Update on the Cooperative Water Program Task Force

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Update on the Cooperative Water Program Task Force

• Presentation for the
• September 14-15, 2004
• ACWI Meeting
• Herndon, VA

Barney Austin, Western States Water Council
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Overview of the Cooperative Water Program

• Created in 1895
• Combine resources of the Federal govt with other
  governmental units to collect and analyze water
  resources data
• In 1905 Congress appropriated funds specifically
  for cooperative studies
• Main objectives
• To collect data for the continuing determination
  and evaluation of the quantity, quality and use
  of the Nations water resources.
• To appraise physical, biological and chemical
  characteristics of surface and groundwater
  through data analysis and interpretive studies.

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Overview of previous Coop Task Force

• Task Force established by the ACWI at their
  August 1998 meeting in Denver, CO
• Terms of Reference
• To assess the effectiveness of the Cooperative
  Water Program
• To make recommendations
• Provide a written report of the findings

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Overview of previous Coop Task Force

• Membership 21 individuals representing 21
  organizations
• A total of 59 findings in areas of
• Mission
• Priorities for funding
• Funding levels
• A national streamgaging program
• Collabortaion and communication
• Competition with the private sector
• Quality of USGS work
• Products
• Response letter by Gale Norton to ACWI with
  enclosed USGS responses to report recommendations
  (10/3/01).

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Overview of the 2004 Task Force

• To review the progress of the USGS in
  implementing the recommendations from the 1999
  report.
• Report will serve as the basis for the ACWI to
  recommend mid-course corrections to enhance the
  Programform the basis for an internal USGS
  5-year action plan for the Program.

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Task Force Membership
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Progress thus farmeetings

• May 2004Organized
• June 25Meeting in Reston
• July 22Conference Call
• August 20Conference Call
• October/November---Meeting in Denver??

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Progress thus farstatus

• Status of 59 TF recommendations
• 24 recommendations fully implemented!
• USGS disagrees with 2 recommendations
• USGS should consider using outside contractors
• Explore feasibility of billing cooperators based
  on actual costs instead of average cost per
  station
• Agree or partially agree with all remaining
• In various stages of completion
• 2004 TF prioritization (see handout)

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High Priority Recommendations

• 4.1 Full match for Coop stations inflation
• 9.1 NSIP100 funds for national streamgaging
  network
• 9.3 Limit loss of long-term streamgaging stations
• 11.2 Use of contractors/cooperators for data
  collection
• 25.1 On reporting
• Improve timeliness of deliverables
• Explain report preparation, review and release
  procedure
• Accessibility to data in ongoing projects
• Maintain point of contact for long-term projects.
• 11.3 Use of in-kind services to maintain data
  collection stations

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Funding issues!

• Data quality has improved since 1895!
• Real time information invaluable
• Access to water info databases stats
• High tech equipment and staff now required for
  developing rating curves

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Average rate of increase 3.8 per year
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2004 Task Force Report Outline

• Introduction
• USGS progress since 1999
• Prioritization of 1999 recommendations
• Supplemental information of interest
• Anything else of interestACWI?
• Conclusions recommendations
• Draft report available by the holidays

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For more information

• About the Task Force Review
• http//water.usgs.gov/wicp/acwi/coop/
• About the Cooperative Water Program
• http//water.usgs.gov/coop/
• Barney Austin (WSWC/TWDB)
• Glenn Patterson (USGS)