IDENTIFYING DOMINANT RIVER WATER-QUALITY FUNCTIONS AT A NATIONAL SCALE

Where are the hot spots and what are the critical moments in time that dominate outcomes for water quality and aquatic health in large river basins? We focus on the hard to observe interactions between rivers and their adjacent hyporheic, riparian, and floodplain environments, and ponded waters such farm ponds and water supply reservoirs. Datasets are being assembled and models built that quantify dominant river corridor functions for the 2.6 million river reaches of the conterminous United States. The relative importance of each type of feature is being determined to assess why some river corridors remove contaminants whereas others transmit contamination to sensitive downstream areas. The goal is a predictive capability that specifies where and why contaminants are efficiently removed in river networks, and prioritizes best management practices in each river basin to sustain river resources for human and ecological needs.

This research is a product of the River Corridor Synthesis Group at the USGS Powell Center and the USGS Water Mission Area’s Water Prediction Work Program