Welcome to the MD-DE-DC Water Science Center
Consider this site your source for water-related information, collected and interpreted by the USGS in MD, DE, and Washington, DC
Consider this site your source for water-related information, collected and interpreted by the USGS in MD, DE, and Washington, DC
Soaking Up Stormwater In Clarksburg
A 20-year study by the U.S. Geological Survey and Montgomery County, Maryland assesses ecosystem response to different types of stormwater management.
A 20-year study by the U.S. Geological Survey and Montgomery County, Maryland assesses ecosystem response to different types of stormwater management.
MD-DE-DC WSC Capabilities Sites
A new series of microsites featuring in-depth assessments of our center's abilities
A new series of microsites featuring in-depth assessments of our center's abilities
MD-DE-DC Seminar Series
Seminars presented by great scientific minds, hosted by the MD-DE-DC Water Science Center
Seminars presented by great scientific minds, hosted by the MD-DE-DC Water Science Center
MD-DE-DC Stream Gaging Network
The USGS operates thousands of stream gages throughout the US. See how our science center does our part!
The USGS operates thousands of stream gages throughout the US. See how our science center does our part!
Maryland-Delaware-D.C. Water Science Center
Welcome to the USGS Water Science Center serving Maryland, Delaware, and Washington, D.C. We operate streamgages, observation wells, and monitoring stations that provide the reliable scientific information needed to understand our natural world.
Explore Our Capabilities
Explore Our Capabilities
We’ve created a series of websites thematically named to characterize our work as “Capabilities”. Our highly skilled staff work with diverse groups of cooperative partners, producing the high-quality output for which the USGS is world-renown.
Local Water Conditions
Local Water Conditions
Explore real-time streamflow, groundwater, and water-quality conditions and access data for MD, DE, and DC with our new interactive map application. This application offers data displays on multiple device platforms with various basemap options.
QUICK LINKS
QUICK LINKS
Featured below are some popular features on the MD-DE-DC Water Science site. To better navigate our pages, please use the vertical header listing to the left side of this window.
News
Spring 2024 Newsletter - In The Flow - Maryland-Delaware-DC Water Science Center
Spring 2024 Newsletter - In The Flow - Maryland-Delaware-DC Water Science Center
Testing New Water Quality Observation Methods In Philadelphia
Testing New Water Quality Observation Methods In Philadelphia
Fall 2023 - In The Flow - USGS Maryland-Delaware-Washington DC Water Science Newsletter
Fall 2023 - In The Flow - USGS Maryland-Delaware-Washington DC Water Science Newsletter
Publications
A spatial machine learning model developed from noisy data requires multiscale performance evaluation: Predicting depth to bedrock in the Delaware River Basin, USA
Spatial machine learning models can be developed from observations with substantial unexplainable variability, sometimes called ‘noise’. Traditional point-scale metrics (e.g., R2) alone can be misleading when evaluating these models. We present a multi-scale performance evaluation (MPE) using two additional scales (distributional and geostatistical). We apply the MPE framework to predictions of de
Remotely mapping gullying and incision in Maryland Piedmont headwater streams using repeat airborne lidar
Headwater streams can contribute significant amounts of fine sediment to downstream waterways, especially when severely eroded and incised. Potential upstream sediment source identification is crucial for effective management of water quality, aquatic habitat, and sediment loads in a watershed. This study explored topographic openness (TO) derived from 1-m lidar for its ability to predict incision
Monitoring of wave, current, and sediment dynamics along the Fog Point Living Shoreline, Glenn Martin National Wildlife Refuge, Maryland
Living shorelines with salt marsh species, rock breakwaters, and sand nourishment were built along the coastal areas in the Glenn Martin National Wildlife Refuge, Maryland, in 2016 in response to Hurricane Sandy (2012). The Fog Point living shoreline at Glenn Martin National Wildlife Refuge was designed with the “headland - breakwater - embayment” pattern. Scientists from the U.S. Geological Surve
Science
New study highlights impact of current and historic land use on stream incision in Maryland Piedmont headwaters
A new method was developed to remotely identify small, eroding streams and measure change over time.
New study evaluates effects of agricultural conservation practices on nitrogen in streams of the Chesapeake Bay
Issue: Adaptive management in support of Chesapeake Bay restoration is complicated by uncertainty about the effects of agricultural management practices on water quality. Despite increasing investment, effects of agricultural conservation practices on regional water quality remain difficult to quantify due to factors such as groundwater travel times, varying modes-of-action, and the general lack...
A Field Method to Quantify Chlorinated Solvent Diffusion, Sorption, Abiotic and Biotic Degradation in Low-Permeability Zones
Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program project ER-2533 In chlorinated-solvent-contaminated fractured-sedimentary-rock aquifers, low-permeability (low-K) strata typically act as long-term or secondary sources of contamination to mobile groundwater in the high-permeability fractures. The fate of dissolved trichloroethene (TCE) in the low-K matrix is controlled by abiotic...