Drinking Water

The Cambridge Water Department supplies approximately 13 million gallons per day of drinking water to more than 100,000 customers. Raw water is obtained from a serial system of three primary storage reservoirs—Cambridge Reservoir (also known as the Hobbs Brook Reservoir), Stony Brook Reservoir, and Fresh Pond Reservoir—in parts of Cambridge, Lexington, Lincoln, Waltham, and Weston, Massachusetts...

The Providence Water Supply Board (Providence Water) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) are collaborating on a study to predict future water demand in and around the city of Providence.

As part of water-quality data collection activities in New England, water samples are analyzed for chloride in monitoring networks and projects across Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. Chloride is of interest because high concentrations may affect aquatic life in streams or affect water quality of reservoirs and aquifers used for drinking water.

The Scituate Reservoir system is the largest inland body of water in Rhode Island and the principal drinking-water supply for more than 60 percent of the State’s population. The system includes the Scituate Reservoir and five tributary reservoirs with a maximum storage capacity of 37 billion gallons. The drainage basin that contributes water to the reservoir extends across 93 square miles in...

Droughts are one of the most expensive and damaging hydrologic hazards in the United States. They are generally slow in developing, frequently occur over a long period of time, and can affect large areas and populations.

Background The U.S. Geological Survey has compiled the Nation's water-use data at the county, State, and national levels every 5 years between 1950 and 2015. A summary for New England is presented on this web page. Water use estimates for 2000 through 2020 are now available for the three largest categories of use in the United States: self-supplied thermoelectric power generation, self-supplied...

Background The U.S. Geological Survey has compiled the Nation's water-use data at the county, State, and national levels every 5 years between 1950 and 2015 . - The New England Water Science Center (WSC) collected, reviewed, and aggregated water withdrawal data in Massachusetts from different sources (groundwater and surface water in both fresh and saline settings) as a part of the national effort...

Background The U.S. Geological Survey has compiled the Nation's water-use data at the county, State, and national levels every 5 years between 1950 and 2015 . - The New England Water Science Center (WSC) collected, reviewed, and aggregated water withdrawal data in Massachusetts from different sources (groundwater and surface water in both fresh and saline settings) as a part of the national effort...

Background The U.S. Geological Survey has compiled the Nation's water-use data at the county, State, and national levels every 5 years between 1950 and 2015 . - The New England Water Science Center (WSC) collected, reviewed, and aggregated water withdrawal data in Massachusetts from different sources (groundwater and surface water in both fresh and saline settings) as a part of the national effort...

Background The U.S. Geological Survey has compiled the Nation's water-use data at the county, State, and national levels every 5 years between 1950 and 2015 . - The New England Water Science Center (WSC) collected, reviewed, and aggregated water withdrawal data in Massachusetts from different sources (groundwater and surface water in both fresh and saline settings) as a part of the national effort...

Background The U.S. Geological Survey has compiled the Nation's water-use data at the county, State, and national levels every 5 years between 1950 and 2015 . - The New England Water Science Center (WSC) collected, reviewed, and aggregated water withdrawal data in Massachusetts from different sources (groundwater and surface water in both fresh and saline settings) as a part of the national effort...

Background The U.S. Geological Survey has compiled the Nation's water-use data at the county, State, and national levels every 5 years between 1950 and 2015 . - The New England Water Science Center (WSC) collected, reviewed, and aggregated water withdrawal data in Massachusetts from different sources (groundwater and surface water in both fresh and saline settings) as a part of the national effort...