Toward a Sustainable and Secure Water Future A Leadership Role for the U.S. Geological Survey (2009) / Chapter Skim
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2 The USGS WRD: A Performance Review
2 The USGS WRD: A Performance Review
Pages 22-47
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From page 22... ...
The National Streamflow Information Program (NSIP) , as it is now known, evolved as new needs for streamflow data emerged and new technologies for data collection, analysis, and dissemination were developed, including the 22
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From page 23... ...
The quality and integrity of USGS data, and its status as an independent agency, give its data greater credibility compared to that collected by regulatory agencies with a perceived vested interest. External stakeholders praised the WRD's leadership and commitment to long-term data collection, which are fundamental to the water science studies of many other parties and critical to understanding and managing the nation's water resources.
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From page 24... ...
WRD data and interpretive studies used as key performance indicators by other agencies and institutions -- USGS water data are used as metrics: in USEPA's Report on the Environment (e.g., USEPA, 2008) to the Congress and the nation; in the multi-agency, public-private sector collaborative evaluation of the State of The Nation's Ecosystems 2008 (Heinz Center, 2008)
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From page 25... ...
. But, NAWQA cannot continue to be downsized because of budget reductions and still remain a national water quality assessment program (NRC, 2002a)
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From page 26... ...
. Some examples of these USGS models in the public domain include the three-dimensional groundwater modeling code MODFLOW which is one of the most commonly used groundwater flow models worldwide, the 3-D multiphase water and heat flow numerical codes HYDROTHERM and SUTRA are widely used for variable-density problems such as salt-water intrusion.
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From page 27... ...
The committee evaluated the degree to which the Water Resource Discipline (WRD) collaborates with other USGS disciplines and works together with other federal bureaus and agencies to answer SOT question 7: Are USGS water activities coordinated well among other USGS programs, and
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From page 28... ...
Virtually all agencies recognize the need for more data, information, and coordination from WRD to meet the water resource challenges facing the nation. Some of these other agencies' have noted the WRD's leadership in coordinating federal water activities through the Advisory Committee on Water Information (ACWI)
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From page 29... ...
Data Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota or the Mid-Continent Geographic Science Center in Rolla, Missouri. WRD scientists are located at these regional centers but also in 48 water Science Centers throughout the country.
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From page 30... ...
Therefore it is unrealistic to expect full integration of the various Disciplines. Full integration refers to the idea that you might make water resources or some central theme "the organizing principle for everything." However, one cannot reorganize the federal government to align each agency with every priority; hence entities must learn the arts of coordination, cooperation, and collaboration on complex objectives over a sustained period of years.
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From page 31... ...
Coordination and Collaboration with Other Agencies In the committee's observations, and from dialogue with other agencies, the WRD has done an admirable job of working to coordinate its activities with other federal agencies -- both directly with the agencies and through WRD's leadership in various federal coordinating bodies such as ACWI and SWAQ. The USGS develops and maintains the scientific and observational foundation for many critical national services that are provided by other federal agencies, including the National Park Ser
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From page 32... ...
The NWS and USGS closely cooperate and coordinate the provision of these products and services. The NWS properly acknowledges the pivotal USGS role and works with cooperators to advocate for stable, long-term support of the National Water Information System.
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From page 33... ...
database from which they can be accessed on-line by scientists and managers. In addition, regional hydrologic models such as the South Florida Water Management Model and the Natural Systems Model that are being used to provide targets for hydrologic restoration have a resolution (2 × 2 mile grid cells)
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From page 34... ...
WRD Collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency WRD collaboration with EPA is extensive and generally very productive, from co-sponsorship of the biennial National Monitoring Conference to joint work on the "National Hydrography Dataset Plus," (NHD+; an integrated suite of geospatial data sets that incorporate elevation, land cover, and watershed boundary datasets with the original NHD)
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From page 35... ...
The OPP has worked closely with the NAWQA Program since its beginning in 1991. NAWQA assessments provide occurrence and trend information of pesticide levels in the environment, provide evidence to evaluate the effectiveness of OPP regulatory programs, inform the risk management process, help prioritize OPP's future efforts, and serves as a credible source of data to stakeholders.
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From page 36... ...
We have shown here that the USGS water activities are generally well coordinated among USGS, DOI, and other agencies, and it should continue to utilize this ability to foster improved water science. BALANCE The SOT poses evaluation questions about Water Resources Discipline (WRD)
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From page 37... ...
, and USFWS are active members of the Upper San Pedro Partnership, a consortium of 21 local, state and federal agencies and organizations who are working together to attain sustainable yield of groundwater resources in the area through an adaptive management approach. The USGS provides key technical expertise in this partnership effort through extensive field data collection, and simulation of the groundwater system using MODFLOW 2000 (MF2K)
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From page 38... ...
groundwater and surface water; water quality and quantity." The framework for these questions is derived directly from a former WRD strategic plan, Strategic Directions for the Water Resources Division, 1998-2008 (USGS Open-File Report 99-249; referred to as the Strategic Directions plan in the discussion below)
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From page 39... ...
Recommendation: In the past, the USGS WRD program balance was assessed through the Strategic Directions plan (USGS, 1999; see Box 25)
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From page 40... ...
While "stationarity" may be "dead" (Milly et al., 2008) and as a result our nation needs new science to forecast future hydrologic conditions, the nation needs long-term records as a basis to understand its water resources, and the changes and challenges we are facing, to evaluate future conditions.
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From page 41... ...
This is of special concern because of the impor tance of long-term data collection for water-resource management and to determine the effects on water resources of climate variability and land-use changes on water resources…WRD will work with DOI, Office of Man agement and Budget (OMB) , and Congress to begin to shift its overall pro gram to increase the funds available for long-term data collection… "WRD must also maintain a balance among the water-resource disci pline areas.
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From page 42... ...
The surface water component has stayed constant between 1982 and 1998 but the num ber of interpretive studies, which were never a large percentage of the sur face-water component, has had an overall decrease. The discipline that had the most significant decrease was groundwater resources, primarily because of completion of the Regional Aquifer-System Analysis Program." In the following paragraphs, three different approaches are taken to help provide an answer to whether overall WRD programs are "well-managed and conducted in a cost-effective manner." This evaluation of the term is based on a combination of best professional judgment and semi-quantitative measures.
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From page 43... ...
Even amidst the cost concerns, cooperators note that they need the quality and independence of the USGS products; that independent monitoring and data analyses are vital to provide unbiased input to their management programs and for "government performance and review." A related measure, the Coop portion of the streamgaging program is discussed in the analysis put forth by the National Hydrologic Warning Council (NHWC, 2006) that came forward to outline the "Benefits of USGS Streamgaging Program." The NHWC is comprised of cooperators and stakeholders that utilize these data.
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From page 44... ...
In a recent analysis of the 200 most-cited papers published between 1996 and 2007 in Water Resources Research, approximately 10 percent were written by USGS authors. They were noted for their in-depth contribution to the progress and practice of hydrologic science.
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From page 45... ...
While the NRC study concluded that NAWQA had done an exemplary job of dealing with downsizing to 42 planned SUs for Cycle II, it also noted that NAWQA cannot continue to be downsized and still be considered the national water quality assessment that the nation needs. Despite the significant reduction in Cycle II, the study concluded that NAWQA could still maintain good coverage of the nation's streams and groundwater resources, largely because of the commendable, rigorous planning effort that the WRD NAWQA management team employed.
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From page 46... ...
Geological Survey 2002 Estimating Water Use in the United States: A New Paradigm for the National Water-Use Information Program 2002 Opportunities to Improve the USGS National Water Quality Assessment Program 2004 Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program 2006 River Science at the U.S. Geological Survey All of these reports are available from http://www.nap.edu.
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From page 47... ...
Demand for the USGS WRD product is apparent, both in the stakeholder contributions to the Coop program, and popularity of USGS publications and real time water data. The Discipline diligently optimizes its programs and seeks external review both from the NRC and other entities.
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