What We Do

About the USGS

The USGS serves as an independent fact-finding agency that collects, monitors, analyzes, and provides scientific understanding about natural resource conditions, issues, and problems. The value of the USGS rests on its ability to carry out studies on a national scale and to sustain long-term monitoring and assessment of natural resources. The USGS provides impartial science that serves the needs of our changing world. The diversity of scientific expertise enables the USGS to carry out large-scale, multi-disciplinary investigations that build the base of knowledge about the Earth. In turn, decision makers at all levels of government--and citizens in all walks of life--have the information tools they need to address pressing societal issues.

The USGS in Flagstaff

The USGS is divided into four primary earth and life science disciplines: Geology, Geography, Water Resources, and Biological Resources. Each of these disciplines has offices throughout the country to support the local, regional, and national studies they are undertaking. The USGS Flagstaff Science Center is home to scientists, staff, and adminstrative personel from each of the four disciplines. To learn more about the disciplines in Flagstaff, visit the following pages which provide descriptions and links to projects and information for each discipline: