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Pennsylvania Water Science Center

We work in cooperation with numerous federal, state, and local agencies to collect scientific data and conduct scientific studies of the source, quantity, quality, ecology, and use of Pennsylvania's water resources.

News

USGS Updates Pennsylvania Drought Condition Web Tool

USGS Updates Pennsylvania Drought Condition Web Tool

Drought Watch/Warning Lifted for all Pennsylvania Counties

Drought Watch/Warning Lifted for all Pennsylvania Counties

Testing New Water Quality Observation Methods In Philadelphia

Testing New Water Quality Observation Methods In Philadelphia

Publications

Results of 2018–19 water-quality and hydraulic characterization of aquifer intervals using packer tests and preliminary geophysical-log correlations for selected boreholes at and near the former Naval Air Warfare Center Warminster, Bucks County, Pennsylva

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) collected data on the vertical distribution of hydraulic head, specific capacity, and water quality using aquifer-interval-isolation tests and other vertical profiling methods in 15 boreholes completed in fractured sedimentary bedrock in Northampton, Warminster, and Warwick Townships, Bucks County, Pennsylvania during 2018–19. This work was done, in cooperation wi
Authors
Lisa A. Senior, Alex R. Fiore

Evaluating water-quality trends in agricultural watersheds prioritized for management-practice implementation

Many agricultural watersheds rely on the voluntary use of management practices (MPs) to reduce nonpoint source nutrient and sediment loads; however, the water-quality effects of MPs are uncertain. We interpreted water-quality responses from as early as 1985 through 2020 in three agricultural Chesapeake Bay watersheds that were prioritized for MP implementation, namely, the Smith Creek (Virginia),
Authors
James S. Webber, Jeffrey G. Chanat, John Clune, Olivia H. Devereux, Natalie Celeste Hall, Robert D. Sabo, Qian Zhang

Legacy sediment as a potential source of orthophosphate: Preliminary conceptual and geochemical models for the Susquehanna River, Chesapeake Bay watershed, USA

Nutrient pollution from agriculture and urban areas plus acid mine drainage (AMD) from legacy coal mines are primary causes of water-quality impairment in the Susquehanna River, which is the predominant source of freshwater and nutrients entering the Chesapeake Bay. Recent increases in the delivery of dissolved orthophosphate (PO4) from the river to the bay may be linked to long-term increases in

Authors
Charles A. Cravotta, Travis L. Tasker, Peter M. Smyntek, Joel Blomquist, John Clune, Qian Zhang, Noah Schmadel, Natalie Katrina Schmer

Science

Contaminants in groundwater near former Navy bases in southeastern Pennsylvania

USGS has investigated groundwater flow and contaminant transport in the vicinity of former Navy bases in Bucks and Montgomery Counties, southeastern Pennsylvania, in cooperation with the U.S. Navy. Additional cooperative support for these investigations has been provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Bucks and Montgomery counties...
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Contaminants in groundwater near former Navy bases in southeastern Pennsylvania

USGS has investigated groundwater flow and contaminant transport in the vicinity of former Navy bases in Bucks and Montgomery Counties, southeastern Pennsylvania, in cooperation with the U.S. Navy. Additional cooperative support for these investigations has been provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Bucks and Montgomery counties...
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Groundwater Recharge - Pennsylvania

New baseflow and recharge estimates were published in a USGS data release in 2023 (see 'Data' tab). Recharge is the process of adding water to the saturated zone. Because it is almost impossible to measure directly, recharge is usually estimated by indirect means. Completed USGS studies provide estimates of groundwater recharge in Pennsylvania and methods for estimating recharge in humid regions.
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Groundwater Recharge - Pennsylvania

New baseflow and recharge estimates were published in a USGS data release in 2023 (see 'Data' tab). Recharge is the process of adding water to the saturated zone. Because it is almost impossible to measure directly, recharge is usually estimated by indirect means. Completed USGS studies provide estimates of groundwater recharge in Pennsylvania and methods for estimating recharge in humid regions.
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Hydrologic and Water Quality Studies of PFAS in Pennsylvania

USGS is working with federal, state, and local partners to monitor and evaluate perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in Pennsylvania's groundwater and surface waters. A recent study sampled tap water in Pennsylvania (and other states) and detected PFAS chemicals in some samples.
link

Hydrologic and Water Quality Studies of PFAS in Pennsylvania

USGS is working with federal, state, and local partners to monitor and evaluate perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in Pennsylvania's groundwater and surface waters. A recent study sampled tap water in Pennsylvania (and other states) and detected PFAS chemicals in some samples.
Learn More