DATA CENTER

• USGS Real-time data
  • Streamflow
  • Streamflow - Comparisons current/historic
  • Streamflow - Water Alert
  • Groundwater
  • Water quality
  • Precipitation
  • Meteorological
  • Reservoirs

• State of Colorado Division of Water Resources
  • Surface Water Conditions

• USGS WaterWatch
  • Current conditions
  • Flood Watch
  • Drought Watch
  • Water Quality Watch

• USGS Groundwater networks
  • Active groundwater levels
  • Long-Term Data Network

• USGS Historical data
  • Annual Data Reports
  • Instantaneous Data Archive (IDA)

ABOUT THE USGS IN COLORADO

• Water Science Center
• • Office Locations
  • What We Do
  • Employee Directory
  • News and Highlights
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  • Additional Links

• Biology Science Center
• Geographic Science Center
• Geology Science Teams

ABOUT THE USGS

• About the USGS

• • USGS Phonebook
  • Employment

USGS IN YOUR STATE

USGS Water Science Centers are located in each state.

Water Resources of Colorado

Welcome to the USGS Colorado Water Science Center. These pages are your source for water-resource information collected and interpreted by the U.S. Geological Survey in Colorado.

Explanation of percentile classes

Water-resource activities include:

• Presentation of real-time streamflow, water-quality, groundwater levels data
• Operation and oversight of an extensive network of water-resource monitoring gages
• Archive of water-resource information collected for more than 100 years
• Data collection and investigative studies related to issues of concern to water-management entities and citizens
• Publishing data and topical reports

USGS Colorado Water Science Center Highlights

Featured Activity

Rocky Mountain Snowpack Chemistry Monitoring

Snowpacks collect atmospheric deposition throughout the snowfall season and offer a unique opportunity to obtain a composite sample of the chemistry of most of the annual precipitation at high elevations. The purpose of the snowpack network is to determine the chemisty in snow resulting from atmospheric deposition and determine long-term trends in these concentrations.

During the past 17 years, the project has become the most expansive and comprehensive snowpack-chemical monitoring network of its kind.

Rocky Mountain Snowpack

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Colorado Water-Quality Data Repository (CWQDR)

CWQDR is an internet-based data management system that integrates ambient water-quality data from a variety of sources including government agencies, stakeholder groups, and private entities. The web site includes an interactive map that allows users to zoom in to an area of interest and select sites for retrieval of water-quality data.

CWQDR web site

Featured Publications

2010
Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5069 Occurrence and Distribution of Dissolved Solids, Selenium, and Uranium in Groundwater and Surface Water in the Arkansas River Basin from the Headwaters to Coolidge, Kansas, 1970-2009 By Lisa D. Miller, Kenneth R. Watts, Roderick F. Ortiz, and Tamara Ivahnenko
Environmental Earth Sciences Evaluating remediation alternatives for mine drainage, Little Cottonwood Creek, Utah, USA By Briant A. Kimball and Robert L. Runkel PDF (1.13 MB) | Online Journal Article
Applied Geochemistry An approach to quantify sources, seasonal change, and biogeochemical processes affecting metal loading in streams: Facilitating decisions for remediation of mine drainage By Briant A. Kimball, Robert L. Runkel, and Katherine Walton-Day PDF (638 KB) | Online Journal Article
Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5019 Land-Use Analysis and Simulated Effects of Land-Use Change and Aggregate Mining on Groundwater Flow in the South Platte River Valley, Brighton to Fort Lupton, Colorado By L.R. Arnold, C.S. Mladinich, W.H. Langer, and J.S. Daniels

Search our publications

Of Current Interest

WaterAlert service

Instant Information about Water Conditions: Ask the River to Text You a WaterAlert
Now you can receive instant, customized updates (email or text) about water conditions by subscribing to WaterAlert, a new service from the U.S. Geological Survey. Whether you are watching for floods, interested in recreational activities or concerned about the quality of water in your well, WaterAlert allows you to receive daily or hourly updates about current conditions in rivers, lakes and groundwater when they match conditions of concern to you. WaterAlert allows users to receive updates about river flows, groundwater levels, water temperatures, rainfall and water quality at any of more than 9,500 sites where USGS collects real-time water information. This information is crucial for managing water resources, including during floods, droughts and chemical spills.
Sign up at: http://water.usgs.gov/wateralert

Video - Streamgages: The Silent Superhero

Whether you drink water from your tap, use electricity or canoe down your local river, chances are you benefit from USGS streamgage information. So what is a streamgage and what does it do for you? This CoreCast episode gives you the inside scoop on your silent superhero. http://www.usgs.gov/corecast/?tag=streamgage