Strategic Plan for Science: U.S. Geological Survey, 

Ohio Water Science Center, 2010–15

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

Scientific Investigations Report 2010–5156
Cover images, clockwise from top left: (1) Ultrafiltration being done in a biosafety cabinet at the U.S. Geological 

Survey (USGS) Ohio Water Microbiology Laboratory; photograph by Donna Francy, USGS. (2) View of Tinkers Creek, 

in northeastern Ohio; photograph by John Tertuliani, USGS. (3) USGS hydrologist collecting water-well information at 

a site in western Ohio; photograph by Bruce Pletsch, Miami Conservancy District, reproduced with permission.
Strategic Plan for Science: U.S. Geological 

Survey, Ohio Water Science Center, 2010–15

Scientific Investigations Report 2010–5156

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey
U.S. Department of the Interior

KEN SALAZAR, Secretary

U.S. Geological Survey

Marcia K. McNutt, Director

U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2010

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Suggested citation:

U.S. Geological Survey, 2010, Strategic plan for science—U.S. Geological Survey, Ohio Water Science Center, 

2010–15: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2010–5156, 9 p. available at 

http://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2010/5156/ 
iii

Contents

Abstract...........................................................................................................................................................1

Vision Statement............................................................................................................................................1

Program Development Principles ...............................................................................................................1

National and Regional Science Initiatives and Issues............................................................................2

USGS National Science Initiatives ....................................................................................................2

Science Issues of Importance in the Eastern Region ....................................................................2

Ohio Science Needs Assessment......................................................................................................2

External Survey: Summary of Responses................................................................................3

Current Water-Resource Issues.......................................................................................3

Emerging Water-Resource Issues...................................................................................3

Important Science Areas or Topics Not Being Addressed by USGS.........................3

Impediments to Working With USGS...............................................................................3

USGS Influence on Decisionmaking................................................................................4

USGS Program Balance ....................................................................................................4

Most Relevant USGS Products.........................................................................................4

Value of USGS Products and Services............................................................................4

Internal Survey: Summary of Important Water-Resource Issues .......................................4

Proposed Ohio WSC Science Focus Areas, Goals, and Strategies ......................................................4

Focus Area 1: Occurrence, Distribution, and Effects of Emerging Contaminants in 

Surface-Water and Groundwater Systems ........................................................................4

Focus Area 2: Effects of Climate Change and Water Use on Water Availability, 

Water Quality, and Stream Biota ..........................................................................................5

Focus Area 3: Identification, Tracking, Quantification, and Prediction of the Occurrence 

of Pathogens and Microbiological Indicators in Environmental and Treated 

Waters.......................................................................................................................................5

Focus Area 4: Effects of Anthropogenic Activities on the Physical, Biological, and/or 

Water-Quality Characteristics of Streams and/or Groundwater Systems ....................6

Focus Area 5: Operation of Hydrologic Monitoring Networks......................................................7

Staffing Outlook..............................................................................................................................................7

Summary and Conclusions...........................................................................................................................8

References......................................................................................................................................................8

Appendix 1: Questionnaire ...........................................................................................................................9
iv
Strategic Plan for Science: U.S. Geological Survey, 

Ohio Water Science Center, 2010–15

mission of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS); and, in some 

cases, their needs largely are for data and/or basic hydrologic 

information that does not support cutting-edge science or 

research. In the second, USGS-driven approach, we attempt 

to guide our partners by identifying areas of potential future 

concern and/or suggesting specific programs or studies they 

may wish to undertake and support. Success with the USGSdriven approach is largely dependent on our ability to identify 

relevant research and the willingness of the partners to commit 

resources to work or research that they initially may not have 

perceived as an immediate need.

Historically, the Ohio WSC has followed a set of guiding 

principles that influence program development. Through application of these principles, Ohio WSC management and staff 

can best assist our partners to meet their scientific objectives. 

The following are the general principles that will continue to 

be used to facilitate program development: 

Principle 1: We strive to make ourselves available to our 

partners (State, local, and Federal agencies or USGS 

program managers) as technical advisors in the planning 

and development of activities for their programs. Through 

this proactive liaison, we can better address and meet their 

program needs at the earliest stages. 

Principle 2: Whenever possible, we use data from our existing 

databases and networks, supplementing with new monitoring only when the need arises. By exploiting already procured data, we reinforce to our partners the utility and value 

of our existing networks and databases, as well as minimize 

additional expenditures.

Principle 3: We reorient or repurpose existing data networks, 

where it is technically sound to do so, to collect the data 

necessary to support partner science needs. Again, this 

principle reinforces to our partners the utility and value 

of our existing networks, as well as minimizes additional 

expenditures.

Principle 4: We strive to develop interpretive studies that 

produce accurate, unbiased, and timely results that are 

conveyed in understandable and useful formats. Depending 

on the nature of the study, results may be distributed in a 

variety of forms including journal articles, printed reports, 

fact sheets, Web-based media, databases, software, or public 

meetings.

Abstract

This Science Plan identifies specific scientific and technical programmatic issues of current importance to Ohio and the 

Nation. An examination of those issues yielded a set of five 

major focus areas with associated science goals and strategies that the Ohio Water Science Center will emphasize in its 

program during 2010–15. 

A primary goal of the Science Plan is to establish a 

relevant multidisciplinary scientific and technical program 

that generates high-quality products that meet or exceed the 

expectations of our partners while supporting the goals and 

initiatives of the U.S. Geological Survey. The Science Plan 

will be used to set the direction of new and existing programs 

and will influence future training and hiring decisions by the 

Ohio Water Science Center.

Vision Statement

The Ohio Water Science Center (WSC) strives to be a 

nationally recognized leader in the water-resources community 

by consistently delivering high-quality hydrologic data and 

state-of-the science hydrologic reports to our partners and the 

public in a timely and efficient manner. This will be accomplished through enhanced collaboration with our partners and 

employees while providing a work environment where all 

employees have a strong sense of purpose, empowerment, and 

teamwork, as well as a desire to improve themselves and their 

products.

Inherent in meeting the intent of this vision is a continuous emphasis on the needs of our partners and the public. To 

maintain this emphasis, we must recognize and respond to 

their particular requirements and, if necessary, develop new 

methods or modify established methods to meet their needs.

Program Development Principles

The Ohio WSC commonly uses one of two approaches 

to develop program. In the first, a partner-driven approach, 

we identify our partners’ wants and needs and develop 

programs and projects to address them. Some drawbacks 

to this approach are that partners’ needs may lie outside the 
2 Strategic Plan for Science: U.S. Geological Survey, Ohio Water Science Center, 2010–15

National and Regional Science 

Initiatives and Issues

The USGS identified a strategic science direction to 

articulate areas where USGS science could be used to address 

critical societal issues that are important to the Nation. To the 

extent possible, the Ohio WSC science strategy will promote 

and support these issues and initiatives.

USGS National Science Initiatives

The USGS science strategy (U.S. Geological Survey, 

2007) outlines the major natural-science issues facing the 

Nation in the next decade and consists of the six science initiatives described below:

1. Understanding ecosystems and predicting ecosystem 

change.—Ensuring the nation’s economic and environmental future.

2. Climate variability and change.—Clarifying the record 

and assessing consequences.

3. Energy and minerals for America’s future.—Providing a 

scientific foundation for resource security, environmental 

health, economic vitality, and land management.

4. A national hazards, risk, and resilience assessment program.—Ensuring the long-term health and wealth of the 

Nation.

5. The role of environment and wildlife in human health.—A 

system that identifies environmental risk to public health 

in America.

6. A water census of the United States.—Quantifying, forecasting, and securing freshwater for America’s future.

Science Issues of Importance in the Eastern 

Region

The USGS Eastern Region’s Science Plan (U.S. Geological Survey, 2004) lists the following four major societal issues 

and identified categories of USGS science that address those 

issues:

1. Urban Dynamics

• Water quality and availability for humans and ecosystems

• Habitat fragmentation 

• River and coastal processes 

• Urban expansion and landscape change

2. Ecosystem and Natural Resources

• Climate change 

• Fish and wildlife health 

• Eutrophication and hypoxia

• Biodiversity, habitat integrity and restoration

• Invasive and nuisance species

• Energy and mineral-resource extraction

3. Human Health and Safety

• Arsenic contamination

• Mercury bioaccumulation

• Trace elements and radionuclides

• Synthetic and natural organic contaminants (emerging contaminants)

• Pathogens and disease

• Air quality

4. Natural Hazards 

• Flooding, storms, and drought

• Earthquakes

• Slope failure and subsidence

Ohio Science Needs Assessment

External and internal surveys were done to help assess 

Ohio’s science needs. External surveys consisted of a written 

questionnaire sent to agency personnel who partner or otherwise collaborate (or have the potential to collaborate) with the 

USGS Ohio Water Science Center; in some cases, the mailing 

of the questionnaire was followed by in-person or telephone 

interviews. The written questionnaire (appendix 1) sought 

information about the agencies’ current and emerging waterresource issues, important issues that are not being addressed 

by USGS, impediments to working with USGS, USGS influence on their decisionmaking processes, USGS program balance, most relevant USGS products, and the perceived value 

of USGS products and services. Internal surveys consisted of 

brainstorming sessions during which Ohio WSC personnel 

identified and discussed issues and areas that they felt should 

be prioritized for additional study.

Results from the external and internal surveys were 

considered in development of the Science Plan, along with 

national and regional initiatives and issues. Logically, topics that are deemed important at multiple scales (national, 

regional, and/or local) were given extra consideration and 

addressed in the Science Plan.
National and Regional Science Initiatives and Issues 3

External Survey: Summary of Responses

Current Water-Resource Issues

• Source water protection.—Identifying sources of 

microbial groundwater contamination.

• Emerging contaminants.—Understanding the severity and impacts of known contaminants (for example, 

emerging contaminants and C-8).

• Harmful algal blooms.—Gaining a better understanding of the cause and impacts of blooms in lakes and 

reservoirs.

• Water use and availability.—Answering the question, 

“Do we (and will we) have enough water, and what is a 

‘reasonable’ use?”

• Water security.—Indentifying potential impacts of 

intentional or unintentional contamination.

• Gage network.—Maintaining adequacy for regional 

statistics, flood warning/assessment, and science support.

• Stormwater management and Phase II stormwater 

regulations.—Providing guidance.

• Effects of dam removal.—Determining potential 

impacts of site-specific dam removals.

• Nitrates in waters.—Collecting and synthesizing data 

to support regulation.

Emerging Water-Resource Issues

• Developing chemical/biological tools to characterize 

the health of streams affected by acid mine drainage 

(AMD).

• Understanding the effect of longwall mining on stream 

recharge and discharge.

• Developing a better understanding of the distribution 

and occurrence of algal toxins in surface waters and 

their causative factors.

• Better characterizing mussel populations and their relation to water quality.

• Better understanding the significance of emerging contaminants from a health and regulatory standpoint.

• Developing and validating aquatic-pathogen identification methods for assessing water security.

• Better characterizing the occurrence and concentrations of biological agents (for example, pathogens) in 

drinking-water sources.

• Understanding/characterizing the potential effects of 

climate change on flood hydrology.

• Better understanding the effects of runoff-reducing best 

management practices (BMPs) on flood hydrology and 

water quality.

• Better characterizing the impacts of predicted flood 

magnitudes on communities and transportation arteries.

• Improving the understanding of highway runoff on 

groundwater quality.

Important Science Areas or Topics Not Being Addressed 

by USGS

• Assistance in developing Acid Mine Drainage Abatement and Treatment plans.

• Research and information on low-volume sampling for 

PCBs.

• Research and information on antibiotics, hormones, 

and pathogenic organisms associated with confined 

animal feeding operations.

• Research into the efficacy of high-rate wastewater 

treatment.

• Methods for helping to visualize what a “No Adverse 

Impact” approach to water-resources management 

could look like.

• Education of local flood-plain managers on hydrology 

and hydraulics as they relate to flood-plain regulation.

• Research into effects of channel modifications (for 

example, two-stage ditches) on water quality.

• Research into identifying and understanding matrix 

effects that inhibit or interfere with detections of 

microorganisms.

• Research and information on the microbial flora making up biofilms in wells and distribution systems.

Impediments to Working With USGS

• No funds or limited funds for the partner agency.

• Universities’ desire to maintain intellectual property 

rights to work.
4 Strategic Plan for Science: U.S. Geological Survey, Ohio Water Science Center, 2010–15

USGS Influence on Decisionmaking

• Agencies make use of real-time data and StreamStats 

to make operational decisions.

• One agency expressed interest in learning more about 

rapid methods for enumeration of bacteria and about 

qPCR technologies to aid decisionmaking.

• Agencies reported use of other selected USGS products 

and reports in their decisionmaking processes.

USGS Program Balance

• Agencies either felt the balance was about right or had 

no opinion.

Most Relevant USGS Products

• Real-time and other gaging data.

• StreamStats.

• Flood-insurance studies.

• Sampling methods and protocols.

• Digital spatial data.

Value of USGS Products and Services

• Those agencies who had worked with USGS felt that 

USGS services were fairly priced.

• One agency qualified the comment above to say that it 

applied mostly when information of the highest quality 

was desired.

Internal Survey: Summary of Important WaterResource Issues

• Effects of agricultural practices (for example, chemical use, animal husbandry, planting practices) on water 

quality and aquatic biota.

• Effects of climate change and/or other factors (for 

example, land use) on water availability and quality.

• Effects of mining (of various types) on water quality 

and aquatic biota.

• Methods development for tracking, identification, and/

or prediction of microbial contaminants in water.

• Source-water vulnerability due to natural and/or 

human-influenced contaminants.

• Occurrence, distribution, and effects of emerging contaminants in surface water and groundwater.

• Development and use of water-quality indicators.

• Relation of nutrients to eutrophication and/or algal 

blooms in lakes, and identification of nutrient sources.

• Effects of changes in water availability and/or streamflow dynamics on aquatic, riparian, and/or human 

populations.

• Data and methods to support and improve flood warning.

• Assessment of physical, biological, and/or waterquality effects of BMPs and/or stream rehabilitation 

efforts (for example, low-impact development, channel 

modifications, dam removal, and so forth).

Proposed Ohio WSC Science Focus 

Areas, Goals, and Strategies

Focus Area 1: Occurrence, Distribution, and 

Effects of Emerging Contaminants in SurfaceWater and Groundwater Systems

Background

A variety of chemicals that are used everyday in homes, 

industry, and agriculture enter our streams and groundwater. 

Some of these chemicals are referred to as “emerging contaminants” because their widespread presence in water and 

potential effects on aquatic and human health are of emerging 

concern; they include compounds such as human and veterinary drugs, hormones, detergents, disinfectants, plasticizers, 

fire retardants, insecticides, and fragrances. Local and national 

studies have shown that emerging contaminants commonly 

occur in complex mixtures in surface-water and groundwater 

systems, and resultant negative health effects have been documented in some aquatic communities. Furthermore, conventional systems for producing potable water do not completely 

remove some of these contaminants, resulting in the potential 

for chronic low-level exposure in humans. 

Goals

• Better understand the occurrence and distribution of 

emerging contaminants in Ohio’s surface-water and 

groundwater resources.

• Begin to develop an understanding of the ecological 

significance of observed concentrations, as well as 

implications for water supplies and water suppliers. 
Proposed Ohio WSC Science Focus Areas, Goals, and Strategies 5

Strategies

• Increase staff exposure to scientific literature and news 

reports with the idea of remaining current on issues 

related to emerging contaminants (for example, human 

toxicity, endocrine disruption, interaction with engineered nanoparticles, and so forth), their movement 

in the environment, and their relative importance to 

society.

• Pursue additional studies on emerging contaminants 

with municipalities, water suppliers, and/or State 

health agencies so that more can be learned about the 

types, amounts, pathways, and distribution of emerging 

contaminants in the State’s waters.

• Pursue and evaluate new technologies for measuring 

emerging-contaminant concentrations and/or their 

effects on aquatic populations.

• Build technical associations with regulatory-agency 

and water-resource program managers, USGS and 

other government-agency researchers, and research 

groups at Ohio institutions of higher learning involved 

in studies of contaminant transport and effects.

Focus Area 2: Effects of Climate Change and 

Water Use on Water Availability, Water Quality, 

and Stream Biota

Background

Water is a vital resource whose availability for use by 

human and aquatic populations is a function of both its quantity and its quality. Human activities can affect water availability through a variety of ways including contamination of 

surface-water and/or groundwater sources, excessive withdrawals, and climate change induced by extensive deforestation and/or excessive production of greenhouse gases. More 

information is needed on the factors potentially affecting water 

availability and quality and the attendant implications for 

human and aquatic uses.

Goals

• Develop or improve our ability to assess and/or model 

the effects of various amounts of water use and/or climate change on the quantity and/or quality of surfacewater and groundwater resources. 

• Develop an improved understanding of the ecological implications of changes in the timing, variability, 

and/or total amount of water available in streams and 

aquifers.

Strategies

• Increase staff exposure to scientific literature and news 

reports related to current theories about climate change 

and its potential impacts on hydrologic systems.

• Improve existing methods or develop new methods to 

track and utilize information on water uses in order to 

better understand water-use impacts on surface-water 

and/or groundwater systems.

• Improve our understanding of instream flows required 

to support healthy aquatic biota in Ohio streams.

• Improve our ability to model hydrologic and waterquality processes in a fashion that supports evaluation of 

alternative water-use and/or climate-change scenarios.

• Pursue modeling studies aimed at evaluating the potential impacts of expected water-use or climate-change 

scenarios.

• Develop expertise with the coupled Groundwater and 

Surface-water FLOW (GSFLOW) model.

Focus Area 3: Identification, Tracking, 

Quantification, and Prediction of the Occurrence 

of Pathogens and Microbiological Indicators in 

Environmental and Treated Waters

Background

Pathogens enter our waters in runoff and/or discharges 

containing untreated or partially treated wastes or wastewaters. Health risks to humans and aquatic populations can result 

from ingestion of, or contact with, fecally contaminated water. 

Methodologies and tools are needed to rapidly identify, track, 

quantify, and/or predict the occurrence of pathogens in water so 

that we can minimize the risk of exposure to pathogens and can 

identify and remediate important fecal contaminant sources.

Goals

• Continue to advance our ability to identify, enumerate, 

and track bacterial indicators and pathogens in water 

by developing and applying new and improved microbiological methods such as quantitative polymerase 

chain reaction (qPCR) and immunomagnetic separation (IMS)/adenosine triphosphate (ATP), as well as 

use of host-specific DNA markers. 

• Continue to explore and improve techniques for accurately predicting when coastal and inland recreational 

waters are likely to have bacterial concentrations that 

exceed recreational water-quality standards.
6 Strategic Plan for Science: U.S. Geological Survey, Ohio Water Science Center, 2010–15

Strategies

• Improve and test techniques and capabilities with 

respect to identification and enumeration of bacterial indicators and pathogenic bacteria, viruses, and 

protozoa.

• Continue to refine and improve rapid analytical methods, such as IMS/ATP and qPCR.

• Continue to pursue and refine methods for identifying and enumerating sources of fecal contamination 

in lakes, streams, and aquifers by applying the use 

of host-specific markers and other source-tracking 

techniques.

• Continue to evaluate and refine predictive models for 

estimating bacteria concentrations in rivers and at 

beaches and pursue new and better ways to disseminate model results (for example, by using the Internet, 

social-networking software, text messaging, and so 

forth).

• Build technical associations with regulatory-agency 

and water-resource program managers, USGS and 

other government-agency researchers, and research 

groups at national and international institutions of 

higher learning involved in relevant microbiological 

studies.

Focus Area 4: Effects of Anthropogenic 

Activities on the Physical, Biological, and/or 

Water-Quality Characteristics of Streams and/or 

Groundwater Systems

Background

Of all of the species on Earth, humans are unique in that 

they extensively modify their environment to suit their needs. 

Practices such as agriculture, mining, and development can 

dramatically change the natural landscape, which, in turn, can 

significantly affect patterns, quantities, and quality of runoff. 

In some cases, modifications are made directly to stream channels to create instream storage, expedite the removal of floodwaters, minimize overbank flooding, or to stabilize and/or 

remediate channels that are perceived to be unstable or subject 

to excessive erosion. In other cases, engineering solutions are 

employed outside of the stream channel to control runoff and/

or improve its quality. In many cases, the short- and long-term 

consequences and efficacy of those modifications are either 

unknown or poorly understood.

Goals

• Improve our understanding of the effects of anthropogenic activities on the physical, biological, and/or 

water-quality characteristics of streams and/or groundwater systems and expand our ability to model and 

predict the physical, biological, and/or water-quality 

impact of existing or proposed activities or remediation 

efforts.

Strategies

• Develop increased expertise and use of geophysical 

and geomorphological techniques.

• Develop increased expertise and use of tracer technologies for both surface-water and groundwater systems.

• Develop methods suitable for assessing the potential impacts of dam construction, dam removal, and 

stormwater best-management practices on streams and 

aquatic biota.

• Develop increased expertise in eutrophication processes and algal population dynamics.

• Expand surface-water, groundwater, and water-quality 

modeling capabilities. In particular, increase expertise 

in the use of HSPF for surface-water and water-quality 

modeling, and become familiar with the sedimenttransport and moveable-bed modeling capabilities of 

HEC-RAS; optimization modeling with MODFLOW; 

groundwater/surface-water modeling with GSFLOW; 

and solute-transport modeling with HST3D and 

SUTRA.

• Expand expertise in environmental inorganic and 

organic chemistry and biogeochemistry.

• Increase understanding of aquatic-ecosystem health 

by enhancing technical associations with regulatoryagency program managers, government-agency 

researchers, and other research groups.

• Develop experience with two- or three-dimensional 

hydrodynamic and water-quality-modeling techniques. 

Specific models of interest include RMA2, RMA4, 

MD_SWMS, SRH-2D, RMA10 and U2RANS.
Staffing Outlook 7

Focus Area 5: Operation of Hydrologic 

Monitoring Networks

Background

The U.S. Geological Survey has the principal responsibility within the Federal Government to provide the hydrologic 

information and understanding needed by others to achieve 

the best use and management of the Nation’s water resources. 

Hydrologic monitoring networks provide a foundation for 

meeting that responsibility. Among other things, hydrologic 

monitoring networks (1) facilitate the determination regional 

aquifer and streamflow statistics, (2) provide timely information that is used by planners and emergency personnel to 

assess and respond to floods and droughts, and (3) provide 

data that support a variety of surface-water and groundwater 

hydrologic assessments and research.

Goals

• Maintain and/or expand the hydrologic monitoring 

network so that we can collect the necessary data to 

provide relevant and accurate regional information on 

aquifer and streamflow characteristics. 

• Explore ways to reduce network maintenance costs, 

improve data reliability, and provide fast and efficient 

mechanisms for disseminating data in useful formats to 

our partners and the public.

Strategies

• Actively promote the expansion of the statewide cooperative streamgage network to monitor stage, streamflow, and water quality.

• Maintain and enhance our ability to deliver real-time 

hydrologic information in a nationally consistent and 

organized manner.

• Pursue new and better ways to disseminate real-time 

hydrologic information (for example, by means of the 

Internet, social-networking software, text messaging, 

and so forth).

• Maintain the existing USGS corporate hydrologic 

database—the National Water Information System 

(NWIS and NWISWeb) and continue to quality-assure 

historical data and computed values.

• Maintain and improve the Ohio StreamStats application to facilitate estimation and/or dissemination of 

site-specific streamflow statistics.

• Increase technical associations with government 

agencies and research groups to promote the scientific 

understanding of the relation between environmental 

and climatic conditions and to raise awareness about 

water-resources management issues.

• Through training and experience, maintain and enhance 

the expertise of our hydrologists, engineers, and 

hydrographers in collecting and analyzing surfacewater and groundwater data.

• Encourage USGS technical support staff to continue 

the enhancement and development of standard analytical tools available to evaluate hydrologic extremes, 

estimate traveltimes and recession rates, predict the 

probable depths and timing of flood peaks, and statistically analyze streamflows and groundwater levels.

• Pursue opportunities and strategies to facilitate floodhazard warning and monitoring.

• Maintain readiness and expertise to support postflood 

assessments of water-surface profiles and peak flows.

• Increase use of, and expertise with, acoustic-based 

streamflow-measurement equipment to facilitate 

rapid and accurate streamflow measurements, thereby 

improving efficiency and productivity.

• Adopt and become proficient with tools and software 

(for example, PDA-based leveling software, GR-SAT, 

SWAMI, CHIMP) that improving efficiency and 

productivity in general gaging-station operations and 

records computation.

Staffing Outlook

The current scientific and technical staff of the Ohio WSC 

has the skills needed for the successful implementation of the 

Science Plan. Continued training and strategic future hires in 

specific technical areas will enhance the current staff skills. The 

WSC staff can and will be supplemented with USGS staff from 

the Biology, Geography, Geology, and/or Geospatial Discipline 

centers and other WSCs, as needed, to conduct multidisciplinary 

and regional studies. Additionally, when appropriate, WSC staff 

will collaborate with scientists and water managers from other 

agencies, as well as academia and the private sector, to meet the 

objectives of the Science Plan.
8 Strategic Plan for Science: U.S. Geological Survey, Ohio Water Science Center, 2010–15

Summary and Conclusions

The U.S. Geological Survey, Ohio Water Science Center 

(WSC), conducted internal and external surveys to help assess 

current science issues of importance to Ohio and the Nation. 

Results of those surveys, along with information on nationally 

and regionally significant strategic science issues, were used to 

develop a science plan featuring five topical focus areas with 

associated science goals and potential strategies for meeting 

those goals. The five topical focus areas are the following:

1. Occurrence, distribution, and effects of emerging contaminants in surface-water and groundwater systems.

2. Effects of climate change and water use on water availability, water quality, and stream biota.

3. Identification, tracking, quantification, and prediction of the 

occurrence of pathogens and microbiological indicators in 

environmental and treated waters.

4. Effects of anthropogenic activities on the physical, biological, and/or water-quality characteristics of streams and/or 

groundwater systems.

5. Operation of hydrologic monitoring networks.

The Science Plan will be used to set the direction of new 

and existing programs and will influence future training and 

hiring decisions by the USGS Ohio Water Science Center.

References

U.S. Geological Survey, 2007, Facing tomorrow’s challenges–

U.S. Geological Survey science in the decade 2007–2017: 

U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1309, 69 p., accessed 

August 21, 2009, at http://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/2007/1309/

pdf/C1309.pdf.

U.S. Geological Survey, 2004, Eastern Region Science 

Plan: Internal document, 34 p., accessed August 21, 

2009, at http://internal.er.usgs.gov/docs/er_science_planver8-01-20-04.doc.
Appendix 1: Questionnaire 9

Appendix 1: Questionnaire

Cooperator:

Date of Interview:

Person(s) Interviewed:

Conducted by:

Preface:

The U.S. Geological Survey’s Ohio Water Science Center (OH 

WSC) is currently developing its new Strategic Science Plan. 

Through this process, the OH WSC hopes to identify specific 

scientific and technical water-resource programmatic areas and 

issues important to Ohio and the Nation. 

The primary goal of the OH WSC Science Plan is to establish 

a multidisciplinary scientific and technical program that 

generates relevant scientific products that meet or exceed our 

cooperator needs while supporting the goals and initiatives of 

USGS. The Science Plan will be used to set the direction of 

new programs in the OH WSC and be used in future training 

and hiring decisions.

We value your organization’s input and perspective as 

we go through this process. We thank you for agreeing to 

participate in this “look forward” to help us assess and define 

the major issues that will be relevant to Ohio water-resource 

professionals and decision makers in the next five years.

Before answering the following eight questions you may want 

to consider the following major water-resource perspectives:

•	 Regulatory Issues

•	 Recreation Needs

•	 Data Needs and Gaps

•	 Environmental Quality and Human Health

•	 Water Availability and Sustainability

•	 Hydrologic Systems, Surveillance, and Hazards

1) What are the most important water-resource issues 

facing your organization within the next one- to twoyear period?

2) What water-resource issues (needs) do you foresee 

emerging in Ohio and the Nation relevant to your 

organization’s mission/responsibilities within the next 

five-year period and beyond?

3) Please identify any areas of water-resource science 

that the OH WSC is not addressing, but should be 

addressing.

4) Please identify any issues (e.g., science, regulatory, 

fiscal, and procedural) that might prevent your 

organization from cooperating with the OH WSC in 

the future.

5) How do OH WSC products and/or expertise influence 

decisionmaking in your organization?

6) The Ohio WSC conducts basic water-resource 

monitoring and interpretive research (approximately 

55% and 45% of our program, respectively). Do you 

perceive this program balance to be about right?

7) What OH WSC products or services are the most 

relevant to your organization?

8) Do you believe the value and cost of OH WSC 

products or services are commensurate?
U.S. Geological Survey—Strategic Plan for Science: USGS Ohio Water Science Center, 2010–15—Scientific Investigations Report 2010–5156