Using regional watershed data to assess water-quality impairment in the Pacific Drainages of the United States

Abstract

Two datasets containing the first complete estimates of reach-scale nutrient, water use, dissolved oxygen, and pH conditions for the Pacific drainages of the United States were created to help inform water-quality management decisions in that region. The datasets were developed using easily obtainable watershed data, most of which have not been available until recently, and the techniques that were used provide a framework for integrating watershed data to assess waterquality impairment across other large hydrologic regions in the United States. These datasets were used to summarize regional nutrient and water-use conditions within impaired water bodies and to summarize regional dissolved oxygen concentrations and pH conditions for free-flowing stream reaches. Two examples are also presented that show how the datasets can be applied to specific water-quality management issues: (1) nutrient conditions in water bodies that have recently experienced problems with harmful algal blooms; and (2) dissolved oxygen and pH conditions in stream reaches likely to be populated by steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss irideus) during their summer run. The nutrient and water-use estimates could help inform actions aimed at managing water-quality conditions in impaired water bodies while the dissolved oxygen and pH predictions could be useful as screening tools to identify water bodies experiencing potential impairment.