Water Census Ad Hoc Committee
Notes from Conference Call 6/18/10
Presentation by Ada, Don, and Ward
Ada:
Sharing Data to support sound water resources planning.
Five years ago, started planning to build a hub of information.
Preliminary framework to serve all of this.
Access to technology for water resources planning.
Website for the framework
Data Sharing
What is the relationship between IWRM's toolbox and IWRSS? Integrated Water Resources Science and Services
Regional Demonstration Projects
Don:
Realized problems in forecasting capability
Drivers: More consistent information, communicate more information about risk and uncertainty, land surface variables, common operating picture during disasters, sharing information, produce who new sets of products.
Looking at all these issues together
New water information system for the federal government that looks at past, present, and future issues.
Collaborative approach required
Went out two years ago and conducted workshops with USACE and USGS
Water Census was part of those discussions.
What were the common elements? Create interoperability, seamless data synchronization, have systems speak to each other. Make their databases talk to each other.
Need for new geospatial information
Production of new data and prediction and linked with the water budget.
Knit these concept together into one coherent plan and working on an MOU. Setting up technical teams to fill out the details of the plan.
Linkage to the Toolbox - IWRSS supports the federal toolbox. Supplying the federal toolbox with information.
Implementation for IWRSS - setting up teams - building up capacity over the next couple of years.
Common operating system
Forecasts: Snowpacks - gridded product, one water variable, national grid of data. Do this for all water budget variables. Change over time.
Pilot Studies: Proof of concept, regional demonstration mode. Can't start any new ones because of resources.
Ward:
View into the future.
Inventory of capabilities and tools
IWRSS to develop the linkages
We will do some demonstration Projects
Engage the external stakeholder community
Conduct GAP analysis
Ada:
Tools and Models and other water resources capabilities
National Report will be available
Not just models and data, but also catalogue to capabilities
Grace – Spelling of IWRIS? California also has IWRIS
Ward - One of the consistent themes was the desire to have more access to federal data
John Wells - Linkage with other agencies?
Mike Muse - Catalogue by end of year; No timeline for the GAP analysis
John Wells - Will the state information be in the toolbox in five years? - Ada - Yes, it should be.