Apr 7 -- The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) invites comments by June 6, 2023 regarding the extension and revision of the Water Use Data and Research Program, including a nationwide data-sharing feasibility study of State and Territory agencies that provide water-use information to the USGS.
The USGS is authorized under SECURE Water Act section 9508 to assist state water-resource agencies with improving their water-use data collection activities. The USGS has implemented the Water Use Data and Research program (WUDR) to work with state water agencies in gathering and analyzing their data and assists this effort via cooperative agreements. The WUDR will work to improve the collection and reporting of water-use categories by state agencies, including categories of water use that were previously discontinued due to limited resources. This collection will be used in reports to Congress on water resources in the Nation. Program authorization is $1,500,000 per year.
Cooperative agreements will be announced and awarded as part of a competitive process that will be guided, annually, by a technical committee whose members will include representatives from the stakeholder community as well as the USGS. WUDR funds will be coordinated with a single agency in each state.
As part of the ongoing efforts to include the collection and sharing of water use data, a nationwide data-sharing feasibility study of State and Territory agencies that provide water-use information to the USGS will be conducted. This study will investigate the water-use data availability and identify barriers that may prevent State and Territory agencies from sharing water-use data, in particular site-specific water-use data. Example feasibility study questions include the following: (1) whether water-use location data (latitude/longitude for example) is available to the public, and if so, the format of availability to the public (e.g., website, publication, accessible paper files); (2) sharing the water-use data with other agencies, such as the USGS, and any restrictions for sharing data (such as location and/or water quantity); (3) if information on quantities of water used, such as withdrawals, wastewater return, and sales/deliveries between users, is available to the public, and if so, the restrictions on water-quantity data such as categories of use or time intervals. USGS expects that 40 states will respond to the water-use data-sharing feasibility study.
Collaboration and coordination with USGS personnel will be required as part of the WUDR program. Data must be stored electronically and made available in machine-readable formats that can be incorporated into USGS databases. Additionally, methods used for data collection (estimated values, coefficients, etc.) and a description of data quality assurance and control must be provided to the USGS.
USGS Water Use Data and Research Program:
https://www.usgs.gov/mission-areas/water-resources/science/water-use-data-and-research-wudr-program
Draft survey instrument and technical documentation requested from USGS by AEAStat.
FRN:
https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2023-07303