Recent Accomplishments

• New Techniques Show Promise for Assessing Ground-Water Quality in Complex Fractured Rock Systems in North Carolina
• Coal-Bed Methane (CBM) Has a Large Potential for Development in Montana
• Real-time Hydrologic Data Improves Drought Monitoring in New Jersey
• Monitoring the Hydrologic Response of Watersheds Burned by Wildfires Protects Lives and Water Resources in Central Arizona
• Stream-Temperature Model Improves Habitat Management for Endangered Fish in Idaho
• Reservoir Warning System is Critical to Citizens of West Virginia

New Techniques Show Promise for Assessing Ground-Water Quality in Complex Fractured Rock Systems in North Carolina

The aquifer systems which form in fractured bedrock have been an important source of water in several regions of the country for many years. However, the methods for assessing the quantity and quality of water in fractured rock systems are relatively new. For the past decade, the USGS has been developing analytical tools and simulation techniques for use in bedrock aquifers and is beginning to test these techniques for differing fractured rock systems in selected parts of the country. For example, in North Carolina, fractured-bedrock aquifers provide water supplies for two-thirds of the State - about 68 counties in the Piedmont and Appalachian Mountains regions, including the three largest urban centers in North Carolina (Raleigh, Winston-Salem, and Charlotte). The USGS is working in cooperation with the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), to understand the processes that affect the movement of ground-water and associated contaminates in representative geologic settings across the Piedmont and Mountains regions. Currently, near real-time, continuous ground-water-level, and ground-water-quality data are being used in conjunction with new simulation methods for fractured rock systems to improve the ability of the DENR to predict effects of future development in these areas on the quantity and quality of ground water. In the future, the USGS anticipates cooperating with agencies in other States to more thoroughly test these new methods, to broaden their application for resource managers and their consultants in varied hydrogeologic settings found in other parts of the country.

Coal-Bed Methane (CBM) Has a Large Potential for Development in Montana

The release of methane from coal beds in the north-central U.S. holds great promise as a significant source of domestic energy production. However, commercial development of coal-bed methane (CBM) raises important environmental issues. In order to release methane from the coal beds, large amounts of ground water must be withdrawn from the coal beds. The quality of the water is often degraded and must be treated at the surface before being discharged to streams. The removal of ground water for CBM development can cause reductions in supplies of ground water for other purposes and can result in subsidence of the land surface. On the Northern Cheyenne Reservation in southeastern Montana, many of the coal beds targeted for CBM development are also important sources of water used for stock watering and domestic supply. The USGS, in cooperation with the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, has installed observation wells in the beds of coal planned for CBM development in order to monitor changes in water quality and water levels as development proceeds. Additionally, the USGS has analyzed geologic cores of the coal-bed material to determine its methane gas content and thereby assist the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) in estimating the economic value of the coal-beds. As a result of these efforts, the Northern Cheyenne Tribe and the BIA, as well as land managers in other areas with CBM potential, have a better scientific foundation for the wise development and management of their natural resources.

Real-time Hydrologic Data Improves Drought Monitoring in New Jersey

Recent droughts in many parts of the country have focused the attention of water-resource managers on the value of USGS real-time hydrologic data to assess the extent and severity of the drought. For example, in New Jersey, the Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), Rutgers University, and the USGS have created a drought monitoring network to provide real-time data on streamflow, ground-water levels, and precipitation to support the management of water resources during droughts. Real-time data from both ground water and surface water sites are being compared to historical monthly or daily historical data to determine the severity of the drought compared to past conditions. This analysis showed that in the summer of 2002, the declining ground-water levels were associated with near record lows in streamflow for many parts of the State. The effects of near record low ground-water conditions on streamflow were significant. These real-time data are presented on the USGS Web site and were used by the NJDEP during their biweekly Drought Task Force meetings to make immediate decisions about water restrictions based upon hydrologic conditions. During this period, Jeffrey Hoffman, New Jersey Geological Survey Drought Coordinator stated, "These data proved to be invaluable during the onset of the current drought in helping to inform water-supply decision makers and the public." The USGS anticipates partnering with State and local agencies in other parts of the country to enhance it real-time ground-water and streamflow networks, thereby improving the monitoring of droughts nationwide.

Monitoring the Hydrologic Response of Watersheds Burned by Wildfires Protects Lives and Water Resources in Central Arizona

The wildfires burning throughout the Southwest last summer not only destroyed important timber and habitat resources, but also changed the hydrologic regime for years to come. For example, relatively moderate post-fire rainfall can produce flooding and debris flows of sufficient magnitude that lives and property are endangered, especially in steep mountainous terrain. Monsoon thunderstorms in July 2002 produced large peak discharges from the Rodeo/Chediski burn area in response to relatively small amounts of rainfall. The sediment-laden water flowing from the burn area into the Salt River contained organic debris, dissolved nutrients, and other chemical compounds released by combustion. The Salt River is a major source of water to Theodore Roosevelt Lake, a water supply for the Phoenix metropolitan area. USGS scientists were on-site at the Lake's inlet to collect water samples when the first inputs of blackened water arrived. Three new streamgages installed by the USGS in the burn area immediately after the fire provided real-time streamflow information. The streamgages served as an advance flood warning for the communities of Carrizo and Cibecue where precautionary evacuations occurred several times during these summer storms, based in part on USGS data transmitted from these stations. Preliminary water quality results provided by the USGS convinced the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality and Salt River Project that a water quality study of Lake Roosevelt as a sustainable drinking water supply will be needed. These types of studies and real-time data assist land managers at all levels of government in protecting the public against the significant changes in streamflow intensity and water quality that follow commonly occurring wildfires in the Southwest.

Stream-Temperature Model Improves Habitat Management for Endangered Fish in Idaho

Water-quality standards for temperature are critical for the protection of threatened and endangered salmonid fish, which need cold, clean water to survive in temperate parts of the country. Unfortunately, a single temperature standard cannot not account for natural temperature variations within and among streams in various eco?regions. Because monitoring temperature in every stream is impossible, resource managers need a tool to help them understand the natural range and variability of stream temperatures. The USGS collaborated with the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (IDEQ) to collect stream temperature data and to develop a practical model for predicting stream temperatures in the Salmon and Clearwater River Basins, which encompass about 24,000 square miles of important salmonid habitat in central Idaho. The model is based on statistical correlations between observed stream temperatures and geographic, climatic, and other environmental factors influencing stream temperature. The model predicts daily average stream temperature during mid-summer, the time when biologically critical temperature thresholds are likely to be exceeded. It is especially useful in assessing the effects of unusually warm air temperatures on stream temperatures, which are especially dangerous to fish populations in this region. Ultimately, the model will assist the IDEQ in establishing realistic and enforceable stream-temperature standards for Idaho streams and could be useful in developing similar capability for other environmentally sensitive areas in the Northwest.

Reservoir Warning System is Critical to Citizens of West Virginia

The availability of information showing the status of reservoir capacity is critical to management of water resources. This need is well understood for management of flood waters. Information on reservoir water levels is needed for dam safety emergency action plans to protect downstream residents during floods. However, this information can be extremely useful during times of drought, to plan for water releases to augment public water supplies and to determine rates of decline due to evaporation. A newly implemented network of reservoir water-level gages throughout West Virginia that transmit real-time data to the World-Wide Web is helping the West Virginia Conservation Agency manage water resources during times of droughts and floods. In the design of the new network, various emerging technologies, such as newly developed radar and laser water-level sensors, were tested as possible non-contact instrumentation for earthen-fill reservoirs. After thorough analysis, the network was designed using traditional water level sensors. Because real-time reservoir level information was available to track the rate of rise during high-water conditions in March 2002, the West Virginia Conservation Agency (WVCA) was able to make informed decisions on when or if to issue public warnings to downstream residents. The reservoir network information was also used by the WVCA to evaluate drought conditions that extended statewide July through September 2002. They were able to report the rates of decline from the network of reservoirs as indicators of general evaporation losses from reservoirs and ponds in the State.