Hydrographic and Impairment Statistics for Parks, Regions, Networks and NPS Wild and Scenic Rivers

An inventory that spatially quantifies the surface water hydrography
that NPS manages (by park, region, and network) to determine and track
which waterbodies are or are not meeting water quality standards as
outlined by Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act. The inventory also
includes the NPS Wild and Scenic Rivers. <br><br>Hydrographic and
Impairment Statistics (HIS) is a National Park Service (NPS) Water
Resources Division (WRD) project established to track certain goals
created in response to the Government Performance and Results Act of
1993 (GPRA). <br><br>One water resources management goal established by
the Department of the Interior under GRPA requires NPS to track the
percent of its managed surface waters that are meeting Clean Water Act
(CWA) water quality standards. This goal requires an accurate inventory
that spatially quantifies the surface water hydrography that each bureau
manages and a procedure to determine and track which waterbodies are or
are not meeting water quality standards as outlined by Section 303(d)
of the CWA. <br><br>This project helps meet this DOI GRPA goal by
inventorying and monitoring in a geographic information system for the
NPS: (1) CWA 303(d) quality impaired waters and causes; (2) hydrographic
statistics based on the United States Geological Survey (USGS) National
Hydrography Dataset (NHD); and (3) special designations recognizing
waters of exceptional quality as defined in State water quality
standards. Hydrographic and 303(d) impairment statistics were evaluated
based on a combination of 1:24,000 (NHD) and finer scale data
(frequently provided by state GIS layers). Information on
State-designated uses and waters of exceptional quality are only
available for a limited number of parks at this time.