Water Availability and Use
Water Availability and Use
Featured Science | Water Availability for Tribal Treaty Rights in Western Washington
We are working with Tribes to identify rivers vulnerable to changing climate, land use, or water use.
We are working with Tribes to identify rivers vulnerable to changing climate, land use, or water use.
Featured Science | Streamflow Permanence
Predicting the likelihood that streams will be wet or dry.
Predicting the likelihood that streams will be wet or dry.
Featured Science | Southeast Sound Groundwater Flow Model
Major aquifer study including the construction and calibration of a numerical groundwater flow model.
Major aquifer study including the construction and calibration of a numerical groundwater flow model.
We research water availability so that the public knows how much water is available now and into the future. Our research focuses on determining the quantity, quality, and timing of water. In addition to conducting extensive monitoring, we develop detailed models to aid in addressing these complex topics.
Water Budgets
Water Budgets
Water budgets are detailed accounts of water systems. They summarize the ins and outs, and sometimes the timing of water exchanges. Our work to develop water budgets helps water resource managers and communities make informed decisions about how they are using water.
Groundwater - Surface Water Interactions
Groundwater - Surface Water Interactions
In most areas of Washington, groundwater is hydraulically connected to nearby rivers, lakes, and wetlands. We study the groundwater – surface water interface to better understand how much water is moving from above and below ground. Knowledge of ground and surface water exchange helps managers protect these interconnected resources.
Hydrogeology
Hydrogeology
Our hydrogeologic studies focus on regional groundwater assessments, aquifer delineation, and inter-agency science support. We specialize in estimating aquifer properties, mapping 3-D hydrogeologic frameworks, determining flow rates and directions, and conducting tracer analyses.
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San Juan County
Aquifers of the San Juan Islands, which are the principal source of fresh water, are commonly intruded by seawater at near-shoreline locations (less than one mile from the shore). Because the demand for ground water has escalated in recent years due to population growth and is expected to continue, the progression of seawater intrusion and areas most susceptible to future seawater intrusion must...
Salmon Creek Basin
Two reservoirs in the Salmon Creek Basin in north-central Washington store runoff from the upper basin for out-of-basin irrigation of farmlands. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), developed a precipitation-runoff model that simulates historical daily unregulated streamflows for different locations in the Salmon Creek Basin. The model can...
PNW Tribal Water Resources Assessment
Native American Tribes in western Washington need comprehensive water data in order to protect, restore, and manage their water resources. To understand the factors affecting water quality and quantity on a regional scale, the data must be collected and managed through a systematic, coordinated approach. To help the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission (NWIFC) to design a coordinated scientific...
Colville River Basin
The Colville River Basin is a 1,007-square-mile area located in Stevens County in northeastern Washington. Following the guidelines of Washington's Watershed Management Act of 1998, water-resource planning in the basin is being conducted within a Water Resources Inventory Area (WRIA). Local citizens representing a wide range of water resource interest groups, together with local, state, and...
Puyallup Streamflow Trends
Covering about 28 square miles along the lower reaches of the Puyallup River in Pierce County, the Puyallup Indian Reservation is located in the lowest part of the basin. For this reason, all water-related activities in the basin affect the Puyallup Tribe of Indians' water resources and fish. Because of their important links to the Puyallup River, the Puyallup Tribe of Indians want to know more...
GW/SW Interactions
Knowing the interactions of ground water and river water can help reduce the fluctuation of water supplies in alluvial (sediment-deposit) river basins. To develop general principles of these interactions in order to identify and analyze them, the USGS is reviewing the results of the numerous studies of these interactions in Pacific Northwest basins. The review will describe common geologic aspects...
Columbia Basin GWMA
More than 80 percent of drinking water in the mid-Columbia Basin comes from ground water. In Adams, Franklin, and Grant Counties, nitrate concentrations in water from about 20 percent of all drinking-water wells exceed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency maximum contaminant level for nitrate. The three counties jointly formed the Columbia Basin Ground Water Management Area (GWMA) in February...
Methow River Basin
The Methow River Basin, located in North Central Washington in Okanogan County, is well known for its natural beauty, wildlife, outdoor recreation, and rural lifestyle. The Methow River and its tributaries are home to upper Columbia summer steelhead and spring Chinook salmon, which are both listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and bull trout, which is listed as threatened...
Island County
Island County consists of two major islands, Whidbey and Camano, and lies in northern Puget Sound, north of Seattle. Whidbey Island has an area of about 165 square miles and Camano Island an area of about 45 square miles, for a total area of about 210 square miles. Ground water is the primary source of water on the islands, and the ground-water system is fairly well understood, due in part to...
White River Videography
The quantity and quality of instream habitat is one of many factors affecting aquatic organisms such as anadromous and non-anadromous salmonids. The measurement and assessment of instream habitat has been the focus of many habitat monitoring and restoration projects throughout the State of Washington. On-the-ground habitat monitoring is extremely important for specific variables and specific...
Water Resources Inventory Area 1 Watershed Management
In recent years, increased use of ground- and surface-water supplies in watersheds of Washington State has created concern that insufficient in-stream flows remain for fish and other users. In response, the Washington State legislature passed the Watershed Management Act of 1998 (ESHB 2514; see also Ch.90.82 RCW - Watershed Planning), which encourages and provides some funding for local watershed...
Puget Sound-Willamette Trough
More than 70 percent of the population of Washington and Oregon resides in the Puget Sound-Willamette Trough, which stretches north-south on the western side of the Cascade Range. The area is one of the principal regional ground-water systems in the Nation, but little is known about the quantity and quality of the ground water, the regional flow system, or the interaction of the system with...