|
The Internet has made it possible to have nearly instant access to all kinds of information, including that concerning water quality. Below is a selection of Web sites that provide useful and interesting water quality and watershed information. If you know of sites that should be on this Resources page, please email the link to dsherburne@moenviron.org.
Knowing the Law
Pollution and Treatment
Water Quality Monitoring
Watershed Information
Watershed Planning and Funding
Water Education
Knowing the Law
Missouri Water Protection Laws and Regulations
http://www.dnr.state.mo.us/env/wpp/rules/index.html
Clean Water Act
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/33/ch26.html
Prairie Rivers Network: The Clean Water Act
http://www.prairierivers.org/Projects/CleanWater/index.html
Summary: T he Prairie Rivers Networks lists a few documents with info on using the Clean Water Act to protect local bodies of water. The site also includes many links to useful sites to better understand the laws, links to the actual laws, and a number of relevant press releases.
River Network: A State-by-State Look at the Clean Water Act
http://www.rivernetwork.org/cleanwater/cwa_search.asp
Summary: This site, in addition to other information and references, provides a database of contact information for each state’s EPA representatives for each issue covered by the CWA and lists information on regulations local to each state.
Code of Federal Regulations: EPA Water Protection
http://www.gpoaccess.gov/cfr/index.html
Summary: “The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the codification of the general and permanent rules published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the Federal Government. It is divided into 50 titles that represent broad areas subject to Federal regulation.” See 40CFR122 – 40CFR136 for regulations governing water quality and the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System.
Water Quality Standards Handbook
http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/library/wqstandards/handbook.pdf
Summary: “Also known as the ‘Gold Book,’ this is U.S. EPA's guidance for States and Tribes on developing water quality standards.”
NPDES Permit Program Basics
http://cfpub2.epa.gov/npdes/home.cfm?program_id=45
Summary: This website contains basic information on the major features and elements of the NPDES permit program. The information in this section will be most useful to state and tribal officials, interested citizens, and others with an interest in the details of the NPDES program. This information is broadly applicable to all NPDES permits and programs, including concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), combined sewer overflows (CSOs), pretreatment, sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs), and stormwater.
Clean Water Network: Impaired Waters List Toolkit
http://www.cwn.org/docs/issues/tmdl/listkit/tmdllistmain.htm
Summary: “Every two years, your state must identify rivers, streams, lakes and coastal waters that are too polluted to meet water quality standards. It must create a list of these waters (known as the 303(d) list) and submit that list to EPA for approval. The public gets a chance to comment on the draft list before it goes to EPA.” This site provides tools to help you weigh in on the issues through comments and participation in the process.
Storm Water Program
http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/home.cfm?program_id=6
Summary: This page contains technical and regulatory information about the NPDES stormwater program. It is organized according to the three types of regulated stormwater discharges and provides a link to Stormwater Month outreach materials: Construction Activities; Industrial Activities; and Municipal separate storm sewer systems.
National Water Quality Report
http://www.epa.gov/305b/
Summary: “The National Water Quality Inventory Report to Congress (305(b) report) is the primary vehicle for informing Congress and the public about general water quality conditions in the United States . This document characterizes our water quality, identifies widespread water quality problems of national significance, and describes various programs implemented to restore and protect our waters.” The reports from 1992 through 2000 are posted along with additional links to relevant information.
Pollution and Treatment
What is Water Pollution?
http://www.geocities.com/rainforest/5161/water1.htm
Summary: This page provides a brief overview of the different categories of pollutants and the effects they have on bodies of water. It covers microbial, chemical, oxygen-depleting substances, nutrients, and suspended matter.
How is Wastewater Treated to Remove Pollutants?
http://www.geocities.com/rainforest/5161/wwtps.htm
Summary: This is an excellent, easy-to-understand description of the physics, chemistry, microbiology, and engineering involved in wastewater treatment. The site goes over the biological, physical, and chemical removal of pollutants and discusses the overall treatment process at a plant. It concludes with a basic description about what happens to the sludge that has been removed and how the odors are controlled.
EPA Water Quality Criteria for…
http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/criteria/wqcriteria.html
Summary: Current criteria for water quality for human health and aquatic life. The criteria table lists acceptable limits of 158 pollutants. A link to biological criteria provides considerable information on using the kinds and numbers of aquatic organisms present in a stream or lake to determine water quality.
EPA List of Drinking Water Contaminants and MCLs
http://www.epa.gov/OGWDW/mcl.html
Summary: “National Primary Drinking Water Regulations ( NPDWRs or primary standards) are legally enforceable standards that apply to public water systems. Primary standards protect public health by limiting the levels of contaminants in drinking water. Vist the list of regulated contaminants with links for more details.”
Wastewater Organism Database
http://home1.gte.net/vsjslsk1/index.htm
This site has some colorful and detailed, high resolution photomicrographs of activated sludge protozoa and filamentous microorganisms, with an interactive identification key. It is also available as a larger Microsoft Access database on an inexpensive CD-ROM ($32).
Water Quality Monitoring
Volunteer Stream Monitoring: A Methods Manual
http://www.epa.gov/owow/monitoring/volunteer/stream/
Summary: This EPA document (EPA 841-B-97-003) gives instructions for the sampling and measurement of a number of important water quality parameters, as well as explanations of their significance. These include pH, alkalinity, dissolved oxygen and BOD, nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus), temperature, salinity, turbidity, coliform bacteria, and aquatic organisms.
EPA Water Quality Monitoring
http://www.epa.gov/owow/monitoring/index.html
Summary: This EPA site discusses volunteer monitoring programs, and includes issues of the semi-annual Volunteer Monitor newsletter dating back to 1993 available for download or on-line reading. The newsletter, which discusses different methods for monitoring, groups that monitor water, data analysis, etc., is also available at www.epa.gov/volunteer/vm_index.html
World Water Monitoring Day
http://www.worldwatermonitoringday.org/
Summary: America's Clean Water Foundation and the International Water Association sponsor World Water Monitoring Day, one day each fall when citizens and groups across the globe monitor local water quality. "World Water Monitoring Day serves as a global educational platform for watershed leaders, educators and trained volunteers to help those who are less experienced to better understand how the actions of individuals in a watershed can impact many others.”
The Great North American Secchi Dip-In
http://dipin.kent.edu/
Summary: The Secchi disk, a simple device for monitoring the transparency of water, has been in use for over a hundred years. The Great North American Secchi Dip-In takes place annually around the 4th of July/Canada Day period. The volunteer effort, which is coordinated from Kent State University ( Ohio , USA ), has had participation from over 2,600 volunteers in the U.S. and Canada. An organization which supports the Dip-In is the North American Lake Management Society.
EPA's "Watershed Academy"
http://www.epa.gov/watertrain/
Summary: EPA's "Watershed Academy" has produced a series of free, on-line distance learning modules which provide "a basic but broad introduction to watershed management." The interesting, pictorial lessons are available for anyone to browse; people who complete 15 core modules and pass the self-tests may earn a Watershed Management Training Certificate.
Watershed Information
EPA Water Discharge Permits Search Engine http://www.epa.gov/enviro/html/pcs/pcs_query_java.html
Summary This search engine enables users to find information on all facilities operating with a NPDES permit. That information includes the locations, pollutant limits, and in some cases, monitoring and inspection reports for the facilities.
Surf Your Watershed
http://www.epa.gov/surf/
Summary: Surf Your Watershed is a service to help you locate, use, and share environmental information about your state and watershed. It allows individuals to find out where their water comes from, what organizations might be protecting it, and how they might get involved.
Enviromapper for Watersheds
http://map2.epa.gov/enviromapper/
Summary: This site provides surface water conditions, particularly water quality conditions, on a local basis. This is a useful tool for informing the public about water quality conditions in their area.
Section 303(d) List Fact Sheet For the US by Region and State
http://www.epa.gov/owow/tmdl/states.html
Summary: The TMDL section of the EPA website provides lists of waters by waterbody type and watersheds, impairments, approved TMDLs by pollutant or year, a TMDL document search, and a lawsuit document search. This is a useful tool to find which bodies of water are polluted, why they are impaired, and what TMDLs have been issued to resolve the impaired waters.
America's Most Endangered Rivers
http://www.americanrivers.org/site/PageServer?pagename=AMR_endangeredrivers
Summary: American Rivers, a river-conservation organization, whose mission is "to protect and restore America 's river systems and to foster a river stewardship ethic", has released an annual list of America's Most Endangered Rivers. The site features maps, descriptions of the problems, and what needs to be done to restore the health of these rivers. You can access lists from previous years-- back to 1996-- from that page, as well.
Watershed Planning and Funding
National Watershed Network
http://www.ctic.purdue.edu/KYW/nwn/nwn.html
Summary: This site allows individuals to find information on groups set up to protect their local watersheds. The website has a database that can be searched by county or issue/concern.
East-West Gateway Coordination Council: Water Resources Council Toolbox
http://www.ewgateway.org/waterresources/ToolBox/toolbox.htm
Summary: “This Tool Box contains information on watershed and stormwater management approaches and techniques. These documents, fact sheets and portable document files ( pdfs) were prepared by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the Missouri Department of Conservation and the Water Resources Advisory Committee of the East-West Gateway Coordinating Council. Also in this section are local ( Missouri ) and national on-line information sources and model ordinances. The Water Resources Toolbox is a beginning reference document for those interested in watershed planning and stormwater management tools and techniques.”
EPA: Watersheds and Watershed Funding
http://www.epa.gov/owow/watershed/funding.html
Summary: If you have a program set up or an idea for one involving water quality monitoring or protection but don’t have the funding, this site can help you locate programs and grants that can help with funding issues. It provides a guidebook of financial tools along with a host of grants and funds dedicated towards maintaining water quality in different types of watersheds.
Funding Sources for Water Quality
http://www.nal.usda.gov/wqic/funding.html
Search for different funds and grants available to groups dedicated to water quality protection through the US Dept. of the Interior, EPA, Federal Highway Administration, US Dept. of Agriculture, and a variety of foundations.
Water Education
Environmental Organization WebDirectory: Water Resources
http://www.webdirectory.com/Water_Resources/
Summary: This site has many links for information and organizations on a variety of water-related topics.
Environmental Literacy Council
http://www.enviroliteracy.org/category.php/14.html
Summary: The Environmental Literacy Council, an organization of scientists, economists, educators, and other experts, was established to help introduce students to scientific and economic concepts needed to understand environmental concerns. Their web site is intended to help students and teachers study environmental issues by guiding them to the best resources available on the Internet, including essays, activities, lesson plans, and reviews of environmental education resources. A number of water quality topics are covered, including laboratory exercises.
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Water Resources
http://water.usgs.gov/index.html
Summary: The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Water Resources page has links to water data (by state and watershed), water resource programs, educational tools, and information on water topics, including water quality. Among its educational resources is a series of colorful posters available for elementary and middle school use covering various aspects of the water environment. Their latest education-based web site is called " WaterScience for Schools". Most relevant to the topics discussed on this web site are descriptions of water pollution problems, including "Urbanization and Water Quality", as well as descriptions of common water quality measurements.
USEPA: Do’s and Don’ts Around the Home
http://www.epa.gov/owowwtr1/NPS/dosdont.html
This article provides steps for people to take and be aware of to prevent non-point source pollution when going about their daily routines at home.
|
What We Do 
Get Involved 
