Environments Program
Home
USGS Environments Program scientists conduct research for the restoration and management of 500 million acres managed by DOI. Scientists work in estuaries, coastlines, deserts, grasslands, rivers and forests from Alaska to Florida to predict how systems respond to change, evaluate restoration, improve habitat for biodiversity and provide services including clean water, food, and storm protection.
Ecosystem Management
Our ecological research improves the Nation’s understanding of how management decisions and environmental variation are impacting ecosystems now and in the future.
Find out howWildland Fire Research
Wildfires are a natural process in most regions of the U.S. They serve a vital role in nature but can also be unusually intense, widespread, or frequent. As a result, response and recovery costs are increasing.
Learn moreEnvironments Science
USGS scientists conduct research to inform the management and conservation of ecosystems across the US. Explore our science using the links below.
Learn MoreNews
Annotated Bibliography of Scientific Research on Greater Sage-Grouse Published
The U.S. Geological Survey has reviewed and summarized the substantial body of literature related to the conservation, management, monitoring, and assessement of the greater sage-grouse, creating an annotated bibliography that provides easy access to sage-grouse science developed since 2015.
Alabama Barrier Island Restoration Assessment Project public presentation
Scientists from the St. Petersburg Coastal Marine Science Center and the Wetland and Aquatic Research Center copresent the Alabama Barrier Island Restoration Assessment on the DOI Internal Gulf Restoration weekly meeting.
RAMPS Newsletter - Summer 2020 Edition
This season's edition of the Restoration Assessment and Monitoring Program for the Southwest Newsletter contains recent program highlights including research updates, new projects, field updates and more.
To subscribe to our newsletter, please visit: ...
Publications
Global virtual water trade and the hydrological cycle: Patterns, drivers, and socio-environmental impacts
The increasing global demand for farmland products is placing unprecedented pressure on the global agricultural system and its water resources. Many regions of the world, that are affected by a chronic water scarcity relative to their population, strongly depend on the import of agricultural commodities and associated embodied (or virtual) water....
D'Odorico, Paolo; Carr, Joel A.; Dalin, Carole; Dell'Angelo, Jampel; Konar, Megan; Laio, Francesco; Ridolfi, Luca; Rosa, Lorenzo; Suweis, Samir; Tamea, Stefania; Tuninetti, MartaPotential sea level rise for the Chitimacha Tribe of Louisiana
Situated in the Mississippi Alluvial Plain of the Gulf Coast Prairie Landscape Conservation Cooperative (GCP LCC), the Chitimacha Tribe is one of four federally recognized tribes in Louisiana. The Tribal seat, trust lands/ reservation, and adjacent Tribal owned lands are located near Charenton, Louisiana, totaling nearly 1,000 acres. The...
Spear, Kathryn A.; Jones, William; Griffith, Kereen; Tirpak, Blair E.; Walden, KimberlyDrivers and uncertainties of forecasted range shifts for warm-water fishes under climate and land cover change
Land cover is an important determinant of aquatic habitat and is projected to shift with climate changes, yet climate-driven land cover changes are rarely factored into climate assessments. To quantify impacts and uncertainty of coupled climate and land cover change on warm-water fish species’ distributions, we used an ensemble model approach to...
Bouska, Kristen L.; Whitledge, Gregory W.; Lant, Christopher; Schoof, Justin