News Release
U.S. Department of the Interior
U.S. Geological Survey
Release Date: February 8, 2006
Contact: A.B. Wade 703-648-4483
Ensuring stable water supplies has grown more complex as the challenges facing
water managers continue to mount, especially in the West. Informed
decisions of water users and public officials will be necessary to ensure
sufficient freshwater resources in the future to support a growing population
and economy. The USGS has released a report that examines Western water
availability, the modern role for science, and the value of monitoring and
research to ensure an adequate water supply for the Nation’s future.
According to USGS scientist and co-author of the report, Mark T. Anderson,
“Effective water management in the West is challenged by increasing and often
competing needs among various water users: agricultural use and consumption by
cities, maintaining water reservoirs and ensuring in-stream flows for aquatic
ecosystems, industrial and energy production, and recreation. Scientific
information becomes a crucial factor for resource managers to support their
decision-making.”
Such factors as a demographic shift, climate variability (including the
potential for severe sustained droughts), climate change, water-rights issues,
depletion of ground water in storage, introduction of new storage and water use
technologies, and protection of endangered species, add to a growing complexity
for water management. Several of the key scientific challenges are
examined in this report, including the determination of sustainable ground-water
use and the physical habitat needs of ecosystems and individual endangered
species.
According to USGS Associate Director for Water, Robert Hirsch, “A constant and
assured supply of fresh water is critical to sustain our economy, our
communities, our ecosystems and our Nation. This USGS report shows how the
role and priorities for science to support effective water management are
changing to meet current and future issues.
Scientific information plays an important role in describing the hydrologic and
environmental consequences, quantifying and monitoring changes in the hydrologic
system, defining the physical-habitat requirements of stream and riparian
ecosystems, and characterizing the life-sustaining needs of threatened or
endangered species. The conduct of science to support water resource management
is bringing about a new and more integrated role for the science of the U.S.
Geological Survey.
This report brings together findings from a wide variety of USGS studies and
data in a manner that will help citizens and public officials better understand
changing water situations in the West and the ways that new scientific
understanding can support wise management of the resources.
The USGS report cites examples and scientific challenges from four basins in the
West that have significant water availability and sustainability concerns:
Middle Rio Grande Basin, NM., the Greater Los Angeles area, San Pedro Riparian
National Conservation Area, AZ, and the Upper Klamath Lake, OR.
The report, Water Availability for the Western United States-- Key Scientific
Challenges (Circular 1261), can be obtained by calling 1-888-ASK-USGS or
viewed online at http://pubs.water.usgs.gov/circ1261/
The USGS serves the nation by providing reliable scientific information to
describe and understand the Earth; minimize loss of life and property from
natural disasters; manage water, biological, energy, and mineral resources; and
enhance and protect our quality of life.
**** www.usgs.gov ****
___________________
A.B. Wade
Public Affairs Specialist
703-648-4483
abwade@usgs.gov