Where does the USGS monitor stream water quality in real time? How can I see these sites on a map and get to the data?
Continuous real-time water quality information is at Water Quality Watch Real-Time Water Temperature. These data are limited to measurable characteristics such as temperature, turbidity, specific conductance (salinity), dissolved oxygen, and pH (acidity).
WaterQualityWatch is a USGS web site that provides access to real time water-quality monitor data collected in surface waters throughout the United States as part of the USGS mission to describe water resources.
Measurements include streamflow (through WaterWatch) water temperature, specific conductance, pH, dissolved oxygen, and turbidity. These measurements are available at more than 1,300 sites in streams with watersheds as small as a few square miles to more than 1,000,000 square miles in the Mississippi River as it enters the Gulf of Mexico.
Continuous real-time water-quality data are used for decisions regarding drinking water, water treatment, regulatory programs, recreation, and public safety. Also provided are links to other USGS technical resources and information on how these measurements are used as surrogates to obtain real-time computations or estimates of other water quality constituents.