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The Division The Academies
Subtopic: Water Quality
Reports: Academies' Findings Workshop Summaries Studies in Progress: Upcoming Reports Upcoming Events Past Events
Reports: Academies' Findings

The division produces 60-70 reports per year. These reports are unique, authoritative expert evaluations. Each report is produced by a committee of experts selected by the Academy to address a particular statement of task and is subject to a rigorous, independent peer review. The experts who volunteer their time participating on study committees are vetted to make sure that the committee has the range of expertise needed to address the task, that they have a balance of perspectives, and to identify and eliminate members with conflicts of interest. All reports undergo a rigorous, independent peer review to assure that the statement of task has been addressed, that conclusions are adequately supported, and that all important issues raised by the reviewers are addressed. Thus, while the reports represent views of the committee, they also are endorsed by the Academy.

Reports

Showing results 1 - 5 of 47

Report in Brief >> A range of health and environmental issues and related risks are important considerations as Virginia deliberates on whether to rescind its almost 30-year moratorium on mining uranium. Although there are internationally accepted best practices to mitigate most of these risks, there are still steep hurdles to be surmounted before mining and processing could take place within a regulatory setting that appropriately protect... More >>
The unprecedented magnitude of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill presents significant challenges for oil spill responders and those tasked with assessing the impacts of the spill. Evaluating changes to ecosystem services—the benefits people receive from natural resources and processes—caused by the oil spill could expand the potential to capture and value the full breadth of impacts to the ecosystem and the public. This report assesse... More >>
Report in Brief >> California's draft Bay Delta Conservation Plan—a draft plan to conserve habitat for endangered and threatened species, while continuing to divert water to agriculture and domestic water users in central and southern California—is incomplete and contains critical scientific gaps. The Bay Delta is a large, complex ecosystem that supplies water from the state's wetter northern regions to the drier southern regions, and als... More >>
Recovery of the Chesapeake Bay from the ecosystem disruption caused by excess nutrient and sediment inputs, primarily from agriculture, urban runoff, wastewater, and air pollution, will require profound changes in the management of resources in the Bay watershed. In recent years, the Chesapeake Bay Program has enhanced accountability of its partner states, for example by establishing two-year milestones for progress. However, numerous challenge... More >>
The U.S. Geological Survey's National Water Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program is poised to expand its current, nationally recognized role in monitoring water quality to the ability to forecast likely future conditions, according to a National Research Council report. The Program's plan to assess the dynamics of changes in water quality would tailor water sampling frequency and location to known events, such as the wet or dry spells associate... More >>
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