West Virginia Water Gaging Council

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The West Virginia Water Gaging Council was created effective May 18, 2005.

Purpose

The Council serves as a statewide collaborative body to help achieve effective collection and dissemination of hydrological data applicable to the full range of water resources in WestVirginia, including ground-water and surface-water and precipitation gaging. Council membership includes representatives of state and federal agencies, organizations, and stakeholders that collect and use these types of data. The Council provides a forum for effective communication, cooperation, and collaboration among the membership.

Mission

The Council’s mission is to ensure that reliable water-resources gaging data are available to meet the various needs of West Virginia stakeholders. The council shall work to support the following activities:

• Establishing and maintaining long-term data networks.
Water-resources gaging data may include long-term continuous information on precipitation, surface-water, and ground-water quantity; aquatic environments; and associated parameters,such as channel geometry and basin characteristics.

• Obtaining reliable data sets.
The Council strives to ensure that water-resources gaging data are reliable. Reliable data are considered by the Council as those which are collected and analyzed according to standardized or documented procedures and which are quality-controlled and assured.

• Maintaining publicly accessible data sets.
Water gaging activities will be coordinated to reduce duplication of efforts and data sharing will be encouraged to make the data available to other interested parties. Available data are those stored and maintained in and retrievable from publicly accessible digital databases.

• Obtaining relevant data sets.
West Virginia stakeholders need water-resources gaging data for such purposes as predicting floods and droughts; designing bridges and dams; permitting and mitigating pollution discharges; evaluating water supplies; planning fishing and boating recreation; and protecting, restoring, and managing the aquatic environment.

• Supporting long-term viability of gaging networks.
The Council supports efforts that ensure the availability of long-term water-resources gaging data, including: 1) collection and maintenance of the data, 2) educating agencies and organizations about the usefulness and value of the data, and 3) gaining needed public and financial support.

Membership

State Agencies

1. West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP)
2. West Virginia Conservation Agency (WVCA)
3. West Virginia Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (WVDHSEM)
4. West Virginia Department of Transportation Division of Highways (WVDOH)
5. West Virginia Division of Natural Resources (WVDNR)
6. West Virginia University, National Research Center for Coal and Energy (NRCCE)/West Virginia Water Research Institute (WVWRI)

Federal Agencies

7. National Weather Service (NWS)
8. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE)
9. U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)
10. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Services (NRCS)

Non-governmental Organizations

11. Canaan Valley Institute (CVI)
12. West Virginia Rivers Coalition (WVRC)
13. Michael Baker Jr. Incorporated

Memorandum of Understanding

Memorandum of Understanding to Establish and Govern the West Virginia Water Gaging Council
Memorandum of Understanding Updated (09-06-07) [.pdf 23KB]

Meeting Minutes

June 03, 2008 [.pdf 33KB]
March 06, 2008 [.pdf 43KB]
December 12, 2007 [.pdf 29KB]
October 4, 2007 [.pdf 29KB]
September 6, 2007 [.pdf 39.8KB]
July 12, 2007 [.pdf 25KB]
April 5, 2007 [.pdf 19KB]
March 1, 2007 [.pdf 38KB]
December 7, 2006 [.pdf 26KB]
September 7, 2006 [.pdf 19KB]
June 1, 2006 [.pdf 21KB]
March 2, 2006 [.pdf 23KB]
December 1, 2005 [.pdf 18KB]
September 1, 2005 [.pdf 26KB]
June 2, 2005 [.pdf 21KB]
March 17, 2005 [.pdf 21KB]
January 26, 2005 [.pdf 21KB]
December 16, 2004 [.pdf 22KB]

News Items

Flood Management Benefits of USGS Stream Gaging Program [.pdf 4.397MB]
Users and Uses of USGS Stream Gaging Program [.pdf 1.714MB]

(Click Article to read full story.)

Events

No WVWGC events scheduled; please check back later.

How to make a donation to the Council

To make a donation to the West Virginia Water Gaging Council please contact.

Ronald D. Evaldi
U.S. Geological Survey, West Virginia Water Science Center
11 Dunbar Street
Charleston, WV 25301
304-347-5130
rdevaldi@usgs.gov

Links

West Virginia Conservation Agency
U.S. Geological Survey
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service
NOAA's National Weather Service
West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection
West Virginia Division of Natural Resources
West Virginia Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management
West Virginia Department of Transportation
West Virginia Water Research Institute
West Virginia Rivers Coalition
Canaan Valley Institute
Michael Baker Corporation

Contacts

For more information on the West Virginia Water Gaging Council activities or for inquiries,comments and suggestions, please contact the Council at:

Russ Campbell, West Virginia Gaging Council Chair
c/o West Virginia Conservation Agency
Gus R. Douglass Agricultural Center at Guthrie
1900 Kanawha Blvd. E
Charleston, WV 25305
(304) 558-2204 (w) ext: 211
(304) 558-1635 (f)
rcampbell@wvca.us

Hugh Bevans, West Virginia Gaging Council Vice-Chair
c/o U.S. Geological Survey, West Virginia Water Science Center
11 Dunbar Street
Charleston, WV 25301
304-347-5130
hbevans@usgs.gov