About the Watershed Database and Mapping Projects (DRAFT)

Introduction

Protecting and restoring coastal watersheds involves understanding an array of complex environmental issues and synthesizing various kinds of information. Because aquatic ecosystems are affected by so many different characteristics of the watershed, impact assessment and management can be significantly improved by using a method that shows the geographic relationship between measurements taken at specific places and the characteristics specific to that region.

This analysis is made easier by combining scientific data and watershed characteristics into a Geographic Information System (GIS). NOAA's Assessment and Restoration Division has developed numerous Watershed Database and Mapping Projects that combine a standard database structure, database-mapping application (Query Manager), and GIS data. Using these elements, sediment contaminant concentrations, toxicity and tissue data, natural resources, and potential habitat restoration projects can be overlaid on a watershed's features and land uses, and displayed on maps at flexible spatial scales.

Project Locations

The map below displays many of our watershed database and mapping project locations. Projects with red stars have CD-ROMs available, which include the Query Manager database, MARPLOT mapping application, and an ArcView GIS project where applicable.