Effects of low-level dams on the distribution of sediment, trace metals, and organic substances in the lower Schuylkill River basin, Pennsylvania

Abstract

PREFACEIn 1973, the U.S. Geological Survey began a series of intensive river-quality assessments designed to demonstrate the use of river-quality studies in basin planning and water-resources management. The first of these assessments was conducted in the Willamette River basin, Oregon. Others have been completed in the Yampa River basin, Colorado and Wyoming; the Chattahoochee River basin, Georgia; the Apalachicola River basin, Florida; the Truckee and Carson River basins, California and Nevada; and the Potomac River basin, Maryland and Virginia. Objectives of the assessments were to define the types and amounts of data required to assess various river-quality problems and to develop and document methods for assessing planning alternatives in terms of potential impacts on river quality.The assessments were a result of recommendations from the Advisory Committee on Water Data for Public Use. This committee was established to help implement Office of Management and Budget Circular A-67, which designated the U.S. Department of the Interior responsible for coordinating Federal water-data acquisition and the U.S. Geological Survey responsible for acquiring the data. In 1971, the Advisory Committee was concerned because suitable information on river-basin planning and on water-quality management of major rivers was not available. The concern resulted from the inadequacy of water data to address problems that demanded legislative action. Major problems included (1) definition of water quality of the Nation's rivers, (2) analysis of water-quality trends, especially the effectiveness of pollution-control programs in improving water quality, (3) determination of whether advanced wastewater treatment was desirable or necessary on a national, State, or river-basin basis, and (4) definition of the interrelation of land use and water quality. The committee recommended that the Geological Survey assess these problems, using the Willamette River basin for the pilot study.This water-supply series, Water-Supply Paper 2256 consists of the two primary reports that present the results of the Schuylkill River Quality Assessment, which is the first to address river-quality problems associated with trace metals and trace organic substances. The Schuylkill River was chosen for study because of heavy use of the river for municipal water supplies and a history of accidental spills and discharges of trace substances in the heavily industrialized reach of the river between Reading and Philadelphia, Pa.The Schuylkill River Quality Assessment was divided into three components on the basis of results of review of water-quality conditions in the basin by the project staff and officials from local, State, and Federal agencies. The first component was a review of the methods of conducting trace substance studies and a determination of the most appropriate methods of sampling and analyzing water, sediment, and biota to define ambient conditions in the aquatic environment. The second component was a determination of the distribution and transport ...

Mercury Burial in Modern Sedimentary Systems of the East China Marginal Seas: The Role of Coastal Oceans in Global Mercury Cycling

“…As a result, many regions have experienced similar consequences on sediment transport and Hg export. Numerous studies have shown that the dam construction has led to decreased sediment supply and altered trace metals or Hg dynamics in various regions, including the United States (Yorke et al, 1985), Europe (Eiriksdottir et al, 2017), Russia (Zolkos et al, 2022), and South America (Pestana et al, 2019). Considering that river export constitutes the largest source of Hg to coastal oceans (M. D. Liu et al, 2021), and with continuous planning and construction of dam programs, we suggest that future long-term data collection and modeling become imperative to fully understand the impacts of river damming on the deposition and cycling of Hg in coastal zones.…”