June 12, 2001
Last week, EPA released the Watershed Assessment, Tracking and Environmental
Results (WATERS) integration web site. WATERS unites geographically
specific water quality data from state web sites and various EPA sites,
including EPA's new National Water Quality Standards Database and its Total
Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL) Database, with the US Geological Survey's National
Hydrographic Dataset. WATERS users can click on an interactive map to see
which waters are classified by states as impaired (those waters not attaining
water quality standards), and to learn the purpose or use of each waterbody
(such as whether or not it is designated for protection as a drinking water
supply, for recreational use, or for fishing). Although not yet complete, WATERS
will eventually cover all 50 states, and contain links to data on ambient
water quality, drinking water quality, polluted runoff, fish consumption
advisories, facility discharge outfalls, and other information.
For more on WATERS, visit www.epa.gov/waters
on the Internet.