Northeast Region—Urban Landscapes Capability Team

Urban Infrastructure and Water Management—Science 

Capabilities of the U.S. Geological Survey

Managing the urban-water cycle has increasingly become a challenge for water-resources planners and regulators faced with 

the problem of providing clean drinking water to urban residents. Sanitary and combined sanitary and storm sewer networks 

convey wastewater to centralized treatment plants. Impervious surfaces, which include roads, parking lots, and buildings, increase 

stormwater runoff and the efficiency by which runoff is conveyed to nearby stream channels; therefore, impervious surfaces increase 

the risk of urban flooding and alteration of natural ecosystems. These challenges will increase with the expansion of urban centers 

and the probable effects of climate change on precipitation patterns. Understanding the urban-water cycle is critical to effectively 

manage water resources and to protect people, infrastructure, and urban-stream ecosystems. As a leader in water-supply, wastewater, 

and stormwater assessments, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has the expertise and resources needed to monitor, model, and 

interpret data related to the urban-water cycle and thereby enable water-resources managers to make informed decisions.

Expertise and Resources

The USGS scientists of the Northeast Region Urban Landscapes 

Capability Team share expertise and resources to provide and interpret 

data on a wide range of urban-related issues at local, regional, and 

national levels. The USGS has been studying the effects of urbanization on natural resources—groundwater and surface-water quality, 

ecosystems, and geologic resources—throughout the United States for 

more than a century. Continuous water-quality monitoring is used to 

assess trends in water quality and to detect potential problems before 

an entire water-supply system is impacted. Groundwater monitoring 

and modeling are used in a variety of aquifer settings to assess the 

effects of groundwater pumping for public supply and infrastructure 

dewatering (for example, pumping groundwater to prevent flooding of subways). Scientists with the USGS evaluate groundwater and 

surface-water responses to changes in water management. Advanced 

geophysical equipment is used to understand the effects of compromised underground water-supply infrastructure (such as aqueducts), to 

understand the potential for geothermal development, and to understand 

the capacity for artificial storage and recovery of gray water. Advanced 

geophysical equipment also is used to guide the development of watersupply and wastewater conveyance systems in heavily developed areas. 

The expertise of USGS scientists also is applied when water quality and 

quantity is monitored to assess the effectiveness of various stormwater 

control measures (SCMs), including green infrastructure.

Water Supply Infrastructure

Monitoring water quality and quantity are critical for maintaining safe and reliable drinking water supplies. Contaminants (such 

as sediment, nutrients, metals, and chloride) can compromise water 

supplies and require expensive treatment systems. Scientists with the 

USGS frequently work with water purveyors and municipalities to 

Automated influent and effluent sampling at a wastewater treatment 

plant as part of a regional assessment of water quality. Photographs by 

Tia-Marie Scott, U.S. Geological Survey.

develop strategies for evaluating the water-supply system, including not 

only the quality of water but also the infrastructure by which water is 

retained and transported.

Wastewater Treatment Infrastructure

Without proper treatment, contaminants (such as nutrients, organic 

and inorganics compounds, pharmaceuticals and personal care products, and pathogen) may be discharged to receiving waters causing poor 

water quality, mutations to aquatic organisms, and beach advisories 

or closures. The effects of damaged or underperforming wastewater 

treatment plants, combined sewer overflows, and leaking and misconnected infrastructure can be difficult to determine without a properly 

devised monitoring program. Through influent/effluent monitoring and 

contaminant-source tracking, the USGS provides the near real-time 

data necessary for urban watershed assessments to aid water-resources 

managers in determining the effectiveness of wastewater treatment and 

in their work with sewer authorities to identify infrastructure problems.

Stormwater Infrastructure

Traditional engineering methods, grey infrastructure, are 

designed to rapidly convey storm runoff from developed areas to 

nearby stream channels or estuary. Green infrastructure is designed 

to reduce stormwater runoff through nontraditional control measures 

such as rain gardens and bioswales. Both types of infrastructure help 

protect cities from flood-related property damage and in some cases, 

decrease the contaminant loads in storm runoff. Green infrastructure is designed to help restore the natural water cycle by enhancing stormwater infiltration and evapotranspiration. Understanding 

whether the stormwater infrastructure is contributing to or mitigating the adverse effects of urbanization on nearby waterways is 

important. The USGS combines proven field methods with state-ofthe-art technology to assess the effectiveness of SCMs at multiple 

scales. Whether monitoring the volumetric and contaminant mass 

balance of a single rain garden at the plot scale or the cumulative 

effect of several SCMs dispersed throughout an urban catchment, 

the USGS can provide the data necessary to help water-resources 

managers make informed decisions to achieve compliance with 

local and State contaminant reduction goals.

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

Banner photograph: New York City skyline by Tony Jin, 

Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

Fact Sheet 2016–3025

April 2016
The USGS makes use of hydrologic and contaminant loading 

models so that information learned from grey and green infrastructure field measurements can be extrapolated into the surrounding 

urban landscape as a way to simulate the spatial and temporal influence of SCMs on stormwater quantity and quality compared to some 

baseline condition. For example, a calibrated contaminant loading 

model is being used to predict the potential benefit of street cleaning 

on sediment loads from stormwater runoff to nearby waterways.

Examples of USGS Urban Infrastructure Studies

Regional Climate Variability and Patterns of Urban Development

Effects on the urban water cycle and nutrient export.—USGS 

scientists have established and maintained discharge stations at 

several urban watersheds in Maryland. http://md.water.usgs.gov/

projects/sw/water-sustainability.html

Determination of the Natural Resiliency of Critical Infrastructure 

in Response to Flooding Events

This project seeks to identify where key investments in green 

infrastructure may increase resiliency to intensified coastal storms, 

rising relative sea levels, and flooding in the Baltimore, Md., region. 

http://md.water.usgs.gov/projects/sw/green-infrastructure.html

Rockland County Water-Resource Assessment

USGS scientists have assessed public water supply sources 

for viability and sustainability in Rockland County, New York. 

Surface-water impoundments, fractured bedrock, and glacial 

aquifers were monitored, along with sewer outfalls, to determine Gage height, in feet

4

3

2

1

3.5

2.5

1.5

0.5

Water surface

Sample intake

Channel bottom

EXPLANATION

3/7/2015 12:003/8/2015 0:003/8/2015 12:003/9/2015 0:003/9/2015 12:003/10/2015 0:003/10/2015 12:003/11/2015 0:003/11/2015 12:003/12/2015 0:003/12/2015 12:00

Date and time

The Depth Integrated Sample Arm (DISA; above center) is an example of 

a state-of-the art technology that the U.S. Geological Survey is developing 

to obtain a true representation of sediment concentration and loads. The 

technology is especially useful in flashy systems where sediment concentrations vary substantially with water flow and depth such as stormwater 

and sewer tunnels (above right) or ephemeral streams (above left). The 

DISA solves the problem of collecting too much stratified sediment when 

using a fixed-point sample intake as seen in the above hydrograph and 

sample collection jars (https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/70133842). 

Photographs by William Selbig, U.S. Geological Survey.

differences in supply versus treatment relative to potential use. 

http://ny.water.usgs.gov/projects/rockland/index.html

Effectiveness of Three Best Management Practices for HighwayRunoff Quality Along the Southeast Expressway, Boston, Mass.

The USGS has studied the effectiveness of three best management practices in reducing suspended-sediment loads and related 

constituents along the Southeast Expressway in Boston, Mass. 

http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/wri024059

The U.S. Geological Survey works 

with community groups and city 

officials to monitor performance 

of urban green infrastructure 

projects. Photograph (top left) by 

Karen Argenti, Bronx Council for 

Environmental Quality.

Partnering Opportunities

As the Nation’s largest hydrologic, geologic, and biologic science 

and mapping agency, the USGS provides scientific understanding about 

natural resource conditions, issues, and problems. The diverse scientific 

expertise of USGS scientists enables the USGS to carry out site-scale or 

large multiscale, multidisciplinary investigations and provide impartial scientific information to resource managers, planners, and other 

customers. The Northeast Region Urban Landscapes Capability Team is 

committed to expanding urban infrastructure studies needed to manage 

the water resources of the United States, including the infrastructure 

used to convey potable water, wastewater, and stormwater. The USGS 

has a long history of collaborative science with diverse partners including local, State, Federal, and Tribal agencies; nonprofit organizations; 

academic institutions; watershed groups; and other water resources 

entities. Opportunities for jointly funded programs are available through 

the Cooperative Water Program (http://water.usgs.gov/coop/).

References Cited

Selbig, W.R., 2015, Characterizing the distribution of particles in urban 

stormwater—advancements through improved sampling technology: 

Urban Waters Journal, v. 12, issue 2, p. 111–119, accessed April 12, 2016, 

at https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/70133842.

Smith, K.P., 2002, Effectiveness of three best management practices 

for highway-runoff quality along the Southeast Expressway, Boston, Massachusetts: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources 

Investigations Report 2002–4059, 62 p. [Also available at 

http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/wri024059.]

By Shawn C. Fisher, Rosemary M. Fanelli, and William R. Selbig

For more information about these USGS projects and about 

partnering opportunities, contact:

USGS Northeast Region Urban Landscapes Capability Team

Email: GS-NE_ULCT@usgs.gov

or contact your local USGS office

https://www.usgs.gov/contact_us

ISSN 2327-6932 (online)

http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/fs20163025