National Synthesis Process for the Federal-State Cooperative (COOP) Program
In Reply Refer To: October 13, 1995
Mail Stop 409
WATER RESOURCES DIVISION MEMORANDUM NO. 96.02
Subject: National Synthesis Process for the Federal-State Cooperative
(COOP) Program
For the past several months, the Water Resources Division (WRD) COOP
Synthesis Steering Committee has been working on a process for developing
and implementing ideas for national synthesis of information from the COOP
Program. This memorandum describes the resulting process and requests your
participation in developing ideas for synthesis topics.
The COOP synthesis process is described in the Committee's report,
attachment 1. In summary, the Committee will collect ideas for synthesis
topics and prioritize them. The Senior Staff will assign the topics to
appropriate WRD Program Managers for carrying out the synthesis efforts.
Qualified and available staff from across the Division will perform the
actual synthesis work. Funds for the efforts will come mainly from Federal
programs; no COOP funds will be used for the actual synthesis efforts.
Synthesis topics requiring additional information from new COOP projects
will be announced annually in WRD's COOP Program priorities memorandum.
Any direction of COOP funds to support these COOP priorities will occur at
the regional and district levels, not the Division level. However, for
years in which COOP funds increase, a portion of the increase may be
reserved to fund new projects in support of synthesis activities.
Although the Committee welcomes suggestions for synthesis topics anytime
during the year, a major source will be a formal solicitation request sent
annually to all WRD offices. This year's guidelines for providing
suggestions to the Committee are provided in attachment 2. The guidelines
request that suggestions be provided through E-mail to Al Zack (AZZACK) by
November 15, 1995. Those received by this date will be considered for
implementation in fiscal year (FY) 1997. (Some possible synthesis topics
and products are provided in attachment 3).
We all recognize that the COOP Program is the linchpin of our
water-resource assessment work. I am confident that synthesis activities
can significantly enhance the COOP Program by clearly demonstrating the
effectiveness of simultaneously addressing State and local resource issues
while making essential contributions to assessments of our Nation's water
resources. I ask you to support the COOP synthesis efforts by encouraging
members of your staff to develop ideas for synthesis. Also, I ask that in
planning future COOP Program activities, you actively explore opportunities
for projects which support upcoming synthesis efforts. In this way we can
continue to derive the many benefits of the COOP Program, while enhancing
the value of its products.
Robert M. Hirsch
Chief Hydrologist
3 Attachments
Distribution: A, B, DC
This memorandum does not supersede any previous WRD memorandum.
Attachment 1wrd96.02
REPORT TO THE CHIEF HYDROLOGIST
FROM THE STEERING COMMITTEE
FOR NATIONAL SYNTHESIS OF THE COOP PROGRAM
"THE COOP SYNTHESIS PROCESS"
I. BACKGROUND
The Federal-State Cooperative Program is an essential contributor to the
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) mission of assessing our Nation's water
resources. Yet during this year's budget process, the COOP Program, as
other programs, came under increasing scrutiny. We are assured that this
scrutiny will continue as Federal budgets contract in future years.
Therefore, it is vital that we maintain strong support for the COOP Program
by continually demonstrating to the Administration, Congress, and the
public, the Program's relevance and effectiveness from local, State,
regional, and national perspectives. The COOP synthesis efforts are
designed to be an important component in this process.
II. OBJECTIVES OF THE NATIONAL SYNTHESIS
A. Develop products that synthesize results from the COOP Program and
other programs to provide useful information to help address water
resources issues at regional and national scales.
B. Enhance the USGS's ability to incorporate emerging issues of national
significance into the COOP Program.
III. THE STEERING COMMITTEE
A. The Committee is charged with providing annually to the Chief
Hydrologist a prioritized list and description of topics for national
synthesis efforts. Topics will highlight the COOP Program but will not be
limited to it.
B. The Committee will consist of eight members as follows: two district
chiefs, two regional program officers (each of these four will be from
different regions); four members - one each representing the National Water
Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program synthesis, National Research Program
(NRP), Water Information (WI), and the discipline offices; and the Division
Program Officer. The Committee will choose its own Chair annually. The
WRD Program Officer will be a permanent member of the Committee; other
members will serve on 2-year rotations unless the Committee and the Chief
Hydrologist unanimously agree to individual extensions. [Some of the
original members will need to serve for 1 or 3 years to establish a
staggered rotation.]
IV. TOPIC SELECTION AND ASSIGNMENT PROCESS
A. Criteria -- The prioritization and selection of topics for synthesis
will be based on the following criteria:
1. Relevance -- Is this a "hot topic" of immediate importance or an
emerging topic of future importance? Is there a clear need for the
information? Is addressing the topic consistent with the USGS mission?
2. Impact -- Is there an important and clearly defined audience for
the topic? Will the product have a significant impact on water management,
science, the public, Congress, the Department, or the bureau?
3. Feasibility -- Do the anticipated benefits of the synthesis justify
its costs? Is the needed information available, complete, and accurate?
What new data or additional studies will be needed to complete the work?
How long will the effort take? Is a qualified person available?
B. Solicitation -- Each year in September, the Committee will issue a
formal request to all offices in WRD for ideas for synthesis topics.
Replies will be requested by November 15. In addition to this formal
annual request, the Committee will solicit ideas informally from
individuals within their respective offices and will encourage discussion
of the synthesis ideas at appropriate meetings throughout the year. The
Committee will request that all ideas be presented in the same format--a
one-page description of the topic including products and funding
requirements and one page of answers to questions listed in the "criteria"
section above.
C. Selection -- By December 31 each year, the Committee will prioritize
all the available topics gathered during the previous year by using the
selection criteria. Additionally, the Committee will determine what type
and level of activity will be needed to address the high-priority topics.
For example, topics for which complete and accurate data already exist
might require only a small amount of compilation and analysis. For other
topics, more data or analysis might be needed or additional studies might
be required. Ultimately, the selection of topics for recommended
implementation each year will be based on priority and balance of
short-term versus long-term syntheses. For each selected topic, the
Committee will supply reasons for the selection, objective and scope,
intended audience, and general staffing and funding requirements. The
Committee will submit its priorities for new synthesis topics to the Chief
Hydrologist by February 28 for the next fiscal year. In this memorandum,
the Committee also will identify those ideas for which more data or new
COOP studies are needed for completion of a synthesis activity and will
provide advice on issues in the COOP program that would benefit from
coordinated guidance, such as that used in the Urban Hydrology Program in
the early 1980's. The Committee expects that most synthesis efforts will
be based on data and results from completed and on-going work. In cases
where additional data or analysis from new COOP projects is needed, the
Committee recommends that these needs be identified in WRD's annual COOP
Priorities memorandum.
D. Assignment -- Once the priorities have been established by the
Committee, the Chief Hydrologist will work with the Senior Staff in
choosing how many of the synthesis efforts can be funded for the next
fiscal year and in assigning each effort to the appropriate Program Manager
for funding, managing, and ensuring completion of the work. The Committee
expects that the Program Managers will select synthesis staff members based
on effectively accomplishing goals and on fair distribution of work among
field and Headquarters offices.
V. FUNDING ISSUES
A. Funding of Synthesis Projects-- The Committee expects that funds to pay
for synthesis efforts will come mainly from Federal program line items, as
determined by the Chief Hydrologist and the Senior Staff, after balancing
the needs for synthesis with those of other activities. If individuals
normally funded with Technical Support or NRP funds are asked to work on
COOP synthesis efforts, no additional salary funds would be needed for
their work. Federal funds would be used to fund other participants, report
costs, etc. No COOP Program funds will be used for the actual synthesis
efforts.
B. Avoidance of Unfunded Work -- In planning the synthesis efforts, the
responsible Program Manager will ensure that any contributions from
district or Headquarters staff in excess of one person-week for any given
effort, will be fully compensated. The Committee recognizes that small
requests of time will be needed for the synthesis efforts for which
compensation would be impractical, such as data retrievals from National
Water Information System (NWIS). The Committee also recognizes that beyond
these small requests, compensation will be made to avoid unfunded work.
C. Funding of COOP Projects -- During annual District Program Reviews, the
regional staffs will encourage districts to incorporate the priorities for
new COOP programs, as outlined in the annual COOP priorities memorandum, in
their program planning for the following year. These priorities will
include ideas for projects to enhance ongoing or future synthesis efforts
and for projects which support bureau-level initiatives. During periods of
level or declining COOP Program funds, the process for allocating COOP
funds will remain unchanged. That is, any redirection of COOP funds to
support these COOP priorities will occur at the regional and district
levels, not the Division level. However, for years in which COOP funds
increase, a portion of the increase may be reserved to fund new projects in
support of synthesis activities. In their annual report to the Chief
Hydrologist on the status of district operations and programs, the Regional
Hydrologists will provide a status report on the progress of incorporating
the stated priorities into the districts' COOP programs.
Attachment 2
GUIDELINES FOR SUBMITTING IDEAS FOR NATIONAL SYNTHESIS TOPICS
(IN THE COOP PROGRAM OR OTHER PROGRAMS)
REPLY REQUESTED BY NOVEMBER 15 TO AZZACK
I. INTRODUCTION
National synthesis refers to efforts that draw on results from data
collection and studies carried out around the country, which, when
considered together, provide a regional or national picture of a given
water-resource issue. There are many fine examples of synthesis activities
based on the COOP Program work, such as the statistical analysis of urban
runoff quality in the mid-eighties, the more recent compilation of flood
frequency equations, and much of the retrospective data used in NAWQA.
To enhance this process, the COOP Synthesis Steering Committee will be
soliciting ideas for new synthesis activities through a variety of
means--an annual formal solicitation to all WRD offices, informal requests
to individuals, discussions at several of the Division's national meetings,
and the annual Program Review process. Once each year the Committee will
meet to prioritize the ideas and pass them along to the Senior Staff for
implementation. The first meeting will be held in December and will
consider all ideas submitted to the Committee by NOVEMBER 15. Following
the format described below, please submit your ideas to Al Zack (AZZACK)
using E-mail only to facilitate compiling and distribution of the ideas.
II. FORMAT FOR SUBMISSION OF IDEAS
In order to minimize the work of those who contribute ideas and to provide
consistent information upon which to base priorities, the Steering
Committee requests that the following 2-page format be used for all
submissions:
Page 1. Description of the idea. Include short statements of the
following information: Title, Problem, Objective, Scope, Product(s),
Audience, Suggested Staffing Requirements, and Estimated Budget.
Page 2. Information on criteria used to prioritize ideas. Provide brief
answers to the following questions:
A. Relevance -- Is this a hot topic of immediate importance or an emerging
topic of future importance? Is there a clear need for the information? Is
addressing the topic consistent with the USGS mission?
B. Impact -- Is there an important and clearly defined audience for the
topic? Will the product have a significant impact on water management,
science, the public, the bureau, the Department, or Congress?
C. Feasibility -- Do the anticipated benefits of the synthesis justify its
costs? Is the needed information available, complete, and accurate? What
new data or additional studies will be needed to complete the work? How
long will the effort take? Is a qualified person available?
In thinking of ideas for synthesis topics, please consider short-term
activities for which all data are currently available as well as long-term
activities for which additional data or studies might be needed. The
length of time to complete the effort is not as important as its relevance,
impact, and feasibility. Also, although this program is designed to
highlight the COOP Program, we are not limiting ideas to this Program
alone. Synthesis ideas from WRD Federal programs and those with other
Federal agencies will be considered. And, we will be looking for
possibilities of doing synthesis efforts with other divisions. In other
words, there is no limit to the source of the information for synthesis
topics.
One last point, in most cases, the person or office proposing an idea will
not be expected to perform the actual synthesis, although they will
certainly be considered. Work assignments will be based solely on
availability and qualifications to perform the tasks. Therefore, no one
should be inhibited in submitting ideas because of program commitments or
lack of expertise to do the work.
If you have any questions about the process, please contact any one of the
Steering Committee members:
Pete Anttila (415) 329-4406 x220 PANTTILA
Walt Aucott (913) 832-3505 WAUCOTT
Jo Ann Macy (703) 648-6851 JMACY
Dennis Helsel (703) 648-5713 DHELSEL
Glenn Patterson (803) 750-6107 GPATTER
Jim Peters, Committee Chair (703) 648-6843 JGPETERS
Don Vaupel (703) 648-5820 DVAUPEL
Ken Wahl (303) 236-5950 x220 KLWAHL
Jack Weeks (303) 236-5021 JBWEEKS
Al Zack, Executive Coordinator (809) 262-2516 AZZACK
Attachment 3
1. Examples of Synthesis Topics
Regional low-flow frequency (drought) analysis
Impact of dams on flood frequency
National GIS-based time-of-travel estimates for toxics spills
Role of wetlands in mitigating floods and droughts
Bridge scour equation development
Conjunctive water-use models
Effectiveness of water conservation practices
Contributing areas to wells
National isotope (H and O) maps for water source studies Evapotranspiration
estimation
Effects of use of reclaimed waste-water on ground water
Effectiveness of agricultural best-management-practices
Fluxes of metals from major river systems
Effectiveness of mine land reclamation
Urban influence on nutrients
Innovative streamflow instrumentation
Innovative data dissemination methods for real-time data
Interactive regional hydrologic characteristics estimation
2. Examples of Synthesis Products
A circular in the series Public Issues in the Earth Sciences.
An article from a previous National Water Summary, brought up to
date and republished as a circular.
A circular accompanied by a fact sheet
A video
A specialized data set released on CD Rom or the Internet,
accompanied by an explanatory report.
A review article, based largely on USGS results, intended for
publication in widely read policy-oriented journals, or trade publications
(e.g., agricultural, industrial, engineering, public health).
A scholarly synthesis of national information, for publication as
a Water Supply Paper or in a scientific journal
A synthesis product is NOT a publication which is designed to
describe USGS programs or activities. It is intended to provide
information about hydrologic principles or hydrologic facts about the
Nation or Earth. It may, incidentally, describe the work of the USGS in
the course of describing the source of the information.