Every year, Oregon’s Department of Environmental Quality publishes a general statistical overview of status and tends of water quality across Oregon using the Oregon Water Quality Index. The index, which DEQ has calculated for more than three decades, analyzes a defined set of water quality parameters and produces scores that describe the general water quality within a network of 160 stations located in streams throughout the State of Oregon. GIS plays a critical role in not only understanding where changes are occurring in the State, but also to communicate the overall water quality of Oregon’s rivers in an easy-to-understand, non-technical manner to the public, agency managers, and the Oregon Legislature.
Using geoprocessing tools available in ArcGIS Pro and published layers from ESRI’s Living Atlas and ArcGIS Online, DEQ is able to map wildfire perimeters, land use changes, and watershed boundaries to determine which recent changes are likely negatively impacting the water quality within the OWQI’s network of stations. DEQ uses tools available through ArcGIS Online such as Experience Builder, Story Maps, and Dashboards to communicate the results of the OWQI with members of the public and Oregon Legislators who are interested in monitoring water quality throughout the State.
