News Release

Science picks: Leads, feeds and story seeds for August 2003

Peer-Reviewed Publication

U.S. Geological Survey

Dog days of summer got you down? Here are a host of summer science story ideas sure to refresh your slow summer stories like a tall, cold glass of sweet tea. This monthly collection of science stories can help you cover ongoing earth and natural science research and investigations at USGS---photos and web links are provided to enhance your story.

Leads:

ARE STREAMS A DRUG FREE ZONE? Last year, USGS unveiled a significant study showing traces of pharmaceuticals, over the counter drugs and household chemicals in streams and rivers across America. Now, USGS is trying to learn how long it takes for those chemicals to travel in the environment. Throughout the summer, USGS scientists in Iowa and Colorado are injecting a nontoxic red dye, as a proxy for the drugs, into rivers and following the dye downstream using high-tech instruments to detect even minute portions of the dye. What scientists will learn from this is how concentrations of the pharmaceuticals may change as they are transported downstream. These studies represent a continuing effort by the USGS Toxic Substances Hydrology Program to understand the source, fate, and transport of pharmaceuticals and other organic wastewater contaminants in the environment. For more information, see the journal article that started it all at http://toxics.usgs.gov/regional/emc_surfacewater.html and then call Dana Kolpin at 319-358-3614.

A POX UPON YOU? JUST CHECKING: You know them best as the USGS researchers tracking the spread of West Nile Virus in birds from coast-to-coast. But wildlife health specialists from the USGS National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wis., are also on the job this summer looking for the monkeypox virus in wildlife. Teaming with counterparts from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and health departments in Wisconsin and Illinois, USGS scientists are beginning a field surveillance program to determine if wildlife have been exposed to the monkeypox virus. The scientists will sample wildlife near sites where this exotic disease occurred in humans and pet prairie dogs, primarily in Wisconsin and Illinois. Monkeypox was introduced to the United States through importation of exotic pets from West Africa. In April and May, the disease spread through the pet trade, to prairie dogs and other captive species, and resulted in at least 71 suspected human cases in six states. Call Paul Slota, 608-270-2420, for details.

SAFER COASTAL LIVING THROUGH SCIENCE: We?re now in the "middle" of hurricane season and this year is still predicted to produce an above-normal number of Atlantic storms. USGS scientists are focused on the effects of intense storms to the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States, which can leave extensive human, economic and environmental damage in their wake. They?re developing new tools to help figure out how different parts of these coasts will respond to the same storm or how the same section of coastline will respond when storm conditions vary. New Web-based maps of pre-storm conditions will be a helpful first step in figuring out the vulnerability of high-priority areas?those with dense populations or with valuable resources at risk from storm waves. These USGS Coastal Classification Maps at http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/coastal-classification/index.html, identify beach width, dune elevations, overwash potential, and type and density of development in West-Central Florida from Tarpon Springs to Venice. These maps, and accompanying text, are the first in a series that eventually will include all of the states bordering the Gulf of Mexico and will give local officials critical information to safeguard people and their communities. The coastal classification maps are integrated with information on the impact of prior storms and beach stability to give a more complete assessment of the vulnerability to coastal storms. Contact: Robert A. Morton, rmorton@usgs.gov, 727-803-8747 ext. 3080.

Feeds:

HYDRO HITCHHIKERS: USGS hydrologists, or water scientists if you want to be plainer, are studying how raindrops and melting snow percolate through soil and become ground water and what kinds of unintended baggage ? in the form of pollutants ? these hydro-travelers pick up along the way. The technical term for that process of turning rain into ground water is "recharge" and it?s an important part of understanding the quantity and quality of water resources across the country because the bulk of ground water began its life in the water cycle in the clouds as rain and snow. Consequently, most ground-water contamination that happens from what people do on the land surface occurs during this recharge phase. USGS scientists in New Jersey are studying a research watershed with high levels of nitrate in shallow ground water to determine where and how those contaminants enter ground-water systems. Models developed from these experiments will be used nationally to better track contaminants moving into ground-water systems. Call Arthur Baehr at 609-771-3978 for more information.

GOOD REEF THAT?S A LOT OF LARVAE: USGS scientists have been studying the effects that sediment and ocean currents have on Hawaiian coral reefs and are now tracking the movement of "rice coral" larvae, one of the primary Hawaiian reef-building corals off the Maui coast. Scientists can predict when the coral will spawn, but do not know how and where the floating larvae are dispersed prior to their settling on hard sections of the seafloor. Results of the study will provide resource managers with information on how to best protect this unique and economically valuable Hawaiian coastal environment. Coral reefs are storehouses of immense biological wealth that provide services worth about $375 billion each year to the U.S. economy for recreation, tourism, food, pharmaceuticals, and other purposes. While covering less than one percent of the Earth's surface, coral reefs are considered the "rain forests of the sea" by being home to more than 25 percent of all marine species. Yet it is estimated that many of the world's reefs will be destroyed or significantly damaged in the next 20 years. For more information, including reproducible photos, see http://coralreefs.wr.usgs.gov/intro.html, or call Curt Storlazzi at 831-427-4721.

O SHENANDOAH: CAN YOU KEEP ROLLING ? AND GROWING? Worthy of song lyrics and a musical, the northern Shenandoah Valley of Virginia and West Virginia has experienced rapid growth in recent years along the I-81 corridor. While development of this predominantly rural area accelerates, regional and local resource managers have mounting concerns over the region?s ability to sustain future growth. In response, USGS and its cooperative partners from area universities, state and local agencies, and public interest groups have formed the Great Valley Water-Resources Science Forum. The Forum links local needs and resources with USGS scientific expertise in hydrology, geology, biology and mapping. A major goal is to better understand the region's complex aquifer systems so that as these systems are increasingly tapped to provide water supplies for more people, they can continue to support the vibrant natural habitats that are part of the Valley?s heritage. For further information and access to reproducible images, visit hhttp://va.water.usgs.gov/GreatValley/Index.htm, or call Jon Campbell, 703-648-4180.

Story Seed:

100 MINERALS ON YOUR DESKTOP: Got a hankering for information about antimony or molybdenum or zinc? "Minerals in Your World, an interactive CD-ROM from the USGS and the Minerals Information Institute will give you brief descriptions of the sources and major uses of more than 100 minerals and materials. This handy computer desktop reference includes maps showing locations of mines and mineral processing plants in the United States, and photos of minerals and items produced using minerals. Mark Earth Science Week (October 12-18, 2003) on your calendar for the availability of the CD. Call Joseph Gambogi, 703-648-7718, for more.

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