Concentrations of pesticides in sediment in 82 streams and in biofilms in 54 streams in California in 2017

Publication Date

2020-03-26

Start Date

2017-05-02

End Date

2017-05-17

Mahler, B.J., Schmidt, T.S., Nowell, L.H., Van Metre, P.C., and Hladik, M.L., 2020, Concentrations of pesticides in sediment in 82 streams and in biofilms in 54 streams in California in 2017: U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/P9YYD8DI.

Type: Related Primary Publication

The National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Project was established to address where, when, why, and how the Nation's water quality has changed, or is likely to change in the future, in response to human activities and natural factors. Since then, NAWQA has produced scientific data and knowledge that is used by national, regional, state, and local agencies to develop science-based policies and management strategies to improve and protect water resources used for drinking water, recreation, irrigation, energy development, and ecosystem needs. A prominent feature of NAWQA is the development of long-term consistent and comparable information on streams, rivers, ground water, and aquatic systems. As part of the NAWQA project, the Regional Stream Quality Assessment (RSQA) addresses the question of how physical and chemical stressors affect the ecology of small streams. The goals of the RSQA are to characterize multiple water-quality factors that are stressors to aquatic life ‐ contaminants, nutrients, sediment, and streamflow alteration – and to develop a better understanding of the relation of these stressors to ecological conditions in streams throughout the region. As part of the RSQA Pesticide data for sediment and biofilm samples were collected from small streams in California to better assess their occurrence and potential risks to aquatic communities. The dataset provides concentrations of 118 pesticides in sediment and 96 pesticides in biofilm in samples collected in May 2017 at 82 and 54 wadeable California streams, respectively. The purpose of data collection was to characterize and compare occurrence of pesticides in sediment and biofilm and investigate their potential effects on benthic invertebrate community structure.

• National Water-Quality Assessment Project
• USGS Data Release Products