Water Resources Investigations

demonstrated that more efficient removal of iron from streams affected by acid mine drainage can be obtained using a modified passive abiotic treatment system. The system provided a higher rate of iron oxidation and the resulting sludge had a higher density and purity that promoted ease of handling and reuse.

Detecting Hormones In Water - A project sponsored by the California Water Resource Center developed analytical techniques capable of detecting hormones in natural waters receiving effluent from sewage treatment plants. Most drugs were detected in extremely low concentrations, but concentrations of estrogenic hormones comparable to those that cause feminization of male fish were found. The possible presence of these compounds is especially significant to populated arid regions of California where wastewater effluents are used as drinking water sources and to augment freshwater habitats.

Coal Bed Methane Development And Water Resources - The Montana Water Center, working with the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology, has developed a geographic information system (GIS) database for the potential coal-bed methane development area of the Powder River Basin of southeastern Montana. The GIS project is used as a base by government agencies, industry, and the public to predict long-term and short-term effects of coal-bed methane extraction on water availability and quality.

Ground-Water Remediation Using Bacteria - A field-scale experiment supported by the Auburn University Environmental Institute in an aquifer contaminated by toxic metals has demonstrated that indigenous, sulfate-reducing bacteria can be stimulated to remove contaminants by injection of water-soluble nutrients into a shallow, contaminated aquifer. This experimental bioremediation process has proven to be so effective that the Alabama Department of Environmental Management has allowed it to be used in place of the very expensive pump-and-treat process previously employed at the site.

Salt Management Planning - The New Mexico Water Resources Research Institute investigated the occurrence and distribution of salinity in the surface water of the Rio Grande Project. Preliminary results indicate that salt management planning is needed throughout the Rio Grande Project, both for long-term agricultural sustainability and for managing water quality for municipal users.

Estimating Cost of Watershed Management Policies - The design of more efficient watershed management programs to reduce nonpoint source pollution requires information on the status of best management practices (BMPs) and the costs of installing additional BMPs. For large watersheds with thousands of farming operations and urban developments, directly obtaining needed information can be prohibitively time-consuming and expensive. A project sponsored by the North Carolina Water Resources Research Institute demonstrated that a statistical approach for estimating both the current status of management practices and the cost of bringing agricultural and urban activities into compliance with proposed watershed policies using existing tax records and Census of Agriculture data yields reasonable estimates.

Coordinating Water Monitoring Activities - The Virginia Water Monitoring Council, formed under Virginia Water Resources Research Center (VWRRC) leadership, now has 125 members and three working committees dedicated to coordinating water monitoring activities in Virginia. Council members include the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), the USGS District Office, representatives of state and local agencies, citizen monitoring groups and the private sector. The VWRRC continues to provide administrative support and program

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Water Resources Research Act Program Subactivity

leadership for this diverse group that is bound together by a common commitment to improved water quality monitoring.

Training of Wastewater Treatment Professionals – The Utah Center for Water Resources Research (UCWRR) led a team comprising the 12 Utah local health departments and the Utah Department of Environmental Quality (UDEQ) to prepare language for the State of Utah legislature establishing mandatory certification for on-site wastewater treatment professionals. The legislation, made effective July 1, 2001, establishes a certification program for protection of ground-water resources across the State, and requires classroom and field training addressing site evaluation, and conventional and alternative on-site wastewater treatment systems and their application in Utah. In addition, a physical demonstration facility and an on-site professional organization were both developed by the UCWRR, with financial support from the USEPA, UDEQ, and Utah private industry, to assist State of Utah citizens, regulators, and onsite professionals with better tools for protection of ground water resources and simultaneous effective treatment of wastewater using on-site systems in Utah arid environments.

Biosolids Management – A project supported by the New Hampshire Water Resources Research Center assessed the effect of biosolid management practices on nitrate levels in ground water. The project director testified before the State legislature concerning the study findings, and it is expected that the project results will assist in determining biosolid management practices in New Hampshire.

Research Act. Most of the Institutes have been very successful in generating funding from non-USGS sources and may no longer need USGS funding to continue operating.

The decrease of -$2 is the result of streamlining savings resulting from organizational restructuring and workforce balancing.

Uncontrollable cost increases for this activity total $3,733, of which $1.704 will be budgeted and $2,029 will be absorbed through increased efficiencies.

Program changes for this activity total include a reduction of -$253 for travel and transportation and -$1,216 in streamlining savings resulting from organizational restructuring and workforce balancing.

Activity Summary

Introduction

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Biological Research Activity generates and distributes information needed in the conservation and management of the Nation's biological resources. This program serves as the Department of the Interior's (DOI) biological research arm and continues the strong traditions for management-oriented research developed within the Department's land management bureaus. Core biological research capability at 17 research centers and associated field stations, one technology center, and 39 Cooperative Research Units supports research on fish, wildlife, and habitats that is used by Federal and State Government and non-governmental organizations.

A list of science centers and field stations appears at the end of the discussion of the information component. A list of cooperative research units appears in the discussion of that activity.

Information generated by the Biological Research program also contributes to achieving bureau goals for improved management of the Nation's water resources, availability of maps and map data, and improved decisionmaking regarding land and water use. These goals are supported by the efforts conducted in three subactivities: Research and Monitoring, Information Management and Delivery, and Cooperative Research Units.

Research and Monitoring - The USGS serves the needs of DOI bureaus by providing scientific information through research, inventory, and monitoring investigations. Biological studies develop new methods and techniques to identify, observe, and manage fish and wildlife, including invasive species, and their habitats; inventory populations of animals, plants, and their habitats, and monitor changes in abundance, distribution, and health of biological resources through time and in direct relation to their causes. Scientists work to maintain the health, diversity, and ecological balances of biological resources while meeting public needs, such as game harvests and the use of public lands and waters.

Biological Research

USGS biologists work toward these goals in collaboration with other scientists, customers, and partners. Biologists combine their expertise with that of the other USGS disciplines in interagency ecosystem initiatives from South Florida to the Pacific Northwest, where scientists are working together to understand, evaluate, and provide options for restoring fish and wildlife habitats and better resource management decisions. USGS specialists also provide technical assistance to DOI bureaus and other customers in applying the information, methodologies, and tools developed by USGS in addressing resource management problems. In a collaborative process, USGS involves the users of scientific results by engaging them in the identification and prioritization of their information needs as research is planned. DOI bureaus and other customers and partners are involved in this process, and where appropriate, are involved in an adaptive process to find solutions and develop new methods by testing research results in the field.

Information Management and Delivery - Science-based decisionmaking is a Department of the Interior priority, particularly as it pertains to the conservation, management and use of the Nation's natural resources. To facilitate this, the USGS is committed to making available the data and information that are critical to scientific discovery and application. Databases, maps, and publications are vital sources of this information. The USGS works in cooperation with many organizations across the Country to provide critical information to partners, stakeholders, customers, and the general public. Through electronic infrastructures, the USGS delivers relevant data and information faster, and in more interoperable formats than in the past, leading to better stewardship of our natural resources.

In addition, Congress directed USGS National Office of the Gap Analysis Program in Moscow, ID, to administer all funds provided for GAP, with the mission of completing a nationwide GAP data set of both land and aquatic resources. Congress also directed USGS to provide a report to the Committees no later than May 1, 2002, on the allocation of funds to State projects.

Cooperative Research Units - This cooperative program allows government and nongovernment entities with common interests and responsibilities for natural resource management to cooperatively address biological resources issues. Through this unique program, biologists from Federal and State governments and academia are able to work as a team and focus their expertise and creativity on resolution of biological resources issues. Federal support of the Cooperative Research Units program is matched with State and university contributions of expertise, equipment, facilities, and project funding. Through university affiliations, Federal scientists train future natural resource professionals.

Federal Role

The USGS biologists work with others to provide the scientific understanding and technologies needed to support the sound management and conservation of our Nation's biological resources. The USGS works to meet the needs of all DOI bureaus for scientific and technological information concerning biological resources. In addition, other Federal agencies, States, and even private entities are looking to USGS as the premier source of biological information. The USGS contains one of the Nation's largest collections of expert scientists and technicians in the field of biology. Many outside interests look to the USGS to produce the highest quality biological information available.

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Activity Summary

Customers and Partners

The USGS considers its customers as close partners in research. This focus on knowing and meeting partners' needs, establishing a goal for partner satisfaction, and measuring performance toward reaching that goal has improved the quality of USGS products and services. The partner Service Plan, revised and published annually, establishes a partner satisfaction goal against which performance is measured.

The Biology program of the USGS established a goal to provide products to customers that would result in more than 80 percent of them rating their satisfaction with those products as satisfied or very satisfied. Results of a customer survey of the users of the biological products in the 2001 Govemment Performance and Results Act report found that 99 percent were satisfied (20 percent) or very satisfied (79 percent). All respondents were satisfied (22 percent) or very satisfied (78 percent) with the quality of USGS products. Eighty-one percent of the products were used for natural resource management, 79 percent for education, 37 percent for research, and 48 percent for hazard mitigation (a product may be used for more than one purpose).