The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) collected porewater samples from nine suction lysimeters in 2018, 2019, and 2021 for analysis of organic and inorganic constituents from the National Crude Oil Spill Fate and Natural Attenuation Research Site near Bemidji, MN. In August of 1979, approximately 1,700,000 L (liters), or 10,700 barrels, of crude oil spilled onto a glacial outwash aquifer. Sampled lysimeters included L310-1.5, L310-4.5, L1802-1.8, L9014-1.5, L9014-3.0, L9014-4.5, L9017-1.3, L9017-2.5, and L9017-3.7. This data release presents data on analytes that are important indicators of biodegradation processes. Some of these analytes, if present in elevated concentrations, can be a concern regarding potential effects on human health and the environment. There is one tabulated data set containing concentrations of non-volatile dissolved organic carbon (NVDOC), ammonium (NH3-N), orthophosphate, alkalinity as bicarbonate (HCO3-), major inorganic anions, cations, and trace elements. The supporting metadata file contains site information, field and laboratory methods, water chemistry, and quality-control results. Samples were analyzed in the Reston Biogeochemical Processes in Groundwater Laboratory (RBPGL) in Reston, VA, and by a contract lab, Meadowlands Environmental Research Institute (MERI) in Lyndhurst, NJ.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) collected porewater samples from nine suction lysimeters in 2018, 2019, and 2021 for analysis of organic and inorganic constituents from the National Crude Oil Spill Fate and Natural Attenuation Research Site near Bemidji, MN. In August of 1979, approximately 1,700,000 L (liters), or 10,700 barrels, of crude oil spilled onto a glacial outwash aquifer. Sampled lysimeters included L310-1.5, L310-4.5, L1802-1.8, L9014-1.5, L9014-3.0, L9014-4.5, L9017-1.3, L9017-2.5, and L9017-3.7. This data release presents data on analytes that are important indicators of biodegradation processes. Some of these analytes, if present in elevated concentrations, can be a concern regarding potential effects on human health and the environment. There is one tabulated data set containing concentrations of non-volatile dissolved organic carbon (NVDOC), ammonium (NH3-N), orthophosphate, alkalinity as bicarbonate (HCO3-), major inorganic anions, cations, and trace elements. The supporting metadata file contains site information, field and laboratory methods, water chemistry, and quality-control results. Samples were analyzed in the Reston Biogeochemical Processes in Groundwater Laboratory (RBPGL) in Reston, VA, and by a contract lab, Meadowlands Environmental Research Institute (MERI) in Lyndhurst, NJ.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) collected porewater samples from nine suction lysimeters in 2018, 2019, and 2021 for analysis of organic and inorganic constituents from the National Crude Oil Spill Fate and Natural Attenuation Research Site near Bemidji, MN. In August of 1979, approximately 1,700,000 L (liters), or 10,700 barrels, of crude oil spilled onto a glacial outwash aquifer. Sampled lysimeters included L310-1.5, L310-4.5, L1802-1.8, L9014-1.5, L9014-3.0, L9014-4.5, L9017-1.3, L9017-2.5, and L9017-3.7. This data release presents data on analytes that are important indicators of biodegradation processes. Some of these analytes, if present in elevated concentrations, can be a concern regarding potential effects on human health and the environment. There is one tabulated data set containing concentrations of non-volatile dissolved organic carbon (NVDOC), ammonium (NH3-N), orthophosphate, alkalinity as bicarbonate (HCO3-), major inorganic anions, cations, and trace elements. The supporting metadata file contains site information, field and laboratory methods, water chemistry, and quality-control results. Samples were analyzed in the Reston Biogeochemical Processes in Groundwater Laboratory (RBPGL) in Reston, VA, and by a contract lab, Meadowlands Environmental Research Institute (MERI) in Lyndhurst, NJ.

This dataset contains information from groundwater monitoring wells at the National Crude Oil Spill Fate and Natural Attenuation Research Site near Bemidji, Minnesota, USA. The information includes field and laboratory methods, site locations, and inorganic and organic chemistry data. Samples were collected between 2009 and 2023, and analyzed for inorganic anions: F (fluoride), Cl (chloride), Br (bromide), NO3 (nitrate), PO4 (phosphate), SO4 (sulfate), and cations: Ca (calcium), Na, (sodium), Mg (magnesium), K (potassium), Si (silicon), Sr (strontium), Al (aluminum), Fe (iron), Mn (manganese), Ba (barium), B (boron), Li (lithium), Ag (silver), As (arsenic), Be (beryllium), Bi (bismuth), Cd (cadmium), Ce (cerium), Co (cobalt), Cs (cesium), Cr (chromium), Cu (copper), La (lanthanum), Mo (molybdenum), Ni (nickel), Pb (lead), Rb (rubidium), Sb (antimony), Se (selenium), Sn (tin), Th (thorium), Tl (thallium), U (uranium), V (vanadium), W (tungsten), and Zn (zinc). Additionally, samples were analyzed for benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, o, m, p-xylene, total VHC (30 volatile hydrocarbons), NVDOC (non-volatile dissolved organic carbon), methane, ammonia as nitrogen, alkalinity as HCO3 (bicarbonate), and LMWOA (low molecular weight organic acids; lactate, acetate, propionate, formate, butyrate, pyruvate, and benzoate). The following analyses were performed during a select number of years: delta 13C of DIC (dissolved inorganic carbon) delta 13C of DOC, (dissolved organic carbon) and delta 2H in H2O, delta 18O in H2O. Field measurements for specific conductance, pH, and dissolved oxygen were measured daily. Water levels were measured during the sampling events. The supporting metadata files contain site information, field and laboratory methods, water chemistry, and quality-control results. There are three tables.

This dataset contains information from groundwater monitoring wells at the National Crude Oil Spill Fate and Natural Attenuation Research Site near Bemidji, Minnesota, USA. The information includes field and laboratory methods, site locations, and inorganic and organic chemistry data. Samples were collected between 2009 and 2023, and analyzed for inorganic anions: F (fluoride), Cl (chloride), Br (bromide), NO3 (nitrate), PO4 (phosphate), SO4 (sulfate), and cations: Ca (calcium), Na, (sodium), Mg (magnesium), K (potassium), Si (silicon), Sr (strontium), Al (aluminum), Fe (iron), Mn (manganese), Ba (barium), B (boron), Li (lithium), Ag (silver), As (arsenic), Be (beryllium), Bi (bismuth), Cd (cadmium), Ce (cerium), Co (cobalt), Cs (cesium), Cr (chromium), Cu (copper), La (lanthanum), Mo (molybdenum), Ni (nickel), Pb (lead), Rb (rubidium), Sb (antimony), Se (selenium), Sn (tin), Th (thorium), Tl (thallium), U (uranium), V (vanadium), W (tungsten), and Zn (zinc). Additionally, samples were analyzed for benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, o, m, p-xylene, total VHC (30 volatile hydrocarbons), NVDOC (non-volatile dissolved organic carbon), methane, ammonia as nitrogen, alkalinity as HCO3 (bicarbonate), and LMWOA (low molecular weight organic acids; lactate, acetate, propionate, formate, butyrate, pyruvate, and benzoate). The following analyses were performed during a select number of years: delta 13C of DIC (dissolved inorganic carbon) delta 13C of DOC, (dissolved organic carbon) and delta 2H in H2O, delta 18O in H2O. Field measurements for specific conductance, pH, and dissolved oxygen were measured daily. Water levels were measured during the sampling events. The supporting metadata files contain site information, field and laboratory methods, water chemistry, and quality-control results. There are three tables.

This U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Data Release provides analytical data from samples and measurements completed at the National Crude Oil Spill Fate and Natural Attenuation Research Site near Bemidji, Minnesota (Site) between 1984 and 2010. Included are inorganic and organic chemistry data from water, oil, and sediment samples, hydraulic conductivity data from well slug tests, and sediment grain-size distribution data from core samples. Most of these data sets have been described in previously published peer-reviewed reports, however the tabular data sets were not available with these publications. This data release provides the data in a tabular, database-ready format. Each result value in the data sets is coded to describe the kind of sample collected, the material that was analyzed, the method of analysis, and the publication where the value was originally published. Some sample codes are taken from the U.S. Geological Survey's National Water Information System (NWIS, https://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis) and the remaining codes were developed specifically for Site data. Data dictionaries containing code definitions are available at a companion data release titled "Sampling site information, well construction details, and data dictionaries for data sets associated with the National Crude Oil Spill Fate and Natural Attenuation Site near Bemidji, Minnesota", available at https://doi.org/10.5066/F7736PDR. In 1979, a high-pressure pipeline carrying crude oil burst near the city of Bemidji, Minnesota and spilled approximately 1.7 million liters (10,700 barrels) of crude oil into glacial outwash deposits. Since 1983, scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey, in collaboration with scientists from academic institutions, industry, and the regulatory community have conducted extensive investigations of multiphase flow and transport, volatilization, dissolution, geochemical interactions, microbial populations, and biodegradation with the goal of providing an improved understanding of the natural processes limiting the extent of hydrocarbon contamination. Long-term field studies at Bemidji have illustrated that the fate of hydrocarbons evolves with time, and a snap-shot study of a hydrocarbon plume may not provide information that is of relevance to the long-term behavior of the plume during natural attenuation. The research at the site has been supported primarily by the U.S. Geological Survey's Toxic Substances Hydrology Program.

This dataset contains measurements of dissolved hydrocarbons in from various water sources, as well as ancillary raw calibration data showing the stability of the gas chromatograph with an atomic emission detector and flame ionization detector (GC-AED-FID) analytical system over time. Across multiple studies, samples from tap water, groundwater, surface water, springs, mine outflows, and blank materials were analyzed using this system over a period from 2014 to 2017, comprising 172 samples analyzed. In addition to water samples, 183 calibrations conducted over the same period of time are included to document the stability of the GC-AED-FID system over time. The target analytes in this study were: methane (CH4), ethane (C2H6), ethene (C2H4), ethyne (C2H2), propane (C3H8), propene (C3H6), i-butane (C4H10), n-butane (C4H10), 1-butene (C4H8), propyne (C3H4), i-pentane (C5H12), n-pentane (C5H12), 2-methyl-pentane (C6H14), 3-methyl-pentane (C6H14), hexane (C6H14), and benzene (C6H6).

This dataset contains measurements of dissolved hydrocarbons in from various water sources, as well as ancillary raw calibration data showing the stability of the gas chromatograph with an atomic emission detector and flame ionization detector (GC-AED-FID) analytical system over time. Across multiple studies, samples from tap water, groundwater, surface water, springs, mine outflows, and blank materials were analyzed using this system over a period from 2014 to 2017, comprising 172 samples analyzed. In addition to water samples, 183 calibrations conducted over the same period of time are included to document the stability of the GC-AED-FID system over time. The target analytes in this study were: methane (CH4), ethane (C2H6), ethene (C2H4), ethyne (C2H2), propane (C3H8), propene (C3H6), i-butane (C4H10), n-butane (C4H10), 1-butene (C4H8), propyne (C3H4), i-pentane (C5H12), n-pentane (C5H12), 2-methyl-pentane (C6H14), 3-methyl-pentane (C6H14), hexane (C6H14), and benzene (C6H6).

Natural attenuation of organic contaminants in groundwater can give rise to a series of complex biogeochemical reactions that release secondary contaminants to groundwater. In a crude oil contaminated aquifer, biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons is coupled with the reduction of ferric iron (Fe(III)) hydroxides in aquifer sediments. As a result, naturally occurring arsenic (As), adsorbed to Fe(III) hydroxides in the aquifer sediment, is mobilized from sediment into groundwater. However, Fe(III) in sediment of other zones of the aquifer has the capacity to attenuate dissolved As via re-sorption. To better evaluate how long-term biodegradation coupled with Fe-reduction and As mobilization can redistribute As mass in contaminated aquifer, we quantified mass partitioning of Fe and As in the aquifer based on field observation data. Results show that Fe and As are spatially correlated in both groundwater and aquifer sediments. Mass partitioning calculations demonstrate that 99.9% of Fe and 99.5% of As are associated with aquifer sediment. The sediments act as both sources and sinks for As, depending on the redox conditions in the aquifer. Calculations reveal that at least 78% of the original As mass in sediment near the oil has been mobilized into groundwater over the 35-year lifespan of the plume. However, the calculations also show that only a small percentage of As mass (~0.5%) remains in groundwater, due to resorption onto sediment. At the leading edge of the plume, where groundwater is suboxic, sediments sequester Fe and As, causing As to accumulate to concentrations 5.6 times greater than background concentrations. However, current arsenic sinks can serve as future sources of arsenic as the plume evolves over time. The mass balance approach used in this study can is applicable to As cycling in other aquifers where groundwater As results from biodegradation of an organic carbon point source coupled with Fe reduction.

This U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Data Release is focused on the geochemistry of wastewater (including flowback and produced water) samples, co-produced with natural gas, collected from the Marcellus Shale Energy and Environment Laboratory (MSEEL) site. MSEEL is a long-term field site and laboratory at the Northeast Natural Energy LLC (NNE) production facility, adjacent to the Monongahela River, located in western Monongalia County, West Virginia, USA. NNE began drilling two horizontal production wells, MIP (Morgantown Industrial Park) -5H and MIP-3H, in the Marcellus Shale in 2014. The wells were completed in December 2015. Large volumes of wastewater are generated with natural gas production. These wastewaters contain organic and inorganic chemical constituents from fracturing fluids used during drilling and stimulation of gas in host rocks/shale, as well as chemical compounds that are derived from formation water and the solid shale. Many of the organic and inorganic substances in the wastewater are potentially toxic and could pose an environmental risk if released due to spills, leaks, or unsafe disposal practices. Hydraulic fracturing fluid, field blanks, wastewater, and water from the Monongahela River stored in a lined holding pond adjacent to the MIP well pad, were collected from November 2015 through April 2019. The on-site storage tank was sampled from April 2017 through April 2019. Wastewater from the MIP-5H Separator Tank was collected daily at the beginning of the study to annually by the end of the study. One sample was collected from the MIP-3H Separator Tank in May 2018. This data release includes field measurements of temperature, specific conductance, total dissolved solids (TDS), and density; laboratory measurements of pH, non-volatile dissolved organic carbon (NVDOC), alkalinity, major ions, ammonia nitrogen, trace elements, low molecular weight organic acids (LMWOA), semi-volatile hydrocarbons, radium isotopes, and stable isotopes. There are seven files (*.xlsx and .csv) in this dataset: T1_DataDictionary, T2_RestonGeochemistry, T3_Mercury, T4_MenloGeochemistry, T5_pH_Buffers, T6_QAQC, and T7_Stable_Isotopes.