Department of Interior/U.S. Geological Survey Water Programs

1. Department of Interior/U.S. Geological Survey Water Programs • National Water Programs (http://water.usgs.gov/programs.html) • Cooperative Water Program • National Streamflow Information Program (NSIP) • National Water-Quality Assessment Program • Toxic Substances Hydrology Program • Groundwater Resources Program • Hydrologic Network and Analysis Program • Hydrologic Research and Development (HRD) Program* • Supports investigations that are generally long-term and multi-disciplinary, and that integrate hydrological, geological, chemical, climatic, and biological information related to water resources issues. • Promotes collaboration with scientists from universities and other government agencies. • State Water Resources Research Institute (WRRI) Program* • This program is a Federal-State partnership which: • Plans, facilitates, and conducts research to aid in the resolution of State and regional water problems • The Texas WRRI (located at TAMU) provides grants to support graduate student research at universities in Texas (http://twri.tamu.edu/what-we-do/education/usgs/) *Research funds for collaboration with university scientists may be available

2. Department of Interior/U.S. Geological Survey Water Programs • State and Regional Water Programs (http://water.usgs.gov/local_offices.html) • The USGS manages water information at offices located throughout the United States. Although all offices are tied together through a Nation-wide computer network, each collects data and conducts studies in a particular area. • Texas Water Science Center (http://tx.usgs.gov/) * • Field Office located at Texas Tech University (Dr. William Asquith) • The Texas Water Science Center works in cooperation with approximately 100 municipalities, river authorities, groundwater districts, and State and Federal agencies in Texas to provide reliable, impartial scientific information to resource managers, planners, and other customers. This information is gathered by the USGS Texas Water Science Center to minimize the loss of life and property from natural disasters, to contribute to the conservation and sound economic and physical development of the Nation's natural resources, and to enhance the quality of life by monitoring water, biological, energy, and mineral resources. • The Center provides real-time stream stage and stream flow, water quality, and groundwater levels for more than 650 sites in Texas.

3. Department of Interior/U.S. Geological Survey Climate and Land Use Change Programs • National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center(https://nccwsc.usgs.gov/)* • The mission of the NCCWSC is to serve the scientific needs of managers of fish, wildlife, habitats, and ecosystems as they plan for a changing climate. Regional Climate Science Centers (CSCs) are managed by NCCWSC. CSCs are located at host institutions with expertise and partnerships in climate-change science. CSCs includes staff from multiple partners, including Landscape Conservation Cooperative staff, and a cadre of scientists as well as information specialists. • South-Central Climate Science Center (SC-CSC)* • The South-Central CSC is hosted by the University of Oklahoma with Texas Tech University, Louisiana State University, The Chickasaw Nation, The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Oklahoma State University, and NOAA's Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory as consortium members.

4. Department of Interior/Multiple Bureaus Climate Science-Related Programs Landscape Conservation Cooperatives (http://www.doi.gov/lcc/index.cfm)* • Self-directed partnerships between federal agencies, states, tribes, non-governmental organizations, universities, and other entities to collaboratively define science needs and jointly address broad-scale conservation issues, such as climate change, in a defined geographic area. • Geographic areas of relevance to Texas: • Desert LCC (#3) • Great Plains LCC (#7) • Gulf Coast Prairie LCC (#8) • Gulf Coastal Plains and Ozarks LCC (#9)

5. Department of Interior/U.S. Geological Survey Ecosystem Science Programs • National Cooperative Research Units Program (http://www.coopunits.org/Headquarters/) • CRU is one of 12 programs housed under the Ecosystem Science Mission Area (http://www.usgs.gov/ecosystems/). Today, there are 40 Cooperative Research Units in 38 states. Each unit is a partnership among the U.S. Geological Survey, a State natural resource agency, a host university, and the Wildlife Management Institute. • CRU mission: to enhance graduate education in fisheries and wildlife sciences and to facilitate research between natural resource agencies and universities on topics of mutual concern. • Texas Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit (http://www.coopunits.org/Texas/, http://www.tcfwru.ttu.edu/default.aspx) • Cooperators are Texas Tech University, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, The Wildlife Management Institute. • Located on campus at Texas Tech University • Federal scientists: • Dr. Clint Boal - Assistant Unit Leader/Wildlife clint.boal@ttu.edu • Dr. Tim Grabowski - Assistant Unit Leader/Fisheries t.grabowski@ttu.edu • Dr. Reynaldo Patiño - Unit Leader reynaldo.patino@ttu.edu