The U.S. Geological survey (USGS) wishes to support, by cooperative agreement with the university of arizona, department of geosciences, portions of programs being carried out by the arizona water…

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) awarded $363,098 to the University of Arizona, Department of Geosciences, under the USGS Research and Data Collection program (CFDA 15.808) effective July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2030. This cooperative agreement supports the Arizona Water Science Center's ongoing research programs through funding for geophysical, geochemical, and hydrological research conducted by USGS scientists and University of Arizona undergraduate and graduate students. Products and services include salary support, travel, supplies, equipment, operation of field data collection sites, and data processing and maintenance for research activities encompassing geochemical and hydrological studies, development and application of geophysical methods to characterize aquifer hydrogeologic frameworks, numerical groundwater flow modeling, remote sensing analysis of consumptive water-use patterns across land uses, and fluvial geomorphology and sediment transport studies in arid and semiarid drainages throughout the Southwestern United States.

The cooperative agreement strengthens the USGS Water Mission Area by providing access to state-of-the-art research infrastructure at the University of Arizona, including advanced computer equipment and mass spectrometers, while enabling students to apply current techniques to hydrological research priorities. University participants benefit from professional mentoring, project topics, and funding necessary to support undergraduate research projects and graduate thesis work across multiple departments within the College of Science, including Geosciences, the Laboratory of Tree Ring Research, and Hydrology and Atmospheric Sciences.

The U.S. Geological survey (USGS) wishes to support, by cooperative agreement with the university of arizona, department of geosciences, portions of programs being carried out by the arizona water science center. The USGS offices located on university of arizona campus propose to continue their long-standing affiliation with scientists and staff in several departments at the university of arizona for the purpose of strengthening on-going geologic and water-resource programs. This cooperative agreement provides USGS support to university groups and individual undergraduate and graduate students undertaking geophysical, geochemical, and hydrological research. Support includes salary, travel, supplies, equipment, operation of field data collection sites, and processing and maintenance of data for the following research activities including geochemical and hydrological studies, development and application of geophysical methods to determine the hydrogeologic framework of aquifer systems, development of numerical modeling to simulate groundwater flow, use of remote sensing to determine consumptive water-use patterns for various land uses, and general studies of fluvial geomorphology and sediment transport in arid and semiarid drainages in the southwestern united states. The USGS benefits by having undergraduate and graduate students apply state-of-the-art techniques to hydrological problems at the heart of the mission of USGS water mission area. These students have access to advanced computer equipment, mass spectrometers, and an educational system for training which are not available within water mission area.university of arizona students benefit because this cooperative agreement will provide project topics, professional mentoring, and salaries that are necessary for undergraduate projects and graduate thesis work. These students are in multiple departments in the college of science including geosciences, the laboratory of tree ring research, hydrology and atmospheric sciences, and the school of natural resources and the environment, as well as civil engineering in the engineering college.to achieve the collaborative scientific research described above, the USGS jointly occupies the deconcini environment and natural resources building (#120) on the UA campus. This facility includes office, conference, laboratory, and information technology space to support the needs of USGS scientists, technicians, and support personnel, together with access to campus parking. Approximately 65 of the USGS scientists, technicians, and support personnel work for the arizona water science center. IT also includes parking of approximately 18 federal government vehicles in the 6TH street garage with spaces reserved for arizona water science center. USGS provides financial support for building repairs, maintenance, utilities, and custodial services.