Surface water quality refers to the physicochemical and biological characteristics of water in rivers, lakes, reservoirs, streams, and coastal zones as they relate to ecological integrity, human use, and regulatory standards. It encompasses parameters such as nutrients (e.g., nitrogen, phosphorus), dissolved oxygen, pH, temperature, turbidity, suspended solids, salinity, trace metals, organic contaminants, pathogens, and emerging pollutants (e.g., pharmaceuticals, microplastics). Research on surface water quality involves monitoring, modeling contaminant transport and transformation, assessing pollution sources (point and nonpoint), evaluating ecosystem and human health risks, and developing management and remediation strategies within hydrological and biogeochemical frameworks.
A Stanford Law report reveals California's inadequate monitoring of dairies and feedlots, highlighting the need for stronger regulatory enforcement to protect groundwater quality and community health.
Environment
Mar 6, 2026
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Canada's drinking water can remain at risk long after wildfires burn out, according to a UBC-led global review that found water-quality impacts often emerge months or years later—not just immediately after a fire. Researchers ...
Environment
Mar 4, 2026
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A large-scale study led by the University of Jyväskylä revealed that human activity is consistently changing the ecosystems of Northern European lakes. The study shows that hydropower and human activity in catchment areas ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 4, 2026
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Nearly a month after a wastewater pipe broke and spewed hundreds of millions of gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac River just north of Washington, D.C., the latest water testing results from the University of Maryland ...
Environment
Feb 22, 2026
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Hundreds, and possibly thousands, of juvenile Chinook salmon were found dead in the lower Yuba River after a large water pipe burst at the New Colgate Powerhouse on Friday, according to a local conservation group.
Environment
Feb 18, 2026
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Following one of the largest sewage spills in U.S. history, University of Maryland researchers have detected high levels of fecal-related bacteria and disease-causing pathogens in the Potomac River, raising urgent public ...
Environment
Feb 5, 2026
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No matter where you live in the United States, you have likely seen headlines about PFAS being detected in everything from drinking water to fish to milk to human bodies.
Environment
Jan 29, 2026
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A new University of Virginia study led by environmental scientist Justin Richardson shows that phosphorus pollution driving algae blooms in Virginia's Lake Anna may come from residential areas as well as farms, but a more ...
Environment
Jan 28, 2026
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The long-term health of the ocean off the coast of Southern California, and the health of the region's freshwater streams and rivers and lakes, soon could hinge on the Trump administration's definition of a single word: ditch.
Earth Sciences
Jan 19, 2026
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Charophytes are extremely beneficial to lakes, improving water quality and biodiversity. However, their abundance was found to decline in many lakes without clear signs of eutrophication during recent decades.
Plants & Animals
Jan 10, 2026
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