Data Sources

To assess waterbody health in Iowa, data from many different sources is compiled and processed. This data is often available to the public as well.

• BioNet is the portal for sampling data and summary information collected using the protocols of the Stream Biological Monitoring and Assessment Program.
• AQuIA contains the results of water monitoring conducted by the Iowa DNR's Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment section or one of its designees.
• The Iowa DNR Fish Kill Database contains records of fish kill events in the state.

The State of Iowa also provides several Geographic Information System (GIS) services:

• Iowa GeoData- State of Iowa GIS library. Much of the Iowa DNR's NRGIS library is now housed in this portal.
  • Impaired Waters of Iowa- shapefiles and a GIS RESTful web service for mapping the most recent Impaired Waters list
• Iowa DNR Geospatial Web Services - several services, including ADBNet's 305(b) segment coverage (use Designated Rivers - layer ID 6)
• Iowa Data - Natural Resources - Repository of data, applications, shape files, and more from the Iowa DNR.

Data for surrounding states and the rest of the nation is available through the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA):

• ATTAINS - The Assessment, Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Tracking and Implementation System (ATTAINS) is an online system for accessing information about the conditions in the Nation’s surface waters.
• Water Quality Portal -The Water Quality Portal (WQP) is a cooperative service sponsored by the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the EPA, and the National Water Quality Monitoring Council (NWQMC). It serves data collected by over 400 state, federal, tribal, and local agencies.