By Dr. Robert W. Puls, Director Oklahoma Water Survey Norman, Oklahoma Some water Facts: The earth is covered with water but only about 3% is fresh water, meaning drinkable or potable Of that 3%, 2% is tied up in snow and ice The remaining 1 % is in lakes, reservoirs, rivers, wetlands, and ground water [...]

By Shannon Schechter National Research Council, Robert S. Kerr Environmental Research Center Ada, Oklahoma and Paul Mayer US Environmental Protection Agency, Robert S. Kerr Environmental Research Center Ada, Oklahoma *Adapted from: http://water.epa.gov/infrastructure/greeninfrastructure   THE PROBLEM WITH PAVEMENT Large paved surfaces keep rain from infiltrating the soil and recharging groundwater supplies. Impervious surfaces like streets, parking [...]

By Dr. Robert Puls Oklahoma Water Survey Norman, OK  73072 Blue-green Algae Blue-green algae are microscopic organisms naturally found in lakes, reservoirs and streams. Their numbers increase in warm, shallow, calm waters receiving abundant sunlight and nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus). The presence of excess nutrients in the water can lead to blooms, which may discolor the [...]

Xiangming Xiao1,2, *, K. David Hambright3, Jinheng Zhang2 ,Chandrashekhar Biradar1,2 and Robert W. Puls4 1Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA 2Center for Spatial Analysis, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA 3Program in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Plankton Ecology and Limnology Laboratory, Department of Biology, University of [...]

By Dr. Yang Hong School of Civil Engineering and Environmental Science School of Meteorology University of Oklahoma Norman, OK  73072 Global and Regional Climate Change The Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States Report compiled by the U.S. Global Change Research Program claims that, “Climate changes are already affecting water, energy, transportation, agriculture, ecosystems, [...]

By Dr. Robert Puls Oklahoma Water Survey Norman, OK  73072 Hydraulic fracturing, together with horizontal drilling, has changed the energy landscape worldwide.  With the explosion of oil and gas resource extraction in unconventional formations in the United States, there is now accelerated activity in China, England, Germany, Poland, Spain and elsewhere. With the expansion of [...]

Science of Water Availability and Meeting Public Needs for Water Resources Presentations from the Oklahoma Water Survey Workshop II (January 03, 2013) (All presentations have been uploaded in PDF format) Workshop Agenda 00-OWSII_Agenda010313.pdf  US Army Corps of Engineers, Tulsa District – Riverware Program for Water Management (John Daylor) 01-Daylor_CorpsEngineers_OWSII.pdf US Geological Survey - Effects of groundwater [...]

by Robert Puls, Ph.D. Director, Oklahoma Water Survey             [ Download the Document here in PDF ]

Analysis and Discussion of Oklahoma’s Oil and Gas Operations and the Protection of Water Resources Presentations from the Oklahoma Water Survey Workshop (October 25, 2012) (All presentations have been uploaded in PDF format)   Workshop Agenda 10512OWSAgenda.pdf Oklahoma Water Survey – Introduction (Dr. Robert Puls) 01-OWS.pdf Oklahoma Water Resources Board – Meeting Oklahoma’s Oil and [...]