COMPREHENSIVE DATABASE FOR SPRINGS IN TEXAS Prepared by: Ben Bates, Jason Pickett, Mark Pillion, Yasmin Sierra Final Report

BACKGROUND Springs are naturally occurring features creating a valuable freshwater resource for Texas. Springs, in Texas, have tremendous economic, cultural, ecological, aesthetic, and recreational value.

BACKGROUND Springs are Texas’ primary freshwater resource. Aquifers store and transmit the groundwater

BACKGROUND The amount of water that issues from a spring depends on many variables including  Aquifer water pressure  The rock sizes in the cavern  Spring basin characteristics  Precipitation trends  Anthropogenic causes

BACKGROUND Spring flow can vary greatly  Relatively constant flow  Flow that fluctuates greatly according to  Season  Precipitation trends

MAJOR & MINOR AQUIFERS 99

21 MINOR AQUIFERS

9 MAJOR AQUIFERS

 Extraction  Consumption  Irrigation  Agriculture  Sanitation  Industry  Energy

PROBLEM  Springs in Texas are documented by various agencies and organizations throughout Texas  A particular spring’s exact location and attribute data may vary according to its source  Much of the data is duplicate data  Inconsistencies exist within the data

PROBLEM  Format of available data  Spring data exists in a shapefile format or can be found through complicated queries from the source websites  The average person does not have access to GIS software and does not have GIS training; therefore, the data is currently un available for a large part of the community

OBJECTIVE To create a comprehensive database that will be in 2 formats  Shapefile format  For those that have access to ArcGIS  User friendly format - compatible with Google Earth  For those without ArcGIS access

EXTENT OF PROJECT

DUPLICATE DATA

INCONSISTENCIES

IMPLICATIONS It is the goal of this project to create a resource that will generate interest from the community and researchers  Through education and awareness, we hope to generate a public interest to preserve one of Texas most remarkable features  This comprehensive database will potentially serve as a platform for additional data collection, documentation, and analysis for the springs in Texas  This database can be used to add new or additional springs data in order to build a more resourceful database

TOOLS  ArcGIS is a software that provides a standards- based platform for spatial analysis, data management, and mapping  ArcGIS was used by THI for efficient data management  Using ArcMap, THI was able to efficiently integrate the data from multiple tables into one central table

DATA Format: Shapefile Heitmueller and Reece (2003) Format: Shapefile Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) Format: Shapefile USGS National Water Information System (NWIS) Format: Shapefile USGS Historical Compilation of Historical Water Quality Data in Texas Format: Table Ecological Recovery Foundation

SPRING COMPILATION DatabaseNumber of Springs Heitmuller and Reece2000 TWDB2143 NWIS2075 Historical Springs232 Comprehensive Dataset2238

STANDARD FOR DATABASE

PROCEDURES

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

STATIC MAP

RESULTS  nnovations/thi nnovations/thi

DISCUSSION  Implications of our results  THI Comprehensive Database standard  GIS shapefile  Interactive Map

DISCUSSION  Superiority of our database  Easily navigable  Compilation of pertinent attributes  Accessibility by the community via Google Earth

DISCUSSION  Future research  Discharge  Aquifer analysis  Development of aquifer recharge and use models in GIS

CONCLUSION  Accomplished all goals.  The data is now very organized and characteristics of any particular spring can be found and accessed with ease.  Dataset will provide much easier access to all GIS and non GIS viewers.  Interactive map allows every day people to view the beauty of the springs with Google Earth as well as the information about each spring.  The goals with the project have been met and we believe that we were very successful in making the data very easy to find and understand.  The GIS analytical process is very suitable for our research.  Our training in GIS helped provide the tools for us to accomplish these very goals.  This research help us build new skills as well as team skills which will better prepare us for the real work place.

Ben Bates Web Master Jason Pickett Analyst Mark Pillion Assistant Project Manager Yasmin Sierra Project Manager If you have any questions you may contact any member of THI

QUESTIONS