Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Safe Drinking Water In The U.S.: A Prediction Of When The Entire U.S. Population Will Have Access To Safe Drinking Water, Blossom Hamika, Haley Merrill, Zoyla Orellana

Math 365 Class Projects

This research is to show when all of the U.S. will have access to safe drinking water.

Understanding Basin Specific Life History Characteristics Of Lake Mead Quagga Mussels (Dreissena Bugensis) And A Potential Treatment Using Uv Radiation In Laboratory Studies, Melissa Thaw

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The quagga mussel (Dreissena bugensis) is an aquatic invasive species that is spreading throughout Lake Mead and other western waterways. Unlike their native waters in Eurasia, Lake Mead exhibits year round warm temperatures, high calcium levels and a lack of natural predators, all of which are very favorable conditions for their growth and spread. Dreissena bugensis reproduce and colonize hard surfaces rapidly, where they filter large amounts of water. They disrupt the aquatic food chain and interfere with infrastructure that is exposed to lake water. There is an urgent need to understand Dreissena bugensis life history characteristics within this new …

Monitoring Water Quality On Tributary Inflows To Lake Mead And On A Transect Of The Overton Arm, Jorge Arufe, Robert Burrows

Lake Mead Science Symposium

The USGS, in cooperation with the NPS and BOR (Bureau of Reclamation), is collecting water quality data to determine the temporal changes and spatial distributions of natural and anthropogenic compounds entering the Overton Arm of Lake Mead. These efforts and others already underway on the lake by BOR, USGS, and SNWA will aid in the development of a reservoir model of the lake. The effects of the flood flows on the water quality of the Overton Arm are largely unknown and necessary for model development and verification.

Water quality physical parameters are continuously monitored near the mouth of the Virgin …

History Of Contaminant Inputs Into Lake Mead Derived From Sediment Cores, Michael R. Rosen, Peter C. Van Metre, David Alvarez, Kathy R. Echols, Steven L. Goodbred

Lake Mead Science Symposium

Assessing the changes in contaminant inputs (both organic and inorganic) over time is important in determining sources and sinks of these inputs. Variations in contaminant input were assessed in four sediment cores taken in 1998 from three different parts of Lake Mead (two from Las Vegas Bay and one from Overton Arm and Virgin Basin). Sediments were analyzed for major and trace elements, radionuclides, and organic compounds. Anthropogenic contaminant concentrations are greatest in Las Vegas Bay reflecting inputs from the Las Vegas urban area, although concentrations are low compared to sediment quality guidelines and to other USA lakes. One exception …

Assessing The Relationships Between The Spatial Variation In Land-Use Spatial Patterns And Surface Water Quality, Majed A. Khater

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this dissertation was to examine the association between the spatial patterns of urban land uses and surface water quality parameters at the watershed outlet. The aim of the study was to understand the strength and nature of this relationship, and examine new methods of classifying and quantifying contributing urban land-uses and their spatial patterns. The hypothesis of this research was: in an urban watershed, the variation in the spatial patterns of contributing land uses will have a significant impact on the surface water quality parameters at the watershed outlet.

This relationship between urbanization and water quality is …

Water Quality Remediation At The Abandoned Jones-Kincaid Mine Site, Pyramid Mining District, Washoe County, Nevada, Si-Ok Choi

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the cost and efficiency of four remediation methods, natural attenuation, permeable reactive barriers, pump and treat systems, and bioremediation, and to determine the best suitable method for preventing further environmental degradation from the abandoned Jones-Kincaid Mine (JKM), located within the Pyramid Mining District, Washoe County, Nevada.

Problems from abandoned mine sites may be divided into four types: water quality, public safety, economic concerns, and scenic interests. The foremost problem is the effect of pollution on water quality. Acid run-off and precipitation may be spread hundreds of miles and influence drinking water sources …

Las Vegas Wash Water Quality Monitoring Program: 1996 Report Of Findings, Richard A. Roline, James J. Sartoris, U.S. Bureau Of Reclamation, U.S. Geological Survey

Publications (WR)

Las Vegas Wash, a natural wash east of the city of Las Vegas, Nevada, carries stormwater, groundwater drainage, and sewage effluent from three sewage treatment plants to Lake Mead. The Wash provides nearly the only surface water outlet for the entire 2,193 mi² of Las Vegas Valley. A drainage area of 1,586 mi² contributes directly to the Wash through surface flow which is channeled to Las Vegas Bay of Lake Mead, while drainage of the remaining 607 mi² is presumably subsurface and may drain toward Las Vegas Wash.

In the 1930's and 1940's, sewage treatment plants were …

Identification Of Tire Leachate Toxicants And A Risk Assessment Of Water Quality Effects Using Tire Reefs In Canals, S. M. Nelson, G. Mueller, D. C. Hemphill, U.S. Bureau Of Reclamation

Publications (WR)

Cover is an important component of aquatic habitat and fisheries management. Fisheries biologists often try to improve habitats through the addition of natural and artificial material to improve cover diversity and complexity. Habitat-improvement programs range from submerging used Christmas trees to more complex programs using sophisticated artificial habitat modules. Used automobile tires have been employed in the large scale construction of reefs and fish attractors in marine environments and to a lesser extent in freshwater and have been recognized as a durable, inexpensive and long-lasting material which benefits fishery communities.

Recent studies by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation have quantified …

Limnological Monitoring Data For Lake Mead During 1988, Suzanne E. Leavitt, Larry J. Paulson, State Of Nevada: Division Of Environmental Protection

Publications (WR)

Limnological monitoring was conducted in Las Vegas Bay and Boulder Basin from April to December of 1988. The purpose of the monitoring was to (i) document possible changes in water quality resulting from decreased phosphorus loading and increased ammonia in Las Vegas Wash, and (ii) establish a data base for evaluating the adequacy of water quality standards.

Changes In The Morphometry Of Las Vegas Wash And The Impact On Water Quality, Richard A. Roline, James J. Sartoris, U.S. Bureau Of Reclamation

Publications (WR)

Las Vegas Wash, a natural wash east of Las Vegas, Nevada, carries stormwater, groundwater drainage, and sewage effluent from two sewage treatment plants to Lake Mead. Over 80 percent of the normal discharge of approximately 3.4 m³/s (120 ft³/s) consists of effluent from the City of Las Vegas and Clark County sewage treatment plants. Beginning in the 1950s, a large wetland area developed along the wash that supported waterfowl populations and contributed to some water quality transformations. Heavy rains and subsequent flooding in the area in 1983 and 1984 resulted in erosion and channelization that greatly …

Fish Aid: The Lake Mead Fertilization Project, Richard Axler, Larry Paulson, Peter Vaux, Patrick Sollberger, Donald H. Baepler

Publications (WR)

Sport fishing at Lake Mead in Nevada and Arizona is a resource valued at nearly $100 million per year to southern Nevada. During the past two decades, salmonids, mostly trout, have disappeared entirely, the largemouth bass catch has drastically declined despite greater fishing pressure, and the condition factors for striped bass have steadily deteriorated. It appears that a major reduction in phosphorus loading caused by the upstream impoundment of the Colorado River to form Lake Powell in 1963 and advanced wastewater treatment removal of phosphorus from domestic wastewater inflows in 1981 are the principal factors responsible for decreased production at …

Appendices To Analysis Of The Water-Quality Standards Proposed By Nevada Division Of Environmental Protection, State Of Nevada: Division Of Environmental Protection

Publications (WR)

The appendices include the following:

Appendix A: Evaluation of proposed State of Nevada water quality standards for Ammonia, produced by CH2M Hill California for Clark County

Appendix B: Responses to comments by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection on the draft final report prepared by CH2M Hill

Appendix C: Biases in the ammonia data and in the proposed ammonia TMDL

Appendix D: Application of dilution-ratio analysis to assertions made by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection

Appendix E: Analysis of the dilution-ratio formula used by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection in its TMDL calculations for phosphorus and ammonia in …

Analysis Of The Water-Quality Standards Proposed By The Nevada Division Of Environmental Protection, City Of Las Vegas, Nevada

Publications (WR)

The Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (DEP) has proposed water-quality standards, applicable to Las Vegas Bay and Lake Mead, for (1) chlorophyll, (2) un-ionized ammonia, and (3) pH.

We have concluded that the proposed standards are unlikely to protect or improve water quality in Lake Mead. The proposed chlorophyll standard:

May harm the fishery. Lakes with more chlorophyll have greater fish production.

Will not improve clarity. Chlorophyll concentrations above 30 ug/1 have little effect on clarity.

Will not protect against scums or dominance by blue-green algae. Lake Mead shows no consistent relationship between chlorophyll and scums or blue-green dominance.

Will …

Las Vegas Wash Advanced Water Quality Study: Final Report, Richard A. Roline, James J. Sartoris, U.S. Bureau Of Reclamation

Publications (WR)

The purpose of the Las Vegas Wash Advanced Water Quality Study is to determine the existence, extent, and mechanisms of nutrient and toxin stripping in Las Vegas Wash under present conditions and under future conditions, both with and without construction of the proposed salinity control unit as described by the Bureau of Reclamation (USBR, 1982b). This study was performed for the Lower Colorado Region Division of Planning by personnel of the Environmental Sciences Section of the Division of Research and Laboratory Services, E&R Center, Denver, Colorado. Work on the study began in February 1983.

The general approach adopted for this …

The Effects Of Limited Food Availability On The Striped Bass Fishery In Lake Mead, John R. Baker, Larry J. Paulson

Publications (WR)

The original range of striped bass (Morone saxatilis) was along the Atlantic Coast. They were introduced into the lower Sacramento River in 1879 and are now also found along the Pacific Coast. A landlocked striped bass fishery was established in Santee-Cooper Reservoir, South Carolina, in 1954, and they have since been introduced into numerous other reservoirs, including Lake Havasu, Lake Mead and Lake Powell on the Colorado River. Striped bass were introduced into Lake Mead in 1969 in response to declines in the largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) fishery that occurred during the 1960s and in order to further utilize the …

Scientific Perspectives On Integrated Aquatic Resources Management Of The Colorado River, Larry J. Paulson

Publications (WR)

When management requires water quality standards, we should establish standards in a scientific and logical manner to serve the long-term needs of the users. It was this very process that led to enactment of the Reclamation Act of 1902 and the Boulder Canyon Project Act of 1928 - legislation that still serves the needs of users in the Colorado River Basin. This process can work again if we can make the "tradeoffs" that are so vital in management of a multi-purpose river.

In order to do this, however, we must first be able to identify "tradeoffs." This requires good scientific …

Effects Of Wastewater Discharges On Periphyton Growth In Lake Mead, Nevada-Arizona, Marsha Korb Morris

Publications (WR)

A study of the effects of secondary-treated wastewater on periphyton growth in Lake Mead, Nevada-Arizona was conducted from September 1979 to December 1980. Periphyton ash-free dry weight, chlorophyll-a, dominant species composition, and alkaline phosphatase activity were measured on fiberglass substrates. Substrates were incubated for two to four weeks in littoral and limnetic habitats. Physical and chemical variables and phytoplankton chlorophyll-a were measured concurrently.

Transparency increased with increasing distance from the discharge. Secchi depth ranged from 0.75 m at the discharge confluence (station 2) in August, to greater than 20 m at the most distant stations (stations 9 and 10) in …

The Nature And Distribution Of Enteric Bacteria In Las Vegas Bay, Samuel S. Egdorf

Publications (WR)

The distribution of water and of enteric bacteria of possible fecal origin into Las Vegas Bay from Las Vegas Wash was determined. Determination of distribution patterns was attained by applying the concept of the population component ratio of enteric bacteria. The development and application of new techniques and methods implicit in the application of the "component ratio" concept are discussed. The unreliability of thoroughly referenced techniques and methods generally accepted as standard are treated in detail. Physical factors affecting the distribution and deposition of enteric bacteria (including those of special public health importance) in Las Vegas Bay are also discussed.

Comprehensive Survey Of Sedimentation In Lake Mead, 1948-49, W. O. Smith, C. P. Vetter, G. B. Cummings, U.S. Bureau Of Reclamation

Publications (WR)

Reservoirs are becoming an increasingly prominent feature of the American landscape. Built for flood mitigation and to change a fluctuating river into a dependable source of water for irrigation, power, and other purposes, they are predestined, like natural lakes, to be destroyed sometime following their creation. Sedimentation sooner or later robs most lakes and reservoirs of their capacity to store water. The significance of sedimentation in the life of Lake Mead, the largest artificial reservoir in the world, was realized when the plan for the reservoir was conceived, and an aerial survey of the floor was made in 1935 before …