Water Resources

USGS Celebrates National Water Monitoring Day -- October 18^th, 2002

View the Fact Sheet on-line: Monitoring Our Rivers and Streams (USGS FS-077-02)

Learn about USGS celebrations in your State!

October 18, 2002 was the 30th anniversary of the enactment of the Clean Water Act. (View President Bush's Proclamation of the Year of Clean Water.) This date marked a milestone in our Nation's efforts to protect our water resources. As part of the "Year of Clean Water" celebrations, spearheaded by the America's Clean Water Foundation, USGS participated in National Water Monitoring, along side volunteers and professionals interested in, and working on, water-related issues at the watershed, State, and national levels. This day was a celebration, and featured the value of monitoring and clean water; existing volunteer monitoring efforts; public stewardship for watershed protection; and the many multi-organizational partnerships.

USGS personnel monitored chemical, biological and physical aspects (such as stream flow or ground-water levels) in selected streams, rivers, and ground-water resources across the Nation. In addition, some USGS offices hosted Open Houses or participated in Clean Water Festivals to allow the public to learn about USGS water projects and activities, such as real-time streamflow measurements and chemical and biological sampling. (View a list of completed USGS activities by State).

The scope of measurements by USGS will vary according to the objectives of each ongoing USGS project, but will typically include the four measures specified for National Water Monitoring Day: pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen, and turbidity. (Why are these measurements important?)

USGS promotes the availability of real-time and historic streamflow and water-quality information, as well as WaterWatch maps and graphs of water conditions as compared to those over the last 30 years. This information is available to all partners and local communities and will help to establish a national hydrologic context for National Water Monitoring Day data. Do you need help finding USGS data about your watershed?

U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey Maintainer: Water Webserver Team Last update: 15:42:20 Tue 12 Mar 2002 Privacy Statement || Disclaimer || Accessibility URL: http://water.usgs.gov/data.html