Chester County, Pennsylvania Active
Paired Air and Water Temperature Monitoring
Next Generation Water Observing System (NGWOS)
Since 1969, the Pennsylvania Water Science Center has had a cooperative program with Chester County to measure and describe water resources. Cooperation has been primarily with the Chester County Water Resources Authority, with participation from the Chester County Health Department. This partnership provides Chester County with scientific information for water-resources management.
Chester County Monitoring Network Web App
The Chester County Water Resources Authority (CCWRA) was created in 1961, primarily for land acquisition and planning for flood-control and water-supply projects. With the backing of the Brandywine Valley Association, the CCWRA started its first cooperative project with the USGS in 1969. It was a study of the water-quality condition of Chester County streams with an emphasis on benthic-macroinvertebrates and stream chemistry.
The types of projects and data collection conducted by the USGS have changed with the needs of Chester County and the mission of the CCWRA. Chester County is experiencing rapid population growth resulting in considerable stress on water resources. In response, the CCWRA has broadened its focus from flood control to water-supply planning, water quality, and groundwater and surface-water management. The results of USGS studies are used by the CCWRA and other county agencies, including the Planning Commission, Health Department, and Parks and Recreation, for conducting day-to-day activities and planning for future growth. The results also are used by the CCWRA to provide guidance and technical assistance to municipalities, water suppliers, industrial dischargers, watershed and conservancy associations and other civic organizations, state and Federal agencies, river basin commissions, and the private sector.
The cooperative water-resources program benefits not only citizens of Chester County but also those in other states as the headwaters of several interstate drainages lie within the county. In addition, the program serves the interests of the Federal government as innovative studies conducted in Chester County provide methods and interpretations that often can be used nationwide. Major program thrusts include collection of surface-water, groundwater, and water-quality data and interpretive studies.
Find data online at the Chester County Monitoring Network web app.
Related Science
Datasets
Maps
Below are multimedia items associated with this project.
Publications
Also see our archived pre-2013 bibliography on the 'Science' tab.
Estimated fecal coliform bacteria concentrations using near real-time continuous water-quality and streamflow data from five stream sites in Chester County, Pennsylvania, 2007–16
Hydrogeologic investigation of the Malvern TCE Superfund Site, Chester County, Pennsylvania
Hydrogeology and water quality of the West Valley Creek Basin, Chester County, Pennsylvania
Drought-trigger ground-water levels and analysis of historical water-level trends in Chester County, Pennsylvania
Ground-water quality and its relation to hydrogeology, land use, and surface-water quality in the Red Clay Creek basin, Piedmont Physiographic Province, Pennsylvania and Delaware
Study design and preliminary data analysis for a streambank fencing project in the Mill Creek Basin, Pennsylvania
Radium and radon in ground water in the Chickies Quartzite, southeastern Pennsylvania
Geohydrology and simulation of ground-water flow in the Red Clay Creek Basin, Chester County, Pennsylvania, and New Castle County, Delaware
Geohydrology and simulation of ground-water flow in the carbonate rocks of the Valley Creek basin, eastern Chester County, Pennsylvania
Radium concentrations in ground water of the Chickies Formation, southeastern Pennsylvania, 1986-87
Effects of urbanization on storm-runoff volume and peak discharge of Valley Creek, eastern Chester County, Pennsylvania
Effects of flood controls proposed for West Branch Brandywine Creek, Chester County, Pennsylvania
Water-table contour map of the carbonate rocks of eastern Chester County, Pennsylvania, October 1983
Web Tools
Chester County (Pennsylvania) Monitoring Networks
Since 1969, the Pennsylvania Water Science Center has had a cooperative program with Chester County to measure and describe water resources. Cooperation has been primarily with the Chester County Water Resources Authority, with participation from the Chester County Health Department.
The Chester County Monitoring Network web tool provides near real-time water data.
Related news
- Overview
Since 1969, the Pennsylvania Water Science Center has had a cooperative program with Chester County to measure and describe water resources. Cooperation has been primarily with the Chester County Water Resources Authority, with participation from the Chester County Health Department. This partnership provides Chester County with scientific information for water-resources management.
Chester County Monitoring Network Web App
The Chester County Water Resources Authority (CCWRA) was created in 1961, primarily for land acquisition and planning for flood-control and water-supply projects. With the backing of the Brandywine Valley Association, the CCWRA started its first cooperative project with the USGS in 1969. It was a study of the water-quality condition of Chester County streams with an emphasis on benthic-macroinvertebrates and stream chemistry.
The types of projects and data collection conducted by the USGS have changed with the needs of Chester County and the mission of the CCWRA. Chester County is experiencing rapid population growth resulting in considerable stress on water resources. In response, the CCWRA has broadened its focus from flood control to water-supply planning, water quality, and groundwater and surface-water management. The results of USGS studies are used by the CCWRA and other county agencies, including the Planning Commission, Health Department, and Parks and Recreation, for conducting day-to-day activities and planning for future growth. The results also are used by the CCWRA to provide guidance and technical assistance to municipalities, water suppliers, industrial dischargers, watershed and conservancy associations and other civic organizations, state and Federal agencies, river basin commissions, and the private sector.
The cooperative water-resources program benefits not only citizens of Chester County but also those in other states as the headwaters of several interstate drainages lie within the county. In addition, the program serves the interests of the Federal government as innovative studies conducted in Chester County provide methods and interpretations that often can be used nationwide. Major program thrusts include collection of surface-water, groundwater, and water-quality data and interpretive studies.
Find data online at the Chester County Monitoring Network web app.
- Science
Related Science
- Data
Datasets
- Maps
Maps
- Multimedia
Below are multimedia items associated with this project.
- Publications
Publications
Also see our archived pre-2013 bibliography on the 'Science' tab.
Estimated fecal coliform bacteria concentrations using near real-time continuous water-quality and streamflow data from five stream sites in Chester County, Pennsylvania, 2007–16
Several streams used for recreational activities, such as fishing, swimming, and boating, in Chester County, Pennsylvania, are known to have periodic elevated concentrations of fecal coliform bacteria, a type of bacteria used to indicate the potential presence of fecally related pathogens that may pose health risks to humans exposed through water contact. The availability of near real-time continuAuthorsLisa A. SeniorFilter Total Items: 64Hydrogeologic investigation of the Malvern TCE Superfund Site, Chester County, Pennsylvania
The Malvern TCE Superfund Site, a former solvent recycling facility that now stores and sells solvents, consists of a plant and disposal area, which are approximately 1,900 ft (feet) apart. The site is underlain by an unconfined carbonate bedrock aquifer in which permeability has been enhanced in places by solution. Water levels respond quickly to precipitation and show a similar seasonal variatioAuthorsRonald A. SlotoHydrogeology and water quality of the West Valley Creek Basin, Chester County, Pennsylvania
The West Valley Creek Basin drains 20.9 square miles in the Piedmont Physiographic Province of southeastern Pennsylvania and is partly underlain by carbonate rocks that are highly productive aquifers. The basin is undergoing rapid urbanization that includes changes in land use and increases in demand for public water supply and wastewater disposal. Ground water is the sole source of supply in theAuthorsLisa A. Senior, Ronald A. Sloto, Andrew G. ReifDrought-trigger ground-water levels and analysis of historical water-level trends in Chester County, Pennsylvania
The Chester County observation-well network was established in 1973 through a cooperative agreement between the Chester County Water Resources Authority (CCWRA) and the U.S. Geological Survey. The network was established to monitor local ground-water levels, to determine drought conditions, and to monitor ground-water-level trends. Drought-warning and drought-emergency water-level triggers were deAuthorsCurtis L. SchrefflerGround-water quality and its relation to hydrogeology, land use, and surface-water quality in the Red Clay Creek basin, Piedmont Physiographic Province, Pennsylvania and Delaware
The Red Clay Creek Basin in the Piedmont Physiographic Province of Pennsylvania and Delaware is a 54-square-mile area underlain by a structurally complex assemblage of fractured metamorphosed sedimentary and igneous rocks that form a water-table aquifer. Ground-water-flow systems generally are local, and ground water discharges to streams. Both ground water and surface water in the basin are usedAuthorsLisa A. SeniorStudy design and preliminary data analysis for a streambank fencing project in the Mill Creek Basin, Pennsylvania
The Pequea Creek and Mill Creek Basins within Lancaster and Chester Counties in Pennsylvania have been identified as areas needing control of nonpoint-source (NFS) pollution to improve water quality. The two basins are a total of approximately 200 square miles and are primarily underlain by carbonate bedrock. Land use is predominantly agriculture. The most common agricultural NFS pollution-controlAuthorsDaniel G. Galeone, Edward H. KoerkleRadium and radon in ground water in the Chickies Quartzite, southeastern Pennsylvania
The Chickies Quartzite, a Lower Cambrian-age formation compromised of quartzite and slate overlying a basal conglomerate, forms a narrow ridges and crops out discontinuously over 112 square miles in the Piedmont physiographic province of southeastern Pennsylvania. The formation is a low-yielding, fractured- rock, water-table aquifer recharged primarily by local precipitation. It is the sole sourceAuthorsL.A. Senior, K.L. VogelGeohydrology and simulation of ground-water flow in the Red Clay Creek Basin, Chester County, Pennsylvania, and New Castle County, Delaware
The 54-square-mile Red Clay Creek Basin, located in the lower Delaware River Basin, is underlain primarily by metamorphic rocks that range from Precambrian to Lower Paleozoic in age. Ground water flows through secondary openings in fractured crystalline rock and through primary openings below the water table in the overlying saprolite. Secondary porosity and permeability vary with hydrogeologic unAuthorsKaren L. Vogel, Andrew G. ReifGeohydrology and simulation of ground-water flow in the carbonate rocks of the Valley Creek basin, eastern Chester County, Pennsylvania
Sixty-eight percent of the 22.6-square-mile Valley Creek basin is underlain by Cambrian and Ordovician limestone and dolomite. Ground water flows through a network of interconnected secondary openings; primary porosity is virtually nonexistent. Some of these openings have been enlarged by solution. Secondary porosity and permeability exhibit great spatial variability, and the yield and specific caAuthorsR. A. SlotoRadium concentrations in ground water of the Chickies Formation, southeastern Pennsylvania, 1986-87
No abstract availableAuthorsL. DeWayne CecilEffects of urbanization on storm-runoff volume and peak discharge of Valley Creek, eastern Chester County, Pennsylvania
Peak discharge and runoff volume were simulated for 21 storms in the Valley Creek basin using the U.S. Geological Survey Distributed Routing Rainfall-Runoff Model (DR3M). Storm peak discharges ranged from 301 to 900 cubic feet per second. Rainfall was measured at three recording rain gages in the basin. Observed and simulated runoff volumes and peak discharges were compared for the upper 20.8 squaAuthorsR. A. SlotoEffects of flood controls proposed for West Branch Brandywine Creek, Chester County, Pennsylvania
Twenty-four-hour rainfall, distributed over time according to the U.S. Soil Conservation Service type II rainfall distribution, was used as input to calibrated rainfall-runoff models of three subbasins in the West Branch Brandywine Creek watershed. The effects of four proposed flood controls were evaluated by using these rainfalls to simulate discharge hydrographs with and without the flood controAuthorsR. A. SlotoWater-table contour map of the carbonate rocks of eastern Chester County, Pennsylvania, October 1983
No abstract availableAuthorsRonald A. Sloto - Web Tools
Web Tools
Chester County (Pennsylvania) Monitoring Networks
Since 1969, the Pennsylvania Water Science Center has had a cooperative program with Chester County to measure and describe water resources. Cooperation has been primarily with the Chester County Water Resources Authority, with participation from the Chester County Health Department.
The Chester County Monitoring Network web tool provides near real-time water data.
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