Scientists from the USGS headquarters and Northern Rocky Mountains Science Center discuss the contributions of geology to soil development and the diversity of plant and animal communities in Hayden Valley, Yellowstone National Park. The 2001 field trip explored examples of ”integrated science,” specifically the geo-ecosystem of the greater Yellowstone area.
U.S. Geological Survey

The USGS is instrumental in helping the public understand the geology of the national parks. For example, the USGS Flagstaff Field Center sponsors an annual field trip for elementary, middle, and high school science teachers to learn about the area’s geology, and often includes units of the National Park System. Recent outings have focused on the Grand Canyon and Lake Mead (shown), Canyonlands, and Chiricahua.
U.S. Geological Survey

John Dennis
Biologist, Natural Systems Management Office, Washington, D.C.

Sharon Kliwinski
Environmental Protection Specialist, Water Resources Division, Washington, D.C.

Lindsay McClelland
Geologist, Geologic Resources Division, Washington, D.C.

“Park managers gained critical tools for improving their understanding, protection, and conservation of park resources through the wide-ranging and valuable scientific research and technical assistance contributions of the USGS.”

The National Park Service and the U.S. Geological Survey extended their solid and productive partnership supporting the goals of “parks for science” and “science for parks.” Park managers gained critical tools for improving their understanding, protection, and conservation of park resources through the wide-ranging and valuable scientific research and technical assistance contributions of the USGS. In 2001 the USGS assisted with implementation of the inventory and monitoring components of the Natural Resource Challenge. USGS scientists from a number of science centers, including the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, helped to design park vital signs monitoring programs and provided substantial assistance with various other activities, including biological research, geologic and other inventories, and a joint effort to provide all parks with vegetation maps. Progress was also made through a multiyear partnership to improve the understanding of park water resources.

In 2001, within the biological discipline, USGS scientists stationed at parks, cooperative ecosystem studies units (CESUs), and USGS science centers drew on USGS, NPS, and cooperator funds to provide valuable research and technical support to national park units and to the NPS national office. For example, a USGS scientist stationed at Glacier National Park developed a methodology for monitoring the park’s grizzly bear population that relied on DNA analysis of bear hair snagged on trees and other surfaces, eliminating the need to capture and mark individual bears. With Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation support, a CESU-based USGS scientist monitored elk restored to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, estimated the ultimate size of the restored elk population, and assessed its impacts on park vegetation. An Alaska Science Center scientist studied the mortality rate of Alagnak River rainbow trout resulting from the use of different types of hooks in catch-and-release recreational fishing. At Theodore Roosevelt National Park, a Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center researcher assessed the impact of abundant exotic plant pollen on the ability of native insect pollinators to carry native plant pollen and successfully pollinate native plant species.

Nationally, the USGS Technology Applications Team at the Midcontinent Ecological Science Center developed the software for, and served, the Internet-based NPS Research Permit and Reporting System. This system offers scientists an automated, on-line mechanism for applying to parks for scientific research and collecting permits, and for preparing and submitting their required Investigator’s Annual Reports (see page 6). Also, USGS scientists at the National Wildlife Health Center worked closely with NPS offices to address several animal disease issues.

Other partnership efforts between the National Park Service and the U.S. Geological Survey range from monitoring volcanoes to geologic mapping. For example, a memorandum of understanding between the National Park Service, U.S. Geological Survey, and University of Utah established the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory in May 2001 (see page 24). The observatory will provide for improved collaborative study and monitoring of active geologic processes and hazards of the Yellowstone National Park region. Communication with land managers and the public will be an important role for the observatory. The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory worked with Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and Hawaii County to identify a safe, road-accessible site for the public to view lava that has flowed from Kilauea’s east rift since 1983. The USGS National Landslide Hazard Program is working closely with Yosemite National Park staff to monitor recent rockfall and assess the effects of geologic hazards on park facilities, such as the continued closure of part of Camp Curry after rockfalls in 1999. In Shenandoah National Park, USGS landslide experts are sampling charcoal and pollen from prehistoric landslides to examine the relationship between slope processes and landslide recurrence intervals and climate change.

Mapping has been another productive area of cooperation. The USGS, in cooperation with the National Park Service and the University of New Hampshire, produced a high-resolution, multibeam, bathymetric map of Oregon’s Crater Lake, the deepest lake in the United States. Geographic Information Systems analysis was used to study lake evolution and critical fish habitats, winning an ESRI, Inc., award for excellence.

Similarly, USGS geologic mapping of 12 quadrangles around Ozark National Scenic Riverways completed in 2001 is being used to develop a regional geologic framework. Hydrogeologists will use this information to assess the potential of proposed lead-mining activities to contaminate karst aquifers that feed the area’s world-class springs. A new USGS 30x60-minute geologic map along the South Rim of the Grand Canyon provides critical structural information for analysis of geologic controls on groundwater movement and spring discharge. The USGS also produced geologic maps of Death Valley that are interpreted for the public on a USGS-NPS website.

The USGS Mapping Program continued delivering digital mapping products to the National Park Service in 2001. Landsat 7 satellite imagery became available for regional mapping and resource monitoring applications. Another related program, Global Fiducials, provided high-resolution imagery for seven units of the National Park System that are prototype inventory and monitoring parks. Although they focus on small sites, these map resources have adequate resolution for detecting changes in park resources over the long term. Other National Mapping Program products were imagery-derived data for application in Alaska and Hawaii, states where traditional aerial photography is not available.

Water is a major determinant of park resource condition, and understanding park waters, watersheds, and aquatic life is fundamental to the protection of those resources. Through a multiyear partnership, the USGS provides $2.1 million each year for water quality partnership projects with the National Park Service. These projects, conducted by USGS scientists, address the highest-priority water quality issues identified by parks. To date, 76 partnership projects have been implemented in 56 park units. For example, the USGS is studying nitrogen cycling in forested streams and nutrient loading in estuaries at Acadia National Park. In Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, the U.S. Geological Survey is evaluating water quality impacts from visitation and recreational use within side canyons in Lake Powell.

In addition to its utility in managing water resources, good scientific information that can be used in legal and administrative proceedings is critical to the protection of water and water-related park resources. The USGS Midcontinent Ecological Science Center developed information describing the dependence of riparian vegetation on water all across the western United States, including Black Canyon of the Gunnison and Capitol Reef National Parks. The USGS Water Resources Division provided substantial help in developing a groundwater monitoring and management plan that protects Mojave National Preserve resources from nearby water development. The USGS Water Resources and Geologic Divisions are developing hydrologic, geologic, and geophysical information that describes surface and groundwater flow systems in and around Death Valley National Park, Lake Mead National Recreation Area, and Great Basin National Park.

Both agencies receive benefits from their partnership efforts. Information from the various projects is used by the National Park Service to meet specific park management needs, including issues of regional and national scope. The USGS views the partnership as an integral part of its mission to provide high-quality science to partners and a successful means of directing their scientific expertise toward solving real-world problems. The partnership between the National Park Service and the USGS demonstrates how collaboration on biologic, geologic, and water resource studies in national parks benefits both parks and science.