ABOUT THE ALABAMA WSC

• • Office information
  • Locations
  • Office Closure or Delay
  • Welcoming message
  • Newsroom
  • Employee directory
  • USGS Phonebook
  • Outreach and Education
  • Cooperators
  • Information requests
  • Employment
  • Links
  • Archive Alabama News

USGS IN YOUR STATE

USGS Water Science Centers are located in each state.

About the Alabama Water Science Center

As one of the 48 Districts in the Water Resources Discipline of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the Alabama Water Science Center is an integral part of a Federal agency devoted to data collection, applied science, and dissemination of information.

The Alabama Water Science Center provides relevant, unbiased, water-resources information and expertise needed by others to achieve the best use and management of water resources in Alabama.

Office Information

The Alabama Water Science Center has two offices - the main office in Montgomery and a field office in Tuscaloosa.

• Maps and directions to the Alabama Water Science Center offices
• Employee Directory

What We Do

The Alabama District collects data, conducts interpretive water-resources appraisals and research, and disseminates information in a timely manner. Studies encompass the following four areas:

• Data Collection
• Databases
• Studies
• Analytical Techniques

To assure that our work is relevant and useful, we form partnerships with Federal, State, and local agencies, and other public organizations. Funding for the Alabama Water Science Center comes from a variety of sources, including direct Federal appropriations, other Federal agencies, and a cooperative program that allows the Alabama Water Science Center to partially match funding with state and local agencies.

• Alabama Cooperators

The Alabama WSC home page provides direct access to current and historical USGS streamflow data, a bibliography of Alabama Water Science Center reports, and much more about USGS operations in the state of Alabama.

Information concerning USGS products and services available from the Alabama WSC can be obtained from:

• Information requests

Data Collection

The collection of hydrologic data is an important service provided by the Alabama Water Science Center in cooperation with Federal, State, and local agencies. The Alabama Water Science Center operates and maintains a network of streamflow-gaging stations throughout the State. Data from many these stations are made available to the public by satellite and telephone telemetry.

The Alabama Water Science Center collects many different types of data including:

• Stream discharge
• Water velocity in streams and lakes
• Water quality of streams, lakes, and aquifers
• Ground-water levels
• Precipitation quantity
• Sediment concentration, size, and rates of deposition
• Biological and morphological data of streams and lakes

Water-quality sampling and analysis are conducted for a variety of constituents:

• Major inorganics
• Trace elements
• Dissolved gases
• Pesticides
• Organic solvents and petrochemicals
• Biological indicators
• Nutrients
• Isotopes
• Physical characteristics

Databases

USGS data are stored and maintained in long-term, quality-assured databases. The data bases contain data for Alabama and the rest of the nation and are accessible to the public. The databases include:

• ADAPS
• GWSI
• QWDATA
• SWUDS

Studies

Helping to solve water-related problems is the primary objective of hydrologic studies conducted by the Alabama Water Science Center. Water issues that are addressed in these studies include:

• Water quality and supply
• Environmental contamination
• Effects of toxic substances in water, sediment, and biota
• Aquifer characterization
• Sediment transport and chemistry
• Causes and effects of flooding
• Water use
• Rainfall-runoff relations
• Ground-water/surface-water interaction
• Evaluation of scour at bridges
• Effects of agriculture and other land uses on water quality
• Water-quality assessment of lakes and reservoirs

Analytical Techniques

The studies done by the Alabama Water Science Center utilize traditional methods and state-of-the-art techniques of data analysis. These methods and techniques are designed to meet the objectives of each study:

• Watershed modeling
• Flood-frequency analysis
• Sediment-transport analysis
• Ground-water flow and solute-transport modeling
• Acoustic velocity measurement systems
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
• Borehole drilling and core sampling
• Surface and borehole geophysics
• Analysis of aquatic organisms
• Immunoassay

Water-quality samples are collected and analyzed for a wide range of constituents, including major inorganics, nutrients, trace elements, dissolved gases, pesticides, isotopes, organic solvents, petrochemicals, and biological indicators.