-flow model generates a reasonable approximation of 2002 dissolved-solids concentration when simulating 2002 withdrawals. At most

  5. Assessing Lake Level Variability and Water Availability in Lake Tana, Ethiopia using a Groundwater Flow Model and GRACE Satellite Data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hasan, E.; Dokou, Z.; Kirstetter, P. E.; Tarhule, A.; Anagnostou, E. N.; Bagtzoglou, A. C.; Hong, Y.

    2017-12-01

    Lake Tana is the source of the Blue Nile and Ethiopia's largest natural buffer against seasonal variations of rainfall. Assessing the interactions between the lake level fluctuation, hydroclimatic variabilities and anthropogenic factors is essential to detect drought conditions and identify the role of human management in controlling the Lake water balance. Via an extended record of Total Water Storage (TWS) anomalies for the period 1960-2016, a water budget model for the lake water inflow/outflow was developed. Estimates of Lake Level Altimetry (LLA) based on in-situ and satellite altimetry were composited from 1960-2016 and compared to the extended TWS anomalies, the self-calibrated Palmer Drought Severity Index (scPDSI), the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the historical lake water levels and releases. In addition, the simulated lake levels and water budget from a coupled groundwater and lake model of the Lake Tana basin were compared to the above results. Combining the different approaches, the water budget of the lake can be monitored, the drought conditions can be identified and the role of human management in the lake can be determined. For instance, three major drought periods are identified, 1970 to 1977, 1979 to 1987 and 1990 to 1998, each succeeded with an interposed flooding related recovery year, i.e. 1978, 1988 and 1999. The drought/flooding events were attributed mainly to the ENSO interactions that resulted in lake level fluctuations. The period from 2002-2006 was associated with a remarkable decline of the lake level that was attributed partly in drought conditions and the full flow regulation of the Chara Chara weir at the lake outlet, initiated in 2001.

  6. WINCHESTER LAKE, LEWIS COUNTY, IDAHO - WATER QUALITY STATUS REPORT, 1985

    EPA Science Inventory

    Winchester Lake, Idaho (17060306) is an 85 acre recreation site located approximately 30 miles southeast of Lewiston. Citizen complaints of poor water clarity, odors, and decline in angler success led to a 6 month study of the lakes water quality in 1985. Winchester Lake exhibi...

  7. Limnological and water-quality data from Wonder Lake, Chilchukabena Lake, and Lake Minchumina, Denali National Park and Preserve and surrounding area, Alaska, June 2006-August 2008

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Long, D.A.; Arp, C.D.

    2011-01-01

    Growing visitor traffic and resource use, as well as natural and anthropogenic land and climatic changes, can place increasing stress on lake ecosystems in Denali National Park and Preserve. Baseline data required to substantiate impact assessment in this sub-arctic region is sparse to non-existent. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the National Park Service, conducted a water-quality assessment of several large lakes in and around the Park from June 2006 to August 2008. Discrete water-quality samples, lake profiles of pH, specific conductivity, dissolved-oxygen concentration, water temperature, turbidity, and continuous-record temperature profile data were collected from Wonder Lake, Chilchukabena Lake, and Lake Minchumina. In addition, zooplankton, snow chemistry data, fecal coliform, and inflow/outflow water-quality samples also were collected from Wonder Lake.

  8. Recent and Late Holocene Alaskan Lake Changes Identified from Water Isotopes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Anderson, L.; Birks, S. J.; Rover, J.; Guldager, N.

    2014-12-01

    To identify the existence and cause of recent lake area changes in the Yukon Flats, a region of discontinuous permafrost in north central Alaska, we evaluate lake water isotope compositions with remotely sensed imagery and hydroclimatic parameters. Estimates of the ratio of water lost by evaporation to that gained by inflow (E/I) were derived from an isotope-based water balance model. The isotope labels are also used to identify the dominant sources for lakes such as rainfall and snowfall, groundwater, rivers, or thawed permafrost. These parameters are then used in conjunction with climatic data and remotely sensed imagery to identify the patterns and causes of recent lake area changes and for evaluation with lake sediment oxygen isotope records of late Holocene lake water isotope variations. Lake water isotope samples from 83 lakes were acquired in July, August or September between 2007 and 2010 by fixed wing aircraft. An additional set of smaller lakes (n = 33) was sampled by helicopter in September 2009. In July 2011 59 lakes were sampled on foot within five distinct 11.2-km2 areas. River water data used here are previously collected during the months of June through October between 2006 and 2008. Isotope compositions indicate that mixtures of precipitation, river water, and groundwater source ~95% of the studied lakes. The remaining minority are more dominantly sourced by snowmelt and/or permafrost thaw. Isotope-based water balance estimates indicate 58% of lakes lose more than half of inflow by evaporation. For 26% of the lakes studied, evaporative losses exceeded supply. Surface area trend analysis indicates that most lakes were near their maximum extent in the early 1980s during a relatively cool and wet period. Subsequent reductions can be explained by moisture deficits and greater evaporation. Comparison with late Holocene isotope values and trends indicates recent changes are within the range of late Holocene variability. The records indicate a drier and

  9. Water quality in Lake Lanier

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Callaham, M.A.

    1991-04-01

    Thirteen water quality tests measuring five categories of pollution were conducted twice monthly from May, 1987 to April, 1990 at eight locations on Lake Sidney Lanier to establish baseline data and detect trends. Additionally, sediment and water samples were analyzed for ten toxic metals. Sampling stations were located at or near the point of entry of streams into the Lake. Oxygen demanding pollutants were highest in urban streams and phosphorus and nitrogen concentrations were highest in streams having poultry processing operations within their watersheds. Indicators of siltation increased coincidentally with highway construction in one watershed. Fecal coliform bacteria counts decreasedmore » at Flat Creek and increased in the Chattahoochee River. Zinc and copper occurred in water samples at levels of detectability. Sediment samples from several locations contained metal concentrations which warrant further study.« less

  10. Ground-water and surface-water flow and estimated water budget for Lake Seminole, southwestern Georgia and northwestern Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Dalton, Melinda S.; Aulenbach, Brent T.; Torak, Lynn J.

    2004-01-01

    Lake Seminole is a 37,600-acre impoundment formed at the confluence of the Flint and Chattahoochee Rivers along the Georgia?Florida State line. Outflow from Lake Seminole through Jim Woodruff Lock and Dam provides headwater to the Apalachicola River, which is a major supply of freshwater, nutrients, and detritus to ecosystems downstream. These rivers,together with their tributaries, are hydraulically connected to karst limestone units that constitute most of the Upper Floridan aquifer and to a chemically weathered residuum of undifferentiated overburden. The ground-water flow system near Lake Seminole consists of the Upper Floridan aquifer and undifferentiated overburden. The aquifer is confined below by low-permeability sediments of the Lisbon Formation and, generally, is semiconfined above by undifferentiated overburden. Ground-water flow within the Upper Floridan aquifer is unconfined or semiconfined and discharges at discrete points by springflow or diffuse leakage into streams and other surface-water bodies. The high degree of connectivity between the Upper Floridan aquifer and surface-water bodies is limited to the upper Eocene Ocala Limestone and younger units that are in contact with streams in the Lake Seminole area. The impoundment of Lake Seminole inundated natural stream channels and other low-lying areas near streams and raised the water-level altitude of the Upper Floridan aquifer near the lake to nearly that of the lake, about 77 feet. Surface-water inflow from the Chattahoochee and Flint Rivers and Spring Creek and outflow to the Apalachicola River through Jim Woodruff Lock and Dam dominate the water budget for Lake Seminole. About 81 percent of the total water-budget inflow consists of surface water; about 18 percent is ground water, and the remaining 1 percent is lake precipitation. Similarly, lake outflow consists of about 89 percent surface water, as flow to the Apalachicola River through Jim Woodruff Lock and Dam, about 4 percent ground water

  11. Ground-water/surface-water interaction in nearshore areas of Three Lakes on the Grand Portage Reservation, northeastern Minnesota, 2003-04

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Jones, Perry M.

    2006-01-01

    Knowledge of general water-flow directions in lake watersheds and how they may change seasonally can help water-quality specialists and lake managers address a variety of water-quality and aquatic habitat protection issues for lakes. Results from this study indicate that ground-water and surface-water interactions at the study lakes are complex, and the ability of the applied techniques to identify ground-water inflow and surface-water outseepage locations varied among the lakes. Measurement of lake-sediment temperatures proved to be a reliable and relatively inexpensive reconnaissance technique that lake managers may apply in complex settings to identify general areas of ground-water inflow and surface-water outseepage.

  12. Citizen and Satellite Measurements Used to Estimate Lake Water Storage Variations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Parkins, G.; Pavelsky, T.; Yelton, S.; Ghafoor, S. K.; Hossain, F.

    2017-12-01

    Of the roughly 20-40 million lakes in the world larger than 0.01 km2, perhaps a few thousand receive regular water level monitoring, and only approximately a thousand are included in the largest lake level databases. The prospect for on-the-ground, automated monitoring of a significant fraction of the world's lakes is not high given the considerable expense involved. In comparison to many other measurements, however, measuring lake water level is relatively simple under most conditions. A staff gauge installed in a lake, essentially a leveled ruler, can be read relatively simply by both experts and ordinary citizens. Reliable staff gauges cost far less than automated systems, making them an attractive alternative. However, staff gauges are only effective when they are regularly observed and when those observations are communicated to a central database. We have developed and tested a system for citizen scientists to monitor water levels in 15 lakes in Eastern North Carolina, USA and to easily report those measurements to our project team. We combine these citizen measurements with Landsat measurements of inundated area to track variations in lake water storage. Here, we present the resulting lake water level, inundation extent, and lake storage change time series and assess measurement accuracy. Our primary validation method for citizen-measured lake water levels is comparison with heights from pressure transducers also installed in all fifteen lakes. We use the validated results to understand spatial patterns in the lake hydrology of Eastern North Carolina. Finally, we consider the motivations of citizens who participate in the project and discuss the feedback they have provided regarding our measurement and communication systems.

  13. Late Pliocene and Early Pleistocene Temperature Reconstructions from Paleolakes of the West Turkana and North Awash Basins, East Africa

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Castañeda, I. S.; Thompson-Munson, M.; Lupien, R.; Russell, J. M.

    2015-12-01

    The Hominin Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project (HSPDP) aims to reconstruct past environments of the East African Rift Valley from locations in close proximity to some of the world's most important fossil hominin and artifact sites. In this study, we investigate sediments from the West Turkana and North Awash Basins, which were recently drilled as part of the HSPDP. The North Awash Basin contains abundant early hominin fossils and the lakebeds of the Hadar Formation (~3.6 to ~2.9 Ma) will provide a record of climate variability during the Pliocene, prior to the intensification of Northern Hemisphere glaciation at ~2.7 Ma. The lakebeds of the Turkana Basin are Early Pleistocene in age (~1.9 to ~1.45 Ma) and span the interval that includes some the earliest fossils of Homo rudolfensis and H. ergaster/erectus. Here we examine the organic geochemistry of West Turkana and North Awash Basin sediments and investigate the use of proxies based on isoprenoid and branched glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs) to reconstruct temperature, including TEX86 and the methylation and cyclization (MBT and CBT) ratios and relative abundances of branched GDGTs. We also examine variability in the abundances and ratios of plant leaf waxes (n-alkanes) to provide insight into past vegetation changes on the East African landscape.

  14. Ikaite precipitation by mixing of shoreline springs and lake water, Mono Lake, California, USA

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bischoff, James L.; Stine, Scott; Rosenbauer, Robert J.; Fitzpatrick, John A.; Stafford, Thomas W., Jr.

    1993-08-01

    Metastable ikaite (CaCO 3·6H 2O) forms abundantly during winter months along the south shoreline of Mono Lake where shoreline springs mix with lake water. Ikaite precipitates because of its decreased solubility at low temperature and because of orthophosphate-ion inhibition of calcite and aragonite. During the spring some of the ikaite is transformed to anhydrous CaCO 3 and is incorporated into tufa, but most is dispersed by wave action into the lake where it reacts to form gaylussite (Na 2Ca(CO 3) 2· 5H 2O). Spring waters have low pH values, are dominantly Ca-Na-HCO 3, have low radiocarbon activities, and are mixtures of deep-seated geothermal and cold groundwaters. Chemical modeling reveals that precipitation of CaCO 3 can occur over a broad range of mixtures of spring and lake water with a maximum production occurring at 96% spring water and 4% lake water. Under these conditions all the Ca and a significant fraction of the CO 3 of the precipitate is spring supplied. A radiocarbon age of 19,580 years obtained on a natural ikaite sample supports this conclusion. With the springs supplying a large and probably variable portion of the carbonate, and with apparent 14C age of the carbonate varying from spring to spring, tufa of similar actual antiquity may yield significantly different 14C dates, making tufa at this location unsuitable for absolute age dating by the radiocarbon method.

  15. Ikaite precipitation by mixing of shoreline springs and lake water, Mono Lake, California, USA

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Bischoff, J.L.; Stine, S.; Rosenbauer, R.J.; Fitzpatrick, J.A.; Stafford, Thomas W.

    1993-01-01

    Metastable ikaite (CaCO3??6H2O) forms abundantly during winter months along the south shoreline of Mono Lake where shoreline springs mix with lake water. Ikaite precipitates because of its decreased solubility at low temperature and because of orthophosphate-ion inhibition of calcite and aragonite. During the spring some of the ikaite is transformed to anhydrous CaCO3 and is incorporated into tufa, but most is dispersed by wave action into the lake where it reacts to form gaylussite (Na2Ca(CO3)2?? 5H2O). Spring waters have low pH values, are dominantly Ca-Na-HCO3, have low radiocarbon activities, and are mixtures of deep-seated geothermal and cold groundwaters. Chemical modeling reveals that precipitation of CaCO3 can occur over a broad range of mixtures of spring and lake water with a maximum production occurring at 96% spring water and 4% lake water. Under these conditions all the Ca and a significant fraction of the CO3 of the precipitate is spring supplied. A radiocarbon age of 19,580 years obtained on a natural ikaite sample supports this conclusion. With the springs supplying a large and probably variable portion of the carbonate, and with apparent 14C age of the carbonate varying from spring to spring, tufa of similar actual antiquity may yield significantly different 14C dates, making tufa at this location unsuitable for absolute age dating by the radiocarbon method. ?? 1993.

  16. Water budget and water quality of Ward Lake, flow and water-quality characteristics of the Braden River estuary, and the effects of Ward Lake on the hydrologic system, west-central Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Trommer, J.T.; DelCharco, M.J.; Lewelling, B.R.

    1999-01-01

    The Braden River is the largest tributary to the Manatee River. The river was dammed in 1936 to provide the city of Bradenton a source of freshwater supply. The resulting impoundment was called Ward Lake and had a storage capacity of about 585 million gallons. Reconstruction in 1985 increased the size of the reservoir to about 1,400 million gallons. The lake has been renamed the Bill Evers Reservoir and drains about 59 square miles. The Braden River watershed can be subdivided into three hydrologic reaches. The upper reach consists of a naturally incised free-flowing channel. The middle reach consists of a meandering channel affected by backwater as a result of the dam. The lower reach is a tidal estuary. Water budgets were calculated for the 1993 through 1997 water years. Mean surface-water inflow to Ward Lake for the 5-year period was 1,645 inches per year (equivalent depth over the surface of the lake), or about 81.8 percent of total inflow. Mean ground-water inflow was 311 inches per year, or about 15.5 percent. A mean of 55 inches of rain fell directly on the lake and accounted for only 2.7 percent. Mean surface-water outflow was 1,736 inches, or about 86.4 percent of total water leaving the lake. There was no net ground-water outflow from the lake. Mean surface-water withdrawal for public supply was 229 inches per year, or about 11.4 percent. Mean evaporation was 45 inches and accounted for only 2.2 percent of the mean outflow. Change in lake storage on the budget was negligible. Most chemical constituents contained in water flowing to Ward Lake meet the standards specified by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Phosphorus is the exception, exceeding the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency limits of 0.10 milligram per liter in most samples. However, the source of the phosphorus is naturally occurring phosphate deposits underlying the watershed. Organic nitrogen and orthophosphate are the dominant

  17. Quality of drinking water from ponds in villages of Kolleru Lake region.

    PubMed

    Rao, A S; Rao, P R; Rao, N S

    2001-01-01

    Kolleru Lake is the largest natural freshwater lake in the districts of East and West Godavari of Andhra Pradesh. The major population centres in the Kolleru Lake region are the 148 villages of which 50 bed villages and 98 belt villages. All bed and belt villages in lake region have at least one drinking water pond. Drinking water ponds are filled with lake water during monsoon season and directly supplied to the public throughout the year. The water samples were collected from village drinking water ponds in a year by covering three seasons and analysed for different physico-chemical parameters to assess the quality of drinking water.

  18. Measuring historic water levels of Lake Balaton and tributary wetlands using georeferenced maps

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zlinszky, A.

    2009-04-01

    Lake Balaton is a large and relatively shallow lake located in western Hungary. The lake is joined by small wetlands on the north shore and larger water-filled valleys on the south separated by and elevated sand bar. These wetlands are assumed to have been connected with Lake Balaton before the water level was artificially lowered in 1893. No regular measurements of the water level of the lake or these wetlands were carried out before the draining of the lake. Most of the wetlands were completely isolated from the water system of the lake after the water level change as roads, railway and holiday homes were built. The low valleys of the southern shore still hold many fishponds, swamps and wet meadows, which are important sanctuaries for rare wetland species, and are often less disturbed than the lake, which is a popular holiday resort. Hydrologic restoration of these wetlands is only possible if accurate information exists on the original, natural state. The 1776 Krieger-map and the first military survey (1782-1785) are the most accurate known maps of the original state of the Lake Balaton area. These maps were surveyed using triangulation and leveling, and are accurate enough to be compared with the present-day situation. Some of the depicted buildings and landmarks still survive and can be used as control points for georeferencing and correcting these maps. Since the bathymetry of the lake and the topography of the surrounding countryside have hardly changed, existing digital elevation models of the present-day relief could be compared to these georeferenced maps. The elevation profile of the lake shore and wetland borders can be calculated by tracing these lines on a Digital Elevation Model. The shore area of Lake Balaton has been filled in and changed, so present-day land topography can not be used to estimate the water level from the elevation profile of the shore line. However, the Krieger-map also shows bathymetric contours, and previous studies have shown

  19. The Model of Lake Operation in Water Transfer Projects Based on the Theory of Water- right

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bi-peng, Yan; Chao, Liu; Fang-ping, Tang

    the lake operation is a very important content in Water Transfer Projects. The previous studies have not any related to water-right and water- price previous. In this paper, water right is divided into three parts, one is initialization waterright, another is by investment, and the third is government's water- right re-distribution. The water-right distribution model is also build. After analyzing the cost in water transfer project, a model and computation method for the capacity price as well as quantity price is proposed. The model of lake operation in water transfer projects base on the theory of water- right is also build. The simulation regulation for the lake was carried out by using historical data and Genetic Algorithms. Water supply and impoundment control line of the lake was proposed. The result can be used by south to north water transfer projects.

  20. LAGOS-NE: a multi-scaled geospatial and temporal database of lake ecological context and water quality for thousands of US lakes.

    PubMed

    Soranno, Patricia A; Bacon, Linda C; Beauchene, Michael; Bednar, Karen E; Bissell, Edward G; Boudreau, Claire K; Boyer, Marvin G; Bremigan, Mary T; Carpenter, Stephen R; Carr, Jamie W; Cheruvelil, Kendra S; Christel, Samuel T; Claucherty, Matt; Collins, Sarah M; Conroy, Joseph D; Downing, John A; Dukett, Jed; Fergus, C Emi; Filstrup, Christopher T; Funk, Clara; Gonzalez, Maria J; Green, Linda T; Gries, Corinna; Halfman, John D; Hamilton, Stephen K; Hanson, Paul C; Henry, Emily N; Herron, Elizabeth M; Hockings, Celeste; Jackson, James R; Jacobson-Hedin, Kari; Janus, Lorraine L; Jones, William W; Jones, John R; Keson, Caroline M; King, Katelyn B S; Kishbaugh, Scott A; Lapierre, Jean-Francois; Lathrop, Barbara; Latimore, Jo A; Lee, Yuehlin; Lottig, Noah R; Lynch, Jason A; Matthews, Leslie J; McDowell, William H; Moore, Karen E B; Neff, Brian P; Nelson, Sarah J; Oliver, Samantha K; Pace, Michael L; Pierson, Donald C; Poisson, Autumn C; Pollard, Amina I; Post, David M; Reyes, Paul O; Rosenberry, Donald O; Roy, Karen M; Rudstam, Lars G; Sarnelle, Orlando; Schuldt, Nancy J; Scott, Caren E; Skaff, Nicholas K; Smith, Nicole J; Spinelli, Nick R; Stachelek, Joseph J; Stanley, Emily H; Stoddard, John L; Stopyak, Scott B; Stow, Craig A; Tallant, Jason M; Tan, Pang-Ning; Thorpe, Anthony P; Vanni, Michael J; Wagner, Tyler; Watkins, Gretchen; Weathers, Kathleen C; Webster, Katherine E; White, Jeffrey D; Wilmes, Marcy K; Yuan, Shuai

    2017-12-01

    Understanding the factors that affect water quality and the ecological services provided by freshwater ecosystems is an urgent global environmental issue. Predicting how water quality will respond to global changes not only requires water quality data, but also information about the ecological context of individual water bodies across broad spatial extents. Because lake water quality is usually sampled in limited geographic regions, often for limited time periods, assessing the environmental controls of water quality requires compilation of many data sets across broad regions and across time into an integrated database. LAGOS-NE accomplishes this goal for lakes in the northeastern-most 17 US states.LAGOS-NE contains data for 51 101 lakes and reservoirs larger than 4 ha in 17 lake-rich US states. The database includes 3 data modules for: lake location and physical characteristics for all lakes; ecological context (i.e., the land use, geologic, climatic, and hydrologic setting of lakes) for all lakes; and in situ measurements of lake water quality for a subset of the lakes from the past 3 decades for approximately 2600-12 000 lakes depending on the variable. The database contains approximately 150 000 measures of total phosphorus, 200 000 measures of chlorophyll, and 900 000 measures of Secchi depth. The water quality data were compiled from 87 lake water quality data sets from federal, state, tribal, and non-profit agencies, university researchers, and citizen scientists. This database is one of the largest and most comprehensive databases of its type because it includes both in situ measurements and ecological context data. Because ecological context can be used to study a variety of other questions about lakes, streams, and wetlands, this database can also be used as the foundation for other studies of freshwaters at broad spatial and ecological scales. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press.

  1. LAGOS-NE: a multi-scaled geospatial and temporal database of lake ecological context and water quality for thousands of US lakes

    PubMed Central

    Bacon, Linda C; Beauchene, Michael; Bednar, Karen E; Bissell, Edward G; Boudreau, Claire K; Boyer, Marvin G; Bremigan, Mary T; Carpenter, Stephen R; Carr, Jamie W; Christel, Samuel T; Claucherty, Matt; Conroy, Joseph D; Downing, John A; Dukett, Jed; Filstrup, Christopher T; Funk, Clara; Gonzalez, Maria J; Green, Linda T; Gries, Corinna; Halfman, John D; Hamilton, Stephen K; Hanson, Paul C; Henry, Emily N; Herron, Elizabeth M; Hockings, Celeste; Jackson, James R; Jacobson-Hedin, Kari; Janus, Lorraine L; Jones, William W; Jones, John R; Keson, Caroline M; King, Katelyn B S; Kishbaugh, Scott A; Lathrop, Barbara; Latimore, Jo A; Lee, Yuehlin; Lottig, Noah R; Lynch, Jason A; Matthews, Leslie J; McDowell, William H; Moore, Karen E B; Neff, Brian P; Nelson, Sarah J; Oliver, Samantha K; Pace, Michael L; Pierson, Donald C; Poisson, Autumn C; Pollard, Amina I; Post, David M; Reyes, Paul O; Rosenberry, Donald O; Roy, Karen M; Rudstam, Lars G; Sarnelle, Orlando; Schuldt, Nancy J; Scott, Caren E; Smith, Nicole J; Spinelli, Nick R; Stachelek, Joseph J; Stanley, Emily H; Stoddard, John L; Stopyak, Scott B; Stow, Craig A; Tallant, Jason M; Thorpe, Anthony P; Vanni, Michael J; Wagner, Tyler; Watkins, Gretchen; Weathers, Kathleen C; Webster, Katherine E; White, Jeffrey D; Wilmes, Marcy K; Yuan, Shuai

    2017-01-01

    Abstract Understanding the factors that affect water quality and the ecological services provided by freshwater ecosystems is an urgent global environmental issue. Predicting how water quality will respond to global changes not only requires water quality data, but also information about the ecological context of individual water bodies across broad spatial extents. Because lake water quality is usually sampled in limited geographic regions, often for limited time periods, assessing the environmental controls of water quality requires compilation of many data sets across broad regions and across time into an integrated database. LAGOS-NE accomplishes this goal for lakes in the northeastern-most 17 US states. LAGOS-NE contains data for 51 101 lakes and reservoirs larger than 4 ha in 17 lake-rich US states. The database includes 3 data modules for: lake location and physical characteristics for all lakes; ecological context (i.e., the land use, geologic, climatic, and hydrologic setting of lakes) for all lakes; and in situ measurements of lake water quality for a subset of the lakes from the past 3 decades for approximately 2600–12 000 lakes depending on the variable. The database contains approximately 150 000 measures of total phosphorus, 200 000 measures of chlorophyll, and 900 000 measures of Secchi depth. The water quality data were compiled from 87 lake water quality data sets from federal, state, tribal, and non-profit agencies, university researchers, and citizen scientists. This database is one of the largest and most comprehensive databases of its type because it includes both in situ measurements and ecological context data. Because ecological context can be used to study a variety of other questions about lakes, streams, and wetlands, this database can also be used as the foundation for other studies of freshwaters at broad spatial and ecological scales. PMID:29053868

  2. LAGOS-NE: a multi-scaled geospatial and temporal database of lake ecological context and water quality for thousands of US lakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Soranno, Patricia A.; Bacon, Linda C.; Beauchene, Michael; Bednar, Karen E.; Bissell, Edward G.; Boudreau, Claire K.; Boyer, Marvin G.; Bremigan, Mary T.; Carpenter, Stephen R.; Carr, Jamie W.; Cheruvelil, Kendra S.; Christel, Samuel T.; Claucherty, Matt; Collins, Sarah M.; Conroy, Joseph D.; Downing, John A.; Dukett, Jed; Fergus, C. Emi; Filstrup, Christopher T.; Funk, Clara; Gonzalez, Maria J.; Green, Linda T.; Gries, Corinna; Halfman, John D.; Hamilton, Stephen K.; Hanson, Paul C.; Henry, Emily N.; Herron, Elizabeth M.; Hockings, Celeste; Jackson, James R.; Jacobson-Hedin, Kari; Janus, Lorraine L.; Jones, William W.; Jones, John R.; Keson, Caroline M.; King, Katelyn B.S.; Kishbaugh, Scott A.; Lapierre, Jean-Francois; Lathrop, Barbara; Latimore, Jo A.; Lee, Yuehlin; Lottig, Noah R.; Lynch, Jason A.; Matthews, Leslie J.; McDowell, William H.; Moore, Karen E.B.; Neff, Brian; Nelson, Sarah J.; Oliver, Samantha K.; Pace, Michael L.; Pierson, Donald C.; Poisson, Autumn C.; Pollard, Amina I.; Post, David M.; Reyes, Paul O.; Rosenberry, Donald; Roy, Karen M.; Rudstam, Lars G.; Sarnelle, Orlando; Schuldt, Nancy J.; Scott, Caren E.; Skaff, Nicholas K.; Smith, Nicole J.; Spinelli, Nick R.; Stachelek, Joseph J.; Stanley, Emily H.; Stoddard, John L.; Stopyak, Scott B.; Stow, Craig A.; Tallant, Jason M.; Tan, Pang-Ning; Thorpe, Anthony P.; Vanni, Michael J.; Wagner, Tyler; Watkins, Gretchen; Weathers, Kathleen C.; Webster, Katherine E.; White, Jeffrey D.; Wilmes, Marcy K.; Yuan, Shuai

    2017-01-01

    Understanding the factors that affect water quality and the ecological services provided by freshwater ecosystems is an urgent global environmental issue. Predicting how water quality will respond to global changes not only requires water quality data, but also information about the ecological context of individual water bodies across broad spatial extents. Because lake water quality is usually sampled in limited geographic regions, often for limited time periods, assessing the environmental controls of water quality requires compilation of many data sets across broad regions and across time into an integrated database. LAGOS-NE accomplishes this goal for lakes in the northeastern-most 17 US states.LAGOS-NE contains data for 51 101 lakes and reservoirs larger than 4 ha in 17 lake-rich US states. The database includes 3 data modules for: lake location and physical characteristics for all lakes; ecological context (i.e., the land use, geologic, climatic, and hydrologic setting of lakes) for all lakes; and in situ measurements of lake water quality for a subset of the lakes from the past 3 decades for approximately 2600–12 000 lakes depending on the variable. The database contains approximately 150 000 measures of total phosphorus, 200 000 measures of chlorophyll, and 900 000 measures of Secchi depth. The water quality data were compiled from 87 lake water quality data sets from federal, state, tribal, and non-profit agencies, university researchers, and citizen scientists. This database is one of the largest and most comprehensive databases of its type because it includes both in situ measurements and ecological context data. Because ecological context can be used to study a variety of other questions about lakes, streams, and wetlands, this database can also be used as the foundation for other studies of freshwaters at broad spatial and ecological scales.

  3. Potential impacts of water diversion on fishery resources in the Great Lakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Manny, Bruce A.

    1984-01-01

    Uses of Great Lakes water within the Great Lakes basin are steadily increasing, and critical water shortages elsewhere may add to the demands for diversions of water out of the basin in the near future. The impacts of such diversions on fish in the Great Lakes must be considered in the context of in-basin uses of the water, because in-basin uses already adversely affect the fishery resources. Temporary in-basin water withdrawals from Lake Michigan by industry in 1980 equaled 260% of the total volume of water between the shoreline and the 10-meter depth - the littoral waters most heavily used by fish as spawning and nursery grounds. Nearly 100% of the fish removed by these water withdrawals were killed. Enough young alewives (Alosa pseudoharengus) and rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax) in Lake Michigan and young yellow perch (Perca flavescens) in western Lake Erie have been removed at water intakes in recent years to reduce the productivity and biomass of adult fish stocks. Out-of-basin diversions of water at Chicago and at the Welland Canal, channel modifications in the St. Clair River, and in-basin consumptive water withdrawals have lowered the annual mean water level of Lakes Michigan and Huron by about 27 cm and that of Lake Erie by about 10 cm, dewatering wetlands that historically served as spawning and nursery habitat for many valuable fish species. The dollar value of fish lost to water diversions and withdrawals has not yet been estimated, but water withdrawals alone have already reduced the annual economic impact of the Great Lakes fisheries, which has been estimated to be 1.16 billion dollars.

  4. A drinking water crisis in Lake Taihu, China: linkage to climatic variability and lake management.

    PubMed

    Qin, Boqiang; Zhu, Guangwei; Gao, Guang; Zhang, Yunlin; Li, Wei; Paerl, Hans W; Carmichael, Wayne W

    2010-01-01

    In late May, 2007, a drinking water crisis took place in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, China, following a massive bloom of the toxin producing cyanobacteria Microcystis spp. in Lake Taihu, China's third largest freshwater lake. Taihu was the city's sole water supply, leaving approximately two million people without drinking water for at least a week. This cyanobacterial bloom event began two months earlier than previously documented for Microcystis blooms in Taihu. This was attributed to an unusually warm spring. The prevailing wind direction during this period caused the bloom to accumulate at the shoreline near the intake of the water plant. Water was diverted from the nearby Yangtze River in an effort to flush the lake of the bloom. However, this management action was counterproductive, because it produced a current which transported the bloom into the intake, exacerbating the drinking water contamination problem. The severity of this microcystin toxin containing bloom and the ensuing drinking water crisis were attributable to excessive nutrient enrichment; however, a multi-annual warming trend extended the bloom period and amplified its severity, and this was made worse by unanticipated negative impacts of water management. Long-term management must therefore consider both the human and climatic factors controlling these blooms and their impacts on water supply in this and other large lakes threatened by accelerating eutrophication.

  5. Water Quality and Hydrology of Whitefish (Bardon) Lake, Douglas County, Wisconsin, With Special Emphasis on Responses of an Oligotrophic Seepage Lake to Changes in Phosphorus Loading and Water Level

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Robertson, Dale M.; Rose, William J.; Juckem, Paul F.

    2009-01-01

    Whitefish Lake, which is officially named Bardon Lake, is an oligotrophic, soft-water seepage lake in northwestern Wisconsin, and classified by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources as an Outstanding Resource Water. Ongoing monitoring of the lake demonstrated that its water quality began to degrade (increased phosphorus and chlorophyll a concentrations) around 2002 following a period of high water level. To provide a better understanding of what caused the degradation in water quality, and provide information to better understand the lake and protect it from future degradation, the U.S. Geological Survey did a detailed study from 2004 to 2008. The goals of the study were to describe the past and present water quality of the lake, quantify water and phosphorus budgets for the lake, simulate the potential effects of changes in phosphorus inputs on the lake's water quality, analyze changes in the water level in the lake since 1900, and relate the importance of changes in climate and changes in anthropogenic (human-induced) factors in the watershed to the water quality of the lake. Since 1998, total phosphorus concentrations increased from near the 0.005-milligrams per liter (mg/L) detection limit to about 0.010 mg/L in 2006, and then decreased slightly in 2007-08. During this time, chlorophyll a concentrations and Secchi depths remained relatively stable at about 1.5 micrograms per liter (ug/L) and 26 feet, respectively. Whitefish Lake is typically classified as oligotrophic. Because the productivity in Whitefish Lake is limited by phosphorus, phosphorus budgets were constructed for the lake. Because it was believed that much of its phosphorus comes from the atmosphere, phosphorus deposition was measured in this study. Phosphorus input from the atmosphere was greater than computed based on previously reported wetfall phosphorus concentrations. The concentrations and deposition rates can be used to estimate atmospheric loading in future lake studies. The

  6. Hydrology, water quality, and phosphorus loading of Kirby Lake, Barron County, Wisconsin

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Rose, William J.; Robertson, Dale M.

    1998-01-01

    In 1992, residents near Kirby Lake, located about five miles northwest of Cumberland, in Barron County, Wisconsin, formed the Kirby Lake Management District. The Lake District immediately began to gather information needed for the preparation of a comprehensive lake-management plan that would be used to protect the natural and recreational assets of the lake. The Lake District completed a land-use inventory of the watershed and an evaluation of available lake water-quality data. The land-use data were used to assess the potential contribution of nutrients to the lake from the watershed. The evaluation of lake water-quality data, which were collected as part of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) Self-Help Monitoring Program, indicated the lake has relatively good water quality. Before a comprehensive lake-management plan could be prepared, however, a better understanding of several aspects of the lake and its surroundings was needed. To address those aspects including the definition of the lake's hydrology and the principal sources of nutrients, and the relation of the lake's water quality to nutrient loading the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Lake District and the WDNR (through a Lake Management Planning Grant), conducted a study of Kirby Lake and its watershed. This Fact Sheet presents the results of that study.

  7. Using Snow Fences to Augument Fresh Water Supplies in Shallow Arctic Lakes

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Stuefer, Svetlana

    2013-03-31

    This project was funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) to address environmental research questions specifically related to Alaska's oil and gas natural resources development. The focus of this project was on the environmental issues associated with allocation of water resources for construction of ice roads and ice pads. Earlier NETL projects showed that oil and gas exploration activities in the U.S. Arctic require large amounts of water for ice road and ice pad construction. Traditionally, lakes have been the source of freshwater for this purpose. The distinctive hydrological regime of northern lakes, caused bymore » the presence of ice cover and permafrost, exerts influence on lake water availability in winter. Lakes are covered with ice from October to June, and there is often no water recharge of lakes until snowmelt in early June. After snowmelt, water volumes in the lakes decrease throughout the summer, when water loss due to evaporation is considerably greater than water gained from rainfall. This balance switches in August, when air temperature drops, evaporation decreases, and rain (or snow) is more likely to occur. Some of the summer surface storage deficit in the active layer and surface water bodies (lakes, ponds, wetlands) is recharged during this time. However, if the surface storage deficit is not replenished (for example, precipitation in the fall is low and near‐surface soils are dry), lake recharge is directly affected, and water availability for the following winter is reduced. In this study, we used snow fences to augment fresh water supplies in shallow arctic lakes despite unfavorable natural conditions. We implemented snow‐control practices to enhance snowdrift accumulation (greater snow water equivalent), which led to increased meltwater production and an extended melting season that resulted in lake recharge despite low precipitation during the years of the experiment. For three years

  8. Water budget and estimated suspended-sediment inflow for Reelfoot Lake, Obion and Lake Counties, Northwestern Tennessee, May 1984-April 1985

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Robbins, Clarence H.

    1985-01-01

    Reelfoot Lake in northwestern Tennessee, with a surface area of 15,500 acres at normal pool elevation, is the largest natural lake in Tennessee. Over the years, the lake has become an important economic, environmental, and recreational resource to the people in the area, and to the State of Tennessee. The natural eutrophic succession rate of the lake has apparently been accelerated by land use practices within the Reelfoot Lake drainage basin during the past several decades. The potential loss of Reelfoot Lake has prompted the State to make management and restoration of the lake and its resources a priority objective. The U.S. Geological Survey entered into a cooperative study in May 1984 with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and the Tennessee Department of Health and Environment, Division of Water Management, to collect and analyze hydrologic data and prepare an annual water budget for Reelfoot Lake. The purpose of the water budget is to provide an analysis of the surface-groundwater-lake-atmospheric water relation at Reelfoot Lake. Results of the analysis can be used by lake managers to evaluate the potential effects of proposed lake management strategies upon the lake and surrounding hydrologic system. The water budget for the 12-month study period (May 1, 1984 through April 30, 1985) is presented in this report. In addition, estimates of suspended-sediment discharge from tributary streams in the Reelfoot Lake basin and an analysis of concentrations of constituents in stream-bottom material at three inflow sites are also presented. (Lantz-PTT)

  9. Evidence of widespread natural reproduction by lake trout Salvelinus namaycush in the Michigan waters of Lake Huron

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Riley, S.C.; He, J.X.; Johnson, J.E.; O'Brien, T. P.; Schaeffer, J.S.

    2007-01-01

    Localized natural reproduction of lake trout Salvelinus namaycush in Lake Huron has occurred since the 1980s near Thunder Bay, Michigan. During 2004–2006, USGS spring and fall bottom trawl surveys captured 63 wild juvenile lake trout at depths ranging from 37–73 m at four of five ports in the Michigan waters of the main basin of Lake Huron, more than five times the total number captured in the previous 30-year history of the surveys. Relatively high catches of wild juvenile lake trout in bottom trawls during 2004–2006 suggest that natural reproduction by lake trout has increased and occurred throughout the Michigan waters of the main basin. Increased catches of wild juvenile lake trout in the USGS fall bottom trawl survey were coincident with a drastic decline in alewife abundance, but data were insufficient to determine what mechanism may be responsible for increased natural reproduction by lake trout. We recommend further monitoring of juvenile lake trout abundance and research into early life history of lake trout in Lake Huron.

  10. Pesticides and their breakdown products in Lake Waxahachie, Texas, and in finished drinking water from the lake

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Ging, Patricia B.

    2002-01-01

    Since 1991, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program has collected pesticide data from streams and aquifers throughout the Nation (Gilliom and others, 1995). However, little published information on pesticides in public drinking water is available. The NAWQA Program usually collects data on the sources of drinking water but not on the finished drinking water. Therefore, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), in conjunction with the NAWQA Program, has initiated a nationwide pilot project to collect information on concentrations of pesticides and their breakdown products in finished drinking water, in source waters such as reservoirs, and in the basins that contribute water to the reservoirs. The pilot project was designed to collect water samples from finished drinking-water supplies and the associated source water from selected reservoirs that receive runoff from a variety of land uses. Lake Waxahachie, in Ellis County in north-central Texas, was chosen to represent a reservoir receiving water that includes runoff from cotton cropland. This fact sheet presents the results of pesticide sampling of source water from Lake Waxahachie and in finished drinking water from the lake. Analyses are compared to indicate differences in pesticide detections and concentrations between lake water and finished drinking water.

  11. Water chemistry of Lake Quilotoa (Ecuador) and assessment of natural hazards

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Aguilera, E.; Chiodini, G.; Cioni, R.; Guidi, M.; Marini, L.; Raco, B.

    2000-04-01

    A geochemical survey carried out in November 1993 revealed that Lake Quilotoa was composed by a thin (˜14 m) oxic epilimnion overlying a ˜200 m-thick anoxic hypolimnion. Dissolved CO2 concentrations reached 1000 mg/kg in the lower stratum. Loss of CO2 from epilimnetic waters, followed by calcite precipitation and a consequent lowering in density, was the apparent cause of the stratification. The Cl, SO4 and HCO3 contents of Lake Quilotoa are intermediate between those of acid-SO4-Cl Crater lakes and those of neutral-HCO3 Crater lakes, indicating that Lake Quilotoa has a 'memory' of the inflow and absorption of HC1- and S-bearing volcanic (magmatic) gases. The Mg/Ca ratios of the lake waters are governed by dissolution of local volcanic rocks or magmas, but K/Na ratios were likely modified by precipitation of alunite, a typical mineral in acid-SO4-Cl Crater lakes. The constant concentrations of several conservative chemical species from lake surface to lake bottom suggest that physical, chemical and biological processes did not have enough time, after the last overturn, to cause significant changes in the contents of these chemical species. This lapse of time might be relatively large, but it cannot be established on the basis of available data. Besides, the lake may not be close to steady state. Mixing of Lake Quilotoa waters could presently be triggered by either cooling epilimnetic waters by ˜4°C or providing heat to hypolimnetic waters or by seismic activity. Although Quilotoa lake contains a huge amount of dissolved CO2(˜3×1011 g), at present the risk of a dangerous limnic eruption seems to be nil even though some gas exsolution might occur if deep lake waters were brought to the surface. Carbon dioxide could build up to higher levels in deep waters than at present without any volcanic re-awakening, due to either a large inflow of relatively cool CO2-rich gases, or possibly a long interval between overturns. Periodical geochemical surveys of Lake Quilotoa

  12. Spatial variation in nutrient and water color effects on lake chlorophyll at macroscales

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Fergus, C. Emi; Finley, Andrew O.; Soranno, Patricia A.; Wagner, Tyler

    2016-01-01

    The nutrient-water color paradigm is a framework to characterize lake trophic status by relating lake primary productivity to both nutrients and water color, the colored component of dissolved organic carbon. Total phosphorus (TP), a limiting nutrient, and water color, a strong light attenuator, influence lake chlorophyll a concentrations (CHL). But, these relationships have been shown in previous studies to be highly variable, which may be related to differences in lake and catchment geomorphology, the forms of nutrients and carbon entering the system, and lake community composition. Because many of these factors vary across space it is likely that lake nutrient and water color relationships with CHL exhibit spatial autocorrelation, such that lakes near one another have similar relationships compared to lakes further away. Including this spatial dependency in models may improve CHL predictions and clarify how well the nutrient-water color paradigm applies to lakes distributed across diverse landscape settings. However, few studies have explicitly examined spatial heterogeneity in the effects of TP and water color together on lake CHL. In this study, we examined spatial variation in TP and water color relationships with CHL in over 800 north temperate lakes using spatially-varying coefficient models (SVC), a robust statistical method that applies a Bayesian framework to explore space-varying and scale-dependent relationships. We found that TP and water color relationships were spatially autocorrelated and that allowing for these relationships to vary by individual lakes over space improved the model fit and predictive performance as compared to models that did not vary over space. The magnitudes of TP effects on CHL differed across lakes such that a 1 μg/L increase in TP resulted in increased CHL ranging from 2–24 μg/L across lake locations. Water color was not related to CHL for the majority of lakes, but there were some locations where water color had a

  13. Spatial Variation in Nutrient and Water Color Effects on Lake Chlorophyll at Macroscales

    PubMed Central

    Finley, Andrew O.; Soranno, Patricia A.; Wagner, Tyler

    2016-01-01

    The nutrient-water color paradigm is a framework to characterize lake trophic status by relating lake primary productivity to both nutrients and water color, the colored component of dissolved organic carbon. Total phosphorus (TP), a limiting nutrient, and water color, a strong light attenuator, influence lake chlorophyll a concentrations (CHL). But, these relationships have been shown in previous studies to be highly variable, which may be related to differences in lake and catchment geomorphology, the forms of nutrients and carbon entering the system, and lake community composition. Because many of these factors vary across space it is likely that lake nutrient and water color relationships with CHL exhibit spatial autocorrelation, such that lakes near one another have similar relationships compared to lakes further away. Including this spatial dependency in models may improve CHL predictions and clarify how well the nutrient-water color paradigm applies to lakes distributed across diverse landscape settings. However, few studies have explicitly examined spatial heterogeneity in the effects of TP and water color together on lake CHL. In this study, we examined spatial variation in TP and water color relationships with CHL in over 800 north temperate lakes using spatially-varying coefficient models (SVC), a robust statistical method that applies a Bayesian framework to explore space-varying and scale-dependent relationships. We found that TP and water color relationships were spatially autocorrelated and that allowing for these relationships to vary by individual lakes over space improved the model fit and predictive performance as compared to models that did not vary over space. The magnitudes of TP effects on CHL differed across lakes such that a 1 μg/L increase in TP resulted in increased CHL ranging from 2–24 μg/L across lake locations. Water color was not related to CHL for the majority of lakes, but there were some locations where water color had a

  14. Lake Erie Water Level Study. Main Report.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1981-07-01

    of recreational beach activities. Examples include: Rondeau, Long Point and Sandbanks in Canada and Hamlin (New York), Presque Isle ( Pennsylvania ...be most affected by lake level changes. Long Point, Rondeau, Sandusky, and Presque Isle Bays are, due to their shallow nature and sand spit formation...AD-AI14 582 INTERNATIONAL LAKE ERIE REGULATION STUDY BOARD F/9 13/2 LAKE ERIE WATER LEVEL STUDY. MAIN REPORT.(U) UNCLASSIFIED N1.3 iE~hE

  15. What caused the decline of China's largest freshwater lake? Attribution analysis on Poyang Lake water level variations in recent years

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ye, Xuchun; Xu, Chong-Yu; Zhang, Qi

    2017-04-01

    In recent years, dramatic decline of water level of the Poyang Lake, China's largest freshwater lake, has raised wide concerns about the water security and wetland ecosystem. This remarkable hydrological change coincided with several factors like the initial operation of the Three Gorges Dam (TGD) in 2003, the big change of lake bottom topography due to extensive sand mining in the lake since 2000, and also climate change and other human activities in the Yangtze River basin may add to this complexity. Questions raised to what extent that the lake hydrological changes is caused by climate change and/or human activities. In this study, quantitative assessment was conducted to clarify the magnitude and mechanism of specific influencing factors on recent lake decline (2003-2014), with reference to the period of 1980-1999. The attempts were achieved through the reconstruction of lake water level scenarios by the framework of neural network. Major result indicates that the effect of lake bottom topography change due to sand mining activities has became the dominant factor for the recent lake decline, especially in winter season with low water level. However, the effect of TGD regulation shows strong seasonal features, its effect can accounts for 33%-42% of the average water level decline across the lake during the impoundment period of September-October. In addition, the effect of climate change and other human activities over the Yangtze River basin needs to be highly addressed, which is particularly prominent on reducing lake water level during the summer flood season and autumn recession period. The result also revealed that due to different mechanism, the responses of the lake water level to the three influencing factors are not consistent and show great spatial and temporal differences.

  16. Simulating ground water-lake interactions: Approaches and insights

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hunt, R.J.; Haitjema, H.M.; Krohelski, J.T.; Feinstein, D.T.

    2003-01-01

    Approaches for modeling lake-ground water interactions have evolved significantly from early simulations that used fixed lake stages specified as constant head to sophisticated LAK packages for MODFLOW. Although model input can be complex, the LAK package capabilities and output are superior to methods that rely on a fixed lake stage and compare well to other simple methods where lake stage can be calculated. Regardless of the approach, guidelines presented here for model grid size, location of three-dimensional flow, and extent of vertical capture can facilitate the construction of appropriately detailed models that simulate important lake-ground water interactions without adding unnecessary complexity. In addition to MODFLOW approaches, lake simulation has been formulated in terms of analytic elements. The analytic element lake package had acceptable agreement with a published LAK1 problem, even though there were differences in the total lake conductance and number of layers used in the two models. The grid size used in the original LAK1 problem, however, violated a grid size guideline presented in this paper. Grid sensitivity analyses demonstrated that an appreciable discrepancy in the distribution of stream and lake flux was related to the large grid size used in the original LAK1 problem. This artifact is expected regardless of MODFLOW LAK package used. When the grid size was reduced, a finite-difference formulation approached the analytic element results. These insights and guidelines can help ensure that the proper lake simulation tool is being selected and applied.

  17. Extracting environmental information from lake water isotopes - a novel approac

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kopec, B. G.; Feng, X.; Lauder, A. M.; Virginia, R. A.; Posmentier, E. S.

    2014-12-01

    It is well known that hydrogen (δD) and oxygen (δ18O) isotopic composition in precipitation defines a meteoric water line with a slope close to 8 and an intercept of 10, and that evaporation causes water to deviate from the line, acquiring a d-excess value different from 10. It has also been observed that a group of lakes subject to significant evaporation often define a line, which we refer to as the lake line, with a slope lower than 8. While there has been much discussion about the slope of lake lines and its dependence on relative humidity, little attention has been given to the scatter around these lines. We show that this seemingly random scatter contains systematic environmental information. Water in over 20 lakes around Kangerlussuaq, Greenland, was collected in the summers of 2009 to 2013, and the δD and δ18O values were determined. Each year's isotopic data were used to find: 1) the slope of the lake line; 2) the displacement of each lake parallel to the lake line, which we refer to as the "enrichment"; and 3) the distance between a given lake and the lake line, which we call the "deviance". The enrichment and deviance are the values of the principal components, PC1 and PC2, respectively, of the set of δD and δ18O coordinates. When comparing the climate and environmental variables, we observed the following. A) The lake line slope varies from 4.12 to 4.63 among the 5 years. B) The enrichment is, in some years, significantly correlated with lake size and longitude (which increases along the moisture and temperature gradient). C) The deviance is significantly correlated with both lake size and longitude every year. A simple water and isotopic mass balance model suggests that the enrichment is largely controlled by the lake to basin area ratio, while the deviance is controlled predominantly by the humidity and isotopic ratios of air above the lake. The latter variables systematically change from east to west (glacial margin to coast), so longitude is a

  18. Water Quality, Hydrology, and Response to Changes in Phosphorus Loading of Nagawicka Lake, a Calcareous Lake in Waukesha County, Wisconsin

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Garn, Herbert S.; Robertson, Dale M.; Rose, William J.; Goddard, Gerald L.; Horwatich, Judy A.

    2006-01-01

    Nagawicka Lake is a 986-acre, usually mesotrophic, calcareous lake in southeastern Wisconsin. Because of concern over potential water-quality degradation of the lake associated with further development in its watershed, a study was conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey from 2002 to 2006 to describe the water quality and hydrology of the lake; quantify sources of phosphorus, including those associated with urban development; and determine the effects of past and future changes in phosphorus loading on the water quality of the lake. All major water and phosphorus sources were measured directly, and minor sources were estimated to construct detailed water and phosphorus budgets for the lake. The Bark River, near-lake surface inflow, precipitation, and ground water contributed 74, 8, 12, and 6 percent of the inflow, respectively. Water leaves the lake primarily through the Bark River outlet (88 percent) or by evaporation (11 percent). The water quality of Nagawicka Lake has improved dramatically since 1980 as a result of decreasing the historical loading of phosphorus to the lake. Total input of phosphorus to the lake was about 3,000 pounds in monitoring year (MY) 2003 and 6,700 pounds in MY 2004. The largest source of phosphorus entering the lake was the Bark River, which delivered about 56 percent of the total phosphorus input, compared with about 74 percent of the total water input. The next largest contributions were from the urbanized near-lake drainage area, which disproportionately accounted for 37 percent of the total phosphorus input but only about 5 percent of the total water input. Simulations with water-quality models within the Wisconsin Lakes Modeling Suite (WiLMS) indicated the response of Nagawicka Lake to 10 phosphorus-loading scenarios. These scenarios included historical (1970s) and current (base) years (MY 2003-04) for which lake water quality and loading were known, six scenarios with percentage increases or decreases in phosphorus loading from

  19. Water-quality characteristics of Michigan's inland lakes, 2001-10

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Fuller, L.M.; Taricska, C.K.

    2012-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) jointly monitored for selected water-quality constituents and properties of inland lakes during 2001–10 as part of Michigan's Lake Water-Quality Assessment program. During 2001–10, 866 lake basins from 729 inland lakes greater than 25 acres were monitored for baseline water-quality conditions and trophic status. This report summarizes the water-quality characteristics and trophic conditions of the monitored lakes throughout the State; the data include vertical-profile measurements, nutrient measurements at three discrete depths, Secchi-disk transparency (SDT) measurements, and chlorophyll a measurements for the spring and summer, with major ions and other chemical indicators measured during the spring at mid-depth and color during the summer from near-surface samples. In about 75 percent of inland lake deep basins (index stations), trophic characteristics were associated with oligotrophic or mesotrophic conditions; 5 percent or less were categorized as hypereutrophic, and 80 percent of hypereutrophic lakes had a maximum depth of 30 feet or less. Comparison of spring and summer measurements shows that water clarity based on SDT measurements were clearer in the spring than in the summer for 63 percent of lakes. For near-surface measurements made in spring, 97 percent of lakes can be considered phosphorus limited and less than half a percent nitrogen limited; for summer measurements, 96 percent of lakes can be considered phosphorus limited and less than half a percent nitrogen limited. Spatial patterns of major ions, alkalinity, and hardness measured in the spring at mid-depth all showed lower values in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and a southward increase toward the southern areas of the Lower Peninsula, though the location of increase varied by constituent. A spatial analysis of the data based on U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Level III Ecoregions separated potassium

  20. Water Level Monitoring on Tibetan Lakes Based on Icesat and Envisat Data Series

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, H. W.; Qiao, G.; Wu, Y. J.; Cao, Y. J.; Mi, H.

    2017-09-01

    Satellite altimetry technique is an effective method to monitor the water level of lakes in a wide range, especially in sparsely populated areas, such as the Tibet Plateau (TP). To provide high quality data for time-series change detection of lake water level, an automatic and efficient algorithm for lake water footprint (LWF) detection in a wide range is used. Based on ICESat GLA14 Release634 data and ENVISat GDR 1Hz data, water level of 167 lakes were obtained from ICESat data series, and water level of 120 lakes were obtained from ENVISat data series. Among them, 67 lakes contained two data series. Mean standard deviation of all lakes is 0.088 meters (ICESat), 0.339 meters (ENVISat). Combination of multi-source altimetry data is helpful for us to get longer and more dense periods cover water level, study the lake level changes, manage water resources and understand the impacts of climate change better. In addition, the standard deviation of LWF elevation used to calculate the water level were analyzed by month. Based on lake data set for the TP from the 1960s, 2005, and 2014 in Scientific Data, it is found that the water level changes in the TP have a strong spatial correlation with the area changes.

  1. Water levels and groundwater and surface-water exchanges in lakes of the northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area, Minnesota, 2002 through 2015

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Jones, Perry M.; Trost, Jared J.; Erickson, Melinda L.

    2016-10-19

    OverviewThis study assessed lake-water levels and regional and local groundwater and surface-water exchanges near northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area lakes applying three approaches: statistical analysis, field study, and groundwater-flow modeling.  Statistical analyses of lake levels were completed to assess the effect of physical setting and climate on lake-level fluctuations of selected lakes. A field study of groundwater and surface-water interactions in selected lakes was completed to (1) estimate potential percentages of surface-water contributions to well water across the northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area, (2) estimate general ages for waters extracted from the wells, and (3) assess groundwater inflow to lakes and lake-water outflow to aquifers downgradient from White Bear Lake.  Groundwater flow was simulated using a steady-state, groundwater-flow model to assess regional groundwater and surface-water exchanges and the effects of groundwater withdrawals, climate, and other factors on water levels of northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area lakes.

  2. Correlation of Pliocene and Pleistocene tephra layers between the Turkana Basin of East Africa and the Gulf of Aden

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Brown, F.H.; Sarna-Wojcicki, A. M.; Meyer, C.E.; Haileab, B.

    1992-01-01

    Electron-microprobe analyses of glass shards from volcanic ash in Pliocene and Pleistocene deep-sea sediments in the Gulf of Aden and the Somali Basin demonstrate that most of the tephra layers correlate with tephra layers known on land in the Turkana Basin of northern Kenya and southern Ethiopia. Previous correlations are reviewed, and new correlations proposed. Together these data provide correlations between the deep-sea cores, and to the land-based sections at eight levels ranging in age from about 4 to 0.7 Ma. Specifically, we correlate the Moiti Tuff (???4.1 Ma) with a tephra layer at 188.6 m depth in DSDP hole 231 and with a tephra layer at 150 m depth in DSDP hole 241, the Wargolo Tuff with a tephra layer at 179.7 m in DSDP Hole 231 and with a tephra layer at 155.3 m depth in DSDP Hole 232, the Lomogol Tuff (defined here) with a tephra layer at 165 m in DSDP Hole 232A, the Lokochot Tuff with a tephra layer at 140.1 m depth in DSDP Hole 232, the Tulu Bor Tuff with a tephra layer at 160.8 m depth in DSDP Hole 231, the Kokiselei Tuff with a tephra layer at 120 m depth in DSDP Hole 231 and with a tephra layer at 90.3 m depth in DSDP Hole 232, the Silbo Tuff (0.74 Ma) with a tephra layer at 35.5 m depth in DSDP Hole 231 and possibly with a tephra layer at 10.9 m depth in DSDP Hole 241. We also present analyses of other tephra from the deep sea cores for which correlative units on land are not yet known. The correlated tephra layers provide eight chronostratigraphic horizons that make it possible to temporally correlate paleoecological and paleoclimatic data between the terrestrial and deep-sea sites. Such correlations may make it possible to interpret faunal evolution in the Lake Turkana basin and other sites in East Africa within a broader regional or global paleoclimatic context. ?? 1992.

  3. Paleoenvironmental change as seen from a multiproxy perspective in the West Turkana Kaitio core (WTK13), Kenya

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Beck, C. C.; Feibel, C. S.; Lupien, R.; Yost, C. L.; Rucina, S.; Russell, J. M.; Deino, A. L.; Sier, M.; Cohen, A. S.; Campisano, C. J.

    2017-12-01

    The Hominin Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project's (HSPDP) primary goal is to provide high quality environmental records to test whether and how Earth system dynamics influenced the evolution of hominins in Africa. To this end, multiproxy records from individual basins are essential to understanding how paleoenvironments changed in relation to shifts in the climatic and/or tectonic regimes both locally on a basin-scale and regionally across East Africa. Because of its rich combination of paleoanthropologic and geologic data, the West Turkana Kaitio (WTK13) core is an important component of this synthesis. Using a combination of tephra chronology and paleomagnetic data, the core has been dated to 1.87-1.37 Ma. The sedimentology records deposition on a dynamic lacustrine margin becoming more influenced by channel and floodplain processes through time. Multiproxy records provide a window into paleoevironments of the Turkana Basin that operated on shorter time scales than this dominant first-order facies shift. Processional cycles (21 kyr) are picked up by indicator records where the preservation of the archive was good enough to allow for high-resolution analysis. However, interestingly, the biomarker record suggests that the hydroclimate of the Turkana Basin, while highly variable at the Milankovitch-scale, exhibits no directional trend in the mean values towards wetter or drier conditions. The combined phytolith and pollen records suggest that grasses, albeit with fluctuating abundances of C4 mesophytic and C4 xerophytic taxa, dominated the landscape throughout most of the core. This indicates that despite climatic variability, resource availability may have maintained some general consistency for hominins in the area. Ultimately, the time period spanned by the WTK13 record is significant for our understanding of hominin evolution as it covers an interval of increasing aridity on the African continent as observed in distal marine records. This synthesis

  4. Will hypolimnetic waters become anoxic in all deep tropical lakes?

    PubMed Central

    Fukushima, Takehiko; Matsushita, Bunkei; Subehi, Luki; Setiawan, Fajar; Wibowo, Hendro

    2017-01-01

    To elucidate trends of hypolimnetic oxygen concentrations, vertical distributions of dissolved oxygen were measured in eight deep tropical bodies of water (one natural lake with two basins, five natural lakes, and one reservoir) in Indonesia. A comparison of those concentrations with previously reported data revealed that shoaling of hypolimnetic oxygen-deficient (around a few decimeters to a few meter per year) water had occurred in all of the lakes. Calculated areal hypolimnetic oxygen depletion rates were 0.046–5.9 g m−2 y−1. The oligomictic or meromictic characteristics of the bodies of water suppressed circulation and mixing in the hypolimnions and thus resulted in continuous shoaling of the uppermost oxygen-deficient layers. In some lakes, millions of fish sometimes died suddenly, probably owing to upward movement of oxygen-deficient water to near the surface during periods of strong winds. In the future, the rate of shoaling will be accelerated by human impacts in the basins and by climate warming, the influence of which has already been manifested by rising water temperatures in these lakes. Appropriate monitoring and discussions of future restoration challenges are urgently needed to prevent the hypolimnions of the lakes from becoming completely anoxic.

  5. Water and nutrient budgets for Vancouver Lake, Vancouver, Washington, October 2010-October 2012

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sheibley, Rich W.; Foreman, James R.; Marshall, Cameron A.; Welch, Wendy B.

    2014-01-01

    Vancouver Lake, a large shallow lake in Clark County, near Vancouver, Washington, has been undergoing water-quality problems for decades. Recently, the biggest concern for the lake are the almost annual harmful cyanobacteria blooms that cause the lake to close for recreation for several weeks each summer. Despite decades of interest in improving the water quality of the lake, fundamental information on the timing and amount of water and nutrients entering and exiting the lake is lacking. In 2010, the U.S. Geological Survey conducted a 2-year field study to quantify water flows and nutrient loads in order to develop water and nutrient budgets for the lake. This report presents monthly and annual water and nutrient budgets from October 2010–October 2012 to identify major sources and sinks of nutrients. Lake River, a tidally influenced tributary to the lake, flows into and out of the lake almost daily and composed the greatest proportion of both the water and nutrient budgets for the lake, often at orders of magnitude greater than any other source. From the water budget, we identified precipitation, evaporation and groundwater inflow as minor components of the lake hydrologic cycle, each contributing 1 percent or less to the total water budget. Nutrient budgets were compiled monthly and annually for total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and orthophosphate; and, nitrogen loads were generally an order of magnitude greater than phosphorus loads across all sources. For total nitrogen, flow from Lake River at Felida, Washington, made up 88 percent of all inputs into the lake. For total phosphorus and orthophosphate, Lake River at Felida flowing into the lake was 91 and 76 percent of total inputs, respectively. Nutrient loads from precipitation and groundwater inflow were 1 percent or less of the total budgets. Nutrient inputs from Burnt Bridge Creek and Flushing Channel composed 12 percent of the total nitrogen budget, 8 percent of the total phosphorus budget, and 21 percent

  6. Paleoecology of a Northern Michigan Lake and the relationship among climate, vegetation, and Great Lakes water levels

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Booth, R.K.; Jackson, S.T.; Thompson, T.A.

    2002-01-01

    We reconstructed Holocene water-level and vegetation dynamics based on pollen and plant macrofossils from a coastal lake in Upper Michigan. Our primary objective was to test the hypothesis that major fluctuations in Great Lakes water levels resulted in part from climatic changes. We also used our data to provide temporal constraints to the mid-Holocene dry period in Upper Michigan. From 9600 to 8600 cal yr B.P. a shallow, lacustrine environment characterized the Mud Lake basin. A Sphagnum-dominated wetland occupied the basin during the mid-Holocene dry period (???8600 to 6600 cal yr B.P.). The basin flooded at 6600 cal yr B.P. as a result of rising water levels associated with the onset of the Nipissing I phase of ancestral Lake Superior. This flooding event occured contemporaneously with a well-documented regional expansion of Tsuga. Betula pollen increased during the Nipissing II phase (4500 cal yr B.P.). Macrofossil evidence from Mud Lake suggests that Betula alleghaniensis expansion was primarily responsible for the rising Betula pollen percentages. Major regional and local vegetational changes were associated with all the major Holocene highstands of the western Great Lakes (Nipissing I, Nipissing II, and Algoma). Traditional interpretations of Great Lakes water-level history should be revised to include a major role of climate. ?? 2002 University of Washington.

  7. [Hydrogen and oxygen isotopes of lake water and geothermal spring water in arid area of south Tibet].

    PubMed

    Xiao, Ke; Shen, Li-Cheng; Wang, Peng

    2014-08-01

    The condition of water cycles in Tibet Plateau is a complex process, and the hydrogen and oxygen isotopes contain important information of this process. Based on the analysis of isotopic composition of freshwater lake, saltwater lake and geothermal water in the southern Tibetan Plateau, this study investigated water cycling, composition and variation of hydrogen and oxygen isotopes and the influencing factors in the study area. The study found that the mean values of delta18O and deltaD in Daggyaima lake water (-17.0 per thousand for delta18O and -138. 6 per thousand for deltaD), Langcuo lake water (-6.4 per thousand for delta18O and -87.4 per thousand for deltaD) and Dagejia geothermal water (-19.2 per thousand for delta18 and -158.2 per thousand for deltaD) all showed negative delta18O and deltaD values in Tibetan Plateau by the influence of altitude effects. Lake water and geothermal water were influenced by evaporation effects in inland arid area, and the slope of evaporation line was less than 8. Deuterium excess parameters of lake water and geothermal water were all negative. The temperature of geothermal reservoirs in Dagejia geothermal field was high,and oxygen shift existed in the relationship of hydrogen and oxygen isotopes.

  8. Links between type E botulism outbreaks, lake levels, and surface water temperatures in Lake Michigan, 1963-2008

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lafrancois, Brenda Moraska; Riley, Stephen C.; Blehert, David S.; Ballmann, Anne E.

    2011-01-01

    Relationships between large-scale environmental factors and the incidence of type E avian botulism outbreaks in Lake Michigan were examined from 1963 to 2008. Avian botulism outbreaks most frequently occurred in years with low mean annual water levels, and lake levels were significantly lower in outbreak years than in non-outbreak years. Mean surface water temperatures in northern Lake Michigan during the period when type E outbreaks tend to occur (July through September) were significantly higher in outbreak years than in non-outbreak years. Trends in fish populations did not strongly correlate with botulism outbreaks, although botulism outbreaks in the 1960s coincided with high alewife abundance, and recent botulism outbreaks coincided with rapidly increasing round goby abundance. Botulism outbreaks occurred cyclically, and the frequency of outbreaks did not increase over the period of record. Climate change scenarios for the Great Lakes predict lower water levels and warmer water temperatures. As a consequence, the frequency and magnitude of type E botulism outbreaks in the Great Lakes may increase.

  9. Projecting Future Water Levels of the Laurentian Great Lakes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bennington, V.; Notaro, M.; Holman, K.

    2013-12-01

    The Laurentian Great Lakes are the largest freshwater system on Earth, containing 84% of North America's freshwater. The lakes are a valuable economic and recreational resource, valued at over 62 billion in annual wages and supporting a 7 billion fishery. Shipping, recreation, and coastal property values are significantly impacted by water level variability, with large economic consequences. Great Lakes water levels fluctuate both seasonally and long-term, responding to natural and anthropogenic climate changes. Due to the integrated nature of water levels, a prolonged small change in any one of the net basin supply components: over-lake precipitation, watershed runoff, or evaporation from the lake surface, may result in important trends in water levels. We utilize the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics's Regional Climate Model Version 4.5.6 to dynamically downscale three global global climate models that represent a spread of potential future climate change for the region to determine whether the climate models suggest a robust response of the Laurentian Great Lakes to anthropogenic climate change. The Model for Interdisciplinary Research on Climate Version 5 (MIROC5), the National Centre for Meteorological Research Earth system model (CNRM-CM5), and the Community Climate System Model Version 4 (CCSM4) project different regional temperature increases and precipitation change over the next century and are used as lateral boundary conditions. We simulate the historical (1980-2000) and late-century periods (2080-2100). Upon model evaluation we will present dynamically downscaled projections of net basin supply changes for each of the Laurentian Great Lakes.

  10. Does Water Hyacinth on East African Lakes Promote Cholera Outbreaks?

    PubMed Central

    Feikin, Daniel R.; Tabu, Collins W.; Gichuki, John

    2010-01-01

    Cholera outbreaks continue to occur regularly in Africa. Cholera has been associated with proximity to lakes in East Africa, and Vibrio cholerae has been found experimentally to concentrate on the floating aquatic plant, water hyacinth, which is periodically widespread in East African lakes since the late 1980s. From 1994 to 2008, Nyanza Province, which is the Kenyan province bordering Lake Victoria, accounted for a larger proportion of cholera cases than expected by its population size (38.7% of cholera cases versus 15.3% of national population). Yearly water-hyacinth coverage on the Kenyan section of Lake Victoria was positively associated with the number of cholera cases reported in Nyanza Province (r = 0.83; P = 0.0010). Water hyacinth on freshwater lakes might play a role in initiating cholera outbreaks and causing sporadic disease in East Africa. PMID:20682884

  11. Chemical quality of surface waters in Devils Lake basin North Dakota, 1952-60

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Mitten, Hugh T.; Scott, C.H.; Rosene, Philip G.

    1968-01-01

    Above-normal precipitation in 1954, 1956, and 1957 caused the water surface of Devils Lake to rise to an altitude of 1,419.3 feet, its highest in 40 years. Nearly all the water entering the lake flowed through Big Coulee, and about three-fourths of that inflow was at rates greater than 100 cubic feet per second. At these rates, the inflow contained less than 600 ppm (parts per million) dissolved solids and was of the calcium bicarbonate type.Because the inflow was more dilute than the lake water, the dissolved solids in the lake decreased from 8,680 ppm in 1952 to about 6,000 ppm in 1956 and 1957. Subsequently, however, they increased to slightly more than 8,000 ppm and averaged 6,800 ppm for the 1954-60 period. Sodium and sulfate were the principal dissolved constituents in the lake water. Although the concentration of dissolved solids varied significantly from time to time, the relative proportions of the chief constituents remained nearly the same.Water flowed from Devils Lake to Mission Bay in 1956,1957, and 1958, and some flowed from Mission Bay into East Bay. However, no water moved between East Devils Lake, western Stump Lake, and eastern Stump Lake during 1952-60; these lakes received only local runoff, and the variations in their water volume caused only minor variations in dissolved solids. For the periods sampled, concentrations averaged 60,700 ppm for East Devils Lake, 23,100 ppm for western Stump Lake, and 127,000 ppm for eastern Stump Lake.Sodium and sulfate were the chief dissolved constituents in all the lakes of the Devils Lake chain. Water in eastern Stump Lake was saturated with sodium sulfate and precipitated large quantities of granular, hydrated sodium sulfate crystals on the lakebed and shore in fall and winter. A discontinuous layer of consolidated sodium sulfate crystals formed a significant part of the bed throughout the year.Measured concentrations! of zinc, iron, manganese, fluoride, arsenic, boron, copper, and lead were not high enough

  12. Ballast Water Discharges into the Great Lakes from Overseas Vessels

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Analysis of Ballast Water Discharges into the Great Lakes from Overseas Vessels from 2010 to 2013 - An assessment of the volume, location, and global port origins of ballast water discharges in the Great Lakes (May 2015).

  13. Lake water levels across the U.S.: What are the spatial patterns and drivers of water level change?

    EPA Science Inventory

    Background Lake water-level changes affect the physical, chemical, and biological condition of lakes; and we expect that disturbances such as land use conversion, water withdrawal, and climate change may alter water-level regimes and impact lake integrity. However, we have a poor...

  14. Seasonal Variations in Water Chemistry and Sediment Composition in Three Minnesota Lakes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lascu, I.; Ito, E.; Banerjee, S.

    2006-12-01

    Variations in water chemistry, isotopic composition of dissolved inorganic carbon, sediment geochemistry and mineral magnetism were monitored for several months in three Minnesota lakes. Lake McCarrons, Deming Lake and Steel Lake are all small (<1 km2), deep (>16 m), stratified lakes that contain varved sediments for some time intervals or throughout. Deming Lake and Steel Lake are situated in north-central Minnesota, about 40 km apart, while Lake McCarrons is located in the heart of the Twin Cities and is heavily used for recreational purposes. The lakes have different mixing regimes (Steel is dimictic, Deming is meromictic and McCarrons is oligomictic) but all have well defined epilimnia and hypolimnia during the ice-free season. Water samples were collected bi-weekly from the epilimnia, upper and lower hypolimnia, while sediments were collected monthly from sediment traps placed in shallow and deep parts of the lakes. All lakes are moderately alkaline (80-280 ppm HCO3-) carbonate-producing systems, although calcite is being dissolved in the slightly acidic hypolimnetic waters of Deming Lake. The magnetic parameters reveal different distributions of the magnetic components in the three lakes, but all exhibit a general increase in the concentration of bacterial magnetosomes towards the end of summer. Differences in elemental concentrations, cation and anion profiles, and chemical behavior as the season progressed are also obvious among the three lakes. For the two lakes situated in the same climatic regime, this implies additional controls (besides climate) on water and sediment composition, such as local hydrology, substrate composition and biogeochemical in-lake processes.

  15. 40 CFR Appendix B to Part 132 - Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... WATER QUALITY GUIDANCE FOR THE GREAT LAKES SYSTEM Pt. 132, App. B Appendix B to Part 132—Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Methodology for Deriving Bioaccumulation Factors Great Lakes States and Tribes... system. For log KOW, the log of the octanol-water partition coefficient is a base 10 logarithm. Uptake...

  16. 40 CFR Appendix B to Part 132 - Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... WATER QUALITY GUIDANCE FOR THE GREAT LAKES SYSTEM Pt. 132, App. B Appendix B to Part 132—Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Methodology for Deriving Bioaccumulation Factors Great Lakes States and Tribes... system. For log KOW, the log of the octanol-water partition coefficient is a base 10 logarithm. Uptake...

  17. Water budgets, water quality, and analysis of nutrient loading of the Winter Park chain of lakes, central Florida, 1989-92

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Phelps, G.G.; German, E.R.

    1995-01-01

    The Winter Park chain of lakes (Lakes Maitland, Virginia, Osceola, and Mizell) has a combined area of about 900 acres, an immediate drainage area of about 3,100 acres, and mean depths ranging from 11 to 15 feet. The lakes are an important recreational resource for the surrounding communities, but there is concern about the possible effects of stormwater runoff and seepage of nutrient-enriched ground water on the quality of water in the lakes. The lakes receive water from several sources: rainfall on lake surfaces, inflow from other surface-water bodies, stormflow that enters the lakes through storm drains or by direct runoff from land adjacent to the lakes and ground-water seepage. Water leaves the lakes by evaporation, surface outflow, and ground-water outflow. Of the three, only surface outflow can be measured directly. Rainfall, surface inflow and outflow, and lake-stage data were collected from October 1, 1989, to September 30, 1992. Stormflow, evaporation and ground-water inflow and outflow were estimated for the 3 years of the study. Ground-water outflow was calculated by evaluating the rate of lake-stage decline during dry periods. Estimated ground-water outflow was compared to downward leakage rates estimated by ground-water flow models. Lateral ground-water inflow from surficial sediments was calculated as the residual of the flow budget. Flow budgets were calculated for the 3 years of the study. In water year 1992 (a year with about average rainfall), inflow consisted of rainfall, 48 inches; stormflow, 15 inches; surface inflow, 67 inches; and ground water, 40 inches. The calculated outflows were evaporation, 47 inches; surface outflow, 90 inches; and ground water, 33 inches. Water-quality data also were used to calculate nutrient budgets for the lakes. Bimonthly water samples were collected from the lakes and at surface inflow and outflow sites, and were analyzed for physical characteristics, dissolved oxygen, pH, specific conductance, major ions, the

  18. Evaluating lake stratification and temporal trends by using near-continuous water-quality data from automated profiling systems for water years 2005-09, Lake Mead, Arizona and Nevada

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Veley, Ronald J.; Moran, Michael J.

    2012-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the National Park Service and Southern Nevada Water Authority, collected near-continuous depth-dependent water-quality data at Lake Mead, Arizona and Nevada, as part of a multi-agency monitoring network maintained to provide resource managers with basic data and to gain a better understanding of the hydrodynamics of the lake. Water-quality data-collection stations on Lake Mead were located in shallow water (less than 20 meters) at Las Vegas Bay (Site 3) and Overton Arm, and in deep water (greater than 20 meters) near Sentinel Island and at Virgin and Temple Basins. At each station, near-continual depth-dependent water-quality data were collected from October 2004 through September 2009. The data were collected by using automatic profiling systems equipped with multiparameter water-quality sondes. The sondes had sensors for temperature, specific conductance, dissolved oxygen, pH, turbidity, and depth. Data were collected every 6 hours at 2-meter depth intervals (for shallow-water stations) or 5-meter depth intervals (for deep-water stations) beginning at 1 meter below water surface. Data were analyzed to determine water-quality conditions related to stratification of the lake and temporal trends in water-quality parameters. Three water-quality parameters were the main focus of these analyses: temperature, specific conductance, and dissolved oxygen. Statistical temporal-trend analyses were performed for a single depth at shallow-water stations [Las Vegas Bay (Site 3) and Overton Arm] and for thermally-stratified lake layers at deep-water stations (Sentinel Island and Virgin Basin). The limited period of data collection at the Temple Basin station prevented the application of statistical trend analysis. During the summer months, thermal stratification was not observed at shallow-water stations, nor were major maxima or minima observed for specific-conductance or dissolved-oxygen profiles. A clearly-defined thermocline

  19. Development of Turbulent Diffusion Transfer Algorithms to Estimate Lake Tahoe Water Budget

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sahoo, G. B.; Schladow, S. G.; Reuter, J. E.

    2012-12-01

    The evaporative loss is a dominant component in the Lake Tahoe hydrologic budget because watershed area (813km2) is very small compared to the lake surface area (501 km2). The 5.5 m high dam built at the lake's only outlet, the Truckee River at Tahoe City can increase the lake's capacity by approximately 0.9185 km3. The lake serves as a flood protection for downstream areas and source of water supply for downstream cities, irrigation, hydropower, and instream environmental requirements. When the lake water level falls below the natural rim, cessation of flows from the lake cause problems for water supply, irrigation, and fishing. Therefore, it is important to develop algorithms to correctly estimate the lake hydrologic budget. We developed a turbulent diffusion transfer model and coupled to the dynamic lake model (DLM-WQ). We generated the stream flows and pollutants loadings of the streams using the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) supported watershed model, Loading Simulation Program in C++ (LSPC). The bulk transfer coefficients were calibrated using correlation coefficient (R2) as the objective function. Sensitivity analysis was conducted for the meteorological inputs and model parameters. The DLM-WQ estimated lake water level and water temperatures were in agreement to those of measured records with R2 equal to 0.96 and 0.99, respectively for the period 1994 to 2008. The estimated average evaporation from the lake, stream inflow, precipitation over the lake, groundwater fluxes, and outflow from the lake during 1994 to 2008 were found to be 32.0%, 25.0%, 19.0%, 0.3%, and 11.7%, respectively.

  20. [Spatial Variability Characteristics of Water Quality and Its Driving Forces in Honghu Lake During High Water-level Period].

    PubMed

    Li, Kun; Wang, Ling; Li, Zhao-hua; Wang, Xiang-rong; Chen, Hong-bing; Wu, Zhong; Zhu, Peng

    2015-04-01

    Based on the high-density analysis of 139 monitoring points and samples in water of honghu lake with different degrees of eutrophication during the high water-level period, we could get the figures of spatial variability characteristics of pollution factors, the biomass of aquatic plants and water quality in Honghu Lake using the GIS interpolation methods. The result showed that the concentrations of TN, TP, NH4(+) -N, permanganate index gradually increased from south to north during this period, the trend of water pollution degree in Honghu Lake was the region of inflowing rivers > enclosure culture area > open water area > the lake protection area > region of the Yangtze river into the lake; and the contribution rate of water quality parameters was in the order of TN > TP > permanganate index > NH4(+), -N > DO; under the influence of industrial sewage, agricultural sewage, domestic sewage, bait, aquatic plants and water exchange, 59% of TN, 35.2% of TP, 13.7% of permanganate index, 4.3% of NH4(+)-N exceeded the water quality targets, respectively, accordingly, 66.2% of the water quality also exceeded the water quality target. Nonetheless, DO reached the water quality target due to the influences of monsoon climate and other environment factors. The spatial variation analysis could directly reflect the mutual interaction among human activity, land-use types and environment factors which had an enormous impact on Honghu Lake water environment. In order to ensure that the lake water environment is beneficial for human productions and livings, it is necessary for us to control the discharge of industrial sewage, agricultural sewage and domestic sewage, as well as the expanding area of aquaculture, all the above measures would be significant for gradually resuming the self-purification capacity of water body and finally achieving the ecological sustainable development of Honghu Lake water environment.

  1. Effects of recharge, Upper Floridan aquifer heads, and time scale on simulated ground-water exchange with Lake Starr, a seepage lake in central Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Swancar, Amy; Lee, Terrie Mackin

    2003-01-01

    Lake Starr and other lakes in the mantled karst terrain of Florida's Central Lake District are surrounded by a conductive surficial aquifer system that receives highly variable recharge from rainfall. In addition, downward leakage from these lakes varies as heads in the underlying Upper Floridan aquifer change seasonally and with pumpage. A saturated three-dimensional finite-difference ground-water flow model was used to simulate the effects of recharge, Upper Floridan aquifer heads, and model time scale on ground-water exchange with Lake Starr. The lake was simulated as an active part of the model using high hydraulic conductivity cells. Simulated ground-water flow was compared to net ground-water flow estimated from a rigorously derived water budget for the 2-year period August 1996-July 1998. Calibrating saturated ground-water flow models with monthly stress periods to a monthly lake water budget will result in underpredicting gross inflow to, and leakage from, ridge lakes in Florida. Underprediction of ground-water inflow occurs because recharge stresses and ground-water flow responses during rainy periods are averaged over too long a time period using monthly stress periods. When inflow is underestimated during calibration, leakage also is underestimated because inflow and leakage are correlated if lake stage is maintained over the long term. Underpredicted leakage reduces the implied effect of ground-water withdrawals from the Upper Floridan aquifer on the lake. Calibrating the weekly simulation required accounting for transient responses in the water table near the lake that generated the greater range of net ground-water flow values seen in the weekly water budget. Calibrating to the weekly lake water budget also required increasing the value of annual recharge in the nearshore region well above the initial estimate of 35 percent of the rainfall, and increasing the hydraulic conductivity of the deposits around and beneath the lake. To simulate the total

  2. Estimated water and nutrient inflows and outflows, Lake Cochituate, eastern Massachusetts, 1977-79

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Gay, F.B.

    1984-01-01

    Streamflow was the major source of water and nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) to Lake Cochituate, followed by ground water, and then precipitation during April 1978 through March 1979. Compared to all sources during that period, streams contributed 7,217 million gallons (a little over 82 percent) of water, 63 ,000 pounds (between 50 and 60 percent) of nitrogen, and 3,000 pounds (94 percent) of phosphorus. A little over 60 percent of all the water that entered Lake Cochituate flowed from Fisk Pond. This single source transported about 38,000 pounds of nitrogen and 2,000 pounds of phosphorus. Ground-water inflow to Lake Cochituate occurs along its shoreline except at the north end of Lake Cochituate 's North Pond where natural seepage from the lake is occurring and at locations on the lake 's Middle and South Ponds where municipal wells induce infiltration of lake water amounting to 1,228 million gallons for that period. Discharge of ground water to the lake was estimated to range from 462 to 816 million gallons and transported from 31,000 to 55,000 pounds of nitrogen and from 46 to 82 pounds of phosphorus. Bulk precipitation was estimated to contribute about the same volume of water to the lake as ground water but double its phosphorus load. However, the load of nitrogen, 8000 pounds, from bulk precipitation was the smallest of any source. (USGS)

  3. Influence of Lake Stratification Onset on Summer Surface Water Temperature

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Woolway, R. I.; Merchant, C. J.

    2016-12-01

    Summer lake surface water temperatures (LSSWT) are sensitive to climatic warming and have previously been shown to increase at a faster rate than surface air temperatures in some lakes, as a response to thermal stratification occurring earlier in spring. We explore this relationship using a combination of in situ, satellite derived, and simulated temperatures from 144 lakes. Our results demonstrate that LSSWTs of high-latitude and large deep lakes are particularly sensitive to changes in stratification onset and can be expected to display an amplified response to climatic changes in summer air temperature. Climatic modification of LSSWT has numerous consequences for water quality and lake ecosystems, so quantifying this amplified response is important.

  4. Quantitative assessment of Urmia Lake water using spaceborne multisensor data and 3D modeling.

    PubMed

    Jeihouni, Mehrdad; Toomanian, Ara; Alavipanah, Seyed Kazem; Hamzeh, Saeid

    2017-10-18

    Preserving aquatic ecosystems and water resources management is crucial in arid and semi-arid regions for anthropogenic reasons and climate change. In recent decades, the water level of the largest lake in Iran, Urmia Lake, has decreased sharply, which has become a major environmental concern in Iran and the region. The efforts to revive the lake concerns the amount of water required for restoration. This study monitored and assessed Urmia Lake status over a period of 30 years (1984 to 2014) using remotely sensed data. A novel method is proposed that generates a lakebed digital elevation model (LBDEM) for Urmia Lake based on time series images from Landsat satellites, water level field measurements, remote sensing techniques, GIS, and 3D modeling. The volume of water required to restore the Lake water level to that of previous years and the ecological water level was calculated based on LBDEM. The results indicate a marked change in the area and volume of the lake from its maximum water level in 1998 to its minimum level in 2014. During this period, 86% of the lake became a salt desert and the volume of the lake water in 2013 was just 0.83% of the 1998 volume. The volume of water required to restore Urmia Lake from benchmark status (in 2014) to ecological water level (1274.10 m) is 12.546 Bm 3 , excluding evaporation. The results and the proposed method can be used by national and international environmental organizations to monitor and assess the status of Urmia Lake and support them in decision-making.

  5. Estimating ground-water inflow to lakes in central Florida using the isotope mass-balance approach

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sacks, Laura A.

    2002-01-01

    The isotope mass-balance approach was used to estimate ground-water inflow to 81 lakes in the central highlands and coastal lowlands of central Florida. The study area is characterized by a subtropical climate and numerous lakes in a mantled karst terrain. Ground-water inflow was computed using both steady-state and transient formulations of the isotope mass-balance equation. More detailed data were collected from two study lakes, including climatic, hydrologic, and isotopic (hydrogen and oxygen isotope ratio) data. For one of these lakes (Lake Starr), ground-water inflow was independently computed from a water-budget study. Climatic and isotopic data collected from the two lakes were similar even though they were in different physiographic settings about 60 miles apart. Isotopic data from all of the study lakes plotted on an evaporation trend line, which had a very similar slope to the theoretical slope computed for Lake Starr. These similarities suggest that data collected from the detailed study lakes can be extrapolated to the rest of the study area. Ground-water inflow computed using the isotope mass-balance approach ranged from 0 to more than 260 inches per year (or 0 to more than 80 percent of total inflows). Steady-state and transient estimates of ground-water inflow were very similar. Computed ground-water inflow was most sensitive to uncertainty in variables used to calculate the isotopic composition of lake evaporate (isotopic compositions of lake water and atmospheric moisture and climatic variables). Transient results were particularly sensitive to changes in the isotopic composition of lake water. Uncertainty in ground-water inflow results is considerably less for lakes with higher ground-water inflow than for lakes with lower ground-water inflow. Because of these uncertainties, the isotope mass-balance approach is better used to distinguish whether ground-water inflow quantities fall within certain ranges of values, rather than for precise

  6. δ18O and δD of lake waters across the Coast Range and Cascades, central Oregon: Modern insights from hydrologically open lakes into the control of landscape on lake water composition in deep time

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Finkelstein, D. B.; Curtin, T.

    2016-12-01

    Reconstructing the stable isotopic composition of paleolake water normally requires an assumption of paleotemperature. However, hydrologically open paleolakes with short water residence times may have recorded paleoprecipitation along topographic gradients that are independent of lake water temperature. To identify the environmental and geographic controls on the isotopic composition of lake water, we sampled 22 natural lakes and reservoirs along a longitudinal and elevation gradient from the Pacific Ocean up and over the Coast and Cascade Ranges of central Oregon to the High Lava Plains in 2013 and 2015. The transect spans lakes of different origins, 6 geomorphic regions and an elevation range of 2-1942 m absl. The Coast Range lakes are sand hosted whereas the remaining are bedrock (volcanic and sedimentary) hosted. The lakes are hydrologically open and dominated by meteoric recharge. The water residence time ranges from months to decades. Samples were analyzed for temperature, pH, and total dissolved solids (TDS) in the field, and alkalinity and major cations and anions and stable isotopes of D and O in the lab. The pH ranges from 7 to 9.8 and shows no systematic variation based on substrate type or elevation. The lakes are dilute (avg. TDS = 35.8 ppm) and have low alkalinties (18.9 mg/L CaCO3) except for those in the High Lava Plains (avg. TDS = 337 ppm, alk: 291.2 mg/L CaCO3). In the Coast Range, Na is the major cation on an equivalent basis, reflecting proximity to the ocean. The easternmost lakes within the Coast Range are dominated by Ca, reflecting different drainage basins and substrate type. Lakes in the Western and High Cascades are dominated by Ca. The dominant cation and stable isotopic analyses clearly differentiate waters from different geomorphic regions. The δ18O ranges from -5.7 to -9.3 ‰ (VSMOW), and δD ranges from -37.8 to -63.6 ‰ (VSMOW) in the Coast Range whereas the δ18O ranges from -9.7 to -12.1 ‰ (VSMOW) and δD ranges from -71

  7. Water ecological carrying capacity of urban lakes in the context of rapid urbanization: A case study of East Lake in Wuhan

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ding, Lei; Chen, Kun-lun; Cheng, Sheng-gao; Wang, Xu

    With the excessive development of social economy, water scarcity and water environment deterioration become a common phenomenon in metropolis. As a crucial component of urban water environment system, urban lake is mainly influenced by social economic system and tourism system. In this paper, a framework for quantitatively evaluating development sustainability of urban lake was established by a multi-objective model that represented water ecological carrying capacity (WECC). And nine key indicators including population, irrigation area, tourist quantity, the average number of hotel daily reception, TP, TN, CODMn, BOD5 were chosen from urban social-economy system and natural resilience aspects, with their index weight was determined by using the Structure Entropy Weight method. Then, we took Wuhan East Lake, the largest urban lake in China as a case study, and selected five time sections including 2002, 2004, 2007, 2009 and 2012 to synthetically evaluate and comparatively analyze the dynamic change of WECC. The results showed that: firstly, the water ecological carrying capacity values of the East Lake in five time sections were 1.17, 1.07, 1.64, 1.53 and 2.01 respectively, which all exceeded 1 and increased fluctuation. The rapid growth of population and GDP lead to sharply increasing demand for water quantity. However, a large amount of the domestic sewage and industrial waste led by economic development increases pressure on ecological environment of urban lakes. Secondly, the carrying capacity of the East Lake for tourist activities was still low. The value in 2012 was only 0.22, keeping at a slowly increasing phase, which indicates that the East Lake has large opportunity and space for developing the water resource carrying capacity and could make further efforts to attract tourists. Moreover, the WECC of the East Lake was mainly affected by rapid social and economic development and water environment damage caused by organic pollutants. From the view of urban

  8. [Pediatric case series in an ophthalmic camp in Turkana (Kenya)].

    PubMed

    Noval, S; Cabrejas, L; Jarrín, E; Ruiz-Guerrero, M; Ciancas, E

    2013-12-01

    Turkana is the largest district in Kenya, situated in the Northwest of the country. It features a semi-nomadic population of 850,000. Around 60% of population lives below the poverty threshold. The ratio of doctors is 1:75,000 inhabitants. Five ophthalmologists took part in the last deployment in November. Local staff had previously selected the patients from the rural areas, as well as in Lodwar, the capital of the district. Of the 371 patients who attended the clinic, 128 required surgery. To describe the pediatric population attended to in the last «Turkana Eye Project» Camp. Description of the ophthalmic pathologies of the children seen in the clinic in this surgical camp, and the diagnostic and therapeutic options according to the limitations of the environment. Of the 371 patients, 54 were younger than 15 years old (14.5%). Four children had surgery (3.25% of the 128 patients). In 2 more cases surgery was the indicated but not performed. Therefore, of the total of 54 cases, 6 could be considered as surgical (11.1%), and 17 suffered ophthalmic problems other than refraction defects, or mild ocular surface pathologies: traumatic cataracts, neuropathies, impetigo, exophthalmos, retinal dystrophies, dermoid cysts, or nyctalopia. The etiology was traumatic in four of the 17 children (23.5%). Surgical camps are increasing in the developing countries. They are usually focused on particular pathologies, such as cataracts or trachoma. Our case series shows the importance of pediatric teams and the need to be prepared to face complex pediatric pathologies. Copyright © 2012 Sociedad Española de Oftalmología. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

  9. Fishery survey of U. S. waters of Lake Ontario

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wells, LaRue

    1969-01-01

    Gill nets and trawls were fished by the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries R/V Cisco during September 19-23, 1964, at several locations and depths in the offshore United States waters of Lake Ontario. Water temperatures were low (3.7-8.3 A?C) at all fishing stations except one (16.4 A?C). Supplementary data were provided by the Bureau's R/V Kaho in 1966. Alewives and smelt were common. Ciscoes were extremely scarce, but large; most of those caught were bloaters. Slimy sculpins were abundant, but no deepwater sculpins were caught. Yellow perch were scarce. Although the warm water species were inadequately sampled, trout-perch seemed to be abundant. Other species, all caught in small numbers, were lake trout, spottail shiners, burbot, threespine sticklebacks, and johnny darters from cold water and northern pike, lake chubs, white suckers, white bass, white perch, and rock bass from warm water.

  10. Watershed influences and in-lake processes - A regional-scale approach to monitoring a water-supply reservoir, Lake Houston near Houston, Texas

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Oden, Timothy D.; Graham, Jennifer L.

    2008-01-01

    Created in 1954 by an impoundment on the San Jacinto River, Lake Houston currently (2008) supplies about 20 percent of the total source water for the city of Houston. Houston historically has relied on ground water as the major source of supply. As a result of regulations to limit ground-water withdrawals because of associated land subsidence (effective in 2010), the lake will become the primary source of water supply for the city in the future. Since 1983 the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the City of Houston, has collected water-quality and lake-level data at Lake Houston, as well as discharge and intermittent water-quality data at its major inflowing tributaries. Previous studies indicate that Lake Houston is shallow, eutrophic, light limited and has a variable hydrologic regime with water residence times ranging from 12 hours to 400 days. Spring Creek, a tributary that drains the western, more urban, part of the Lake Houston watershed, contributes more sediment and nutrients than East Fork San Jacinto River, a tributary that drains the more rural, eastern part of the watershed. This fact sheet explains the importance of monitoring for management of the resource and describes ongoing research in the Lake Houston watershed by the USGS and the City.

  11. LakeSST: Lake Skin Surface Temperature in French inland water bodies for 1999-2016 from Landsat archives

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Prats, Jordi; Reynaud, Nathalie; Rebière, Delphine; Peroux, Tiphaine; Tormos, Thierry; Danis, Pierre-Alain

    2018-04-01

    The spatial and temporal coverage of the Landsat satellite imagery make it an ideal resource for the monitoring of water temperature over large territories at a moderate spatial and temporal scale at a low cost. We used Landsat 5 and Landsat 7 archive images to create the Lake Skin Surface Temperature (LakeSST) data set, which contains skin water surface temperature data for 442 French water bodies (natural lakes, reservoirs, ponds, gravel pit lakes and quarry lakes) for the period 1999-2016. We assessed the quality of the satellite temperature measurements by comparing them to in situ measurements and taking into account the cool skin and warm layer effects. To estimate these effects and to investigate the theoretical differences between the freshwater and seawater cases, we adapted the COARE 3.0 algorithm to the freshwater environment. We also estimated the warm layer effect using in situ data. At the reservoir of Bimont, the estimated cool skin effect was about -0.3 and -0.6 °C most of time, while the warm layer effect at 0.55 m was negligible on average, but could occasionally attain several degrees, and a cool layer was often observed in the night. The overall RMSE of the satellite-derived temperature measurements was about 1.2 °C, similar to other applications of satellite images to estimate freshwater surface temperatures. The LakeSST data can be used for studies on the temporal evolution of lake water temperature and for geographical studies of temperature patterns. The LakeSST data are available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1193745.

  12. The importance of lake-specific characteristics for water quality across the continental United States.

    PubMed

    Read, Emily K; Patil, Vijay P; Oliver, Samantha K; Hetherington, Amy L; Brentrup, Jennifer A; Zwart, Jacob A; Winters, Kirsten M; Corman, Jessica R; Nodine, Emily R; Woolway, R Iestyn; Dugan, Hilary A; Jaimes, Aline; Santoso, Arianto B; Hong, Grace S; Winslow, Luke A; Hanson, Paul C; Weathers, Kathleen C

    2015-06-01

    Lake water quality is affected by local and regional drivers, including lake physical characteristics, hydrology, landscape position, land cover, land use, geology, and climate. Here, we demonstrate the utility of hypothesis testing within the landscape limnology framework using a random forest algorithm on a national-scale, spatially explicit data set, the United States Environmental Protection Agency's 2007 National Lakes Assessment. For 1026 lakes, we tested the relative importance of water quality drivers across spatial scales, the importance of hydrologic connectivity in mediating water quality drivers, and how the importance of both spatial scale and connectivity differ across response variables for five important in-lake water quality metrics (total phosphorus, total nitrogen, dissolved organic carbon, turbidity, and conductivity). By modeling the effect of water quality predictors at different spatial scales, we found that lake-specific characteristics (e.g., depth, sediment area-to-volume ratio) were important for explaining water quality (54-60% variance explained), and that regionalization schemes were much less effective than lake specific metrics (28-39% variance explained). Basin-scale land use and land cover explained between 45-62% of variance, and forest cover and agricultural land uses were among the most important basin-scale predictors. Water quality drivers did not operate independently; in some cases, hydrologic connectivity (the presence of upstream surface water features) mediated the effect of regional-scale drivers. For example, for water quality in lakes with upstream lakes, regional classification schemes were much less effective predictors than lake-specific variables, in contrast to lakes with no upstream lakes or with no surface inflows. At the scale of the continental United States, conductivity was explained by drivers operating at larger spatial scales than for other water quality responses. The current regulatory practice of using

  13. Effects of climate change on deep-water oxygen and winter mixing in a deep lake (Lake Geneva)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schwefel, Robert; Alfred, Wüest; Damien, Bouffard

    2016-04-01

    Oxygen is the most important dissolved gas for lake ecosystems. Because low oxygen concentrations are an ongoing problem in many parts of the oceans and numerous lakes, oxygen depletion processes have been intensively studied over the last decades and were mainly attributed to high nutrient loads. Recently, climate-induced changes in stratification and mixing behavior were recognized as additional thread to hypolimnetic oxygen budgets in lakes and reservoirs [Matzinger et al., 2007; Zhang et al., 2015]. Observational data of Lake Geneva, a deep perialpine lake situated between France and Switzerland showed no decreasing trend in hypoxia over the last 43 years, despite an impressive reduction in nutrient input during this period. Instead, hypoxic conditions were predominantly controlled by deep mixing end of winter and in turn by winter temperatures. To test the sensitivity of Lake Geneva on future climate change and changes in water transparency, we simulated the hydrodynamics and temperature of Lake Geneva under varying conditions for atmospheric temperature and water clarity performed with the one-dimensional model SIMSTRAT [Goudsmit, 2002]. The results show, that the stratification in lakes is only weakly affected by changes in light absorption due to varying water quality. For conditions expected for the end of the century, a decrease in the annual mean deep convective mixing of up to 45 m is predicted. Also complete mixing events over the whole lake are less likely to occur. A change in the hypolimnetic oxygen concentration of up to 20% can thus be expected in the future. These results show, that changes in deep mixing have an equally strong impact as eutrophication on the deep-water oxygen development of oligomictic lakes and have to be considered in the prediction of the future development of lakes. References: Goudsmit, G. H., H. Burchard, F. Peeters, and A. Wüest (2002), Application of k-ɛ turbulence models to enclosed basins: The role of internal

  14. Spatial and Temporal Water Quality Patterns in Open-Water Lake Michigan from the 2015 CSMI

    EPA Science Inventory

    Water quality patterns in the Laurentian Great Lakes broadly reflect climate, surficial geography, and landuse but are also shaped by limnological and biological processes. Open-water sampling conducted as part of the 2015 Lake Michigan interagency coordinated science and monito...

  15. The Socio-hydrology of Bangalore's Lake System and implications for Urban Water Security

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Srinivasan, V.; Roy, S.

    2017-12-01

    Bengaluru city has experienced unprecedented growth in recent decades. If the city is to sustain growth and claim its position as a "global" high-tech city, it must be able to secure sufficient water supply and also create a healthy livable environment. With the city's many lakes vanishing due to rapid urbanisation, depletion of groundwater as a result of overuse in the peri-urban areas, and lack of proper underground drainage system and sewage treatment plants, Bangalore is now grappling with issues of imminent water crisis, inequitable access to water supply, and public health hazards. In this context, the restoration of Bangalore's lakes has been promoted as a panacea for its flooding, water stress, and wastewater problems. It has been argued that lakes can store storm water and recycled wastewater and avoid the need for potentially destructive, expensive schemes that may destroy biodiversity rich aquatic ecosystems and forests. Bangalore's lakes are linked by the drainage channels to form a cascade; overflow from each lake flows to the next lake downstream. Yet, most efforts have tended to view the lakes in isolation. This study of the hydrology of Bangalore's lake system in its entirety simulates the lake system as a whole. The study explores approaches to management and theor impact on urban water security.

  16. Drainage water phosphorus losses in the great lakes basin

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    The great lakes are one of the most important fresh water resources on the planet. While forestry is a primary land use throughout much of the great lakes basin, there are portions of the basin, such as much of the land that drains directly to Lake Erie, that are primarily agricultural. The primary ...

  17. Modeling hydrodynamics, temperature and water quality in Henry Hagg Lake, Oregon, 2000-2003

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sullivan, Annette B.; Rounds, Stewart A.

    2004-01-01

    The two-dimensional model CE-QUAL-W2 was used to simulate hydrodynamics, temperature, and water quality in Henry Hagg Lake, Oregon, for the years 2000 through 2003. Input data included lake bathymetry, meteorologic conditions, tributary inflows, tributary temperature and water quality, and lake outflows. Calibrated constituents included lake hydrodynamics, water temperature, orthophosphate, total phosphorus, ammonia, algae, chlorophyll a, zooplankton, and dissolved oxygen. Other simulated constituents included nitrate, dissolved and particulate organic matter, dissolved solids, and suspended sediment. Two algal groups (blue-green algae, and all other algae) were included in the model to simulate the lakes algal communities. Measured lake stage data were used to calibrate the lakes water balance; calibration of water temperature and water quality relied upon vertical profile data taken in the deepest part of the lake near the dam. The model initially was calibrated with data from 200001 and tested with data from 200203. Sensitivity tests were performed to examine the response of the model to specific parameters and coefficients, including the light-extinction coefficient, wind speed, tributary inflows of phosphorus, nitrogen and organic matter, sediment oxygen demand, algal growth rates, and zooplankton feeding preference factors.

  18. Recreational demand for clean water: Evidence from geotagged photographs by visitors to lakes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Keeler, B.; Wood, S.; Polasky, S.; Kling, C.; Filstrup, C.; Downing, J. A.

    2014-12-01

    More than 41,000 waters are listed as impaired by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the Clean Water Act. Regulations designed to address these impairments can be costly, raising questions about the value of the public benefits that would result from additional investments in improving surface water quality. Benefit studies often rely on costly surveys or other detailed data collection, limiting the ability to apply nonmarket valuation methods to address policy needs. We assessed the recreational value of changes in water quality using freely-available geotagged photographs as a proxy for recreational visits to lakes. We find that improved water clarity is associated with greater lake photo-visitation and that lake users are willing to travel further to visit clearer lakes. We estimate a one-meter increase in lake clarity in Minnesota and Iowa lakes is associated with $22 in increased willingness-to-pay per trip and generates 1,400 additional annual visits per lake, holding all other lake attributes constant. Our approach demonstrates the potential of data from social media to inform human responses to environmental change.

  19. NASA Images Show Decreased Clarity in Lake Tahoe Water

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2002-08-06

    Images from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer aboard NASA's Terra satellite, launched in 1999, illustrate the state of gradually decreasing water clarity at Lake Tahoe, one of the clearest lakes in the world. The images are available at: http://asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/default.htm. In the image on the left, acquired in November 2000, vegetation can be seen in red. The image on the right, acquired at the same time by a different spectral band of the instrument, is color-coded to show the bottom of the lake around the shoreline. Where the data are black, the bottom cannot be seen. Scientists monitoring the lake's water clarity from boat measurements obtained since 1965 have discovered that the lake along the California-Nevada border has lost more than one foot of visibility each year, according to the Lake Tahoe Watershed Assessment, a review of scientific information about the lake undertaken at the request of President Clinton and published in February 2000. The most likely causes are increases in algal growth, sediment washed in from surrounding areas and urban growth and development. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA03854

  20. The evolution of hydrological and water quality conditions on Techirghiol Lake

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Maftei, Carmen; Buta, Constantin; Tofan, Lucica

    2015-04-01

    Changes in climate and environment conditions alter the hydraulic and chemical properties of lakes. With a surface from 1300ha, the Techirghiol Lake, situated on the littoral of the Black Sea at 15km from Constanta town, is considered the greatest hypersaline lake of Romania very well known (from 1891) especially for the curative qualities of its water and mud. Physical and geographical conditions associated with an arid climate regime - where the annual precipitation is less than 400mm and the average temperatures exceed (lead evaporative potential to 700-1000mm), cause a strong concentration of mineral salts that give the lake an excessive salinity. In conditions of excessive salinity forms a therapeutic mud as a result of bacterial decomposition of aquatic organisms that have done there, especially crustaceans Arthemia and algae that live in water. This mud, highly hydrated, rich in minerals, has therapeutic properties, for this reason in Techirghiol has developed a strong health resort. Fresh water is a threat to the therapeutic lake properties. In hydrological year 1961-1962, the overland flow value to the lake was approximately 0.4 million m3, and from 1972-1973 the value reached 6 million cubic meters per year a great contribution was from the irrigation water. One of the consequences is the increasing of the lake level and the second is the decreasing of salinity. For this reason a hydraulic work system has been built to separate the saline water of the lake and the freshwater. The aim of this paper is to investigate the hydrologic and chemical responses of the Techirghiol Lake to the changes in climate and environment conditions.

  1. Chemical Evolution of Groundwater Near a Sinkhole Lake, Northern Florida: 1. Flow Patterns, Age of Groundwater, and Influence of Lake Water Leakage

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Katz, Brian G.; Lee, Terrie M.; Plummer, L. Niel; Busenberg, Eurybiades

    1995-06-01

    Leakage from sinkhole lakes significantly influences recharge to the Upper Floridan aquifer in poorly confined sediments in northern Florida. Environmental isotopes (oxygen 18, deuterium, and tritium), chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs: CFC-11, CCl3F; CFC-12, CCl2F2; and CFC-113, C2Cl3F3), and solute tracers were used to investigate groundwater flow patterns near Lake Barco, a seepage lake in a mantled karst setting in northern Florida. Stable isotope data indicated that the groundwater downgradient from the lake contained 11-67% lake water leakage, with a limit of detection of lake water in groundwater of 4.3%. The mixing fractions of lake water leakage, which passed through organic-rich sediments in the lake bottom, were directly proportional to the observed methane concentrations and increased with depth in the groundwater flow system. In aerobic groundwater upgradient from Lake Barco, CFC-modeled recharge dates ranged from 1987 near the water table to the mid 1970s for water collected at a depth of 30 m below the water table. CFC-modeled recharge dates (based on CFC-12) for anaerobic groundwater downgradient from the lake ranged from the late 1950s to the mid 1970s and were consistent with tritium data. CFC-modeled recharge dates based on CFC-11 indicated preferential microbial degradation in anoxic waters. Vertical hydraulic conductivities, calculated using CFC-12 modeled recharge dates and Darcy's law, were 0.17, 0.033, and 0.019 m/d for the surficial aquifer, intermediate confining unit, and lake sediments, respectively. These conductivities agreed closely with those used in the calibration of a three-dimensional groundwater flow model for transient and steady state flow conditions.

  2. Water transparency distribution under varied currents in the largest river-connected lake of China.

    PubMed

    Wang, Hua; Zhao, Yijun; Zhang, Zhizhang; Pang, Yong; Liang, Dongfang

    2017-01-01

    Water transparency is an important ecological indicator for shallow lakes. The largest shallow lake, Poyang Lake, as well as the most typical river-connected lake in China was selected as the research area. In view of the complicated water-sediment conditions induced by its frequent water exchange with external rivers, the dominant factors driving water transparency were determined against the field investigated data from 2003 to 2013 and a specific driving function was established. A numerical model coupling suspended sediment, Chl-a and chemical oxygen demand was developed and validated, and the spatial water transparency distributions under three typical current structures in Poyang Lake, Gravity-style, Jacking-style and Backflow-style, were quantitatively estimated. The following results stood out: water transparency in the lake varied distinctly with the current status; Backflow-style current was basically characterized by the lowest water transparency, while that under Jacking-style was the highest due to the lower sediment carrying capacity. In some outlying regions in the lake, where the water current is hardly influenced by the mainstream, the water transparency was always kept at a stable level.

  3. Progress report: chemical character of surface waters in the Devils Lake Basin, North Dakota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Swenson, Herbert A.

    1950-01-01

    Devils Lake in northeastern North Dakota was at one time the most popular summer resort in the state. With decline in lake level the lake has become a shallow body pf vary saline water, which scenic value and recreational appeal completely destroyed. Under the Missouri River development program, it is proposed to restore the lake level to an altitude of 1,425 feet by diversion of Missouri River water. The chemical character of the water in Devils Lake and in other surface bodies in Devils Lake Basin is determined from the analyses of 95 samples. The physical and chemical properties of lake bed deposits are also shown. Lake water in the basin vary considerable in both concentration and composition, ranging from fresh bicarbonate waters of 300 parts per million dissolved solids to sulfate waters of over 100,000 parts per million of soluble salts. Twenty-four samples indicates the chemical character of water in the Red River of the North and its tributaries. The probable concentration of dissolved solids in water of Devils Lake at altitude 1,425 feet has been estimated as ranging from 3,000 to 7,600 parts per million. Final concentration will largely depend upon the percentage of deposited salts reentering solution and the quality of the inflow water. The possible effects of lake effluents on downstream developments, with particular reference to sanitation and pollution problems, are also discussed in this report.

  4. Human land uses enhance sediment denitrification and N2O production in Yangtze lakes primarily by influencing lake water quality

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, W.; Yao, L.; Wang, Z.; Xiong, Z.; Liu, G.

    2015-10-01

    Sediment denitrification in lakes alleviates the effects of eutrophication through the removal of nitrogen to the atmosphere as N2O and N2. However, N2O contributes notably to the greenhouse effect and global warming. Human land uses (e.g. agricultural and urban areas) strongly affect lake water quality and sediment characteristics, which, in turn, may regulate lake sediment denitrification and N2O production. In this study, we investigated sediment denitrification and N2O production and their relationships to within-lake variables and watershed land uses in 20 lakes from the Yangtze River basin in China. The results indicated that both lake water quality and sediment characteristics were significantly influenced by watershed land uses. N2O production rates increased with increasing background denitrification rates. Background denitrification and N2O production rates were positively related to water nitrogen concentrations but were not significantly correlated with sediment characteristics and plant community structure. A significant positive relationship was observed between background denitrification rate and percentage of human-dominated land uses (HDL) in watersheds. Structural equation modelling revealed that the indirect effects of HDL on sediment denitrification and N2O production in Yangtze lakes were mediated primarily through lake water quality. Our findings also suggest that although sediments in Yangtze lakes can remove large quantities of nitrogen through denitrification, they may also be an important source of N2O, especially in lakes with high nitrogen content.

  5. BACTERIAL INHIBITORS IN LAKE WATER

    EPA Science Inventory

    The populations of six bacterial genera fell rapidly after their addition to sterile lake water but not after their addition to buffer. The decline in numbers of two species that were studied further, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Micrococcus flavus, occurred even when the buffer was...

  6. Use of isotopic data to estimate water residence times of the Finger Lakes, New York

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Michel, Robert L.; Kraemer, Thomas F.

    1995-01-01

    Water retention times in the Finger Lakes, a group of 11 lakes in central New York with similar hydrologic and climatic characteristics, were estimated by use of a tritium-balance model. During July 1991, samples were collected from the 11 lakes and selected tributary streams and were analyzed for tritium, deuterium, and oxygen-18. Additional samples from some of the sites were collected in 1990, 1992 and 1993. Tritium concentration in lake water ranged from 24.6 Tritium Units (TU) (Otisco Lake) to 43.2 TU (Seneca Lake).The parameters in the model used to obtain water retention time (WRT) included relative humidity, evaporation rate, tritium concentrations of inflowing water and lake water, and WRT of the lake. A historical record of tritium concentrations in precipitation and runoff was obtained from rainfall data at Ottawa, Canada, analyses of local wines produced during 1977–1991, and streamflow samples collected in 1990–1991. The model was simulated in yearly steps for 1953–1991, and the WRT was varied to reproduce tritium concentrations measured in each lake in 1991. Water retention times obtained from model simulations ranged from 1 year for Otisco Lake to 12 years for Seneca Lake, and with the exception of Seneca Lake and Skaneateles Lake, were in agreement with earlier estimates obtained from runoff estimates and chloride balances. The sensitivity of the model to parameter changes was tested to determine possible reasons for the differences calculated for WRT's for Seneca Lake and Skaneateles Lake. The shorter WRT obtained from tritium data for Lake Seneca (12 years as compared to 18 years) can be explained by a yearly addition of less than 3% by lake volume of ground water to the lake, the exact percentage depending on tritium concentration in the ground water.

  7. Causes of declining survival of lake trout stocked in U.S. waters of Lake Superior in 1963-1986

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hansen, Michael J.; Ebener, Mark P.; Schorfhaar, Richard G.; Schram, Stephen T.; Schreiner, Donald R.; Selgeby, James H.; Taylor, William W.

    1996-01-01

    Survival of the 1963-1982 year-classes of stocked yearling lake trout Salvelinus namaycush declined significantly over time in Lake Superior. To investigate possible causes of this decline, a Ricker model of stock-recruitment was used to describe the catch per effort (CPE) of age-7 stocked lake trout in the Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior as functions of the numbers of yearlings stocked 6 years earlier (an index of density dependence), the density (CPE) of wild adult lake trout (an index of predation), and large-mesh (a?Y 114-mm stretch-measure) gill-net fishing effort (an index of fishing mortality). Declining CPE of stocked lake trout in Michigan and Wisconsin was significantly associated with increasing large-mesh gillnet fishing effort. Declining CPE of stocked lake trout in Minnesota was significantly associated with increasing density of wild lake trout. Declining survival of stocked lake trout may therefore have been caused by increased mortality in large-mesh gill-net fisheries in Michigan and Wisconsin, and by predation by wild lake trout that recently recolonized the Minnesota area. We recommend that experimental management be pursued to determine the relative importance of large-mesh gillnet fishing effort and of predation by wild lake trout on the survival of stocked lake trout in U.S. waters of Lake Superior.

  8. Fluctuation of the Water Environmental Carrying Capacity in a Huge River-Connected Lake

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Hua; Zhou, Yiyi; Tang, Yang; Wu, Mengan; Deng, Yanqing

    2015-01-01

    A new method, with the non-fully mixed coefficient (NFMC) considered, was put forward to calculate the water environmental carrying capacity (WECC) for huge river-connected lakes, of which the hydrological conditions always vary widely during a year. Poyang Lake, the most typical river-connected lake and the largest freshwater lake in China, was selected as the research area. Based on field investigations and numerical simulation, the monthly pollutant degradation coefficients and non-fully mixed coefficients of different lake regions were determined to explore the WECCs of COD, TN and TP of Poyang Lake in a common water year. It was found that under the hydrological conditions of a common water year the total WECCs of COD, TN and TP in the lake were respectively 181.9 × 104 t, 33.3 × 104 t and 1.86 × 104 t. Due to the varied lake water volume and self-purification ability, an evident temporal fluctuation of WECCs in Poyang Lake was observed. The dry seasons were characterized by a higher NFMCs but lower WECCs owing to the lower water level and degradation ability. Variation coefficients of COD and TN WECC were close to each other, of which the average level was about 58.5%, a little higher than that of TP. PMID:25830284

  9. Lake Recovery Through Reduced Sulfate Deposition: A New Paradigm for Drinking Water Treatment.

    PubMed

    Anderson, Lindsay E; Krkošek, Wendy H; Stoddart, Amina K; Trueman, Benjamin F; Gagnon, Graham A

    2017-02-07

    This study examined sulfate deposition in Nova Scotia from 1999 to 2015, and its association with increased pH and organic matter in two protected surface water supplies (Pockwock Lake and Lake Major) located in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The study also examined the effect of lake water chemistry on drinking water treatment processes. Sulfate deposition in the region decreased by 68%, whereas pH increased by 0.1-0.4 units over the 16-year period. Average monthly color concentrations in Pockwock Lake and Lake Major increased by 1.7 and 3.8×, respectively. Accordingly, the coagulant demand increased by 1.5 and 3.8× for the water treatment plants supplied by Pockwock Lake and Lake Major. Not only was this coagulant increase costly for the utility, it also resulted in compromised filter performance, particularly for the direct-biofiltration plant supplied by Pockwock Lake that was found to already be operating at the upper limit of the recommended direct filtration thresholds for color, total organic carbon and coagulant dose. Additionally, in 2012-2013 geosmin occurred in Pockwock Lake, which could have been attributed to reduced sulfate deposition as increases in pH favor more diverse cyanobacteria populations. Overall, this study demonstrated the impact that ambient air quality can have on drinking water supplies.

  10. Water-quality and bottom-material characteristics of Cross Lake, Caddo Parish, Louisiana, 1997-99

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    McGee, Benton D.

    2004-01-01

    Cross Lake is a shallow, monomictic lake that was formed in 1926 by the impoundment of Cross Bayou. The lake is the primary drinking-water supply for the City of Shreveport, Louisiana. In recent years, the lakeshore has become increasinginly urbanized. In addition, the land use of the watershed contributing runoff to Cross Lake has changed. Changes in land use and urbanization could affect the water chemistry and biology of the Lake. Water-quality data were collected at 10 sites on Cross Lake from February 1997 to February 1999. Water-column and bottom-material samples were collected. The water-column samples were collected at least four times per year. These samples included physical and chemical-related properties such as water temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, and specific conductance; selected major inorganic ions; nutrients; minor elements; organic chemical constituents; and bacteria. Suspended-sediment samples were collected seven times during the sampling period. The bottom-material samples, which were collected once during the sampling period, were analyzed for selected minor elements and inorganic carbon. Aside from the nutrient-enriched condition of Cross Lake, the overall water-quality of Cross Lake is good. No primary Federal or State water-quality criteria were exceeded by any of the water-quality constituents analyzed for this report. Concentrations of major inorganic constituents, except iron and manganese, were low. Water from the lake is a sodium-bicarbonate type and is soft. Minor elements and organic compounds were present in low concentrations, many below detection limits. Nitrogen and phosphorus were the nutrients occurring in the highest concentrations. Nutrients were evenly distributed across the lake with no particular water-quality site indicating consistently higher or lower nutrient concentrations. No water samples analyzed for nitrate exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Maximum Contaminant Level of 10 milligrams per

  11. Simulation of hydrodynamics, water quality, and lake sturgeon habitat volumes in Lake St. Croix, Wisconsin and Minnesota, 2013

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Smith, Erik A.; Kiesling, Richard L.; Ziegeweid, Jeffrey R.; Elliott, Sarah M.; Magdalene, Suzanne

    2018-01-05

    Lake St. Croix is a naturally impounded, riverine lake that makes up the last 40 kilometers of the St. Croix River. Substantial land-use changes during the past 150 years, including increased agriculture and urban development, have reduced Lake St. Croix water-quality and increased nutrient loads delivered to Lake St. Croix. A recent (2012–13) total maximum daily load phosphorus-reduction plan set the goal to reduce total phosphorus loads to Lake St. Croix by 20 percent by 2020 and reduce Lake St. Croix algal bloom frequencies. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the National Park Service, developed a two-dimensional, carbon-based, laterally averaged, hydrodynamic and water-quality model, CE–QUAL–W2, that addresses the interaction between nutrient cycling, primary production, and trophic dynamics to predict responses in the distribution of water temperature, oxygen, and chlorophyll a. Distribution is evaluated in the context of habitat for lake sturgeon, including a combination of temperature and dissolved oxygen conditions termed oxy-thermal habitat.The Lake St. Croix CE–QUAL–W2 model successfully reproduced temperature and dissolved oxygen in the lake longitudinally (from upstream to downstream), vertically, and temporally over the seasons. The simulated water temperature profiles closely matched the measured water temperature profiles throughout the year, including the prediction of thermocline transition depths (often within 1 meter), the absolute temperature of the thermocline transitions (often within 1.0 degree Celsius), and profiles without a strong thermocline transition. Simulated dissolved oxygen profiles matched the trajectories of the measured dissolved oxygen concentrations at multiple depths over time, and the simulated concentrations matched the depth and slope of the measured concentrations.Additionally, trends in the measured water-quality data were captured by the model simulation, gaining some potential insights into the

  12. Diversionary reframing of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement.

    PubMed

    Gilbertson, Michael; Watterson, Andrew E

    2007-07-01

    The United States and Canadian governments are undertaking a periodic review of the operation and effectiveness of the 1978 Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement through extended public meetings and conference calls. The stated purpose of the Agreement is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical and biological integrity of the waters of the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem. For a variety of motives, several interest groups have represented the water quality agreement as being instead about maintaining and restoring ecosystem integrity for the entire Great Lakes basin. Through analysis of social, economic, political and diplomatic discourses, we have discovered and described these motives. The scientific evidence of continuing injury to health and property from trans-boundary pollution convinces us that this reframing is an unwarranted diversion from the original intent.

  13. Challenge to the model of lake charr evolution: Shallow- and deep-water morphs exist within a small postglacial lake

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Chavarie, Louise; Muir, Andrew M.; Zimmerman, Mara S.; Baillie, Shauna M.; Hansen, Michael J.; Nate, Nancy A.; Yule, Daniel L.; Middel, Trevor; Bentzen, Paul; Krueger, Charles C.

    2016-01-01

    All examples of lake charr (Salvelinus namaycush) diversity occur within the largest, deepest lakes of North America (i.e. > 2000 km2). We report here Rush Lake (1.3 km2) as the first example of a small lake with two lake charr morphs (lean and huronicus). Morphology, diet, life history, and genetics were examined to demonstrate the existence of morphs and determine the potential influence of evolutionary processes that led to their formation or maintenance. Results showed that the huronicus morph, caught in deep-water, had a deeper body, smaller head and jaws, higher eye position, greater buoyancy, and deeper peduncle than the shallow-water lean morph. Huronicus grew slower to a smaller adult size, and had an older mean age than the lean morph. Genetic comparisons showed low genetic divergence between morphs, indicating incomplete reproductive isolation. Phenotypic plasticity and differences in habitat use between deep and shallow waters associated with variation in foraging opportunities seems to have been sufficient to maintain the two morphs, demonstrating their important roles in resource polymorphism. Rush Lake expands previous explanations for lake charr intraspecific diversity, from large to small lakes and from reproductive isolation to the presence of gene flow associated with strong ecological drivers.

  14. Isotopic Estimation of Water Balance and Groundwater-Surface Water Interactions of Tropical Wetland Lakes in the Pantanal, Brazil

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schwerdtfeger, J.; Johnson, M. S.; Weiler, M.; Couto, E. G.

    2009-12-01

    The Pantanal is the largest and most pristine wetland of the world, yet hydrological research there is still in its infancy. In particular the water balance of the millions of lakes and ponds and their interaction with the groundwater and the rivers are not known. The aim of this study was to assess the hydrological behaviour between different water bodies in the dry season of the northern Pantanal wetland, Brazil, to provide a more general understanding of the hydrological functioning of tropical floodplain lakes and surface water-groundwater interactions of wetlands. In the field 6-9 water sample of seven different lakes were taken during 3 months and were analyzed for stable water isotopes and chloride. In addition meteorological data from a nearby station was used to estimate daily evaporation from the water surface. This information was then used to predict the hydrological dynamics to determine whether the lakes are evaporation-controlled or throughflow-dominated systems. A chloride mass balance served to evaluate whether Cl- enrichment took place due to evaporation only, or whether the system has significant inflow and/or outflow rates. The results of those methods showed that for all lakes the water budget in the dry season, output was controlled by strong evaporation while significant inflow rates were also apparent. Inflow rates and their specific concentrations in stable isotopes and chloride were successfully estimated using the simple mass balance model MINA TrêS. This approach enabled us to calculate the water balance for the lakes as well as providing an information on source water flowing into the lakes.

  15. Modeling Hydrodynamics, Water Temperature, and Suspended Sediment in Detroit Lake, Oregon

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sullivan, Annett B.; Rounds, Stewart A.; Sobieszczyk, Steven; Bragg, Heather M.

    2007-01-01

    Detroit Lake is a large reservoir on the North Santiam River in west-central Oregon. Water temperature and suspended sediment are issues of concern in the river downstream of the reservoir. A CE-QUAL-W2 model was constructed to simulate hydrodynamics, water temperature, total dissolved solids, and suspended sediment in Detroit Lake. The model was calibrated for calendar years 2002 and 2003, and for a period of storm runoff from December 1, 2005, to February 1, 2006. Input data included lake bathymetry, meteorology, reservoir outflows, and tributary inflows, water temperatures, total dissolved solids, and suspended sediment concentrations. Two suspended sediment size groups were modeled: one for suspended sand and silt with particle diameters larger than 2 micrometers, and another for suspended clay with particle diameters less than or equal to 2 micrometers. The model was calibrated using lake stage data, lake profile data, and data from a continuous water-quality monitor on the North Santiam River near Niagara, about 6 kilometers downstream of Detroit Dam. The calibrated model was used to estimate sediment deposition in the reservoir, examine the sources of suspended sediment exiting the reservoir, and examine the effect of the reservoir on downstream water temperatures.

  16. Table Rock Lake Water-Clarity Assessment Using Landsat Thematic Mapper Satellite Data

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Krizanich, Gary; Finn, Michael P.

    2009-01-01

    Water quality of Table Rock Lake in southwestern Missouri is assessed using Landsat Thematic Mapper satellite data. A pilot study uses multidate satellite image scenes in conjunction with physical measurements of secchi disk transparency collected by the Lakes of Missouri Volunteer Program to construct a regression model used to estimate water clarity. The natural log of secchi disk transparency is the dependent variable in the regression and the independent variables are Thematic Mapper band 1 (blue) reflectance and a ratio of the band 1 and band 3 (red) reflectance. The regression model can be used to reliably predict water clarity anywhere within the lake. A pixel-level lake map of predicted water clarity or computed trophic state can be produced from the model output. Information derived from this model can be used by water-resource managers to assess water quality and evaluate effects of changes in the watershed on water quality.

  17. The effects of water levels on Two Lake Ontario Wetlands

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Busch, Wolf-Dieter N.; Osborn, Ronald G.; Auble, Gregor T.

    1990-01-01

    Lake Ontario's water levels have been regulated since 1959, after the completion of the St. Lawrence River navigation and hydropower development project. The plan used to guide the regulation (1958-D) has been in effect since 1963 (Bryce, 1982). The purpose of the regulation was to prevent extreme high-water levels which increased erosion on the south shore of Lake Ontario, while protecting the interests of commercial navigation and hydropower production in the St. Lawrence River (T. Brown, personal communication, member of the Board of Control). Major user groups have sought further reductions in the range of lake level fluctuations. However, the biological resources, especially the lake influenced wetlands, benefit from the waterlevel fluctuations. Great Lakes wetlands are the most important habitat for wildlife of the region (Tilton and Schwegler, 1978). We provide information here on the responses of wetland plant communities in two wetlands to changes in lake levels over time.

  18. An analysis of the effects of temperatures and circulations on the strength of the low-level jet in the Turkana Channel in East Africa

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hartman, Adam T.

    2018-05-01

    The Turkana Low-Level Jet (LLJ) was discovered in the early 1980s, yet there are still questions about the primary forcing mechanisms that drive and sustain the jet throughout the year. A few studies have addressed these questions, but most focus on numerical simulations of mechanical forcing mechanisms, such as orography, channeling flow, and monsoon background flow. No studies have shown the effects of thermal forcing from differential heating in the regions in and around the Turkana Channel. This paper uses National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR) data and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA) data in order to analyze and find relationships between temperature gradients and the strength of the Turkana LLJ. In addition to temperature, potential temperature, divergence, wind magnitude, wind fields, and vertical motion are also examined. This analysis attempts to show that thermal forcing is one of the most important factors, if not the primary factor, in the initiation and maintenance of the jet and propose that more research and model simulations should be implemented to determine the contributions from thermal forcing.

  19. Research on the Relationship between Water Diversion and Water Quality of Xuanwu Lake, China.

    PubMed

    Song, Weiwei; Xu, Qing; Fu, Xingqian; Zhang, Peng; Pang, Yong; Song, Dahao

    2018-06-14

    Water diversion is often used to improve water quality to reach the standard of China in the short term. However, this large amount of water diversion can not only improve the water quality, but also lead to a decline in the water quality (total phosphorus, total nitrogen) of Xuanwu Lake. Through theoretical analysis, the relationship between water quality and water diversion is established. We also found that the multiplication of the pollutant degradation coefficient ( K ) and the water residence time ( T ) is a constant ( N ), K⋅T=N. The water quality changed better at first, with the increase of inflow discharge, and then became worse, and the optimal water quality inflow discharge is 180,000 m³/day. By constructing two-dimensional hydrodynamic and water quality models, the optimal diversion water plan is calculated. Through model calculations, it can be seen that reducing the inflow discharge makes the water residence time longer (15.3 days changed to 23.8 days). Thereby, increasing the degradation of pollutants, and thus improving water quality. Compared with other wind directions, the southwest wind makes the water quality of Xuanwu Lake the most uniform. The concentration of water quality first became smaller and then became larger, as the wind speed increased, and eventually became constant. Implementing these results for water quality improvement in small and medium lakes will significantly reduce the cost of water diversion.

  20. Simulation and assessment of groundwater flow and groundwater and surface-water exchanges in lakes of the northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area, Minnesota, 2003 through 2013: Chapter B of Water levels and groundwater and surface-water exchanges in lakes of the northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area, Minnesota, 2002 through 2015

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Jones, Perry M.; Roth, Jason L.; Trost, Jared J.; Christenson, Catherine A.; Diekoff, Aliesha L.; Erickson, Melinda L.

    2017-09-05

    Water levels during 2003 through 2013 were less than mean water levels for the period 1925–2013 for several lakes in the northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area in Minnesota. Previous periods of low lake-water levels generally were correlated with periods with less than mean precipitation. Increases in groundwater withdrawals and land-use changes have brought into question whether or not recent (2003–13) lake-water-level declines are solely caused by decreases in precipitation. A thorough understanding of groundwater and surface-water exchanges was needed to assess the effect of water-management decisions on lake-water levels. To address this need, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Metropolitan Council and the Minnesota Department of Health, developed and calibrated a three-dimensional, steady-state groundwater-flow model representing 2003–13 mean hydrologic conditions to assess groundwater and lake-water exchanges, and the effects of groundwater withdrawals and precipitation on water levels of 96 lakes in the northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area.Lake-water budgets for the calibrated groundwater-flow model indicated that groundwater is flowing into lakes in the northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area and lakes are providing water to underlying aquifers. Lake-water outflow to the simulated groundwater system was a major outflow component for Big Marine Lake, Lake Elmo, Snail Lake, and White Bear Lake, accounting for 45 to 64 percent of the total outflows from the lakes. Evaporation and transpiration from the lake surface ranged from 19 to 52 percent of the total outflow from the four lakes. Groundwater withdrawals and precipitation were varied from the 2003‒13 mean values used in the calibrated model (30-percent changes in groundwater withdrawals and 5-percent changes in precipitation) for hypothetical scenarios to assess the effects of groundwater withdrawals and precipitation on water budgets and levels in Big Marine Lake, Snail Lake

  1. Water Quality Conditions in Upper Klamath and Agency Lakes, Oregon, 2005

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hoilman, Gene R.; Lindenberg, Mary K.; Wood, Tamara M.

    2008-01-01

    During June-October 2005, water quality data were collected from Upper Klamath and Agency Lakes in Oregon, and meteorological data were collected around and within Upper Klamath Lake. Data recorded at two continuous water quality monitors in Agency Lake showed similar temperature patterns throughout the field season, but data recorded at the northern site showed more day-to-day variability for dissolved oxygen concentration and saturation after late June and more day-to-day variability for pH and specific conductance values after mid-July. Data recorded from the northern and southern parts of Agency Lake showed more comparable day-to-day variability in dissolved oxygen concentrations and pH from September through the end of the monitoring period. For Upper Klamath Lake, seasonal (late July through early August) lows of dissolved oxygen concentrations and saturation were coincident with a seasonal low of pH values and seasonal highs of ammonia and orthophosphate concentrations, specific conductance values, and water temperatures. Patterns in these parameters, excluding water temperature, were associated with bloom dynamics of the cyanobacterium (blue-green alga) Aphanizomenon flos-aquae in Upper Klamath Lake. In Upper Klamath Lake, water temperature in excess of 28 degrees Celsius (a high stress threshold for Upper Klamath Lake suckers) was recorded only once at one site during the field season. Large areas of Upper Klamath Lake had periods of dissolved oxygen concentration of less than 4 milligrams per liter and pH value greater than 9.7, but these conditions were not persistent throughout days at most sites. Dissolved oxygen concentrations in Upper Klamath Lake on time scales of days and months appeared to be influenced, in part, by bathymetry and prevailing current flow patterns. Diel patterns of water column stratification were evident, even at the deepest sites. This diel pattern of stratification was attributable to diel wind speed patterns and the shallow

  2. Water color affects the stratification, surface temperature, heat content, and mean epilimnetic irradiance of small lakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Houser, J.N.

    2006-01-01

    The effects of water color on lake stratification, mean epilimnetic irradiance, and lake temperature dynamics were examined in small, north-temperate lakes that differed widely in water color (1.5-19.8 m -1). Among these lakes, colored lakes differed from clear lakes in the following ways: (i) the epilimnia were shallower and colder, and mean epilimnetic irradiance was reduced; (ii) the diel temperature cycles were more pronounced; (iii) whole-lake heat accumulation during stratification was reduced. The depth of the epilimnion ranged from 2.5 m in the clearest lake to 0.75 m in the most colored lake, and 91% of the variation in epilimnetic depth was explained by water color. Summer mean morning epilimnetic temperature was ???2??C cooler in the most colored lake compared with the clearest lake. In clear lakes, the diel temperature range (1.4 ?? 0.7??C) was significantly (p = 0.01) less than that in the most colored lake (2.1 ?? 1.0??C). Change in whole-lake heat content was negatively correlated with water color. Increasing water color decreased light penetration more than thermocline depth, leading to reduced mean epilimnetic irradiance in the colored lakes. Thus, in these small lakes, water color significantly affected temperature, thermocline depth, and light climate. ?? 2006 NRC.

  3. Trends and variability of water quality in Lake Tana, Ethiopia using MODIS-Aqua

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    DeLuca, N. M.; Zaitchik, B. F.; Monger, B. C.

    2017-12-01

    Determining long-term water quality trends and variability in remote inland lakes has been challenging due to a lack of continuous in situ measurements. Utilizing ocean color remote sensing techniques for these lakes is difficult due to their sizes, shapes, and optically complex waters. Lake Tana is the largest body of water in Ethiopia, and is located in the country's northwestern highlands. The lake is quite shallow, averaging at about 8 meters depth, and is characteristically turbid due to nearby land degradation and high soil erosion rates. Lake Tana is an important source of accessible water for the rapidly growing population of Ethiopia and serves as the headwaters for the Blue Nile. Therefore, understanding water quality trends and seasonal variation over the past decade is essential to better preparing for future water needs. Here we use MODIS-Aqua data spanning years 2002-2016 to investigate these trends and variability in Lake Tana, where in situ measurements are limited. Daily water quality products were first processed using SeaDAS and then aggregated by month and year for analyses. Frequent cloud cover in the June, July, and August (JJA) rainy season due to monsoon and zonal dynamics presents an obstacle for obtaining mean lake values during these months. We also performed analyses on targeted regions of Lake Tana to determine whether some of the major tributaries and their corresponding watersheds have more influence on observed trends than others.

  4. Characterization of bottom-sediment, water, and elutriate chemistry at selected stations at Reelfoot Lake, Tennessee

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Broshears, R.E.

    1991-01-01

    To better-understand and predict the potential effect of dredging on water quality at Reelfoot Lake, chemical analyses were conducted on samples of lake water, bottom sediment, and elutriate water. Chemical analyses were conducted on samples of lake water, bottom sediment, and elutriate water collected at five stations in the lake during November 1988. Lake water was of the calcium magnesium bicarbonate type with an average dissolved-solids concentration of 120 milligrams per liter. Trace constituents were present in bottom sediments at concentrations representative of their average relative abundance in the earth?s crust. Elutriate waters prepared by mixing bottom sediment and lake water had suspended-solids concentrations as high as 2,000 milligrams per liter which exerted significant oxygen demand Trace constituents in the unfiltered elutriate waters were elevated with respect to lake water; elevated concentrations were attributable to the increased suspended-solids concentrations. Concentrations of total-recoverable copper, lead., and zinc in many elutriate waters exceeded U.S. Environmental Protection Agency?s water-quality criteria for the protection of freshwater aquatic life. The toxicity of elutriate waters, as measured by a 48-hour bioassay with Ceriodaphnia dubia, was low.

  5. Water quality of streams tributary to Lakes Superior and Michigan

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Zimmerman, Jerome W.

    1968-01-01

    Water quality of streams tributary to Lakes Superior and Michigan was analyzed for 142 stations on 99 streams tributary to Lake Superior and 83 stations on 56 streams tributary to Lake Michigan during 1962-65. Concentrations of aluminum, copper, and iron were not affected greatly by flow or season. Magnesium, calcium, chlorides, total alkalinity, total hardness, and conductivity varied with the flow, temperature, and season; the lowest values were during the spring runoff and heavy rains, and the highest were during low water in late summer and the colder periods of winter. Concentrations of nitrate, silica, and sulfates were lowest in the spring and summer. Concentrations of tanninlike and ligninlike compounds were highest during the spring runoff and other high-water periods, and were lowest during freezeup when surface runoff was minimal. The pH values were highest from June to September and lowest during the spring runoff. Phenolphthalein alkalinity was detected primarily in the summer and coincided occasionally with low flows just before the spring thaw. Total hardness usually was lower in streams tributary to Lake Superior than in streams tributary to Lake Michigan. The total hardness was higher in the streams in Wisconsin than in the streams in Michigan along the west shore of Lake Michigan. It was lowest in the northernmost streams. The water quality of the streams in an area was related to the geological characteristics of the land.

  6. Estimated effects on water quality of Lake Houston from interbasin transfer of water from the Trinity River, Texas

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Liscum, Fred; East, Jeffery W.

    2000-01-01

    The City of Houston is considering the transfer of water from the Trinity River to Lake Houston (on the San Jacinto River) to alleviate concerns about adequate water supplies for future water demands. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the City of Houston, conducted a study to estimate the effects on the water quality of Lake Houston from the transfer of Trinity River water. A water-quality model, CE–QUAL–W2, was used to simulate six water-quality properties and constituents for scenarios of interbasin transfer of Trinity River water. Three scenarios involved the transferred Trinity River water augmenting streamflow in the East Fork of Lake Houston, and three scenarios involved the transferred water replacing streamflow from the West Fork of the San Jacinto River.The estimated effects on Lake Houston were determined by comparing volume-weighted daily mean water temperature, phosphorus, ammonia nitrogen, nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen, algal biomass, and dissolved oxygen simulated for each of the transfer scenarios to simulations for a base dataset. The effects of the interbasin transfer on Lake Houston do not appear to be detrimental to water temperature, ammonia nitrogen, or dissolved oxygen. Phosphorus and nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen showed fairly large changes when Trinity River water was transferred to replace West Fork San Jacinto River streamflow. Algal biomass showed large decreases when Trinity River water was transferred to augment East Fork Lake Houston streamflow and large increases when Trinity River water was transferred to replace West Fork San Jacinto River streamflow. Regardless of the scenario simulated, the model indicated that light was the limiting factor for algal biomass growth.

  7. Water quality of potential reference lakes in the Arkansas Valley and Ouachita Mountain ecoregions, Arkansas

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Justus, B.G.; Meredith, Bradley J.

    2014-01-01

    This report describes a study to identify reference lakes in two lake classifications common to parts of two level III ecoregions in western Arkansas—the Arkansas Valley and Ouachita Mountains. Fifty-two lakes were considered. A screening process that relied on land-use data was followed by reconnaissance water-quality sampling, and two lakes from each ecoregion were selected for intensive water-quality sampling. Our data suggest that Spring Lake is a suitable reference lake for the Arkansas Valley and that Hot Springs Lake is a suitable reference lake for the Ouachita Mountains. Concentrations for five nutrient constituents—orthophosphorus, total phosphorus, total kjeldahl nitrogen, total nitrogen, and total organic carbon—were lower at Spring Lake on all nine sampling occasions and transparency measurements at Spring Lake were significantly deeper than measurements at Cove Lake. For the Ouachita Mountains ecoregion, water quality at Hot Springs Lake slightly exceeded that of Lake Winona. The most apparent water-quality differences for the two lakes were related to transparency and total organic carbon concentrations, which were deeper and lower at Hot Springs Lake, respectively. Our results indicate that when nutrient concentrations are low, transparency may be more valuable for differentiating between lake water quality than chemical constituents that have been useful for distinguishing between water-quality conditions in mesotrophic and eutrophic settings. For example, in this oligotrophic setting, concentrations for chlorophyll a can be less than 5 μg/L and diurnal variability that is typically associated with dissolved oxygen in more productive settings was not evident.

  8. Biotic and abiotic factors related to lake herring recruitment in the Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior, 1984-1998

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hoff, Michael H.

    2004-01-01

    Lake Superior lake herring (Coregonus artedi) recruitment to 13-14 months of age in the Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior varied by a factor of 5,233 during 1984-1998. Management agencies have sought models that accurately predict recruitment, but no satisfactory model had previously been developed. Lake herring recruitment was modeled to determine which factors most explained recruitment variability. The Ricker stock-recruitment model derived from only the paired stock and recruit data explained 35% of the variability in the recruitment data. The functional relationship that explained the greatest amount of recruitment variation (93%) included lake herring stock size, lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) population size, slimy sculpin (Cottus cognatus) biomass, the interaction of mean daily wind speed in April (month of hatch) and lake herring stock size, and mean air temperature in April (when lake herring are 12-months old). Model results were interpreted to mean that lake herring recruitment was affected negatively by: slimy sculpin predation on lake herring ova; predation on age-0 lake herring by lake trout; and adult cannibalism on lake herring larvae, which was reduced by increased wind speed. April temperature was the variable that explained the least amount of variability in recruitment, but lake herring recruitment was positively affected by a warm April, which shortened winter and apparently reduced first-winter mortality. Stock size caused compensatory, density-dependent mortality on lake herring recruits. Management efforts appear best targeted at stock size protection, and empirical data implies that stock size in the Wisconsin waters of the lake should be maintained at 2.1-15.0 adults/ha in spring, bottom-trawl surveys.

  9. Fleet dynamics of the commercial lake trout fishery in Michigan waters of Lake Superior during 1929-1961

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wilberg, Michael J.; Bronte, Charles R.; Hansen, Michael J.

    2004-01-01

    Understanding fishing fleet dynamics is important when using fishery dependent data to infer the status of fish stocks. We analyzed data from mandatory catch reports from the commercial lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) fishery in Michigan waters of Lake Superior during 1929-1961, a period when lake trout populations collapsed through the combined effects of overfishing and sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) predation. The number of full-time fishermen increased during 1933-1943 and then decreased during 1943-1957. Addition of new fishermen was related to past yield, market prices, World War II draft exemptions, and lost fishing opportunities in Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. Loss of existing fishermen was related to declining lake trout density. Large mesh (a?Y 114-mm stretch-measure) gill net effort increased during 1929-1951 because fishermen fished more net inshore as lake trout density declined, even though catch per effort (CPE) was often higher in deeper waters. The most common gill net mesh size increased from 114-mm to 120-mm stretch-measure during 1929-1957, as lake trout growth increased. More effort was fished inshore than offshore and the amount of inshore effort was less variable over time than offshore effort. Relatively stable yield was maintained by increasing gill net effort and by moving some effort to better grounds. Because fishing-up caused yield and CPE to remain high despite declining lake trout abundance, caution must be used when basing goals for lake trout restoration on historical fishery indices.

  10. Methane oxidation in anoxic lake waters

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Su, Guangyi; Zopfi, Jakob; Niemann, Helge; Lehmann, Moritz

    2017-04-01

    Freshwater habitats such as lakes are important sources of methante (CH4), however, most studies in lacustrine environments so far provided evidence for aerobic methane oxidation only, and little is known about the importance of anaerobic oxidation of CH4 (AOM) in anoxic lake waters. In marine environments, sulfate reduction coupled to AOM by archaea has been recognized as important sinks of CH4. More recently, the discorvery of anaerobic methane oxidizing denitrifying bacteria represents a novel and possible alternative AOM pathway, involving reactive nitrogen species (e.g., nitrate and nitrite) as electron acceptors in the absence of oxygen. We investigate anaerobic methane oxidation in the water column of two hydrochemically contrasting sites in Lake Lugano, Switzerland. The South Basin displays seasonal stratification, the development of a benthic nepheloid layer and anoxia during summer and fall. The North Basin is permanently stratified with anoxic conditions below 115m water depth. Both Basins accumulate seasonally (South Basin) or permanently (North Basin) large amounts of CH4 in the water column below the chemocline, providing ideal conditions for methanotrophic microorganisms. Previous work revealed a high potential for aerobic methane oxidation within the anoxic water column, but no evidence for true AOM. Here, we show depth distribution data of dissolved CH4, methane oxidation rates and nutrients at both sites. In addition, we performed high resolution phylogenetic analyses of microbial community structures and conducted radio-label incubation experiments with concentrated biomass from anoxic waters and potential alternative electron acceptor additions (nitrate, nitrite and sulfate). First results from the unamended experiments revealed maximum activity of methane oxidation below the redoxcline in both basins. While the incubation experiments neither provided clear evidence for NOx- nor sulfate-dependent AOM, the phylogenetic analysis revealed the

  11. Microplastics in surface waters of Dongting Lake and Hong Lake, China.

    PubMed

    Wang, Wenfeng; Yuan, Wenke; Chen, Yuling; Wang, Jun

    2018-08-15

    Microplastics pollution is an environmental issue of increasing concern. Much work has been done on the microplastics pollution in the marine environments. Although freshwaters are potential sources and transport pathways of plastic debris to the oceans, there is a lack of knowledge regarding the presence of microplastics in freshwater systems, especially in China, the world's largest producer of plastics. This study investigated the occurrence and properties of microplastics in surface waters of two important lakes in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. The concentration ranges of microplastics in Dongting Lake and Hong Lake were 900-2800 and 1250-4650n/m 3 , respectively. Fiber was the dominant shape. Colored items occupied the majority. Particles with a size of <330μm comprised >20% of total microplastics collected in both lakes. Most of the selected particles were identified as plastics, with polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) being the major components. This study can provide valuable reference for better understanding the microplastics pollution in inland freshwater ecosystems. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. Water Quality Conditions in Upper Klamath and Agency Lakes, Oregon, 2006

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lindenberg, Mary K.; Hoilman, Gene; Wood, Tamara M.

    2008-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey Upper Klamath Lake water quality monitoring program gathered information from multiparameter continuous water quality monitors, physical water samples, dissolved oxygen production and consumption experiments, and meteorological stations during the June-October 2006 field season. The 2006 study area included Agency Lake and all of Upper Klamath Lake. Seasonal patterns in water quality were similar to those observed in 2005, the first year of the monitoring program, and were closely related to bloom dynamics of the cyanobacterium (blue-green alga) Aphanizomenon flos-aquae (AFA) in the two lakes. High dissolved oxygen and pH conditions in both lakes before the bloom declined in July, which coincided with seasonal high temperatures and resulted in seasonal lows in dissolved oxygen and decreased pH. Dissolved oxygen and pH in Upper Klamath and Agency Lakes increased again after the bloom recovered. Seasonal low dissolved oxygen and decreased pH coincided with seasonal highs in ammonia and orthophosphate concentrations. Seasonal maximum daily average temperatures were higher and minimum dissolved oxygen concentrations were lower in 2006 than in 2005. Conditions potentially harmful to fish were influenced by seasonal patterns in bloom dynamics and bathymetry. Potentially harmful low dissolved oxygen and high un-ionized ammonia concentrations occurred mostly at the deepest sites in the Upper Klamath Lake during late July, coincident with a bloom decline. Potentially harmful pH conditions occurred mostly at sites outside the deepest parts of the lake in July and September, coincident with a heavy bloom. Instances of possible gas bubble formation, inferred from dissolved oxygen data, were estimated to occur frequently in shallow areas of Upper Klamath and Agency Lakes simultaneously with potentially harmful pH conditions. Comparison of the data from monitors in nearshore areas and monitors near the surface of the water column in the open waters of

  13. Postimpoundment survey of water-quality characteristics of Raystown Lake, Huntingdon and Bedford Counties, Pennsylvania

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Williams, Donald R.

    1978-01-01

    Water-quality data, collected from May 1974 to September 1976 at thirteen sites within Raystown Lake and in the inflow and outflow channels, define the water-quality characteristics of the lake water and the effects of impoundment on the quality of the lake outflow. Depth-profile measurements show Raystown Lake to be dimictic. Thermal stratification is well developed during the summer. Generally high concentrations of dissolved oxygen throughout the hypolimnion during thermal stratification, low phytoplankton concentrations, and small diel fluctuations of dissolved oxygen, pH, and specific conductance indicate that the lake is low in nutrients, or oligotrophic. Algal assays of surface samples indicate that orthophosphate was a growth-limiting nutrient. The diatoms (Chrysophyta) were the dominant phytoplankton group found through-out the study period. The lake waters contained very low populations of zooplankton. Fecal coliform and fecal streptococcus densities measured throughout the lake indicated no potentially dangerous areas of water-contact recreation. The most apparent effect that the impoundment had on water quality was the removal of nutrients, particularly orthophosphate, through phytoplankton uptake and sediment deposition.

  14. Statistical analysis of lake levels and field study of groundwater and surface-water exchanges in the northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area, Minnesota, 2002 through 2015: Chapter A of Water levels and groundwater and surface-water exchanges in lakes of the northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area, Minnesota, 2002 through 2015

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Jones, Perry M.; Trost, Jared J.; Diekoff, Aliesha L.; Rosenberry, Donald O.; White, Eric A.; Erickson, Melinda L.; Morel, Daniel L.; Heck, Jessica M.

    2016-10-19

    Water levels declined from 2003 to 2011 in many lakes in Ramsey and Washington Counties in the northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area, Minnesota; however, water levels in other northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area lakes increased during the same period. Groundwater and surface-water exchanges can be important in determining lake levels where these exchanges are an important component of the water budget of a lake. An understanding of groundwater and surface-water exchanges in the northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area has been limited by the lack of hydrologic data. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Metropolitan Council and Minnesota Department of Health, completed a field and statistical study assessing lake-water levels and regional and local groundwater and surface-water exchanges near northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area lakes. This report documents the analysis of collected hydrologic, water-quality, and geophysical data; and existing hydrologic and geologic data to (1) assess the effect of physical setting and climate on lake-level fluctuations of selected lakes, (2) estimate potential percentages of surface-water contributions to well water across the northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area, (3) estimate general ages for waters extracted from the wells, and (4) assess groundwater inflow to lakes and lake-water outflow to aquifers downgradient from White Bear Lake. Statistical analyses of lake levels during short-term (2002–10) and long-term (1925–2014) periods were completed to help understand lake-level changes across the northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area. Comparison of 2002–10 lake levels to several landscape and geologic characteristics explained variability in lake-level changes for 96 northeast Twin Cities Metropolitan Area lakes. Application of several statistical methods determined that (1) closed-basin lakes (without an active outlet) had larger lake-level declines than flow-through lakes with an outlet; (2

  15. Long-term citizen-collected data reveal geographical patterns and temporal trends in lake water clarity

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lottig, Noah R.; Wagner, Tyler; Henry, Emily N.; Cheruvelil, Kendra Spence; Webster, Katherine E.; Downing, John A.; Stow, Craig A.

    2014-01-01

    We compiled a lake-water clarity database using publically available, citizen volunteer observations made between 1938 and 2012 across eight states in the Upper Midwest, USA. Our objectives were to determine (1) whether temporal trends in lake-water clarity existed across this large geographic area and (2) whether trends were related to the lake-specific characteristics of latitude, lake size, or time period the lake was monitored. Our database consisted of >140,000 individual Secchi observations from 3,251 lakes that we summarized per lake-year, resulting in 21,020 summer averages. Using Bayesian hierarchical modeling, we found approximately a 1% per year increase in water clarity (quantified as Secchi depth) for the entire population of lakes. On an individual lake basis, 7% of lakes showed increased water clarity and 4% showed decreased clarity. Trend direction and strength were related to latitude and median sample date. Lakes in the southern part of our study-region had lower average annual summer water clarity, more negative long-term trends, and greater inter-annual variability in water clarity compared to northern lakes. Increasing trends were strongest for lakes with median sample dates earlier in the period of record (1938–2012). Our ability to identify specific mechanisms for these trends is currently hampered by the lack of a large, multi-thematic database of variables that drive water clarity (e.g., climate, land use/cover). Our results demonstrate, however, that citizen science can provide the critical monitoring data needed to address environmental questions at large spatial and long temporal scales. Collaborations among citizens, research scientists, and government agencies may be important for developing the data sources and analytical tools necessary to move toward an understanding of the factors influencing macro-scale patterns such as those shown here for lake water clarity.

  16. Long-Term Citizen-Collected Data Reveal Geographical Patterns and Temporal Trends in Lake Water Clarity

    PubMed Central

    Lottig, Noah R.; Wagner, Tyler; Norton Henry, Emily; Spence Cheruvelil, Kendra; Webster, Katherine E.; Downing, John A.; Stow, Craig A.

    2014-01-01

    We compiled a lake-water clarity database using publically available, citizen volunteer observations made between 1938 and 2012 across eight states in the Upper Midwest, USA. Our objectives were to determine (1) whether temporal trends in lake-water clarity existed across this large geographic area and (2) whether trends were related to the lake-specific characteristics of latitude, lake size, or time period the lake was monitored. Our database consisted of >140,000 individual Secchi observations from 3,251 lakes that we summarized per lake-year, resulting in 21,020 summer averages. Using Bayesian hierarchical modeling, we found approximately a 1% per year increase in water clarity (quantified as Secchi depth) for the entire population of lakes. On an individual lake basis, 7% of lakes showed increased water clarity and 4% showed decreased clarity. Trend direction and strength were related to latitude and median sample date. Lakes in the southern part of our study-region had lower average annual summer water clarity, more negative long-term trends, and greater inter-annual variability in water clarity compared to northern lakes. Increasing trends were strongest for lakes with median sample dates earlier in the period of record (1938–2012). Our ability to identify specific mechanisms for these trends is currently hampered by the lack of a large, multi-thematic database of variables that drive water clarity (e.g., climate, land use/cover). Our results demonstrate, however, that citizen science can provide the critical monitoring data needed to address environmental questions at large spatial and long temporal scales. Collaborations among citizens, research scientists, and government agencies may be important for developing the data sources and analytical tools necessary to move toward an understanding of the factors influencing macro-scale patterns such as those shown here for lake water clarity. PMID:24788722

  17. Microbial methane production in oxygenated water column of an oligotrophic lake

    PubMed Central

    Grossart, Hans-Peter; Frindte, Katharina; Dziallas, Claudia; Eckert, Werner; Tang, Kam W.

    2011-01-01

    The prevailing paradigm in aquatic science is that microbial methanogenesis happens primarily in anoxic environments. Here, we used multiple complementary approaches to show that microbial methane production could and did occur in the well-oxygenated water column of an oligotrophic lake (Lake Stechlin, Germany). Oversaturation of methane was repeatedly recorded in the well-oxygenated upper 10 m of the water column, and the methane maxima coincided with oxygen oversaturation at 6 m. Laboratory incubations of unamended epilimnetic lake water and inoculations of photoautotrophs with a lake-enrichment culture both led to methane production even in the presence of oxygen, and the production was not affected by the addition of inorganic phosphate or methylated compounds. Methane production was also detected by in-lake incubations of lake water, and the highest production rate was 1.8–2.4 nM⋅h−1 at 6 m, which could explain 33–44% of the observed ambient methane accumulation in the same month. Temporal and spatial uncoupling between methanogenesis and methanotrophy was supported by field and laboratory measurements, which also helped explain the oversaturation of methane in the upper water column. Potentially methanogenic Archaea were detected in situ in the oxygenated, methane-rich epilimnion, and their attachment to photoautotrophs might allow for anaerobic growth and direct transfer of substrates for methane production. Specific PCR on mRNA of the methyl coenzyme M reductase A gene revealed active methanogenesis. Microbial methane production in oxygenated water represents a hitherto overlooked source of methane and can be important for carbon cycling in the aquatic environments and water to air methane flux. PMID:22089233

  18. Climate-driven changes in grassland vegetation, snow cover, and lake water of the Qinghai Lake basin

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Xuelu; Liang, Tiangang; Xie, Hongjie; Huang, Xiaodong; Lin, Huilong

    2016-07-01

    Qinghai Lake basin and the lake have undergone significant changes in recent decades. We examine MODIS-derived grassland vegetation and snow cover of the Qinghai Lake basin and their relations with climate parameters during 2001 to 2010. Results show: (1) temperature and precipitation of the Qinghai Lake basin increased while evaporation decreased; (2) most of the grassland areas improved due to increased temperature and growing season precipitation; (3) weak relations between snow cover and precipitation/vegetation; (4) a significantly negative correlation between lake area and temperature (r=-0.9, p<0.05) and (5) a positive relation between lake level (lake-level difference) and temperature (precipitation). Compared with Namco Lake (located in the inner Tibetan Plateau) where the primary water source of lake level increases was the accelerated melt of glacier/perennial snow cover in the lake basin, for the Qinghai Lake, however, it was the increased precipitation. Increased precipitation explained the improvement of vegetation cover in the Qinghai Lake basin, while accelerated melt of glacier/perennial snow cover was responsible for the degradation of vegetation cover in Namco Lake basin. These results suggest different responses to the similar warming climate: improved (degraded) ecological condition and productive capacity of the Qinghai Lake basin (Namco Lake basin).

  19. Is the water level during dry season in Poyang Lake really lower than before?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Xiaolong; Yu, Meixiu; Shi, Yong; Luan, Zhenyu; Fu, Dafang

    2017-04-01

    The Poyang Lake, the largest freshwater lake in China, has attracted world widely attentions in recent years due to it being dammed or not at the Lake's outlet. It was reported that the Poyang Lake water levels have been declining significantly in dry seasons, which resulted in severe water supply, irrigation and ecological flow requirement problems. The purpose of the study was to answer the question that the water level of the Poyang Lake during dry season is really lower than before or not. Based on topographical data, and long-term hydrological and meteorological data from 1950 to 2016, the relationship between the Poyang Lake and the Yangtze River before and after the completion of the Three Gorges Dam, the relationship between the Poyang Lake and its Five major tributaries (Ganjiang River, Fuhe River, Xinjiang River, Raohe River and Xiushui River), and as well as sand mining contributions to the water level in dry seasons of the Poyang Lake were investigated respectively.

  20. Assessing heat fluxes and water quality trends in subalpine lakes from EO

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cazzaniga, Ilaria; Giardino, Claudia; Bresciani, Mariano; Elli, Chiara; Valerio, Giulia; Pilotti, Marco

    2017-04-01

    Lakes play a fundamental role in providing ecosystem services such as water supplying, hydrological regulation, climate change mitigation, touristic recreation (Schallenberg et al., 2013). Preserving and improving of quality of lakes waters, which is a function of either both natural and human influences, is therefore an important action to be considered. Remote Sensing techniques are spreading as useful instrument for lakes, by integrating classical in situ limnological measurements to frequent and synoptic monitoring capabilities. Within this study, Earth Observation data are exploited for understanding the temporal changes of water quality parameters over a decade, as well as for measuring the surface energy fluxes in recent years in deep clear lakes in the European subalpine ecoregion. According to Pareth et al. (2016), subalpine lakes are showing a clear response to climate change with an increase of 0.017 °C /year of lake surface temperature, whilst the human activities contribute to produce a large impact (agriculture, recreation, industry, fishing and drinking) on these lakes. The investigation is focused on Lake Iseo, which has shown a significant deterioration of water quality conditions since the seventies, and on Lake Garda, the largest Italian lake where EO data have been widely used for many purposes and applications (Giardino et al., 2014). Available ENVISAT-MERIS (2002-2012) and Landsat-8-OLI (2013-on going) imagery has been exploited to produce chlorophyll-a (chl-a) concentration maps, while Landsat-8-TIRS imagery has been used for estimating lake surface temperatures. MERIS images were processed through a neural network (namely the C2R processor, Doerffer et al., 2007), to correct the atmospheric effects and to retrieve water constituents concentration in optically complex deep waters. With regard to L8's images, some atmospheric correctors (e.g. ACOLITE and 6SV) were tested and validated to indentify, for each of the two lakes, the more accurate

  1. WATER QUALITY AND BIOLOGICAL CONDITIONS OF GREAT LAKES COASTAL WETLANDS, WITH AN EMPHASIS ON LAKE SUPERIOR

    EPA Science Inventory

    This presentation will focus on MED's past and ongoing research in Lake Superior wetlands, and will include data on habitat, water quality, and biological condition of these systems. Comparisons of the condition of Lake Superior wetlands relative to those found around the Great ...

  2. Physical-property, water-quality, plankton, and bottom-material data for Devils Lake and East Devils Lake, North Dakota, September 1988 through October 1990

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sando, Steven K.; Sether, Bradley A.

    1993-01-01

    Physical-properties were measured and water-quality, plankton, and bottom-material samples were collected at 10 sites in Devils Lake and East Devils Lake during September 1988 through October 1990 to study water-quality variability and water-quality and plankton relations in Devils Lake and East Devils Lake. Physical properties measured include specific conductance, pH, water temperature, dissolved-oxygen concentration, water transparency, and light transmission. Water-quality samples were analyzed for concentrations of major ions, selected nutrients, and selected trace elements. Plankton samples were examined for identification and enumeration of phytoplankton and zooplankton species, and bottom-material samples were analyzed for concentrations of selected nutrients. Data-collection procedures are discussed and the data are presented in tabular form.

  3. A water-budget analysis of Medina and Diversion Lakes and the Medina/Diversion Lake system, with estimated recharge to Edwards aquifer, San Antonio area, Texas

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Slattery, Richard N.; Miller, Lisa D.

    2004-12-22

    In January 2001, the U.S. Geological Survey—in cooperation with the Edwards Aquifer Authority—began a study to refine and, if possible, extend previously derived (1995–96) relations between the stage in Medina Lake and recharge to the Edwards aquifer to include the effects of reservoir stages below 1,018 feet and greater than 1,046 feet above National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929. The principal objective of this present (2001–02) study was to estimate ground-water outflow (seepage) from Medina Lake, Diversion Lake, and from the Medina/Diversion Lake system through the calculation of water budgets representing steady-state conditions over as wide a range as possible in the stages of Medina and Diversion Lakes. The water budgets were compiled for selected periods during which time the water-budget components were inferred to be relatively stable and the influence of precipitation, stormwater runoff, and changes in storage were presumably minimal.Water budgets for the Medina/Diversion Lake system were compiled for 127 water-budget periods ranging from 8 to 78 days from daily hydrologic data collected during March 1955–September 1964, October 1995–September 1996, and February 2001–June 2002. Budgets for Medina and Diversion Lakes were compiled for 14 periods ranging from 8 to 23 days from daily hydrologic data collected only during October 1995–September 1996 and April 2001–June 2002.Linear equations were developed to relate the stage in Medina Lake to ground-water outflow from Medina Lake, Diversion Lake, and the Medina/Diversion Lake system. The computed mean rates of outflow from Medina Lake ranged from about 18 to 182 acre-feet per day between stages of 1,019 and 1,064 feet above National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929. The computed rates of outflow from Diversion Lake ranged from about -85 to 52 acre-feet per day. The rates of outflow from the entire lake system ranged from about 5 to 178 acre-feet per day between Medina Lake stages of 963

  4. Evaluation of Water Quality Change of Brackish Lake in Snowy Cold Regions Accompanying Climate Change

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kudo, K.; Hasegawa, H.; Nakatsugawa, M.

    2017-12-01

    This study addresses evaluation of water quality change of brackish lake based on the estimation of hydrological quantities resulting from long-term hydrologic process accompanying climate change. For brackish lakes, such as Lake Abashiri in Eastern Hokkaido, there are concerns about water quality deterioration due to increases in water temperature and salinity. For estimating some hydrological quantities in the Abashiri River basin, including Lake Abashiri, we propose the following methods: 1) MRI-NHRCM20, a regional climate model based on the Representative Concentration Pathways adopted by IPCC AR5, 2) generalized extreme value distribution for correcting bias, 3) kriging adopted variogram for downscaling and 4) Long term Hydrologic Assessment model considering Snow process (LoHAS). In addition, we calculate the discharge from Abashiri River into Lake Abashiri by using estimated hydrological quantities and a tank model, and simulate impacts on water quality of Lake Abashiri due to climate change by setting necessary conditions, including the initial conditions of water temperature and water quality, the pollution load from the inflow rivers, the duration of ice cover and salt pale boundary. The result of the simulation of water quality indicates that climate change is expected to raise the water temperature of the lake surface by approximately 4°C and increase salinity of surface of the lake by approximately 4psu, also if salt pale boundary in the lake raises by approximately 2-m, the concentration of COD, T-N and T-P in the bottom of the lake might increase. The processes leading to these results are likely to be as follows: increased river water flows in along salt pale boundary in lake, causing dynamic flow of surface water; saline bottom water is entrained upward, where it mixes with surface water; and the shear force acting at salt pale boundary helps to increase the supply of salts from bottom saline water to the surface water. In the future, we will

  5. Algal Populations and Water Quality in Florida Lakes: Sedimentary Evidence of Anthropogenic Impact

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Whitmore, M. R.; Whitmore, T. J.; Brenner, M.; Smoak, J.; Curtis, J.

    2004-05-01

    Cyanobacteria and other algae dominate many highly productive Florida (U.S.A.) lakes. Algal proliferation is often attributed to eutrophication during the last century, but it is poorly documented because Florida's water-quality monitoring programs became common only after 1980. We examined sediment cores from 14 hypereutrophic Florida lakes. Study lakes have been subjected to urbanization, agriculture, and to inputs of municipal sewage effluent and food-processing wastes. Major algal-pigment groups were analyzed in sediments using pigment-extraction and spectrophotometric techniques. We compared myxoxanthophyll, oscillaxanthin, total carotenoid, and total chlorophyll pigment profiles with WACALIB-derived limnetic total-P and chlorophyll a inferences based on fossil diatoms, sediment chemistry, and stable isotope (δ 13C & δ 15N) signatures of organic matter. Sedimentary evidence showed that cyanobacterial and algal proliferation appeared during recent decades in 10 study lakes in response to eutrophication. Cyanobacterial increase was very recent and abrupt in 7 lakes. Six lakes showed recovery following nutrient-mitigation programs that reduced sewage and other point-source effluent inputs. Four lakes showed long-term presence of cyanobacterial populations because edaphic nutrient supply causes these lakes to be naturally productive. Three of these naturally eutrophic lakes remained unchanged, but one demonstrated eutrophication followed by subsequent recovery. Correlations were particularly strong among sedimented pigment profiles and diatom-inferred limnetic water-quality profiles. Paleolimnological methods provide informative assessment of anthropogenic influence on lakes when long-term water-quality data are lacking. Historic studies also are useful for evaluating the feasibility of improving water quality through lake-management programs, and for defining appropriate lake restoration goals.

  6. Water quality of Fremont Lake and New Fork Lakes, western Wyoming; a progress report

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Peterson, D.A.; Averett, R.C.; Mora, K.L.

    1987-01-01

    Fremont Lake and New Fork Lakes in the New Fork River drainage of western Wyoming were selected for a comprehensive study of hydrologic processes affecting mountain lakes in the Rocky Mountains. Information is needed about lakes in this area to assess their response to existing and planned development. The concerns include regional issues such as acid precipitation from gas-sweetening plants, coal-fired powerplants, and smelters, as well as local issues, such as shoreline development and raising outlet control structures. Onsite measurements indicated strong thermal stratification in the lakes during the summer. Isothermal conditions occurred during December 1983 and May 1984. Mean phytoplankton concentrations were less than 5,000 cells/ml, and chlorophyll a concentrations were weakly correlated with phytoplankton concentrations. Zooplankton concentrations were small, less than 6 organisms/L. The numbers of benthic invertebrates/unit area in Fremont Lake were extremely small. The lake waters and inflow and outflow streams were chemically dilute solutions. Mean dissolved-solids concentrations were 13 mg/L in Fremont Lake and 24 mg/L in New Fork Lakes. Calcium and bicarbonate were the predominant ions. Concentrations of phosphorus and nitrogen usually were less than detection limits. Trace-metals concentrations in the lakes were similar to those in precipitation and generally were small. Dissolved organic-carbon concentrations were about 1 mg/L. Concentrations of fulvic and humic acids were relatively large in the inlet of Fremont Lake during the spring. Pine Creek has deposited 800 metric tons of sediment, on an annual average, to the delta of Fremont Lake. Most sediment is deposited during spring runoff. (USGS)

  7. Mercury and water level fluctuations in lakes of northern Minnesota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Larson, James H.; Maki, Ryan P; Christensen, Victoria G.; Sandheinrich, Mark B.; LeDuc, Jaime F.; Kissane, Claire; Knights, Brent C.

    2017-01-01

    Large lake ecosystems support a variety of ecosystem services in surrounding communities, including recreational and commercial fishing. However, many northern temperate fisheries are contaminated by mercury. Annual variation in mercury accumulation in fish has previously been linked to water level (WL) fluctuations, opening the possibility of regulating water levels in a manner that minimizes or reduces mercury contamination in fisheries. Here, we compiled a long-term dataset (1997-2015) of mercury content in young-of-year Yellow Perch (Perca flavescens) from six lakes on the border between the U.S. and Canada and examined whether mercury content appeared to be related to several metrics of WL fluctuation (e.g., spring WL rise, annual maximum WL, and year-to-year change in maximum WL). Using simple correlation analysis, several WL metrics appear to be strongly correlated to Yellow Perch mercury content, although the strength of these correlations varies by lake. We also used many WL metrics, water quality measurements, temperature and annual deposition data to build predictive models using partial least squared regression (PLSR) analysis for each lake. These PLSR models showed some variation among lakes, but also supported strong associations between WL fluctuations and annual variation in Yellow Perch mercury content. The study lakes underwent a modest change in WL management in 2000, when winter WL minimums were increased by about 1 m in five of the six study lakes. Using the PLSR models, we estimated how this change in WL management would have affected Yellow Perch mercury content. For four of the study lakes, the change in WL management that occurred in 2000 likely reduced Yellow Perch mercury content, relative to the previous WL management regime.

  8. Factors affecting ground-water exchange and catchment size for Florida lakes in mantled karst terrain

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lee, Terrie Mackin

    2002-01-01

    In the mantled karst terrain of Florida, the size of the catchment delivering ground-water inflow to lakes is often considerably smaller than the topographically defined drainage basin. The size is determined by a balance of factors that act individually to enhance or diminish the hydraulic connection between the lake and the adjacent surficial aquifer, as well as the hydraulic connection between the surficial aquifer and the deeper limestone aquifer. Factors affecting ground-water exchange and the size of the ground-water catchment for lakes in mantled karst terrain were examined by: (1) reviewing the physical and hydrogeological characteristics of 14 Florida lake basins with available ground-water inflow estimates, and (2) simulating ground-water flow in hypothetical lake basins. Variably-saturated flow modeling was used to simulate a range of physical and hydrogeologic factors observed at the 14 lake basins. These factors included: recharge rate to the surficial aquifer, thickness of the unsaturated zone, size of the topographically defined basin, depth of the lake, thickness of the surficial aquifer, hydraulic conductivity of the geologic units, the location and size of karst subsidence features beneath and onshore of the lake, and the head in the Upper Floridan aquifer. Catchment size and the magnitude of ground-water inflow increased with increases in recharge rate to the surficial aquifer, the size of the topographically defined basin, hydraulic conductivity in the surficial aquifer, the degree of confinement of the deeper Upper Floridan aquifer, and the head in the Upper Floridan aquifer. The catchment size and magnitude of ground-water inflow increased with decreases in the number and size of karst subsidence features in the basin, and the thickness of the unsaturated zone near the lake. Model results, although qualitative, provided insights into: (1) the types of lake basins in mantled karst terrain that have the potential to generate small and large

  9. Lake Urmia (Iran): can future socio-ecologically motivated river basin management restore lake water levels in an arid region with extensive agricultural development?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fazel, Nasim; Berndtsson, Ronny; Bertacchi Uvo, Cintia; Klove, Bjorn; Madani, Kaveh

    2015-04-01

    Lake Urmia, one of the world's largest hyper saline lakes located in northwest of Iran, is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and Ramsar site, protected as a national park and, supports invaluable and unique biodiversity and related ecosystem services for the region's 6.5 million inhabitants. Due to increased development of the region's water resources for agriculture and industry and to a certain extent climate change, the lake has started to shrink dramatically since 1995 and now is holding less than 30 percent of its volume. Rapid development in agricultural sector and land-use changes has resulted in immense construction of dams and water diversions in almost all lake feeding rivers, intensifying lake shrinking, increasing salinity and degrading its ecosystem. Recently, lake's cultural and environmental importance and social pressure has raised concerns and brought government attention to the lake restoration plans. Along with poor management, low yield agriculture as the most water consuming activity in the region with, rapid, insufficient development is one of the most influential drivers in the lake desiccation. Part of the lake restoration plans in agricultural sector is to restrict the agricultural areas in the main feeding river basins flowing mostly in the southern part of the lake and decreasing the agricultural water use in this area. This study assess the efficiency and effectiveness of the proposed plans and its influence on the lake level rise and its impacts on economy in the region using a system dynamics model developed for the Lake consist of hydrological and agro-economical sub-systems. The effect of decrease in agricultural area in the region on GDP and region economy was evaluated and compared with released water contribution in lake level rise for a five year simulation period.

  10. Water Bacterial and Fungal Community Compositions Associated with Urban Lakes, Xi’an, China

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Haihan; Wang, Yue; Chen, Shengnan; Zhao, Zhenfang; Feng, Ji; Zhang, Zhonghui; Lu, Kuanyu; Jia, Jingyu

    2018-01-01

    Urban lakes play a vital role in the sustainable development of urbanized areas. In this freshwater ecosystem, massive microbial communities can drive the recycling of nutrients and regulate the water quality. However, water bacterial and fungal communities in the urban lakes are not well understood. In the present work, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was combined with community level physiological profiles (CLPPs) and Illumina Miseq sequence techniques to determine the diversity and composition of the water bacterial and fungal community in three urban lakes, namely Xingqing lake (LX), Geming lake (LG) and Lianhu lake (LL), located in Xi’an City (Shaanxi Province, China). The results showed that these three lakes were eutrophic water bodies. The highest total nitrogen (TN) was observed in LL, with a value of 12.1 mg/L, which is 2 times higher than that of LG. The permanganate index (CODMn) concentrations were 21.6 mg/L, 35.4 mg/L and 28.8 mg/L in LG, LL and LX, respectively (p < 0.01). Based on the CLPPs test, the results demonstrated that water bacterial communities in the LL and LX urban lakes had higher carbon source utilization ability. A total of 62,742 and 55,346 high quality reads were grouped into 894 and 305 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) for bacterial and fungal communities, respectively. Water bacterial and fungal community was distributed across 14 and 6 phyla. The most common phyla were Proteobacteriaand Cyanobacteria. Cryptomycota was particularly dominant in LL, while Chytridiomycota and Entomophthormycota were the most abundant fungal phyla, accounting for 95% of the population in the LL and 56% in the LG. Heat map and redundancy analysis (RDA) highlighted the dramatic differences of water bacterial communities among three urban lakes. Meanwhile, the profiles of fungal communities were significantly correlated with the water quality parameters (e.g., CODMn and total nitrogen, TN). Several microbes (Legionella sp. and Streptococcus sp

  11. Water Bacterial and Fungal Community Compositions Associated with Urban Lakes, Xi'an, China.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Haihan; Wang, Yue; Chen, Shengnan; Zhao, Zhenfang; Feng, Ji; Zhang, Zhonghui; Lu, Kuanyu; Jia, Jingyu

    2018-03-07

    Urban lakes play a vital role in the sustainable development of urbanized areas. In this freshwater ecosystem, massive microbial communities can drive the recycling of nutrients and regulate the water quality. However, water bacterial and fungal communities in the urban lakes are not well understood. In the present work, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was combined with community level physiological profiles (CLPPs) and Illumina Miseq sequence techniques to determine the diversity and composition of the water bacterial and fungal community in three urban lakes, namely Xingqing lake (LX), Geming lake (LG) and Lianhu lake (LL), located in Xi'an City (Shaanxi Province, China). The results showed that these three lakes were eutrophic water bodies. The highest total nitrogen (TN) was observed in LL, with a value of 12.1 mg/L, which is 2 times higher than that of LG. The permanganate index (COD Mn ) concentrations were 21.6 mg/L, 35.4 mg/L and 28.8 mg/L in LG, LL and LX, respectively ( p < 0.01). Based on the CLPPs test, the results demonstrated that water bacterial communities in the LL and LX urban lakes had higher carbon source utilization ability. A total of 62,742 and 55,346 high quality reads were grouped into 894 and 305 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) for bacterial and fungal communities, respectively. Water bacterial and fungal community was distributed across 14 and 6 phyla. The most common phyla were Proteobacteriaand Cyanobacteria. Cryptomycota was particularly dominant in LL, while Chytridiomycota and Entomophthormycota were the most abundant fungal phyla, accounting for 95% of the population in the LL and 56% in the LG. Heat map and redundancy analysis (RDA) highlighted the dramatic differences of water bacterial communities among three urban lakes. Meanwhile, the profiles of fungal communities were significantly correlated with the water quality parameters (e.g., COD Mn and total nitrogen, TN). Several microbes ( Legionella sp. and Streptococcus sp

  12. Lake size and water-column stability affect the importance of methane for pelagic food webs of boreal lakes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kankaala, Paula; Lopez-Bellido, Jessica; Ojala, Anne; Tulonen, Tiina; Jones, Roger I.

    2013-04-01

    Physical forcing, related to lake size and morphometry, plays an important role in the landscape-scale biogeochemical processing and fluxes of terrestrial carbon in lakes. Boreal lakes are typically dimictic, with mixing of the water column in spring and autumn, but in small, sheltered, humic, forest lakes the spring mixing is often incomplete. This leads to a steep summer stratification and oxygen depletion in the hypolimnion of the lakes. As a result of anaerobic decomposition of organic matter, high concentrations of CH4are typical in these lakes. At the oxic-anoxic interface zone methanotrophic microbes oxidize CH4 to CO2 and partly incorporate CH4-C into microbial biomass, and thus potentially provide a diet source for pelagic consumers. We studied production at the base of the pelagic food web by methane oxidising bacteria (MOB), heterotrophic bacteria (HB) and phytoplankton (PP) in five boreal lakes with a dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration varying between 7 and 25 mg C L-1 and an area ranging from 0.004 to 13.4 km2. High MOB activity was detected in the water columns of the three smallest lakes having anoxia in the hypolimnion during summer. The highest MOB activities (ca. 2-12 μmol L-1 d-1) were observed when the CH4:O2 ratio varied between ca. 0.5-12. Seasonally, the highest MOB activities were measured during late-summer mixed layer deepening and autumnal mixing of the whole water column. The proportion of MOB in the total basal production was highest in the two smallest lakes (24-56 and 13-36%), having the steepest summertime stratification. The proportion MOB in the basal production decreased with lake size being 70% of basal production was by PP. In all studied lakes HB contributed only 10-23% of the total basal production, suggesting that a transfer of allochthonous DOC via HB plays only a modest role for the nutrition of the higher trophic levels.

  13. Assessment of microcystins in lake water and fish (Mugilidae, Liza sp.) in the largest Spanish coastal lake.

    PubMed

    Romo, Susana; Fernández, Francisca; Ouahid, Youness; Barón-Sola, Ángel

    2012-01-01

    Cyanobacteria dominance and cyanotoxin production can become major threats to humans and aquatic life, especially in warm shallow lakes, which are often dominated by cyanobacteria. This study investigates the occurrence and distribution of microcystins (MCYST) in water, cell-bound and in the tissues of the commercial mugilid Liza sp. in the largest, coastal, Spanish Mediterranean lake (Albufera of Valencia). This is the first report concerning microcystin accumulation in tissues of mugilid fish species. Considerable amounts of microcystins were found in the water and seston, which correlated with development of Microcystis aeruginosa populations in the lake. The MCYST concentrations found in Lake Albufera (mean 1.7 and 17 μg/L and maximum 16 and 120 μg/L in water and seston, respectively) exceeded by one to two orders of magnitude the guideline levels proposed by the World Health Organization and were higher than that reported in other lakes of the Mediterranean zone. The presence of MCYST was found in all the fishes studied and accumulated differently among tissues of the commercial species Liza sp. Toxin accumulation in fish tissues showed that although the target organ for MCYST was the liver, high concentrations of microcystins were also found in other analysed tissues (liver>intestine>gills>muscle). Human tolerable daily intake for microcystins is assessed relative to the WHO guidelines, and potential toxicological risks for humans, wildlife and related ecosystems of the lake are discussed.

  14. Evaluation of reproductive function in Turkana women with enzyme immunoassays of urinary hormones in the field.

    PubMed

    Leslie, P W; Campbell, K L; Little, M A; Kigondu, C S

    1996-02-01

    The frequently reported observation that nomadic populations have lower fertility than their settled counterparts is often attributed to what are perceived as harsh, stressful conditions under which the nomads live. But the consequences of the hypothesized stresses for the reproductive biology or demography of these populations have been documented only a little. Traditionally, the Turkana of northwest Kenya are nomadic herders, but increasing numbers have settled on agricultural development schemes. We used an array of hormonal assays along with anthropometric indexes of nutritional status and interviews covering reproductive history, recent menstruation, diet, and health to compare reproductive function in nomadic and settled Turkana women. First morning urine samples were collected for three consecutive days during a series of surveys. Human choriogonadotropin (hCG; a marker for pregnancy), luteinizing hormone (LH; an indicator of ovulation), and pregnanediol glucuronide (PdG; an indicator of postovulatory luteal function) were assessed in the field with commercially available dipstick enzyme immunoassays. These assays along with the interview data allowed us to determine the reproductive status (e.g., pregnant or cycling, and if cycling, which phase of the ovarian cycle) of 166 nomadic and 194 settled Turkana women. The cross-sectional classifications allowed inferences of conception rates and normality of ovarian function. Follow-up surveys provided rates of pregnancy loss. Compared with the settled women, the nomadic women exhibited lower pregnancy rates and cycling nomadic women were less likely to show evidence of ovulation or luteal function. These results suggest that reproductive function of the nomadic women is diminished relative to the settled women. However, the settled women experienced a much higher rate of pregnancy loss, which may mean that their effective fecundability is in fact lower than that of the nomadic women. This study is the first to

  15. Air-Water Exchange of Legacy and Emerging Organic Pollutants across the Great Lakes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lohmann, R.; Ruge, Z.; Khairy, M.; Muir, D.; Helm, P.

    2014-12-01

    Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are transported to great water bodies via long-range atmospheric transport and released from the surface water as air concentrations continue to diminish. As the largest fresh water bodies in North America, the Great Lakes have both the potential to accumulate and serve as a secondary source of persistent bioaccumulative toxins. OCP and PCB concentrations were sampled at 30+ sites across Lake Superior, Ontario and Erie in the summer of 2011. Polyethylene passive samplers (PEs) were simultaneously deployed in surface water and near surface atmosphere to determine air-water gaseous exchange of OCPs and PCBs. In Lake Superior, surface water and atmospheric concentrations were dominated by α-HCH (average 250 pg/L and 4.2 pg/m3, respectively), followed by HCB (average 17 pg/L and 89 pg/m3, respectively). Air-water exchange varied greatly between sites and individual OCPs, however α-endosulfan was consistently deposited into the surface water (average 19 pg/m2/day). PCBs in the air and water were characterized by penta- and hexachlorobiphenyls with distribution along the coast correlated with proximity to developed areas. Air-water exchange gradients generally yielded net volatilization of PCBs out of Lake Superior. Gaseous concentrations of hexachlorobenzene, dieldrin and chlordanes were significantly higher (p < 0.05) at Lake Erie than Lake Ontario. A multiple linear regression that incorporated meteorological, landuse and population data was used to explain variability in the atmospheric concentrations. Results indicated that landuse (urban and/or cropland) greatly explained the variability in the data. Freely dissolved concentrations of OCPs (water quality guidelines for the protection of human health from the consumption of fish. Spatial distributions of

  16. The role of depth in regulating water quality and fish assemblages in oxbow lakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Goetz, Daniel B.; Miranda, Leandro E.; Kroger, Robert; Andrews, Caroline S.

    2015-01-01

    We evaluated water quality and fish assemblages in deep (> 3.0 m; N = 7) and shallow (< 1.5 m; N = 6) floodplain lakes in the intensively cultivated Yazoo River Basin (Mississippi, USA) using indirect gradient multivariate procedures. Shallow lakes displayed wide diel oxygen fluctuations, some reaching hypoxic/anoxic conditions for extended periods of time, high suspended solids, and extreme water temperatures. Conversely, deeper lakes were represented by higher visibility, stable oxygen levels, and cooler water temperatures. Fish assemblages in shallow lakes were dominated by tolerant, small-bodied fishes and those able to breathe atmospheric oxygen. Deeper lakes had a greater representation of predators and other large-bodied fishes. Our evaluation suggests fish assemblages are reflective of oxbow lakes water quality, which is shaped by depth. Understanding the interactions between depth, water quality, and fish assemblages may facilitate development of effective management plans for improving conditions necessary to sustain diverse fish assemblages in agriculturally dominated basins.

  17. Remotely Sensing Lake Water Volumes on the Inner Arctic Coastal Plain of Northern Alaska

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Simpson, C. E.; Arp, C. D.; Jones, B. M.; Hinkel, K. M.; Carroll, M.; Smith, L. C.

    2017-12-01

    Thermokarst lake depth is controlled by the amount of excess ice in near-surface permafrost, with lake depths of about 1 - 3 m in areas of epigenetic permafrost and over 10 m in areas of syngenetic permafrost. An important exception to these general patterns is found on the inner Arctic Coastal Plain (ACP) of northern Alaska, where deep lakes occur in Pleistocene-aged, ground-ice poor sandy terrain. These lakes cover 20% of the currently inactive sand sheet and dune deposit (referred to as the Pleistocene Sand Sea) that comprises approximately 7000 km2 of the ACP. Surrounded by high and eroding bluffs, sand sea lakes lie in natural depressions and are characterized by wide, shallow littoral shelves and central troughs that are typically oriented NNW to SSE and can reach depths greater than 20 m. Despite their unique form and extensive coverage, these lakes have received little prior study and a literature gap remains regarding regional water storage. This research classifies sand sea lakes, estimates individual lake volume, and provides a first quantification of water storage in a region of the lake-dominated ACP. We measured bathymetric profiles in 19 sand sea lakes using a sonar recorder to capture various lake depth gradients. Bathymetric surveys collected by oil industry consultants, lake monitoring programs, and habitat studies serve as additional datasets. These field measured lake depth data points were used to classify Color Infrared Photography, WorldView-2 satellite imagery, and Landsat-OLI satellite imagery to develop a spectral depth-classification algorithm and facilitate the interpolation of the bathymetry for study lakes in the inner ACP. Finally, we integrate the remotely sensed bathymetry and imagery-derived lake surface area to estimate individual and regional-scale lake volume. In addition to the natural function of these lakes in water storage, energy balance, and habitat provision, the need for winter water supply to build ice roads for oil

  18. The Great Lakes Water Balance: Data availability and annotated bibliography of selected references

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Neff, Brian P.; Killian, Jason R.

    2003-01-01

    Water balance calculations for the Great Lakes have been made for several decades and are a key component of Great Lakes water management. Despite the importance of the water balance, little has been done to inventory and describe the data available for use in water balance calculations. This report provides a catalog and brief description of major datasets that are used to calculate the Great Lakes water balance. Several additional datasets are identified that could be used to calculate parts of the water balance but currently are not being used. Individual offices and web pages that are useful for attaining these datasets are included. Four specific data gaps are also identified. An annotated bibliography of important publications dealing with the Great Lakes water balance is included. The findings of this investigation permit resource managers and scientists to access data more easily, assess shortcomings of current datasets, and identify which data are not currently being utilized in water balance calculations.

  19. Rapid and highly variable warming of lake surface waters around the globe

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    O'Reilly, Catherine; Sharma, Sapna; Gray, Derek; Hampton, Stephanie; Read, Jordan S.; Rowley, Rex J.; Schneider, Philipp; Lenters, John D.; McIntyre, Peter B.; Kraemer, Benjamin M.; Weyhenmeyer, Gesa A.; Straile, Dietmar; Dong, Bo; Adrian, Rita; Allan, Mathew G.; Anneville, Orlane; Arvola, Lauri; Austin, Jay; Bailey, John L.; Baron, Jill S.; Brookes, Justin D; de Eyto, Elvira; Dokulil, Martin T.; Hamilton, David P.; Havens, Karl; Hetherington, Amy L.; Higgins, Scott N.; Hook, Simon; Izmest'eva, Lyubov R.; Jöhnk, Klaus D.; Kangur, Külli; Kasprzak, Peter; Kumagai, Michio; Kuusisto, Esko; Leshkevich, George; Livingstone, David M.; MacIntyre, Sally; May, Linda; Melack, John M.; Mueller-Navara, Doerthe C.; Naumenko, Mikhail; Noges, Peeter; Noges, Tiina; North, Ryan P.; Plisnier, Pierre-Denis; Rigosi, Anna; Rimmer, Alon; Rogora, Michela; Rudstam, Lars G.; Rusak, James A.; Salmaso, Nico; Samal, Nihar R.; Schindler, Daniel E.; Schladow, Geoffrey; Schmid, Martin; Schmidt, Silke R.; Silow, Eugene A.; Soylu, M. Evren; Teubner, Katrin; Verburg, Piet; Voutilainen, Ari; Watkinson, Andrew; Williamson, Craig E.; Zhang, Guoqing

    2015-01-01

    In this first worldwide synthesis of in situ and satellite-derived lake data, we find that lake summer surface water temperatures rose rapidly (global mean = 0.34°C decade−1) between 1985 and 2009. Our analyses show that surface water warming rates are dependent on combinations of climate and local characteristics, rather than just lake location, leading to the counterintuitive result that regional consistency in lake warming is the exception, rather than the rule. The most rapidly warming lakes are widely geographically distributed, and their warming is associated with interactions among different climatic factors—from seasonally ice-covered lakes in areas where temperature and solar radiation are increasing while cloud cover is diminishing (0.72°C decade−1) to ice-free lakes experiencing increases in air temperature and solar radiation (0.53°C decade−1). The pervasive and rapid warming observed here signals the urgent need to incorporate climate impacts into vulnerability assessments and adaptation efforts for lakes.

  20. Cyanobacteria in lakes on Yungui Plateau, China are assembled via niche processes driven by water physicochemical property, lake morphology and watershed land-use

    PubMed Central

    Liao, Jingqiu; Zhao, Lei; Cao, Xiaofeng; Sun, Jinhua; Gao, Zhe; Wang, Jie; Jiang, Dalin; Fan, Hao; Huang, Yi

    2016-01-01

    Plateau lakes are important ecosystems with diverse ecological functions. Cyanobacteria play a key role in plateau lakes as primary producers. However, they are threatening when dense blooms occur. Identifying cyanobacteiral biogeography and the mechanism of assembly processes shaping the distribution of cyanobacteria in plateau lakes is critical for understanding cyanobacterial ecology and applying it to lake management. In the present study, the biogeographic pattern and importance of neutral and niche processes in assembly of cyanobacteria in 21 lakes on Yungui Plateau, China were examined. Results showed that cyanobacteria exhibit unique biogeographic pattern, and most of them have a narrow habitat preference in plateau lakes. They were assembled via niche processes driven by water physicochemical property, lake morphology and watershed land-use, which explained 62.4% of the biological variation. Neutral processes were not at play. Water physicochemical property (key variables - dissolved oxygen, salinity, trophic status and pH) was the most dominant driver shaping its unique biogeographic pattern. Watershed land-use especially urban land, water body and agricultural land also exhibited a strong impact on cyanobacterial distribution, followed by lake morphology. As most of the cyanobacteiral genus detected in these plateau lakes were potential toxin-producers, this study indicated that in order to protect waters from toxic-bloom in the future, reducing nutrient loading and land-use practices are two practical approaches in plateau lake management. PMID:27819304

  1. Cyanobacteria in lakes on Yungui Plateau, China are assembled via niche processes driven by water physicochemical property, lake morphology and watershed land-use

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liao, Jingqiu; Zhao, Lei; Cao, Xiaofeng; Sun, Jinhua; Gao, Zhe; Wang, Jie; Jiang, Dalin; Fan, Hao; Huang, Yi

    2016-11-01

    Plateau lakes are important ecosystems with diverse ecological functions. Cyanobacteria play a key role in plateau lakes as primary producers. However, they are threatening when dense blooms occur. Identifying cyanobacteiral biogeography and the mechanism of assembly processes shaping the distribution of cyanobacteria in plateau lakes is critical for understanding cyanobacterial ecology and applying it to lake management. In the present study, the biogeographic pattern and importance of neutral and niche processes in assembly of cyanobacteria in 21 lakes on Yungui Plateau, China were examined. Results showed that cyanobacteria exhibit unique biogeographic pattern, and most of them have a narrow habitat preference in plateau lakes. They were assembled via niche processes driven by water physicochemical property, lake morphology and watershed land-use, which explained 62.4% of the biological variation. Neutral processes were not at play. Water physicochemical property (key variables - dissolved oxygen, salinity, trophic status and pH) was the most dominant driver shaping its unique biogeographic pattern. Watershed land-use especially urban land, water body and agricultural land also exhibited a strong impact on cyanobacterial distribution, followed by lake morphology. As most of the cyanobacteiral genus detected in these plateau lakes were potential toxin-producers, this study indicated that in order to protect waters from toxic-bloom in the future, reducing nutrient loading and land-use practices are two practical approaches in plateau lake management.

  2. Cyanobacteria in lakes on Yungui Plateau, China are assembled via niche processes driven by water physicochemical property, lake morphology and watershed land-use.

    PubMed

    Liao, Jingqiu; Zhao, Lei; Cao, Xiaofeng; Sun, Jinhua; Gao, Zhe; Wang, Jie; Jiang, Dalin; Fan, Hao; Huang, Yi

    2016-11-07

    Plateau lakes are important ecosystems with diverse ecological functions. Cyanobacteria play a key role in plateau lakes as primary producers. However, they are threatening when dense blooms occur. Identifying cyanobacteiral biogeography and the mechanism of assembly processes shaping the distribution of cyanobacteria in plateau lakes is critical for understanding cyanobacterial ecology and applying it to lake management. In the present study, the biogeographic pattern and importance of neutral and niche processes in assembly of cyanobacteria in 21 lakes on Yungui Plateau, China were examined. Results showed that cyanobacteria exhibit unique biogeographic pattern, and most of them have a narrow habitat preference in plateau lakes. They were assembled via niche processes driven by water physicochemical property, lake morphology and watershed land-use, which explained 62.4% of the biological variation. Neutral processes were not at play. Water physicochemical property (key variables - dissolved oxygen, salinity, trophic status and pH) was the most dominant driver shaping its unique biogeographic pattern. Watershed land-use especially urban land, water body and agricultural land also exhibited a strong impact on cyanobacterial distribution, followed by lake morphology. As most of the cyanobacteiral genus detected in these plateau lakes were potential toxin-producers, this study indicated that in order to protect waters from toxic-bloom in the future, reducing nutrient loading and land-use practices are two practical approaches in plateau lake management.

  3. Lake Surface Water Temperature of European Lakes retrieved from AVHRR Data - Time Series and Quality Assessment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wunderle, S.; Lieberherr, G.; Riffler, M.

    2016-12-01

    Data analysis of the recent years showed an increase of lake surface water temperature for many lakes around the world. But due to sparse in-situ measurements, which are often not well documented, only satellite data can provide the needed information of the last decades. The importance of lakes for climate research was also highlighted by the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) defining lakes as Essential Climate Variables (ECVs). Within the frame of a research project funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation a procedure was developed to retrieve lake surface water temperature with high accuracy based on our archived AVHRR data at the University of Bern, Switzerland. The data archive starts in 1985 and is continuously filled with NOAA-/MetOp-AVHRR data received by our antenna resulting in a time series of more than 30 years (WMO definition of a climate period). The data set covering Europe is also used by other teams for climate related studies resulting in improved pre-processing to guarantee precise calibration and geocoding. The first part of our presentation will be dedicated to the quality of the LSWT retrieval comparing various in-situ measurements from lakes in Switzerland with varying sizes (150km2 - 9km2). The quality of the used split-window approach is sensitive to the derived split-window coefficients. The influence of water vapor, view angle, temporal and spatial validity and day vs. night data will be shown. In addition, some information will be presented about the influence of topography and climatic regions (e.g. Scandinavia vs. Greece) on the quality of the LSWT product. Based on these findings compiling time series for different lakes in Europe will be the focus of the second part of our presentation with details of the applied quality assessment to avoid erroneous signals. Hence, some information is given about hierarchical quality checks which are needed to guarantee a dataset without artefacts. Finally, some results of time series

  4. Influence of Culture and Gender on Secondary School Students' Scientific Creativity in Biology Education in Turkana County, Kenya

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Aruan, Susan A.; Okere, Mark I. O.; Wachanga, Samuel

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to establish the extent to which biology scientific creativity skills are influenced by the students' culture and gender in Turkana County. A mixed method research design was used. This involved cross sectional survey and ethnographic study. The target population comprised all form three students in sub county schools…

  5. Water-resources appraisal of the Lake Traverse Indian Reservation in South Dakota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lawrence, S.J.

    1989-01-01

    The water resources within the Lake Traverse Indian Reservation consist of streams, lakes, wetlands, and groundwater stored in alluvium and glacial outwash deposits. Streamflow may cease during dry periods and during the winter. Lakes and ponds within the reservation are found predominantly within an internally drained basin. Dissolved-solids concentrations in the lakes generally range from 500 to 10,000 mg/L. Dissolved-solids concentrations in the streams generally ranging from 500 to 1 ,000 mg/L. However, nutrient concentrations tend to be larger than natural background levels in both lakes and streams and indicate unidentified sources of nutrients that effect the quality of water. Major development of surface-water resources is hindered by the lack of storage capacity within the numerous lakes, the lack of sustained streamflow, and the lack of suitable sites for construction or reservoirs. Water within the Coteau des Prairies, a glacial upland, occurs in outwash deposits. The sand and gravel deposits in the Coteau may be as thick as 70 ft. The quality of water from these aquifers generally is suitable for most uses, with calcium, magnesium, and bicarbonate the dominant ions. Water in sand and gravel deposits within the Red River and Minnesota River lowlands tends to have larger concentrations of dissolved solids than the sand and gravel deposits in the Coteau des Prairies. The quality of water in these deposits tends to be more mineralized than water in the sand and gravel deposits in the Coteau des Prairies. The regional flow of groundwater generally is to the east towards the Minnesota and Red River basins and west in the Coteau des Prairies. (USGS)

  6. The Water Level Fall of Lake Megali Prespa (N Greece): an Indicator of Regional Water Stress Driven by Climate Change and Amplified by Water Extraction?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    van der Schriek, Tim; Giannakopoulos, Christos

    2014-05-01

    The Mediterranean stands out globally due to its sensitivity to (future) climate change, with future projections predicting an increase in excessive drought events and declining rainfall. Regional freshwater ecosystems are particularly threatened: precipitation decreases, while extreme droughts increase and human impacts intensify (e.g. water extraction, drainage, pollution and dam-building). Many Mediterranean lake-wetland systems have shrunk or disappeared over the past two decades. Protecting the remaining systems is extremely important for supporting global biodiversity and for ensuring sustainable water availability. This protection should be based on a clear understanding of lake-wetland hydrological responses to natural and human-induced changes, which is currently lacking in many parts of the Mediterranean. The interconnected Prespa-Ohrid Lake system is a global hotspot of biodiversity and endemism. The unprecedented fall in water level (~8m) of Lake Megali Prespa threatens this system, but causes remain debated. Modelling suggests that the S Balkan will experience rainfall and runoff decreases of ~30% by 2050. However, projections revealing the potential impact of these changes on future lake level are unavailable as lake regime is not understood. A further drop in lake level may have serious consequences. The Prespa Lakes contribute ~25% of the total inflow into Lake Ohrid through underground karst channels; falling lake levels decrease this discharge. Lake Ohrid, in turn, feeds the Drim River. This entire catchment may therefore be affected by falling lake levels; its water resources are of great importance for Greece, Albania, FYROM and Montenegro (e.g. tourism, agriculture, hydro-energy, urban & industrial use). This new work proves that annual water level fluctuations of Lake Megali Prespa are predominantly related to precipitation during the first 7 months (Oct-Apr) of the hydrological year (Oct-Sep). Lake level is very sensitive to regional and

  7. Using isotopes to quantify evaporation and non-stationary transit times distributions in lake water budgets

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Smith, A. A.; Tetzlaff, D.; Soulsby, C.

    2017-12-01

    Evaporative fluxes from northern lakes are essential components of catchment water balances, providing large supplies of water to the atmosphere, and affecting downstream water availability. However, measurement of lake evaporation is difficult in many catchments due to remoteness and inaccessibility. Evaporative flux may also influence mean transit times of lakes and catchments, identified through water- and tracer mass-balance. We combined stable water isotopes (δ2H and δ18O), transit, and residence time distributions in a non-stationary transit time model to estimate the evaporative flux from two lakes in the Scottish Highlands. The lakes were in close proximity to each other ( 2km), shallow (mean depth, 1.5 m) with one large (0.88km2) and one small (0.4km2). Model calibration used measurements of precipitation, air temperature, water level, and isotopic stream compositions of lake inflow and outflows. Evaporation flux was identified using lake fractionation of δ2H and δ18O. Mixing patterns of the lakes and their respective outlet isotopic compositions were accounted for by comparing three probability distributions for discharge and evaporation. We found that the evaporation flux was strongly influenced by these discharge and evaporation distributions. Decreased mixing within the lake resulted in greater evaporation fluxes. One of the three distributions yielded similar mean daily evaporation and uncertainty for both lakes (max 5mm/day), while evaporation using the other two distributions was inconsistent between the lakes. Importantly, our approach also estimated distributions of evaporation age, which were significantly different between the lakes, reflecting a combination of inflow stream magnitude and the mixing regimes. The mean evaporation flux age of the large lake was 160 days, and 14 days for the small lake. Our integrated approach of stable isotopes, time variant transit time distributions has shown to be a useful tool for quantifying evaporative

  8. Triple Isotope Water Measurements of Lake Untersee Ice using Off-Axis ICOS

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Berman, E. S.; Huang, Y. W.; Andersen, D. T.; Gupta, M.; McKay, C. P.

    2015-12-01

    Lake Untersee (71.348°S, 13.458°E) is the largest surface freshwater lake in the interior of the Gruber Mountains of central Queen Maud Land in East Antarctica. The lake is permanently covered with ice, is partly bounded by glacier ice and has a mean annual air temperature of -10°C. In contrast to other Antarctic lakes the dominating physical process controlling ice-cover dynamics is low summer temperatures and high wind speeds resulting in sublimation rather than melting as the main mass-loss process. The ice-cover of the lake is composed of lake-water ice formed during freeze-up and rafted glacial ice derived from the Anuchin Glacier. The mix of these two fractions impacts the energy balance of the lake, which directly affects ice-cover thickness. Ice-cover is important if one is to understand the physical, chemical, and biological linkages within these unique, physically driven ecosystems. We have analyzed δ2H, δ18O, and δ17O from samples of lake and glacier ice collected at Lake Untersee in Dec 2014. Using these data we seek to answer two specific questions: Are we able to determine the origin and history of the lake ice, discriminating between rafted glacial ice and lake water? Can isotopic gradients in the surface ice indicate the ablation (sublimation) rate of the surface ice? The triple isotope water analyzer developed by Los Gatos Research (LGR 912-0032) uses LGR's patented Off-Axis ICOS (Integrated Cavity Output Spectroscopy) technology and incorporates proprietary internal thermal control for high sensitivity and optimal instrument stability. This analyzer measures δ2H, δ18O, and δ17O from water, as well as the calculated d-excess and 17O-excess. The laboratory precision in high performance mode for both δ17O and δ18O is 0.03 ‰, and for δ2H is 0.2 ‰. Methodology and isotope data from Lake Untersee samples are presented. Figure: Ice samples were collected across Lake Untersee from both glacial and lake ice regions for this study.

  9. Water resources of the Lake Erie shore region in Pennsylvania

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Mangan, John William; Van Tuyl, Donald W.; White, Walter F.

    1952-01-01

    An abundant supply of water is available to the Lake Erie Shore region in Pennsylvania. Lake i£rie furnishes an almost inexhaustible supply of water of satisfactory chemical quality. Small quantities of water are available from small streams in the area and from the ground. A satisfactory water supply is one of the factors that affect the economic growth of a region. Cities and towns must have adequate amounts of pure water for human consumption. Industries must have suitable water ih sufficient quantities for all purposes. In order to assure. success and economy, the development of water resources should be based on adequate knowledge of the quantity and quality of the water. As a nation, we can not afford to run the risk of dissipating our resources, especially in times of national emergency, by building projects that are not founded on sound engineering and adequate water-resources information. The purpose of this report is to summarize and interpret all available water-resources information for the Lake Erie Shore region in Pennsylvania. The report will be useful for initial guidance in the location or expansion of water facilities for defense and nondefense industries and the municipalities upon which they are dependent. It will also be useful in evaluating the adequacy of the Geological Survey's part of the basic research necessary to plan the orderly development of the water resources of the Lake Erie Shore region. Most of the data contained inthis report have been obtained'by the U. S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Department of Forests and Waters, the Pennsylvania Department of Internal Affairs, and the Pennsylvania State Planning Board, Department of Commerce. The Pennsylv~nia Department of Health furnished information on water pollution. The report was prepared in the Water Resources Division of the U. S. Geological Survey b:y John W. Mangan (Surface Water). Donald W. VanTuyl (Ground Water). and Walter F. White, Jr. (Quality of

  10. Climate-induced warming of lakes can be either amplified or suppressed by trends in water clarity

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Rose, Kevin C.; Winslow, Luke A.; Read, Jordan S.; Hansen, Gretchen J. A.

    2016-01-01

    Climate change is rapidly warming aquatic ecosystems including lakes and reservoirs. However, variability in lake characteristics can modulate how lakes respond to climate. Water clarity is especially important both because it influences the depth range over which heat is absorbed, and because it is changing in many lakes. Here, we show that simulated long-term water clarity trends influence how both surface and bottom water temperatures of lakes and reservoirs respond to climate change. Clarity changes can either amplify or suppress climate-induced warming, depending on lake depth and the direction of clarity change. Using a process-based model to simulate 1894 north temperate lakes from 1979 to 2012, we show that a scenario of decreasing clarity at a conservative yet widely observed rate of 0.92% yr−1 warmed surface waters and cooled bottom waters at rates comparable in magnitude to climate-induced warming. For lakes deeper than 6.5 m, decreasing clarity was sufficient to fully offset the effects of climate-induced warming on median whole-lake mean temperatures. Conversely, a scenario increasing clarity at the same rate cooled surface waters and warmed bottom waters relative to baseline warming rates. Furthermore, in 43% of lakes, increasing clarity more than doubled baseline bottom temperature warming rates. Long-term empirical observations of water temperature in lakes with and without clarity trends support these simulation results. Together, these results demonstrate that water clarity trends may be as important as rising air temperatures in determining how waterbodies respond to climate change.

  11. Polarization Lidar for Shallow Water Supraglacial Lake Depth Measurement

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mitchell, S.; Adler, J.; Thayer, J. P.; Hayman, M.

    2010-12-01

    A bathymetric, polarization lidar system transmitting at 532 nanometers and using a single photomultiplier tube is developed for applications of shallow water depth measurement, in particular those often found in supraglacial lakes of the ablation zone on the Greenland Ice Sheet. The technique exploits polarization attributes of the probed water body to isolate surface and floor returns, enabling constant fraction detection schemes to determine depth. The minimum resolvable water depth is no longer dictated by the system’s laser or detector pulse width and can achieve better than an order of magnitude improvement over current water depth determination techniques. In laboratory tests, a Nd:YAG microchip laser coupled with polarization optics, a photomultiplier tube, a constant fraction discriminator and a time to digital converter are used to target various water depths, using ice as the floor to simulate a supraglacial lake. Measurement of 1 centimeter water depths with an uncertainty of ±3 millimeters are demonstrated using the technique. This novel technique enables new approaches to designing laser bathymetry systems for shallow depth determination from remote platforms while not compromising deep water depth measurement, and will support comprehensive hydrodynamic studies of supraglacial lakes. Additionally, the compact size and low weight (<15 kg) of the field system currently in development presents opportunities for use in small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) for large areal surveys of the ablation zone.

  12. Water sampling using a drone at Yugama crater lake, Kusatsu-Shirane volcano, Japan

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Terada, Akihiko; Morita, Yuichi; Hashimoto, Takeshi; Mori, Toshiya; Ohba, Takeshi; Yaguchi, Muga; Kanda, Wataru

    2018-04-01

    Remote sampling of water from Yugama crater lake at Kusatsu-Shirane volcano, Japan, was performed using a drone. Despite the high altitude of over 2000 m above sea level, our simple method was successful in retrieving a 250 mL sample of lake water. The procedure presented here is easy for any researcher to follow who operates a drone without additional special apparatus. We compare the lake water sampled by drone with that sampled by hand at a site where regular samplings have previously been carried out. Chemical concentrations and stable isotope ratios are largely consistent between the two techniques. As the drone can fly automatically with the aid of navigation by Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), it is possible to repeatedly sample lake water from the same location, even when entry to Yugama crater lake is restricted due to the risk of eruption.[Figure not available: see fulltext.

  13. Projecting the impact of regional land-use change and water management policies on lake water quality: an application to periurban lakes and reservoirs.

    PubMed

    Catherine, Arnaud; Mouillot, David; Maloufi, Selma; Troussellier, Marc; Bernard, Cécile

    2013-01-01

    As the human population grows, the demand for living space and supplies of resources also increases, which may induce rapid change in land-use/land-cover (LULC) and associated pressures exerted on aquatic habitats. We propose a new approach to forecast the impact of regional land cover change and water management policies (i.e., targets in nutrient loads reduction) on lake and reservoir water eutrophication status using a model that requires minimal parameterisation compared with alternative methods. This approach was applied to a set of 48 periurban lakes located in the Ile de France region (IDF, France) to simulate catchment-scale management scenarios. Model outputs were subsequently compared to governmental agencies' 2030 forecasts. Our model indicated that the efforts made to reduce pressure in the catchment of seepage lakes might be expected to be proportional to the gain that might be obtained, whereas drainage lakes will display little improvement until a critical level of pressure reduction is reached. The model also indicated that remediation measures, as currently planned by governmental agencies, might only have a marginal impact on improving the eutrophication status of lakes and reservoirs within the IDF region. Despite the commitment to appropriately managing the water resources in many countries, prospective tools to evaluate the potential impacts of global change on freshwater ecosystems integrity at medium to large spatial scales are lacking. This study proposes a new approach to investigate the impact of region-scale human-driven changes on lake and reservoir ecological status and could be implemented elsewhere with limited parameterisation. Issues are discussed that relate to model uncertainty and to its relevance as a tool applied to decision-making.

  14. Projecting the Impact of Regional Land-Use Change and Water Management Policies on Lake Water Quality: An Application to Periurban Lakes and Reservoirs

    PubMed Central

    Catherine, Arnaud; Mouillot, David; Maloufi, Selma; Troussellier, Marc; Bernard, Cécile

    2013-01-01

    As the human population grows, the demand for living space and supplies of resources also increases, which may induce rapid change in land-use/land-cover (LULC) and associated pressures exerted on aquatic habitats. We propose a new approach to forecast the impact of regional land cover change and water management policies (i.e., targets in nutrient loads reduction) on lake and reservoir water eutrophication status using a model that requires minimal parameterisation compared with alternative methods. This approach was applied to a set of 48 periurban lakes located in the Ile de France region (IDF, France) to simulate catchment-scale management scenarios. Model outputs were subsequently compared to governmental agencies’ 2030 forecasts. Our model indicated that the efforts made to reduce pressure in the catchment of seepage lakes might be expected to be proportional to the gain that might be obtained, whereas drainage lakes will display little improvement until a critical level of pressure reduction is reached. The model also indicated that remediation measures, as currently planned by governmental agencies, might only have a marginal impact on improving the eutrophication status of lakes and reservoirs within the IDF region. Despite the commitment to appropriately managing the water resources in many countries, prospective tools to evaluate the potential impacts of global change on freshwater ecosystems integrity at medium to large spatial scales are lacking. This study proposes a new approach to investigate the impact of region-scale human-driven changes on lake and reservoir ecological status and could be implemented elsewhere with limited parameterisation. Issues are discussed that relate to model uncertainty and to its relevance as a tool applied to decision-making. PMID:23991066

  15. Monitoring and modeling water temperature and trophic status of a shallow Mediterranean lake

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Giadrossich, Filippo; Bueche, Thomas; Pulina, Silvia; Marrosu, Roberto; Padedda, Bachisio Mario; Mariani, Maria Antonietta; Vetter, Mark; Cohen, Denis; Pirastru, Mario; Niedda, Marcello; Lugliè, Antonella

    2017-04-01

    Lakes are sensitive to changes in climate and human activities. Over the last few decades, Mediterranean lakes have experienced various problems due to the current climate change (drought, flood, warming, salt accumulation, water quality changes, etc.), often amplified by water use, intensification of land use activities, and pollution. The overall impact of these changes on water resources is still an open question. In this study we monitor the trophic status and the dynamics of water temperature of Lake Baratz, the only natural lake in Sardinia, Italy, characterized by high salinity and shallow depth. We extend the research carried out in the past 8 years by integrating new physical, chemical and biological data using a multidisciplinary approach that combines hydrological and biological dynamics. In particular, the lake water balance and the thermal and hydrochemical regime are studied with a lake dynamic model (the General Lake Model or GLM) which combine the energy budget method for estimating lake evaporation, and a physically-based rainfall-runoff simulator for estimating lake inflow, calibrated with measurements at the cross section of the main inlet stream. The trophic state of the lake was evaluated applying the OCDE Probability Distribution Diagrams method, which requires nutrient concentrations in the lake (total phosphorus), phytoplankton chlorophyll a and Secchi disk transparency data. We collected field data from a raft station and a land station, measuring net solar radiation, air temperature and relative humidity, precipitation, wind velocity, atmospheric pressure, and temperature from thermistors submerged in the uppermost three centimeters of water and beneath the lake surface at depths of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 8 m. Samples for nutrients and chlorophyll a analyses were collected at the same above mentioned depths close to the raft station using a Niskin bottle. Temperature, salinity, pH, and dissolved oxygen were measured using a multi

  16. Hydrological and chemical estimates of the water balance of a closed-basin lake in north central Minnesota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    LaBaugh, James W.; Winter, Thomas C.; Rosenberry, Donald O.; Schuster, Paul F.; Reddy, Michael M.; Aiken, George R.

    1997-01-01

    Chemical mass balances for sodium, magnesium, chloride, dissolved organic carbon, and oxygen 18 were used to estimate groundwater seepage to and from Williams Lake, Minnesota, over a 15-month period, from April 1991 through June 1992. Groundwater seepage to the lake and seepage from the lake to groundwater were determined independently using a flow net approach using data from water table wells installed as part of the study. Hydrogeological analysis indicated groundwater seepage to the lake accounted for 74% of annual water input to the lake; the remainder came from atmospheric precipitation, as determined from a gage in the watershed and from nearby National Weather Service gages. Seepage from the lake accounted for 69% of annual water losses from the lake; the remainder was removed by evaporation, as determined by the energy budget method. Calculated annual water loss exceeded calculated annual water gain, and this imbalance was double the value of the independently measured decrease in lake volume. Seepage to the lake determined from oxygen 18 was larger (79% of annual water input) than that determined from the flow net approach and made the difference between calculated annual water gain and loss consistent with the independently measured decrease in lake volume. Although the net difference between volume of seepage to the lake and volume of seepage from the lake was 1% of average lake volume, movement of water into and out of the lake by seepage represented an annual exchange of groundwater with the lake equal to 26–27% of lake volume. Estimates of seepage to the lake from sodium, magnesium, chloride, and dissolved organic carbon did not agree with the values determined from flow net approach or oxygen 18. These results indicated the importance of using a combination of hydrogeological and chemical approaches to define volume of seepage to and from Williams Lake and identify uncertainties in chemical fluxes.

  17. Water quality monitoring: A comparative case study of municipal and Curtin Sarawak's lake samples

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Anand Kumar, A.; Jaison, J.; Prabakaran, K.; Nagarajan, R.; Chan, Y. S.

    2016-03-01

    In this study, particle size distribution and zeta potential of the suspended particles in municipal water and lake surface water of Curtin Sarawak's lake were compared and the samples were analysed using dynamic light scattering method. High concentration of suspended particles affects the water quality as well as suppresses the aquatic photosynthetic systems. A new approach has been carried out in the current work to determine the particle size distribution and zeta potential of the suspended particles present in the water samples. The results for the lake samples showed that the particle size ranges from 180nm to 1345nm and the zeta potential values ranges from -8.58 mV to -26.1 mV. High zeta potential value was observed in the surface water samples of Curtin Sarawak's lake compared to the municipal water. The zeta potential values represent that the suspended particles are stable and chances of agglomeration is lower in lake water samples. Moreover, the effects of physico-chemical parameters on zeta potential of the water samples were also discussed.

  18. What happens to near-shore habitat when lake and reservoir water levels decline?

    EPA Science Inventory

    Water management and drought can lead to increased fluctuation and declines in lake and reservoir water levels. These changes can affect near-shore physical habitat and the biotic assemblages that depend upon it. Structural complexity at the land-water interface of lakes promote...

  19. Monitoring of Water-Level Fluctuation of Lake Nasser Using Altimetry Satellite Data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    El-Shirbeny, Mohammed A.; Abutaleb, Khaled A.

    2018-05-01

    Apart from the Renaissance Dam and other constructed dams on the River Nile tributaries, Egypt is classified globally as a state of scarce water. Egypt's water resources are very limited and do not contribute a significant amount to its water share except the River Nile (55.5 billion m3/year). While the number of population increases every year, putting more stress on these limited resources. This study aims to use remote-sensing data to assess the change in surface area and water-level variation in Lake Nasser using remote-sensing data from Landsat-8 and altimetry data. In addition, it investigates the use of thermal data from Landsat-8 to calculate water loss based on evaporation from Lake Nasser. The eight Landsat-8 satellite images were used to study the change in surface area of Lake Nasser representing winter (January) and summer (June/July) seasons in two consecutive years (2015 and 2016). Time series analyses for 10-day temporal resolution water-level data from Jason-2/OSTM and Jason-3 altimetry was carried out to investigate water-level trends over the long term (1993 and 2016) and short term (2015-2016) in correspondence with the change of the surface area. Results indicated a shrink in the lake surface area in 2016 of approximately 14% compared to the 2015 area. In addition, the evaporation rate in the lake is very high causing a loss of approximately 20% of the total water share from the river Nile.

  20. Lake Diefenbaker: Water Quality Assessment and Modeling for Management under Environmental Change

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sereda, J.; Wheater, H. S.; Hudson, J.; Doig, L.; Liber, K.; Jones, P.; Giesy, J.; Bharadwaj, L.

    2011-12-01

    Preliminary results are presented for a comprehensive inter-disciplinary study on Lake Diefenbaker initiated by the Global Institute for Water Security to understand the physical and biogeochemical processes affecting water quality under climate change and their policy implications. Lake Diefenbaker is a large reservoir (surface area ~500km2 and Zmean ~33m) located in Southern Saskatchewan, Canada and is a critically-important water resource for Saskatchewan. It receives nearly all of its flow from the South Saskatchewan River, which flows through some of the most urbanized and intense agricultural lands of southern Alberta. As a result these waters contain high levels of nutrients [nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P)] along with a variety of chemical contaminants characteristic of anthropogenic activity. In addition, riparian and in-lake activities provide local sources of nutrients, from domestic sewage, agriculture and fish farming. The South Saskatchewan River has been identified by the World Wildlife Fund (2009) as Canada's most threatened river in terms of environmental flow. Lake Diefenbaker has numerous large deep embayments (depth >20m) and an annual water level fluctuation of ~6m. A deep thermocline (~25m) forms infrequently. Stratification does not occur throughout the lake. Anecdotal information suggests that the frequency and severity of algal blooms are increasing; although blooms have been sporadic and localized. This localized eutrophication may be related to local stratification patterns, point source nutrient loading, and/or internal lake processes (i.e., internal nutrient loading). A paleolimnological reconstruction has begun to assess historical nutrient and contaminant loading to Lake Diefenbaker and hence the trajectory of water quality in the lake. Major point sources and diffuse sources of N and P are also under investigation. In addition, the type (N versus P) and degree of nutrient limitation of bacteria and algae are being assessed (spatially

  1. Cluster analysis of water-quality data for Lake Sakakawea, Audubon Lake, and McClusky Canal, central North Dakota, 1990-2003

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Ryberg, Karen R.

    2006-01-01

    As a result of the Dakota Water Resources Act of 2000, the Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Department of the Interior, identified eight water-supply alternatives (including a no-action alternative) to meet future water needs in portions of the Red River of the North (Red River) Basin. Of those alternatives, four include the interbasin transfer of water from the Missouri River Basin to the Red River Basin. Three of the interbasin transfer alternatives would use the McClusky Canal, located in central North Dakota, to transport the water. Therefore, the water quality of the McClusky Canal and the sources of its water, Lake Sakakawea and Audubon Lake, is of interest to water-quality stakeholders. The Bureau of Reclamation collected water-quality samples at 23 sites on Lake Sakakawea, Audubon Lake, and the McClusky Canal system from 1990 through 2003. Physical properties and water-quality constituents from these samples were summarized and analyzed by the U.S. Geological Survey using hierarchical agglomerative cluster analysis (HACA). HACA separated the samples into related clusters, or groups. These groups were examined for statistical significance and relation to structure of the McClusky Canal system. Statistically, the sample groupings found using HACA were significantly different from each other and appear to result from spatial and temporal water-quality differences corresponding with different sections of the canal and different operational conditions. Future operational changes of the canal system may justify additional water-quality sampling to characterize possible water-quality changes.

  2. Coastal Water Quality Modeling in Tidal Lake: Revisited with Groundwater Intrusion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, C.

    2016-12-01

    A new method for predicting the temporal and spatial variation of water quality, with accounting for a groundwater effect, has been proposed and applied to a water body partially connected to macro-tidal coastal waters in Korea. The method consists of direct measurement of environmental parameters, and it indirectly incorporates a nutrients budget analysis to estimate the submarine groundwater fluxes. Three-dimensional numerical modeling of water quality has been used with the directly collected data and the indirectly estimated groundwater fluxes. The applied area is Saemangeum tidal lake that is enclosed by 33km-long sea dyke with tidal openings at two water gates. Many investigations of groundwater impact reveal that 10 50% of nutrient loading in coastal waters comes from submarine groundwater, particularly in the macro-tidal flat, as in the west coast of Korea. Long-term monitoring of coastal water quality signals the possibility of groundwater influence on salinity reversal and on the excess mass outbalancing the normal budget in Saemangeum tidal lake. In the present study, we analyze the observed data to examine the influence of submarine groundwater, and then a box model is demonstrated for quantifying the influx and efflux. A three-dimensional numerical model has been applied to reproduce the process of groundwater dispersal and its effect on the water quality of Saemangeum tidal lake. The results show that groundwater influx during the summer monsoon then contributes significantly, 20% more than during dry season, to water quality in the tidal lake.

  3. Surface water and climatologic data, Salt Lake County, Utah, water year 1981, with selected data for water years 1980 and 1982

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    McCormack, H.F.; Christensen, R.C.; Stephens, D.W.; Pyper, G.E.; Weigel, J.F.; Conroy, L.S.

    1983-01-01

    This report contains precipitation, atmospheric-deposition, water- discharge and water-quality data collected in Salt Lake County as part of two investigations by the U.S. Geological Survey. The purpose of this report is to release data collected mainly during the 1981 water year. Selected data collected during the 1980 water year not previously published or revised and the 1982 water year also are included in this report.The first investigation, which was carried out from September 1979 to August 1982, was an urban-runoff study done in cooperation with the Salt Lake County Division of Flood Control and Water Quality. The objectives of the urban-runoff study were to identify the impact of urban runoff on the quantity and quality of the water in the canals east of the Jordan River and on the major tributaries to the river.The second investigation, which was carried out from December 1979 to September 1983, is a study of water-quality problems in the Jordan River. The study was done primarily to provide information about toxic substances, dissolved-oxygen depletion, sanitary quality, and turbidity and suspended sediment in the Jordan River. It also was funded in part by the Salt Lake County Division of Flood Control and Water Quality.Several Salt Lake County employees assisted in the collection of water- quality samples from storm runoff. Of those employees, Lee R. Armstrong, Gilbert H. Heal, Steven J. Mitckes, and Ben Santistevan worked on a daily basis with the authors and made a significant contribution in the collection of the data contained in this report. Organizations that furnished data are acknowledged in the station descriptions in tables 1 and 4.Information for previously published water-discharge, water-quality, atmospheric-deposition, and precipitation data for Salt Lake County are reported by Pyper and others (1981); Dustin (1977); Hely and others (1971) and references that they cited; and Feth and others (1964). Additional water- discharge and water

  4. Bacterial Community in Water and Air of Two Sub-Alpine Lakes in Taiwan.

    PubMed

    Tandon, Kshitij; Yang, Shan-Hua; Wan, Min-Tao; Yang, Chia-Chin; Baatar, Bayanmunkh; Chiu, Chih-Yu; Tsai, Jeng-Wei; Liu, Wen-Cheng; Tang, Sen-Lin

    2018-04-21

    Very few studies have attempted to profile the microbial communities in the air above freshwater bodies, such as lakes, even though freshwater sources are an important part of aquatic ecosystems and airborne bacteria are the most dispersible microorganisms on earth. In the present study, we investigated microbial communities in the waters of two high mountain sub-alpine montane lakes-located 21 km apart and with disparate trophic characteristics-and the air above them. Although bacteria in the lakes had locational differences, their community compositions remained constant over time. However, airborne bacterial communities were diverse and displayed spatial and temporal variance. Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Cyanobacteria were dominant in both lakes, with different relative abundances between lakes, and Parcubacteria (OD1) was dominant in air samples for all sampling times, except two. We also identified certain shared taxa between lake water and the air above it. The results obtained on these communities in the present study provide putative candidates to study how airborne communities shape lake water bacterial compositions and vice versa.

  5. Lake Storage Measurements For Water Resources Management: Combining Remotely Sensed Water Levels and Surface Areas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Brakenridge, G. R.; Birkett, C. M.

    2013-12-01

    Presently operating satellite-based radar altimeters have the ability to monitor variations in surface water height for large lakes and reservoirs, and future sensors will expand observational capabilities to many smaller water bodies. Such remote sensing provides objective, independent information where in situ data are lacking or access is restricted. A USDA/NASA (http://www.pecad.fas.usda.gov/cropexplorer/global_reservoir/) program is performing operational altimetric monitoring of the largest lakes and reservoirs around the world using data from the NASA/CNES, NRL, and ESA missions. Public lake-level products from the Global Reservoir and Lake Monitor (GRLM) are a combination of archived and near real time information. The USDA/FAS utilizes the products for assessing international irrigation potential and for crop production estimates; other end-users study climate trends, observe anthropogenic effects, and/or are are involved in other water resources management and regional water security issues. At the same time, the Dartmouth Flood Observatory (http://floodobservatory.colorado.edu/), its NASA GSFC partners (http://oas.gsfc.nasa.gov/floodmap/home.html), and associated MODIS data and automated processing algorithms are providing public access to a growing GIS record of the Earth's changing surface water extent, including changes related to floods and droughts. The Observatory's web site also provide both archival and near real time information, and is based mainly on the highest spatial resolution (250 m) MODIS bands. Therefore, it is now possible to provide on an international basis reservoir and lake storage change measurements entirely from remote sensing, on a frequently updating basis. The volume change values are based on standard numerical procedures used for many decades for analysis of coeval lake area and height data. We provide first results of this combination, including prototype displays for public access and data retrieval of water storage

  6. Local knowledge of the link between tuberculosis and HIV-1/AIDS among the Turkana of Lodwar township: implications for tuberculosis and HIV-1/AIDS prevention.

    PubMed

    Owiti, John Arianda

    2008-01-01

    This article is extracted from a doctoral thesis that was supported by a research grant from the International Development Research Centre of Canada (IDRC)'s Ecosystem Approaches to Human Health Training Award, the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Northern Ireland's Emslie Horniman Scholarship Fund and McGill University, Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research's Humanities and Social Sciences Research Award. This study used a broad theoretical framework encompassing an ecosystem approach to HIV-1/AIDS that partly investigated the nexus between local knowledge of tuberculosis (TB) and HIV-1/AIDS. According to the Turkana of Lodwar township, Kenya, HIV-1/AIDS and TB are largely contagious and are attributed to impersonal and natural causes. In addition, in line with biomedical knowledge, the Turkana's local knowledge emphasises a conceptual link between TB and HIV-1/AIDS. The study also demonstrates that factors of the ecosystem such as kaada, poverty, widow inheritance, migration and other socio-cultural practices play an influential role in the vulnerability of the Turkana to the contraction and transmission of both TB and HIV-1/AIDS. The article posits an integrated approach to the prevention of TB and HIV-1 and to the management of AIDS and TB.

  7. 40 CFR Appendix E to Part 132 - Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Antidegradation Policy

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 21 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Antidegradation Policy E Appendix E to Part 132 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY... Part 132—Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Antidegradation Policy Great Lakes States and Tribes...

  8. Relation of trihalomethane-formation potential to water-quality and physical characteristics of small water-supply lakes, eastern Kansas

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Pope, L.M.; Arruda, J.A.; Fromm, C.H.

    1988-01-01

    The formation of carcinogenic trihalomethanes during the treatment of public surface water supplies has become a potentially serious problem. The U. S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment , investigated the potential for trihalomethane formation in water from 15 small, public water supply lakes in eastern Kansas from April 1984 through April 1986 in order to define the principal factors that affect or control the potential for trihalomethane formation during the water treatment process. Relations of mean concentrations of trihalomethane-formation potential to selected water quality and lake and watershed physical characteristics were investigated using correlation and regression analysis. Statistically significant, direct relations were developed between trihalomethanes produced in unfiltered and filtered lake water and mean concentrations of total and dissolved organic carbon. Correlation coefficients for these relations ranged from 0.86 to 0.93. Mean values of maximum depth of lake were shown to have statistically significant inverse relations to mean concentrations of trihalomethane-formation potential and total and dissolved organic carbon. Correlation coefficients for these relations ranged from -0.76 to -0.81. (USGS)

  9. The effect of lake water quality and wind turbines on Rhode Island property sales price

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gorelick, Susan Shim

    This dissertation uses the hedonic pricing model to study the impact of lake water quality and wind turbines on Rhode Island house sales prices. The first two manuscripts are on lake water quality and use RI house sales transactions from 1988--2012. The third studies wind turbines using RI house sales transactions from 2000--2013. The first study shows that good lake water quality increases lakefront property price premium. It also shows that environmental amenities, such as forests, substitute for lake amenity as the property's distance from the lake increases. The second lake water quality study incorporates time variables to examine how environmental amenity values change over time. The results show that property price premium associated with good lake water quality does not change as it is constant in proportion to housing prices with short term economic fluctuations. The third study shows that wind turbines have a negative and significant impact on housing prices. However, this is highly location specific and varies with neighborhood demographics. All three studies have policy implications which are discussed in detail in the manuscripts below.

  10. Numerical methods for assessing water quality in lakes and reservoirs

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Mahamah, D.S.

    1984-01-01

    Water quality models are used as tools for predicting both short-term and long-term trends in water quality. They are generally classified into two groups based on the degree of empiricism. The two groups consists of the purely empirical types known as black-box models and the theoretical types called ecosystem models. This dissertation deals with both types of water quality models. The first part deals with empirical phosphorus models. The theory behind this class of models is discussed, leading to the development of an empirical phosphorus model using data from 79 western US lakes. A new approach to trophic state classificationmore » is introduced. The data used for the model was obtained from the Environmental Protection Agency National Eutrophication Study (EPA-NES) of western US lakes. The second portion of the dissertation discusses the development of an ecosystem model for culturally eutrophic Liberty Lake situated in eastern Washington State. The model is capable of simulating chlorophyll-a, phosphorus, and nitrogen levels in the lake on a weekly basis. For computing sediment release rates of phosphorus and nitrogen, equations based on laboratory bench-top studies using sediment samples from Liberty Lake are used. The model is used to simulate certain hypothetical nutrient control techniques such as phosphorus flushing, precipitation, and diversion.« less

  11. Introducing TEX86 as a Water pH Proxy for Alkaline Lakes on the Tibetan Plateau

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, M.; Tian, Q.; Li, X.; Liang, J.; Yue, H.; Hou, J.

    2017-12-01

    Lake water pH represents one of the most important indicators for lake evolution and factors influencing the evolution of aquatic ecosystem, however, which is less studied on the Tibetan Plateau (TP). Applicability of diatom assemblages, an effective proxy of lake water pH variation in freshwater lakes, is highly limited on the TP because the widespread distribution of alkaline lakes is unfavorable for preservation of diatom shells. Glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs) are a series of specific membrane lipids biosynthesized by archaea and bacteria, which appear to be a promising method to reflect lake water pH variation. Here we present the distribution of iGDGTs compounds in surface sediments across the TP to discuss the effect of various environmental factors on iGDGTs distribution. The results show that TEX86 is a promising proxy for lake water pH in high-elevation alkaline lakes, as water pH appears to be the most important factor to affect the cyclization of iGDGTs. We proposed the water pH calibration for lakes (salinity<20g/L) on TP, pH=1.8176×TEX86+8.2376 (n=31, r=0.86, RMSE=0.24). To evaluate its performance, we applied the calibration at Bangong Co in western TP and reconstructed past changes in lake water pH. The TEX86-derived pH at Bangong Co varied from 8.69 to 9.49 since the last 16 kyr BP, which is generally consistent with precipitation isotope variation that was reconstructed from leaf wax D/H ratios in the same sediment core, suggesting the lake water pH was mainly controlled by local hydrology. We believe that TEX86 will be able to infer past water pH of alkaline lakes over TP and could be a potentially useful tool for reconstructing pH in alkaline lakes worldwide after regional calibrated.

  12. Spatiotemporal assessment of water chemistry in intermittently open/closed coastal lakes of Southern Baltic

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Astel, Aleksander M.; Bigus, Katarzyna; Obolewski, Krystian; Glińska-Lewczuk, Katarzyna

    2016-12-01

    Ionic profile, pH, electrolytic conductivity, chemical oxygen demand and concentration of selected heavy metals (Ni, Cu, Zn, Fe and Mn) were determined in water of 11 intermittently closed and open lakes and lagoons (ICOLLs) located in Polish coastline. Multidimensional data set was explored by the use of the self-organizing map (SOM) technique to avoid supervised and predictable division for fully isolated, partially and fully connected lakes. Water quality assessment based on single parameter's mean value allowed classification of majority of lakes to first or second class of purity according to regulation presenting classification approach applicable to uniform parts of surface waters. The SOM-based grouping revealed seven clusters comprising water samples of similar physico-chemical profile. Fully connected lakes were characterized by the highest concentration of components characteristic for sea salts (NaCl, MgCl2, MgSO4, CaSO4, K2SO4 and MgBr2), however spring samples from Łebsko were shifted to another cluster suggesting that intensive surface run-off and fresh-water inflow through Łupawa river decreases an impact of sea water intrusions. Forecasted characteristic of water collected in Resko Przymorskie lake was disturbed by high contamination by nitrites indicating accidental and local contamination due to usage of sodium nitrite for the curing of meat. Some unexpected sources of contamination was discovered in intermittently open and closed lakes. Presumably Zn contamination is due to use of wood preservatives to protect small wooden playgrounds or camping places spread around one of the lake, while increased concentration of Ni could be connected with grass and vegetation burning. Waters of Jamno lake are under the strongest anthropogenic impact due to inefficient removal of phosphates by waste water treatment plant and contamination by Fe and Mn caused by backwashing of absorption filters. Generally, the quality of ICOLLs' water was diversified, while

  13. Mercury in sediment, water, and fish in a managed tropical wetland-lake ecosystem.

    PubMed

    Malczyk, Evan A; Branfireun, Brian A

    2015-08-15

    Mercury pollution has not been well documented in the inland lakes or fishes of Mexico, despite the importance of freshwater fish as a source of protein in local diets. Total mercury and methylmercury in waters, sediments, and the commercial fish catch were investigated in Lake Zapotlán, Mexico. Concentrations of total and methylmercury were very high in runoff and wastewater inputs, but very low in sediments and surface waters of the open water area of the lake. Concentrations of total mercury in tilapia and carp were very low, consistent with the low concentrations in lake water and sediments. Particle settling, sorption, the biogeochemical environment, and/or bloom dilution are all plausible explanations for the significant reductions in both total mercury and methylmercury. Despite very high loading of mercury, this shallow tropical lake was not a mercury-impaired ecosystem, and these findings may translate across other shallow, alkaline tropical lakes. Importantly, the ecosystem services that seemed to be provided by peripheral wetlands in reducing mercury inputs highlight the potential for wetland conservation or restoration in Mexico. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  14. Water quality indicators obtainable from aircraft and Landsat images and their use in classifying lakes

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Scherz, J. P.; Van Domelen, J. F.

    1975-01-01

    Equations describing the interaction of sunlight and skylight with the surface of a lake, particles in the water to the depth where light is extinguished, and lake bottom are presented, and the use of aircraft and Landsat images to derive water quality indicators on the basis of these interactions is discussed. A very clear, deep lake with a backscatter signal similar to that of distilled water is used as a reference standard. The degree of turbidity of other target lakes is determined by comparing their residual radiance with the clear lake standard and with the residual radiance of a lake whose turbidity has been determined from water samples. The relative and absolute strengths of residual radiance are used to determine the type and concentration of suspended material, respectively. Oil slicks are characterized by an increased specular reflectance component, decreased signal from the underlying water, and added backscatter signal from the oil volume.

  15. ARSENIC CYCLING WITHIN THE WATER COLUMN OF A SMALL LAKE RECEIVING CONTAMINATED GROUND WATER DISCHARGE

    EPA Science Inventory

    The fate of arsenic discharged from contaminated ground water to a small, shallow lake at a hazardous waste site is controlled, in part, by the rate of ferrous iron oxidation-precipitation and arsenic sorption occurring near the lake chemocline. Laboratory experiments were condu...

  16. Water quality in Gaines Creek and Gaines Creek arm of Eufaula Lake, Oklahoma

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Kurklin, J.K.

    1990-01-01

    Based on samples collected from May 1978 to May 1980 and analyzed for major anions, nitrogen, trace elements, phytoplankton, and bacteria, the water in Gaines Creek and the Gaines Creek arm of Eufaula Lake was similar with respect to suitability for municipal use. Water from Gaines Creek had a pH range of 5.7 to 7.6 and a maximum specific conductance of 97 microsiemens per centimeter at 25o Celsius, whereas water from the Gaines Creek arm of Eufaula Lake had a pH range of 6.0 to 9.2 and a maximum specific conductance of 260 microsiemens per centimeter at 25o Celsius. Dissolved oxygen, pH, temperature, and specific conductance values for the lake varied with depth. With the exceptions of cadmium, iron, lead, and manganese, trace-element determinations of samples were within recommended national primary and secondary drinking-water standards. When compared to the National Academy of Sciences water-quality criteria, phytoplankton and bacteria counts exceeded recommendations; however, water from either Gaines Creek or Eufaula Lake could be treated similarly and used as a municipal water supply.

  17. The Summertime Warming Trends in Surface Water Temperature of the Great Lakes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sugiyama, N.; Kravtsov, S.; Roebber, P.

    2014-12-01

    Over the past 30 years, the Laurentian Great Lakes have exhibited summertime warming trends in surface water temperature which were greater than those in surface air temperature of the surrounding land, by as much as an order of magnitude over some of the regions. For the years 1995-2012, Lake Superior exhibited the most dramatic warming trend in July-mean temperature, of 0.27±0.15 deg. C yr-1, based on the NOAA's GLSEA satellite observations. Shallower lakes, such as Lake Erie, exhibited smaller warming trends. In addition, within each lake, the warming was also the greatest in the regions of larger water depth; for example, some regions of Lake Superior deeper than 200m exhibited surface-water July-mean warming trends which exceeded 0.3 deg. C yr-1. We used a three-column lake model based on the one developed by Hostetler and Barnstein (1990) coupled with a two-layer atmospheric energy balance model to explore the physics behind these warming trends. We found that, as suggested by Austin and Colman (2007), the ice-albedo feedback plays an important role in amplifying the overlake warming trends. Our particular emphasis was on the question of whether the ice-albedo feedback alone is enough to account for lacustrine amplification of surface warming observed over the Great Lakes region. We found that the answer to this question depends on a number of model parameters, including the diffusion and light attenuation coefficients, which greatly affect the model's skill in reproducing the observed ice coverage of the deep lakes.

  18. A Comparison of Alternative Strategies for Cost-Effective Water Quality Management in Lakes

    Treesearch

    Daniel Boyd Kramer; Stephen Polasky; Anthony Starfield; Brian Palik; Lynn Westphal; Stephanie Snyder; Pamela Jakes; Rachel Hudson; Eric Gustafson

    2006-01-01

    Roughly 45% of the assessed lakes in the United States are impaired for one or more reasons. Eutrophication due to excess phosphorus loading is common in many impaired lakes. Various strategies are available to lake residents for addressing declining lake water quality, including septic system upgrades and establishing riparian buffers. This study examines 25 lakes to...

  19. Regional groundwater-flow model of the Lake Michigan Basin in support of Great Lakes Basin water availability and use studies

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Feinstein, D.T.; Hunt, R.J.; Reeves, H.W.

    2010-01-01

    A regional groundwater-flow model of the Lake Michigan Basin and surrounding areas has been developed in support of the Great Lakes Basin Pilot project under the U.S. Geological Survey's National Water Availability and Use Program. The transient 2-million-cell model incorporates multiple aquifers and pumping centers that create water-level drawdown that extends into deep saline waters. The 20-layer model simulates the exchange between a dense surface-water network and heterogeneous glacial deposits overlying stratified bedrock of the Wisconsin/Kankakee Arches and Michigan Basin in the Lower and Upper Peninsulas of Michigan; eastern Wisconsin; northern Indiana; and northeastern Illinois. The model is used to quantify changes in the groundwater system in response to pumping and variations in recharge from 1864 to 2005. Model results quantify the sources of water to major pumping centers, illustrate the dynamics of the groundwater system, and yield measures of water availability useful for water-resources management in the region. This report is a complete description of the methods and datasets used to develop the regional model, the underlying conceptual model, and model inputs, including specified values of material properties and the assignment of external and internal boundary conditions. The report also documents the application of the SEAWAT-2000 program for variable-density flow; it details the approach, advanced methods, and results associated with calibration through nonlinear regression using the PEST program; presents the water-level, drawdown, and groundwater flows for various geographic subregions and aquifer systems; and provides analyses of the effects of pumping from shallow and deep wells on sources of water to wells, the migration of groundwater divides, and direct and indirect groundwater discharge to Lake Michigan. The report considers the role of unconfined conditions at the regional scale as well as the influence of salinity on groundwater flow

  20. Great Lakes nearshore-offshore: Distinct water quality regions

    EPA Science Inventory

    We compared water quality of nearshore regions in the Laurentian Great Lakes to water quality in offshore regions. Sample sites for the nearshore region were from the US EPA National Coastal Condition Assessment and based on a criteria or sample-frame of within the 30-m depth co...

  1. Near-shore talik development beneath shallow water in expanding thermokarst lakes, Old Crow Flats, Yukon

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Roy-Leveillee, Pascale; Burn, Christopher R.

    2017-05-01

    It is generally assumed that permafrost is preserved beneath shallow lakes and ponds in the Western North American Arctic where water depth is less than about two thirds of the late-winter lake ice thickness. Here we present field observations of talik development beneath water as shallow as 0.2 m despite a lake ice thickness of 1.5 m, in Old Crow Flats (OCF), YT. Conditions leading to the initiation and development of taliks beneath shallow water were investigated with field measurements of shore erosion rates, bathymetry, ice thickness, snow accumulation, and lake bottom temperature near the shores of two expanding lakes in OCF. The sensitivity of talik development to variations in lake bottom thermal regime was then investigated numerically. Where ice reached the lake bottom, talik development was controlled by the ratio of freezing degree days to thawing degree days at the lake bottom (FDDlb/TDDlb). In some cases, spatial variations in on-ice snow depth had a minimal effect on annual mean lake bottom temperature (Tlb) but caused sufficient variations in FDDlb/TDDlb to influence talik development. Where Tlb was close to but greater than 0°C simulations indicated that the thermal offset allowed permafrost aggradation to occur under certain conditions, resulting in irregular near-shore talik geometries. The results highlight the sensitivity of permafrost to small changes in lake bottom thermal conditions where the water column freezes through in early winter and indicate the occurrence of permafrost degradation beneath very shallow water in the near-shore zone of Arctic ponds and lakes.

  2. Study on the influence on water ecosystem by a lake inflow filtration system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wu, Sushu; Gao, Shipei; Hu, Xiaodong; Weng, Songgan; Guo, Liuchao

    2018-06-01

    Lakes play important roles in the economic-social sustainable development. However, due to unreasonable development and urbanization in recent years, lake water pollution and ecological degradation have occurred in China. The improvement of the lake inflow water quality is very important. A filtration system includes Gravel filtering system, Aquatic plant area and Ecological bag area was established. The test river is one of the typical lake inflow river and located in the river network in the Chang Dang lake, China. Water quality, zooplankton and phytoplankton in the inflow river were observed form July to mid-August in order to analyze the general process. The average removal rate of NH3-N (ammonia nitrogen) TN (total nitrogen) and TP (total phosphorus) is 28.33, 25.76 and 24.43 %, respectively. The Pantle-Buck method was used to evaluate the water quality and the B/T index was used to evaluate the nutrition situation. The B/T values were reduced by 20 % and the SI pollution index was reduced by 11.8 %. Therefore, a positive effect on the water's ecological restoration was achieved by the filtration system.

  3. Temporal and spatial changes of water quality and management strategies of Dianchi Lake in southwest China

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, T.; Zeng, W. H.; Wang, S. R.; Ni, Z. K.

    2014-04-01

    Temporal and spatial changes to the water quality of Dianchi Lake in southwest China were investigated using monthly monitoring data from 2005 to 2012. Dianchi Lake is divided into two parts, Caohai Lake and Waihai Lake, by a man-made dike. Caohai Lake lies at the north of Dianchi Lake, while Waihai Lake is the main water body of Dianchi Lake and accounts for 96.7% of the whole area of the lake. Based on the analysis of total phosphorus (TP), total nitrogen (TN), and chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentrations, it was determined that, in Caohai Lake, the annual concentrations of these variables ranged from 0.19-1.46 mg L-1, 6.11-16.79 mg L-1, 0.06-0.14 mg L-1, respectively. In addition, the annual concentrations of TP, TN and Chl a in Waihai Lake ranged between 0.13 and 0.20 mg L-1, 1.82 and 3.01 mg L-1, and 0.04 and 0.09 mg L-1, respectively. Cluster analysis (CA) classified the 10 monitoring sites into two clusters (cluster A and cluster B) based on similarities of water quality characteristics. Our data revealed that the current status of water quality within Caohai Lake was much worse than that of Waihai Lake. Water quality was seriously degraded during the economic boom near the period of the "Eleventh Five-Year Plan" (2005-2010), and gradually improved from 2010 to 2012 because of the "standard emission directive to industry". The main factors that influenced the spatial and temporal changes to water quality were natural factors including lake evolution and regional characteristic as well as human factors such as pollution load into the lake and management strategies that were already adopted. Some activities and regulations were implemented to enhance the lake environment by controlling wastewater emissions and establishing regulations to protect the lakes in the Yunnan Province. However, problems with institutional fragmentation (horizontal and vertical), simple treatment methods, low-intensity investment in pollution control, and lack of meaningful endogenous

  4. Simulated Effects of Ground-Water Augmentation on the Hydrology of Round and Halfmoon Lakes in Northwestern Hillsborough County, Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Yager, Richard M.; Metz, P.A.

    2004-01-01

    Pumpage from the Upper Floridan aquifer in northwest Hillsborough County near Tampa, Florida, has induced downward leakage from the overlying surficial aquifer and lowered the water table in many areas. Leakage is highest where the confining layer separating the aquifers is breached, which is common beneath many of the lakes in the study area. Leakage of water to the Upper Floridan aquifer has lowered the water level in many lakes and drained many wetlands. Ground water from the Upper Floridan aquifer has been added (augmented) to some lakes in an effort to maintain lake levels, but the resulting lake-water chemistry and lake leakage patterns are substantially different from those of natural lakes. Changes in lake-water chemistry can cause changes in lake flora, fauna, and lake sediment composition, and large volumes of lake leakage are suspected to enhance the formation of sinkholes near the shoreline of augmented lakes. The leakage rate of lake water through the surficial aquifer to the Upper Floridan aquifer was estimated in this study using ground-water-flow models developed for an augmented lake (Round Lake) and non-augmented lake (Halfmoon Lake). Flow models developed with MODFLOW were calibrated through nonlinear regression with UCODE to measured water levels and monthly net ground-water-flow rates from the lakes estimated from lake-water budgets. Monthly estimates of ground-water recharge were computed using an unsaturated flow model (LEACHM) that simulated daily changes in storage of water in the soil profile, thus estimating recharge as drainage to the water table. Aquifer properties in the Round Lake model were estimated through transient-state simulations using two sets of monthly recharge rates computed during July 1996 to February 1999, which spanned both average conditions (July 1996 through October 1997), and an El Ni?o event (November 1997 through September 1998) when the recharge rate doubled. Aquifer properties in the Halfmoon Lake model were

  5. Water-quality and biological data for selected streams, lakes, and wells in the High Point Lake watershed, Guilford County, North Carolina, 1988-89

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Davenport, M.S.

    1993-01-01

    Water and bottom-sediment samples were collected at 26 sites in the 65-square-mile High Point Lake watershed area of Guilford County, North Carolina, from December 1988 through December 1989. Sampling locations included 10 stream sites, 8 lake sites, and 8 ground-water sites. Generally, six steady-flow samples were collected at each stream site and three storm samples were collected at five sites. Four lake samples and eight ground-water samples also were collected. Chemical analyses of stream and lake sediments and particle-size analyses of lake sediments were performed once during the study. Most stream and lake samples were analyzed for field characteristics, nutrients, major ions, trace elements, total organic carbon, and chemical-oxygen demand. Analyses were performed to detect concentrations of 149 selected organic compounds, including acid and base/neutral extractable and volatile constituents and carbamate, chlorophenoxy acid, triazine, organochlorine, and organophosphorus pesticides and herbicides. Selected lake samples were analyzed for all constituents listed in the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1986, including Giardia, Legionella, radiochemicals, asbestos, and viruses. Various chromatograms from organic analyses were submitted to computerized library searches. The results of these and all other analyses presented in this report are in tabular form.

  6. Effect of agriculture on water quality of Lake Biwa tributaries, Japan.

    PubMed

    Nakano, Takanori; Tayasu, Ichiro; Yamada, Yoshihiro; Hosono, Takahiro; Igeta, Akitake; Hyodo, Fujio; Ando, Atsushi; Saitoh, Yu; Tanaka, Takuya; Wada, Eitaro; Yachi, Shigeo

    2008-01-15

    We investigated the effects of natural environments and human activity on Lake Biwa, central Japan. We determined the concentrations of 19 elements and the compositions of stable S and Sr isotopes in the main tributaries of the lake and compared them with the corresponding values obtained from the lake water during the circulation period. Results of a principal component analysis indicated that the components dissolved in the lower reaches of the tributaries can be divided into group 1 (HCO(3), SO(4), NO(3), Ca, Mg, Sr) and group 2 components (Cl, Br, Na, K, Ba, Rb, Cs). The concentrations of group 1 components were high in the rivers of the southern area, which is urbanized and densely populated, and the eastern area, which consists of plains where agriculture predominates, compared with the rivers of the northern and western areas, which are mostly mountainous and sparsely populated. The concentrations of group 2 components tended to be high in the river water of industrial areas. The delta(34)S values of SO(4) in the river water converged to 0+/-2 per thousand as the SO(4) concentration increased and, excluding the areas where limestone is extensively distributed, as the HCO(3) concentration increased. In particular, both the delta(34)S values (0+/-2 per thousand) and the (87)Sr/(86)Sr ratios (0.7117+/-0.0005) fell within narrow ranges in the small and medium rivers of the eastern plain area, where rice is widely grown. These values agreed respectively with the delta(34)S values of the fertilizers used in the Lake Biwa basin and the soil-exchangeable (87)Sr/(86)Sr in the eastern plain. The characteristics of water quality in the small and medium rivers of the eastern area can be explained by a model in which sulfuric, nitric, and bicarbonic acids generated by the decomposition of agricultural fertilizer and paddy rice selectively leached out alkaline-earth elements adsorbed on the soil and sediments of the plain or dissolved calcium carbonate enriched with Mg

  7. State and regional water-quality characteristics and trophic conditions of Michigan's inland lakes, 2001-2005

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Fuller, L.M.; Minnerick, R.J.

    2008-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality are jointly monitoring selected water-quality constituents of inland lakes through 2015 as part of Michigan’s Lake Water Quality Assessment program. During 2001–2005, 433 lake basins from 364 inland lakes were monitored for baseline water-quality conditions and trophic status. This report summarizes the water-quality characteristics and trophic conditions of those monitored lake basins throughout the State. Regional variation of water quality in lake basins was examined by grouping on the basis of the five Omernik level III ecoregions within Michigan. Concentrations of most constituents measured were significantly different between ecoregions. Less regional variation of phosphorus concentrations was noted between Northern Lakes and Forests (50) and North Central Hardwoods (51) ecoregions during summer possibly because water samples were collected when lake productivity was high; hence the utilization of the limited amount of phosphorus by algae and macrophytes may have resulted in the more uniform concentrations between these two ecoregions. Concentrations of common ions (calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, chloride, and sulfate) measured in the spring typically were higher in the Michigan southern Lower Peninsula in the Eastern Corn Belt Plains (55), Southern Michigan/Northern Indiana Drift Plains (56), and Huron/Erie Lake Plains (57) ecoregions. Most ions whose concentrations were less than the minimum reporting levels or were nondetectable were from lakes in the Michigan northern Lower Peninsula and the Upper Peninsula in the Northern Lakes and Forests (50) and North Central Hardwoods (51) ecoregions. Chlorophyll a concentrations followed a similar distribution pattern. Measured properties such as pH and specific conductance (indicative of dissolved solids) also showed a regional relation. The lakes with the lowest pH and specific conductance were generally in the western

  8. Developing the greatest Blue Economy: Water productivity, fresh water depletion, and virtual water trade in the Great Lakes basin

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mayer, A. S.; Ruddell, B. L.; Mubako, S. T.

    2016-12-01

    The Great Lakes basin hosts the world's most abundant surface fresh water reserve. Historically an industrial and natural resource powerhouse, the region has suffered economic stagnation in recent decades. Meanwhile, growing water resource scarcity around the world is creating pressure on water-intensive human activities. This situation creates the potential for the Great Lakes region to sustainably utilize its relative water wealth for economic benefit. We combine economic production and trade datasets with water consumption data and models of surface water depletion in the region. We find that, on average, the current economy does not create significant impacts on surface waters, but there is some risk that unregulated large water uses can create environmental flow impacts if they are developed in the wrong locations. Water uses drawing on deep groundwater or the Great Lakes themselves are unlikely to create a significant depletion, and discharge of groundwater withdrawals to surface waters offsets most surface water depletion. This relative abundance of surface water means that science-based management of large water uses to avoid accidentally creating "hotspots" is likely to be successful in avoiding future impacts, even if water use is significantly increased. Commercial water uses are the most productive, with thermoelectric, mining, and agricultural water uses in the lowest tier of water productivity. Surprisingly for such a water-abundant economy, the region is a net importer of water-derived goods and services. This, combined with the abundance of surface water, suggests that the region's water-based economy has room to grow in the 21st century.

  9. Climate change projections for lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) recruitment in the 1836 Treaty Waters of the Upper Great Lakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lynch, Abigail J.; Taylor, William W.; Beard, T. Douglas; Lofgren, Brent M.

    2015-01-01

    Lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) is an ecologically, culturally, and economically important species in the Laurentian Great Lakes. Lake whitefish have been a staple food source for thousands of years and, since 1980, have supported the most economically valuable (annual catch value ≈ US$16.6 million) and productive (annual harvest ≈ 7 million kg) commercial fishery in the upper Great Lakes (Lakes Huron, Michigan, and Superior). Climate changes, specifically changes in temperature, wind, and ice cover, are expected to impact the ecology, production dynamics, and value of this fishery because the success of recruitment to the fishery has been linked with these climatic variables. We used linear regression to determine the relationship between fall and spring air temperature indices, fall wind speed, winter ice cover, and lake whitefish recruitment in 13 management units located in the 1836 Treaty Waters of the Upper Great Lakes ceded by the Ottawa and Chippewa nations, a culturally and commercially important region for the lake whitefish fishery. In eight of the 13 management units evaluated, models including one or more climate variables (temperature, wind, ice cover) explained significantly more variation in recruitment than models with only the stock–recruitment relationship, using corrected Akaike's Information Criterion comparisons (ΔAICc > 3). Isolating the climate–recruitment relationship and projecting recruitment with the Coupled Hydrosphere-Atmosphere Research Model (CHARM) indicated the potential for increased lake whitefish recruitment in the majority of the 1836 Treaty Waters management units. These results can inform adaptive management strategies by providing anticipated implications of climate on lake whitefish recruitment.

  10. Great Lakes Climate and Water Movement. Earth Systems - Education Activities for Great Lakes Schools (ES-EAGLS).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Miller, Heidi, Ed.; Sheaffer, Amy L., Ed.

    This activity book is part of a series designed to take a concept or idea from the existing school curriculum and develop it in the context of the Great Lakes using teaching approaches and materials appropriate for students in middle and high school. The theme of this book is Great Lakes climate and water movement. Students learn about land-sea…

  11. The evaluation of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassiper) control program in Rawapening Lake, Central Java Indonesia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hidayati, N.; Soeprobowati, T. R.; Helmi, M.

    2018-03-01

    The existence of water hyacinths and other aquatic plants have been a major concern in Rawapening Lake for many years. Nutrient input from water catchment area and fish feed residues suspected to leads eutrophication, a condition that induces uncontrolled growth of aquatic plants. In dry season, aquatic plants cover almost 70% of lake area. This problem should be handled properly due to wide range of lake function such as water resources, fish farming, power plants, flood control, irrigation and many other important things. In 2011, Rawapening Lake was appointed as pilot project of Save Indonesian Lake Movement: the Indonesian movement for lakes ecosystem conservation and rehabilitation. This project consists of 6 super priority programs and 11 priority programs. This paper will evaluate the first super priority program which aims to control water hyacinth bloom. Result show that the three indicators in water hyacinth control program was not achieved. The coverage area of Water hyacinth was not reduced, tend to increase during period 2012 to 2016. We suggesting better coordination should be performed in order to avoid policies misinterpretation and to clarify the authority from each institution. We also give a support to the establishment of lake zonation plan and keep using all the three methods of cleaning water hyacinth with a maximum population remained at 20%.

  12. Assessment of Lake Water Quality and Quantity Using Satellite Remote Sensing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Daniel, K. C.; Suresh, A.; Paredes Mesa, S.

    2017-12-01

    Lakes are one of the few sources of freshwater used throughout the world but due to human activities, its quality and availability has been decreasing. The drying of lakes is a concerning issue in different communities around the world. This problem can affect jobs and the lives of individuals who use lakes as a source of income, consumption and recreation. Another dilemma that has occurred in lakes is eutrophication which is the buildup of excess nutrients in the lakes caused by runoff. This natural process can lead to anoxic conditions that may have a detrimental impact on surrounding ecosystems. Therefore, causing a devastating impact to economies and human livelihood worldwide. To monitor these issues, satellite data can be used to assess the water quality of different lakes throughout the world. Landsat satellite data from the past 10 years was used to conduct this research. By using the IOP (Inherent Optical Properties) of chlorophyll and suspended solids in the visible spectrum, the presence of algal blooms and sediments was determined. ARCGIS was used to outline the areas of the lakes and obtain reflectance values for quantity and quality assessment. Because there is always a certain amount of contamination in the lake, this research is used to evaluate the condition of the lakes throughout the years. Using the data that we have collected, we are able to understand how the issues addressed can harm civilians seasonally. Key Words: Lakes, Water Quality, Algal Blooms, Eutrophication, Remote Sensing, Satellite DataData Source: Landsat 4, Landsat 5, Landsat 7, Landsat 8

  13. Water-quality characteristics of selected public recreational lakes and ponds in Connecticut

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Healy, D.F.; Kulp, K.P.

    1995-01-01

    Reconnaissance limnological and lakebed-sediment surveys were conducted in Connecticut during 1989-91 by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protec- tion, to evaluate water-quality characteristics of selected public recreational lakes and ponds in the State. Limnological surveys were conducted on 49 lakes and ponds selected from a list of 105 publicly owned waterbodies that qualified for water- quality assessments under Section 314 of the Federal Clean Water Act. Lakebed-sediment surveys were conducted in 9 river impoundments and 1 riverine lake below industrial areas and 2 headwater lakes in relatively pristine areas. The limnological surveys consisted of two sampling events--during spring turnover and during the summer stratifi- cation. Each sampling event included depth profiles of water temperature, specific conductance, hydrogen-ion activity, and dissolved oxygen concen- trations; measurements of Secchi disc transparency; and the collection of samples for the analyses of alkalinity, chlorophyll, phosphorus, and nitrogen concentrations. Areal extent and population density of the dominant aquatic macrophytes were qualita- tively noted during the summer sampling event. These water-quality data were used to determine the trophic classification and acidification status of the 49 lakes. The trophic classification yielded the following results: 2 oligotrophic, 8 early mesotrophic, 13 mesotrophic, 5 late mesotrophic, 10 eutrophic, and 11 highly eutrophic lakes. In terms of acidification status, 7 lakes were classified as acid threatened and 42 as not threatened. A Wilcoxon two-tailed signed rank test was used to compare data for 13 lakes and ponds from the present survey with data from the 1973-75 or 1978-79 surveys conducted by the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station and Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection. The test showed no significant difference at the 90 percent confidence level for

  14. Lake Mixing Regime Influences Arsenic Transfer from Sediments into the Water Column and Uptake in Plankton

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gawel, J.; Barrett, P. M.; Hull, E.; Burkart, K.; McLean, J.; Hargrave, O.; Neumann, R.

    2017-12-01

    The former ASARCO copper smelter in Ruston, WA, now a Superfund site, contaminated a large area of the south-central Puget Sound region with arsenic over its almost 100-year history. Arsenic, a priority Superfund contaminant and carcinogen, is a legacy pollutant impacting aquatic ecosystems in urban lakes downwind of the ASARCO emissions stack. We investigated the impact of lake mixing regime on arsenic transfer from sediments into lake water and aquatic biota. We regularly collected water column and plankton samples from four study lakes for two years, and deployed sediment porewater peepers and sediment traps to estimate arsenic flux rates to and from the sediments. In lakes with strong seasonal stratification, high aqueous arsenic concentrations were limited to anoxic hypolimnetic waters while low arsenic concentrations were observed in oxic surface waters. However, in polymictic, shallow lakes, we observed elevated arsenic concentrations throughout the entire oxic water column. Sediment flux estimates support higher rates of arsenic release from sediments and vertical transport. Because high arsenic in oxic waters results in spatial overlap between arsenate, a phosphate analog, and lake biota, we observed enhanced trophic transfer of arsenic in polymictic, shallow study lakes, with higher arsenic accumulation (up to an order of magnitude) in both phytoplankton and zooplankton compared to stratified lakes. Chemical and physical mechanisms for higher steady-state arsenic concentrations will be explored. Our work demonstrates that physical mixing processes coupled with sediment/water redox status exert significant control over bioaccumulation, making shallow, periodically-mixed urban lakes uniquely vulnerable to environmental and human health risks from legacy arsenic contamination.

  15. Hydrology, water quality, trophic status, and aquatic plants of Fowler Lake, Wisconsin

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hughes, P.E.

    1993-01-01

    The low annual phosphorus input (28 pounds per square mile) to the lake from the Oconomowoc River shows the benefit of upstream lakes on the Oconomowoc River. Fourteen percent of the phosphorus input load to Fowler Lake is deposited in the lake sediments and the rest is transported through the lake by surface-water flow to downstream Lac La Belle. Dense growths of macrophytes in the lake change in composition seasonally; chara sp. (muskgrass) and Myriophyllum sp. (milfoil) are abundant in June and Najas marina and Vallesneria Americana (wild celery) are abundant in August.

  16. 40 CFR Appendix E to Part 132 - Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Antidegradation Policy

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... operational variability; (2) Changes in intake water pollutants; (3) Increasing the production hours of the... 40 Protection of Environment 22 2014-07-01 2013-07-01 true Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative... (CONTINUED) WATER PROGRAMS WATER QUALITY GUIDANCE FOR THE GREAT LAKES SYSTEM Pt. 132, App. E Appendix E to...

  17. Lake responses following lanthanum-modified bentonite clay (Phoslock®) application: an analysis of water column lanthanum data from 16 case study lakes.

    PubMed

    Spears, Bryan M; Lürling, Miquel; Yasseri, Said; Castro-Castellon, Ana T; Gibbs, Max; Meis, Sebastian; McDonald, Claire; McIntosh, John; Sleep, Darren; Van Oosterhout, Frank

    2013-10-01

    Phoslock(®) is a lanthanum (La) modified bentonite clay that is being increasingly used as a geo-engineering tool for the control of legacy phosphorus (P) release from lake bed sediments to overlying waters. This study investigates the potential for negative ecological impacts from elevated La concentrations associated with the use of Phoslock(®) across 16 case study lakes. Impact-recovery trajectories associated with total lanthanum (TLa) and filterable La (FLa) concentrations in surface and bottom waters were quantified over a period of up to 60 months following Phoslock(®) application. Both surface and bottom water TLa and FLa concentrations were <0.001 mg L(-1) in all lakes prior to the application of Phoslock(®). The effects of Phoslock(®) application were evident in the post-application maximum TLa and FLa concentrations reported for surface waters between 0.026 mg L(-1)-2.30 mg L(-1) and 0.002 mg L(-1) to 0.14 mg L(-1), respectively. Results of generalised additive modelling indicated that recovery trajectories for TLa and FLa in surface and bottom waters in lakes were represented by 2nd order decay relationships, with time, and that recovery reached an end-point between 3 and 12 months post-application. Recovery in bottom water was slower (11-12 months) than surface waters (3-8 months), most probably as a result of variation in physicochemical conditions of the receiving waters and associated effects on product settling rates and processes relating to the disturbance of bed sediments. CHEAQS PRO modelling was also undertaken on 11 of the treated lakes in order to predict concentrations of La(3+) ions and the potential for negative ecological impacts. This modelling indicated that the concentrations of La(3+) ions will be very low (<0.0004 mg L(-1)) in lakes of moderately low to high alkalinity (>0.8 mEq L(-1)), but higher (up to 0.12 mg L(-1)) in lakes characterised by very low alkalinity. The effects of elevated La(3+) concentrations following

  18. Flood frequency matters: Why climate change degrades deep-water quality of peri-alpine lakes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fink, Gabriel; Wessels, Martin; Wüest, Alfred

    2016-09-01

    Sediment-laden riverine floods transport large quantities of dissolved oxygen into the receiving deep layers of lakes. Hence, the water quality of deep lakes is strongly influenced by the frequency of riverine floods. Although flood frequency reflects climate conditions, the effects of climate variability on the water quality of deep lakes is largely unknown. We quantified the effects of climate variability on the potential shifts in the flood regime of the Alpine Rhine, the main catchment of Lake Constance, and determined the intrusion depths of riverine density-driven underflows and the subsequent effects on water exchange rates in the lake. A simplified hydrodynamic underflow model was developed and validated with observed river inflow and underflow events. The model was implemented to estimate underflow statistics for different river inflow scenarios. Using this approach, we integrated present and possible future flood frequencies to underflow occurrences and intrusion depths in Lake Constance. The results indicate that more floods will increase the number of underflows and the intensity of deep-water renewal - and consequently will cause higher deep-water dissolved oxygen concentrations. Vice versa, fewer floods weaken deep-water renewal and lead to lower deep-water dissolved oxygen concentrations. Meanwhile, a change from glacial nival regime (present) to a nival pluvial regime (future) is expected to decrease deep-water renewal. While flood frequencies are not expected to change noticeably for the next decades, it is most likely that increased winter discharge and decreased summer discharge will reduce the number of deep density-driven underflows by 10% and favour shallower riverine interflows in the upper hypolimnion. The renewal in the deepest layers is expected to be reduced by nearly 27%. This study underlines potential consequences of climate change on the occurrence of deep river underflows and water residence times in deep lakes.

  19. Disappearing Twelvemile Lake in Alaska's Discontinuous Permafrost: Scoping Analysis of Water Budget

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jepsen, S. M.; Voss, C. I.; Walvoord, M. A.; Minsley, B. J.; Rose, J.; Smith, B. D.

    2011-12-01

    The number and size of lakes in northern high-latitude regions have undergone significant changes over the last 3 decades or longer, possibly in association with climate warming. In the Yukon Flats Basin (YFB) of interior Alaska, a region underlain by discontinuous permafrost, these changes have not been uniform among lake drainage basins, suggesting the importance of local processes that are not well understood. As an example in the YFB, Twelvemile Lake has decreased in area by 60% since 1984, while neighboring Buddy Lake, 2 km to the southeast, has shown no significant change (see Figure). The objective of this study is to evaluate physical mechanisms that could account for the lowering of Twelvemile Lake, using a combination of water flux approximations, historical climate data and the permafrost distribution as interpreted from airborne electromagnetics (AEM). All possible in- and out-flux pathways to the lake are considered and compared with the observed rate of change in the lake's volume, to rank the importance of each pathway as a contributor to the change in lake level. Results from the AEM survey suggest the presence of a ~200 m diameter open-talik beneath the lake, and subsurface, channel-shaped depressions in the permafrost table ("channels") that may direct shallow groundwater (GW) flow into or out of the lake basin. An increase in potential evapotranspiration of only ~2 cm yr-1 from the period of 1950-1980 to 1981-2010 is found to be insignificant relative to the observed 13 cm yr-1 rate of lake level lowering since the early 1980's. Thus, alternative water pathways are needed to explain the lake level change. The following four processes are shown to potentially have a significant contribution to the observed rate of lake level change: (i) Reduced water inputs from decreased snowpacks; (ii) Increased infiltration of snowmelt due to changes in wintertime ice content of subnivean soil; (iii) Changes in GW flow through inlet and outlet channels to the

  20. Water quality of lakes and streams in Voyageurs National Park, northern Minnesota, 1977-84

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Payne, G.A.

    1991-01-01

    Water-quality investigations in six interconnected lakes that comprise most of the surface area of Voyageurs National Park in northern Minnesota revealed substantial differences in water-quality. Three large lakes; Sand Point, Namakan, and Rainy, near the eastern and northern boundaries of the Park; are oligotrophic to mesotrophic, having low dissolved solids and alkalinity, and dimictic circulation. In contrast, Kabetogama Lake, Black Bay, and Sullivan Bay, near the western and southern boundaries of the Park, were eutrophic, having higher dissolved solids and alkalinity, and polymictic circulation. Chemical characteristics of the three lakes along the eastern and northern boundary were similar to those of the Namakan River--a major source of inflow that drains an extensive area of exposed bedrock and thin noncalcareous drift east of the Park. The lake and embayments along the western and southern boundary receive inflow from two streams that drain an area west and south of the Park that is overlain by calcareous drift. Samples from one of these streams contained dissolved-solids concentrations about five times, and total alkalinity concentrations about eight times concentrations measured in the Namakan River. The nutrient-enriched lakes and embayments had high algal productivity that produced blooms of blue-green algae in some years. Annual patterns in the levels of trophic-state indicators revealed that the shallow, polymictic lakes experienced seasonal increases in totalphosphorus concentrations in their euphotic zones that did not occur in the deeper, dimictic lakes; this indicates a link between the frequent recirculation of these lakes and internal cycling of phosphorus. Secchi-disk transparency was limited by organic color in Sand Point, Namakan, and Rainy Lakes, and resuspended bottom material reduced transparency in Black Bay. Waters in the large lakes and embayments met nearly all U.S. Environmental Protection Agency criteria for protection of freshwater

  1. Relation between selected water-quality variables and lake level in Upper Klamath and Agency Lakes, Oregon

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wood, Tamara M.; Fuhrer, Gregory J.; Morace, Jennifer L.

    1996-01-01

    Based on the analysis of data that they have been collecting for several years, the Klamath Tribes recently recommended that the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) modify the operating plan for the dam to make the minimum lake levels for the June-August period more closely resemble pre-dam conditions (Jacob Kann, written commun., 1995). The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) was asked to analyze the available data for the lake and to assess whether the evidence exists to conclude that year-to-year differences in certain lake water-quality variables are related to year-to-year differences in lake level. The results of the analysis will be used as scientific input in the process of developing an operating plan for the Link River Dam.

  2. 40 CFR Appendix F to Part 132 - Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Implementation Procedures

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... aquatic life criteria or values may be developed when: i. The local water quality characteristics such as... 40 Protection of Environment 23 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative... (CONTINUED) WATER PROGRAMS WATER QUALITY GUIDANCE FOR THE GREAT LAKES SYSTEM Pt. 132, App. F Appendix F to...

  3. 40 CFR Appendix F to Part 132 - Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Implementation Procedures

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... use of this methodology may be found in the Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Technical Support... (CONTINUED) WATER PROGRAMS WATER QUALITY GUIDANCE FOR THE GREAT LAKES SYSTEM Pt. 132, App. F Appendix F to... that is freely dissolved in the ambient water is different than that used to derive the system-wide...

  4. 40 CFR Appendix F to Part 132 - Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Implementation Procedures

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... use of this methodology may be found in the Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Technical Support... (CONTINUED) WATER PROGRAMS WATER QUALITY GUIDANCE FOR THE GREAT LAKES SYSTEM Pt. 132, App. F Appendix F to... that is freely dissolved in the ambient water is different than that used to derive the system-wide...

  5. Simulation of Fish, Mud, and Crystal Lakes and the shallow ground-water system, Dane County, Wisconsin

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Krohelski, James T.; Lin, Yu-Feng; Rose, William J.; Hunt, Randall J.

    2002-01-01

    Model results suggest that the increase in regional ground-water recharge resulted in increased ground-water flow to the lake, which in turn resulted in increased lake stages. Simulation results of withdrawal of water from Fish Lake at 500 gallons per minute, assuming 1990?98 climatic conditions, indicate that after 1 year of pumping the stage of Fish and Mud Lakes would be reduced more than 1 foot and the stage of Crystal Lake would be reduced by less than 0.2 foot. When pumping is stopped, the lake stages would recover to near pre-pumping levels within about 3 years. When pumping is extended to 5 years, Fish and Mud Lake stage would be reduced by a maximum of 3.8 feet and Crystal Lake stage is reduced a maximum of 0.8 feet. After 4 years of recovery, Fish and Mud Lake stages are within 0.9 foot of prepumping levels and Crystal Lake stage is within 0.7 foot.

  6. PATTERNS OF LAKE HYDROLOGIC CHARACTERISTICS RELATED TO WATER LEVEL DRAWDOWN ACROSS THE CONTERMINOUS U.S.

    EPA Science Inventory

    Lake hydrologic characteristics related to water levels, such as drawdown distance and evaporative water loss, affect the physical, chemical, and biological condition of lakes. Disturbances such as water withdrawal and changing climate may alter water-level regimes and impact lak...

  7. Storage Capacity and Water Quality of Lake Ngardok, Babeldaob Island, Republic of Palau, 1996-98

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Yeung, Chiu Wang; Wong, Michael F.

    1999-01-01

    A bathymetric survey conducted during March and April, 1996, determined the total storage capacity Lake Ngardok to be between 90 and 168 acre-feet. Elevation-surface area and elevation-capacity curves summarizing the current relations among elevation, surface area, and storage capacity were created from the bathymetric map. Rainfall and lake-elevation data collected from April 1996 to March 1998 indicated that lake levels correlated to rainfall values with lake elevation rising rapidly in response to heavy rainfall and then returning to normal levels within a few days. Mean lake elevation for the 22 month period of data was 59.5 feet which gives a mean storage capacity of 107 acre-feet and a mean surface area of 24.1 acre. A floating mat of reeds, which covered 58 percent of the lake surface area at the time of the bathymetric survey, makes true storage capacity difficult to estimate. Water-quality sampling during April 1996 and November 1997 indicated that no U.S. Environmental Protection Agency primary drinking-water standards were violated for analyzed organic and inorganic compounds and radionuclides. With suitable biological treatment, the lake water could be used for drinking-water purposes. Temperature and dissolved oxygen measurements indicated that Lake Ngardok is stratified. Given that air temperature on Palau exhibits little seasonal variation, it is likely that this pattern of stratification is persistent. As a result, complete mixing of the lake is probably rare. Near anaerobic conditions exist at the lake bottom. Low dissolved oxygen (3.2 milligrams per liter) measured at the outflow indicated that water flowing past the outflow was from the deep oxygen-depleted depths of the lake.

  8. Environmental characteristics and changes of sediment pore water dissolved organic matter in four Chinese lakes.

    PubMed

    Mostofa, Khan M G; Li, Wen; Wu, Fengchang; Liu, Cong-Qiang; Liao, Haiqing; Zeng, Li; Xiao, Min

    2018-01-01

    Sediment pore waters were examined in four Chinese lakes (Bosten, Qinghai, Chenghai and Dianchi) to characterise the sources of dissolved organic matter (DOM) and their microbial changes in the sediment depth profiles. Parallel factor (PARAFAC) modelling on the sample fluorescence spectra confirmed that the pore water DOM was mostly composed of two components with a mixture of both allochthonous and autochthonous fulvic acid-like substances in three lakes, except Lake Dianchi, and protein-like components in Lake Bosten. However, DOM in Lake Dianchi was composed of three components, including a fulvic acid-like, and two unidentified components, which could originate from mixed sources of either sewerage-impacted allochthonous or autochthonous organic matter (OM). Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations were typically high (583-7410 μM C) and fluctuated and increased vertically in the depth profile. The fluorescence intensity of the fulvic acid-like substance and absorbance at 254 nm increased vertically in the sediment pore waters of three lakes. A significant relationship between DOC and the fluorescence intensity of the fulvic acid-like component in the sediment pore waters of three lakes, except Lake Dianchi, suggested that the fulvic acid-like component could significantly contribute to total DOM and could originate via complex microbial processes in early diagenesis on OM (ca. phytoplankton, terrestrial plant material) in these lakes. Pore water DOM components could therefore be a useful indicator to assess the DOM sources of the lake sediment during sedimentation over the past several decades, which have been heavily affected by ambient terrestrial vegetation and human activities.

  9. Simulation of climate-change effects on streamflow, lake water budgets, and stream temperature using GSFLOW and SNTEMP, Trout Lake Watershed, Wisconsin

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hunt, Randall J.; Walker, John F.; Selbig, William R.; Westenbroek, Stephen M.; Regan, R. Steve

    2013-01-01

    Although groundwater and surface water are considered a single resource, historically hydrologic simulations have not accounted for feedback loops between the groundwater system and other hydrologic processes. These feedbacks include timing and rates of evapotranspiration, surface runoff, soil-zone flow, and interactions with the groundwater system. Simulations that iteratively couple the surface-water and groundwater systems, however, are characterized by long run times and calibration challenges. In this study, calibrated, uncoupled transient surface-water and steady-state groundwater models were used to construct one coupled transient groundwater/surface-water model for the Trout Lake Watershed in north-central Wisconsin, USA. The computer code GSFLOW (Ground-water/Surface-water FLOW) was used to simulate the coupled hydrologic system; a surface-water model represented hydrologic processes in the atmosphere, at land surface, and within the soil-zone, and a groundwater-flow model represented the unsaturated zone, saturated zone, stream, and lake budgets. The coupled GSFLOW model was calibrated by using heads, streamflows, lake levels, actual evapotranspiration rates, solar radiation, and snowpack measurements collected during water years 1998–2007; calibration was performed by using advanced features present in the PEST parameter estimation software suite. Simulated streamflows from the calibrated GSFLOW model and other basin characteristics were used as input to the one-dimensional SNTEMP (Stream-Network TEMPerature) model to simulate daily stream temperature in selected tributaries in the watershed. The temperature model was calibrated to high-resolution stream temperature time-series data measured in 2002. The calibrated GSFLOW and SNTEMP models were then used to simulate effects of potential climate change for the period extending to the year 2100. An ensemble of climate models and emission scenarios was evaluated. Downscaled climate drivers for the period

  10. Water-Sediment Partition of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Nansi Lake

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Guizhai; Diao, Youjiang

    2018-06-01

    Based on field data of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in water and sediment in Nansi Lake. The concentrations and the partitioning characteristic of PAHs in the water and sediment were studied. The lgKd of high molecular weight PAHs were higher than the low molecular weight PAHs. The most of PAHs Kd values were negligible correlated with TOC, soluble salt, clay and pH of the sediment in Nansi Lake.

  11. Ecological Health and Water Quality Assessments in Big Creek Lake, AL

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Childs, L. M.; Frey, J. W.; Jones, J. B.; Maki, A. E.; Brozen, M. W.; Malik, S.; Allain, M.; Mitchell, B.; Batina, M.; Brooks, A. O.

    2008-12-01

    Big Creek Lake (aka J.B. Converse Reservoir) serves as the water supply for the majority of residents in Mobile County, Alabama. The area surrounding the reservoir serves as a gopher tortoise mitigation bank and is protected from further development, however, impacts from previous disasters and construction have greatly impacted the Big Creek Lake area. The Escatawpa Watershed drains into the lake, and of the seven drainage streams, three have received a 303 (d) (impaired water bodies) designation in the past. In the adjacent ecosystem, the forest is experiencing major stress from drought and pine bark beetle infestations. Various agencies are using control methods such as pesticide treatment to eradicate the beetles. There are many concerns about these control methods and the run-off into the ecosystem. In addition to pesticide control methods, the Highway 98 construction projects cross the north area of the lake. The community has expressed concern about both direct and indirect impacts of these construction projects on the lake. This project addresses concerns about water quality, increasing drought in the Southeastern U.S., forest health as it relates to vegetation stress, and state and federal needs for improved assessment methods supported by remotely sensed data to determine coastal forest susceptibility to pine bark beetles. Landsat TM, ASTER, MODIS, and EO-1/ALI imagery was employed in Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Normalized Difference Moisture Index (NDMI), as well as to detect concentration of suspended solids, chlorophyll and water turbidity. This study utilizes NASA Earth Observation Systems to determine how environmental conditions and human activity relate to pine tree stress and the onset of pine beetle invasion, as well as relate current water quality data to community concerns and gain a better understanding of human impacts upon water resources.

  12. Evaluation of thermokarst lake water balance in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau via isotope tracers.

    PubMed

    Gao, Zeyong; Niu, Fujun; Lin, Zhanju; Luo, Jing; Yin, Guoan; Wang, Yibo

    2018-04-24

    Thermokarst lakes are a ubiquitous landscape feature, which widely distributed in the pan-arctic and some low latitude regions, and are associated with regional hydrological processes. The studies were taken to obtain a better understanding of the water balance of thermokarst lakes in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) in order to gain insight of the regional hydrological cycle. The characteristics of the stable isotopes δ 18 O and δ D were investigated in precipitation, permafrost meltwater, and thermokarst lake water in the continuous permafrost region of the QTP and analyzed the lake water balance using the isotope mass model. The results showed that the δ D-δ 18 O relationship in the thermokarst lakes (δ D = 5.45 δ 18 O - 18.95) differed from that of the local precipitation (δ D = 8.30 δ 18 O + 18.49) and permafrost meltwater (δ D = 5.78 δ 18 O - 23.41), and the mean isotope compositions in the thermokarst lakes were -7.2‰ in δ 18 O and -58.0‰ in δ D. The more positive isotope signals in thermokarst lakes than in the precipitation and permafrost meltwater revealed that the lakes had experienced stronger isotope enrichment. Additionally, the evaporation-to-inflow ratio (E/I) values were < 1 in most of the thermokarst lakes (84%), which might be explained by the recent expansion of the lake surfaces. However, 16% of the thermokarst lakes had shrunk, owing to thermokarst erosion, lateral expansion as the temperature increases, and lower recharge volume. Moreover, precipitation on the lake surface was only 14-18% of the inflow volume in the thermokarst lakes, and the surface-subsurface inflow and permafrost meltwater are very important for recharging the lakes and maintaining the water balance. The results of this study provide a comprehensive understanding of the influence of climate warming on hydrological processes in the permafrost regions in the QTP. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  13. Water quality of selected lakes in Mount Rainier National Park, Washington with respect to lake acidification

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Turney, G.L.; Dion, N.P.; Sumioka, S.S.

    1986-01-01

    Thirteen lakes in Mount Rainier National Park were evaluated for general chemical characteristics, sensitivity to acidification by acidic precipitation, and degree of existing acidification. The lakes studies were Allen, one of the Chenuis group, Crescent , Crystal, Eleanor, Fan, one of the Golden group, Marsh, Mowich, Mystic, Shriner, and two unnamed lakes. The lakes were sampled in August 1983. Specific conductance values were generally 21 microsiemens/cm at 25 C or less, and dissolved solids concentrations were generally 20 mg/L or less. The major cations were calcium and sodium, and the major anion was bicarbonate. Alkalinity concentrations ranged from 2.1 to 9.0 mg/L in 12 of the lakes. Allen Lake was the exception, having an alkalinity concentration of 27 mg/L. The pH values for all of the lakes ranged from 5.8 to 6.5. In most of the lakes, vertical profiles of temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, and specific conductance were relatively uniform. In the deeper lakes, temperature decreased with depth and dissolved-oxygen concentrations increased to about 20 feet, remained constant to 80 ft, then decreased with increasing depth. Exceptions to general water quality patterns were observed in three lakes. Allen Lake had a specific conductance value of 58 Microsiemens/cm. The lake of the Golden group was anaerobic at the bottom and had relatively high concentrations of dissolved organic carbon and dissolved metals, and a lower light transmission than the other lakes studied. One of the unnamed lakes had relatively high concentrations of phytoplankton and dissolved organic carbon and relatively low levels of light transmission. Comparisons of lake data to acid-sensitivity thresholds for specific conductance and alkalinity indicated that all of the lakes except Allen would be sensitive to acidic precipitation. The small sizes of the lakes, and their locations in basins of high precipitation and weathering-resistant rock types, enhance their sensitivity. None of the

  14. Effects of the human activities on the water level process of the Poyang Lake

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhao, Jun-kai; Chen, Li; Yang, Yun-xian

    2017-12-01

    The hydrological cycles in basin is profoundly affected by human activities. Yangtze River is a world class river with complex river-lake relations in the middle reaches. As the Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR) and other controlled reservoirs in the main stream and tributaries have been put into operation, the water regimes of the main stream in the middle reaches and Poyang Lake have been changed by water impounding and sediments trapping, clean water discharged from reservoirs, accelerating the evolution of the relationship of river and lake. After entering the 21st century, autumn droughts become more serious in Poyang Lake basin; the relationship between river and lake becomes tense. In light of the hydrological data in Poyang Lake since 2000s, this article made quantitative analyses of the influences of the human activities on the variation of the Poyang Lake level by authors. The results indicate that the main stream of Yangtze River, particularly the regulation of Three Gorges Reservoir, exerts a profound influence on the variation process of the Poyang Lake level. The regulation influence of the Upper Reach of the Yangtze River’s Reservoir Group (URYRRG) could spread to Tangyin area in the middle of the lake in October.

  15. Tracing of the Rhône River within Lake Geneva using stable isotope composition of water

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cotte, Gabriel; Vennemann, Torsten

    2017-04-01

    Determining the hydrodynamics of lake water is essential for a better understanding of nutrient transport but also of the distribution of potential pollutants through water reservoirs. The objective of this study is to understand the mixing of Rhône River water within Lake Geneva. During summer and autumn, when the lake thermally well stratified, the Rhône River water can potentially flow more or less directly towards and finally out of the "Petit Lac" (small lake basin close to Geneva) more than 55 km from its mouth. During winter, when stratification is weakened, the water from the Rhône River mixes more diffusively with the water of Lake Geneva. The aim of this study is to determine the path of the Rhône River through the lake more precisely and identify the thermal and meteorologic conditions favourable for different types of flows as suggested by physical circulation models of the Rhône River interflows. Waters are sampled from different North-South transects across the lake. Bathymetric profiles are measured for temperature, pH, conductivity and oxygen concentrations. In addition, the H- and O-isotope compositions of water, the C-isotope composition of dissolved inorganic carbon and the major ions are analysed. Sampling campaigns are carried out every two months to study the hydrodynamics of the lake at varying thermal conditions. The isotopic composition of water was already proven to be a powerful tool to trace the Rhône River interflow within the lake (Halder et al., 2013) but the details of this interflow remain debatable. It is the aim of the present study to use the isotopic tracer method in much more detailed cross-sections as a tool to both test and verify interflow models based on wind patterns and thermal dispersion of the waters. The chosen cross-sections, to be sampled regularly and "event-based", that is after extended periods of similar meteorological conditions, should allow for more precise estimates of the path of the Rhône water

  16. A classification of freshwater Louisiana lakes based on water quality and user perception data.

    PubMed

    Burden, D G; Malone, R F

    1987-09-01

    An index system developed for Louisiana lakes was based on correlations between measurable water quality parameters and perceived lake quality. Support data was provided by an extensive monitoring program of 30 lakes coordinated with opinion surveys undertaken during summer 1984. Lakes included in the survey ranged from 4 to 735 km(2) in surface area with mean depths ranging from 0.5 to 8.0 m. Water quality data indicated most of these lakes are eutrophic, although many have productive fisheries and are considered recreational assets. Perception ratings of fishing quality and its associated water quality were obtained by distributing approximately 1200 surveys to Louisiana Bass Club Associaton members. The ability of Secchi disc transparency, total organic carbon, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, total phosphorus, and chlorophyll a to discriminate between perception classes was examined using probability distributions and multivariate analyses. Secchi disc and total organic carbon best reflected perceived lake conditions; however, these parameters did not provide the discrimination necessary for developing a quantitative risk assessment of lake trophic state. Consequently, an interim lakes index system was developed based on total organic carbon and perceived lake conditions. The developed index system will aid State officials in interpretating and evaluating regularly collected lake quality data, recognizing potential problem areas, and identifying proper management policies for protecting fisheries usage within the State.

  17. The blue-to-green reflectance ratio and lake water quality

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Piech, K. R.; Schott, J. R.; Stewart, K. M.

    1978-01-01

    Correlations between the relative values of the blue and green reflectances of a lake and water quality indices, such as depth of photic zone, Secchi disk transparency, attenuation coefficient, and chlorophyll concentration, have been observed during an intensive satellite, aircraft, and surface vessel study of Lake Ontario and Conesus Lake. Determinations of blue and green reflectances from Skylab S190A color imagery are in excellent agreement with values obtained from small-scale color imagery from aircraft. Further, the accuracy of the satellite data appears within that required for extrapolation to the water quality indices. The study has also determined that changes in chlorophyll, lignin, and humic acid concentration can be discriminated by the behavior of the blue-to-green reflectance ratio and the reflectances of the green and red bands.

  18. Declining survival of lake trout stocked during 1963-1986 in U.S. waters of Lake Superior

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hansen, Michael J.; Ebener, Mark P.; Schorfhaar, Richard G.; Schram, Stephen T.; Schreiner, Donald R.; Selgeby, James H.

    1994-01-01

    The average catch per effort (CPE) values for the 1963–1982 year-classes of stocked lake trout Salvelinus namaycush caught at age 7 in gill nets and for the 1976–1986 year-classes caught at ages 2–4 in trawls declined significantly in U.S. waters of Lake Superior. The declines in CPE were not explained by reduced stocking, but rather by significant declines in survival indices of the year-classes of stocked lake trout. Increases in mortality occurred in year-classes before the fish reached ages 2–4, before they were recruited into the sport and commercial fisheries, and before they reached sizes vulnerable to sea lamprey predation. We conclude that declining abundance of stocked lake trout resulted from increased mortality, which may have been caused by competition, predation, or by a combination of these and other factors. Restoration of lake trout in Lake Superior may now depend on prudent management of naturally reproducing stocks rather than on stocking of hatchery-reared fish.

  19. Pliocene bats (Chiroptera) from Kanapoi, Turkana Basin, Kenya.

    PubMed

    Gunnell, Gregg F; Manthi, Fredrick K

    2018-04-05

    Fossil bats from the Pliocene of Africa are extremely rare, especially in East Africa where meager records have been reported only from two localities in the Omo River Basin Shungura Formation and from a scattering of localities in the Afar Depression, both in Ethiopia. Here we report on a diverse assemblage of bats from Kanapoi in the Turkana Basin that date to approximately 4.19 million years ago. The Kanapoi bat community consists of four different species of fruit bats including a new genus and two new species as well as five species of echolocating bats, the most common of which are two new species of the molossid genus Mops. Additionally, among the echolocating bats, a new species of the emballonurid Saccolaimus is documented at Kanapoi along with an additional Saccolaimus species and a potentially new species of the nycterid Nycteris. Compared to other East African Pliocene bat assemblages, the Kanapoi bat community is unique in preserving molossids and curiously lacks any evidence of cave dwelling bats like rhinolophids or hipposiderids, which are both common at other East African sites. The bats making up the Kanapoi community all typically roost in trees, with some preferring deeper forests and larger trees (molossids), while the others (pteropodids, nycterids and emballonurids) roost in trees near open areas. Living fruit bats that are related to Kanapoi species typically forage for fruits along the margins of forests and in open savannah. The echolocating forms from Kanapoi consist of groups that aerially hawk for insects in open areas between patches of forest and along water courses. The habitats preferred by living relatives of the Kanapoi bats are in agreement with those constructed for Kanapoi based on other lines of evidence. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  20. Hydrology and water quality of lakes and streams in Orange County, Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    German, Edward R.; Adamski, James C.

    2005-01-01

    Orange County, Florida, is continuing to experience a large growth in population. In 1920, the population of Orange County was less than 20,000; in 2000, the population was about 896,000. The amount of urban area around Orlando has increased considerably, especially in the northwest part of the County. The eastern one-third of the County, however, had relatively little increase in urbanization from 1977-97. The increase of population, tourism, and industry in Orange County and nearby areas changed land use; land that was once agricultural has become urban, industrial, and major recreation areas. These changes could impact surface-water resources that are important for wildlife habitat, for esthetic reasons, and potentially for public supply. Streamflow characteristics and water quality could be affected in various ways. As a result of changing land use, changes in the hydrology and water quality of Orange County's lakes and streams could occur. Median runoff in 10 selected Orange County streams ranges from about 20 inches per year (in/yr) in the Wekiva River to about 1.1 in/yr in Cypress Creek. The runoff for the Wekiva River is significantly higher than other river basins because of the relatively constant spring discharge that sustains streamflow, even during drought conditions. The low runoff for the Cypress Creek basin results from a lack of sustained inflow from ground water and a relatively large area of lakes within the drainage basin. Streamflow characteristics for 13 stations were computed on an annual basis and examined for temporal trends. Results of the trend testing indicate changes in annual mean streamflow, 1-day high streamflow, or 7-day low streamflow at 8 of the 13 stations. However, changes in 7-day low streamflow are more common than changes in annual mean or 1-day high streamflow. There is probably no single reason for the changes in 7-day low streamflows, and for most streams, it is difficult to determine definite reasons for the flow

  1. Nutrient additions by waterfowl to lakes and reservoirs: predicting their effects on productivity and water quality

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Manny, Bruce A.; Johnson, W.C.; Wetzel, R.G.

    1994-01-01

    Lakes and reservoirs provide water for human needs and habitat for aquatic birds. Managers of such waters may ask whether nutrients added by waterfowl degrade water quality. For lakes and reservoirs where primary productivity is limited by phosphorus (P), we developed a procedure that integrates annual P loads from waterfowl and other external sources, applies a nutrient load-response model, and determines whether waterfowl that used the lake or reservoir degraded water quality. Annual P loading by waterfowl can be derived from a figure in this report, using the days per year that each kind spent on any lake or reservoir. In our example, over 6500 Canada geese (Branta canadensis) and 4200 ducks (mostly mallards, Anas platyrhynchos) added 4462 kg of carbon (C), 280 kg of nitrogen (N), and 88 kg of P y-1 to Wintergreen Lake in southwestern Michigan, mostly during their migration. These amounts were 69% of all C, 27% of all N, and 70% of all P that entered the lake from external sources. Loads from all external sources totaled 840 mg P m-2 y-1. Application of a nutrient load-response model to this concentration, the hydraulic load (0.25 m y-1), and the water residence time (9.7 y) of Wintergreen Lake yielded an average annual concentration of total P in the lake of 818 mg m-3 that classified the lake as hypertrophic. This trophic classification agreed with independent measures of primary productivity, chlorophyll-a, total P, total N, and Secchi disk transparency made in Wintergreen Lake. Our procedure showed that waterfowl caused low water quality in Wintergreen Lake.

  2. Diversity of active aerobic methanotrophs along depth profiles of arctic and subarctic lake water column and sediments

    PubMed Central

    He, Ruo; Wooller, Matthew J; Pohlman, John W; Quensen, John; Tiedje, James M; Leigh, Mary Beth

    2012-01-01

    Methane (CH4) emitted from high-latitude lakes accounts for 2–6% of the global atmospheric CH4 budget. Methanotrophs in lake sediments and water columns mitigate the amount of CH4 that enters the atmosphere, yet their identity and activity in arctic and subarctic lakes are poorly understood. We used stable isotope probing (SIP), quantitative PCR (Q-PCR), pyrosequencing and enrichment cultures to determine the identity and diversity of active aerobic methanotrophs in the water columns and sediments (0–25 cm) from an arctic tundra lake (Lake Qalluuraq) on the north slope of Alaska and a subarctic taiga lake (Lake Killarney) in Alaska's interior. The water column CH4 oxidation potential for these shallow (∼2 m deep) lakes was greatest in hypoxic bottom water from the subarctic lake. The type II methanotroph, Methylocystis, was prevalent in enrichment cultures of planktonic methanotrophs from the water columns. In the sediments, type I methanotrophs (Methylobacter, Methylosoma and Methylomonas) at the sediment-water interface (0–1 cm) were most active in assimilating CH4, whereas the type I methanotroph Methylobacter and/or type II methanotroph Methylocystis contributed substantially to carbon acquisition in the deeper (15–20 cm) sediments. In addition to methanotrophs, an unexpectedly high abundance of methylotrophs also actively utilized CH4-derived carbon. This study provides new insight into the identity and activity of methanotrophs in the sediments and water from high-latitude lakes. PMID:22592821

  3. Diversity of active aerobic methanotrophs along depth profiles of arctic and subarctic lake water column and sediments

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    He, Ruo; Wooller, Matthew J.; Pohlman, John W.; Quensen, John; Tiedje, James M.; Leigh, Mary Beth

    2012-01-01

    Methane (CH4) emitted from high-latitude lakes accounts for 2–6% of the global atmospheric CH4 budget. Methanotrophs in lake sediments and water columns mitigate the amount of CH4 that enters the atmosphere, yet their identity and activity in arctic and subarctic lakes are poorly understood. We used stable isotope probing (SIP), quantitative PCR (Q-PCR), pyrosequencing and enrichment cultures to determine the identity and diversity of active aerobic methanotrophs in the water columns and sediments (0–25 cm) from an arctic tundra lake (Lake Qalluuraq) on the north slope of Alaska and a subarctic taiga lake (Lake Killarney) in Alaska's interior. The water column CH4 oxidation potential for these shallow (~2m deep) lakes was greatest in hypoxic bottom water from the subarctic lake. The type II methanotroph, Methylocystis, was prevalent in enrichment cultures of planktonic methanotrophs from the water columns. In the sediments, type I methanotrophs (Methylobacter, Methylosoma and Methylomonas) at the sediment-water interface (0–1 cm) were most active in assimilating CH4, whereas the type I methanotroph Methylobacter and/or type II methanotroph Methylocystis contributed substantially to carbon acquisition in the deeper (15–20 cm) sediments. In addition to methanotrophs, an unexpectedly high abundance of methylotrophs also actively utilized CH4-derived carbon. This study provides new insight into the identity and activity of methanotrophs in the sediments and water from high-latitude lakes.

  4. Rapid rise of water level for Tibetan lakes: an analysis of the relation with climate

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Song, C.; Huang, B.

    2013-12-01

    The Tibetan Plateau (TP) has a large number of alpine lakes, which are sensitive indicators of climate variability due to minimal disturbances from human activities. Although earlier work has examined lake area and water level changes on the TP in the past several decades, so far, the climate-driven mechanism of lake variations is still not clear. In particular, it is uncertain which climatic factor (increased glacial meltwater caused by climate warming, or precipitation changes, etc.) induced the acceleration of lake growth since mid-1990s. This study examines water level changes of lakes during1990s~2011 by combining satellite Laser altimetry (covering small lakes due to finer footprints, but only during 2003~2009) and Radar altimetry (since 1990s, but only for a few large lakes due to coarse footprints). The precipitation and evaporation changes are also analyzed based on the GPCP data and station observations, which reveal that precipitation on the inner and northeast TP has experienced a significant increase of 2~8 mm/yr since mid-1990s and evaporation of most stations has showed an upward tendency. Two main findings of analyses on the relation of lake expansion and climate variability are summarized as follows: (1) The ICESat altimetry data during 2003~2009 shows that there is no significant difference between the change rates of water level of the 56 glacier-fed lakes and other 40 lakes without glacial meltwater supply, which implies that glacier melting induced by climate warming is probably not the dominating factor of rapid lake expansion. Six pairs of adjacent lakes with and without glacier supply (each pair is assumed under similar climate conditions) in different geographical regions (near the Nyainqêntanglha Mts., east Gangdise Mts., southeast Karakorum Mts., the Kunlun Mts., and the HolXil) were selected to further examine the impact of the glacier melting on lake expansions. Results show that some lakes without glacier supply even have higher

  5. GROUND WATER QUALITY SURROUNDING LAKE TEXOMA DURING DROUGHT CONDITIONS

    EPA Science Inventory

    Water quality data from 55 producing monitoring wells during drought conditions surrounding Lake Texoma, located on the border of Oklahoma and Texas, was compared to assess the influence of drought on groundwater quality. The main water quality parameter measured was nitrate, an...

  6. WATER QUALITY ASSESSMENT OF LAKE TEXOMA BEACHES, 1999-2001

    EPA Science Inventory

    A biological and inorganic assessment of five beaches on Lake Texoma was conducted from September 1999 through July 2001. Water samples for each beach site were divided into two groups, a swimming season and non-swimming season. Water properties such as temperature, alkalinity,...

  7. Physical and hydrochemical evidence of lake leakage near Jim Woodruff lock and dam and ground-water inflow to Lake Seminole, and an assessment of karst features in and near the lake, southwestern Georgia and northwestern Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Torak, Lynn J.; Crilley, Dianna M.; Painter, Jaime A.

    2006-01-01

    Hydrogeologic data and water-chemistry analyses indicate that Lake Seminole leaks into the Upper Floridan aquifer near Jim Woodruff Lock and Dam, southwestern Georgia and northwestern Florida, and that ground water enters Lake Seminole along upstream reaches of the lake's four impoundment arms (Chattahoochee and Flint Rivers, Spring Creek, and Fishpond Drain). Written accounts by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers geologists during dam construction in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and construction-era photographs, document karst-solution features in the limestone that comprise the lake bottom and foundation rock to the dam, and confirm the hydraulic connection of the lake and aquifer. More than 250 karst features having the potential to connect the lake and aquifer were identified from preimpoundment aerial photographs taken during construction. An interactive map containing a photomosaic of 53 photographic negatives was orthorectfied to digital images of 1:24,000-scale topographic maps to aid in identifying karst features that function or have the potential to function as locations of water exchange between Lake Seminole and the Upper Floridan aquifer. Some identified karst features coincide with locations of mapped springs, spring runs, and depressions that are consistent with sinkholes and sinkhole ponds. Hydrographic surveys using a multibeam echosounder (sonar) with sidescan sonar identified sinkholes in the lake bottom along the western lakeshore and in front of the dam. Dye-tracing experiments indicate that lake water enters these sinkholes and is transported through the Upper Floridan aquifer around the west side of the dam at velocities of about 500 feet per hour to locations where water 'boils up' on land (at Polk Lake Spring) and in the channel bottom of the Apalachicola River (at the 'River Boil'). Water discharging from Polk Lake Spring joins flow from a spring-fed ground-water discharge zone located downstream of the dam; the combined flow disappears into

  8. Water level monitoring using radar remote sensing data: Application to Lake Kivu, central Africa

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Munyaneza, Omar; Wali, Umaru G.; Uhlenbrook, Stefan; Maskey, Shreedhar; Mlotha, McArd J.

    Satellite radar altimetry measures the time required for a pulse to travel from the satellite antenna to the earth’s surface and back to the satellite receiver. Altimetry on inland lakes generally shows some deviation from in situ level measurements. The deviation is attributed to the geographically varying corrections applied to account for atmospheric effects on radar waves. This study was focused on verification of altimetry data for Lake Kivu (2400 km 2), a large inland lake between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and estimating the lake water levels using bathymetric data combined with satellite images. Altimetry data obtained from ENVISAT and ERS-2 satellite missions were compared with water level data from gauging stations for Lake Kivu. Gauge data for Lake Kivu were collected from the stations ELECTROGAZ and Rusizi. ENVISAT and ERS-2 data sets for Lake Kivu are in good agreement with gauge data having R2 of 0.86 and 0.77, respectively. A combination of the two data sets improved the coefficient of determination to 95% due to the improved temporal resolution of the data sets. The calculated standard deviation for Lake Kivu water levels was 0.642 m and 0.701 m, for ENVISAT and ERS-2 measurements, respectively. The elevation-surface area characteristics derived from bathymetric data in combination with satellite images were used to estimate the lake level gauge. Consequently, the water level of Lake Kivu could be estimated with an RMSE of 0.294 m and an accuracy of ±0.58 m. In situations where gauges become malfunctioning or inaccessible due to damage or extreme meteorological events, the method can be used to ensure data continuity.

  9. Modelling the Loktak Lake Basin to Assess Human Impact on Water Resources

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Eliza, K.

    2015-12-01

    Loktak Lake is an internationally important, Ramsar designated, fresh water wetland system in the state of Manipur, India. The lake was also listed under Montreux Record on account of the ecological modifications that the lake system has witnessed over time. A characteristic feature of this lake is the extensive occurrence of coalesced, naturally or otherwise, vegetative masses floating over it. A contiguous 40 km2 area of Phumdis, as these vegetative masses are locally referred to, also constitutes the only natural home of the endemic and endangered species of Manipur's brow-antlered deer popularly known as Sangai. Appropriately notified as Keibul Lamjao National Park by Government of India, this natural feature is known to be the world's largest floating park. Water quality and sediment deposition on account of soil erosion in its catchments are some of the emerging concerns along with a reported enhanced frequency and duration of flooding of the shore areas, reduced fish catch within a visibly deteriorated overall natural ecosystem. Disturbances of watershed processes, command area management practices, ineffective as indeed largely absent, waste management practices and management interventions linked to the Loktak Hydroelectric Project are often cited as the principal triggers that are seen to be responsible for the damage. An effective management protocol for the Lake requires a rigorous understanding of its hydrobiology and eco-hydrodynamics. The present study is carried out to establish such a characterization of the various rivers systems draining directly into the Lake using MIKE SHE, MIKE 11 HD and MIKE 11 ECO Lab modelling platforms. Water quality modelling was limited to dissolved oxygen (DO), biological oxygen demand (BOD) and water temperature. Model calibration was done using the available measured water quality data. The derived results were then investigated for causal correlation with anthropogenic influences to assess human impact on water

  10. A WHOLE-LAKE WATER QUALITY SURVEY OF LAKE OAHE BASED ON A SPATIALLY-BALANCED PROBABILISTIC DESIGN

    EPA Science Inventory

    Assessing conditions on large bodies of water presets multiple statistical and logistical challenges. As part of the Upper Missouri River Program of the Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Project (EMAP) we surveyed water quality of Lake Oahe in July-August, 2002 using a spat...

  11. Water quality and algal community dynamics of three deepwater lakes in Minnesota utilizing CE-QUAL-W2 models

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Smith, Erik A.; Kiesling, Richard L.; Galloway, Joel M.; Ziegeweid, Jeffrey R.

    2014-01-01

    Water quality, habitat, and fish in Minnesota lakes will potentially be facing substantial levels of stress in the coming decades primarily because of two stressors: (1) land-use change (urban and agricultural) and (2) climate change. Several regional and statewide lake modeling studies have identified the potential linkages between land-use and climate change on reductions in the volume of suitable lake habitat for coldwater fish populations. In recent years, water-resource scientists have been making the case for focused assessments and monitoring of sentinel systems to address how these stress agents change lakes over the long term. Currently in Minnesota, a large-scale effort called “Sustaining Lakes in a Changing Environment” is underway that includes a focus on monitoring basic watershed, water quality, habitat, and fish indicators of 24 Minnesota sentinel lakes across a gradient of ecoregions, depths, and nutrient levels. As part of this effort, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, developed predictive water quality models to assess water quality and habitat dynamics of three select deepwater lakes in Minnesota. The three lakes (Lake Carlos in Douglas County, Elk Lake in Clearwater County, and Trout Lake in Cook County) were assessed under recent (2010–11) meteorological conditions. The three selected lakes contain deep, coldwater habitats that remain viable during the summer months for coldwater fish species. Hydrodynamics and water-quality characteristics for each of the three lakes were simulated using the CE-QUAL-W2 model, which is a carbon-based, laterally averaged, two-dimensional water-quality model. The CE-QUAL-W2 models address the interaction between nutrient cycling, primary production, and trophic dynamics to predict responses in the distribution of temperature and oxygen in lakes. The CE-QUAL-W2 models for all three lakes successfully predicted water temperature, on the basis of the

  12. Water resources of the Red Lake Indian Reservation, northwestern Minnesota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Ruhl, J.F.

    1991-01-01

    The quality of ground water is suitable for drinking and other household uses, and the quality of the surface water generally meets U.S. Environmental Protection Agency criteria necessary for the maintenance of aquatic life. The major ions in both ground and surface water are calcium, magnesium, and bicarbonate. Lower and Upper Red Lakes are eutrophic to mesotrophic on the basis of their summer Secchi disk-transparency readings, which ranged from 2.6 to 8.2 feet. The concentration of total organic carbon in samples from Lower and Upper Red Lakes and four streams were below or, in the case of one stream, about equal to 30 milligrams per liter, which is indicative of water little affected by human activities. The sample with the highest organic carbon content was collected from a stream that drained peatlands, which were probably sources of organic matter in the runoff. The concentration of nitrite plus nitrate in samples collected from Lower and Upper Red Lakes in late summer was below 0.01 milligrams per liter, which is characteristic of water uncontaminated by animal wastes. Total phosphorus in these samples ranged from 0.01 to 0.02 milligrams per liter. Most of this phosphorus was in the particulate organic fraction because of the abundance of phytoplankton.

  13. Do changes in climate and land use pose a risk to the future water availability of Mediterranean Lakes?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bucak, T.; Trolle, D.; Andersen, H. E.; Thodsen, H.; Erdoğan, Ş.; Levi, E. E.; Filiz, N.; Jeppesen, E.; Beklioğlu, M.

    2016-12-01

    Inter- and intra-annual water level fluctuations and change in water flow regime are intrinsic characteristics of Mediterranean lakes. However, considering the climate change projections for the water-limited Mediterranean region where potential evapotranspiration exceeds precipitation and with increased air temperatures and decreased precipitation, more dramatic water level declines in lakes and severe water scarcity problems are expected to occur in the future. Our study lake, Lake Beyşehir, the largest freshwater lake in the Mediterranean basin, is - like other Mediterranean lakes - under pressure due to water abstraction for irrigated crop farming and climatic changes, and integrated water level management is therefore required. We used an integrated modeling approach to predict the future lake water level of Lake Beyşehir in response to the future changes in both climate and, potentially, land use by linking the catchment model Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) with a Support Vector Machine Regression model (ɛ-SVR). We found that climate change projections caused enhanced potential evapotranspiration and reduced total runoff, whereas the effects of various land use scenarios within the catchment were comparatively minor. In all climate scenarios applied in the ɛ-SVR model, changes in hydrological processes caused a water level reduction, predicting that the lake may dry out already in the 2040s with the current outflow regulation considering the most pessimistic scenario. Based on model runs with optimum outflow management, a 9-60% reduction in outflow withdrawal is needed to prevent the lake from drying out by the end of this century. Our results indicate that shallow Mediterranean lakes may face a severe risk of drying out and loss of ecosystem value in near future if the current intense water abstraction is maintained. Therefore, we conclude that outflow management in water-limited regions in a warmer and drier future and sustainable use of water

  14. Aquatic environmental assessment of Lake Balaton in the light of physical-chemical water parameters.

    PubMed

    Sebestyén, Vitkor; Németh, József; Juzsakova, Tatjana; Domokos, Endre; Kovács, Zsófia; Rédey, Ákos

    2017-11-01

    One of the issues of the Hungarian Water Management Strategy is the improvement and upgrading of the water of Lake Balaton. The Water Framework Directive (WFD) specifies and sets forth the achievement of the good ecological status. However, the assessment of the water quality of the lake as a complex system requires a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation procedure. Measurements were carried out around the Lake Balaton at ten different locations/sites and 13 physical-chemical parameters were monitored at each measurement site.For the interpretation of the water chemistry parameters the Aquatic Environmental Assessment (AEA) method devised by authors was used for the water body of the Lake Balaton. The AEA method can be used for all types of the water bodies since it is flexible and using individual weighting procedure for the water chemistry parameters comprehensive information can be obtain. The AEA method was compared with existing EIA methods according to a predefined criterion system and proved to be the most suitable tool for evaluating the environmental impacts in our study.On the basis of the results it can be concluded that the status of the quality of studied area on the Lake Balaton can be categorized as proper quality (from the outcome of the ten measurement sites this conclusion was reached at seven sites).

  15. An Analysis of Total Phosphorus Dispersion in Lake Used As a Municipal Water Supply.

    PubMed

    Lima, Rômulo C; Mesquita, André L A; Blanco, Claudio J C; Santos, Maria de Lourdes S; Secretan, Yves

    2015-09-01

    In Belém city is located the potable water supply system of its metropolitan area, which includes, in addition to this city, four more municipalities. In this water supply complex is the Água Preta lake, which serves as a reservoir for the water pumped from the Guamá river. Due to the great importance of this lake for this system, several works have been devoted to its study, from the monitoring of the quality of its waters to its hydrodynamic modeling. This paper presents the results obtained by computer simulation of the phosphorus dispersion within this reservoir by the numerical solution of two-dimensional equation of advection-diffusion-reaction by the method θ/SUPG. Comparing these results with data concentration of total phosphorus collected from November 2008 to October 2009 and from satellite photos show that the biggest polluters of the water of this lake are the domestic sewage dumps from the population living in its vicinity. The results obtained indicate the need for more information for more precise quantitative analysis. However, they show that the phosphorus brought by the Guamá river water is consumed in an area adjacent to the canal that carries this water into the lake. Phosphorus deposits in the lake bottom should be monitored to verify their behavior, thus preventing the quality of water maintained therein.

  16. Water quality parameters response to temperature change in small shallow lakes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, Lei; Li, Hua; Liang, Xinqiang; Yao, Yuxin; Zhou, Li; Cui, Xinyi

    Effects of temperature (T) on water quality of three small shallow lakes in Taihu Lake region of China were investigated. The annual temperature was classified into three levels: low temperature (LT, 4 °C < T ⩽ 10 °C), middle temperature (MT, 10 °C < T ⩽ 20 °C), and high temperature (HT, 20 °C < T ⩽ 30 °C). Results showed that total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) concentrations might go to a fixed value (or range) in small shallow lakes receiving domestic sewage and farm drainage water. Nitrogen concentrations in the lakes were mainly in the form of nitrate (NO3-) at above concerned three temperature levels, and nitrogen concentrations in the forms of TN, TIN, and NO3- were increased with the increase of nutrient input. At the LT and MT levels, there was a series of good cubic curve relationships between temperatures and three N forms (TN, NO3- and NH4+). The temperatural inflexion change points in the curves were nearly at 7 °C and 14 °C, respectively. However, no significant relationship between temperature and any water quality parameter was observed at the HT level. The significant relationship of TIN to TN, NO3- to TN and NH4+ to dissolve oxygen (DO) was exist in three temperature portions, and TP to Chemical oxygen demand (COD, determined by potassium permanganate oxidation methods) in LT and MT, TP to pH or DO in HT also exist. COD were less than 6 mg L-1 at each temperature level, and pH values were the largest in HT than it in LT or MT. Thus, changes between temperature and water quality parameters (TN, NO3-, NH4+ and TP) obviously nearly in 7 °C or 14 °C in lakes show that water self-purification of natural small shallow lakes were obviously with temperature changed.

  17. Water-quality assessment of Lakes Maumelle and Winona, Arkansas, 1991 through 2003

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Galloway, Joel M.; Green, W. Reed

    2004-01-01

    Lakes Maumelle and Winona are water-supply reservoirs for the Little Rock and North Little Rock metropolitan areas in central Arkansas. In addition to water supply, the reservoirs are used for recreation and fish and wildlife habitat. The purpose of this report is to describe the hydrology and water quality of Lakes Maumelle and Winona and their inflows from data collected by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with Central Arkansas Water for calendar years 1991 through 2003. The main inflows into Lakes Maumelle and Winona, the Maumelle River and Alum Fork Saline River, exhibited typical seasonal variability in streamflow with high flows usually occurring in the late fall, winter, and early spring, and low or no flow in the summer and early fall. The highest annual mean streamflow occurred in 1991 and the lowest annual mean streamflow occurred in 1992 for the Maumelle River and 1995 for the Alum Fork Saline River. Water quality measured in Lakes Maumelle and Winona varied spatially and temporally. Although total phosphorus concentrations were substantially higher at the upper ends of the lakes than at the lower ends of the lakes, nitrogen and orthophosphorus concentrations were not significantly different among the sampling sites on each lake. The highest concentrations of nitrogen generally were measured in 1991 and from 1998 through 2003 at all of the sampling sites. The highest total phosphorus concentrations were measured from 1994 to 1996 and from 1998 to 2001 on Lake Maumelle and from 1993 to 1994 on Lake Winona. Total and dissolved organic carbon concentrations were similar among sites on each lake and the greatest concentrations were measured in 1996 and 1997 at all of the sites. The chlorophyll a concentrations varied seasonally, with the highest concentrations in October and November, but were relatively uniform spatially and annually in Lakes Maumelle and Winona for 1991 through 2003. Water clarity was greater at the lower ends of the lakes than at

  18. Arsenic Movement From Sediment to Water: Microbes and Mobilization in a Contaminated Lake

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Keimowitz, A. R.; Mailloux, B. J.; Chillrud, S. N.; Ross, J.; Wovkulich, K.; McNamara, P.; Alexandrova, E.; Thompson, L.

    2008-12-01

    Union Lake (Millville, NJ), a reservoir downstream from the Vineland Chemical Company Superfund site, has bottom sediments that are highly contaminated with arsenic (>1 g/kg). Offsite As transport was investigated. Because the lake is a result of damming, it is perched above the water table and therefore As transport may occur via downward movement of porewaters and/or groundwaters. Preliminary evidence for this was found in the form of iron flocculates enriched in As which were found in surface seeps downgradient of the dam. The possibility of As remobilization and/or off-site transport by seasonal anoxia of lake bottom- waters was also explored. Although historically, appreciable As was found in the water column of the lake (up to approximately 200 micrograms/L), As releases over the summers of 2007 and 2008 were negligible to modest with a maximum [As] of 23 micrograms/L. Arsenic mobilization from the contaminated sediments into surface waters of the reservoir are limited in part due to incomplete eutrophication and frequent overturning (approximately 1x/month in summer 2007) of this shallow lake, therefore conditions which promoted greater As release were explored in the laboratory. Field and laboratory samples were examined for changes in the microbial community using a variety of genetic techniques; these changes in microbial community were both a result of, and influenced, seasonal lake cycles.

  19. Water quality and fish dynamics in forested wetlands associated with an oxbow lake

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Andrews, Caroline S.; Miranda, Leandro E.; Kroger, Robert

    2015-01-01

    Forested wetlands represent some of the most distinct environments in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley. Depending on season, water in forested wetlands can be warm, stagnant, and oxygen-depleted, yet may support high fish diversity. Fish assemblages in forested wetlands are not well studied because of difficulties in sampling heavily structured environments. During the April–July period, we surveyed and compared the water quality and assemblages of small fish in a margin wetland (forested fringe along a lake shore), contiguous wetland (forested wetland adjacent to a lake), and the open water of an oxbow lake. Dissolved-oxygen levels measured hourly 0.5 m below the surface were higher in the open water than in either of the forested wetlands. Despite reduced water quality, fish-species richness and catch rates estimated with light traps were greater in the forested wetlands than in the open water. The forested wetlands supported large numbers of fish and unique fish assemblages that included some rare species, likely because of their structural complexity. Programs developed to refine agricultural practices, preserve riparian zones, and restore lakes should include guidance to protect and reestablish forested wetlands.

  20. NPDES Draft Permit for Spirit Lake Water Treatment Facility in North Dakota

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Under NPDES draft permit ND-0031101, Spirit Lake Water Resource Management is authorized to discharge to an unnamed intermittent tributary to Devils Lake which is tributary to Sheyenne River in North Dakota.

  1. Cycling of mercury across the sediment-water interface in seepage lakes: Chapter 13, Advances in Chemistry

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hurley, James P.; Krabbenhoft, David P.; Babiarz, Christopher L.; Andren, Anders

    1994-01-01

    The magnitude and direction of Hg fluxes across the sediment—water interface were estimated by groundwater, dry bulk sediment, sediment pore water, sediment trap, and water-column analyses in two northern Wisconsin seepage lakes. Little Rock Lake (Treatment Basin) received no groundwater discharge during the study period (1988—1990), and Follette Lake received continuous groundwater discharge. In Little Rock Lake, settling of particulate matter accounted for the major Hg delivery mechanism to the sediment—water interface. Upward diffusion of Hg from sediment pore waters below 2—4-cm sediment depth was apparently a minor source during summer stratification. Time-series comparisons suggested that the observed buildup of Hg in the hypolimnion of Little Rock Lake was attributable to dissolution and diffusion of Hg from recently fallen particulate matter close to the sediment—water interface. Groundwater inflow represented an important source of new Hg, and groundwater outflow accounted for significant removal of Hg from Pallette Lake. Equilibrium speciation calculations revealed that association of Hg with organic matter may control solubility in well-oxygenated waters, whereas in anoxic environments sulfur (polysulfide and bisulfide) complexation governs dissolved total Hg levels.

  2. Changing climate in the Lake Superior region: a case study of the June 2012 flood and its effects on the western-lake water column

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Minor, E. C.; Forsman, B.; Guildford, S. J.

    2013-12-01

    In Lake Superior, the world's largest freshwater lake by area, we are seeing annual surface-water temperature increases outpacing those of the overlying atmosphere. We are also seeing ever earlier onsets of water-column stratification (in data sets from the mid-1980s to the present). In Minnesota, including the Lake Superior watershed, precipitation patterns are also shifting toward fewer and more extreme storm events, such as the June 2012 solstice flood, which impacted the western Lake Superior basin. We are interested in how such climatological changes will affect nutrient and carbon biogeochemistry in Lake Superior. The lake is currently an oligotrophic system exhibiting light limitation of primary production in winter and spring, with summer primary production generally limited by phosphorus and sometimes co-limited by iron. Analyses in the western arm of Lake Superior showed that the June 2012 flood brought large amounts of sediment and colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) from the watershed into the lake. There was initially a ~50-fold spike in the total phosphorus concentrations (and a 5 fold spike in soluble reactive phosphorus) in flood-impacted waters. This disappeared rapidly, in large part due to sediment settling and did not lead to an increase in chlorophyll concentrations at monitored sampling sites. Instead, lake phytoplankton appeared light limited by a surface lens of warm water enriched in CDOM that persisted for over a month after the flood event itself. Our observations highlight the need for continuing research on these complex in-lake processes in order to make accurate predictions about longer term impacts of these large episodic inputs in CDOM, sediment, and nutrient loading.

  3. Climate change induced salinisation of artificial lakes in the Netherlands and consequences for drinking water production.

    PubMed

    Bonte, Matthijs; Zwolsman, John J G

    2010-08-01

    In this paper we present a modelling study to investigate the impacts of climate change on the chloride concentration and salinisation processes in two man-made freshwater lakes in the Netherlands, Lake IJsselmeer and Lake Markermeer. We used a transient compartmental chloride and water balance model to elucidate the salinisation processes occurring under present conditions and assess future salinisation under two climate forcing scenarios. The model results showed that the Rhine River is the dominant determinant for the chloride concentration in both lakes, followed by drainage of brackish groundwater from the surrounding polders. The results further show that especially during dry years, seawater intrusion through the tidal closure dam is an important source of chloride to Lake IJsselmeer. The results from the climatic forcing scenarios show that Lake IJsselmeer is especially vulnerable to climate-induced salinisation whereas effects on Lake Markermeer are relatively small. Peak chloride concentrations at the raw water intake of the Andijk drinking water facility on Lake IJsselmeer are projected to increase to values above 250 mg/l in the most far-reaching climate change scenario W+ in 2050 for dry years. This is well above the maximum allowable concentration of 150 mg/l for chloride in drinking water. Modelling showed that climate change impacts the chloride concentrations in a variety of ways: 1) an increasing occurrence of low river flows from summer to autumn reduces the dilution of the chloride that is emitted to the Rhine with a constant load thereby increasing its concentration; 2) increased open water evaporation and reduced rainfall during summer periods and droughts increases the chloride concentration in the water; and 3) rises in sea level increase seawater intrusion through the tidal closure dam of Lake IJsselmeer. The processes described here are likely to affect many other tidal rivers or lakes and should be considered when planning future raw

  4. Monitoring changes in Greater Yellowstone Lake water quality following the 1988 wildfires

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lathrop, Richard G., Jr.; Vande Castle, John D.; Brass, James A.

    1994-01-01

    The fires that burned the Greater Yellowstone Area (GYA) during the summer of 1988 were the largest ever recorded for the region. Wildfire can have profound indirect effects on associated aquatic ecosystems by increased nutrient loading, sediment, erosion, and runoff. Satellite remote sensing and water quality sampling were used to compare pre- versus post-fire conditions in the GYA's large oliotrophic (high transparency, low productivity) lakes. Inputs of suspended sediment to Jackson Lake appear to have increased. Yellowstone Lake has not shown any discernable shift in water quality. The insights gained separately from the Landsat Thematic and NOAA Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) remote sensing systems, along with conventional in-situ sampling, can be combined into a useful water quality monitoring tool.

  5. Water and bed-sediment quality in the vicinity of Berlin Lake, Ohio, 2001

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Darner, Robert A.

    2002-01-01

    Berlin Lake, in northeast Ohio, was created by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1943 and is used primarily for flood control for the upper reaches of the Mahoning River. The area surrounding and under the lake has been tapped for oil and natural gas production. One of the by-products of oil and gas production is concentrated salt water or brine, which might have an effect on the chemical quality of area potable-water sources. This report presents the results of a U.S. Geological Survey baseline study to collect current (2001) water and sediment-quality data and to characterize water quality in the Berlin Lake watershed. Chloride-to-bromide ratios were used to detect the presence of brine in water samples and to indicate possible adverse effects on water quality. Analyses of ground-water samples from domestic wells in the area indicate a source of chloride and bromide, but defining the source would require more data collection. Analyses of specific conductance and dissolved solids indicate that 78 percent (14 of 18) of the ground-water samples exceeded the Secondary Maximum Contaminant Level for dissolved solids in public water supplies of 500 milligrams per liter (mg/L), compared to 6 percent of samples exceeding 500 mg/L in two nearby studies. Surface water was analyzed twice, once each during low-flow and surface runoff conditions. A comparison of the 2001 data to historical chloride concentrations, accounting for seasonal changes, does not indicate an increase in chloride loads for surface water in the area of Berlin Lake. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons were found in bed-sediment samples collected from the mouths of major tributaries to Berlin Lake. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are produced during the incomplete combustion of organic carbon materials such as wood and fossil fuels, and they are components of petroleum products.

  6. Satellite remote sensing for modeling and monitoring of water quality in the Great Lakes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Coffield, S. R.; Crosson, W. L.; Al-Hamdan, M. Z.; Barik, M. G.

    2017-12-01

    Consistent and accurate monitoring of the Great Lakes is critical for protecting the freshwater ecosystems, quantifying the impacts of climate change, understanding harmful algal blooms, and safeguarding public health for the millions who rely on the Lakes for drinking water. While ground-based monitoring is often hampered by limited sampling resolution, satellite data provide surface reflectance measurements at much more complete spatial and temporal scales. In this study, we implemented NASA data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) onboard the Aqua satellite to build robust water quality models. We developed and validated models for chlorophyll-a, nitrogen, phosphorus, and turbidity based on combinations of the six MODIS Ocean Color bands (412, 443, 488, 531, 547, and 667nm) for 2003-2016. Second, we applied these models to quantify trends in water quality through time and in relation to changing land cover, runoff, and climate for six selected coastal areas in Lakes Michigan and Erie. We found strongest models for chlorophyll-a in Lake Huron (R2 = 0.75), nitrogen in Lake Ontario (R2=0.66), phosphorus in Lake Erie (R2=0.60), and turbidity in Lake Erie (R2=0.86). These offer improvements over previous efforts to model chlorophyll-a while adding nitrogen, phosphorus, and turbidity. Mapped water quality parameters showed high spatial variability, with nitrogen concentrated largely in Superior and coastal Michigan and high turbidity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll near urban and agricultural areas of Erie. Temporal analysis also showed concurrence of high runoff or precipitation and nitrogen in Lake Michigan offshore of wetlands, suggesting that water quality in these areas is sensitive to changes in climate.

  7. Desktop Techniques for Analyzing Surface-Ground Water Interactions. The Reelfoot Lake Case Study

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1988-05-01

    Reelfoot Lake Case Study DTlCSELECTE JUN 13 M Research Document No. 28 May 1988 Approved for Public Release. Distribution Unlimited. 86 , l~ g DESKTOP...TECHNIQUES FOR ANALYZING SURFACE-GROUND WATER INTERACTIONS The Reelfoot Lake Case Study Prepared by Dennis B. McLaughlin ’ Ia Prepared for The...Engineers became involved in a study of Reelfoot Lake , a large natural lake in northwestern Tennessee. Although modeling studies of the lake and its

  8. Land & Water Interactions in the Great Lakes. Earth Systems - Education Activities for Great Lakes Schools (ES-EAGLS).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sheaffer, Amy L., Ed.

    This activity book is part of a series designed to take a concept or idea from the existing school curriculum and develop it in the context of the Great Lakes using teaching approaches and materials appropriate for students in middle and high school. The subject of this book is land and water interactions. Students examine how the Great Lakes were…

  9. Impact of backcountry recreationists on the water quality of an Adirondack lake

    Treesearch

    Robert G. Werner; Raymond E. Leonard; James O. Crevelling; James O. Crevelling

    1985-01-01

    This study reports the effects of recreational use on the water quality of an Adirondack lake. Phosphates, nitrates, conductivity, fecal coliform, transparency, and temperature were regularly measured over a period of 2 years and related to the recreational use that the lake received during that time. An adjacent lake, which was not visited by recreationists, served as...

  10. Surficial substrates and bathymetry of five historical lake trout spawning reefs in near-shore waters of the Great Lakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Edsall, Thomas A.; Brown, Charles L.; Kennedy, Gregory W.; French, John R. P.

    1992-01-01

    The reestablishment of self-sustaining stocks of lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) in the lower four Great Lakes has been substantially impeded because planted fish do not produce enough progeny that survive and reproduce. The causes for this failure are unknown, but many historical spawning sites of lake trout have been degraded by human activities and can no longer produce viable swim-up fry. In this study, we used side-scan sonar and an underwater video camera to survey, map, and evaluate the sustainability of one reef in each of the five Great Lakes for lake trout spawning and fry production. At four of the reef sites, we found good-to-excellent substrate for spawning and fry production by the shallow-water strains of lake trout that are now being planted. These substrates were in water 6-22 m deep and were composed largely of rounded or angular rubble and cobble. Interstitial spaces in these substrates were 20 cm or deeper and would protect naturally spawned eggs and fry from predators, ice scour, and buffeting by waves and currents. Subsequent studies of egg survival by other researchers confirmed our evaluation that the best substrates at two of these sites still have the potential to produce viable swim-up fry.

  11. Partitioning of sublimation and evaporation from Lake Bonney using water vapor isotope and latent heat fluxes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bellagamba, A. W.; Berkelhammer, M. B.; Winslow, L.; Peter, D.; Myers, K. F.

    2017-12-01

    The landscapes of the McMurdo Dry Valleys in Antarctica are characterized by a series of frozen lakes. Although the conditions in this region are severe, the lakes share common characteristics with lakes at glacial termini elsewhere. Geochemical and geomorphological evidence suggest these lakes have experienced large historical changes indicative of changes water balances. While part of these shifts in lake volume arise from changes in glacial inflow, they likely also reflect changes in the latent heat flux from the lake surfaces. Here we present a joint analysis of the stable isotopic ratio of surface ice/water and the water vapor flux over Dry Valley frozen lakes to ascertain the processes controlling water losses from the lake surfaces. We compare the isotopic ratio of the latent heat flux with the surface water isotopes to derive a fractionation factor associated with latent flux. This data is then used to provide insight into how much of the water vapor flux is sublimated versus evaporated, as well as how the sublimation and evaporative components of the flux change with synoptic weather. We used a Picarro L2130-I isotopic water analyzer to measure humidity and the isotopic ratio of water vapor at three heights over Lake Bonney in Taylor Valley, Antarctica and used the flux-gradient approach to convert the isotopic ratio of the vapor to an "isoflux". An on-site meteorological station recorded temperature, relative humidity and wind direction/intensity at two different heights above the lake and an infrared radiometer recorded lake skin temperature. These data were used to calculate the sensible and latent heat fluxes. The fractionation factor was close to 0, which indicates that sublimation was the primary component of the flux although evaporation became increasingly prominent following a katabatic wind event. The results suggest this technique could be an effective tool to study the sensitivity of latent heat fluxes to weather here and in other similar

  12. A water-quality reconnaissance of Big Bear Lake, San Bernardino County, California, 1972-1973

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Irwin, George A.; Lemons, Michael

    1974-01-01

    A water-quality reconnaissance study of the Big Bear Lake area in southern California was made by the U.S. Geological Survey from April 1972 through April 1973. The primary purpose of the study was to measure the concentration and distribution of selected primary nutrients, organic carbon, dissolved oxygen, phytoplankton, and water temperature in the lake. Estimates of the nitrogen, phosphorus, and silica loading to the lake from surface-water tributaries and precipitation were also made.Results of the study indicate that Big Bear Lake is moderately eutrophic, at least in regard to nitrogen, phosphorus, and organic content. Nitrate was found in either trace concentrations or below detectable limits; however, ammonia nitrogen was usually detected in concentrations greater than 0.05 milligrams per liter. Orthophosphate phosphorus was detected in mean concentrations ranging from 0.01 to 0.05 milligrams per liter. Organic nitrogen and phosphorus were also detected in measurable concentrations.Seasonal levels of dissolved oxygen indicated that the nutrients and other controlling factors were optimum for relatively high primary productivity. However, production varied both seasonally and areally in the lake. Primary productivity seemed highest in the eastern and middle parts of the lake. The middle and western parts of the lake exhibited severe oxygen deficits in the deeper water during the warmer summer months of June and July 1972.

  13. Depressions and other lake-floor morphologic features in deep water, southern Lake Michigan

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Colman, Steven M.; Foster, D.S.; Harrison, D.W.

    1992-01-01

    The most common features are subcircular depressions, commonly compound, that are irregularly distributed across the lake floor. The depressions are most common in the southern basin of the lake where lacustrine sediments are more than a few meters thick, corresponding to water depths greater than about 90 m. We have divided the depressions into three types on the basis of their internal structure seen in seismic-reflection profiles. The depressions show varying degrees of muting, ranging from fresh to completely buried, suggesting a range in the time of their formation. The origin of the depressions is problematic, but their structure suggests collapse and(or) subsidence. -from Authors

  14. Lake Erie Water Level Study. Appendix G. Recreational Beaches and Boating.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1981-07-01

    economic impact analysis). G-44 I There are two separate phases associated with the development of bene- fits generated at the various water levels in...moorings. The growth factors for the small boat harbor formula (MRI Technical Report No. 5, Economic Impacts of Lake Level Regulation) were developed by...Lakes-St. Lawrence River system. This evaluation was limited to Lakes Erie and Ontario and part of the St. Lawrence River where the

  15. Lake Water Quality Improvement by Using Waste Mussel Shell Powder as an Adsorbent

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zukri, N. I.; Khamidun, M. H.; Sapiren, M. S.; Abdullah, S.; Rahman, M. A. A.

    2018-04-01

    Lake water in UTHM was slightly greenish in color indicating the eutrophication process. Eutrophication problem is due to excessive amount of nutrient in the lake water which causes nuisance growth of algae and other aquatic plant. The improvement of lake water quality should be conducted wisely in preventing from eutrophication problem by using a suitable water treatment method. Natural materials, agricultural wastes and industrial wastes are locally available sources can be utilized as low-cost adsorbents. The natural abundant source of waste mussel’s shells is advantages to use as basis material to produce the low cost adsorbent for water treatment. Batch experiments were carried out with the preparation 500 ml volume of lake water sample with the dosage of 2.5g, 7.5g and 12.5g. Then the solution shaking in an incubator with 200 rpm shaking speed. The various dosage of mussel shell greatly affected pollutants removal. Both of NH4+ and PO43- have a higher percentage removal with 31.28% and 21.74% at the 7.5g of sample dosage. Other parameters such as COD and TSS also shown good percentage of removal at 7.5g of dosage sample with 44.45% and 25% respectively. While, dosage at 2.5g was performed as a good adsorption capacity of NH4+, PO43-, COD and TSS as high as 0.142, 0.234, 7.6 and 20 mg/g, respectively. These experimental results suggested that the use of mussel shell powder as good basis material in removing pollutants from lake water.

  16. A sediment resuspension and water quality model of Lake Okeechobee

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    James, R.T.; Martin, J.; Wool, T.; Wang, P.-F.

    1997-01-01

    The influence of sediment resuspension on the water quality of shallow lakes is well documented. However, a search of the literature reveals no deterministic mass-balance eutrophication models that explicitly include resuspension. We modified the Lake Okeeehobee water quality model - which uses the Water Analysis Simulation Package (WASP) to simulate algal dynamics and phosphorus, nitrogen, and oxygen cycles - to include inorganic suspended solids and algorithms that: (1) define changes in depth with changes in volume; (2) compute sediment resuspension based on bottom shear stress; (3) compute partition coefficients for ammonia and ortho-phosphorus to solids; and (4) relate light attenuation to solids concentrations. The model calibration and validation were successful with the exception of dissolved inorganic nitrogen species which did not correspond well to observed data in the validation phase. This could be attributed to an inaccurate formulation of algal nitrogen preference and/or the absence of nitrogen fixation in the model. The model correctly predicted that the lake is lightlimited from resuspended solids, and algae are primarily nitrogen limited. The model simulation suggested that biological fluxes greatly exceed external loads of dissolved nutrients; and sedimentwater interactions of organic nitrogen and phosphorus far exceed external loads. A sensitivity analysis demonstrated that parameters affecting resuspension, settling, sediment nutrient and solids concentrations, mineralization, algal productivity, and algal stoichiometry are factors requiring further study to improve our understanding of the Lake Okeechobee ecosystem.

  17. Meteorological factors affecting the sudden decline in Lake Urmia's water level

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Arkian, Foroozan; Nicholson, Sharon E.; Ziaie, Bahareh

    2018-01-01

    Lake Urmia, in northwest Iran, is the second most saline lake in the world. During the past two decades, the level of water has markedly decreased. In this paper, climate of the lake region is investigated by using data from four meteorological stations near the lake. The data include climatic parameters such as temperature, precipitation, humidity, wind speed, sunshine hours, number of rain days, and evaporation. Climate around the lake is examined by way of climate classification in the periods before and after the reduction in water level. Rainfall in the lake catchment is also evaluated using both gauge and satellite data. The results show a significant decreasing trend in mean annual precipitation and wind speed and an increasing trend in annual average temperature and sunshine hours at the four stations. Precipitation and wind speed have decreased by 37 mm and 2.7 m/s, respectively, and the mean annual temperature and sunshine hours have increased by 1.4 °C and 41.6 days, respectively, over these six decades. Only the climate of the Tabriz region is seen to have significantly changed, going from semiarid to arid. Gauge records and satellite data show a large-scale decreasing trend in rainfall since 1995. The correlation between rainfall and year-to-year changes in lake level is 0.69 over the period 1965 to 2010. The relationship is particularly strong from the early 1990s to 2005. This suggests that precipitation has played an important role in the documented decline of the lake.

  18. ENSURING SAFE DRINKING WATER IN LAKE ERIE: QUANTIFYING EXTREME WEATHER IMPACTS ON CYANOBACTERIA AND DISINFECTION BYPRODUCTS (DPBS)

    EPA Science Inventory

    The Great Lakes hold 95% of our Nation's and 20% of World's fresh water supply, and it is home to 30% of the US population. II million people rely on drinking water from Lake Erie, the most southern and biologicaJiy productive lake among the Great Lakes. Under incre...

  19. Water and sediment quality of the Lake Andes and Choteau Creek basins, South Dakota, 1983-2000

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sando, Steven Kent; Neitzert, Kathleen M.

    2003-01-01

    The Bureau of Reclamation has proposed construction of the Lake Andes/Wagner Irrigation Demonstration Project to investigate environmental effects of irrigation of glacial till soils substantially derived from marine shales. During 1983-2000, the U.S. Geological Survey collected hydrologic, water-quality, and sediment data in the Lake Andes and Choteau Creek Basins, and on the Missouri River upstream and downstream from Choteau Creek, to provide baseline information in support of the proposed demonstration project. Lake Andes has a drainage area of about 230 mi2 (square miles). Tributaries to Lake Andes are ephemeral. Water-level fluctuations in Lake Andes can be large, and the lake has been completely dry on several occasions. The outlet aqueduct from Lake Andes feeds into Garden Creek, which enters Lake Francis Case just upstream from Fort Randall Dam on the Missouri River. For Lake Andes tributary stations, calcium, magnesium, and sodium are approximately codominant among the cations, and sulfate is the dominant anion. Dissolved-solids concentrations typically range from about 1,000 mg/L (milligrams per liter) to about 1,700 mg/L. Major-ion concentrations for Lake Andes tend to be higher than the tributaries and generally increase downstream in Lake Andes. Proportions of major ions are similar among the different lake units (with the exception of Owens Bay), with calcium, magnesium, and sodium being approximately codominant among cations, and sulfate being the dominant anion. Owens Bay is characterized by a calcium sulfate water type. Dissolved-solids concentrations for Lake Andes typically range from about 1,400 to 2,000 mg/L. Whole-water nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations are similar among the Lake Andes tributaries, with median whole-water nitrogen concentrations ranging from about 1.6 to 2.4 mg/L, and median whole-water phosphorus concentrations ranging from about 0.5 to 0.7 mg/L. Whole-water nitrogen concentrations in Lake Andes are similar among the

  20. Forest harvesting and water: the Lake States experience

    Treesearch

    Elon S. Verry

    1986-01-01

    The impact of forests on water has been a subject of argument for more than a century. It still is; and many studies conform that there is no single right answer in the debate. In the Lake States, clearcutting natural peatlands will not change annual streamflow nor will it seriously impact water quality if logging is done on frozen soils. However, clearcutting will...

  1. Consumptive Water-Use Coefficients for the Great Lakes Basin and Climatically Similar Areas

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Shaffer, Kimberly H.; Runkle, Donna L.

    2007-01-01

    Consumptive water use is the portion of water withdrawn (for a particular use) that is evaporated, transpired, incorporated into products or crops, consumed by humans or livestock, or otherwise removed from the immediate water environment. This report, which is organized by water?use categories, includes consumptive?use coefficients for the Great Lakes Basin (including Canada) and for areas climatically similar to the Great Lakes Basin. This report also contains an annotated bibliography of consumptive water?use coefficients. Selected references are listed for consumptive?use data from elsewhere in the world. For the industrial water?use category, the median consumptive?use coefficients were 10 percent for the Great Lakes Basin, climatically similar areas, and the world; the 25th and 75th percentiles for these geographic areas were comparable within 6 percent. The combined domestic and public?supply consumptive?use statistics (median, 25th and 75th percentiles) were between 10 to 20 percent for the various geographic areas. Although summary statistics were similar for coefficients in the livestock and irrigation water?use categories for the Great Lakes Basin and climatically similar areas, statistic values for the world on a whole were substantially lower (15 to 28 percent lower). Commercial and thermoelectric power consumptive?use coefficient statistics (median, 25th, and 75th percentile) also were comparable for the Great Lakes Basin and climatically similar areas, within 2 percent. References for other countries were not found for commercial and thermoelectric power water?use categories. The summary statistics for the mining consumptive?use coefficients varied, likely because of differences in types of mining, processes, or equipment.

  2. Volume balance and toxicity analysis of highway storm water discharge from Cross Lake Bridge.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2009-06-01

    The Cross Lake Bridge in Shreveport, Louisiana, spans Cross Lake that serves as the citys water supply. Concern : about accidents on the bridge contaminating the lake prompted the Louisiana Department of Transportation and : Development (LADOTD) t...

  3. Water level management of lakes connected to regulated rivers: An integrated modeling and analytical methodology

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hu, Tengfei; Mao, Jingqiao; Pan, Shunqi; Dai, Lingquan; Zhang, Peipei; Xu, Diandian; Dai, Huichao

    2018-07-01

    Reservoir operations significantly alter the hydrological regime of the downstream river and river-connected lake, which has far-reaching impacts on the lake ecosystem. To facilitate the management of lakes connected to regulated rivers, the following information must be provided: (1) the response of lake water levels to reservoir operation schedules in the near future and (2) the importance of different rivers in terms of affecting the water levels in different lake regions of interest. We develop an integrated modeling and analytical methodology for the water level management of such lakes. The data-driven method is used to model the lake level as it has the potential of producing quick and accurate predictions. A new genetic algorithm-based synchronized search is proposed to optimize input variable time lags and data-driven model parameters simultaneously. The methodology also involves the orthogonal design and range analysis for extracting the influence of an individual river from that of all the rivers. The integrated methodology is applied to the second largest freshwater lake in China, the Dongting Lake. The results show that: (1) the antecedent lake levels are of crucial importance for the current lake level prediction; (2) the selected river discharge time lags reflect the spatial heterogeneity of the rivers' impacts on lake level changes; (3) the predicted lake levels are in very good agreement with the observed data (RMSE ≤ 0.091 m; R2 ≥ 0.9986). This study demonstrates the practical potential of the integrated methodology, which can provide both the lake level responses to future dam releases and the relative contributions of different rivers to lake level changes.

  4. Water Level Prediction of Lake Cascade Mahakam Using Adaptive Neural Network Backpropagation (ANNBP)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mislan; Gaffar, A. F. O.; Haviluddin; Puspitasari, N.

    2018-04-01

    A natural hazard information and flood events are indispensable as a form of prevention and improvement. One of the causes is flooding in the areas around the lake. Therefore, forecasting the surface of Lake water level to anticipate flooding is required. The purpose of this paper is implemented computational intelligence method namely Adaptive Neural Network Backpropagation (ANNBP) to forecasting the Lake Cascade Mahakam. Based on experiment, performance of ANNBP indicated that Lake water level prediction have been accurate by using mean square error (MSE) and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE). In other words, computational intelligence method can produce good accuracy. A hybrid and optimization of computational intelligence are focus in the future work.

  5. Quantitation of microorganic compounds in waters of the Great Lakes by adsorption on activated carbon

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Daniels, Stacy L.; Kempe, Lloyd L.; Graham, E. S.; Beeton, Alfred M.

    1963-01-01

    Microorganic compounds in waters of Lakes Michigan and Huron have been sampled by adsorption on activated carbon in filters installed aboard the M/V Cisco and at the Hammond Bay Laboratory of the U.S. Bureau of Commercial Fisheries. The organic compounds were eluted from the carbon according to techniques developed at the U.S. Public Health Service. On the assumption that chloroform eluates represent less polar compounds from industrial sources and alcohol eluates the more polar varieties of natural origin, plots of chloroform eluates against alcohol eluates appear to be useful in judging water qualities. Based upon these criteria, the data in this paper indicate that both the waters of northern Lake Michigan and of Lake Huron, in the vicinity of Hammond Bay, Michigan, are relatively free from pollution. The limnetic waters of Lake Michigan showed a particularly high ratio of alcohol to chloroform eluates. Data for monthly samples indicated that this ratio fluctuated seasonally. The periodicity of the fluctuations was similar to those of lake levels and water temperatures.

  6. Simulation of Deep Water Renewal in Crater Lake, Oregon, USA under Current and Future Climate Conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Piccolroaz, S.; Wood, T. M.; Wherry, S.; Girdner, S.

    2015-12-01

    We applied a 1-dimensional lake model developed to simulate deep mixing related to thermobaric instabilities in temperate lakes to Crater Lake, a 590-m deep caldera lake in Oregon's Cascade Range known for its stunning deep blue color and extremely clear water, in order to determine the frequency of deep water renewal in future climate conditions. The lake model was calibrated with 6 years of water temperature profiles, and then simulated 10 years of validation data with an RMSE ranging from 0.81°C at 50 m depth to 0.04°C at 350-460 m depth. The simulated time series of heat content in the deep lake accurately captured extreme years characterized by weak and strong deep water renewal. The lake model uses wind speed and lake surface temperature (LST) as boundary conditions. LST projections under six climate scenarios from the CMIP5 intermodel comparison project (2 representative concentration pathways X 3 general circulation models) were evaluated with air2water, a simple lumped model that only requires daily values of downscaled air temperature. air2water was calibrated with data from 1993-2011, resulting in a RMSE between simulated and observed daily LST values of 0.68°C. All future climate scenarios project increased water temperature throughout the water column and a substantive reduction in the frequency of deepwater renewal events. The least extreme scenario (CNRM-CM5, RCP4.5) projects the frequency of deepwater renewal events to decrease from about 1 in 2 years in the present to about 1 in 3 years by 2100. The most extreme scenario (HadGEM2-ES, RCP8.5) projects the frequency of deepwater renewal events to be less than 1 in 7 years by 2100 and lake surface temperatures never cooling to less than 4°C after 2050. In all RCP4.5 simulations the temperature of the entire water column is greater than 4°C for increasing periods of time. In the RCP8.5 simulations, the temperature of the entire water column is greater than 4°C year round by the year 2060 (HadGEM2

  7. Water-quality models to assess algal community dynamics, water quality, and fish habitat suitability for two agricultural land-use dominated lakes in Minnesota, 2014

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Smith, Erik A.; Kiesling, Richard L.; Ziegeweid, Jeffrey R.

    2017-07-20

    Fish habitat can degrade in many lakes due to summer blue-green algal blooms. Predictive models are needed to better manage and mitigate loss of fish habitat due to these changes. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, developed predictive water-quality models for two agricultural land-use dominated lakes in Minnesota—Madison Lake and Pearl Lake, which are part of Minnesota’s sentinel lakes monitoring program—to assess algal community dynamics, water quality, and fish habitat suitability of these two lakes under recent (2014) meteorological conditions. The interaction of basin processes to these two lakes, through the delivery of nutrient loads, were simulated using CE-QUAL-W2, a carbon-based, laterally averaged, two-dimensional water-quality model that predicts distribution of temperature and oxygen from interactions between nutrient cycling, primary production, and trophic dynamics.The CE-QUAL-W2 models successfully predicted water temperature and dissolved oxygen on the basis of the two metrics of mean absolute error and root mean square error. For Madison Lake, the mean absolute error and root mean square error were 0.53 and 0.68 degree Celsius, respectively, for the vertical temperature profile comparisons; for Pearl Lake, the mean absolute error and root mean square error were 0.71 and 0.95 degree Celsius, respectively, for the vertical temperature profile comparisons. Temperature and dissolved oxygen were key metrics for calibration targets. These calibrated lake models also simulated algal community dynamics and water quality. The model simulations presented potential explanations for persistently large total phosphorus concentrations in Madison Lake, key differences in nutrient concentrations between these lakes, and summer blue-green algal bloom persistence.Fish habitat suitability simulations for cool-water and warm-water fish indicated that, in general, both lakes contained a large

  8. Origin of middle rare earth element enrichments in acid waters of a Canadian high Arctic lake.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Johannesson, Kevin H.; Zhou, Xiaoping

    1999-01-01

    -Middle rare earth element (MREE) enriched rock-normalized rare earth element (REE) patterns of a dilute acidic lake (Colour Lake) in the Canadian High Arctic, were investigated by quantifying whole-rock REE concentrations of rock samples collected from the catchment basin, as well as determining the acid leachable REE fraction of these rocks. An aliquot of each rock sample was leached with 1 N HNO 3 to examine the readily leachable REE fraction of each rock, and an additional aliquot was leached with a 0.04 M NH 2OH · HCl in 25% (v/v) CH 3COOH solution, designed specifically to reduce Fe-Mn oxides/oxyhydroxides. Rare earth elements associated with the leachates that reacted with clastic sedimentary rock samples containing petrographically identifiable Fe-Mn oxide/oxyhydroxide cements and/or minerals/amorphous phases, exhibited whole-rock-normalized REE patterns similar to the lake waters, whereas whole-rock-normalized leachates from mafic igneous rocks and other clastic sedimentary rocks from the catchment basin differed substantially from the lake waters. The whole-rock, leachates, and lake water REE data support acid leaching or dissolution of MREE enriched Fe-Mn oxides/oxyhydroxides contained and identified within some of the catchment basin sedimentary rocks as the likely source of the unique lake water REE patterns. Solution complexation modelling of the REEs in the inflow streams and lake waters indicate that free metal ions (e.g., Ln 3+, where Ln = any REE) and sulfate complexes (LnSO 4+) are the dominant forms of dissolved REEs. Consequently, solution complexation reactions involving the REEs during weathering, transport to the lake, or within the lake, cannot be invoked to explain the MREE enrichments observed in the lake waters.

  9. Title: Water Quality Monitoring to Restore and Enhance Lake Herrick

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kannan, A.; Saintil, T.; Radcliffe, D. E.; Rasmussen, T. C.

    2017-12-01

    Lake Allyn M. Herrick is about 1.5 km2 and covers portions of the University of Georgia's East campus, the Oconee forest, residential and commercial land use. Lake Herrick, a 15-acre water body established in 1982 at the University of Georgia's campus was closed in 2002 for recreation due to fecal contamination, color change, and heavy sedimentation. Subsequent monitoring confirmed cyanobacterium blooms on the surface of lake and nutrient concentration especially phosphorus was one of the primary reasons. However, no studies have been done on lake inflows and outflows after 2005 in terms of nutrients and fecal Indicator bacteria. Two inflow tributaries and the outlet stream were monitored for discharge, E. coli, total coliform, forms of nitrogen and phosphorus and other water quality parameters during base flow and storm conditions. External environmental factors like precipitation, land-use/location, discharge, and internal factors within the water like temperature, DO, pH, conductivity, and turbidity influencing fecal indicator bacteria and nutrients will be discussed with data collected from the inflows/outflow between February 2016 to October 2017. Following this, microbial source tracking methods were also used to detect the bacterial source in the samples specific to a ruminant or human host. The source tracking data will be presented during the timeframe of January 2017 to September 2017, to draw a conclusion on the potential source of fecal contamination. The future aim of the project will include modeling flow and bacteria at the watershed scale in order to make management decisions to restore the lake for recreational uses where green infrastructure could play a key role.

  10. The NASA/USDA Reservoir and Lake Monitor: Present and Future Capabilities and Water Resources Applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Birkett, C. M.; Beckley, B. D.; Reynolds, C. A.; Brakenridge, G. R.; Ricko, M.

    2013-12-01

    The USDA/NASA Global Reservoir and Lake Monitor (GRLM) provides satellite-based surface water level products for large reservoirs and lakes around the world. It utilizes a suite of NASA/CNES and ESA radar altimetry data sets and outputs near real time and archival products via a web interface. Several stakeholders utilize the products for applications that focus on water resources management and natural hazards mitigation, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions. The satellite data sets prove particularly useful in un-gauged or poorly gauged basins where in situ data is sparse. Here, we present water-level product examples based on data from the NASA/CNES Jason-2/OSTM mission, and the new ISRO/CNES SARAL mission. We also demonstrate product application from the viewpoint of various end users who have interests ranging from crop production and fisheries, to regional security and climate change. In the current phase of the program the team is also looking to the potential of additional lake/reservoir products such as areal extent (NASA/MODIS), lake volume variations (combined altimetry/imagery), and model-derived water levels, that will enhance the GRLM via improved observation and prediction, and provide a more global lake basin monitoring capability. Surface water level variations for Lake Nasser.

  11. [A correlative study on heterotrophic bacteria and the main pollutant in city lakes' water].

    PubMed

    Huang, Li-Jing; Yun, Luo-Jia; Wang, Lin; Zhang, Xiao-He

    2005-01-01

    To provide scientific basis for bioremediation of city lake, the distribution of heterotrophic bacteria and its correlation with major pollutions condition were studied. Puping Lake and Moshui Lake of Wu Han City were choosen as the objects of our study. COD(cr) TOC, TP and TN were determined in sampled freshwater and sediment via the standard methods. At the same time the bacteria was cultivated. The average value of COD(cr), TOC, TP and TN were 8. 934 mg/L, 5.125 mg/L, 0.089 mg/L, 4.739 mg/L in Puping Lake and 86.296 mg/L,13.255 mg/ L, 1.796 mg/L, 7.325 mg/L in Moshui Lake. Ten strains of heterotrophic bacteria were isolated from the sample and they are Pseudomonas, Bacillus, Enterobateriaceae, Aeromonas and Coccus. The dominant strain in water was Pseudomonas. The proportion of Bacillus in sediment was relatively higher. In the two lakes, the average bacteria counts were 1.90 x 10(3) CFU and 5.53 x 10(4) CFU per mL in water, 3.12 x 10(5) CFU and 5.06 x 10(5) CFU per g in sediment. Puping Lake and Moshui Lake were polluted seriously according to the standard; Gram negative rods were the main types in water, and the dominant type was Pseudomonas, the Gram positive bacteria was Bacillus; The type and quantity of bacteria in Moshui Lake were higher than those in Puping Lake, and there were correlations between the quantity of bacteria and the pollutants.

  12. Lake and wetland ecosystem services measuring water storage and local climate regulation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wong, Christina P.; Jiang, Bo; Bohn, Theodore J.; Lee, Kai N.; Lettenmaier, Dennis P.; Ma, Dongchun; Ouyang, Zhiyun

    2017-04-01

    Developing interdisciplinary methods to measure ecosystem services is a scientific priority, however, progress remains slow in part because we lack ecological production functions (EPFs) to quantitatively link ecohydrological processes to human benefits. In this study, we tested a new approach, combining a process-based model with regression models, to create EPFs to evaluate water storage and local climate regulation from a green infrastructure project on the Yongding River in Beijing, China. Seven artificial lakes and wetlands were established to improve local water storage and human comfort; evapotranspiration (ET) regulates both services. Managers want to minimize the trade-off between water losses and cooling to sustain water supplies while lowering the heat index (HI) to improve human comfort. We selected human benefit indicators using water storage targets and Beijing's HI, and the Variable Infiltration Capacity model to determine the change in ET from the new ecosystems. We created EPFs to quantify the ecosystem services as marginal values [Δfinal ecosystem service/Δecohydrological process]: (1) Δwater loss (lake evaporation/volume)/Δdepth and (2) Δsummer HI/ΔET. We estimate the new ecosystems increased local ET by 0.7 mm/d (20.3 W/m2) on the Yongding River. However, ET rates are causing water storage shortfalls while producing no improvements in human comfort. The shallow lakes/wetlands are vulnerable to drying when inflow rates fluctuate, low depths lead to higher evaporative losses, causing water storage shortfalls with minimal cooling effects. We recommend managers make the lakes deeper to increase water storage, and plant shade trees to improve human comfort in the parks.

  13. Wind variability and sheltering effects on measurements and modeling of air-water exchange for a small lake

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Markfort, Corey D.; Resseger, Emily; Porté-Agel, Fernando; Stefan, Heinz

    2014-05-01

    Lakes with a surface area of less than 10 km2 account for over 50% of the global cumulative lake surface water area, and make up more than 99% of the total number of global lakes, ponds, and wetlands. Within the boreal regions as well as some temperate and tropical areas, a significant proportion of land cover is characterized by lakes or wetlands, which can have a dramatic effect on land-atmosphere fluxes as well as the local and regional energy budget. Many of these small water bodies are surrounded by complex terrain and forest, which cause the wind blowing over a small lake or wetland to be highly variable. Wind mixing of the lake surface layer affects thermal stratification, surface temperature and air-water gas transfer, e.g. O2, CO2, and CH4. As the wind blows from the land to the lake, wake turbulence behind trees and other shoreline obstacles leads to a recirculation zone and enhanced turbulence. This wake flow results in the delay of the development of wind shear stress on the lake surface, and the fetch required for surface shear stress to fully develop may be ~O(1 km). Interpretation of wind measurements made on the lake is hampered by the unknown effect of wake turbulence. We present field measurements designed to quantify wind variability over a sheltered lake. The wind data and water column temperature profiles are used to evaluate a new method to quantify wind sheltering of lakes that takes into account lake size, shape and the surrounding landscape features. The model is validated against field data for 36 Minnesota lakes. Effects of non-uniform sheltering and lake shape are also demonstrated. The effects of wind sheltering must be included in lake models to determine the effect of wind-derived energy inputs on lake stratification, surface gas transfer, lake water quality, and fish habitat. These effects are also important for correctly modeling momentum, heat, moisture and trace gas flux to the atmosphere.

  14. Multiscalar approach to archaeological site formation at GaJj17, East Turkana, Kenya

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Murray, B. M.; Ranhorn, K. L.; Colarossi, D.; Mavuso, S. S.; Dogandžić, T.; Ziegler, M. J.; Warren, S. L.; Braun, D. R.; Harris, J. W. K.

    2017-12-01

    Kenya's East Turkana region hosts a rich Plio­Pleistocene record of fossils, archaeological artifacts, and sedimentary features whose chronostratigraphic histories are often obscured by landscape changes from erosional events and tectonic activity. The Middle Stone Age (MSA) record of the Koobi Fora Formation (KF Fm.) has particularly been subjected to this complex depositional history, making it a sparse unit and, consequently, widely understudied. Stratigraphically located in between the maximum capping unconformity of the KF Fm.'s Chari tuff ( 1.39 Ma) and that of the Galana Boi Fm. ( 10 ka), the unit provides a unique window into understanding the Late Pleistocene of the region. The MSA surface scatters at archaeological site GaJj17 prompted further study into the site's age and depositional chronology. The GaJj17 ridge is locally distinguished by its cap of Late Pleistocene sands overlying strata containing tuffs likely of the Upper Burgi (2.0­-1.87 Ma) or KBS (1.87­-1.56 Ma) members. To investigate whether GaJj17's preservation is due to tectonic deformation, a broader scale examination of the structural geology was conducted through surveys and aerial imagery. Regions of deformation were identified and mapped to establish the geological history of the locality. Resultant observations and elevation data offer insight into regional faults at the root of prolonged structural alterations which have facilitated the unique preservation of MSA materials. Through a multiscalar approach it is possible to understand both the formation of GaJj17 and the underlying processes behind preservation and destruction in the changing landscape of the Turkana basin, enabling future identification of archaeological sites through proxies of elevation, regional stratigraphy, and fault mapping. This research was supported by IRES grants 1358178 and 1358200 from the U.S. National Science Foundation.

  15. Instability of Water Quality of a Shallow, Polymictic, Flow-Through Lake.

    PubMed

    Ferencz, Beata; Dawidek, Jarosław; Toporowska, Magdalena

    2018-01-01

    This paper describes catchment processes that favor the trophic instability of a shallow polymictic lake, in which a shift from eutrophy to hypertrophy occurs rapidly. In the lake, in 2007, the winter discharge maximum and an intensive precipitation (monthly sums exceeded 60 mm) in a vegetation season were observed. In 2007, the cyanobacterial blooms disappeared and the water trophy decreased. Total phosphorus (TP) was the main factor determining the high trophic status of the lake. The TP retention resulted from a quick flow of two inflows: QI1 (r = 0.64) and QI2 (0.56), and the base flow of tributary 1 (0.62). A significant negative correlation between TP and precipitation ( r  = - 0.54) was observed. Both the surface and the groundwater inflow of I4 showed a positive correlation with the retention of PO 4 ( r  = 0.67 and r  = 0.60, respectively), whereas the outlet discharge determined RNO 3 ( r  = 0.57). The trophy of Lake Syczyńskie was determined by the relationship between nutrient input and export, expressed as the ionic retention, Carlson's trophic state index (TSI), and phytoplankton abundance. The results showed that many factors influence the stability of water quality in small, polymictic lakes. However, in the studied lake, intense precipitation and winter discharge maxima (particularly base flow) prevented summer cyanobacterial blooms.

  16. Dissolved-mineral inflow to Great Salt Lake and chemical characteristics of the salt lake brine: Summary for water years 1960, 1961, and 1964

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hahl, D.C.

    1968-01-01

    The investigation of dissolved-mineral inflow to Great Salt Lake during the water years 1960, 1961, and 1964 was conducted during conditions of streamflow that were representative of the lowest and the average recorded during the water years 1934-64. The study conducted during the 1960 and 1961 water years was limited to defining surface-water inflow at sites close to the lakeshore, as well as at sites used in the 1960-6 study. From these comparative data, estimates of inflow at the lakeshore were made for the 1960 and 1961 water years. During the 1964 water year, when inflow to the lake was probably representative of the 31-year period, about 800,000 acre-feet of water containing 2,200,000 tons of dissolved solids entered the lake.During the years of average streamflow, about 500,000 acre-feet of water which might be developed for culinary use, passes the lowest sampling sites on the Bear and Weber Rivers. Also, more than 90 percent of the flow near the mouths of the Bear, Weber, and Jordan Rivers would be suitable for irrigation.Sources of inflow could be selected to provide a water supply for a fresh-water lake east of Antelope Island. The supply would range from 300,000 acre-feet of water containing 800 ppm (parts per million) of dissolved solids during periods of low streamflow to 1 million acre-feet containing 500 ppm during periods of average streamflow.

  17. Water-quality data from lakes in the Yukon Flats, Alaska, 2010-2011

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Halm, Douglas R.; Griffith, Brad

    2014-01-01

    Over a two-year period (2010–2011), in-place measurements were made and water-quality samples were collected from 122 lakes in the Yukon Flats, Alaska, during a U.S. Geological Survey lake biological diversity inventory. The U.S. Geological Survey National Research Program performed the chemical analyses on the retrieved water-quality samples. Results from the analyses of water samples for dissolved carbon gases and carbon isotopes, hydrogen and oxygen stable isotopes, dissolved organic carbon, and major cations and anions, along with supporting site data, are presented in this report.

  18. Monitoring monthly surface water dynamics of Dongting Lake using Sentinel-1 data at 10 m.

    PubMed

    Xing, Liwei; Tang, Xinming; Wang, Huabin; Fan, Wenfeng; Wang, Guanghui

    2018-01-01

    High temporal resolution water distribution maps are essential for surface water monitoring because surface water exhibits significant inner-annual variation. Therefore, high-frequency remote sensing data are needed for surface water mapping. Dongting Lake, the second-largest freshwater lake in China, is famous for the seasonal fluctuations of its inundation extents in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. It is also greatly affected by the Three Gorges Project. In this study, we used Sentinel-1 data to generate surface water maps of Dongting Lake at 10 m resolution. First, we generated the Sentinel-1 time series backscattering coefficient for VH and VV polarizations at 10 m resolution by using a monthly composition method. Second, we generated the thresholds for mapping surface water at 10 m resolution with monthly frequencies using Sentinel-1 data. Then, we derived the monthly surface water distribution product of Dongting Lake in 2016, and finally, we analyzed the inner-annual surface water dynamics. The results showed that: (1) The thresholds were -21.56 and -15.82 dB for the backscattering coefficients for VH and VV, respectively, and the overall accuracy and Kappa coefficients were above 95.50% and 0.90, respectively, for the VH backscattering coefficient, and above 94.50% and 0.88, respectively, for the VV backscattering coefficient. The VV backscattering coefficient achieved lower accuracy due to the effect of the wind causing roughness on the surface of the water. (2) The maximum and minimum areas of surface water were 2040.33 km 2 in July, and 738.89 km 2 in December. The surface water area of Dongting Lake varied most significantly in April and August. The permanent water acreage in 2016 was 556.35 km 2 , accounting for 19.65% of the total area of Dongting Lake, and the acreage of seasonal water was 1525.21 km 2 . This study proposed a method to automatically generate monthly surface water at 10 m resolution, which may contribute to monitoring surface

  19. Bottom sediments and pore waters near a hydrothermal vent in Lake Baikal (Frolikha Bay)

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Granina, L.Z.; Klerkx, J.; Callender, E.; Leermakers, M.; Golobokova, L.P.

    2007-01-01

    We discuss the redox environments and the compositions of bottom sediments and sedimentary pore waters in the region of a hydrothermal vent in Frolikha Bay, Lake Baikal. According to our results, the submarine vent and its companion nearby spring on land originate from a common source. The most convincing evidence for their relation comes from the proximity of stable oxygen and hydrogen isotope compositions in pore waters and in the spring water. The isotope composition indicates a meteoric origin of pore waters, but their major- and minor-element chemistry bears imprint of deep water which may seep through permeable faulted crust. Although pore waters near the submarine vent have a specific enrichment in major and minor constituents, hydrothermal discharge at the Baikal bottom causes a minor impact on the lake water chemistry, unlike the case of freshwater geothermal lakes in the East-African Rift and North America. ?? 2007.

  20. A Pleistocene palaeovegetation record from plant wax biomarkers from the Nachukui Formation, West Turkana, Kenya

    PubMed Central

    Uno, Kevin T.; Polissar, Pratigya J.; Kahle, Emma; Feibel, Craig; Harmand, Sonia; Roche, Hélène; deMenocal, Peter B.

    2016-01-01

    Reconstructing vegetation at hominin fossil sites provides us critical information about hominin palaeoenvironments and the potential role of climate in their evolution. Here we reconstruct vegetation from carbon isotopes of plant wax biomarkers in sediments of the Nachukui Formation in the Turkana Basin. Plant wax biomarkers were extracted from samples from a wide range of lithologies that include fluvial–lacustrine sediments and palaeosols, and therefore provide a record of vegetation from diverse depositional environments. Carbon isotope ratios from biomarkers indicate a highly dynamic vegetation structure (ca 5–100% C4 vegetation) from 2.3 to 1.7 Ma, with an overall shift towards more C4 vegetation on the landscape after about 2.1 Ma. The biomarker isotope data indicate ca 25–30% more C4 vegetation on the landscape than carbon isotope data of pedogenic carbonates from the same sequence. Our data show that the environments of early Paranthropus and Homo in this part of the Turkana Basin were primarily mixed C3–C4 to C4-dominated ecosystems. The proportion of C4-based foods in the diet of Paranthropus increases through time, broadly paralleling the increase in C4 vegetation on the landscape, whereas the diet of Homo remains unchanged. Biomarker isotope data associated with the Kokiselei archaeological site complex, which includes the site where the oldest Acheulean stone tools to date were recovered, indicate 61–97% C4 vegetation on the landscape. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Major transitions in human evolution’. PMID:27298466

  1. Relation Between Selected Water-Quality Variables, Climatic Factors, and Lake Levels in Upper Klamath and Agency Lakes, Oregon, 1990-2006

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Morace, Jennifer L.

    2007-01-01

    Growth and decomposition of dense blooms of Aphanizomenon flos-aquae in Upper Klamath Lake frequently cause extreme water-quality conditions that have led to critical fishery concerns for the region, including the listing of two species of endemic suckers as endangered. The Bureau of Reclamation has asked the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to examine water-quality data collected by the Klamath Tribes for relations with lake level. This analysis evaluates a 17-year dataset (1990-2006) and updates a previous USGS analysis of a 5-year dataset (1990-94). Both univariate hypothesis testing and multivariable analyses evaluated using an information-theoretic approach revealed the same results-no one overarching factor emerged from the data. No single factor could be relegated from consideration either. The lack of statistically significant, strong correlations between water-quality conditions, lake level, and climatic factors does not necessarily show that these factors do not influence water-quality conditions; it is more likely that these conditions work in conjunction with each other to affect water quality. A few different conclusions could be drawn from the larger dataset than from the smaller dataset examined in 1996, but for the most part, the outcome was the same. Using an observational dataset that may not capture all variation in water-quality conditions (samples were collected on a two-week interval) and that has a limited range of conditions for evaluation (confined to the operation of lake) may have confounded the exploration of explanatory factors. In the end, all years experienced some variation in poor water-quality conditions, either in timing of occurrence of the poor conditions or in their duration. The dataset of 17 years simply provided 17 different patterns of lake level, cumulative degree-days, timing of the bloom onset, and poor water-quality conditions, with no overriding causal factor emerging from the variations. Water-quality conditions were

  2. Characterizing lake water quality, cyanotoxins, and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Torbick, N.; Ziniti, B.; Stommel, E.; Linder, E.; Andrew, A.; Bradley, W.; Shi, X.

    2016-12-01

    Concern over toxins and public health threats resulting from Cyanobacterial Harmful Algal Blooms (CHABs) have gained attention as reoccurring and seasonal blooms persist in many waters. Concordantly, climate change has been suggested to increase the intensity, duration, and frequency of CHAB events. Humans may be exposed to the cyanotoxins produced by cyanobacteria via the food chain, drinking water, recreational use of waterbodies and by aerosolization. Exposure to the cyanobacterial neurotoxin, β-N-methylamino-L-alanine (BMAA) that has been found in the brains of ALS patients is a hypothesized mechanism. The goals of this research initiative are to investigate spatiotemporal relationships between inland lake water quality and ALS across northern New England (NNE). Multiscale satellite remote sensing was integrated with in situ lake and toxin sampling to provide robust spatiotemporal exposure risk metrics characterizing CHAB. Semi-analytical, shape, and empirical algorithms were bldned together tp generate spatiotemporal measures of chl-a and PC with R2 ranging from 0.65-0.92 using withheld samples. Postmortem aerosolization analysis found 85% of high risk patients to express phycobillin in lung tissue using fluroesence microscopy. To scal eup to the region we employed complementing spatial statistics and a Bayesian hierarchical framework to model relationships between lake risk metrics and ALS case location across NNE. The eco-epidemiolgical modeling results show that on average poorer water quality conditions and higher measures of cyanobacteria are associated with increased odds of belonging to a normalized ALS hot spots and risk of ALS. This has broad societal impacts as the frequency, duration, and magnitude of cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms are expanding and this work helps characterize lake ecosystem services and human health.

  3. Impact of Groundwater-Lake Interaction on Levels of E. coli in Near-Shore Swimming Waters at Beaches of the Great Lakes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Crowe, A. S.

    2009-12-01

    Beaches throughout the Great Lakes frequently are under health advisories for swimming due to elevated levels of E. coli. Many studies have shown that there are several potential sources of this E. coli (e.g., livestock, sewage treatment facilities, gulls and geese), and several mechanisms for delivering E. coli to the shoreline (e.g., rivers, creeks, storm water drains, currents, waves). But, groundwater is a mechanism for E. coli transport to the shoreline that is typically overlooked. Field studies undertaken at beaches throughout the Great lakes have measured levels of E. coli in the groundwater and sand at the groundwater-lake interface that are commonly over a 1000 times above Recreational Water Quality Guidelines, and that these high levels of E. coli are restricted to a zone below the beach adjacent to and within a few metres of the lake. Groundwater flow below beaches is always towards the shoreline with almost all groundwater discharge occurring at the groundwater-lake interface (i.e., not several or a few metres off-shore). Thus, groundwater discharge of the E. coli from zone represents a substantial and long-term reservoir for E. coli loading to the near shore recreational waters, and presents a potential health risk to swimmers. The high levels of E. coli in the sand and groundwater adjacent to the lake is also due to groundwater-lake interaction. During storms, wave runup and subsequent infiltration of lake water containing E. coli at the swash zone is the primary mechanism for delivering E. coli to the groundwater and sand adjacent to the lake. Field and modeling experiments show that storm events as short as a few hours can introduce substantial levels of E. coli to the groundwater because of the high inward groundwater velocities. However, its migration into the beach away from the shoreline is restricted to a few metres beyond the maximum extent of wave runup because groundwater flow below the beach continues to flow towards the shoreline creating

  4. Regional economic impacts of water management alternatives: the case of Devils Lake, North Dakota, USA.

    PubMed

    Leistritz, F Larry; Leitch, Jay A; Bangsund, Dean A

    2002-12-01

    Devils Lake, located in a closed basin in northeastern North Dakota has over a century-long history of highly fluctuating water levels. The lake has risen nearly 25 feet (7.7 m) since 1993, more than doubling its surface area. Rising water levels have affected rural lands, transportation routes, and communities near the lake. In response to rising lake levels, Federal, state and local agencies have adopted a three-part approach to flood damage reduction, consisting of (1) upper basin water management to reduce the amount of water reaching the lake, (2) protection for structures and infrastructure if the lake continues to rise, and (3) developing an emergency outlet to release some lake water. The purpose of this study was to provide information about the net regional economic effects of a proposed emergency outlet for Devils Lake. An input-output model was used to estimate the regional economic effects of the outlet, under two scenarios: (1) the most likely future situation (MLS) and (2) a best case situation (BCS) (i.e., where the benefits from the outlet would be greatest), albeit an unlikely one. Regional economic effects of the outlet include effects on transportation (road and railroad construction), agriculture (land kept in production, returned to production sooner, or kept in production longer), residential relocations, and outlet construction expenditures. Effects are measured as changes in gross business volume (gross receipts) for various sectors, secondary employment, and local tax collections. The net regional economic effects of the proposed outlet would be relatively small, and consideration of these economic impacts would not strengthen the case for an outlet.

  5. Assessing remotely sensed chlorophyll-a for the implementation of the Water Framework Directive in European perialpine lakes.

    PubMed

    Bresciani, Mariano; Stroppiana, Daniela; Odermatt, Daniel; Morabito, Giuseppe; Giardino, Claudia

    2011-08-01

    The lakes of the European perialpine region constitute a large water reservoir, which is threatened by the anthropogenic pressure altering water quality. The Water Framework Directive of the European Commission aims to protect water resources and monitoring is seen as an essential step for achieving this goal. Remote sensing can provide frequent data for large scale studies of water quality parameters such as chlorophyll-a (chl-a). In this work we use a dataset of maps of chl-a derived from over 200 MERIS (MEdium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer) satellite images for comparing water quality of 12 perialpine lakes in the period 2003-2009. Besides the different trophic levels of the lakes, results confirm that the seasonal variability of chl-a concentration is particularly pronounced during spring and autumn especially for the more eutrophic lakes. We show that relying on only one sample for the assessment of lake water quality during the season might lead to misleading results and erroneous assignments to quality classes. Time series MERIS data represents a suitable and cost-effective technology to fill this gap, depicting the dynamics of the surface waters of lakes in agreement with the evolution of natural phenomena. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Modeling water quality effects of structural and operational changes to Scoggins Dam and Henry Hagg Lake, Oregon

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sullivan, Annett B.; Rounds, Stewart A.

    2006-01-01

    To meet water quality targets and the municipal and industrial water needs of a growing population in the Tualatin River Basin in northwestern Oregon, an expansion of Henry Hagg Lake is under consideration. Hagg Lake is the basin's primary storage reservoir and provides water during western Oregon's typically dry summers. Potential modifications include raising the dam height by 6.1 meters (20 feet), 7.6 meters (25 feet), or 12.2 meters (40 feet); installing additional outlets (possibly including a selective withdrawal tower); and adding additional inflows to provide greater reliability of filling the enlarged reservoir. One method of providing additional inflows is to route water from the upper Tualatin River through a tunnel and into Sain Creek, a tributary to the lake. Another option is to pump water from the Tualatin River (downstream of the lake) uphill and into the reservoir during the winter--the 'pump-back' option. A calibrated CE-QUAL-W2 model of Henry Hagg Lake's hydrodynamics, temperature, and water quality was used to examine the effect of these proposed changes on water quality in the lake and downstream. Most model scenarios were run with the calibrated model for 2002, a typical water year; a few scenarios were run for 2001, a drought year. More...

  7. Suspending sediment transport, sedimentation, and resuspension in Lake Houston, Texas: Implications for water quality

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Matty, J.M.; Anderson, J.B.; Dunbar, R.B.

    1987-01-01

    Lake Houston is a man-made reservoir located northeast of Houston, Texas. The purpose of this investigation was to document suspended sediment transport, sedimentation, and resuspension in the lake with a view towards estimating the influence of sedimentation on water quality. Sediment traps were placed in strategic locations in the lake to collect suspended sediments. Samples were analyzed for bulk density, grain size, organic carbon, and a number of trace elements. These data were analyzed along with meteorological data to examine those factors which regulate suspended sediment input and dispersal, and the role of suspended sediments in controlling water quality withinmore » the lake. Sediment input to the lake depends primarily on the intensity of rainfall in the watershed. Sediment movement within the lake is strongly influenced by wave activity, which resuspends sediments from shallow areas, and by wind-driven circulation. The increased residence time of suspended sediments due to resuspension allows greater decomposition of organic matter and the release of several trace elements from sediments to the water column. Virtually all samples from sediment traps suspended between 1 and 5 m above the lake bottom contain medium to coarse silt, and even some very fine sand-sized material. This implies that circulation in Lake Houston is periodically intense enough to transport this size material in suspension. During winter, northerly winds with sustained velocities of greater than 5 m/sec provide the most suitable condition for rapid (< 1 d) transport of suspended sediment down the length of the lake. Fluctuations in current velocities and the subsequent suspension/deposition of particles may explain variations in the abundance of coliform bacteria in Lake Houston.« less

  8. LakeMetabolizer: An R package for estimating lake metabolism from free-water oxygen using diverse statistical models

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Winslow, Luke; Zwart, Jacob A.; Batt, Ryan D.; Dugan, Hilary; Woolway, R. Iestyn; Corman, Jessica; Hanson, Paul C.; Read, Jordan S.

    2016-01-01

    Metabolism is a fundamental process in ecosystems that crosses multiple scales of organization from individual organisms to whole ecosystems. To improve sharing and reuse of published metabolism models, we developed LakeMetabolizer, an R package for estimating lake metabolism from in situ time series of dissolved oxygen, water temperature, and, optionally, additional environmental variables. LakeMetabolizer implements 5 different metabolism models with diverse statistical underpinnings: bookkeeping, ordinary least squares, maximum likelihood, Kalman filter, and Bayesian. Each of these 5 metabolism models can be combined with 1 of 7 models for computing the coefficient of gas exchange across the air–water interface (k). LakeMetabolizer also features a variety of supporting functions that compute conversions and implement calculations commonly applied to raw data prior to estimating metabolism (e.g., oxygen saturation and optical conversion models). These tools have been organized into an R package that contains example data, example use-cases, and function documentation. The release package version is available on the Comprehensive R Archive Network (CRAN), and the full open-source GPL-licensed code is freely available for examination and extension online. With this unified, open-source, and freely available package, we hope to improve access and facilitate the application of metabolism in studies and management of lentic ecosystems.

  9. Are Sierran Lakes Warming as a Result of Climate Change? The Effects of Climate Warming and Variation in Precipitation on Water Temperature in a Snowmelt-Dominated Lake

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sadro, S.; Melack, J. M.; Sickman, J. O.; Skeen, K.

    2016-12-01

    Water temperature regulates a broad range of fundamental ecosystem processes in lakes. While climate can be an important factor regulating lake temperatures, heterogeneity in the warming response of lakes is large, and variation in precipitation is rarely considered. We analyzed three decades of climate and water temperature data from a high-elevation catchment in the southern Sierra Nevada of California to illustrate the magnitude of warming taking place during different seasons and the role of precipitation in regulating lake temperatures. Significant climate warming trends were evident during all seasons except spring. Nighttime rates of climate warming were approximately 25% higher than daytime rates. Spatial patterns in warming were elevation dependent, with rates of temperature increase higher at sites above 2800 m.a.s.l. than below. Although interannual variation in snow deposition was high, the frequency and severity of recent droughts has contributed to a significant 3.4 mm year -1 decline in snow water equivalent over the last century. Snow accumulation, more than any other climate factor, regulated lake temperature; 94% of variation in summer lake temperature was regulated by precipitation as snow. For every 100 mm decrease in snow water equivalent there was a 0.62 ° increase in lake temperature. Drought years amplify warming in lakes by reducing the role of cold spring meltwaters in lake energy budgets and prolonging the ice-free period during which lakes warm. The combination of declining winter snowpack and warming air temperatures has the capacity to amplify the effect of climate warming on lake temperatures during drought years. Interactions among climatic factors need to be considered when evaluating ecosystem level effects, especially in mountain regions. For mountain lakes already affected by drought, continued climate warming during spring and autumn has the greatest potential to impact mean lake temperatures.

  10. Temporal and spatial changes of water quality and management strategies of Dianchi Lake in southwest China

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, T.; Zeng, W. H.; Wang, S. R.; Ni, Z. K.

    2013-12-01

    Temporal and spatial changes to the water quality of Dianchi Lake in Southwest China were investigated using monthly monitoring data from 2005 to 2012. Based on the analysis of total phosphorus (TP), total nitrogen (TN), and chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentrations, it was determined that, in Caohai Lake, the annual concentrations of these variables ranged from 0.19-1.46, 6.11-16.79, 0.06-0.14 mg L-1, respectively. In addition, the annual concentrations of TP, TN and Chl a in Waihai Lake ranged between 0.13-0.20, 1.82-3.01, 0.04-0.09 mg L-1, respectively. Cluster Analysis (CA) classified the 10 monitoring sites into two groups (group A and group B) based on similarities of water quality characteristics. Our data revealed that the current status of water quality within Caohai Lake was much worse than that of Waihai Lake. Water quality was seriously degraded during the economic boom near the period of the "Eleventh Five-Year Plan" (2005-2010), and gradually improved from 2010 to 2012 because of the "standard emission directive to industry". The main factors that influenced the spatial and temporal changes to water quality were natural factors including lake evolution and regional characteristic as well as human factors such as pollution load into the lake and management strategies that were already adopted. Some activities and regulations were implemented to enhance the lake environment by controlling wastewater emissions and establishing regulations to protect the lakes in the Yunnan Province. However, problems with institutional fragmentation (horizontal and vertical), simple treatment methods, low-intensity investment in pollution control, and lack of meaningful endogenous pollution control strategies were still present in the lake management strategy. To solve these problems, suitable control measures are needed, especially considering the current old-age status of Dianchi Lake. The fundamental improvement of the water quality within Caohai Lake was dependent on the

  11. Dramatic water-level fluctuations in lakes under intense human impact: modelling the effect of vegetation, climate and hydrogeology

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vainu, M.

    2012-04-01

    Lakes form a highly important ecosystem in the glacial terrain of northern Europe and America, but their hydrology remains understudied. When the water-level of a lake drops significantly and rises again in a time span of half a century and the widespread explanation of the fluctuations seems insufficient, then it raises a question: how do different anthropogenic and natural processes actually affect the formation of a lakes' water body. The abovementioned scenario applies to three small closed-basin Estonian lakes (L. Ahnejärv, L. Kuradijärv and L. Martiska) analysed in the current study. These lakes suffered a major water-level drop (up to 3.8 m) between 1946 and 1987 and a major rise between 1987 and 2010, from 1 m (L. Ahnejärv) to 2.5 m (L. Kuradijärv). Decreasing and increasing groundwater abstraction near the lakes has been widely considered to be the only reason for the fluctuations. It is true that the most severe drop in the lake levels did occur after 1972 when groundwater abstraction for drinking water started in the vicinity of the lakes. However, the lake levels started to fall before the groundwater abstraction began and for the time being the lake levels have risen to a higher level than in the 1970s when the quantity of annually abstracted groundwater was similar to nowadays. Therefore the processes affecting the formation of the lakes' water body prove to be more complex than purely the hydrogeological change caused by groundwater abstraction. A new deterministic water balance model (where the evaporation from the lake surface was calculated by Penman equation and the catchment runoff by Thornthwaite-Mather soil-moisture model), compiled for the study, coupled with LiDAR-based GIS-modelling of the catchments was used to identify the different factors influencing the lakes' water level. The modelling results reveal that the moderate drop in lake water levels before the beginning of groundwater abstraction was probably caused by the growth of a

  12. Spatial Distribution and Air-Water Exchange of Organic Flame Retardants in the Lower Great Lakes.

    PubMed

    McDonough, Carrie A; Puggioni, Gavino; Helm, Paul A; Muir, Derek; Lohmann, Rainer

    2016-09-06

    Organic flame retardants (OFRs) such as polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and novel halogenated flame retardants (NHFRs) are ubiquitous, persistent, and bioaccumulative contaminants that have been used in consumer goods to slow combustion. In this study, polyethylene passive samplers (PEs) were deployed throughout the lower Great Lakes (Lake Erie and Lake Ontario) to measure OFRs in air and water, calculate air-water exchange fluxes, and investigate spatial trends. Dissolved Σ12BDE was greatest in Lake Ontario near Toronto (18 pg/L), whereas gaseous Σ12BDE was greatest on the southern shoreline of Lake Erie (11 pg/m(3)). NHFRs were generally below detection limits. Air-water exchange was dominated by absorption of BDEs 47 and 99, ranging from -964 pg/m(2)/day to -30 pg/m(2)/day. Σ12BDE in air and water was significantly correlated with surrounding population density, suggesting that phased-out PBDEs continued to be emitted from population centers along the Great Lakes shoreline in 2012. Correlation with dissolved Σ12BDE was strongest when considering population within 25 km while correlation with gaseous Σ12BDE was strongest when using population within 3 km to the south of each site. Bayesian kriging was used to predict dissolved Σ12BDE over the lakes, illustrating the utility of relatively highly spatially resolved measurements in identifying potential hot spots for future study.

  13. Estimation of shallow ground-water recharge in the Great Lakes basin

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Neff, B.P.; Piggott, A.R.; Sheets, R.A.

    2006-01-01

    This report presents the results of the first known integrated study of long-term average ground-water recharge to shallow aquifers (generally less than 100 feet deep) in the United States and Canada for the Great Lakes, upper St. Lawrence, and Ottawa River Basins. The approach used was consistent throughout the study area and allows direct comparison of recharge rates in disparate parts of the study area. Estimates of recharge are based on base-flow estimates for streams throughout the Great Lakes Basin and the assumption that base flow in a given stream is equal to the amount of shallow ground-water recharge to the surrounding watershed, minus losses to evapotranspiration. Base-flow estimates were developed throughout the study area using a single model based on an empirical relation between measured base-flow characteristics at streamflow-gaging stations and the surficial-geologic materials, which consist of bedrock, coarse-textured deposits, fine-textured deposits, till, and organic matter, in the surrounding surface-water watershed. Model calibration was performed using base-flow index (BFI) estimates for 959 stations in the U.S. and Canada using a combined 28,784 years of daily streamflow record determined using the hydrograph-separation software program PART. Results are presented for watersheds represented by 8-digit hydrologic unit code (HUC, U.S.) and tertiary (Canada) watersheds. Recharge values were lowest (1.6-4.0 inches/year) in the eastern Lower Peninsula of Michigan; southwest of Green Bay, Wisconsin; in northwestern Ohio; and immediately south of the St. Lawrence River northeast of Lake Ontario. Recharge values were highest (12-16.8 inches/year) in snow shadow areas east and southeast of each Great Lake. Further studies of deep aquifer recharge and the temporal variability of recharge would be needed to gain a more complete understanding of ground-water recharge in the Great Lakes Basin.

  14. Water quality of Rob Roy Reservoir and Lake Owen, Albany County, and Granite Springs and Crystal Lake Reservoirs, Laramie County, Wyoming, 1997-98

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Ogle, Kathy Muller; Peterson, D.A.; Spillman, Bud; Padilla, Rosie

    1999-01-01

    The water quality of four reservoirs was assessed during 1997 and 1998 as a cooperative project between the Cheyenne Board of Public Utilities and the U. S. Geological Survey. The four reservoirs, Rob Roy, Lake Owen, Granite Springs, and Crystal Lake, provide approximately 75 percent of the public water supply for Cheyenne, Wyoming. Samples of water and bottom sediment were collected and analyzed for selected physical, chemical, and biological characteristics to provide data about the reservoirs. Water flows between the reservoirs through a series of pipelines and stream channels. The reservoirs differ in physical characteristics such as elevation, volume, and depth.Profiles of temperature, dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, and pH were examined. Three of the four reservoirs exhibited stratification during the summer. The profiles indicate that stratification develops in all reservoirs except Lake Owen. Stratification developed in Rob Roy, Granite Springs, and Crystal Lake Reservoirs by mid-July in 1998 and continued until September, with the thickness of the epilimnion increasing during that time. Secchi disk readings indicated Rob Roy Reservoir had the clearest water of the four reservoirs studied.The composition of the phytoplankton community was different in the upper two reservoirs from that in the lower two reservoirs. Many of the species found in Rob Roy Reservoir and Lake Owen are associated with oligotrophic, nutrient-poor conditions. In contrast, many of the species found in Granite Springs and Crystal Lake Reservoirs are associated with mesotrophic or eutrophic conditions. The total number of taxa identified also increased downstream.The chemical water type in the reservoirs was similar, but dissolved-solids concentrations were greater in the downstream reservoirs. Water in all four reservoirs was a calcium-bicarbonate type. In the fall of 1997, Rob Roy Reservoir had the lowest dissolved-solids concentration (19 milligrams per liter), whereas

  15. Sanctuaries for lake trout in the Great Lakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Stanley, Jon G.; Eshenroder, Randy L.; Hartman, Wilbur L.

    1987-01-01

    Populations of lake trout, severely depleted in Lake Superior and virtually extirpated from the other Great Lakes because of sea lamprey predation and intense fishing, are now maintained by annual plantings of hatchery-reared fish in Lakes Michigan, Huron, and Ontario and parts of Lake Superior. The extensive coastal areas of the Great Lakes and proximity to large populations resulted in fishing pressure on planted lake trout heavy enough to push annual mortality associated with sport and commercial fisheries well above the critical level needed to reestablish self-sustaining stocks. The interagency, international program for rehabilitating lake trout includes controlling sea lamprey abundance, stocking hatchery-reared lake trout, managing the catch, and establishing sanctuaries where harvest is prohibited. Three lake trout sanctuaries have been established in Lake Michigan: the Fox Island Sanctuary of 121, 500 ha, in the Chippewa-Ottawa Treaty fishing zone in the northern region of the lake; the Milwaukee Reef Sanctuary of 160, 000 ha in midlake, in boundary waters of Michigan and Wisconsin; and Julian's Reef Sanctuary of 6, 500 ha, in Illinois waters. In northern Lake Huron, Drummond Island Sanctuary of 55, 000 ha is two thirds in Indian treaty-ceded waters in Michigan and one third in Ontario waters of Canada. A second sanctuary, Six Fathom Bank-Yankee Reef Sanctuary, in central Lake Huron contains 168, 000 ha. Sanctuary status for the Canadian areas remains to be approved by the Provincial government. In Lake Superior, sanctuaries protect the spawning grounds of Gull Island Shoal (70, 000 ha) and Devils Island Shoal (44, 000 ha) in Wisconsin's Apostle Island area. These seven sanctuaries, established by the several States and agreed upon by the States, Indian tribes, the U.S. Department of the Interior, and the Province of Ontario, contribute toward solving an interjurisdictional fishery problem.

  16. Evaporation from a temperate closed-basin lake and its impact on present, past, and future water level

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xiao, K.; Griffis, T. J.; Baker, J. M.; Bolstad, P. V.; Erickson, M. D.; Lee, X.; Wood, J. D.; Hu, C.

    2017-12-01

    Lakes provide enormous economic, recreational, and aesthetic benefits to citizens. These ecosystem services may be adversely impacted by climate change. In the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area of Minnesota, USA, many lakes have been at historic low levels and water augmentation strategies have been proposed to alleviate the problem. For example, the water level of White Bear Lake (WBL) declined 1.5 m during 2003-2013 for reasons that are not fully understood. This study examined current, past, and future lake evaporation to better understand how climate will impact the water balance of lakes within this region. Evaporation from WBL was measured from July 2014 to February 2017 using two eddy covariance (EC) systems to provide better constraints on the water budget and to investigate the impact of evaporation on lake level. The annual evaporation for years 2014 through 2016 were 559±22 mm, 779±81 mm, and 766±11 mm, respectively. The larger evaporation in 2015 and 2016 was caused by the combined effects of larger average daily evaporation and a longer ice-free season. The EC measurements were used to tune the Community Land Model 4 - Lake, Ice, Snow and Sediment Simulator (CLM4-LISSS) to estimate lake evaporation over the period 1979-2016. Retrospective analyses indicated that WBL evaporation increased by about 3.8 mm yr-1. Mass balance analysis implied that the lake level declines at WBL during 1986-1990 and 2003-2012 were mainly caused by the coupled low precipitation and high evaporation. Using a business-as-usual greenhouse gas emission scenario (RCP8.5), lake evaporation was modeled forward in time from 2017 to 2100. Annual evaporation is expected to increase by 1.4 mm yr-1 over this century, which is largely driven by lengthening ice-free periods. These changes in ice phenology and evaporation will have important implications for the regional water balance, and water management and water augmentation strategies that are being proposed for these Metropolitan

  17. Evaporation from a temperate closed-basin lake and its impact on present, past, and future water level

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xiao, Ke; Griffis, Timothy J.; Baker, John M.; Bolstad, Paul V.; Erickson, Matt D.; Lee, Xuhui; Wood, Jeffrey D.; Hu, Cheng; Nieber, John L.

    2018-06-01

    Lakes provide enormous economic, recreational, and aesthetic benefits to citizens. These ecosystem services may be adversely impacted by climate change. In the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area of Minnesota, USA, many lakes have been at historic low levels and water augmentation strategies have been proposed to alleviate the problem. White Bear Lake (WBL) is a notable example. Its water level declined 1.5 m during 2003-2013 for reasons that are not fully understood. This study examined current, past, and future lake evaporation to better understand how climate will impact the water balance of lakes within this region. Evaporation from WBL was measured from July 2014 to February 2017 using two eddy covariance (EC) systems to provide better constraints on the water budget and to investigate the impact of evaporation on lake level. The estimated annual evaporation losses for years 2014 through 2016 were 559 ± 22 mm, 779 ± 81 mm, and 766 ± 11 mm, respectively. The higher evaporation in 2015 and 2016 was caused by the combined effects of larger average daily evaporation and a longer ice-free season. The EC measurements were used to tune the Community Land Model 4 - Lake, Ice, Snow and Sediment Simulator (CLM4-LISSS) to estimate lake evaporation over the period 1979-2016. Retrospective analyses indicate that WBL evaporation increased during this time by about 3.8 mm year-1, which was driven by increased wind speed and lake-surface vapor pressure gradient. Using a business-as-usual greenhouse gas emission scenario (RCP8.5), lake evaporation was modeled forward in time from 2017 to 2100. Annual evaporation is expected to increase by 1.4 mm year-1 over this century, largely driven by lengthening ice-free periods. These changes in ice phenology and evaporation will have important implications for the regional water balance, and water management and water augmentation strategies that are being proposed for these Metropolitan lakes.

  18. Modeling Hydrodynamics and Heat Transport in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, and Implications for Water Quality

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wood, Tamara M.; Cheng, Ralph T.; Gartner, Jeffrey W.; Hoilman, Gene R.; Lindenberg, Mary K.; Wellman, Roy E.

    2008-01-01

    The three-dimensional numerical model UnTRIM was used to model hydrodynamics and heat transport in Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon, between mid-June and mid-September in 2005 and between mid-May and mid-October in 2006. Data from as many as six meteorological stations were used to generate a spatially interpolated wind field to use as a forcing function. Solar radiation, air temperature, and relative humidity data all were available at one or more sites. In general, because the available data for all inflows and outflows did not adequately close the water budget as calculated from lake elevation and stage-capacity information, a residual inflow or outflow was used to assure closure of the water budget. Data used for calibration in 2005 included lake elevation at 3 water-level gages around the lake, water currents at 5 Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) sites, and temperature at 16 water-quality monitoring locations. The calibrated model accurately simulated the fluctuations of the surface of the lake caused by daily wind patterns. The use of a spatially variable surface wind interpolated from two sites on the lake and four sites on the shoreline generally resulted in more accurate simulation of the currents than the use of a spatially invariant surface wind as observed at only one site on the lake. The simulation of currents was most accurate at the deepest site (ADCP1, where the velocities were highest) using a spatially variable surface wind; the mean error (ME) and root mean square error (RMSE) for the depth-averaged speed over a 37-day simulation from July 26 to August 31, 2005, were 0.50 centimeter per second (cm/s) and 3.08 cm/s, respectively. Simulated currents at the remaining sites were less accurate and, in general, underestimated the measured currents. The maximum errors in simulated currents were at a site near the southern end of the trench at the mouth of Howard Bay (ADCP7), where the ME and RMSE in the depth-averaged speed were 3.02 and 4.38 cm

  19. Plants as indicators of focused ground water discharge to a northern Minnesota lake

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Rosenberry, D.O.; Striegl, Robert G.; Hudson, D.C.

    2000-01-01

    Determining the discharge of ground water to Shingobee Lake (66 ha), north-central Minnesota, is complicated by the presence of numerous springs situated adjacent to the lake and in the shallow portion of the lakebed. Springs first had to be located before these areas of more rapid discharge could be quantified. Two methods that rely on the distribution of aquatic plants are useful for locating springs. One method identifies areas of the near-shore lakebed where floating-leaf and emergent aquatic vegetation are absent. The second method uses the distribution of marsh marigold (Caltha palustris L.) to locate springs that discharge on land near the shoreline of the lake. Marsh marigold produces large (2 to 4 cm diameter) yellow flowers that provide a ready marker for locating ground water springs. Twice as many springs (38) were identified using this method as were identified using the lack of near-shore vegetation. A portable weir was used to measure discharge from onshore springs, and seepage meters were used to measure discharge from near-shore springs. Of the total 56.7 L s-1 that enters the lake from ground water, approximately 30% comes from onshore and near-shore springs.Determining the discharge of ground water to Shingobee Lake (66 ha), north-central Minnesota, is complicated by the presence of numerous springs situated adjacent to the lake and in the shallow portion of the lakebed. Springs first had to be located before these areas of more rapid discharge could be quantified. Two methods that rely on the distribution of aquatic plants are useful for locating springs. One method identifies areas of the near-shore lakebed where floating-leaf and emergent aquatic vegetation are absent. The second method uses the distribution of marsh marigold (Caltha palustris L.) to locate springs that discharge on land near the shoreline of the lake. Marsh marigold produces large (2 to 4 cm diameter) yellow flowers that provide a ready marker for locating ground water

  20. 77 FR 49349 - Safety Zone; Chicago Air and Water Show, Lake Michigan, Chicago, IL

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-08-16

    ... Zone; Chicago Air and Water Show, Lake Michigan, Chicago, IL AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS. ACTION... Water Show safety zone on Lake Michigan near Lincoln Park. This action is necessary to accurately reflect the enforcement dates and times for this safety zone due to changes made in this year's air show...

  1. Land use impacts on lake water quality in Alytus region (Lithuania)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pereira, Paulo; Laukonis, Rymvidas

    2016-04-01

    Land use has important impacts on soils, surface and ground water quality. Urban agricultural areas are an important source of pollutants, which can reach lakes through surface runoff and underground circulation. Human intervention in the landscape is one of the major causes pollution and land degradation, thus it is very important to understand the impacts of and use on environment and if they have some spatial pattern (Pereira et al., 2013, 2015; Brevik et al., 2016). The identification of the spatial pattern of lakes pollution is in Alytus area (Lithuania) is fundamental, since they provide an important range of ecosystem services to local communities, including food and recreational activities. Thus, the degradation of these environments can induce important economic losses. In this context, it is import to identify the areas with high pollutant accumulation and the environmental and human factors responsible for it. The objective of this work is to study identify the amount of some important nutrients resultant from human activities in lake water quality in Alytus region (Lithuania). Alytus region is located in southern part of Lithuania and has an approximate area of 40 km2. Inside this region we analyzed several water quality parameters of 55 lakes, including, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), suspended materials (SM), water clarity (WC) biochemical oxygen demand (BDO), total phosphorous (TP), total Nitrogen (TN), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), as other environmental variables as altitude, lake maximum deep (MD), lake area and land use according Corine land cover classification (CLC2006). Previous to data analysis, data normality and homogeneity of the variances, was assessed with the Shapiro-wilk and Leven's test, respectively. The majority of the data did not respect the Gaussian distribution and the heteroscedasticity, even after a logarithmic, and box-cox transformation. Thus, in this work we used the logarithmic transformed data to do a principal

  2. Lake-level frequency analysis for Devils Lake, North Dakota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wiche, Gregg J.; Vecchia, Aldo V.

    1996-01-01

    Two approaches were used to estimate future lake-level probabilities for Devils Lake. The first approach is based on an annual lake-volume model, and the second approach is based on a statistical water mass-balance model that generates seasonal lake volumes on the basis of seasonal precipitation, evaporation, and inflow. Autoregressive moving average models were used to model the annual mean lake volume and the difference between the annual maximum lake volume and the annual mean lake volume. Residuals from both models were determined to be uncorrelated with zero mean and constant variance. However, a nonlinear relation between the residuals of the two models was included in the final annual lakevolume model.Because of high autocorrelation in the annual lake levels of Devils Lake, the annual lake-volume model was verified using annual lake-level changes. The annual lake-volume model closely reproduced the statistics of the recorded lake-level changes for 1901-93 except for the skewness coefficient. However, the model output is less skewed than the data indicate because of some unrealistically large lake-level declines. The statistical water mass-balance model requires as inputs seasonal precipitation, evaporation, and inflow data for Devils Lake. Analysis of annual precipitation, evaporation, and inflow data for 1950-93 revealed no significant trends or long-range dependence so the input time series were assumed to be stationary and short-range dependent.Normality transformations were used to approximately maintain the marginal probability distributions; and a multivariate, periodic autoregressive model was used to reproduce the correlation structure. Each of the coefficients in the model is significantly different from zero at the 5-percent significance level. Coefficients relating spring inflow from one year to spring and fall inflows from the previous year had the largest effect on the lake-level frequency analysis.Inclusion of parameter uncertainty in the model

  3. Lake-level frequency analysis for Devils Lake, North Dakota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wiche, Gregg J.; Vecchia, Aldo V.

    1995-01-01

    Two approaches were used to estimate future lake-level probabilities for Devils Lake. The first approach is based on an annual lake-volume model, and the second approach is based on a statistical water mass-balance model that generates seasonal lake volumes on the basis of seasonal precipitation, evaporation, and inflow.Autoregressive moving average models were used to model the annual mean lake volume and the difference between the annual maximum lake volume and the annual mean lake volume. Residuals from both models were determined to be uncorrelated with zero mean and constant variance. However, a nonlinear relation between the residuals of the two models was included in the final annual lake-volume model.Because of high autocorrelation in the annual lake levels of Devils Lake, the annual lakevolume model was verified using annual lake-level changes. The annual lake-volume model closely reproduced the statistics of the recorded lake-level changes for 1901-93 except for the skewness coefficient However, the model output is less skewed than the data indicate because of some unrealistically large lake-level declines.The statistical water mass-balance model requires as inputs seasonal precipitation, evaporation, and inflow data for Devils Lake. Analysis of annual precipitation, evaporation, and inflow data for 1950-93 revealed no significant trends or long-range dependence so the input time series were assumed to be stationary and short-range dependent.Normality transformations were used to approximately maintain the marginal probability distributions; and a multivariate, periodic autoregressive model was used to reproduce the correlation structure. Each of the coefficients in the model is significantly different from zero at the 5-percent significance level. Coefficients relating spring inflow from one year to spring and fall inflows from the previous year had the largest effect on the lake-level frequency analysis.Inclusion of parameter uncertainty in the model

  4. OBIA based hierarchical image classification for industrial lake water.

    PubMed

    Uca Avci, Z D; Karaman, M; Ozelkan, E; Kumral, M; Budakoglu, M

    2014-07-15

    Water management is very important in water mining regions for the sustainability of the natural environment and for industrial activities. This study focused on Acigol Lake, which is an important wetland for sodium sulphate (Na2SO4) production, a significant natural protection area and habitat for local bird species and endemic species of this saline environment, and a stopover for migrating flamingos. By a hierarchical classification method, ponds representing the industrial part were classified according to in-situ measured Baumé values, and lake water representing the natural part was classified according to in-situ measurements of water depth. The latter is directly related to the water level, which should not exceed a critical level determined by the regulatory authorities. The resulting data, produced at an accuracy of around 80%, illustrates the status in two main regions for a single date. The output of the analysis may be meaningful for firms and environmental researchers, and authorizations can provide a good perspective for decision making for sustainable resource management in the region which has uncommon and specific ecological characteristics. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Cooperative water-resources monitoring in the St. Clair River/Lake St. Clair Basin, Michigan

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Rheaume, Stephen J.; Neff, Brian P.; Blumer, Stephen P.

    2007-01-01

    As part of the Lake St. Clair Regional Monitoring Project, this report describes numerous cooperative water-resources monitoring efforts conducted in the St. Clair River/Lake St. Clair Basin over the last 100 years. Cooperative monitoring is a tool used to observe and record changes in water quantity and quality over time. This report describes cooperative efforts for monitoring streamflows and flood magnitudes, past and present water-quality conditions, significant human-health threats, and flow-regime changes that are the result of changing land use. Water-resources monitoring is a long-term effort that can be made cost-effective by leveraging funds, sharing data, and avoiding duplication of effort. Without long-term cooperative monitoring, future water-resources managers and planners may find it difficult to establish and maintain public supply, recreational, ecological, and esthetic water-quality goals for the St. Clair River/Lake St. Clair Basin.

  6. Hydrology of the Lake Deaton and Lake Okahumpka area, Northeast Sumter County, Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Simonds, Edward P.; German, E.R.

    1980-01-01

    The Floridan aquifer in the Lake Deaton and Lake Okahumpka area is 50 to 130 feet below land surface. During the 16-year period 1963-78 lake evaporation exceeded rainfall by 0.4 inches. Drainage from Lake Deaton and its surrounding area goes into Chitty Chatty Creek and on the Hogeye Sink when the altitude of the potentiometric surface of the Floridan aquifer is low. During a higher altitude of the Floridan potentiometric surface, Hogeye Sink may discharge water; this water, along with the normal runoff, goes into Lake Okahumpka. Average lake fluctuation is 1.5 to 2.0 feet per year. Lake Deaton supports a large population of blue-green algae and Lake Okahumpka is choked with aquatic plants. The water quality of the two lakes differ, with Lake Deaton having a sodium chloride water and Lake Okahumpka having a calcium bicarbonate water. Analysis of water and bottom material samples showed that only cadmium and mercury exceeded the Florida Department of Environmental Regulation 's criteria for Class III waters; however, the amounts detected were at or slightly above the limits of the analytical method. (USGS)

  7. Hurricane effects on a shallow lake ecosystem and its response to a controlled manipulation of water level.

    PubMed

    Havens, K E; Jin, K R; Rodusky, A J; Sharfstein, B; Brady, M A; East, T L; Iricanin, N; James, R T; Harwell, M C; Steinman, A D

    2001-04-04

    In order to reverse the damage to aquatic plant communities caused by multiple years of high water levels in Lake Okeechobee, Florida (U.S.), the Governing Board of the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) authorized a "managed recession" to substantially lower the surface elevation of the lake in spring 2000. The operation was intended to achieve lower water levels for at least 8 weeks during the summer growing season, and was predicted to result in a large-scale recovery of submerged vascular plants. We treated this operation as a whole ecosystem experiment, and assessed ecological responses using data from an existing network of water quality and submerged plant monitoring sites. As a result of large-scale discharges of water from the lake, coupled with losses to evaporation and to water supply deliveries to agriculture and other regional users, the lake surface elevation receded by approximately 1 m between April and June. Water depths in shoreline areas that historically supported submerged plant communities declined from near 1.5 m to below 0.5 m. Low water levels persisted for the entire summer. Despite shallow depths, the initial response (in June 2000) of submerged plants was very limited and water remained highly turbid (due at first to abiotic seston and later to phytoplankton blooms). Turbidity decreased in July and the biomass of plants increased. However, submerged plant biomass did not exceed levels observed during summer 1999 (when water depths were greater) until August. Furthermore, a vascular plant-dominated assemblage (Vallisneria, Potamogeton, and Hydrilla) that occurred in 1999 was replaced with a community of nearly 98% Chara spp. (a macro-alga) in 2000. Hence, the lake"s submerged plant community appeared to revert to an earlier successional stage despite what appeared to be better conditions for growth. To explain this unexpected response, we evaluated the impacts that Hurricane Irene may have had on the lake in the previous

  8. Water Quality and Evaluation of Pesticides in Lakes in the Ridge Citrus Region of Central Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Choquette, Anne F.; Kroening, Sharon E.

    2009-01-01

    Water chemistry, including major inorganic constituents, nutrients, and pesticide compounds, was compared between seven lakes surrounded by citrus agriculture and an undeveloped lake on the Lake Wales Ridge (herein referred to as the Ridge) in central Florida. The region has been recognized for its vulnerability to the leaching of agricultural chemicals into the subsurface due to factors including soils, climate, and land use. About 40 percent of Florida's citrus cultivation occurs in 'ridge citrus' areas characterized by sandy well drained soils, with the remainder in 'flatwoods citrus' characterized by high water tables and poorly drained soils. The lakes on the Ridge are typically flow-through lakes that exchange water with adjacent and underlying aquifer systems. This study is the first to evaluate the occurrence of pesticides in lakes on the Ridge, and also represents one of the first monitoring efforts nationally to focus on regional-scale assessment of current-use pesticides in small- to moderate-sized lakes (5 to 393 acres). The samples were collected between December 2003 and September 2005. The lakes in citrus areas contained elevated concentrations of major inorganic constituents (including alkalinity, total dissolved solids, calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride, and sulfate), total nitrogen, pH, and pesticides compared to the undeveloped lake. Nitrate (as N) and total nitrogen concentrations were typically elevated in the citrus lakes, with maximum values of 4.70 and 5.19 mg/L (milligrams per liter), respectively. Elevated concentrations of potassium, nitrate, and other inorganic constituents in the citrus lakes likely reflect inputs from the surficial ground-water system that originated predominantly from agricultural fertilizers, soil amendments, and inorganic pesticides. A total of 20 pesticide compounds were detected in the lakes, of which 12 compounds exceeded the standardized reporting level of 0.06 ug/L (microgram per liter). Those

  9. Quick Release of Internal Water Storage in a Glacier Leads to Underestimation of the Hazard Potential of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods From Lake Merzbacher in Central Tian Shan Mountains

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shangguan, Donghui; Ding, Yongjian; Liu, Shiyin; Xie, Zunyi; Pieczonka, Tino; Xu, Junli; Moldobekov, Bolot

    2017-10-01

    Glacial meltwater and ice calving contribute to the flood volume of glacial lakes such as Lake Merzbacher in the Tian Shan Mountains of central Asia. In this study, we simulated the lake's volume by constructing an empirical relationship between the area of Lake Merzbacher, determined from satellite images, and the lake's water storage, derived from digital elevation models. Results showed that the lake water supply rate before Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) generally agreed well with those during the GLOFs from 2009 to 2012 but not in 2008 and 2015. Furthermore, we found that the combination of glacial meltwater and ice calving is not enough to fully explain the supply rate during GLOFs in 1996 and 1999, suggesting other factors affect the supply rate during GLOFs as well. To examine this further, we compared the water supply rate before and during GLOF events in 1999 and 2008. We inferred that quickly released short-term and intermediate-term water storage by glaciers have likely contributed to both flood events in those years. This study highlights the need to improve our understanding of the supply component of outburst floods, such as irregularly released stored water may lead to GLOF events with generally three different types: case I (singular event-triggered englacial water release), case II (glacier melt due to temperature changes), and case III (englacial water release mixed with glacier melt).

  10. District wide water resources investigation and management using LANDSAT data. Phase 1: Lake volume

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Shih, S. F. (Principal Investigator)

    1982-01-01

    A technique for estimating available water storage volume using LANDSAT data was developed and applied to Lake Washington and Lake Harris in central Florida. The technique can be applied two ways. First, where the historical stage records are available, the historical LANDSAT data can be used to establish the relationship between lake volume and lake stage. In the second case, where the historical stage records are not available, the historical LANDSAT data can be used to estimate the historical lake stage after the lake volume and stage information become available in the future.

  11. National water-quality assessment of the Lake Erie-Lake St. Clair Basin, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York; environmental and hydrologic setting

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Casey, G.D.; Myers, Donna N.; Finnegan, D.P.; ,

    1998-01-01

    The Lake Erie-Lake St. Clair Basin covers approximately 22,300 mi ?(square miles) in parts of Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. Situated in two major physiographic provinces, the Appalachian Plateaus and the Central Lowland, the basin includes varied topographic and geomorphic features that affect the hydrology. As of 1990, the basin was inhabited by approximately 10.4 million people. Lake effect has a large influence on the temperature and precipitation of the basin, especially along the leeward southeast shore of Lake Erie. Mean annual precipitation generally increases from west to east, ranging from 31.8 inches at Detroit, Mich., to 43.8 inches at Erie, Pa. The rocks that underlie the Lake Erie-Lake St. Clair Basin range in age from Cambrian through Pennsylvanian, but only Silurian through Pennsylvanian rocks are part of the shallow ground-water flow system. The position of the basin on the edge of the Michigan and Appalachian Basins is responsible for the large range in geologic time of the exposed rocks. Rock types range from shales, siltstones, and mudstones to coarse-grained sandstones and conglomerates. Carbonate rocks consisting of limestones, dolomites, and calcareous shales also underlie the basin. All the basin is overlain by Pleistocene deposits- till, fine-grained stratified sediments, and coarse-grained stratified sediments-most of Wisconsinan age. A system of buried river valleys filled with various lacustrine, alluvial, and coarse glacial deposits is present in the basin. The soils of the Lake Erie-Lake St. Clair Basin consist of two dominant soil orders: Alfisols and Inceptisols. Four other soil orders in the basin (Mollisols, Histisols, Entisols, and Spodosols) are of minor significance, making up less than 8 percent of the total area. The estimated water use for the Lake Erie-Lake St. Clair Basin for 1990 was 10,649 Mgal/d (million gallons per day). Power generation accounted for about 77 percent of total water withdrawals for

  12. Water-saving interventions assessment framework: an application for the Urmia Lake Restoration Program

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shadkam, Somayeh; Oel, Pieter; Kabat, Pavel; Ludwig, Fulco

    2017-04-01

    Increasing water demand often results in unsustainable water use leaving insufficient amounts of water for sustaining natural environments. Therefore, to save natural resources water-saving interventions have been introduced to the environmental policy agenda in many (semi)-arid regions. Many policies, however, have failed reaching their objectives to increase water availability for the environment. This calls for a comprehensive tool to assess water-saving policies. Therefore, this study introduces a constructive framework to assess the policies by estimating five components: 1) Total water demand under socio-economic scenarios, 2) Water supply under climate change scenarios, 3) Water withdrawal for different sectors, 4) Water depletion and 5) Environmental flow. The framework, was applied to assess Urmia Lake Restoration Program (ULRP), which aims to restore the drying Urmia Lake in north-western Iran by increasing the lake inflow by 3.1×106m3yr-1. Results suggest that although the ULRP helps to increase inflow by up to 57% it is unlikely to fully reach its target. The analysis shows that there are three main reasons for the potential poor performance. The first reason is decreasing return flows due to increasing irrigation efficiency. This means that the expected increase in lake inflow volume is smaller than the volume saved by increasing irrigation efficiency. The second reason is increased depletion which is due to neglecting the fact that agricultural water demand is currently higher than available water for agriculture. As a result, increasing water use efficiency may result in increased water depletion. The third reason is ignoring the potential impact of climate change, which might decrease future water availability by 3% to 15%. Our analysis suggests that to reach the intervention target, measures need to focus on reducing Water demand and Water depletion rather than on reducing Water withdrawals. The assessment framework can be used to comprehensively

  13. Bathymetric mapping, sediment quality, and water quality of Lake Delhi, Iowa, 2001-02

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Schnoebelen, Douglas J.; McVay, Jason C.; Barnes, Kimberlee K.; Becher, Kent D.

    2003-01-01

    Water-quality sampling results indicate areas affected by elevated nutrient and bacteria concentrations in the lake and tributary streams. The tributary streams had the highest median nitrate concentrations (12.1 milligrams per liter) when compared to median nitrate concentrations in the lake (8.7 milligrams per liter) or the Maquoketa River (10.5 milligrams per liter). The maximum nitrate concentrations detected for Maquoketa River, lake, and tributary sites were 13.5, 13.5, and 18.6 milligrams per liter, respectively. Nitrate concentrations in the late summer decreased from 2 Bathymetric Mapping, Sediment Quality, and Water Quality of Lake Delhi, Iowa, 2001–02 the upstream (7.8 milligrams per liter) to the downstream (5.0 milligrams per liter) one-third of Lake Delhi and most likely were the result of uptake of nitrate by algae and aquatic biota in the lake. Median concentrations of total coliform and E. coli bacteria for the lake sites were 450 and 17 colonies per 100 milliliters of sample, respectively. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency criteria for full body contact (swimming or bathing) are 200 colonies per 100 milliliters for fecal bacteria and 126 colonies per 100 milliliters for E. coli bacteria. The highest bacteria concentrations in the lake occurred after a rain and were 25,000 colonies per 100 milliliters total coliform and 1,900 colonies per 100 milliliters E. coli.

  14. Water Availability and Use Pilot-A multiscale assessment in the U.S. Great Lakes Basin

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Reeves, Howard W.

    2011-01-01

    Beginning in 2005, water availability and use were assessed for the U.S. part of the Great Lakes Basin through the Great Lakes Basin Pilot of a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) national assessment of water availability and use. The goals of a national assessment of water availability and use are to clarify our understanding of water-availability status and trends and improve our ability to forecast the balance between water supply and demand for future economic and environmental uses. This report outlines possible approaches for full-scale implementation of such an assessment. As such, the focus of this study was on collecting, compiling, and analyzing a wide variety of data to define the storage and dynamics of water resources and quantify the human demands on water in the Great Lakes region. The study focused on multiple spatial and temporal scales to highlight not only the abundant regional availability of water but also the potential for local shortages or conflicts over water. Regional studies provided a framework for understanding water resources in the basin. Subregional studies directed attention to varied aspects of the water-resources system that would have been difficult to assess for the whole region because of either data limitations or time limitations for the project. The study of local issues and concerns was motivated by regional discussions that led to recent legislative action between the Great Lakes States and regional cooperation with the Canadian Great Lakes Provinces. The multiscale nature of the study findings challenges water-resource managers and the public to think about regional water resources in an integrated way and to understand how future changes to the system-driven by human uses, climate variability, or land-use change-may be accommodated by informed water-resources management.

  15. Tracking Metal Pollution in Lake Chapala: Concentrations in Water, Sediments, and Fish.

    PubMed

    Torres, Zaria; Mora, Miguel A; Taylor, Robert J; Alvarez-Bernal, Dioselina

    2016-09-01

    We measured concentrations of selected metals (Al, Ba, Cu, Mn, Hg, Sr, V, and Zn) in water, sediments, and fish from Lake Chapala and a reference site to evaluate potential negative effects on wildlife, particularly fish-eating birds. Fish metal concentrations ranged from 0.05 µg/g wet weight (ww) for Al and Cu to 64.70 µg/g ww for Sr. There was a positive and significant correlation between fish length and metals particularly for Ba, Cu, Mn, and Zn in Lake Chapala (p < 0.05). However, there were no significant correlations between metal concentrations and δ(15)N values in fish indicating no biomagnification through the food web. Overall, metal concentrations in water, sediments, and fish were similar to and in some cases below those reported for Lake Chapala over the last 20 years. Also, metal concentrations were below those that could be of concern for negative effects on fish and wildlife of Lake Chapala.

  16. Water volume and sediment accumulation in Lake Linganore, Frederick County, Maryland, 2009

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sekellick, Andrew J.; Banks, S.L.

    2010-01-01

    To assist in understanding sediment and phosphorus loadings and the management of water resources, a bathymetric survey was conducted at Lake Linganore in Frederick County, Maryland in June 2009 by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the City of Frederick and Frederick County, Maryland. Position data and water-depth data were collected using a survey grade echo sounder and a differentially corrected global positioning system. Data were compiled and edited using geographic information system software. A three-dimensional triangulated irregular network model of the lake bottom was created to calculate the volume of stored water in the reservoir. Large-scale topographic maps of the valley prior to inundation in 1972 were provided by the City of Frederick and digitized. The two surfaces were compared and a sediment volume was calculated. Cartographic representations of both water depth and sediment accumulation were produced along with an area/capacity table. An accuracy assessment was completed on the resulting bathymetric model. Vertical accuracy at the 95-percent confidence level for the collected data, the bathymetric surface model, and the bathymetric contour map was calculated to be 0.95 feet, 1.53 feet, and 3.63 feet, respectively. The water storage volume of Lake Linganore was calculated to be 1,860 acre-feet at full pool elevation. Water volume in the reservoir has decreased by 350 acre-feet (about 16 percent) in the 37 years since the dam was constructed. The total calculated volume of sediment deposited in the lake since 1972 is 313 acre-feet. This represents an average rate of sediment accumulation of 8.5 acre-feet per year since Linganore Creek was impounded. A sectional analysis of sediment distribution indicates that the most upstream third of Lake Linganore contains the largest volume of sediment whereas the section closest to the dam contains the largest amount of water. In comparison to other Maryland Piedmont reservoirs, Lake Linganore

  17. Water quality assessment of sacred glacial Lake Satopanth of Garhwal Himalaya, India

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sharma, Ramesh C.; Kumar, Rahul

    2017-12-01

    Satopanth Lake is a glacial lake, located at an altitude of 4600 m above sea level in Garhwal Himalaya of Uttarakhand state in India where an attempt was made to assess the water quality. A total of sixteen physico-chemical parameters including temperature, hardness, alkalinity, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, pH, calcium, magnesium, chlorides, nitrates, sulphates and phosphates were recorded during 2014 and 2015 between June and August in ice-free period. The mean values of pH ranged from 6.85 to 7.10; water temperature fluctuated from 0.1 to 0.3 °C; dissolved oxygen varied from 5.90 to 6.0 mg.L-1; free CO2 varied from 8.40 to 8.60 mg.L-1; total dissolved solids varied from 88.0 to 89.5 mg.L-1; calcium from 7.88 to 7.95 mg.L-1; magnesium from 0.53 to 0.66 mg.L-1. All the physico-chemical values were within the prescribed WHO/BIS limit for drinking water. Water Quality Index (WQI) calculated based on these parameters also revealed the excellent quality of lake water.

  18. Groundwater science relevant to the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement: A status report

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Grannemann, Norman G.; Van Stempvoort, Dale

    2016-01-01

    When the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA) was signed in 1972 by the Governments of Canada and the United States (the “Parties”) (Environment Canada, 2013a), groundwater was not recognized as important to the water quality of the Lakes. At that time, groundwater and surface water were still considered as two separate systems, with almost no appreciation for their interaction. When the GLWQA was revised in 1978 (US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), 2012), groundwater contamination, such as that reported at legacy industrial sites such as those at Love Canal near the Niagara River, was squarely in the news. Consequently, the potential impacts of contaminated groundwater from such sites on Great Lakes water quality became a concern (Beck, 1979), and Annex 16 was added to the agreement, to address “pollution from contaminated groundwater” (Francis, 1989). However, no formal process for reporting under this annex was provided. The GLWQA Protocol in 1987 modified Annex 16 and called for progress reports beginning in 1988 (USEPA, 1988). The Protocol in 2012 provided a new Annex 8 to address groundwater more holistically (Environment 2 Canada, 2013b). Annex 8 (Environment Canada, 2013b) commits the Parties to coordinate groundwater science and management actions; as a first step, to “publish a report on the relevant and available groundwater science” by February 2015 (this report); and to “identify priorities for science activities and actions for groundwater management, protection, and remediation…” The broader mandate of Annex 8 is to (1) “identify groundwater impacts on the chemical, physical and biological integrity of the Waters of the Great Lakes;” (2) “analyze contaminants, including nutrients in groundwater, derived from both point and non-point sources impacting the Waters of the Great Lakes;” (3) “assess information gaps and science needs related to groundwater to protect the quality of the Waters of the Great Lakes

  19. Phosphorus mobility among sediments, water and cyanobacteria enhanced by cyanobacteria blooms in eutrophic Lake Dianchi.

    PubMed

    Cao, Xin; Wang, Yiqi; He, Jian; Luo, Xingzhang; Zheng, Zheng

    2016-12-01

    This study was focused on the phosphorus mobility among sediments, water and cyanobacteria in eutrophic Lake Dianchi. Four conditions lake water, water and algae, water and sediments, and three objects together were conducted to investigate the effects of cyanobacteria growth on the migration and transformation of phosphorus. Results showed a persistent correlation between the development of cyanobacterial blooms and the increase of soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) in the lake water under the condition of three objects together. Time-course assays measuring different forms of phosphorus in sediments indicated that inorganic phosphorus (IP) and NaOH-P were relatively more easier to migrate out of sediment to the water and cyanobacteria. Further studies on phosphorus mobility showed that up to 70.2% of the released phosphorus could be absorbed by cyanobacteria, indicating that sediment is a major source of phosphorus when external loading is reduced. Time-course assays also showed that the development of cyanobacterial blooms promoted an increase in pH and a decrease in the redox potential of the lake water. The structure of the microbial communities in sediments was also significantly changed, revealed a great impaction of cyanobacterial blooms on the microbial communities in sediments, which may contribute to phosphorus release. Our study simulated the cyanobacterial blooms of Lake Dianchi and revealed that the cyanobacterial blooms is a driving force for phosphorus mobility among sediments, water and cyanobacteria. The outbreak of algal blooms caused deterioration in water quality. The P in the sediments represented a significant supply for the growth of cyanobacteria. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Hydrogeomorphic and Anthropogenic Influences on Water Quality, Habitat, and Fish of Great Lakes Coastal Wetlands

    EPA Science Inventory

    Great Lakes coastal wetlands represent a dynamic interface between coastal watersheds and the open lake. Compared to the adjacent lakes, these wetlands have generally warmer water, reduced wave energy, shallow bathymetry, higher productivity, and structurally complex vegetated h...

  1. Sources of fatty acids in Lake Michigan surface microlayers and subsurface waters

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Meyers, Philip A.; Owen, Robert M.

    1980-11-01

    Fatty acid and organic carbon contents have been measured in the particulate and dissolved phases of surface microlayer and subsurface water samples collected from Lake Michigan. Concentrations are highest close to fluvial sources and lowest in offshore areas, yet surface/subsurface fractionation is lowest near river mouths and highest in open lake locations. These gradients plus accompanying fatty acid compositional changes indicate that river-borne organic materials are important constituents of coastal Lake Michigan microlayers and that sinking and turbulent resuspension of particulates affect surface film characteristics. Lake neuston and plankton contribute organic components which partially replace potamic materials removed by sinking.

  2. The rise and fall of water hyacinth in Lake Victoria and the Kagera River basin, 1989-2001

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Albright, Thomas P.; Moorhouse, T.G.; McNabb, T.J.

    2004-01-01

    Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms) is an invasive aquatic macrophyte associated with major negative economic and ecological impacts to the Lake Victoria region since the plant's establishment in Uganda in the 1980s. Reliable estimates of water hyacinth distribution and extent are required to gauge the severity of the problem through time, relate water hyacinth abundance to environmental factors, identify areas requiring management action, and assess the efficacy of management actions. To provide such estimates and demonstrate the utility of remote sensing for this application, we processed and analyzed remotely sensed imagery to determine the distribution and extent of water hyacinth. Maps were produced and coverage was quantified using a hybrid unsupervised image classification approach with manual editing for each of the riparian countries of Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, as well as for numerous gulfs and bays. A similar procedure was carried out for selected lakes in the Rwanda-Tanzania borderlands lakes region in the Kagera River basin. Results confirm the severity of the water hyacinth infestation, especially in the northern parts of the lake. A maximum lake-wide extent of at least 17,374 ha was attained in 1998. Following this, a combination of factors, including conditions associated with the 1997 to 1998 El Nin??o and biocontrol with water hyacinth weevils, appear to have contributed to a major decline in water hyacinth in the most affected parts of the lake. Some lakes in the Kagera basin, such as Lake Mihindi, Rwanda, were severely infested in the late 1990s, but the level of infestation in most of these decreased markedly by the early 2000s.

  3. ICESat/GLAS-derived changes in the water level of Hulun Lake, Inner Mongolia, from 2003 to 2009

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Chunlan; Wang, Jun; Hu, Richa; Yin, Shan; Bao, Yuhai; Li, Yuwei

    2017-07-01

    Hulun Lake is the largest freshwater lake in northern Inner Mongolia and even minor changes in its level may have major effects on the ecology of the lake and the surrounding area. In this study, we used high-precision elevation data for the interval from 2003-2009 measured by the Geoscience Laser Altimetry System (GLAS) on board the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) to assess annual and seasonal water level variations of Hulun Lake. The altimetry data of 32 satellite tracks were processed using the RANdom SAmple Consensus algorithm (RANSAC) to eliminate elevation outliers, and subsequently the Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI) was used to delineate the area of the lake. From 2003-2009, the shoreline of Hulun Lake retreated westwards, which was especially notable in the southern part of the lake. There was only a small decrease in water level, from 530.72 m to 529.22 m during 2003-2009, an average rate of 0.08 m/yr. The area of the lake decreased at a rate of 49.52 km2/yr, which was mainly the result of the shallow bathymetry in the southern part of the basin. The decrease in area was initially rapid, then much slower, and finally rapid again. Generally, the lake extent and water level decreased due to higher temperatures, intense evaporation, low precipitation, and decreasing runoff. And their fluctuations were caused by a decrease in intraannual temperature, evaporation, and a slight increase in precipitation. Overall, a combination of factors related to climate change were responsible for the variations of the water level of Hulun Lake during the study interval. The results improve our understanding of the impact of climate change on Hulun Lake and may facilitate the formulation of response strategies.

  4. ICESat/GLAS-derived changes in the water level of Hulun Lake, Inner Mongolia, from 2003 to 2009

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Chunlan; Wang, Jun; Hu, Richa; Yin, Shan; Bao, Yuhai; Li, Yuwei

    2018-06-01

    Hulun Lake is the largest freshwater lake in northern Inner Mongolia and even minor changes in its level may have major effects on the ecology of the lake and the surrounding area. In this study, we used high-precision elevation data for the interval from 2003-2009 measured by the Geoscience Laser Altimetry System (GLAS) on board the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) to assess annual and seasonal water level variations of Hulun Lake. The altimetry data of 32 satellite tracks were processed using the RANdom SAmple Consensus algorithm (RANSAC) to eliminate elevation outliers, and subsequently the Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI) was used to delineate the area of the lake. From 2003-2009, the shoreline of Hulun Lake retreated westwards, which was especially notable in the southern part of the lake. There was only a small decrease in water level, from 530.72 m to 529.22 m during 2003-2009, an average rate of 0.08 m/yr. The area of the lake decreased at a rate of 49.52 km2/yr, which was mainly the result of the shallow bathymetry in the southern part of the basin. The decrease in area was initially rapid, then much slower, and finally rapid again. Generally, the lake extent and water level decreased due to higher temperatures, intense evaporation, low precipitation, and decreasing runoff. And their fluctuations were caused by a decrease in intraannual temperature, evaporation, and a slight increase in precipitation. Overall, a combination of factors related to climate change were responsible for the variations of the water level of Hulun Lake during the study interval. The results improve our understanding of the impact of climate change on Hulun Lake and may facilitate the formulation of response strategies.

  5. Quality transformation of dissolved organic carbon during water transit through lakes: contrasting controls by photochemical and biological processes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Berggren, Martin; Klaus, Marcus; Panneer Selvam, Balathandayuthabani; Ström, Lena; Laudon, Hjalmar; Jansson, Mats; Karlsson, Jan

    2018-01-01

    Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) may be removed, transformed, or added during water transit through lakes, resulting in changes in DOC composition and pigmentation (color). However, the process-based understanding of these changes is incomplete, especially for headwater lakes. We hypothesized that because heterotrophic bacteria preferentially consume noncolored DOC, while photochemical processing removes colored fractions, the overall changes in DOC color upon water passage through a lake depend on the relative importance of these two processes, accordingly. To test this hypothesis we combined laboratory experiments with field studies in nine boreal lakes, assessing both the relative importance of different DOC decay processes (biological or photochemical) and the loss of color during water transit time (WTT) through the lakes. We found that influence from photo-decay dominated changes in DOC quality in the epilimnia of relatively clear headwater lakes, resulting in systematic and selective net losses of colored DOC. However, in highly pigmented brown-water lakes (absorbance at 420 nm > 7 m-1) biological processes dominated, and there was no systematic relationship between color loss and WTT. Moreover, in situ data and dark experiments supported our hypothesis on the selective microbial removal of nonpigmented DOC, mainly of low molecular weight, leading to persistent water color in these highly colored lakes. Our study shows that brown headwater lakes may not conform to the commonly reported pattern of the selective removal of colored constituents in freshwaters, as DOC can show a sustained degree of pigmentation upon transit through these lakes.

  6. Response of water temperatures and stratification to changing climate in three lakes with different morphometry

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Magee, Madeline R.; Wu, Chin H.

    2017-12-01

    Water temperatures and stratification are important drivers for ecological and water quality processes within lake systems, and changes in these with increases in air temperature and changes to wind speeds may have significant ecological consequences. To properly manage these systems under changing climate, it is important to understand the effects of increasing air temperatures and wind speed changes in lakes of different depths and surface areas. In this study, we simulate three lakes that vary in depth and surface area to elucidate the effects of the observed increasing air temperatures and decreasing wind speeds on lake thermal variables (water temperature, stratification dates, strength of stratification, and surface heat fluxes) over a century (1911-2014). For all three lakes, simulations showed that epilimnetic temperatures increased, hypolimnetic temperatures decreased, the length of the stratified season increased due to earlier stratification onset and later fall overturn, stability increased, and longwave and sensible heat fluxes at the surface increased. Overall, lake depth influences the presence of stratification, Schmidt stability, and differences in surface heat flux, while lake surface area influences differences in hypolimnion temperature, hypolimnetic heating, variability of Schmidt stability, and stratification onset and fall overturn dates. Larger surface area lakes have greater wind mixing due to increased surface momentum. Climate perturbations indicate that our larger study lakes have more variability in temperature and stratification variables than the smaller lakes, and this variability increases with larger wind speeds. For all study lakes, Pearson correlations and climate perturbation scenarios indicate that wind speed has a large effect on temperature and stratification variables, sometimes greater than changes in air temperature, and wind can act to either amplify or mitigate the effect of warmer air temperatures on lake thermal

  7. A comparison of alternative strategies for cost-effective water quality management in lakes.

    PubMed

    Kramer, Daniel Boyd; Polasky, Stephen; Starfield, Anthony; Palik, Brian; Westphal, Lynne; Snyder, Stephanie; Jakes, Pamela; Hudson, Rachel; Gustafson, Eric

    2006-09-01

    Roughly 45% of the assessed lakes in the United States are impaired for one or more reasons. Eutrophication due to excess phosphorus loading is common in many impaired lakes. Various strategies are available to lake residents for addressing declining lake water quality, including septic system upgrades and establishing riparian buffers. This study examines 25 lakes to determine whether septic upgrades or riparian buffers are a more cost-effective strategy to meet a phosphorus reduction target. We find that riparian buffers are the more cost-effective strategy in every case but one. Large transaction costs associated with the negotiation and monitoring of riparian buffers, however, may be prohibiting lake residents from implementing the most cost-effective strategy.

  8. A Comparison of Alternative Strategies for Cost-Effective Water Quality Management in Lakes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kramer, Daniel Boyd; Polasky, Stephen; Starfield, Anthony; Palik, Brian; Westphal, Lynne; Snyder, Stephanie; Jakes, Pamela; Hudson, Rachel; Gustafson, Eric

    2006-09-01

    Roughly 45% of the assessed lakes in the United States are impaired for one or more reasons. Eutrophication due to excess phosphorus loading is common in many impaired lakes. Various strategies are available to lake residents for addressing declining lake water quality, including septic system upgrades and establishing riparian buffers. This study examines 25 lakes to determine whether septic upgrades or riparian buffers are a more cost-effective strategy to meet a phosphorus reduction target. We find that riparian buffers are the more cost-effective strategy in every case but one. Large transaction costs associated with the negotiation and monitoring of riparian buffers, however, may be prohibiting lake residents from implementing the most cost-effective strategy.

  9. ASSESSING WATER QUALITY CHANGES IN THE LAKES OF THE NORTHEASTERN UNITED STATES USING SEDIMENT DIATOMS

    EPA Science Inventory

    Diatom assemblages were selected as indicators of lake condition and to assess historical lake water quality changes in 257 lakes in the northeastern United States. The "top" (surface sediments, present-day) and "bottom" (generally from >30 cm deep, representing historical condit...

  10. Removal of nutrients from combined sewer overflows and lake water in a vertical-flow constructed wetland system.

    PubMed

    Gervin, L; Brix, H

    2001-01-01

    Lake Utterslev is situated in a densely built-up area of Copenhagen, and is heavily eutrophicated from combined sewer overflows. At the same time the lake suffers from lack of water. Therefore, a 5,000 m2 vertical flow wetland system was constructed in 1998 to reduce the phosphorus discharge from combined sewer overflows without reducing the water supply to the lake. During dry periods the constructed wetland is used to remove phosphorus from the lake water. The system is designed as a 90 m diameter circular bed with a bed depth of c. 2 m. The system is isolated from the surroundings by a polyethylene membrane. The bed medium consists of a mixture of gravel and crushed marble, which has a high binding capacity for phosphorus. The bed is located within the natural littoral zone of the lake and is planted with common reed (Phragmites australis). The constructed wetland is intermittently loaded with combined sewer overflow water or lake water and, after percolation through the bed medium, the water is collected in a network of drainage pipes at the bottom of the bed and pumped to the lake. The fully automated loading cycle results in alternating wet and dry periods. During the initial two years of operation, the phosphorus removal for combined sewer overflows has been consistently high (94-99% of inflow concentrations). When loaded with lake water, the phosphorus removal has been high during summer (71-97%) and lower during winter (53-75%) partly because of lower inlet concentrations. Effluent phosphorus concentrations are consistently low (0.03-0.04 mg/L). Ammonium nitrogen is nitrified in the constructed wetland, and total suspended solids and COD are generally reduced to concentrations below 5 mg/L and 25 mg/L, respectively. The study documents that a subsurface flow constructed wetland system can be designed and operated to effectively remove phosphorus and other pollutants from combined sewer overflows and eutrophicated lake water.

  11. Lake trout rehabilitation in Lake Huron

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Eshenroder, Randy L.; Payne, N. Robert; Johnson, James E.; Bowen, Charles; Ebener, Mark P.

    1995-01-01

    Efforts to restore lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) in Lake Huron after their collapse in the 1940s were underway in the early 1970s with completion of the first round of lampricide applications in tributary streams and the stocking of several genotypes. We assess results of rehabilitation and establish a historical basis for comparison by quantifying the catch of spawning lake trout from Michigan waters in 1929-1932. Sixty-eight percent of this catch occurred in northern waters (MH-1) and most of the rest (15%) was from remote reefs in the middle of the main basin. Sea lampreys (Petromyzon marinus) increased in the early 1980s in the main basin and depressed spawning populations of lake trout. This increase was especially severe in northern waters and appeared to be associated with untreated populations in the St. Marys River. Excessive commercial fishing stemming from unresolved treaty rights also contributed to loss of spawning fish in northern Michigan waters. Seneca-strain lake trout did not appear to be attacked by sea lampreys until they reached a size > 532 mm. At sizes > 632 mm, Seneca trout were 40-fold more abundant than the Marquette strain in matched-planting experiments. Natural reproduction past the fry stage has occurred in Thunder Bay and South Bay, but prospects for self-sustaining populations of lake trout in the main basin are poor because sea lampreys are too abundant, only one side of the basin is stocked, and stocking is deferred to allow commercial gillnetting in areas where most of the spawning occurred historically. Backcross lake trout, a lake trout x splake (s. Fontinalis x s. Namaycush) hybrid, did not reproduce in Georgian Bay, but this genotype is being replaced with pure-strain lake trout, whose early performance appears promising.

  12. Uranium activity ratio in water and fish from pit lakes in Kurday, Kazakhstan and Taboshar, Tajikistan.

    PubMed

    Strømman, G; Rosseland, B O; Skipperud, L; Burkitbaev, L M; Uralbekov, B; Heier, L S; Salbu, B

    2013-09-01

    Kurday in Kazhakstan and Taboshar in Tajikistan were U mining sites operated during the 1950s and 1960s as part of the USSR nuclear weapon program. Today, they represent sources of potential U contamination of the environment. Within both mining sites, open pits from which U ore was extracted have been filled with water due to ground water inflow and precipitation. These artificial pit lakes contain fish consumed occasionally by the local people, and wild and domestic animals are using the water for drinking purposes. To assess the potential impact from U in these pit lakes, field work was performed in 2006 in Kurday and 2006 and 2008 in Taboshar. Results show that the U concentration in the lake waters were relatively high, about 1 mg/L in Kurday Pit Lake and about 3 mg/L in Taboshar Pit Lake. The influence of U-bearing materials on the lakes and downstream waters were investigated by measuring the U concentration and the (234)U/(238)U activity ratios. In both Kurday and Taboshar, the ratios increased distinctively from about 1 at the pit lakes to >1.5 far downstream the lakes. The concentrations of (238)U in gill, liver, muscle and bones in fish from the pit lakes were much higher than in the reference fish. Peak concentration of U was seen in bones (13 mg/kg w.w.), kidney (9.1 mg/kg w.w.) and gills (8.9 mg/kg w.w.) from Cyprinus auratus caught in the Taboshar Pit Lake. Bioconcentration factors (BCF) calculated for organs from fish caught in the Taboshar Pit Lake, with the same tendency seen in the Kurday Pit Lake, showed that U accumulates most in bone (BCF = 4.8 L/kg w.w.), gills (BCF = 3.6 L/kg w.w.), kidney (BCF = 3.6 L/kg w.w.), and liver (BCF = 2.5 L/kg w.w.), while least was accumulated in the muscle (BCF = 0.12 L/kg w.w.). Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Dietary changes of large herbivores in the Turkana Basin, Kenya from 4 to 1 Ma

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cerling, Thure E.; Andanje, Samuel A.; Blumenthal, Scott A.; Brown, Francis H.; Chritz, Kendra L.; Harris, John M.; Hart, John A.; Kirera, Francis M.; Kaleme, Prince; Leakey, Louise N.; Leakey, Meave G.; Levin, Naomi E.; Kyalo Manthi, Fredrick; Passey, Benjamin H.; Uno, Kevin T.

    2015-09-01

    A large stable isotope dataset from East and Central Africa from ca. 30 regional collection sites that range from forest to grassland shows that most extant East and Central African large herbivore taxa have diets dominated by C4 grazing or C3 browsing. Comparison with the fossil record shows that faunal assemblages from ca. 4.1-2.35 Ma in the Turkana Basin had a greater diversity of C3-C4 mixed feeding taxa than is presently found in modern East and Central African environments. In contrast, the period from 2.35 to 1.0 Ma had more C4-grazing taxa, especially nonruminant C4-grazing taxa, than are found in modern environments in East and Central Africa. Many nonbovid C4 grazers became extinct in Africa, notably the suid Notochoerus, the hipparion equid Eurygnathohippus, the giraffid Sivatherium, and the elephantid Elephas. Other important nonruminant C4-grazing taxa switched to browsing, including suids in the lineage Kolpochoerus-Hylochoerus and the elephant Loxodonta. Many modern herbivore taxa in Africa have diets that differ significantly from their fossil relatives. Elephants and tragelaphin bovids are two groups often used for paleoecological insight, yet their fossil diets were very different from their modern closest relatives; therefore, their taxonomic presence in a fossil assemblage does not indicate they had a similar ecological function in the past as they do at present. Overall, we find ecological assemblages of C3-browsing, C3-C4-mixed feeding, and C4-grazing taxa in the Turkana Basin fossil record that are different from any modern ecosystem in East or Central Africa.

  14. Dietary changes of large herbivores in the Turkana Basin, Kenya from 4 to 1 Ma

    PubMed Central

    Cerling, Thure E.; Andanje, Samuel A.; Blumenthal, Scott A.; Brown, Francis H.; Chritz, Kendra L.; Harris, John M.; Hart, John A.; Kirera, Francis M.; Kaleme, Prince; Leakey, Louise N.; Leakey, Meave G.; Levin, Naomi E.; Manthi, Fredrick Kyalo; Passey, Benjamin H.; Uno, Kevin T.

    2015-01-01

    A large stable isotope dataset from East and Central Africa from ca. 30 regional collection sites that range from forest to grassland shows that most extant East and Central African large herbivore taxa have diets dominated by C4 grazing or C3 browsing. Comparison with the fossil record shows that faunal assemblages from ca. 4.1–2.35 Ma in the Turkana Basin had a greater diversity of C3–C4 mixed feeding taxa than is presently found in modern East and Central African environments. In contrast, the period from 2.35 to 1.0 Ma had more C4-grazing taxa, especially nonruminant C4-grazing taxa, than are found in modern environments in East and Central Africa. Many nonbovid C4 grazers became extinct in Africa, notably the suid Notochoerus, the hipparion equid Eurygnathohippus, the giraffid Sivatherium, and the elephantid Elephas. Other important nonruminant C4-grazing taxa switched to browsing, including suids in the lineage Kolpochoerus-Hylochoerus and the elephant Loxodonta. Many modern herbivore taxa in Africa have diets that differ significantly from their fossil relatives. Elephants and tragelaphin bovids are two groups often used for paleoecological insight, yet their fossil diets were very different from their modern closest relatives; therefore, their taxonomic presence in a fossil assemblage does not indicate they had a similar ecological function in the past as they do at present. Overall, we find ecological assemblages of C3-browsing, C3–C4-mixed feeding, and C4-grazing taxa in the Turkana Basin fossil record that are different from any modern ecosystem in East or Central Africa. PMID:26240344

  15. Water resources of the Lake Traverse Reservation, South and North Dakota, and Roberts County, South Dakota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Thompson, Ryan F.

    2001-01-01

    In 1994, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux Tribe; Roberts County; and the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Geological Survey Program, began a 6-year investigation to describe and quantify the water resources of the area within the 1867 boundary of the Lake Traverse Reservation and adjacent parts of Roberts County. Roberts County is located in extreme northeastern South Dakota, and the 1867 boundary of the Lake Traverse Reservation encompasses much of Roberts County and parts of Marshall, Day, Codington, and Grant Counties in South Dakota and parts of Richland and Sargent Counties in southeast North Dakota. This report includes descriptions of the quantity, quality, and availability of surface and ground water, the extent of the major glacial and bedrock aquifers and named outwash groups, and surface- and ground-water uses within the 1867 boundary of the Lake Traverse Reservation and adjacent parts of Roberts County. The surface-water resources within the 1867 boundary of the Lake Traverse Reservation and adjacent parts of Roberts County include rivers, streams, lakes, and wetlands. The Wild Rice and Bois de Sioux Rivers are tributaries of the Red River within the Souris-Red-Rainy River Basin; the Little Minnesota, Jorgenson, and North Fork Whetstone Rivers are tributaries of the Minnesota River within the Upper Mississippi River Basin, and the James and Big Sioux Rivers are tributaries within the Missouri River Basin. Several of the larger lakes within the study area have been developed for recreation, while many of the smaller lakes and wetlands are used for livestock watering or as wildlife production areas. Statistical summaries are presented for the water-quality data of six selected streams within the study area, and the dominant chemical species are listed for 17 selected lakes within the study area. The glacial history of the study area has led to a rather complex system of glacial

  16. The Legacy of Arsenic Contamination from Giant Mine, Northern Canada: An Assessment of Impacts Based on Lake Water and Lake Sediment Core Analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Blais, J. M.; Korosi, J.

    2016-12-01

    The Giant Mine, which operated between 1948 and 2004 and located near the City of Yellowknife (Northwest Territories, Canada), has left a legacy of arsenic, antimony, and mercury contamination extending to the present day. Over 20,000 tonnes of arsenic trioxide dust was released from roaster stack emissions during its first 10 years of operations, leading to a significant contamination of the surrounding landscape. Here we present a summary of impacts by the recent contamination from Giant Mine on the surrounding region. A survey we conducted of 25 lakes of the region in 2010 revealed that most lake water within a 15 km radius of the roaster stack had arsenic concentrations in water > 10 mg/L, the standard for drinking water, with concentrations declining exponentially with increasing distance from the roaster stack. Sediment cores from lakes were collected near the Giant Mine roaster stack and radiometrically dated by 137Cs and excess 210Pb. Arsenic concentrations in these sediments increased by 1700% during the 1950s and 60s, consistent with the history of arsenic releases from roaster emissions. Correspondingly, pelagic diatoms and cladocerans were extirpated from one lake during this period, based on microfossil analysis of lake sediment deposits. Sediment core analysis further showed that this lake ecosystem has not recovered, even ten years after closure of the mine. Likely causes for the lack of recent recovery are explored with the use of sediment toxicity bioassays, using a novel paleo-ecotoxicological approach of using toxicity assessments of radiometrically dated lake sediment horizons.

  17. On Evaluating circulation and temperature stratification under changing water levels in Lake Mead with a 3D hydrodynamic model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Y.; Acharya, K.; Chen, D.; Stone, M.; Yu, Z.; Young, M.; Zhu, J.; Shafer, D. S.; Warwick, J. J.

    2009-12-01

    Sustained drought in the western United States since 2000 has led to a significant drop (about 35 meters) in the water level of Lake Mead, the largest reservoir by volume in United States. The drought combined with rapid urban development in southern Nevada and emergence of invasive species has threatened the water quality and ecological processes in Lake Mead. A three-dimensional hydrodynamic model, Environmental Fluid Dynamics Code (EFDC), was applied to investigate lake circulation and temperature stratification in parts of Lake Mead (Las Vegas Bay and Boulder Basin) under changing water levels. Besides the inflow from Las Vegas Wash and the Colorado River, the model considered atmospheric changes as well as the boundary conditions restricted by the operation of Hoover Dam. The model was calibrated and verified by using observed data including water level, velocity, and temperature from 2003 and 2005. The model was applied to study the hydrodynamic processes at water level 366.8 m (year 2000) and at water level 338.2 m (year 2008). The high-stage simulation described the pre-drought lake hydrodynamic processes while the low-stage simulation highlighted the drawdown impact on such processes. The results showed that both inflow and wind-driven mixing process played major roles in the thermal stratification and lake circulation in both cases. However, the atmospheric boundary played a more important role than inflow temperature on thermal stratification of Lake Mead during water level decline. Further, the thermal stratification regime and flow circulation pattern in shallow lake regions (e.g.., the Boulder Basin area) were most impacted. The temperature of the lake at the high-stage was more sensitive to inflow temperatures than at low-stage. Furthermore, flow velocities decreased with the decreasing water level due to reduction in wind impacts, particularly in shallow areas of the lake. Such changes in temperature and lake current due to present drought have a

  18. Satellite Observations of Drought and Falling Water Storage in the Colorado River Basin and Lake Mead

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Castle, S.; Famiglietti, J. S.; Reager, J. T.; Thomas, B.

    2012-12-01

    Over the past decade the Western US has experienced extreme drought conditions, which have affected both agricultural and urban areas. An example of water infrastructure being impacted by these droughts is Lake Mead, the largest reservoir in the United States at its full capacity that provides water and energy for several states in the Western US. Once Lake Mead falls below the critical elevation of 1050 feet above sea level, the Hoover Dam, the structure that created Lake Mead by damming flow within the Colorado River, will stop producing energy for Las Vegas. The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellites, launched in 2002, have proven successful for monitoring changes in water storage over large areas, and give hydrologists a first-ever picture of how total water storage is changing spatially and temporally within large regions. Given the importance of the Colorado River to meet water demands to several neighboring regions, including Southern California, it is vital to understand how water is transported and managed throughout the basin. In this research, we use hydrologic remote sensing to characterize the human and natural water balance of the Colorado River basin and Lake Mead. The research will include quantifying the amount of Colorado River water delivered to Southern California, coupling the GRACE Total Water Storage signal of the Upper and Lower Colorado River with Landsat-TM satellite imagery and areal extent of Lake Mead water storage, and combining these data together to determine the current status of water availability in the Western US. We consider water management and policy changes necessary for sustainable water practices including human water use, hydropower, and ecosystem services in arid regions throughout the Western US.

  19. Exploratory normalized difference water indices for semi-automated extraction of Antarctic lake features

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jawak, Shridhar D.; Luis, Alvarinho J.

    2016-05-01

    This work presents various normalized difference water indices (NDWI) to delineate lakes from Schirmacher Oasis, East Antarctica, by using a very high resolution WorldView-2 (WV-2) satellite imagery. Schirmacher oasis region hosts a number of fresh as well as saline water lakes, such as epishelf lakes, ice-free or landlocked lakes, which are completely frozen or semi-frozen and in a ice-free state. Hence, detecting all these types of lakes distinctly on satellite imagery was the major challenge, as the spectral characteristics of various types of lakes were identical to the other land cover targets. Multiband spectral index pixel-based approach is most experimented and recently growing technique because of its unbeatable advantages such as its simplicity and comparatively lesser amount of processing-time. In present study, semiautomatic extraction of lakes in cryospheric region was carried out by designing specific spectral indices. The study utilized number of existing spectral indices to extract lakes but none could deliver satisfactory results and hence we modified NDWI. The potentials of newly added bands in WV-2 satellite imagery was explored by developing spectral indices comprising of Yellow (585 - 625 nm) band, in combination with Blue (450 - 510 nm), Coastal (400 - 450 nm) and Green (510 - 580 nm) bands. For extraction of frozen lakes, use of Yellow (585 - 625 nm) and near-infrared 2 (NIR2) band pair, and Yellow and Green band pair worked well, whereas for ice-free lakes extraction, a combination of Blue and Coastal band yielded appreciable results, when compared with manually digitized data. The results suggest that the modified NDWI approach rendered bias error varying from 1 to 34 m2.

  20. 40 CFR Appendix C to Part 132 - Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Methodologies for Development of Human Health Criteria and...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... LAKES SYSTEM Pt. 132, App. C Appendix C to Part 132—Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Methodologies...; or consuming fish from the water, and water-related recreation activities using the Methodologies for... 40 Protection of Environment 22 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative...

  1. 40 CFR Appendix C to Part 132 - Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Methodologies for Development of Human Health Criteria and...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... LAKES SYSTEM Pt. 132, App. C Appendix C to Part 132—Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative Methodologies...; or consuming fish from the water, and water-related recreation activities using the Methodologies for... 40 Protection of Environment 21 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative...

  2. Temporal 222Rn distributions to reveal groundwater discharge into desert lakes: Implication of water balance in the Badain Jaran Desert, China

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Luo, Xin; Jiao, Jiu Jimmy; Wang, Xu-sheng; Liu, Kun

    2016-03-01

    How lake systems are maintained and water is balanced in the lake areas in the Badain Jaran Desert (BJD), northeast of China have been debated for about a decade. In this study, continuous 222Rn measurement is used to quantify groundwater discharge into two representative fresh and brine water lakes in the desert using a steady-state mass-balance model. Two empirical equations are used to calculate atmospheric evasion loss crossing the water-air interface of the lakes. Groundwater discharge rates yielded from the radon mass balance model based on the two empirical equations are well correlated and of almost the same values, confirming the validity of the model. The fresh water and brine lakes have a daily averaged groundwater discharge rate of 7.6 ± 1.7 mm d-1 and 6.4 ± 1.8 mm d-1, respectively. The temporal fluctuations of groundwater discharge show similar patterns to those of the lake water level, suggesting that the lakes are recharged from nearby groundwater. Assuming that all the lakes have the same discharge rate as the two studied lakes, total groundwater discharge into all the lakes in the desert is estimated to be 1.59 × 105 m3 d-1. A conceptual model of water balance within a desert lake catchment is proposed to characterize water behaviors within the catchment. This study sheds lights on the water balance in the BJD and is of significance in sustainable regional water resource utilization in such an ecologically fragile area.

  3. Historic and modern abundance of wild lean lake trout in Michigan waters of Lake Superior: Implications for restoration goals

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wilberg, Michael J.; Hansen, Michael J.; Bronte, Charles R.

    2003-01-01

    Populations of lake trout Salvelinus namaycush in Lake Superior collapsed in the late 1950s due to overfishing and predation by sea lampreys Petromyzon marinus. A binational effort to restore the lean morphotype of lake trout began with the stocking of hatchery-reared fish followed by the chemical control of sea lampreys and closure of the commercial fishery. Previous comparisons of the contemporary abundance of wild lean lake trout with that from historic commercial fishery statistics indicate that abundance was higher historically. However, this conclusion may be biased because several factors—the inclusion of siscowet (the “fat” morphotype of lake trout) in the catch statistics, the soak time of nets, seasonal effects on catch per effort, and the confounding effects of effort targeted at lake whitefish Coregonus clupeaformis—were not accounted for. We developed new indices of historic lean lake trout abundance that correct for these biases and compared them with the assessment data from 1984 to 1998 in Michigan waters of Lake Superior. The modern (1984–1998) abundance of wild lean lake trout is at least as high as that during 1929–1943 in six of eight management areas but lower in one area. Measures to promote and protect naturally reproducing populations have been more successful than previously realized.

  4. Water-quality effects on Baker Lake of recent volcanic activity at Mount Baker, Washington

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Bortleson, Gilbert Carl; Wilson, Reed T.; Foxworthy, B.L.

    1976-01-01

    Increased volcanic activity on Mount Baker, which began in March 1975, represents the greatest known activity of a Cascade Range volcano since eruptions at Lassen Peak, Calif. during 1914-17. Emissions of dust and increased emanations of steam, other gases, and heat from the Sherman Crater area of the mountain focused attention on the possibility of hazardous events, including lava flows, pyroclastic eruptions, avalanches, and mudflows. However, the greatest undesirable natural results that have been observed after one year of the increased activity are an increase in local atmospheric pollution and a decrease in the quality of some local water resources, including Baker Lake. Baker Lake, a hydropower reservoir behind Upper Baker Dam, supports a valuable fishery resource and also is used for recreation. The lake's feedwater is from Baker River and many smaller streams, some of which, like Boulder Creek, drain parts of Mount Baker. Boulder Creek receives water from Sherman Crater, and its channel is a likely route for avalanches or mudflows that might originate in the crater area. Boulder Creek drains only about 5 percent of the total drainage area of Baker Lake, but during 1975 carried sizeable but variable loads of acid and dissolved minerals into the lake. Sulfurous gases and the fumarole dust from Sherman Crater are the main sources for these materials, which are brought into upper Boulder Creek by meltwater from the crater. In September 1973, before the increased volcanic activity, Boulder Creek near the lake had a pH of 6.0-6.6; after the increase the pH ranged as low as about 3.5. Most nearby streams had pH values near 7. On April 29, in Boulder Creek the dissolved sulfate concentration was 6 to 29 times greater than in nearby creeks or in Baker River; total iron was 18-53 times greater than in nearby creeks; and other major dissolved constituents generally 2 to 7 times greater than in the other streams. The short-term effects on Baker Lake of the acidic

  5. A shallow lake remediation regime with Phragmites australis: Incorporating nutrient removal and water evapotranspiration.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Ying; Yang, Zhifeng; Xia, Xinghui; Wang, Fei

    2012-11-01

    Shallow lake eutrophication has been an important issue of global water environment. Based on the simulation and field sampling experiments in Baiyangdian Lake, the largest shallow lake in North China, this study proposed a shallow lake remediation regime with Phragmites australis (reed) incorporating its opposite effects of nutrient removal and water evapotranspiration on water quality. The results of simulation experiments showed that both total nitrogen (TN) and phosphorus (TP) removal efficiencies increased with the increasing reed coverage. The TN removal efficiencies by reed aboveground uptake and rhizosphere denitrification were 11.2%, 13.8%, 22.6%, 28.4%, and 29.6% for the reed coverage of 20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, and 100%, respectively. Correspondingly, TP removal efficiencies by aboveground reed uptake were 1.4%, 2.5%, 4.4%, 7.4% and 7.9%, respectively. However, the water quality was best when the reed coverage was 60% (72 plants m(-2)). This was due to the fact that the concentration effect of reed evapotranspiration on nutrient increased with reed coverage. When the reed coverage was 100% (120 plants m(-2)), the evapotranspiration was approximately twice that without reeds. The field sampling results showed that the highest aboveground nutrient storages occurred in September. Thus, the proposed remediation regime for Baiyangdian Lake was that the reed coverage should be adjusted to 60%, and the aboveground biomass of reeds should be harvested in each September. With this remediation regime, TN and TP removal in Baiyangdian Lake were 117.8 and 4.0 g m(-2), respectively, and the corresponding removal efficiencies were estimated to be 49% and 8.5% after six years. This study suggests that reed is an effective plant for the remediation of shallow lake eutrophication, and its contrasting effects of nutrient removal and evapotranspiration on water quality should be considered for establishing the remediation regime in the future. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier

  6. Impact of Climate Change on Lake Erie Drinking Water Quality—An Initial Assessment with Remote Sensing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liou, L.

    2012-12-01

    A changing climate in the Lake Erie region appears to be having direct impacts on the quality of Lake Erie's drinking water. A dramatic increase in the size and duration of harmful algal blooms (HABs), changes in chlorophyll (Chl) levels and related primary production (PP), prominent sediment plumes, and nearshore production of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) are likely being impacted by warmer winters, more intense storms, and reduced ice extent, amongst other meteorological factors. Hypoxia, another major drinking water issue in the lake, is exacerbated by HABs and nearshore SAV. A Michigan Tech research team (Shuchman, Sayers, Brooks) has recently been developing algorithms to derive HAB extents, Chl levels, PP, sediment plume extents, and nearshore SAV maps for the Great Lakes. Inputs have primarily been derived from MODIS Aqua imagery from the NASA Oceancolor website; investigations in the capability of VIIRS imagery to provide the same critical data are being pursued. Remote sensing-derived ice extent and thickness spatial data are also being analyzed. Working with Liou and Lekki of the NASA Glenn Research Center, the study team is deriving algorithms specifically for Lake Erie and integrating them into an analysis of the lake's changing trends over the last 10 years (2002-2012) to improve understanding of how they are impacting the area's water quality, especially for customers dependent on Lake Erie drinking water. This analysis is tying these remote sensing-derived products to climate-driven meteorological factors to enable an initial assessment of how future changes could continue to impact the region's drinking water quality.

  7. A synthesis of thermokarst lake water balance in high-latitude regions of North America from isotope tracers

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    MacDonald, Lauren A.; Wolfe, Brent B.; Turner, Kevin W.; Anderson, Lesleigh; Arp, Christopher D.; Birks, Jean; Bouchard, Frédéric; Edwards, Thomas W.D.; Farquharson, Nicole; Hall, Roland I.; McDonald, Ian; Narancic, Biljana; Ouimet, Chantal; Pienitz, Reinhard; Tondu, Jana; White, Hilary

    2017-01-01

    Numerous studies utilizing remote sensing imagery and other methods have documented that thermokarst lakes are undergoing varied hydrological transitions in response to recent climate changes, from surface area expansion to drainage and evaporative desiccation. Here, we provide a synthesis of hydrological conditions for 376 lakes of mainly thermokarst origin across high-latitude North America. We assemble surface water isotope compositions measured during the past decade at five lake-rich landscapes including Arctic Coastal Plain (Alaska), Yukon Flats (Alaska), Old Crow Flats (Yukon), northwestern Hudson Bay Lowlands (Manitoba), and Nunavik (Quebec). These landscapes represent the broad range of thermokarst environments by spanning gradients in meteorological, permafrost, and vegetation conditions. An isotope framework was established based on flux-weighted long-term averages of meteorological conditions for each lake to quantify water balance metrics. The isotope composition of source water and evaporation-to-inflow ratio for each lake were determined, and the results demonstrated a substantial array of regional and subregional diversity of lake hydrological conditions. Controls on lake water balance and how these vary among the five landscapes and with differing environmental drivers are assessed. Findings reveal that lakes in the Hudson Bay Lowlands are most vulnerable to evaporative desiccation, whereas those in Nunavik are most resilient. However, we also identify the complexity in predicting hydrological responses of these thermokarst landscapes to future climate change.

  8. Water-Quality Characterization of Surface Water in the Onondaga Lake Basin, Onondaga County, New York, 2005-08

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Coon, William F.; Hayhurst, Brett A.; Kappel, William M.; Eckhardt, David A.V.; Szabo, Carolyn O.

    2009-01-01

    Water-resources managers in Onondaga County, N.Y., have been faced with the challenge of improving the water-quality of Onondaga Lake. To assist in this endeavor, the U.S. Geological Survey undertook a 3-year basinwide study to assess the water quality of surface water in the Onondaga Lake Basin. The study quantified the relative contributions of nonpoint sources associated with the major land uses in the basin and also focused on known sources (streams with large sediment loads) and presumed sinks (Onondaga Reservoir and Otisco Lake) of sediment and nutrient loads, which previously had not been evaluated. Water samples were collected and analyzed for nutrients and suspended sediment at 26 surface-water sites and 4 springs in the 285-square-mile Onondaga Lake Basin from October 2005 through December 2008. More than 1,060 base-flow, stormflow, snowmelt, spring-water, and quality-assurance samples collected during the study were analyzed for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate-plus-nitrite, ammonia-plus-organic nitrogen, orthophosphate, phosphorus, and suspended sediment. The concentration of total suspended solids was measured in selected samples. Ninety-one additional samples were collected, including 80 samples from 4 county-operated sites, which were analyzed for suspended sediment or total suspended solids, and 8 precipitation and 3 snowpack samples, which were analyzed for nutrients. Specific conductance, salinity, dissolved oxygen, and water temperature were periodically measured in the field. The mean concentrations of selected constituents in base-flow, stormflow, and snowmelt samples were related to the land use or land cover that either dominated the basin or had a substantial effect on the water quality of the basin. Almost 40 percent of the Onondaga Lake Basin is forested, 30 percent is in agricultural uses, and almost 21 percent, including the city of Syracuse, is in developed uses. The data indicated expected relative differences among the land types for

  9. Microbial Community Composition and Putative Biogeochemical Functions in the Sediment and Water of Tropical Granite Quarry Lakes.

    PubMed

    Kumar, Amit; Ng, Daphne H P; Wu, Yichao; Cao, Bin

    2018-05-28

    Re-naturalized quarry lakes are important ecosystems, which support complex communities of flora and fauna. Microorganisms associated with sediment and water form the lowest trophic level in these ecosystems and drive biogeochemical cycles. A direct comparison of microbial taxa in water and sediment microbial communities is lacking, which limits our understanding of the dominant functions that are carried out by the water and sediment microbial communities in quarry lakes. In this study, using the 16S rDNA amplicon sequencing approach, we compared microbial communities in the water and sediment in two re-naturalized quarry lakes in Singapore and elucidated putative functions of the sediment and water microbial communities in driving major biogeochemical processes. The richness and diversity of microbial communities in sediments of the quarry lakes were higher than those in the water. The composition of the microbial communities in the sediments from the two quarries was highly similar to one another, while those in the water differed greatly. Although the microbial communities of the sediment and water samples shared some common members, a large number of microbial taxa (at the phylum and genus levels) were prevalent either in sediment or water alone. Our results provide valuable insights into the prevalent biogeochemical processes carried out by water and sediment microbial communities in tropical granite quarry lakes, highlighting distinct microbial processes in water and sediment that contribute to the natural purification of the resident water.

  10. Seasonal radon measurements in Darbandikhan Lake water resources at Kurdistan region-northeastern of Iraq

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jafir, Adeeb Omer; Ahmad, Ali Hassan; Saridan, Wan Muhamad

    2016-03-01

    A total of 164 water samples were collected from Darbandikhan Lake with their different resources (spring, stream, and lake) during the four seasons, and the measurements were carried out using the electronic RAD 7 detector. For spring water the average radon concentration for spring, summer, autumn and summer were found to be 8.21 Bq/1, 8.94 Bq/1, 7.422 Bq/1, and 8.06 Bq/1, respectively, while for lake and streams the average values were found to be 0.43 Bq/1, 0.877 Bq/1, 0.727 Bq/1, 0.575 Bq/1 respectively. The radon concentration level was higher in summer and lower in spring, and only two samples from spring water have radon concentrations more than 11.1 Bq/1 recommended by the EPA. Total annual effective dose due to ingestion and inhalation has been estimated, the mean annual effective dose during the whole year for spring water was 0.022 mSv/y while for lake with streams was 0.00157 mSv/y. The determined mean annual effective dose in water was lower than the 0.1 mSv/y recommended by WHO. Some physicochemical parameters were measured and no correlation was found between them and radon concentration except for the conductivity of the spring drinking water which reveals a strong correlation for the four seasons.

  11. Development of a water quality index (WQI) for the Loktak Lake in India

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Das Kangabam, Rajiv; Bhoominathan, Sarojini Devi; Kanagaraj, Suganthi; Govindaraju, Munisamy

    2017-10-01

    The present work was carried out to assess a water quality index (WQI) of the Loktak Lake, an important wetland which has been under pressure due to the increasing anthropogenic activities. Physicochemical parameters like temperature (Tem), potential hydrogen (pH), electrical conductivity (EC), turbidity (T), dissolved oxygen (DO), total hardness (TH), calcium (Ca), chloride (Cl), fluoride (F), sulphate ({SO}4^{2-}), magnesium (Mg), phosphate ({PO}4^{3-}), sodium (Na), potassium (K), nitrite (NO2), nitrate (NO3), total dissolved solids (TDS), total carbon (TC), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) were analyzed using standard procedures. The values obtained were compared with the guidelines for drinking purpose suggested by the World Health Organization and Bureau of Indian Standard. The result shows the higher concentration of nitrite in all the location which is beyond the permissible limit. Eleven parameters were selected to derive the WQI for the estimation of water potential for five sampling sites. A relative weight was assigned to each parameter range from 1.46 to 4.09 based on its importance. The WQI values range from 64 to 77 indicating that the Loktak Lake water is not fit for drinking, including both human and animals, even though the people living inside the Lake are using it for drinking purposes. The implementation of WQI is necessary for proper management of the Loktak Lake and it will be a very helpful tool for the public and decision makers to evaluate the water quality of the Loktak Lake for sustainable management.

  12. Water quality of the Crescent River basin, Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, Alaska, 2003-2004

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Brabets, Timothy P.; Ourso, Robert T.

    2006-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey and the National Park Service conducted a water-quality investigation of the Crescent River Basin in Lake Clark National Park and Preserve from May 2003 through September 2004. The Crescent River Basin was studied because it has a productive sockeye salmon run that is important to the Cook Inlet commercial fishing industry. Water-quality, biology, and limnology characteristics were assessed. Glacier-fed streams that flow into Crescent Lake transport suspended sediment that is trapped by the lake. Suspended sediment concentrations from the Lake Fork Crescent River (the outlet stream of Crescent Lake) were less than 10 milligrams per liter, indicating a high trapping efficiency of Crescent Lake. The North Fork Crescent River transports suspended sediment throughout its course and provides most of the suspended sediment to the main stem of the Crescent River downstream from the confluence of the Lake Fork Crescent River. Three locations on Crescent Lake were profiled during the summer of 2004. Turbidity profiles indicate sediment plumes within the water column at various times during the summer. Turbidity values are higher in June, reflecting the glacier-fed runoff into the lake. Lower values of turbidity in August and September indicate a decrease of suspended sediment entering Crescent Lake. The water type throughout the Crescent River Basin is calcium bicarbonate. Concentrations of nutrients, major ions, and dissolved organic carbon are low. Alkalinity concentrations are generally less than 20 milligrams per liter, indicating a low buffering capacity of these waters. Streambed sediments collected from three surface sites analyzed for trace elements indicated that copper concentrations at all sites were above proposed guidelines. However, copper concentrations are due to the local geology, not anthropogenic factors. Zooplankton samples from Crescent Lake indicated the main taxa are Cyclops sp., a Copepod, and within that taxa were a

  13. Holocene Climate Reconstructions from Lake Water Oxygen Isotopes in NW and SW Greenland

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lasher, G. E.; Axford, Y.; McFarlin, J. M.; Kelly, M. A.; Osterberg, E. C.; Berkelhammer, M. B.; Berman, K.; Kotecki, P.; Gawin, B.

    2016-12-01

    Reconstructions of stable isotopes of precipitation (SIP) from currently unglaciated parts of Greenland can help elucidate spatial patterns of past climate shifts in this climatically important and complex region. We have developed a 7700-year record of lake water δ18O from a small non-glacial lake in NW Greenland (near Thule Air Base), inferred from the δ18O of subfossil chironomid (insect) head capsules and aquatic mosses. Lake water δ18O remains constant from 8 ka until 4 ka and then declines by 2.5 ‰ to the present, representing a +2.5 to 5.5 °C Holocene Thermal Maximum temperature anomaly for this region. For comparison, two new sediment records from hydrologically connected lakes south of Nuuk in SW Greenland record 8500 years of lake water δ18O, also inferred from δ18O of chironomids. At the time cores were collected during the summer in 2014 and 2015, all lakes reflected SIP and exhibited minimal evaporation influence. Historical monitoring of stable isotopes of precipitation from Thule Air Base and Grønnedal in south Greenland suggest the controls on SIP differ greatly between our two study sites, as would be predicted based upon the strongly Arctic (in the NW) versus North Atlantic (in the SW) atmospheric and marine influences at the two sites. Interpretation of Holocene climate from these two contrasting sites will be discussed. These climate records from the same proxy allow us to compare millennial scale Holocene climate responses to northern hemisphere solar insolation trends in two different climate regimes of Greenland.

  14. Lake Whitney Comprehensive Water Quality Assessment, Phase 1B- Physical and Biological Assessment (USDOE)

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Doyle, Robert D; Byars, Bruce W

    2009-11-24

    Baylor University Center for Reservoir and Aquatic Systems Research (CRASR) has conducted a phased, comprehensive evaluation of Lake Whitney to determine its suitability for use as a regional water supply reservoir. The area along the Interstate 35 corridor between Dallas / Fort Worth Metroplex and the Waco / Temple Centroplex represents one of the fastest growth areas in the State of Texas and reliable water supplies are critical to sustainable growth. Lake Whitney is situated midway between these two metropolitan areas. Currently, the City of Whitney as well as all of Bosque and Hill counties obtain their potable water frommore » the Trinity Sands aquifer. Additionally, parts of the adjoining McLennan and Burleson counties utilize the Trinity sands aquifer system as a supplement to their surface water supplies. Population growth coupled with increasing demands on this aquifer system in both the Metroplex and Centroplex have resulted in a rapid depletion of groundwater in these rural areas. The Lake Whitney reservoir represents both a potentially local and regional solution for an area experiencing high levels of growth. Because of the large scope of this project as well as the local, regional and national implications, we have designed a multifaceted approach that will lead to the solution of numerous issues related to the feasibility of using Lake Whitney as a water resource to the region. Phase IA (USEPA, QAPP Study Elements 1-4) of this research focused on the physical limnology of the reservoir (bathymetry and fine scale salinity determination) and develops hydrodynamic watershed and reservoir models to evaluate how salinity would be expected to change with varying hydrologic and climatic factors. To this end, we implemented a basic water quality modeling program in collaboration with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to add to the developing long-term database on Lake Whitney. Finally, we conducted an

  15. Spatial and Temporal Water Quality Dynamics in the Lake Maumelle Reservoir (Arkansas): Geochemical and Planktonic Variance in a Drinking Water Source

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Carey, M. D.; Ruhl, L. S.

    2017-12-01

    The Lake Maumelle reservoir is Central Arkansas's main water supply. Maintaining a high standard of water quality is important to the over 400,000 residents of this area whom rely on this mesotrophic waterbody for drinking water. Lake Maumelle is also a scenic attraction for recreational boating and fishing. Past research has focused primarily on watershed management with land use/land cover modeling and quarterly water sampling of the 13.91mi2 reservoir. The surrounding land within the watershed is predominately densely forested, with timber farms and the Ouachita National Forest. This project identifies water quality changes spatially and temporally, which have not been as frequently observed, over a 6-month timespan. Water samples were collected vertically throughout the water column and horizontally throughout the lake following reservoir zonation. Parameters collected vertically for water quality profiles are temperature, dissolved oxygen, electrical conductivity, salinity, and pH. Soft sediment samples were collected and pore water was extracted by centrifuge. Cation and anion concentrations in the water samples were determined using ion chromatography, and trace element concentrations were determined using ICPMS. Planktonic abundances were determined using an inverted microscope and a 5ml counting chamber. Trace element, cation, and anion concentrations have been compared with planktonic abundance and location to determine microorganismal response to geochemical variance. During June 2017 sampling, parameters varied throughout the water column (temperature decreased 4 degrees Celsius and dissolved oxygen decreased from 98% to 30% from surface to bottom depths), revealing that the reservoir was becoming stratified. Collected plankton samples revealed the presence of copepod, daphnia, and dinoflagellate algae. Utricularia gibba was present in the littoral zone. Low electrical conductivity readings and high water clarity are consistent with the lake

  16. Hydrological storage variations in a lake water balance, observed from multi-sensor satellite data and hydrological models.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Singh, Alka; Seitz, Florian; Schwatke, Christian; Guentner, Andreas

    2013-04-01

    Freshwater lakes and reservoirs account for 74.5% of continental water storage in surface water bodies and only 1.8% resides in rivers. Lakes and reservoirs are a key component of the continental hydrological cycle but in-situ monitoring networks are very limited either because of sparse spatial distribution of gauges or national data policy. Monitoring and predicting extreme events is very challenging in that case. In this study we demonstrate the use of optical remote sensing, satellite altimetry and the GRACE gravity field mission to monitor the lake water storage variations in the Aral Sea. Aral Sea is one of the most unfortunate examples of a large anthropogenic catastrophe. The 4th largest lake of 1960s has been decertified for more than 75% of its area due to the diversion of its primary rivers for irrigation purposes. Our study is focused on the time frame of the GRACE mission; therefore we consider changes from 2002 onwards. Continuous monthly time series of water masks from Landsat satellite data and water level from altimetry missions were derived. Monthly volumetric variations of the lake water storage were computed by intersecting a digital elevation model of the lake with respective water mask and altimetry water level. With this approach we obtained volume from two independent remote sensing methods to reduce the error in the estimated volume through least square adjustment. The resultant variations were then compared with mass variability observed by GRACE. In addition, GARCE estimates of water storage variations were compared with simulation results of the Water Gap Hydrology Model (WGHM). The different observations from all missions agree that the lake reached an absolute minimum in autumn 2009. A marked reversal of the negative trend occured in 2010 but water storage in the lake decreased again afterwards. The results reveal that water storage variations in the Aral Sea are indeed the principal, but not the only contributor to the GRACE signal of

  17. GROUND WATER QUALITY SURROUNDING LAKE TEXOMA DURING SHORT-TERM DROUGHT CONDITIONS

    EPA Science Inventory

    Water quality data from 55 monitoring wells during drought conditions surrounding Lake Texoma, located on the border of Oklahoma and Texas, was compared to assess the influence of drought on groundwater quality. During the drought month of October, water table levels were three ...

  18. Graphical user interface for accessing water-quality data for the Devils Lake basin, North Dakota

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Ryberg, Karen R.; Damschen, William C.; Vecchia, Aldo V.

    2005-01-01

    Maintaining the quality of surface waters in the Devils Lake Basin in North Dakota is important for protecting the agricultural resources, fisheries, waterfowl and wildlife habitat, and recreational value of the basin. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with local, State, and Federal agencies, has collected and analyzed water-quality samples from streams and lakes in the basin since 1957, and the North Dakota Department of Health has collected and analyzed water-quality samples from lakes in the basin since 2001. Because water-quality data for the basin are important for numerous reasons, a graphical user interface was developed to access, view, and download the historical data for the basin. The interface is a web-based application that is available to the public and includes data through water year 2003. The interface will be updated periodically to include data for subsequent years.

  19. Evolution of alkaline lakes - Lake Van case study

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tillman Meyer, Felix; Viehberg, Finn; Bahroun, Sonya; Wolf, Annabel; Immenhauser, Adrian; Kwiecien, Ola

    2017-04-01

    Lake Van in Eastern Anatolia (Turkey) is the largest terminal soda lake on Earth. The lake sedimentary profile covers ca. 600 ka (Stockhecke et al. 2014) Based on lithological changes, the presence of freshwater microfossils and close-to-freshwater pH value in the pore water, members of ICDP PALEOVAN concluded that Lake Van might have started as an open lake. Here we show paleontological and geochemical evidence in favour of this idea and constrain the time, when Lake Van likely transformed into a closed lake. Additionally we provide the first conceptual model of how this closure may have happened. Our archives of choice are inorganic and biogenic carbonates, separated by wet sieving. We identified microfossil assemblages (fraction > 125 µm) and performed high-resolution oxygen isotope (delta18O) and elemental (Mg/Ca, Sr/Ca) analyses of the fraction < 63 µm assuming that it represents only carbonates precipitating in the water column. Microfossil assemblage consists of three different species of ostracods (Candona spp, Loxoconcha sp, Amnicythere spp.), diatoms, gastropods and bivalves. Brakish-water ostracods, Loxoconcha sp and Amnicythere sp occur more often after 530 ka. Additionaly, Loxoconcha sp is a shallow-water species relaying on plants growing in the photic zone as food supply. These two aspects point to an increasing salinity in a shallowing lake. The delta18O values of inorganic carbonates are relatively low during the initial phase of Lake Van and increase abruptly (ca. 7‰) after 530 ka BP. At approximately the same time combination of Sr/Ca and Mg/Ca data suggest first occurrence of aragonite. Again, these findings suggest geochemical changes of the lake water concurrent with transition documented by microfossils. Comparison between Lake Van and Lake Ohrid (Lacey et al. 2016) delta18O data, precludes regional climate change (e.g.: increased evaporation) as the main driver of observed changes. With no evidence for increased volcanic or tectonic

  20. Modeling the effects of climatic and land use changes on phytoplankton and water quality of the largest Turkish freshwater lake: Lake Beyşehir.

    PubMed

    Bucak, Tuba; Trolle, Dennis; Tavşanoğlu, Ü Nihan; Çakıroğlu, A İdil; Özen, Arda; Jeppesen, Erik; Beklioğlu, Meryem

    2018-04-15

    Climate change and intense land use practices are the main threats to ecosystem structure and services of Mediterranean lakes. Therefore, it is essential to predict the future changes and develop mitigation measures to combat such pressures. In this study, Lake Beyşehir, the largest freshwater lake in the Mediterranean basin, was selected to study the impacts of climate change and various land use scenarios on the ecosystem dynamics of Mediterranean freshwater ecosystems and the services that they provide. For this purpose, we linked catchment model outputs to the two different processed-based lake models: PCLake and GLM-AED, and tested the scenarios of five General Circulation Models, two Representation Concentration Pathways and three different land use scenarios, which enable us to consider the various sources of uncertainty. Climate change and land use scenarios generally predicted strong future decreases in hydraulic and nutrient loads from the catchment to the lake. These changes in loads translated into alterations in water level as well as minor changes in chlorophyll a (Chl-a) concentrations. We also observed an increased abundance of cyanobacteria in both lake models. Total phosphorus, temperature and hydraulic loading were found to be the most important variables determining cyanobacteria biomass. As the future scenarios revealed only minor changes in Chl-a due to the significant decrease in nutrient loads, our results highlight that reduced nutrient loading in a warming world may play a crucial role in offsetting the effects of temperature on phytoplankton growth. However, our results also showed increased abundance of cyanobacteria in the future may threaten ecosystem integrity and may limit drinking water ecosystem services. In addition, extended periods of decreased hydraulic loads from the catchment and increased evaporation may lead to water level reductions and may diminish the ecosystem services of the lake as a water supply for irrigation and

  1. Hydrogeologic Controls on Lake Level at Mountain Lake, Virginia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Roningen, J. M.; Burbey, T. J.

    2011-12-01

    Mountain Lake in Giles County, Virginia has a documented history of severe natural lake-level changes involving groundwater seepage that extend over the past 4200 years. Featured in the 1986 movie Dirty Dancing, the natural lake dried up completely in September 2008 and levels have not yet recovered. A hydrogeologic investigation was undertaken in an effort to determine the factors influencing lake level changes. A daily water balance, dipole-dipole electrical resistivity surveying, well logging and chemical sampling have shed light on: 1) the influence of a fault not previously discussed in literature regarding the lake, 2) the seasonal response to precipitation of a forested first-order drainage system in fractured rock, and 3) the possibility of flow pathways related to karst features. Geologic controls on lake level were investigated using several techniques. Geophysical surveys using dipole-dipole resistivity located possible subsurface flowpaths both to and from the lake. Well logs, lineament analysis, and joint sampling were used to assess structural controls on lake hydrology. Major ions were sampled at wells, springs, streams, and the lake to evaluate possible mixing of different sources of water in the lake. Groundwater levels were monitored for correlation to lake levels, rainfall events, and possible seismic effects. The hydrology of the lake was quantified with a water balance on a daily time step. Results from the water balance indicate steady net drainage and significant recharge when vegetation is dormant, particularly during rain-on-snow melt events. The resistivity survey reveals discrete areas that represent flow pathways from the lake, as well as flowpaths to springs upgradient of the lake located in the vicinity of the fault. The survey also suggests that some flowpaths may originate outside of the topographic watershed of the lake. Chemical evidence indicates karst may underlie the lakebed. Historical data suggest that artificial intervention

  2. Sediment-water gas exchange in two Swedish lakes measured by Eddy Correlation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kokic, J.; Sahlee, E.; Brand, A.; Sobek, S.

    2014-12-01

    Lake sediments are hotspots for carbon (C) cycling, acting both as sinks and sources through C burial and production of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane. The fate of this CO2 in the water column is controlled by bottom water turbulence, a factor not accounted for in current estimates of sediment CO2 fluxes. This study is aimed to quantify the turbulent CO2 flux across the sediment-water interface (SWI) by measuring the oxygen (O2) flux with the non-invasive Eddy Correlation (EC) method that combines measurements of 3D velocity (ADV) and O2 fluctuations with a microsensor. Using the metabolic relation (respiratory quotient, RQ) of O2 and CO2 derived from a sediment incubation experiment we present the first estimates of turbulent lake sediment CO2 flux from two boreal lakes in Sweden (Erssjön and Erken, 0.07 km2 and 23.7 km2 respectively). Only ~10 % of the total dataset was extracted for flux calculations due to poor signal-to-noise ratio in the velocity and O2 signals. The sediment in Lake Erssjön was both consuming and producing O2, related to bacterial respiration and photosynthesis. Mean O2 flux was -0.19 and 0.17 μmol O2 m-2 sec-1, comparing to 0.04 μmol O2 m-2 sec-1 derived from the sediment incubation experiment. Fluxes for Lake Erken are still to be determined. Experimentally derived RQ of the both lake sediments were close to unity implying that in-situ CO2 fluxes are of similar magnitude as O2 fluxes, varying between -0.15 and 0.18 μmol C m-2 sec-1. The first measurement of turbulent sediment O2 flux and estimate of turbulent CO2 flux from a small boreal lake show higher and more variable fluxes than previously found in experimental studies. The low amount of data extracted for flux calculations (~10%) point towards the difficulties in EC measurement in low-turbulence environments. On-going work focuses on the turbulence structure in lakes and its influence on the gas fluxes at the SWI.

  3. Water-gas exchange of organochlorine pesticides at Lake Chaohu, a large Chinese lake.

    PubMed

    Ouyang, Hui-Ling; He, Wei; Qin, Ning; Kong, Xiang-Zhen; Liu, Wen-Xiu; He, Qi-Shuang; Yang, Chen; Jiang, Yu-Jiao; Wang, Qing-Mei; Yang, Bin; Xu, Fu-Liu

    2013-04-01

    Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), a potential threat to ecosystems and human health, are still widely residual in the environment. The residual levels of OCPs in the water and gas phase were monitored in Lake Chaohu, a large Chinese lake, from March 2010 to February 2011. Nineteen types of OCPs were detected in the water with a total concentration of 7.27 ± 3.32 ng/l. Aldrin, DDTs and HCHs were the major OCPs in the water, accounting for 38.3%, 28.9% and 23.6% of the total, respectively. The highest mean concentration (12.32 ng/l) in the water was found in September, while the lowest (1.74 ng/l) was found in November. Twenty types of gaseous OCPs were detected in the atmosphere with a total concentration of 542.0 ± 636.5 pg/m(3). Endosulfan, DDTs and chlordane were the major gaseous OCPs in the atmosphere, accounting for 48.9%, 22.5% and 14.4% of the total, respectively. The mean concentration of gaseous OCPs was significantly higher in summer than in winter. o,p'-DDE was the main metabolite of DDT in both the water and gas phase. Of the HCHs, 52.3% existed as β-HCH in the water, while α-HCH (37.9%) and γ-HCH (30.9%) were dominant isomers in the gas phase. The average fluxes were -21.11, -3.30, -152.41, -35.50 and -1314.15 ng/(m(2) day) for α-HCH, γ-HCH, HCB, DDT and DDE, respectively. The water-gas exchanges of the five types of OCPs indicate that water was the main potential source of gaseous OCPs in the atmosphere. A sensitivity analysis indicated that the water-gas flux of α-HCH, γ-HCH and DDT is more vulnerable than that of HCB and DDE to the variation of the parameters. The possible source of the HCHs in the water was from the historical usage of lindane; however, that in the air was mainly from the recent usage of lindane. The technical DDT and dicofol might be the source of DDTs in the water and air.

  4. Nitrification in lake sediment with addition of drinking water treatment residuals.

    PubMed

    Wang, Changhui; Liu, Juanfeng; Wang, Zhixin; Pei, Yuansheng

    2014-06-01

    Drinking water treatment residuals (WTRs), non-hazardous by-products generated during potable water production, can effectively reduce the lake internal phosphorus (P) loading and improve water quality in lakes. It stands to reason that special attention regarding the beneficial reuse of WTRs should be given not only to the effectiveness of P pollution control, but also to the effects on the migration and transformation of other nutrients (e.g., nitrogen (N)). In this work, based on laboratory enrichment tests, the effects of WTRs addition on nitrification in lake sediment were investigated using batch tests, fluorescence in situ hybridization, quantitative polymerase chain reaction and phylogenetic analysis techniques. The results indicated that WTRs addition had minor effects on the morphologies of AOB and NOB; however, the addition slightly enhanced the sediment nitrification potential from 12.8 to 13.2 μg-N g(-1)-dry sample h(-1) and also increased the ammonia oxidation bacteria (AOB) and nitrite oxidizing bacteria (NOB) abundances, particularly the AOB abundances (P < 0.05), which increased from 1.11 × 10(8) to 1.31 × 10(8) copies g(-1)-dry sample. Moreover, WTRs addition was beneficial to the enrichment of Nitrosomonas and Nitrosospira multiformis and promoted the emergence of a new Nitrospira cluster, causing the increase in AOB and NOB diversities. Further analysis showed that the variations of nitrification in lake sediment after WTRs addition were primarily due to the decrease of bioavailable P, the introduction of new nitrifiers and the increase of favorable carriers for microorganism attachment in sediments. Overall, these results suggested that WTRs reuse for the control of lake internal P loading would also lead to conditions that are beneficial to nitrification. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. An integrated investigation of lake storage and water level changes in the Paiku Co basin, central Himalayas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lei, Yanbin; Yao, Tandong; Yang, Kun; Bird, Broxton W.; Tian, Lide; Zhang, Xiaowen; Wang, Weicai; Xiang, Yang; Dai, Yufeng; Lazhu; Zhou, Jing; Wang, Lei

    2018-07-01

    Since the late 1990s, lakes in the southern Tibetan Plateau (TP) have shrunk considerably, which contrasts with the rapid expansion of lakes in the interior TP. Although these spatial trends have been well documented, the underlying hydroclimatic mechanisms are not well understood. Since 2013, we have carried out comprehensive water budget observations at Paiku Co, an alpine lake in the central Himalayas. In this study, we investigate water storage and lake level changes on seasonal to decadal time scales based on extensive in-situ measurements and satellite observations. Bathymetric surveys show that Paiku Co has a mean and maximum water depth of 41.1 m and 72.8 m, respectively, and its water storage was estimated to be 109.3 × 108 m3 in June 2016. On seasonal scale between 2013 and 2017, Paiku Co's lake level decreased slowly between January and May, increased considerably between June and September, and then decreased rapidly between October and January. On decadal time scale, Paiku Co's lake level decreased by 3.7 ± 0.3 m and water storage reduced by (10.2 ± 0.8) × 108 m3 between 1972 and 2015, accounting for 8.5% of the total water storage in 1972. This change is consistent with a trend towards drier conditions in the Himalaya region during the recent decades. In contrast, glacial lakes within Paiku Co's basin expanded rapidly, indicating that, unlike Paiku Co, glacial meltwater was sufficient to compensate the effect of the reduced precipitation.

  6. Water quality, hydrology, and phosphorus loading to Little St. Germain Lake, Wisconsin, with special emphasis on the effects of winter aeration and ground-water inputs

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Robertson, Dale M.; Rose, William J.; Saad, David A.

    2005-01-01

    Several empirical water-quality models were used to simulate how the East and Upper East Bays of the lake should respond to reductions in phosphorus loading from Muskellunge Creek. Simulation results indicated that reductions in tributary loading could improve the water quality of the East and Upper East Bays. Improving the water quality of these bays would also improve the water quality of the South and Second South Bays because of the flow of water through the lake. However, even with phosphorus loading from Muskellunge Creek completely eliminated, most of the lake would remain borderline mesotrophic/eutrophic because of the contributions of phosphorus from ground water.

  7. A Wireless Sensor Network-Based Approach with Decision Support for Monitoring Lake Water Quality.

    PubMed

    Huang, Xiaoci; Yi, Jianjun; Chen, Shaoli; Zhu, Xiaomin

    2015-11-19

    Online monitoring and water quality analysis of lakes are urgently needed. A feasible and effective approach is to use a Wireless Sensor Network (WSN). Lake water environments, like other real world environments, present many changing and unpredictable situations. To ensure flexibility in such an environment, the WSN node has to be prepared to deal with varying situations. This paper presents a WSN self-configuration approach for lake water quality monitoring. The approach is based on the integration of a semantic framework, where a reasoner can make decisions on the configuration of WSN services. We present a WSN ontology and the relevant water quality monitoring context information, which considers its suitability in a pervasive computing environment. We also propose a rule-based reasoning engine that is used to conduct decision support through reasoning techniques and context-awareness. To evaluate the approach, we conduct usability experiments and performance benchmarks.

  8. Endocrine disrupting chemicals in Minnesota lakes - Water-quality and hydrological data from 2008 and 2010

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Barber, Larry B.; Writer, Jeffrey H.; Keefe, Steffanie K.; Brown, Greg K.; Ferrey, Mark L.; Jahns, Nathan D.; Kiesling, Richard L.; Lundy, James R.; Poganski, Beth H.; Rosenberry, Donald O.; Taylor, Howard E.; Woodruff, Olivia P.; Schoenfuss, Heiko L.

    2012-01-01

    Understanding the sources, fate, and effects of endocrine disrupting chemicals in aquatic ecosystems is important for water-resource management. This study was conducted during 2008 and 2010 to establish a framework for assessing endocrine disrupting chemicals, and involved a statewide survey of their occurrence in 14 Minnesota lakes and a targeted study of different microhabitats on a single lake. The lakes ranged in size from about 0.1 to 100 square kilometers, varied in trophic status from oligotrophic to eutrophic, and spanned a range of land-uses from wetlands and forest to agricultural and urban use. Water and sediment samples were collected from the near-shore littoral environment and analyzed for endocrine disrupting chemicals, including trace elements, acidic organic compounds, neutral organic compounds, and steroidal hormones. In addition, polar organic compound integrative samplers were deployed for 21 days and analyzed for the same organic compounds. One lake was selected for a detailed microhabitat study of multiple near-shore environments. This report compiles the results from the field measurements and laboratory chemical analysis of water, sediment, and polar organic compound integrative sampler samples collected during 2008 and 2010. Most of the organic compounds measured were not detected in any of the water samples, although a few compounds were detected in several of the lakes.

  9. Use of wetlands for water quality improvement under the USEPA Region V Clean Lakes Program

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Landers, Judith C.; Knuth, Barbara A.

    1991-03-01

    The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Region V Clean Lakes Program employs artificial and modified natural wetlands in an effort to improve the water quality of selected lakes. We examined use of wetlands at seven lake sites and evaluated the physical and institutional means by which wetland projects are implemented and managed, relative to USEPA program goals and expert recommendations on the use of wetlands for water quality improvement. Management practices recommended by wetlands experts addressed water level and retention, sheet flow, nutrient removal, chemical treatment, ecological and effectiveness monitoring, and resource enhancement. Institutional characteristics recommended included local monitoring, regulation, and enforcement and shared responsibilities among jurisdictions. Institutional and ecological objectives of the National Clean Lakes Program were met to some degree at every site. Social objectives were achieved to a lesser extent. Wetland protection mechanisms and appropriate institutional decentralization were present at all sites. Optimal management techniques were employed to varying degrees at each site, but most projects lack adequate monitoring to determine adverse ecological impacts and effectiveness of pollutant removal and do not extensively address needs for recreation and wildlife habitat. There is evidence that the wetland projects are contributing to improved lake water quality; however, more emphasis needs to be placed on wetland protection and long-term project evaluation.

  10. Changes in water and sediment exchange between the Changjiang River and Poyang Lake under natural and anthropogenic conditions, China.

    PubMed

    Gao, Jian Hua; Jia, Jianjun; Kettner, Albert J; Xing, Fei; Wang, Ya Ping; Xu, Xia Nan; Yang, Yang; Zou, Xin Qing; Gao, Shu; Qi, Shuhua; Liao, Fuqiang

    2014-05-15

    To study the fluvial interaction between Changjiang River and Poyang Lake, we analyze the observed changes of riverine flux of the mid-upstream of Changjiang River catchment, the five river systems of Poyang Lake and Poyang Lake basin. Inter-annual and seasonal variations of the water discharge and sediment exchange processes between Changjiang River and Poyang Lake are systematically explored to determine the influence of climate change as well as human impact (especially the Three Gorges Dam (TGD)). Results indicate that climate variation for the Changjiang catchment and Poyang Lake watershed is the main factor determining the changes of water exchanges between Changjiang River and Poyang Lake. However, human activities (including the emplacement of the TGD) accelerated this rate of change. Relative to previous years (1956-1989), the water discharge outflow from Poyang Lake during the dry season towards the Changjiang catchment increased by 8.98 km(3)y(-1) during 2003-2010. Evidently, the water discharge flowing into Poyang Lake during late April-late May decreased. As a consequence, water storage of Poyang Lake significantly reduced during late April-late May, resulting in frequent spring droughts after 2003. The freshwater flux of Changjiang River towards Poyang Lake is less during the flood season as well, significantly lowering the magnitude and frequency of the backflow of the Changjiang River during 2003-2010. Human activities, especially the emplacement and operation of the TGD and sand mining at Poyang Lake impose a major impact on the variation of sediment exchange between Changjiang main river and Poyang Lake. On average, sediments from Changjiang River deposited in Poyang Lake before 2000. After 2000, Changjiang River no longer supplied sediment to Poyang Lake. As a consequence, the sediment load of Changjiang River entering the sea increasingly exists of sediments from Lake Poyang during 2003-2010. As a result, Poyang Lake converted from a

  11. Datasets related to in-land water for limnology and remote sensing applications: distance-to-land, distance-to-water, water-body identifier and lake-centre co-ordinates.

    PubMed

    Carrea, Laura; Embury, Owen; Merchant, Christopher J

    2015-11-01

    Datasets containing information to locate and identify water bodies have been generated from data locating static-water-bodies with resolution of about 300 m (1/360 ∘ ) recently released by the Land Cover Climate Change Initiative (LC CCI) of the European Space Agency. The LC CCI water-bodies dataset has been obtained from multi-temporal metrics based on time series of the backscattered intensity recorded by ASAR on Envisat between 2005 and 2010. The new derived datasets provide coherently: distance to land, distance to water, water-body identifiers and lake-centre locations. The water-body identifier dataset locates the water bodies assigning the identifiers of the Global Lakes and Wetlands Database (GLWD), and lake centres are defined for in-land waters for which GLWD IDs were determined. The new datasets therefore link recent lake/reservoir/wetlands extent to the GLWD, together with a set of coordinates which locates unambiguously the water bodies in the database. Information on distance-to-land for each water cell and the distance-to-water for each land cell has many potential applications in remote sensing, where the applicability of geophysical retrieval algorithms may be affected by the presence of water or land within a satellite field of view (image pixel). During the generation and validation of the datasets some limitations of the GLWD database and of the LC CCI water-bodies mask have been found. Some examples of the inaccuracies/limitations are presented and discussed. Temporal change in water-body extent is common. Future versions of the LC CCI dataset are planned to represent temporal variation, and this will permit these derived datasets to be updated.

  12. Circulation and sedimentation in a tidal-influenced fjord lake: Lake McKerrow, New Zealand

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pickrill, R. A.; Irwin, J.; Shakespeare, B. S.

    1981-01-01

    Lake McKerrow is a tide-influenced fjord lake, separated from the open sea by a Holocene barrier spit. Fresh, oxygenated waters of the epilimnion overlie saline, deoxygenated waters of the hypolimnion. During winter, water from the Upper Hollyford River interflows along the pycnocline, depositing coarse silt on the steep delta and transporting finer sediment down-lake. An extensive sub-lacustrine channel system on the foreset delta slope is possibly maintained by turbidity currents. Saline waters of the hypolimnion are periodically replenished. During high tides and low lake levels saline water flows into the lake and downslope into the lake basin as a density current in a well defined channel.

  13. Water Budgets of the Walker River Basin and Walker Lake, California and Nevada

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lopes, Thomas J.; Allander, Kip K.

    2009-01-01

    The Walker River is the main source of inflow to Walker Lake, a closed-basin lake in west-central Nevada. The only outflow from Walker Lake is evaporation from the lake surface. Between 1882 and 2008, upstream agricultural diversions resulted in a lake-level decline of more than 150 feet and storage loss of 7,400,000 acre-feet. Evaporative concentration increased dissolved solids from 2,500 to 17,000 milligrams per liter. The increase in salinity threatens the survival of the Lahontan cutthroat trout, a native species listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. This report describes streamflow in the Walker River basin and an updated water budget of Walker Lake with emphasis on the lower Walker River basin downstream from Wabuska, Nevada. Water budgets are based on average annual flows for a 30-year period (1971-2000). Total surface-water inflow to the upper Walker River basin upstream from Wabuska was estimated to be 387,000 acre-feet per year (acre-ft/yr). About 223,000 acre-ft/yr (58 percent) is from the West Fork of the Walker River; 145,000 acre-ft/yr (37 percent) is from the East Fork of the Walker River; 17,000 acre-ft/yr (4 percent) is from the Sweetwater Range; and 2,000 acre-ft/yr (less than 1 percent) is from the Bodie Mountains, Pine Grove Hills, and western Wassuk Range. Outflow from the upper Walker River basin is 138,000 acre-ft/yr at Wabuska. About 249,000 acre-ft/yr (64 percent) of inflow is diverted for irrigation, transpired by riparian vegetation, evaporates from lakes and reservoirs, and recharges alluvial aquifers. Stream losses in Antelope, Smith, and Bridgeport Valleys are due to evaporation from reservoirs and agricultural diversions with negligible stream infiltration or riparian evapotranspiration. Diversion rates in Antelope and Smith Valleys were estimated to be 3.0 feet per year (ft/yr) in each valley. Irrigated fields receive an additional 0.8 ft of precipitation, groundwater pumpage, or both for a total applied-water rate

  14. Analysis of water level variation of lakes and reservoirs in Xinjiang, China using ICESat laser altimetry data (2003–2009)

    PubMed Central

    Liu, Hongxing; Chen, Yaning; Shu, Song; Wu, Qiusheng; Wang, Shujie

    2017-01-01

    This study utilizes ICESat Release 33 GLA14 data to analyse water level variation of Xinjiang’s lakes and reservoirs from 2003 to 2009. By using Landsat images, lakes and reservoirs with area larger than 1 km2 are numerically delineated with a software tool. Based on ICESat observations, we analyse the characteristics of water level variation in different geographic environments, as well as investigate the reasons for the variation. Results indicate that climatic warming contributes to rising water levels in lakes in mountainous areas, especially for lakes that are recharged by snow and glacial melting. For lakes in oases, the water levels are affected jointly by human activity and climate change, while the water levels of reservoirs are mainly affected by human activity. Comparing the annual average rates of water levels, those of lakes are higher than those of reservoirs in oasis areas. The main reasons for the decreasing water levels in desert regions are the reduction of recharged runoff and high evaporation. By analysing the variation of water levels and water volume in different geologic environments, it is found that water level and volume increased in mountainous regions, and decreased in oasis regions and desert regions. Finding also demonstrate that decreasing volume is greater than increasing volume, which results in decreasing total volume of Xinjiang lakes and reservoirs. PMID:28873094

  15. Trophic state in Voyageurs National Park lakes before and after implementation of a revised water-level management plan

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Christensen, Victoria G.; Maki, Ryan P.

    2015-01-01

    We compiled Secchi depth, total phosphorus, and chlorophyll a (Chla) data from Voyageurs National Park lakes and compared datasets before and after a new water-level management plan was implemented in January 2000. Average Secchi depth transparency improved (from 1.9 to 2.1 m, p = 0.020) between 1977-1999 and 2000-2011 in Kabetogama Lake for August samples only and remained unchanged in Rainy, Namakan, and Sand Point Lakes, and Black Bay in Rainy Lake. Average open-water season Chla concentration decreased in Black Bay (from an average of 13 to 6.0 μg/l, p = 0.001) and Kabetogama Lake (from 9.9 to 6.2 μg/l, p = 0.006) between 1977-1999 and 2000-2011. Trophic state index decreased significantly in Black Bay from 59 to 51 (p = 0.006) and in Kabetogama Lake from 57 to 50 (p = 0.006) between 1977-1999 and 2000-2011. Trophic state indices based on Chla indicated that after 2000, Sand Point, Namakan, and Rainy Lakes remained oligotrophic, whereas eutrophication has decreased in Kabetogama Lake and Black Bay. Although nutrient inputs from inflows and internal sources are still sufficient to produce annual cyanobacterial blooms and may inhibit designated water uses, trophic state has decreased for Kabetogama Lake and Black Bay and there has been no decline in lake ecosystem health since the implementation of the revised water-level management plan.

  16. Potential and limitations of satellite laser altimetry for monitoring water surface dynamics: ICESat for US lakes

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Shu, Liu; Qigang, Jiang; Zhang, Xuesong

    Elevation measurements from the Ice, Cloud and Land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) have been applied to monitor dynamics of lakes and other surface water bodies. Despite such potential, the true utility of ICESat--more generally, satellite laser altimetry--for tracking surface water dynamics over time has not been adequately assessed, especially in the continental or global contexts. Here, we analyzed ICESat elevation data for the conterminous United States and examined the potential and limitations of satellite laser altimetry in measuring water-level dynamics. Owing to a lack of spatially-explicit ground-based water-level data, we first resorted to high-fidelity land elevation data acquired by airborne lidarmore » to quantify ICESat’s ranging accuracy. We then performed trend and frequency analyses to evaluate how reliably ICESat could capture water-level dynamics over a range of temporal scales, as compared to in-situ gauge measurements. Our analyses showed that ICESat had a vertical ranging error of 0.16 m at the footprint level—a limit on the detectable range of water-level dynamics. The sparsity of data over time was identified as a major factor limiting the use of ICESat for water dynamics studies. Of all the US lakes, only 361 had quality ICESat measurements for more than two flight passes. Even for those lakes with sufficient temporal coverage, ICESat failed to capture the true interannual water-level dynamics in 68% of the cases. Our frequency analysis suggested that even with a repeat cycle of two months, ICESat could capture only 60% of the variations in water-level dynamics for at most 34 % of the US lakes. To capture 60% of the water-level variation for most of the US lakes, a weekly repeat cycle (e.g., less than 5 days) is needed – a requirement difficult to meet in current designs of spaceborne laser altimetry. Overall, our results highlight that current or near-future satellite laser missions, though with high ranging accuracies, are unlikely

  17. Water quality of the West Branch Lackawaxen River and limnology of Prompton Lake, Wayne County, Pennsylvania, October 1986 through September 1987

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Barker, J.L.

    1989-01-01

    The water quality of the West Branch Lackawaxen River and the limnology of Prompton Lake in northeastern Pennsylvania were studied from October 1986 through September 1987 to determine past and present water-quality conditions in the basin, and to determine the possible effects of raising the lake level on the water quality of the Lake, of the river downstream, and of ground water. Past and present water quality of the West Branch Lackawaxen River and Prompton Lake generally meets State standards for high-quality waters that sup- port the maintenance and propagation of cold-water fishes. However, suggested criteria by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency intended to control excessive algal growth in the lake are exceeded most, if not all, of the time for nitrogen and most of the time for phosphorus. The average annual total nitrogen load entering the lake is 114 tons. Of this total, 41 tons is inorganic nitrate plus nitrate, 48 tons organic nitrogen, and 25 tons ammonia nitrogen. Estimated annual yields of total nitrogen, inorganic nitrite plus nitrate, organic nitrogen, and ammonia nitrogen are 1.9, 9.7, 0.8, and 0.4 tons/mi2 (tons per square mile), respectively. The average annual phosphorus load is estimated to be 4.7 tons, which is equivalent to a yield of 0.08 tons/mi2. About 62 percent, or 2.9 tons, is dissolved phosphorus that is readily available for plant assimilation. The waters of the West Branch Lackawaxen River and Prompton Lake are decidedly phosphorus limited. The long-term average annual suspended-sediment yield to the lake is about 70 tons/mi2. Life expectancy of the 774 acre-feet of space allocated for sediment loads in the raised pool is estimated to be about 287 years. During the 1987 water year, about 51 percent of the annual sediment load was transported during 7 days by storm-water runoff. The maximum sediment discharge during the study period was 400 tons per day. Lake-profile studies show that thermal and chemical stratification

  18. Response in the trophic state of stratified lakes to changes in hydrology and water level: potential effects of climate change

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Robertson, Dale M.; Rose, William J.

    2011-01-01

    To determine how climate-induced changes in hydrology and water level may affect the trophic state (productivity) of stratified lakes, two relatively pristine dimictic temperate lakes in Wisconsin, USA, were examined. Both are closed-basin lakes that experience changes in water level and degradation in water quality during periods of high water. One, a seepage lake with no inlets or outlets, has a small drainage basin and hydrology dominated by precipitation and groundwater exchange causing small changes in water and phosphorus (P) loading, which resulted in small changes in water level, P concentrations, and productivity. The other, a terminal lake with inlets but no outlets, has a large drainage basin and hydrology dominated by runoff causing large changes in water and P loading, which resulted in large changes in water level, P concentrations, and productivity. Eutrophication models accurately predicted the effects of changes in hydrology, P loading, and water level on their trophic state. If climate changes, larger changes in hydrology and water levels than previously observed could occur. If this causes increased water and P loading, stratified (dimictic and monomictic) lakes are expected to experience higher water levels and become more eutrophic, especially those with large developed drainage basins.

  19. The composition of the river and lake waters of the United States

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Clarke, Frank Wigglesworth

    1924-01-01

    In the summer of 1903 the late Richard B. Dole, chemist of the water-resources branch of the United States Geological Survey, began a systematic investigation of the composition of the river and lake waters of the United States. His plan, which developed gradually, was to have analyses made of the different waters in such a manner as to give the average composition of each one for an entire year. For a few waters, such completeness was impracticable, the analyses covered only part of a year, but even in these waters the data obtained were of much value. As a rule, samples of each water were collected day by day. They were then mixed in sets of ten and analyzed, so that for each river or lake from 34 to 37 analyses were made. For the Mississippi above New Orleans composite analyses were made in sets of seven, giving 52 analyses from which to compute the average. For the Great Lakes, however, only monthly samples were taken, for the reason that their waters vary so little in composition that greater elaboration was not necessary. Some of the larger rivers were treated even more thoroughly; their average composition was determined at more than one point – the Mississippi at six points. For some rivers the analyses cover two years of collection, and for the data, received from a contributor not connected with the Geological Survey, three years.

  20. Response of walleye and yellow perch to water-level fluctuations in glacial lakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Dembkowski, D.J.; Chipps, Steven R.; Blackwell, B. G.

    2014-01-01

    The influence of water levels on population characteristics of yellow perch, Perca flavescens (Mitchill), and walleye, Sander vitreus (Mitchill), was evaluated across a range of glacial lakes in north-eastern South Dakota, USA. Results showed that natural variation in water levels had an important influence on frequently measured fish population characteristics. Yellow perch abundance was significantly (P<0.10) greater during elevated water levels. Yellow perch size structure, as indexed by the proportional size distribution of quality- and preferred-length fish (PSD and PSD-P), was significantly greater during low-water years, as was walleye PSD. Mean relative weight of walleye increased significantly during high-water periods. The dynamic and unpredictable nature of water-level fluctuations in glacial lakes ultimately adds complexity to management of these systems.