USGS scientists deploy SPMD and POCIS samplers to collect waterborne contaminants in Manoa Stream on Oahu, Hawaii.

Noteworthy

Press Releases

• USGS Assessment of Brackish Water Could Help Nation Stretch Limited Freshwater Supplies
• First-of-its-kind Interactive Map Brings Together 40 Years of Water-Quality Data
• 20 Years Researching Harmful Algal Blooms Supports Sustainable Water Supply in Wichita
• The Quality of the Nation's Groundwater: Progress on a National Survey (1/19/2017)

Featured Science:

• Spatial variability of harmful algal blooms in Milford Lake, Kansas, July and August 2015
• Why Monitor Water Quality? [1.7MB PDF]

Past featured science...

Water Quality Data

Today's Water Conditions

Get continuous real-time water-quality measurements from Water-Quality Watch maps.

Water Quality Portal (WQP)

Get current and historical USGS and EPA water-quality data at the WQP.

BioData

Get stream ecosystem aquatic bioassessment data from BioData.

For More Data

View a complete list of USGS water-quality data resources.

USGS in Your Area

USGS Water Science Centers are located in each state.

Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill USGS Water-Quality Response Resources and Information

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) as part of the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) responded to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico by establishing baseline conditions in water chemistry and bottom sediments prior to landfall of the oil spill. After the spill reached shore (referred to as "landfall"), the USGS conducted additional sampling. Teams of scientists collected samples in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. These sampling locations include barrier islands and coastal wetlands that are critical to fish and wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico.

• Maps, Data & Multimedia
• Publications
• Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Federal Government Links & Social Media

For complete information on USGS Deepwater Horizon oil spill response activities, see the main USGS Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill web page.

Maps, Data & Multimedia

For all USGS multimedia pertaining to the Deepwater Hortizon Spill, see the main USGS Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Response web page.

Map & Data

USGS sampling locations with links to data [15KB KMZ]

Video

Compared to What — A video about USGS sampling procedures along the northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico.

Download the video or view a transcript.

Photos

For additional multimedia:

• USGS Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill response: Up-to-date information, including complete list of USGS publications, data, and multimedia from the latest USGS spill response activities
• USGS Multimedia Gallery: USGS videos, podcasts, and photos

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Publications

Selected USGS publications USGS water-quality activities and the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill.

• Journal Article: Oil detection in the coastal marshes of Louisiana using MESMA applied to band subsets of AVIRIS data
• Book Chapter: Science during crisis: the application of social science during major environmental crises
• Journal Article: Oil source-fingerprinting in support of polarimetric radar mapping of Macondo-252 oil in Gulf Coast marshes
• Journal Article: Asphaltene content and composition as a measure of Deepwater Horizon oil spill losses within the first 80 days
• Operational Science Advisory Team Report III, January 2014
• Journal Article: Assessing mobility and redistribution patterns of sand and oil agglomerates in the surf zone
• OFR 2012-1234: Application of a Hydrodynamic and Sediment Transport Model for Guidance of Response Efforts Related to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the Northern Gulf of Mexico Along the Coast of Alabama and Florida
• Journal Article: Detection of salt marsh vegetation stress and recovery after the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in Barataria Bay, Gulf of Mexico using AVIRIS data
• SIR 2012-5228: Organic contaminants, trace and major elements, and nutrients in water and sediment sampled in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill
• Journal Article: Scientific basis for safely shutting in the Macondo Well after the April 20, 2010, Deepwater Horizon blowout
• Press Release: Research, Response for Future Oil Spills: Lessons Learned from Deepwater Horizon
• OFR 2012-1153: Benthic Community Structure and Composition in Sediment from the Northern Gulf of Mexico Shoreline, Texas to Florida
• Department of Interior Strategic Sciences Working Group, Mississippi Canyon 252/Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Progress Report 2, April 2012 [3.6MB PDF]
• OFR 2011-1271: Organic contaminants, trace and major elements, and nutrients in water and sediment sampled in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill
• OFR 2011-1199: Characterization of Sediments from the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Shorelines, Texas to Florida
• OFR 2011-1151: A Survey of Microbial Community Diversity in Marine Sediments Impacted by Petroleum Hydrocarbons from the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Shorelines, Texas to Florida
• OFR 2011-1059: A survey of alterations in microbial community diversity in marine sediments in response to oil from the Deepwater Horizon Spill: Northern Gulf of Mexico shoreline, Texas to Florida
• OFR 2011-1098: USGS Protocol for Sample Collection in Response to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Gulf of Mexico, 2010
• OFR 2011-1078: Sediment Pore-Water Toxicity Test Results and Preliminary Toxicity Identification of Post-Landfall Pore-Water Samples Collected Following the Deepwater Horizon Oil Release, Gulf of Mexico, 2010
• OFR 2010-1318: Determination of the Anionic Surfactant Di(Ethylhexyl) Sodium Sulfosuccinate in Water Samples Collected from Gulf of Mexico Coastal Waters Before and After Landfall of Oil from the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, May to October, 2010
• GIP123: Science supporting Gulf of Mexico oil-spill response, mitigation, and restoration activities
• OFR 2011-1022: Shoreline Surveys of Oil-Impacted Marsh in Southern Louisiana, July to August 2010
• OFR 2011-1014: Petroleum Hydrocarbons in Sediment from the Northern Gulf of Mexico Shoreline, Texas to Florida
• OFR 2010-1290: Reconnaissance of Macondo-1 Well Oil in Sediment and Tarballs from the Northern Gulf of Mexico Shoreline, Texas to Florida
• OFR 2010-1191: Sampling Protocol for Post-Landfall Deepwater Horizon Oil Release, Gulf of Mexico, 2010 (This report is superseded by OFR 2011-1098)
• Journal Article: A Role for Analytical Chemistry in Advancing our Understanding of the Occurrence, Fate, and Effects of Corexit Oil Dispersants
• OFR 2010-1107: A Rapid Method for Creating Qualitative Images Indicative of Thick Oil Emulsion on the Ocean's Surface from Imaging Spectrometer Data)
• OFR 2010-1132: Estimated Minimum Discharge Rates of the Deepwater Horizon Spill-Interim Report to the Flow Rate Technical Group from the Mass Balance Team
• OFR 2010-1108: Effects of Building a Sand Barrier Berm to Mitigate the Effects of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill on Louisiana Marshes
• OFR 2010-1101: A Method for Qualitative Mapping of Thick Oil Spills Using Imaging Spectroscopy

For additional publications:

• USGS Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill response: Up-to-date information, including complete list of USGS publications, data, and multimedia from the latest USGS spill response activities
• RestoreTheGulf.gov: U.S. federal government portal for Deepwater BP oil spill response and recovery information, data, news, and resources

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Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Federal Government Links & Social Media

• USGS Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Response
• Department of the Interior (DOI) Deepwater Horizon Response
• RestoreTheGulf.gov: official federal portal for spill response and recovery
  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)
  • Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement (BOEMRE)
  • National Park Service (NPS)
  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
  • U.S. Coast Guard (USCG)

RestoreTheGulf.gov Social Media

Please note that not all social media networks are accessible from the USGS intranet.

• Facebook
• Twitter
• RSS
• Mailing List (email)
• YouTube
• Flickr

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Note: Some or all of this information is presented in Portable Document Format (PDF); the latest version of Adobe Reader or similar software is required to view it. Download the latest version of the free Adobe Reader from the Adobe web site.  Visit https://www.adobe.com/accessibility/  for free tools that allow visually impaired users to read PDF files.