Lori Sprague is currently the National Program Manager of the USGS Water Mission Area’s Integrated Water Availability Assessments (IWAAs) Program, which provides national and regional assessments of water for human and ecological needs and identifies factors that limit water availability.
Lori is also the USGS representative on the interagency Mississippi River/Gulf of Mexico Watershed Nutrient Task Force coordinating committee, which works to understand the causes and effects of eutrophication in the Gulf of Mexico; coordinate activities to reduce the size, severity, and duration of the seasonal hypoxic zone in the Gulf of Mexico; and ameliorate the effects of hypoxia.
Science and Products
Regional Water Availability Assessment: Upper Colorado River Basin
Regional Water Availability Assessments are scientific assessments of water availability in different hydrologic regions across the Nation. In the Upper Colorado River Basin, the USGS will conduct a focused assessment of how snowpack and snowmelt influence hydrology and water quality, and an integrated and comprehensive assessment of multiple water quantity, quality and use factors.
Regional Water Availability Assessment: Delaware River Basin
Regional Water Availability Assessments are scientific assessments of water availability in different hydrologic regions across the Nation. In the Delaware River Basin, the USGS will conduct a focused assessment of increasing freshwater salinity and an integrated and comprehensive assessment of multiple water quantity, quality and use factors.
Understanding Water Availability
The United States faces growing challenges to its water supply, and we need to know where there is not enough water, where we have more than we need, and the quality of the water. The USGS is charged with understanding and reporting on water availability including influences on water supply (how much water and of what quality) and water demand (how much water do humans and ecosystems need).
Integrated Water Availability Assessments
The USGS Water Resources Mission Area is assessing how much water is available for human and ecological needs in the United States and identifying where and when the Nation may have challenges meeting its demand for water.
Integrated Water Science (IWS) Basins
The U.S. Geological Survey is integrating its water science programs to better address the Nation’s greatest water resource challenges. At the heart of this effort are plans to intensively study at least 10 Integrated Water Science (IWS) basins — medium-sized watersheds (10,000-20,000 square miles) and underlying aquifers — over the next decade. The IWS basins will represent a wide range of...
National Water Census
The National Water Census will deliver routinely updated water availability information in the United States.
Water Quality in the Nation’s Streams and Rivers – Current Conditions and Long-Term Trends
The Nation's rivers and streams are a priceless resource, but pollution from urban and agricultural areas pose a threat to our water quality. To understand the value of water quality, and to more effectively manage and protect the Nation's water resources, it's critical that we know the current status of water-quality conditions, and how and why those conditions have been changing over time.
Interactive Map Provides a Long-Term Look at Changes in River and Stream Quality
A new U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) interactive map provides a comprehensive, long-term assessment of changes in the chemical composition and quality of our rivers and streams over the last four decades.
NAWQA South Platte River Basin Study
The South Platte River Basin study, conducted as part of the U.S. Geological Survey's National Water-Quality Assessment Program, combines information on water chemistry, physical characteristics, stream habitat, and aquatic life to provide science-based insights for current and emerging water issues in surface waters (streams, rivers, reservoirs) and groundwaters of the South Platte River Basin...
Science and Products
- Science
Regional Water Availability Assessment: Upper Colorado River Basin
Regional Water Availability Assessments are scientific assessments of water availability in different hydrologic regions across the Nation. In the Upper Colorado River Basin, the USGS will conduct a focused assessment of how snowpack and snowmelt influence hydrology and water quality, and an integrated and comprehensive assessment of multiple water quantity, quality and use factors.Regional Water Availability Assessment: Delaware River Basin
Regional Water Availability Assessments are scientific assessments of water availability in different hydrologic regions across the Nation. In the Delaware River Basin, the USGS will conduct a focused assessment of increasing freshwater salinity and an integrated and comprehensive assessment of multiple water quantity, quality and use factors.Understanding Water Availability
The United States faces growing challenges to its water supply, and we need to know where there is not enough water, where we have more than we need, and the quality of the water. The USGS is charged with understanding and reporting on water availability including influences on water supply (how much water and of what quality) and water demand (how much water do humans and ecosystems need).Integrated Water Availability Assessments
The USGS Water Resources Mission Area is assessing how much water is available for human and ecological needs in the United States and identifying where and when the Nation may have challenges meeting its demand for water.Integrated Water Science (IWS) Basins
The U.S. Geological Survey is integrating its water science programs to better address the Nation’s greatest water resource challenges. At the heart of this effort are plans to intensively study at least 10 Integrated Water Science (IWS) basins — medium-sized watersheds (10,000-20,000 square miles) and underlying aquifers — over the next decade. The IWS basins will represent a wide range of...National Water Census
The National Water Census will deliver routinely updated water availability information in the United States.Water Quality in the Nation’s Streams and Rivers – Current Conditions and Long-Term Trends
The Nation's rivers and streams are a priceless resource, but pollution from urban and agricultural areas pose a threat to our water quality. To understand the value of water quality, and to more effectively manage and protect the Nation's water resources, it's critical that we know the current status of water-quality conditions, and how and why those conditions have been changing over time.Interactive Map Provides a Long-Term Look at Changes in River and Stream Quality
A new U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) interactive map provides a comprehensive, long-term assessment of changes in the chemical composition and quality of our rivers and streams over the last four decades.NAWQA South Platte River Basin Study
The South Platte River Basin study, conducted as part of the U.S. Geological Survey's National Water-Quality Assessment Program, combines information on water chemistry, physical characteristics, stream habitat, and aquatic life to provide science-based insights for current and emerging water issues in surface waters (streams, rivers, reservoirs) and groundwaters of the South Platte River Basin... - Data
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