# Presentation: 552822

## Advisory Committee on Water InformationStreamgaging Task Force

- Charge:  Determine the streamflow information needs of the Nation, identify the optimal streamgaging network to meet the needs, and prepare recommendations for funding responsibilities.

## Streamgaging Task Force Members

- Interstate Council on Water Policy
- U. S. Geological Survey
- American Association of State Geologists
- American Society of Civil Engineers
- American Water Resources Association
- Association of State Floodplain Managers
- Association of Western State Engineers
- Ground Water Protection Council

## Streamgaging Task Force Members

- Tennessee Valley Authority
- Western States Water Council
- Bureau of Reclamation
- National Weather Service
- Natural Resources Conservation Service
- U. S. Environmental Protection Agency
- U. S. Army Corps of Engineers

## Streamgaging Task ForcePlan

- Identify goals of a national network
- Compile information on all streamgaging stations
- Evaluate achievement of goals using USGS network model
- Identify additional stations needed to achieve each goal
- Estimate cost of new or upgraded stations
- Recommend a long-term funding strategy
- Submit final report by December 31, 2000

## Streamgaging Task ForceNetwork Goals

- NWS and NRCS forecast points*
- NFIP communities
- Key river basins*
- River basin compacts and decrees*
- Major river crossings of state, tribal, and international boundaries*
- Representative streams and rivers for flow estimation and long-term trends*
- River reaches with impaired water quality

## Streamgaging Task ForceNetwork Goals

- 8.    Rivers with point-source discharge permits
- Inflow and outflow of major reservoirs
- Major rivers with diversions
- Rivers draining Federal lands
- Rivers with significant canoeing, kayaking and rafting
- Rivers supporting migratory fish populations
- Rivers used for commercial navigation

## Stations Operated by Other Organizations

- 49

**Number of stations**

## Meta data required for adding stations to network model

- Station code
- Station name
- Latitude/longitude
- Drainage area
- Years of active record
- Availability of telemetry
- Data quality
- Funding

## USGS Network Model

- Conterminous U.S.
- 60,000 streams (total 1M kilometers)
- 329 river basins and 2,200 watersheds
- 18,000 NFIP communities
- 303(d) file of impaired reaches
- NPDES permits
- Reservoir inventory
- Whitewater inventory
- Water use by county and HUC
- 20,000 streamflow stations
- 7,000 USGS active
- 1,800 other stations

## Virginia

**Difficult Run**

**Rock Creek**

**Holmes Run**

**Accotink Cr.**

**Annacostia R.**

**POTOMAC R. AT **
**LITTLE FALLS**

**Virginia**

**D.C.**

**Maryland**

**Triangles show historical USGS streamflow stations. Not all are currently active.**

## Flooding

**Goal: Provide flow**
**information for populations**
**at risk from flooding**

**Metric: NWS service locations**
**supported by gages**

## NWS Flood-Forecasting Sites

## Priority for Additional Stations

- Upgrade existing stations operated by other organizations
- Stage-Q rating
- Telemetry
- Serve data on the internet
- Reactivate discontinued stations
- Build new stations

## Long-term Funding Strategy

- USGS provide data processing and dissemination infrastructure
- USGS support and operate critical Federal stations
- OFAs support other Federal interests
- States and USGS support stations that have both a Federal and State/local interest
- States support local-interest stations