National Academies Press: OpenBook
« Previous: Executive Summary
Suggested Citation:"1 Introduction." National Research Council. 2004. Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10967.
×

1
Introduction

The goal of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) streamgaging program is to provide streamflow information to educate and inform resource managers and the public on defining, using, and managing water resources. The USGS meets this goal with a network of gages and with staff scientists and collaborators to study streamflow and river processes. There are many beneficiaries of USGS information because streamflow affects human safety, recreation, water quality, habitat, industry, and agriculture. A short list of applications noted by users in Illinois (Knapp and Markus, 2003) included assessing cultural resources, biological and conservation assessment and instream flow needs, current operations of water resources, floodplain mapping, hydrologic and hydraulic design and modeling, legal obligations, long-term flow statistics, recreation, regional hydrologic analysis, river forecasting and flood warning, water quality analysis, water resources operations planning, and education.

However, the streamgaging program is now challenged to adapt to changing economic conditions. Funds are tighter, even as the U.S. population grows, stressing water supplies, affecting ecosystem health, and moving into marginal flood- or drought-prone areas (Figure 1-1).

Today, a mix of funding from federal, state, and local agencies supports the USGS streamgaging program. The vast majority of this funding (93 percent) comes from partnerships with state and local agencies through the Cooperative Water Program (http://water.usgs.gov/coop) and with federal agencies such as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation (Figure 1-2). Partners (or “cooperators”) support streamgaging to obtain streamflow information that meets their needs; streamflow data from these streamgages also produce information that helps meet the

Suggested Citation:"1 Introduction." National Research Council. 2004. Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10967.
×

FIGURE 1-1 Life, economic, and habitat losses from increases in population near a river and within its watershed. The concentric circles are designed to show how increasing population begins to put pressure on other resources that were reasonably compatible with a smaller population. SOURCE: Adapted from USGS (http://marine.usgs.gov/fact-sheets/nat_disasters/Circles.gif).

broader needs of the nation as a whole. This means that the siting of streamgages is driven more by the needs of partners than by an overarching plan for meeting the nation’s need for streamflow information.

The USGS reported that the ability to meet federal streamflow information needs had been degraded because of (1) a decrease in the number of streamgages, (2) a disproportionate loss of streamgages with a long period of record, and (3) the declining ability of the USGS to continue operating high-priority streamgages when partners discontinue funding (USGS, 1998). Congress had also expressed its concern about “the steady decline in the number of streamgaging stations in the past decade, while the need for streamflow data for flood forecasting and long-term water management uses continues to grow” (U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior and Related Agencies, 1998).

Suggested Citation:"1 Introduction." National Research Council. 2004. Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10967.
×

FIGURE 1-2 Fiscal year 2000 funding sources for the USGS streamgaging program ($99 million). SOURCE: USGS. (http://water.usgs.gov/nsip/pubs/FS048-01.pdf).

THE NATIONAL STREAMFLOW INFORMATION PROGRAM

Recognizing the increasing needs for streamflow information, the USGS proposed the National Streamflow Information Program (NSIP) (USGS, 1999). The reference cited contains a general outline of the program, with specific numbers of gages recommended for different parts of the program. However, the present report may provide the most comprehensive description of the program that exists.

The NSIP plan has five components:

  1. a nationwide system of federal interest streamgaging stations for measuring streamflow reliably and continuously in time;

  2. a program for intensive data collection in response to major floods and droughts;

Suggested Citation:"1 Introduction." National Research Council. 2004. Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10967.
×
  1. a program for periodic assessments and interpretation of streamflow data to better define their statistical characteristics and trends;

  2. a system for real-time streamflow information delivery to customers that includes data processing, quality assurance, archiving, and access; and

  3. a program of techniques development and research.

The streamgaging component of the NSIP proposal calls for a fundamental change in funding sources for the streamgaging program. The NSIP envisions a federally funded base network of streamgages designed to meet five minimum federal streamflow information goals for (1) interstate and international waters, (2) flow forecasts, (3) river basin outflows, (4) sentinel watersheds, and (5) water quality. A feature of the base network is the continuous, uninterrupted operation of its streamgages. Direct federal funding of these streamgages was proposed to remedy continuing losses of streamgages supporting these goals. The remainder of the USGS streamgaging network would consist of, as today, cooperatively funded streamgages. Cooperatively funded streamgages are designed to meet specific goals of federal, state, and local cooperators, and partnership with the USGS ensures that the streamgage data are quality controlled and available to all. Together, the base network and the cooperatively funded streamgages would meet many national needs for streamflow information (including the five federal goals).

The second component of the NSIP calls for intensive monitoring during times of major floods or droughts. Floods and droughts have serious social and economic impacts, including the loss of life and property, disruption of business activities, and interruption of water supplies. Intensive monitoring would include measuring streamflow where there are no permanent streamgages. Monitoring also would include gathering ancillary data on precipitation, river stage, and water quality. This component of the NSIP plan would support improved assessment of the risks, impacts, and mitigation of flood and drought hazards and provide new information for better scientific understanding of flood and drought processes and the effects of hydrologic extremes on river geomorphology and ecology. Much of the streamflow information generated by streamgaging results from careful analysis and synthesis of observations made at individual streamgages or a network of streamgages. The third component of the NSIP plan calls for periodic regional and national assessments of streamflow characteristics. Examples include regular updates of frequency estimates for low and high flows and regional synthesis to produce estimates of streamflow characteristics at ungaged sites. Assessments would also provide information on emerging scientific questions, such as the impact

Suggested Citation:"1 Introduction." National Research Council. 2004. Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10967.
×

of climate variability on the magnitude and frequency of floods and droughts. The value of streamflow information derives from its use in decisionmaking and scientific inquiry. In recent years, the USGS began distributing streamflow information over the Internet, and there has been a dramatic increase in the use of real-time and historical observations by the public, water managers, and scientists, among others. Thus, the fourth component of the NSIP plan calls for enhanced delivery of its streamflow data and information products.

The fifth component of the NSIP plan calls for methods development and research for streamgaging. A significant portion of the annual cost of streamgaging is making direct measurements of discharge at gage sites to maintain the rating curve used to convert continuous measurements of river stage into streamflow estimates. Recent advances in technology have the potential to reduce the costs and increase the safety of making discharge measurements. These include acoustic Doppler technology to quickly make discharge measurement on large rivers and approaches that do not require sensor contact with the flow (for safety) and could potentially be made remotely (to reduce the need for site visits).

STATEMENT OF TASK

The National Research Council was asked to review the National Streamflow Information Program with respect to the following:

  1. The minimum national streamflow information needs that should be met by the network, including those related to interstate and international waters, flood forecasts, river basin outflows, sentinel watersheds, and water quality.

  2. The components of the NSIP plan that are reasonable, appropriate, and sufficient, including an enhanced nationwide streamgaging network with a larger share of national funding, intensive data collection during major floods and droughts, periodic regional and national assessments of streamflow characteristics, enhanced streamflow information delivery to customers, and methods development and research.

  3. The ways a National Streamflow Information Program should support the data and information needs of various fields of river science, in addition to meeting its operational objectives.

Suggested Citation:"1 Introduction." National Research Council. 2004. Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10967.
×

ORGANIZATION AND CONTENT OF THIS REPORT

This report examines the goals of the NSIP to ensure that they are being reasonably and efficiently met. It evaluates streamgage network design, node (gaging station) design, and information delivery to consumers. It further addresses the tools to optimize the network design to maximize its efficiency and national coverage of streamflow and the technologies to improve gaging station efficiency and utility. To this end, a broad view is used of what might constitute a gaging station. The report examines interagency collaborations to effectively add nodes to the network. It looks at the merits of considering the streamflow program as primarily an information program, (i.e., data acquisition and analysis and information delivery), rather than as primarily a data-gathering program. Finally, it examines how streamflow information is used by consumers, to ensure that the needs of the public and water managers are both being met. Given that the NSIP has many beneficiaries, the study also addresses who should support it. Specifically, is there a rationale for federal support of a program that traditionally has been supported in large part by cooperators and beneficiaries?

Chapter 2 reviews the history of streamgaging at the USGS and examines the rationale for federal involvement in streamflow information by comparison with practice in other countries. Chapter 3 examines each of the five criteria used to select NSIP base network gage sites and studies the distribution of gage locations across the nation resulting from these criteria. Chapter 4 looks at the question of where to site streamgages and how long such sites should be maintained. Chapter 5 focuses on the other data collection and information components of the National Streamflow Information Program. Chapter 6 introduces the subject of river science and places the subject of streamflow information onto a background of the geomorphology and biology of stream and river systems. Finally, Chapter 7 presents the committee’s conclusions.

Suggested Citation:"1 Introduction." National Research Council. 2004. Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10967.
×
Page 13
Suggested Citation:"1 Introduction." National Research Council. 2004. Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10967.
×
Page 14
Suggested Citation:"1 Introduction." National Research Council. 2004. Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10967.
×
Page 15
Suggested Citation:"1 Introduction." National Research Council. 2004. Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10967.
×
Page 16
Suggested Citation:"1 Introduction." National Research Council. 2004. Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10967.
×
Page 17
Suggested Citation:"1 Introduction." National Research Council. 2004. Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10967.
×
Page 18
Next: 2 Gaging the Nation's Streams »
Assessing the National Streamflow Information Program Get This Book
×
Buy Paperback | $48.00 Buy Ebook | $38.99
MyNAP members save 10% online.
Login or Register to save!
Download Free PDF

From warning the public of impending floods to settling legal arguments over water rights, the measurement of streamflow (“streamgaging”) plays a vital role in our society. Having good information about how much water is moving through our streams helps provide citizens with drinking water during droughts, control water pollution, and protect wildlife along our stream corridors. The U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) streamgaging program provides such information to a wide variety of users interested in human safety, recreation, water quality, habitat, industry, agriculture, and other topics. For regional and national scale streamflow information needs, the USGS has created a National Streamflow Information Program (NSIP).

In addition to streamgaging, the USGS envisions intensive data collection during floods and droughts, national assessments of streamflow characteristics, enhanced information delivery, and methods development and research. The overall goals of the program are to: meet legal and treaty obligations on interstate and international waters, support flow forecasting; measure river basin outflows, monitor sentinel watersheds for long-term trends in natural flows, and measure flows for water quality needs. But are these the right topics to collect data on? Or is the USGS on the wrong track?

In general, the book is supportive of the design and content of NSIP, including its goals and methodology for choosing stream gages for inclusion in the program. It sees the ultimate goal of NSIP as developing the ability to use existing data-gathering sites to generate streamflow information with quantitative confidence limits at any location in the nation. It is just as important to have good measurements during droughts as during floods, and it therefore recommends supporting Natural Resource Conservation Service forecast sites in addition to those of the National Weather Service.

  1. ×

    Welcome to OpenBook!

    You're looking at OpenBook, NAP.edu's online reading room since 1999. Based on feedback from you, our users, we've made some improvements that make it easier than ever to read thousands of publications on our website.

    Do you want to take a quick tour of the OpenBook's features?

    No Thanks Take a Tour »
  2. ×

    Show this book's table of contents, where you can jump to any chapter by name.

    « Back Next »
  3. ×

    ...or use these buttons to go back to the previous chapter or skip to the next one.

    « Back Next »
  4. ×

    Jump up to the previous page or down to the next one. Also, you can type in a page number and press Enter to go directly to that page in the book.

    « Back Next »
  5. ×

    Switch between the Original Pages, where you can read the report as it appeared in print, and Text Pages for the web version, where you can highlight and search the text.

    « Back Next »
  6. ×

    To search the entire text of this book, type in your search term here and press Enter.

    « Back Next »
  7. ×

    Share a link to this book page on your preferred social network or via email.

    « Back Next »
  8. ×

    View our suggested citation for this chapter.

    « Back Next »
  9. ×

    Ready to take your reading offline? Click here to buy this book in print or download it as a free PDF, if available.

    « Back Next »
Stay Connected!