Oct 6 -- The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) invites comments to OMB by November 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 and Territory 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 and Territory water agencies to gather and analyze their data and to assist this effort via cooperative agreements. WUDR will work to improve the collection and reporting of water-use categories by State and Territory 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 an annual competitive process that will be guided by a technical committee of USGS employees and stakeholder-group representatives. WUDR funds will be coordinated through a single agency in each State or Territory.
As part of the ongoing efforts to improve 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 also 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, especially site-specific water-use data. Example feasibility-study questions include: (1) whether water use location data (latitude, longitude, etc.) is available to the public, and if so, the format of availability to the public (website, publication, accessible paper files, etc.); (2) ability/willingness to share the water-use data with other agencies, such as the USGS, and any restrictions on 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.
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.
Information collected and compiled by the USGS Water Availability and Use Science Program (WAUSP) reveals major gaps in water-use data across all main categories, especially site-specific data, which are critically needed for comprehensive understanding of National water supply and demand and to support the ongoing USGS national water modeling efforts. Consistent and comprehensive information is lacking about ways the State and Territory water resource agencies use the water-use data for the state- or regional-level water resources planning and management and what challenges they face with regard to water-use data availability and quality. Knowledge is also lacking on how the water-use information exchange between local, State, and Federal agencies can be improved and what institutional barriers to sharing site-specific water use can be addressed and how.
More recently, the USGS has placed a greater emphasis on collecting site-specific water use data that includes locational information such as latitude and longitude. Part of the goal for the site-specific data is to meet the Tier 2 and Tier 3 baseline standards for water-use data (
https://www.usgs.gov/mission-areas/water-resources/science/summary-baseline-standards-water-use-data). To achieve these goals and to ensure that strategies are developed to address gaps in water-use data across the Nation, data collection via semi-structured interviews and a survey is necessary to collect comprehensive and consistent data from State and Territory environmental agencies. This data collection 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.
To fill the gap in knowledge how water use data and information is used in 55 States and Territories and how the water use data and knowledge exchange can be improved between State, and Federal agencies, a mixed-method research design will be used. A semi-structured interview, consisting of approximately 16 questions with several follow up or clarifying questions if needed, will be conducted first, followed by a 10-question survey. Interview will be conducted via Zoom or phone, based on the study participant preference and Internet availability. A survey will be hosted as a Wed-based survey online survey platform Google Forms. An email with the project and data collection description will be sent to approximately 90 study participants. The email will include links to Zoom (if interviews are conducted via Zoom) and to the online survey. Respondents will not have the option to provide responses in a different mode.
USGS Water Use Data and Research Program:
https://www.usgs.gov/mission-areas/water-resources/science/water-use-data-and-research-wudr-program
USGS submission to OMB:
https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAViewICR?ref_nbr=202304-1028-002 Click on IC List for questionnaire, View Supporting Statement for technical documentation. Submit comments through this site.
FR notice inviting public comment:
https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2023-22293
For AEA members wishing to submit comments, "A Primer on How to Respond to Calls for Comment on Federal Data Collections" is available at
https://www.aeaweb.org/content/file?id=5806