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StreamCat - Dataset of Watershed Characteristics
Citation:
Hill, R., M. Weber, S. Leibowitz, Tony Olsen, AND D. Thornbrugh. StreamCat - Dataset of Watershed Characteristics. U.S. EPA Office of Research and Development, Washington, DC, EPA/600/F-15/302, 2015.
Impact/Purpose:
We developed an extensive database of landscape metrics for ~2.65 million streams, and their associated catchments, within the conterminous USA: The Stream-Catchment (StreamCat) Dataset. This dataset summarizes nearby and upstream landscape features for these streams, and includes both natural (e.g., climate, soils, and lithology) and anthropogenic (e.g., urbanization, agriculture, and dams) landscape features. The dataset currently contains 176 landscape metrics, but more will be added as they become available. These data will be made available to the public for download and will greatly reduce the specialized geospatial expertise needed by researchers and managers to extract an extensive suite of watershed characteristics for stream segments of interest. This paper is a companion to the StreamCat Dataset and provides an overview of its development and main features. The paper points to the URL home of the dataset (ftp://newftp.epa.gov/EPADataCommons/ORD/StreamCat), which also contains extensive metadata. The StreamCat Dataset will be used by ORD to develop national maps of aquatic condition and watershed integrity. It may also be of use to Office of Water for a number of applications, including modeling reference condition for National Rivers and Streams Assessment sample sites.
Description:
Fact Sheet for the StreamCat dataset describing location on the EPA website, features, application, and impact.