USGS Water Data Access Changes: NWISWeb Decommissioning and WDFN Overview

So important for us in the water-quality and water-supply spheres to keep tabs on this invaluable data resource from USGS. Upcoming webinar will keep you in the loop on data access and new features!

Come join us next week as we walk through the FINAL NWISWeb Decommissioning Campaign, the replacements available in Water Data for the Nation, and the resources available to help you migrate!

The team in USGS Water has been working for years to bring you a modernized water data delivery system through Water Data for the Nation, and to decommission legacy systems. This Fall/Winter wraps this effort up -- but we won't stop there, we'll continue modernizing to meet your needs, and always welcome feedback from users like you! Check out this webinar to learn more! #WaterData #dataRetrieval

💧 As water bills rise, customers deserve to see meaningful results. In a recent LBC opinion piece, Bentley Systems' Mark Coates FCIHT, FCInstCES, Vice President of Infrastructure Policy Advancement, explores a critical question facing the water sector: How do we ensure increased investment translates into tangible outcomes for communities? Mark highlights that success isn't measured by spending alone. It is measured by outcomes that people can see and experience every day: fewer leaks, more reliable water supplies, healthier rivers, greater drought resilience, and infrastructure that can support future growth. He also emphasizes the importance of better asset intelligence, data, and planning to help utilities move from reactive responses to proactive decision-making. As water utilities invest billions in modernization, connecting investment to improved performance has never been more important. 📖 Read Mark's article: Higher water bills must mean fewer leaks and cleaner rivers https://lnkd.in/gHQwn65M #WaterInfrastructure #WaterUtilities #DigitalTransformation #AssetManagement #InfrastructureIntelligence #WaterResilience #Sustainability #BentleySystems #Infrastructure #Utilities #FutureReadyInfrastructure Follow us on LinkedIn.

New Jersey now requires data centers to disclose water and energy use, with new reporting rules and guidance for local governments.

The Shift from Efficiency to Water Resilience Water has moved from a background utility to a core constraint. The era of assuming availability is over; site selection that ignores local peak stress is a stranded-asset risk. The license to operate must be earned through rigorous, site-specific planning. Water Use Effectiveness alone is insufficient. It fails to reflect water sourcing or local hydrological impact. True resilience requires proving operations under peak stress and extreme heat. Municipal systems struggle with the high peaking factors of data centers during heatwaves. AI-scale compute has concentrated massive thermal loads, making water a siting constraint equal to power. The Imperial Valley dispute highlights the litigation risks when local impacts are overlooked. In the Virginia Coastal Plain, groundwater limits now preclude the scale of withdrawals required for major facilities. Operators must prioritize non-potable sources like seawater or graywater and closed-loop systems. Despite higher costs and energy trade-offs, these mitigate municipal resource conflicts. Transparent, site-specific resilience assessments are now a development priority. #DCInsight #DataCenters #Sustainability #WaterStewardship

I am really doubting some people's brain function ... when reading things like this (below) and government officials still considering this as an option ... in an area that faces water restrictions (Lake Hartwell as ONE example!)... You should be ashamed to be our elected officials ... WE the people do NOT want this... You should (clearly) listen... The developer behind the Valara Data Center project in Spartanburg County, NorthMark Compute and Cloud, announced that the facility's expected water usage has more than doubled from its initial projections. On September 21, 2026, the company adjusted its full-buildout estimate to an average of 1.2 million gallons of water per day, with a peak capacity reaching up to 1.6 million gallons. This represents a significant surge from the previously public-facing figure of 459,000 gallons per day, potentially making it the largest individual water user in the county.🔍 Key Details of the Updated Water EstimateReason for the Increase: NorthMark Compute and Cloud explained that the initial 459,000-gallon estimate was pulled from an early Phase I wastewater survey. They stated that the lower number did not reflect the true total demand required once the multi-billion dollar facility on South Pine Street is fully operational.Timeline of Disclosures: While the public and the Post and Courier were tracking the lower estimate as recently as late summer meetings, NorthMark clarified they had actually disclosed the higher 1.2 to 1.6 million-gallon figures to utility providers back on February 11, 2026, via a Large Water Meter Questionnaire.Utility Infrastructure Impact: Despite the massive spike in expected consumption, Spartanburg Water has formally reassured the public that its infrastructure retains ample capacity to serve the data center without compromising water supply or quality for existing or future residential customers.⚠️ Rising Pushback & ContextThe corrected figures have intensified local scrutiny. Only days before releasing the new water metrics, NorthMark secured a permit from the South Carolina Department of Environmental Services (DES) to construct 11 natural gas combustion turbines capable of producing 457 megawatts of power—a decision heavily opposed by neighborhood advocates due to air pollution concerns.In response to public safety committee hearings regarding resource consumption, the Spartanburg County Council is actively advancing a final vote on a proposed moratorium to halt new data center approvals while they draft stricter development ordinances..

One expression in the new Water4All 2026 programme deserves particular attention: “smart, secure and adaptive water infrastructures”. The three words matter together. Water infrastructure is becoming increasingly intelligent, with remote monitoring, automation, data analytics and predictive maintenance changing how utilities manage increasingly distributed assets. But intelligence alone does not create resilience. These infrastructures must also remain secure when people physically intervene in them, and adaptive enough to accommodate changing operating conditions, contractors, maintenance requirements and exceptional situations. For water utilities, the physical and digital worlds are no longer separate. A remote pumping station, treatment facility or network asset is simultaneously an operational, physical and increasingly digital environment. The next generation of water infrastructure will therefore require more than connectivity and data. It will require governance capable of determining who may intervene, where, when, why and under which operational conditions. Smart infrastructure becomes resilient infrastructure when intelligence, security and operational governance evolve together.

Water networks are under constant pressure to perform efficiently while protecting critical infrastructure and reducing water loss. With advanced data and technology, utilities, councils and major infrastructure projects can gain better visibility into network performance, identify issues earlier and make more informed decisions. The right insights can help teams act before problems become costly, improving efficiency while protecting one of our most valuable resources. Detect sooner. Respond faster. Save water. #watermanagement #waterutilities #waterloss #smartwater #waterinfrastructure #waterconservation #assetmanagement #aquaanalytics

💧 Leak detection is changing how Colorado communities manage water. In a state where every drop matters, finding leaks quickly can help utilities reduce water loss, improve system reliability, and make smarter infrastructure investments. New and evolving technologies are giving water professionals more tools to identify problems before they become major failures: Technology isn't replacing good engineering, it is giving utilities better information to make better decisions. For Colorado communities facing water-supply constraints, aging infrastructure, and continued growth, smarter leak detection can be an important part of building a more resilient water future. Every drop matters. Every data point helps. #WaterEngineering #WaterInfrastructure #LeakDetection #ColoradoWater #WaterUtilities #CivilEngineering #WaterConservation #AssetManagement #SmartWater #InfrastructureTechnology #WaterResources #UtilityManagement #ResilientInfrastructure #ColoradoEngineering #TSTInfrastructure