ASSESSING SURFACE WATER QUALITY IN URBAN WATERSHEDS UNDER EPA'S CLEAN WATER COMPLIANCE WATCH EMPACT PROJECT

INTRODUCTION This paper describes the methodology developed for EPA's Clean Water Compliance Watch (CW2) Environmental Monitoring for Public Access and Community Tracking (EMPACT) project. EMPACT is a Presidential initiative being undertaken by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It is designed to provide timely and useful environmental information in an easily understood format to 86 of the largest metropolitan areas in the United States. EMPACT projects will use the latest technology to track environmental conditions and provide easy public access to accurate information presented in plain language regarding the practical concerns of each community (e.g., Is the water safe for swimming?; Should I go jogging today, or is the air quality too poor?). Given its unique focus on community-based program definition combined with the use of the most recent information collection, management, and communication technologies, EMPACT represents a new approach to working with communities to collect, manage, and present environmental information.