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Welcome to the Washington Water Science Center

Water science

Our expertise in water science spans disciplines.

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We provide free surface water, water quality, and groundwater data.

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Washington Water Science Center

This is your direct link to all kinds of water resource information. Here you'll find information on Washington's rivers and streams. You'll also find information about groundwater, water quality, and many other topics. The USGS operates the most extensive satellite network of streamgaging stations in the state, many of which form the backbone of flood-warning systems.

Current Washington Water Conditions

Current Washington Water Conditions

Explore real-time Washington streamflow, groundwater, and water-quality conditions and access data with our new interactive map application.

Current Conditions

View current water conditions

Uncrewed Aviation Systems Program

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Data collection provided by uncrewed aviation systems (UAS) enhances the Washington Water Science Center’s (WAWSC) ability to monitor dynamic environmental systems, respond to natural hazards, analyze the impacts of climate change, and assess landscape change.

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News

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Uncrewed Aviation Systems (UAS) Training Interest Survey

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USGS Unveils Mobile Flood Tool for the Nation

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Lending a Hand During COVID-19: Maintaining a Streamgage on the Canadian Border

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Publications

A general approach for evaluating of the coverage, resolution, and representation of streamflow monitoring networks

Streamflow monitoring networks provide information for a wide range of public interests in river and streams. A general approach to evaluate monitoring for different interests is developed to support network planning and design. The approach defines three theoretically distinct information metrics (coverage, resolution, and representation) based on the spatial distribution of a variable of interes
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Christopher Konrad, Scott W. Anderson
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Water Resources Mission Area, Washington Water Science Center

Multi-decadal erosion rates from glacierized watersheds on Mount Baker, Washington, USA, reveal topographic, climatic, and lithologic controls on sediment yields

Understanding land surface change in and sediment export out of proglacial landscapes is critical for understanding geohazard and flood risks over engineering timescales and characterizing landscape evolution over geomorphic timescales. We used automated Structure from Motion software to process historical aerial photographs and, with modern lidar data, generated a high-resolution DEM time series
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Eli Schwat, Erkan Istanbulluoglu, Alex Horner-Devine, Scott W. Anderson, Friedrich Knuth, David Shean
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Water Resources Mission Area, Washington Water Science Center

Northwest Forest Plan — The first 25 years (1994–2018): Watershed condition status and trends

This report describes status and trends in watershed condition across the Northwest Forest Plan (NWFP) area over the first 25 years since its inception in 1994. The program charged with this task is the Aquatic and Riparian Effectiveness Monitoring Program (AREMP), which has assembled information from field data collection, spatial datasets, and a host of landscape models to evaluate the status an
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Jason Dunham, Christine Hirsch, Sean Gordon, Rebecca L. Flitcroft, Nathan Chelgren, Marcía N. Snyder, David P Hockman-Wert, Gordon H. Reeves, Heidi V. Andersen, Scott K. Anderson, William A. Battaglin, Tom A. Black, Jason Brown, Shannon Claeson, Lauren Hay, Emily D. Heaston, Charles H. Luce, Nathan Nelson, Colin Penn, Mark Raggon
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Ecosystems Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Land Management Research Program, Colorado Water Science Center, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, Washington Water Science Center
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Science

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Hydrogeologic Framework for Lower Duwamish River Valley, Washington

Hydrogeologic Framework for Lower Duwamish River Valley, Washington

The Issue: Most of the Lower Duwamish River Valley in Seattle, Washington, is less than 20 feet above sea level; consequently, the river valley is prone to flooding during high tides, extreme rainfall, and high streamflow. In addition, groundwater inundation—localized coastal flooding due to a rise of the groundwater table with global sea-level rise—may compound flooding issues in the area. The...
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Washington Water Science Center
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Hydrogeologic Framework for Lower Duwamish River Valley, Washington

The Issue: Most of the Lower Duwamish River Valley in Seattle, Washington, is less than 20 feet above sea level; consequently, the river valley is prone to flooding during high tides, extreme rainfall, and high streamflow. In addition, groundwater inundation—localized coastal flooding due to a rise of the groundwater table with global sea-level rise—may compound flooding issues in the area. The...
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Scientist stands on water's edge holding a measurement instrument

Baseline assessment of PAH concentrations in fish from the Stillaguamish River, Washington

The Issue: Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a class of oil-derived compounds widely distributed in fresh and marine waters. They pose a significant toxicity risk to fish. It can be challenging to pinpoint the source of PAHs found in wild fish populations. PAHs are widespread and come from many sources, so it is hard to determine whether fish exposure is event-related or consistent with...
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Washington Water Science Center
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Baseline assessment of PAH concentrations in fish from the Stillaguamish River, Washington

The Issue: Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a class of oil-derived compounds widely distributed in fresh and marine waters. They pose a significant toxicity risk to fish. It can be challenging to pinpoint the source of PAHs found in wild fish populations. PAHs are widespread and come from many sources, so it is hard to determine whether fish exposure is event-related or consistent with...
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Backpacks site on a small gravel bar in the middle of a river

Assessing water quality related to stormwater runoff on Quinault Nation Tribal lands

The Issue: Clean and abundant freshwater supports a diverse low-land habitat in the Quinault Indian Nation (QIN). The area supports numerous large mammals, birds, all species of Pacific salmon and trout, and diverse flora. The multiple small to medium-sized streams flowing through the area may be impacted by stormwater runoff related to adjacent land use, roads, recreational activities, and...
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Washington Water Science Center
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Assessing water quality related to stormwater runoff on Quinault Nation Tribal lands

The Issue: Clean and abundant freshwater supports a diverse low-land habitat in the Quinault Indian Nation (QIN). The area supports numerous large mammals, birds, all species of Pacific salmon and trout, and diverse flora. The multiple small to medium-sized streams flowing through the area may be impacted by stormwater runoff related to adjacent land use, roads, recreational activities, and...
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