Multi-source surface-water-quality data near Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park, New Jersey

This data release contains the baseline water-quality dataset of 32,000 discrete surface-water-quality records compiled, harmonized, and summarized as part of a study conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the National Park Service (NPS) and the Urban Water Federal Partnership for the Lower Passaic River, for the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park (PAGR).

The PAGR is a 52-acre urban park in the old industrial hub of the City of Paterson, New Jersey and sits adjacent to the Passaic River, where a 77-foot waterfall serves as one of the principal features. Given the history of extensive industrial activity throughout the PAGR and the surrounding Passaic River Basin, a detailed inventory of existing water-resources was identified as an immediate need in the PAGR Foundation Document (NPS, 2018) to support NPS personnel in making scientifically sound water-management decisions. For decades, many Federal, State, and non-profit organizations have collected water-quality samples along the Passaic River and its tributaries, and much of the data is publicly available through the National Water Quality Monitoring Council's (NWQMC) Water Quality Portal (WQP) (NWQMC, 2024).

The WQP was leveraged for this data release to compile the dataset of discrete surface-water-quality samples collected by multiple organizations within the PAGR study area from 1952 to 2021. Additional information about the data harmonization process and the final baseline water-quality summary can be found in Reilly and others, 2026.

References cited:

- National Park Service, 2018, Foundation document—Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park: National Park Service, accessed October 23, 2026, at https://www.nps.gov/pagr/getinvolved/foundation-document.htm.

- National Water Quality Monitoring Council, 2024, Water Quality Portal: Washington, DC, accessed on October 23, 2026, at https://doi.org/10.5066/P9QRKUVJ.