South Atlantic Water Science Center Strategic Science Plan: 2019–23

Executive Summary

The South Atlantic Water Science Center Strategic Science Planning Team has developed a unified strategic science plan to guide the science vision of the South Atlantic Water Science Center (SAWSC) in response to the merging of the Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina Water Science Centers. This plan proposes a path forward to keep SAWSC science activities relevant to the many diverse needs of stakeholders in the South Atlantic region (Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina) and considers the hydrologic setting and issues of the region. This plan advises the creation of five working groups to address five priority science topics for the period 2019–23 and beyond. The five priority science topics are (1) Foundational Data, (2) Effects of Land-Use Change, (3) Coastal Plain Science, (4) Water Availability, and (5) Hazards. From the goals laid forth in this plan for each priority science topic, the working groups plan to devise a set of strategic actions and milestones to be achieved by the SAWSC to provide valuable and relevant data, research, and assessments in the South Atlantic region. In this report, the “South Atlantic region” is used to describe the area encompassed by the States of North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia.