Water Use

In 1977, the Congress of the United States recognized the need for uniform, current, and reliable information on water use and directed the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to establish a National Water-Use Information Program (NWUIP) to complement the Survey's data on the availability and quality of the Nations water resources. Since 1985 site-specific water-use data for several categories have been collected and compiled annually by the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission (ANRC) in cooperation with the USGS.Data for the irrigation and livestock ( animal specialties ) categories are reported through the Conservation District Offices in each county. Site-specific water-use data for public supply, commercial, industrial, mining, power generation, irrigation and livestock ( stock and animal specialties ) are stored in the USGS Arkansas Water Science Center's Water-Use Data Base System (WUDBS). Water-use data for domestic (self-supplied) and livestock (stock) are not required to report to ANRC. In some categories it is necessary to supplement these data from other sources. These sources include public agencies, industries, public utilities, other organizations, and individuals. Estimates are made by the USGS based on population and average consumptive-use rates for categories where data are either incomplete or are not required to report. Water-use data for several categories are aggregated by county, 4 and 8 digit hydrologic unit, and by aquifer and stored in the Aggregated Water-Use Data System (AWUDS).

Water Use Categories