Water Data Exchange (WaDE) Program
Transforming Western Water Planning, Management, and Policy by
Sharing States Water Data Since 2011
What We Do
The WaDE Program is committed to assisting WSWC member states in publicly sharing water rights, allocation, supply, and use data through a common streamlined and standardized service that enables regional analyses to inform water resources planning and policies.
WaDE Data System
Develop and grow the Water Data Exchange (WaDE) Program that streamlines access to water rights and water use data and build interoperable data connections with federal data services
Workshops and Webinars
Organize the Water Information Management Systems (WIMS) workshops and webinars as a forum for WSWC members to learn, share, and exchange ideas specific to water information and data management.
Publications
Publish reports, journal articles, and regional data analysis to better inform water resources planning and policymaking
About WaDE
How much water is there? What is its quality? How is it currently being used? Improving our water data infrastructure, quality, and availability is one of the country’s most pressing challenges, but it is one that will enable us to more sustainably manage our most precious resource. To address this challenge, the Western States Water Council (WSWC) aimed to formulate a strategy and to develop a framework for its member states to begin to share important water supply, water use, and water administration datasets with each other, with federal partners, and with the public, called the Water Data Exchange.
WaDE Governance
WaDE is governed by the WSWC’s Water Information and Data Subcommittee (WIDS), comprised of members within WSWC that have a strong interest in how data are used to make water resource management decisions. To address different facets of the WaDE effort, the WIDS subcommittee assisted in convening four workgroups: WIDS meets semi-annually to discuss the future direction of WaDE, and to plan Water Information Management Symposium (WIMS) topics and needs. WIMS meetings are intended to address the special needs of water information regarding data management, reporting, data-gathering, quality control, and data publication.
FAIR Data Sharing
WaDE Program created a platform to streamline water rights and water use data sharing through standardized and machine-readable formats. Making this data findable, accessible,
interoperable, and reusable (FAIR) enables users to answer questions about regional water availability, scarcity, and resilience in an effective, sustainable, and consistent way.
Collaborative Achievement
Since 2011, the Western States Water Council has been laying the foundation for an effective program. This includes the mundane tasks of surveying and outreach to data providers, procuring additional resources for states who needed assistance, forming partnership to oversee the funds and other governance, development of the WaDE code and application, extensive assistance for implementation with state partners, as well as ongoing maintenance and updates. It’s not glamorous work, but cumulatively it represents a tremendous step forward in not only the data-sharing and publishing practices within the states, but the in the way we value the information we have concerning our resources. We are starting to think of water data beyond its limited and specific mission, and beginning to see the limitless value of high-quality data shared in a way that is easily discoverable and accessible.
Western Water Conservation Application Tool (WestCAT)
The Western States Water Council (WSWC) is developing a new Western Water Conservation Application Tool (WestCAT) that would streamline operations for voluntary compensated, in-state, and temporary water conservation programs. Measures might include full-season fallowing, alternative irrigation strategies, and crop switching. WestCAT will integrate two foundational data sets for water conservation: (1) water rights from the Western States Water Data Access and Analysis Tool (WestDAAT); and (2) evapotranspiration (ET) data as a proxy for consumptive use estimates using remote sensing technology through OpenET or other ensemble or consumptive use model.
WaDE Program Updates
Meetings and Webinars
The 2022 National Water Use Data Workshop, Salt Lake City UT
State Engineer Persona Workshop: Western States Water Data Access and Analysis Tool (WestDAAT)
Reports and Publications
Report on the Availability of Aggregated Water Use Data in Selected Western States
Download (coming soon) This report: (1) summarizes the availability of data for aggregated or summary water use data in the Colorado River Basin States that is available through WaDE; (2) identifies gaps within the currently available water data and improvements...
Testimonial
I have always felt that the collaboration with WSWC was one of the best in my career. I also feel WaDE is one of the driving forces and catalyst for how USGS water use data has developed and expanded over the years.
WaDE is a cornerstone of water information in the West. WaDE’s system of water rights and water use data across 18 Western states provides invaluable insights that cannot be gained through the lens of one jurisdiction or agency alone. We are proud that WaDE is the Western hub of the Internet of Water and a leader of the Internet of Water Coalition.
As New Mexico implements its Water Data Act statute and develops accessible water data, we appreciate WaDE as an informative platform that helps a range of data users gain insights on water issues in the West. Bringing data providers together while building a community of collaboration is how we will collectively face our water challenges and develop solutions
Contact US
The WaDE Program is part of the Western States Water Council.
Western States Water Council Office
682 East Vine Street, Suite 7
Murray, UT 84107-5501
jgroat@wswc.utah.gov
Julie Groat
Office Manager
Tony Willardson
Executive Director
Email: twillardson@wswc.utah.gov
Ryan James
Data Analyst / Hydroinformatics Specialist