This website provides a summary of state-reported water quality information and allows the user to view assessments of individual waterbodies. It presents data in a format designed for quick reference by water quality professionals and those familiar with water quality reporting.

This study from the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) assesses water-quality conditions for about 2,100 private domestic wells across the United States . The results of this study are described in two USGS publications, including an overview of the study findings (Circular 1332) and a detailed technical report on data sources, analyses, and results (Scientific Investigations Report 2008-5227). Both publications can be downloaded in PDF format from the NAWQA website (see below). Also available in PDF format are two related articles in the Water Well Journal of the National Ground Water Association (NGWA) which briefly summarize USGS study findings and general information on domestic well maintenance, siting, and testing.

The NOAA Coastal Risk Atlas (CRA) project goals aim at aiding hurricane preparedness efforts by providing the data and methodology necessary to conduct vulnerability assessments for the coastal United States. Provided data include:

• Acquired hazard model outputs such as storm surge, maximum winds, and inland flooding to help locate vulnerable areas
• U.S. Census demographic data to help locate vulnerable populations
• Critical facilitites such as police and fire stations, emergency centers, and hospitals
• Base layers such as evacuation routes and other roadways, streams, water bodies, and land use data showing economic sectors within the community
• Boundary areas such as evacuation zones and populated places

Resources available through the CRA:

• Vulnerability Assessment Mapping
• National Observations and Vulnerability Mapping
• Downloadable ArcGIS Extensions
• Downloadable Data
• Links to GIS and Emergency Management Resources
   
  

The Partnership for Land and Water Protection - a mapping project between the Southeast Watershed Forum and the Land Trust Alliance to encourage greater regional cooperation and coordination among land trusts, watershed groups, state agency staff for aquatic habitat protection.  To date, the partnership has mapped protected lands over eith southeastern states and cataloged more than 227,620 acres of land and 726 miles of streams.  Click here for a flyer (pdf) about the project.

The Consortium has invested a substantial amount of time and resources over the last two years in an in-depth analysis of satellite imagery of an eight-county region in the Upstate from 1985 to 2000. Using a variety of filtering and classification techniques, they determined what portion of the landscape was developed and what portion was rural in each of four images. The 1985 and the 2000 images are shown here. Go to their website to see higher-resolution versions and for more information.

EPA Report (pdf): The Use of Best Management Practices in Urban Watersheds. By Swarna Muthukrishnan, Bethany Madge Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education Edison, New Jersey 08837 and Ari Selvakumar, Richard Field, Daniel Sullivan U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Edison, New Jersey 08837. 

• Chapter 1: Executive Summary
• Chapter 2: Types of Best Management Practices
• Chapter 3: Stuctural BMP Design Practices
• Chapter 4: BMP Monitoring
• Chapter 5: Effective Use of BMP's in Stormwater Management
• Chapter 6: BMP Cost

The U.S. Geological Survey maintains national digital data bases of water-use information. The data are collected and compiled every five years for each State, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

These pages provide access to water-resources data collected at approximately 1.5 million sites in all 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Online access to this data is organized around the categories listed to the left.

The USGS investigates the occurrence, quantity, quality, distribution, and movement of surface and underground waters and disseminates the data to the public, State and local governments, public and private utilities, and other Federal agencies involved with managing our water resources.

From the Open Space Institute: Biodiversity is under growing threat from inappropriate timber harvesting, second home development and invasive species.  Enter State Wildlife Action Plans, or SWAPS. These plans, which each state fish and wildlife agency must develop to qualify for federal funding, are designed as a tool to conserve wildlife and vital natural areas before they become more rare and costly to protect.