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Water Quality Status and Trends

Water Quality Status and Trends. Matthew C. Larsen, PhD United States Geological Survey Associate Director for Climate and Land Use Change a nd Chair, U.S. Committee for UNESCO International Hydrological Programme. Changing Perspectives in Water Quality

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Water Quality Status and Trends

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  1. Water Quality Status and Trends Matthew C. Larsen, PhD United States Geological SurveyAssociate Director for Climate and Land Use Change and Chair, U.S. Committee for UNESCO International Hydrological Programme

  2. Changing Perspectives in Water Quality Point sources Nonpoint sources End-of-pipe approach Watershed approach (landscape, human activities) One-time, periodic Seasonal, events, continuous reporting real time Nutrients, DO, bacteria Organic compounds Single pollutants Mixtures Surface water Total resource Chemistry Chemistry, biology, habitat, hydrology, landscape Short-term monitoring Long-term Monitoring Monitoring and prediction

  3. Changing Perspectives in Water Quality Point sources Nonpoint sources End-of-pipe approach Watershed approach (landscape, human activities) One-time, periodic Seasonal, hydrologic events, reporting continuous, real time Nutrients, DO, bacteria Organic compounds Single pollutants Mixtures Surface water Total resource Chemistry Chemistry, biology, habitat, hydrology, landscape Short-term monitoring Long-term Monitoring Monitoring and prediction

  4. Changing Perspectives in Water Quality Point sources Nonpoint sources End-of-pipe approach Watershed approach (landscape, human activities) One-time, periodic Seasonal, hydrologic events, reporting continuous, real time Nutrients, DO, bacteria Organic compounds Single pollutants Mixtures Surface water Total resource Chemistry Chemistry, biology, habitat, hydrology, landscape Short-term monitoring Long-term Monitoring Monitoring and prediction

  5. Changing Perspectives in Water Quality Point sources Nonpoint sources End-of-pipe approach Watershed approach (landscape, human activities) One-time, periodic Seasonal, hydrologic events, reporting continuous, real time Nutrients, DO, bacteria Organic compounds Single pollutants Mixtures Surface water Total resource Chemistry Chemistry, biology, habitat, hydrology, landscape Short-term monitoring Long-term Monitoring Monitoring and prediction

  6. Changing Perspectives in Water Quality Point sources Nonpoint sources End-of-pipe approach Watershed approach (landscape, human activities) One-time, periodic Seasonal, hydrologic events, reporting continuous, real time Nutrients, DO, bacteria Organic compounds Single pollutants Mixtures Surface water Total resource Chemistry Chemistry, biology, habitat, hydrology, landscape Short-term monitoring Long-term Monitoring Monitoring and prediction

  7. Changing Perspectives in Water Quality Point sources Nonpoint sources End-of-pipe approach Watershed approach (landscape, human activities) One-time, periodic Seasonal, hydrologic events, reporting continuous, real time Nutrients, DO, bacteria Organic compounds Single pollutants Mixtures Surface water Total resource Chemistry Chemistry, biology, habitat, hydrology, landscape Short-term monitoring Long-term monitoring Monitoring Monitoring and prediction

  8. Changing Perspectives in Water Quality Point sources Nonpoint sources End-of-pipe approach Watershed approach (landscape, human activities) One-time, periodic Seasonal, hydrologic events, reporting continuous, real time Nutrients, DO, bacteria Organic compounds Single pollutants Mixtures Surface water Total resource Chemistry Chemistry, biology, habitat, hydrology, landscape Short-term monitoring Long-term monitoring Monitoring Monitoring and prediction

  9. USGS Water Quality Programs • Ambient water-resource evaluation over long • time scales with a regional and national perspective • Interactions among surface water, groundwater, • and the atmosphere • Interconnections between water quality and biological • systems • Water quality in a hydrologic context • Uniform methods of sampling and analysis • Low-levels of chemical detection

  10. Emerging Contaminantswastewater organic compounds • Antioxidants • Fire retardants • Disinfectants • Fumigants • Fragrances • Insecticides/ Repellants • Drugs • Antibiotics • Hormones • Steroids • Detergents • Plastics • PAHs

  11. Examples from USGS work • 1 or more compounds found in 80% of streams sampled. • 82 of 95 compounds detected at least once (8 antibiotics & 5 other drugs not detected). • Measured concentrations generally low; only ~5% > 1 part per billion. • Detections of multiple compounds were common • As many as 38 in a sample; 34% > 10 compounds. • Total concentration as high as 80 ppb; 25% > 6 ppb. data from Kolpin & Buxton, 2002,Pharmaceuticals, hormones, and other organic wastewater contaminants in U.S. streams, Environmental Science & Technology.

  12. Pesticides widespread in streamsand shallow ground water Agricultural Areas Fish 85% Streams Water 92% Shallow Ground Water 59% Urban Areas Fish 100% Streams Water 99% Shallow Ground Water 49% 0 50 100 % Samples with One or More Pesticides data from Gilliom et al.,2006, Pesticides in the Nation’s Streams and Ground Water, 1992-2001, USGS Circular 1291.

  13. Agriculture atrazine [deethylatrazine] metolachlor cyanazine alachlor Urban diazinon carbaryl malathion chlorpyrifos atrazine simazine prometon 2,4-D diuron Common pesticides found in streams, by land use data from Gilliom et al.,2006, Pesticides in the Nation’s Streams and Ground Water, 1992-2001, USGS Circular 1291.

  14. Significance to Aquatic Life Land use Water Bed Sediment Water Bed Sediment Water Bed Sediment Water Bed Sediment 0 50 100 Percentage of Stream Sites Exceeding Benchmarks data from Gilliom et al.,2006, Pesticides in the Nation’s Streams and Ground Water, 1992-2001, USGS Circular 1291.

  15. Diazinon Importance of tracking seasonal variation data from Domolagski et al., 2000, Water quality in the Sacramento River basin, California, 1994-1998, USGS Circular 1215.

  16. Radon Exceeds higher proposed drinking water standard (4.4%) Exceeds lower proposed drinking water standard (65%) DeSimone, Hamilton, and Gilliom, 2009, Quality of Water from Domestic Wells in Principal Aquifers of the United States, 1991-2004—Overview of Major Findings, USGS Circular 1332.

  17. data from Scudder, Chasar, Wentz, Bauch, Brigham, Moran, and Krabbenhoft, 2009, Mercury in fish, bed sediment, and water from streams across the United States, 1998–2005, USGS SIR 2009-5109.

  18. Lead Trends 1975 to Present Callender and Van Metre, 1997, Reservoir Sediment Cores Show U.S. Lead Declines, Environmental Science & Technology, v. 31, 424A-428A.

  19. DDT Trends 1965 to Present Vanmetre, Callender, and Fuller, 1997, Organochlorine Compounds in River Basins Identified Using Sediment Cores from Reservoirs, Environ. Sci. Technol., 31, 2339-2344.

  20. PAH Trends 1975 to Present Van Metre, Mahler, and Furlong, 2000, Urban Sprawl Leaves Its PAH Signature, Environ. Sci. Technol. 34, 4064-4070.

  21. Diazinon downtrend Accotink Creek, VA Phase-Out Concentration, ug/L Gilliom et al., 2006, “Pesticides in the Nation’s Streams and Ground Water, 1992-2001, USGS Circular 1291.

  22. 25 year lag Central Valley Sand & Gravel Public-Supply Well Shallow ground water Nitrate as N, mg/L Nitrate responsein deeper supply well 1965 1985 2005 1945 Year Year Jagucki, Landon, Clark, and Eberts, 2008, Assessing the Vulnerability of Public-Supply Wells to Contamination: High Plains Aquifer Near York, Nebraska, USGS Fact Sheet 2008-3025.

  23. Measured Atrazine in Streams Gilliom et al., 2006, “Pesticides in the Nation’s Streams and Ground Water, 1992-2001, USGS Circular 1291.

  24. Prediction of Atrazine in Streams Gilliom et al., 2006, “Pesticides in the Nation’s Streams and Ground Water, 1992-2001, USGS Circular 1291.

  25. Delivery of phosphorus to the Gulf of Mexico Alexander et al., 2008, Differences in Phosphorus and Nitrogen Delivery to The Gulf of Mexico from the Mississippi River Basin, Environ. Sci. Technol., 42 , 822–830.

  26. Groundwater Vulnerability Assessment Model Nolan and Hitt, 2006, Vulnerability of Shallow Groundwater and Drinking-Water Wells to Nitrate in the United States, Environ. Sci. Technol., 40, 7834–7840.

  27. Changing Perspectives in Water Quality Point sources Nonpoint sources End-of-pipe approach Watershed approach (landscape, human activities) One-time, periodic Seasonal, hydrologic events, reporting continuous, real time Nutrients, DO, bacteria Organic compounds Single pollutants Mixtures Surface water Total resource Chemistry Chemistry, biology, habitat, hydrology, landscape Short-term monitoring Long-term monitoring Monitoring Monitoring and prediction

  28. Thank you Contact: Matt Larsen, mclarsen@usgs.gov Donna Myers, dnmyers@usgs.gov Pixie Hamilton, pahamilt@usgs.gov

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