Nevada Water Science Center Projects
The USGS has been collecting water-resources data in Nevada since 1889. Since that time, the USGS Nevada Water Science Center has been responsible for providing reliable, impartial, and timely information needed to understand Nevada's water resources. As part of this responsibility to provide timely information, a detailed description of all projects in Nevada is available below.
For additional information about these projects, contact the project chief (listed on each project's web page) or send a request to our public information officer ( ; 775-887-7649).
Central Nevada
- Diamond Valley Flow System — Phase II
- Quantify the different ground-water inflow and outflow processes for each basin and develop a conceptual model of the flow system.
- Upper Humboldt Water Resources
- Develop an improved understanding of the water resources within the upper Humboldt River Basin.
- Water-Level Compilation, Analysis and Processing for the Central Region of Nevada
- Compile, assess and, where necessary, process all existing ground-water-level measurements and supporting attributes for the Central Region.
Eastern Nevada
- Basin and Range Carbonate Aquifer System
- Determine basin water budget estimates and develop a three-dimensional conceptual model of regional ground-water flow.
- Cave Springs, Great Basin National Park
- Determine the source of water to Cave Springs using geochemistry.
- EIS Assistance
- Provide scientific expertise to the Bureau of Land Management with respect to potential environmental impacts of the eastern Nevada Ground Water project.
Lake Mead and Surrounding Areas
- Black Canyon Spring Assessment
- Delineate and document existing hydrologic conditions at select springs in the Black Canyon area.
- Hydrocarbons in Lakes Mead and Mohave
- Assess the concentration of volatile organic compounds and polycylic aromatic compounds in Lakes Mead and Mohave.
- Lake Mead Endocrine Disruption
- Assess the current ecological health at five sites in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area by the characterization of bottom- sediment chemistry, fish biomarkers, and water chemistry.
- Lake Mead Water Quality
- Evaluate temporal trends in water quality and help evaluate the effectiveness of efforts to improve water quality in Lake Mead.
- Lower Colorado River Flow System
- Estimate the volume of water discharged from the Colorado River flow system in southeastern Nevada using improved estimates of evapotranspiration.
Lake Tahoe
- Bijou Ground Water
- Provide a more detailed understanding of ground-water flow and subsurface biogeochemical processes.
- Lake Tahoe Basin Ground-Water Resources Inventory
- Provide a geospatial compilation of existing hydrogeologic data for the Lake Tahoe Basin within a GIS database to determine extent and characteristics of the aquifers in the basin.
- Lake Tahoe Tributary Monitoring
- Provide long-term measurements of streamflow and water quality at Lake Tahoe.
Las Vegas and Vicinity
- Amargosa Desert Research Site
- Provide long-term benchmark information about the hydraulic characteristics and soil-water movement for both natural-site conditions and simulated waste-site conditions in an arid environment.
- Assessment of Ground-Water Hydrology Along the Western Slopes of the Spring Mountains
- Conduct a variety of pumping scenarios to simulate the effects of increasing ground-water withdrawals on the flow system.
- Climate Transect
- Data Gaps—Improving Access to Hydrologic Information in Clark County, Nevada
- Compile and collect spring and well data for Federally-managed lands in Clark County, Nevada.
- Delineation of Vegetation in Clark County Using Satellite Imagery
- Conduct independent spectral analysis and visual evaluation of geospatially rectified high-resolution satellite-imagery.
- Surface Proton Magnetic Resonance Sounding System Evaluation
- Evaluate the Surface Proton Magnetic Resonance Sounding System technique at Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge.
Nevada Test Site and Vicinity
- USGS/U.S. Department of Energy Cooperative Program
- Provide hydrologic and geologic expertise to the U.S. Department of Energy to address environmental and scientific issues at the Nevada Test Site and vicinity.
State-Wide
- Amphibian Research and Monitoring
- Determine what natural, anthropogenic, and combination of factors are causing world wide decline and malformations of amphibian populations
- Flood Investigations
- The frequency and magnitude of floods of Nevada streams are appraised and data are provided for use in the design of highways and hydraulic structures.
- Integrated Landscape Monitoring — Great Basin Pilot
- Integrate hydrologic, biologic, geologic and geographic perspectives to yield a conceptual model that depicts key factors of landscape change.
- National Trends Network Precipitation
- Monitor and assess important chemical constituents in precipitation throughout the U.S. and study the effects of atmospheric deposition on aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems.
- National Water Quality Assessment Program (NAWQA)
- Describe the status and trends in the quality of a large, representative part of the Nation's surface-water and ground-water resources
- Nevada Ground-Water Networks
- Measurements of recharge to and discharge from ground-water systems provide data that can be used to evaluate the effects of management and development, and assist in determining future supplies.
- Nevada Surface-Water Networks
- Surface-water data are collected to develop information about flow and stage that can be used by a variety of diverse water-resources projects and programs.
- Nevada Water-Quality Networks
- The physical, chemical, and biological quality of surface water and ground water is highly variable and must be monitored to identify local influences, seasonal trends, and long-term trends.
- Surface-Water and Ground-Water Interaction Model Development
- Characterize natural and human factors controlling aquifer recharge, storage, and discharge for the Nations major aquifer systems, and improve understanding of these processes.
Walker Lake
- Walker Lake Water Budget
- Determine a water budget for Walker Lake.
Western Nevada
- Arsenic Remediation in Douglas County
- Develop and test methods for in-situ remediation of arsenic in ground water, Douglas County.
- Carson Valley Ground-Water Flow Model
- Develop a model to evaluate estimates of water-budget components and estimate the potential effects of land-use and water-use changes.
- Clear Creek Sediment and Water Quality
- Evaluate changes in sediment transport and water quality related to increased urbanization and fire hazards.
- Effects of Urbanization on the Truckee River
- Determine sources and distribution of organic contaminants along the Truckee River from Farad to Pyramid Lake.
- Historic Flood Database for the Carson River
- Develop a database and web site of factual and anecdotal data for flood events in the Carson River Basin.
- Mercury in the Carson River
- Determine seasonal loads of total mercury and methylmercury in and from Lahontan Reservoir.
- Middle Carson River Basin Evaluation
- Develop and calibrate a ground-water/surface-water flow model of the Carson River Basin between Carson Valley and Lahontan Dam.
- Occurrence of Polonium-210
- Research the occurrence of Polonium-210 in ground water.
- Upper Carson River Basin Data Compilation
- Compile existing data, evaluate trends in streamflow, and determine the types of data needed to refine understanding of ground-water/surface-water interaction in the upper Carson River Basin.
- Water-Quality Analyses of Spanish Springs Wells
- Determine water quality of ground water due to nitrate contamination from natural sources and septic systems.