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Fate and Effects of Nitrogen in Experimental Aquatic Ecosystems
Land Use and Climate Effects on the Geomorphology of Ozark Highlands Streams
Population and Community-Level Bioindicators of Contaminant Stress in Aquatic Ecosystems
Approaches
to Interpreting Environmental Data (Contact:
Robert
Gale Environmental Chemistry)
Contaminant issues are highly visible to the public and have major national
resource implications. A major need exists to better understand contaminant
sources and the fate and effect of their chemical constituents. If the nation's
resources are to be adequately protected, anticipatory research is needed to
identify chemicals capable of causing environmental harm before a crisis is
reached. Research efforts in this field of chemistry must advance to the point
where it is possible not only to identify and quantity contamination but use the
information to correlate and ideally predict the behavior and effects of the
contamination. This research will strive to gain a fundamental
understanding of contaminant interactions, sources, and potential harmful
impacts of environmental contaminants. Among the contaminants that will be
investigated are dioxin-like chemicals: polychlorinated biphenyls
(PCBs),
polyhalogenated dioxins, furans, and polyhalogenated diphenyl ethers. Studies to
be conducted in cooperation with USFWS and the
USGS-WRD
will evaluate contaminants in fish and wildlife, waters, and sediments. Sites
across the US will be studied: Hudson River, NY and the
Passaic River in NJ to
the Columbia River in Oregon. Each study's analytical contaminant data will be interpreted using a
combination of essential biological information, environmental chemical models,
and multivariate statistical analysis, and when needed, mathematical models will
be developed that can be used to predict environmental contaminant behavior.
This information will enable resource managers to transform research findings
into sound policy decisions. The research will provide resource managers with
interpreted trace organic contaminant information, e.g. analytical data that has
been integrated with environmental models, toxicological and biological
information.
Assessment
of Avifauna in the Rio Grande Valley (Contact: Marc
Woodin Texas Gulf Coast
Field Research Station)
Texas is ornithologically the richest state in the nation, supporting more than
600 documented species. Southern Texas is particularly rich in avifauna because
(1) birds from both eastern and western North America are funneled into this
region during migration, (2) the Rio Grande acts as a travel corridor between
the coast and distant inland areas to the west, and (3) many tropical species
reach the extreme northern limits of their distributions in southern Texas. The U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service has been very active in establishing refuges in the
lower reaches of the Rio Grande (an area about 95% converted to agriculture) to
preserve remaining paths of habitat. Further upriver, however, the lands are
entirely restricted by private ownership. These large, private ranches have not
been open to scientists for many decades so our knowledge of the birds of this
part of southern Texas in extremely sparse. Working directly with ranchers will
be essential to an improved understanding of distributions, abundances, and
communities of birds in this ornithologically very dynamic, yet largely
unexplored, portion of southern Texas. Surveys of different habitat types
on the Galvan Ranch (Ed Rachal Foundation), northwest of Laredo, will be
conducted. These surveys will yield data to demonstrate the breeding bird
species present at pond and riparian habitats on the Galvan. This information is
vital to determine the extent of the breeding distributions of tropical species,
some of which are extremely rare in the U.S., on private lands along the Rio
Grande northwest of Laredo. The objective of this study is to conduct surveys of
avifauna in Rio Grande Valley of southern Texas in order to determine the avian
diversity of the area.
Determination
of Toxic Elemental Constituents in Samples from Field and Laboratory Studies to
Assess Bioavailability and Evaluate Ecosystem Health (Contact:
Tom May Environmental
Chemistry)
Elemental contaminants directly from anthropogenic sources and from natural
sources disturbed by anthropogenic activities are an ever-present threat to
biological resources and ecosystem health. Examples of such contamination are
well documented and are widespread: metal-laden acid mine drainage from
abandoned mine lands; selenium in subsurface agricultural irrigation drainage;
historic movement of mine tailings in watersheds; aerial mercury contamination
of lakes and streams; electroplating plant outflows; urban dust exposure;
coal-fired power plant emissions. In many cases the elemental contaminants, once
reaching the aquatic ecosystem, are processed up the biological food chain,
undergoing bioaccumulation and becoming a threat to bird and terrestrial
wildlife populations and in some cases, human health. The need then focuses on
studies that will assess the biological/human impacts of such contaminants. Research studies will be conducted that will help evaluate the
effects of
metal contaminants on biological/human resources, with a primary focus on the effects of irrigation return flows
on biological resources in receiving waters. Studies include: potential bioaccumulation of selenium,
determining biological health
effects from the bioaccumulation of selenium in endangered Colorado
River pikeminnow, and the biological health effects from the
bioaccumulation of selenium in invertebrates and fish inhabiting the Solomon
River Basin in Kansas and the Republican River Basin in Nebraska. In addition, the
effects of mining waste, studying the
bioaccumulation of mercury and selenium in benthic invertebrates inhabiting Lake
Sharpe, SD, which has historically received mining waste from active gold mining in the
Black Hills, SD.
Ecological
Risk Assessment of Herbicides and Other Non-Point Source Pollutants in
Freshwater Aquatic Ecosystems (Contact:
Jim
Fairchild Ecology)
Non-point source pollution is the most pervasive water quality threat to aquatic
resources in the United States. It is degrading numerous
wetlands, streams, lakes, and estuaries which are important habitats for endangered species and anadromous fishes. Both direct
(toxic) and indirect (alteration of habitat) effects of non-point source
pollution can occur. However, non-point source pollutants cannot be regulated
using existing water quality criteria because multiple causes of degradation
(pesticides, nutrients, and sediments) occur over broad temporal and spatial
scales and are difficult to identify and control. Information is needed to support identification, assessment, remediation,
and prevention of non-point source pollution effects on aquatic resources. To develop
non-point source pollution assessment techniques, cooperative research between the
USGS, USDA, USEPA,
and USFWS will be
conducted at two Management Systems Evaluation Areas (MSEA),
one in Iowa
(Walnut Creek Watershed) and one in Missouri (Goodwater Creek Watershed) . Laboratory acute toxicity tests
will be used to determine
the potential effects of various farming systems on aquatic
organisms. Water will be collected following runoff events at MSEA sites. Toxicity
tests with four aquatic test species will be conducted: fathead minnow (Pimephales
promelas), a cladoceran
(Ceriodaphnia dubia), a vascular
plant (Lemna minor), and algae (Selenastrum capricornutum).
Results will be used to identify primary
stressors affecting these watersheds and information gaps identified. Laboratory and experimental ecosystem studies,
and ecological risk assessments will be conducted by comparing toxicological
responses to measured pesticide concentrations. Results will be used to rank the
relative hazard of pesticides to other potential water quality factors such as
nutrients, sedimentation, temperature, and dissolved oxygen. USDA and the EPA
will use this information to develop alternative farming systems and water
quality programs that will reduce the effects of non-point source pollution.
Fate
and Effects of Nitrogen in Experimental Aquatic Ecosystems
(Contact: Jim
Fairchild Ecology)
This research will provide information concerning the fate and dynamics of
nitrate and phosphate in macrophyte-dominated aquatic systems. To include: 1)
identification of major sources and sinks of nutrients in the experimental
systems; 2) rates of nutrient uptake and assimilation; 3) optimum ratios of
nitrogen and phosphorus for macrophyte and algal productivity; and 4) direct
and indirect effects of these nutrients on macrophytes, algae,
microinvertebrates, and water quality. The results can be used by land
managers to determine strategies for nutrient retention in riparian and
wetland systems and will contribute to the basic scientific literature
concerning macrophyte-nutrient interactions.
Laboratory
and Pilot Demonstration of Semipermeable Membrane Device (SPMDs) as Passive
Samplers of Polyaromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) Priority Pollutants (Contact:
Carl Orazio Environmental
Chemistry)
This research project centers on
the development and application of SPMD technology to determine the occurrence
of PAH contamination in selected aquatic and terrestrial environments. This research will provide critical data for applying SPMD technology to PAH
pollution, an important class of contaminants associated with energy production
and industrial activity. The PAHs typically do not bioconcentrate in sentinel
organisms but do elicit a broad spectrum of toxicological responses. As such
they are of widespread interest and are problematic to fish and wildlife
resource managers. The SPMD laboratory studies (both static and flow- through
exposures) will provide kinetic data required to generate models for estimating
ambient water concentrations of PAHs, a task rarely accomplished and only with
great difficulty. Use of both laboratory-derived and field application data will
be required to validate the SPMD approach for assessing the presence and
ecological relevance of PAH pollutions. The results of this work will be a
template for extending the SPMD technology to a broad spectrum of environmental
problems relating to organic contaminants or habitat quality. The American
Petroleum Institute (API) and its member companies are cooperators in this
research effort.
Land
Use and Climate Effects on the Geomorphology of Ozark Highlands Streams (Contact:
Robb Jacobson
River Studies)
Long reaches of almost all Ozark Highlands streams exhibit substantial gravel
aggradation and resultant channel instability. Recent aggradation appears to be
much more severe than prehistoric episodes represented in the
stratigraphic record. Whereas climate changes have been used to explain
pre-historic episodes, the most recent episode has been explained commonly by
adverse land-use practices of the 19th and 20th centuries. Gravel aggradation
has caused rapid shifting of stream channels and extensive changes in channel
morphology. Long-term residents of the Ozarks attest that pools have been
filling up and the fisheries resource has been degraded over the last 50-80
years. Thus, gravel aggradation appears to be a significant determinant of
aquatic habitat availability. Any changes in the aquatic ecosystems of Ozark
Highlands streams that would result from global-scale changes would occur within
the context of the recent, local disturbance history of these stream channels
and their contributing basins. Although recent disturbance is evident, it is not
known how it compares to natural disturbance episodes, whether the fluvial
system is recovering to its natural state, whether aggradation and instability
are increasing, or whether the system has equilibrated to an alternative state
governed by present-day hydrology and sediment supply. This proposal addresses
the aggradational history of Ozark Highlands streams over time intervals of
years to thousands of years. The proposed study is designed to (1) determine how
Ozark Highlands stream channels achieved their present state of instability;
assess how present-day instability relates to natural disturbance rates and
magnitudes; identify contributing processes; and assess temporal trends; (2)
quantify effects of channel disturbance on channel morphology determinants of
physical aquatic habitat; and (3) develop a predictive model to assess how
streams and basins will react to potential future global and local changes. The
results of the study will define the state of stability or instability of the
physical hydrologic system. Evaluation of stability or trends in the physical
system is essential to interpretation of changes in aquatic ecological structure
and function. Evaluation of land-use induced response of stream channels is also
of interest for correlation to terrestrial ecosystem histories. The proposed
research will determine how Ozark Highlands stream channels achieved their
present state of instability.
Lower
Missouri River Ecosystem Initiative (Contact:
River Studies)
The flood of 1993 in the lower Missouri River basin was one of the most
devastating in the nations history which brought national attention. The aftermath of the flood compelled an evaluation of the
effectiveness and cost of current flood and floodplain ecosystems and their
tributary watersheds and wetlands. It has also forced the need to reconsider the
best long-term strategy to ensure that the assets of the floodplain are used to
the fullest extent possible in ways that reflect current environmental and
economic values. This includes reexamining the collective efforts of federal,
state, and local governments; individuals; and the private sector in floodplain
management that might include setting back levees, acquiring and restoring
wetlands, and purchasing floodplain easements from farmers. This project
provides the USGS-BRD a unique opportunity for significant cooperation with
other intergovernmental and state agencies in assessing potential restoration of
natural functions and values of the Missouri River ecosystem. CERC will assume primary responsibility
on research
coordination, procurement, and management of the biological portion of the SAST
database of the lower Missouri River. This includes data consolidation,
state-of-the-art visualization (GIS), information dissemination, identifying
informational gaps, and conducting high-quality research on the lower Missouri
River. CERC will also identify existing players, data and activities related to
the Missouri River. The existing data will be cataloged and synthesized into
what is currently known to aid in identifying information gaps. CERC will
provide a program with high-quality scientific and technical support to federal,
state, and private partners in a timely and cost-effective manner. A repository
for available biological/ecological data will be established to distribute
biological information from multiple sources that will help produce and transfer
scientific information on the Missouri River. (CERC Final
Report--Title Page Report)
Lower
Rio Grande Ecosystem Initiative (Contact:
Diana
Papoulias Biochemistry/Physiology)
The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) has significant interests in the lower Rio
Grande/Rio Bravo Basin. The DOI owns or manages approximately 37% of the U.S.
lands along the U.S./Mexico border, including Big Bend National Park and the
Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge in the Rio Grande Basin. These
and other federal and state lands are part of a diverse and sensitive ecosystem
that is vulnerable to anthropogenic pressures. The Rio Grande and its major
tributary, the Rio Conchos, are considered to be among North America's most
endangered river systems due to extensive degradation in water quality and
habitat from the Rio Grande's headwaters in the San Juan mountains of southern
Colorado to its terminus 2000 miles downstream at the Gulf of Mexico. The lower
Rio Grande Basin suffers numerous pollution problems, including hazardous waste
dumps, municipal and industrial effluent, irrigation return flows, and mining
runoff. The pollution problems are largely the
result of socioeconomic factors, including population growth and
rapidly expanding industrial development. Further demographic change and
expanded commercial development along the Rio Grande are expected in
the foreseeable future. Despite compelling evidence of environmental
degradation, little is understood about the specific sources and ecological
relevance of the myriad pollutants and anthropogenic pressures affecting the
river system. Research will be conducted to determine the extent to which
anthropogenic influence and pollution have contributed to environmental
degradation in selected reaches of the lower Rio Grande River. This will be
accomplished by conducting a series of research tasks designed to provide an
incremental understanding of the various components of the relationship between
contaminant presence, anthropogenic pressures, and the health of fish and
wildlife communities that are dependent upon the river system. These tasks
include (1) evaluating contaminant effects on fish in the Rio Grande main-stem,
(2) identifying ecological and contaminant issues in resacas (oxbows) in the
Lower Rio Grande Valley of the U.S. and Mexico, (3) developing a bibliographic
database of natural resources of the Rio Grande between Elephant Butte and the
Gulf of Mexico, (4) examining peregrine falcon reproduction adjacent to and
within Big Bend National Park, (5) providing technical assistance in the
creation of a GIS database of Mexican lands adjacent to the lower Rio Grande,
and (6) establishing an Internet site to detail activities along the lower
Rio Grande and provide information to researchers, managers, decision makers,
and citizens involved in environmental issues along the international border.
Population
and Community-Level Bioindicators of Contaminant Stress in Aquatic Ecosystems (Contact:
Jim Fairchild Ecology)
Single species laboratory toxicity tests
are used within the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
and the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), to estimate
contaminant concentrations that are protective of non-target aquatic species.
However, in spite of these regulations contaminant impacts still occur.
Single-species laboratory tests are not always predictive of contaminant effects
for several reasons: (1) no species is universally sensitive to all
contaminants; (2) exposure to contaminants is frequently episodic and difficult
to predict; and (3) aquatic organisms are frequently exposed to mixtures of
contaminants. Biomonitoring of population and community structure in aquatic
ecosystems may be a more
direct approach for assessing the cumulative effects of contaminants. Populations and communities can be useful indicators of
contaminant stress for several reasons: (1) they complete their entire life
cycle in water, thus serving as continuous bioindicators which can integrate the
effects of widely fluctuating contaminant exposures; (2) assessment of
population and community structure directly measures the affected resource,
thus extrapolations for interspecies sensitivities, mixtures, and pulsed
exposures are not needed; and (3) these assessments are easily understood by
managers, regulators, and the general public. This research will develop
guidelines for using population and community structure to detect effects of aquatic
contaminant. Specific contaminant will include
insecticides, herbicides, metals, industrial chemicals, and acid-mine drainage.
Information derived will be used to develop guidelines concerning sampling
equipment, sampling design, data collection, index selection, and data analysis.
River
Corridor Habitat Dynamics, Lower Missouri River (Contact:
Robb Jacobson
River Studies)
Regulation, bank stabilization, and navigation structures on the
lower Missouri
River have severely altered the hydrologic and physical characteristics of the
channel and flood plain (that is, the riverine zone). Reservoir regulation for
navigation, flood control, power generation, and other purposes has changed the
magnitude, frequency, timing, and duration of high- and low-flow periods.
Navigation structures and bank revetments have narrowed and deepened the
channel. Revetments and levees have confined the channel and disconnected it
from the floodplain. As a result, the lower Missouri River has changed from a
dynamic, braided river to a swiftly flowing, single-thread meandering river.
Declines of many riverine species have been attributed to these substantial
habitat changes. However, little is known about the cause/effect relations
linking management, habitat, and biotic responses. Efforts to rehabilitate the
Missouri River depend on developing quantitative understanding of these links:
how can changes in release schedules and channel geometry affect availability of
habitat? And if habitat is provided, do the native riverine biota respond?
Because hydrodynamics and geomorphic changes are the primary factors responsible
for structuring the riverine zone, the links must be established at a scale at
which these factors can be quantified. This project addresses habitat
dynamics in the lower Missouri River from Gavins Point dam at Yankton, SD, to
St. Louis, MO. Hydrologic and physical characteristics of the river vary
regionally with changes in physiography, tributary influences, and variations in
channelization. Within this variation, representative reaches can be identified
and targeted for intensive, integrated study. Intensive study requires
developing of comprehensive physical characterization, a hydraulic model for
inventorying the distribution of water, and focused biological sampling to
demonstrate biological links. The increased understanding developed by intensive
studies also provides information on what factors can be generalized and
simplified to measure riverine ecosystem integrity. The hierarchical
classification and sampling strategy include characterizing of all of the
potential stressors that might affect intensively studied sites. Comparison of
these potential stressors with detailed information on riverine ecosystem
processes will allow for developing and testing large-river ecosystem
indicators. The first site to be investigated under this project will be Lisbon
Bottom (River Mile 213- 219), a high-sinuosity reach in the Grand-Osage segment
of the lower Missouri River. Lisbon Bottom is representative of many
high-sinuosity portions of the lower Missouri River and has the advantage of
proximity to long-term stream gages, proximity to CERC, and federal ownership in
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Refuge system. The flood of 1993 breached
agricultural levees around Lisbon Bottom, thereby reestablishing a dynamic
connection to the Missouri River. In addition, the flood of 1996 cut a secondary
chute across the bottom. Quantified comparison of the physical characteristics
of the main channel and the chute will be used to evaluate the value of
secondary habitats relative to the main channel. Although still affected by flow
regulation and the requirement to maintain navigation in the main channel,
Lisbon Bottom presents the opportunity to study ecosystem processes and dynamic
geomorphology in a setting that more closely mimics the natural riverine system
than any other site on the lower Missouri River. Lisbon Bottom will serve as an
intensive study pilot for developing approaches and protocols. The study results
will be directly applicable to cost/benefit analysis of habitat rehabilitation
studies. The purpose of this research is to define the links from river
management to habitat and biotic responses. Intensive, integrated studies at the
reach scale will provide improved understanding of how hydrologic
characteristics and riverine geomorphic characteristics determine habitat
quantity and quality and how biota use the habitat. This level of information is
essential for optimizing wildlife benefits of reservoir release schedules and
for designing rehabilitation projects.
Western Reservoir Water Quality Study - Elephant Butte Reservoir, Angostura
Reservoir, San Pedro River (Contact:
Duane
Chapman River Studies)
Increasingly, multiple stressors are impacting the limited water resources of
the Midwestern and Western United States. These stressors range from increased
nutrient loadings to point and non-point source inputs of a multitude of
environmental contaminants. Demonstrated impacts of stressors have been
identified in Elephant Butte and Caballo Reservoirs, New Mexico, Angostura Reservoir, South Dakota, and San Pedro River, Arizona. A multi-disciplinary
approach for defining the presence and significance of the multiple stressors
affecting reservoirs will be employed to provide information to resource
agencies as an integral part of the management decision process. Study 1:
Elephant Butte and Caballo Reservoirs provide long term storage of water from
the Rio Grande for use in Texas and Mexico. These reservoirs comprise the major
storage features of the Rio Grande Project. Caballo is a winter storage
reservoir to retain power plant releases from Elephant Butte Dam. Elephant Butte
can have oligotrophic characteristics over much of the year, but show several
trophic states depending on the actual volume stored, inflow, season, and other
conditions. Eutrophic conditions may also be manifest in Elephant Butte at least
seasonally. One of the major problems that develops in Elephant Butte especially
during the summer season is release of hydrogen sulfide to the atmosphere from
the tailrace. The odor is sufficient to be a concern to Reclamation employees
and the public in the vicinity. The hydrogen sulfide problem has been reported
to be worse during years with the greatest storage contents. This coincides with
greater overall thermal stratification for a longer period of time. The actual
source of the hydrogen sulfide remains uncertain. Likely possibilities include
point-source seepage into the upper reservoir and generation in the hypolimnion.
Additional concerns related to Elephant Butte Reservoir include the presence of
mercury in the environmental samples and the potential for extensive algal
blooms. The focus of the current year's effort will be on the hydrogen sulfide
issue, with consideration of the mercury and algal issues as priorities for
out-year funding. Study 2: The Angostura Unit, is located at the southeastern
edge of the Black Hills in southwest South Dakota and consists of Angostura Dam,
Reservoir, land, and the associated irrigation distribution system. The Unit
provides multipurpose benefits including irrigation, flood control, fish and
wildlife conservation, recreation, and sediment control. The Dam, which was
completed in 1949, impounds the Cheyenne River. The Reservoir extends 27 km in
length along the Cheyenne River and 12 km along Horsehead Creek, a major
tributary. During the last several years, there has been increasing concern
about the quality of irrigation drainage and its potential harmful effects on
human health, fish and wildlife. This study will identify data gaps and provide
recommendations to achieve a fuller understanding of the response of the
biological community to environmental conditions within the study area. Study 3:
The Lower San Pedro River is an important aquatic resource that may be affected
by agricultural, mining, and water treatment activities. Surface run-off from
irrigated agricultural fields and diverted effluent contribute to soil moisture
and creation of suitable habitat at several locations where the federally
endangered Southwestern willow flycatcher is breeding. In addition, mining
activities may impact the resource where these birds breed. This study will
include a field component to determine levels of selected inorganic and organic
contaminants at reference and potentially impacted sites within the San Pedro
River riparian zone. A laboratory component will provide a synthesis document of
available resource information in a report that identifies data needs and makes
recommendations for a 5 year comprehensive study plan to achieve a fuller
understanding of the response of the biological community to environmental
conditions within the study area. Ecologically relevant decision support systems
will be developed for use in evaluating management practices in three reservoirs
of the Western United States. These decision support systems will also be useful
for determining the effects of changing resource management alternatives on
limited water resources. The completion of this work will provide DOI Agencies,
specifically but not exclusively, USBR, with information and recommendations
needed to address water quality impact on biota associated with a number of
reservoirs and water systems identified by USBR.
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