Data Sources: Water Data

An easy navigation page to help you find sources of data on water in California, by topic.

Part of the California Environmental Resources Evaluation System (CERES) developed by the California Natural Resources Agency. It provides an aggregate view of California’s land use and environmental planning information including county general plans and environmental assessment documents. It seeks to facilitate better informed decisions about land use, resource conservation, and ecosystem management by enabling Californians to identify and assess the cumulative environmental impact of planning decisions.

The Water Boards’ have a number of databases that include Summary Reports and Geographic Information System (GIS) map interfaces. Many also store or link to more detailed documents and technical reports.

The Water Transfer Data Base, funded by the National Science Foundation and the California Water Resources Research Center and presented by the Bren School, is the only comprehensive accounting of water trading between 1987 and 2008 in the 12 Western States. As such, it is a valuable tool for researchers and others interested in the extent and pattern of voluntary water exchanges in the West. The data include trades involving agriculture, urban, recreational, and environmental uses; the number and amounts of water involved; and the prices paid.

EPA maintains drinking water data in several databases, including the Safe Drinking Water Information System - Federal Version (SDWIS/FED) and the National Contaminant Occurrence Database (NCOD).

EM-DAT contains essential core data on the occurrence and effects of over 18,000 mass disasters in the world from 1900 to present. The database is compiled from various sources, including UN agencies, non-governmental organisations, insurance companies, research institutes and press agencies. This repository includes data on drought-related disasters.

The US Army Corp of Engineers is responsible for the development and construction of most of the water infrastructure in the US. Their Southwest Division is the branch that works on Californian infrastructure. There is a searchable library of publications and reports available dating to the 50's.

Find real-time data on streamflow and water watch, groundwater, surface water, and water quality data.

The National Water Information System (NWIS) is the Nation's principal repository of water resources data. It includes data from more than 1.5 million sites, some in operation for more than 100 years.