This map service contains the most current version of the USGS Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) from The National Map (TNM). The WBD defines the perimeter of drainage areas formed by the terrain and other landscape characteristics. These drainage areas or Hydrologic Unit (HU) polygon boundaries are available for the United States, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The drainage areas are nested within each other so that a large drainage area, such as the Upper Mississippi River, will be composed of multiple smaller drainage areas, such as the Wisconsin River. Each of these smaller areas can further be subdivided into smaller and smaller drainage areas. The WBD uses six different levels in this hierarchy, with the smallest averaging about 30,000 acres. The WBD is made up of polygons nested into six levels of data respectively defined by Regions, Subregions, Basins, Subbasins, Watersheds, and Subwatersheds.The data is a seamless National representation of HU boundaries from 2 to 14 digits compiled from U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) sources. Purpose: This data is intended primarily for geographic display and analysis of regional and national data, and can also be used for illustration purposes at intermediate or small scales (1:250,000 to 1:2,000,000). For additional information on the WBD, go to https://nhd.usgs.gov/wbd.html.

The Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) is a comprehensive aggregated collection of hydrologic unit data consistent with the national criteria for delineation and resolution. It defines the areal extent of surface water drainage to a point except in coastal or lake front areas where there could be multiple outlets as stated by the "Federal Standards and Procedures for the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD)" "Standard" (https://pubs.usgs.gov/tm/11/a3/). Watershed boundaries are determined solely upon science-based hydrologic principles, not favoring any administrative boundaries or special projects, nor particular program or agency. This dataset represents the hydrologic unit boundaries to the 12-digit for the entire United States. Some areas may also include additional subdivisions representing the 14- and 16-digit hydrologic unit (HU). At a minimum, the HUs are delineated at 1:24,000-scale in the conterminous United States, 1:25,000-scale in Hawaii, Pacific basin and the Cari ...

This United States Geological Survey (USGS) web map displays the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD). It defines the perimeter of drainage areas formed by the terrain and other landscape characteristics. The drainage areas are nested within each other so that a large drainage area (Upper Mississippi River), will be composed of multiple smaller drainage areas like the Wisconsin River. Each of these smaller areas can be further subdivided into subsequently smaller drainage areas.The intent of defining hydrologic units (HU) for the WBD is to establish a base-line drainage boundary framework, accounting for all land and surface areas. The WBD is a comprehensive aggregated collection of HU data consistent with the national criteria for delineation and resolution. Each HU is identified by a unique hydrologic unit code (HUC). This service includes HU boundaries for HUC2 (Hydrologic unit boundary), HUC4 (Region), HUC6 (Subregion), HUC8 (Basin), HUC10 (Sub-basin) and HUC12 (Watershed). Pop-ups include HUC name, HUC code and the states that are included in each HU.More information about the WBD can be found at the WBD information site.Click here for information on the Federal Standards and Procedures for the National Watershed Boundary Dataset.Data for this service can be found here._Other Federal User Community federally focused content that may interest youDepartment of the Interior U.S Geological Survey

The National Water Quality Network (NWQN) for Rivers and Streams includes 113 surface-water river and stream sites monitored by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water Quality Program (NWQP). The NWQN represents the consolidation of four historical national networks: the USGS National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Project, the USGS National Stream Quality Accounting Network (NASQAN), the National Monitoring Network (NMN), and the Hydrologic Benchmark Network (HBN). The NWQN includes 22 large river coastal sites, 41 large river inland sites, 30 wadeable stream reference sites, 10 wadeable stream urban sites, and 10 wadeable stream agricultural sites. In addition to the 113 NWQN sites, 3 large inland river monitoring sites from the USGS Cooperative Matching Funds (Co-op) program are also included in this annual water-quality reporting Web site to be consistent with previous USGS studies of nutrient transport in the Mississippi-Atchafalaya River Basin. This data release contains geo-referenced digital data and associated attributes of watershed boundaries for 113 NWQN and 3 Co-op sites. Two sites, "Wax Lake Outlet at Calumet, LA"; 07381590, and "Lower Atchafalaya River at Morgan City, LA"; 07381600, are outflow distributaries into the Gulf of Mexico. Watershed boundaries were delineated for the portion of the watersheds between "Red River near Alexandria, LA"; 07355500 and "Atchafalaya River at Melville, LA"; 07381495 to the two distributary sites respectively. Drainage area was undetermined for these two distributary sites because the main stream channel outflows into many smaller channels so that streamflow is no longer relative to the watershed area. NWQN watershed boundaries were derived from the Watershed Boundary Dataset-12-digit hydrologic units (WBD-12). The development of the WBD-12 was a coordinated effort between the United States Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources Conservation Service (USDA-NRCS), the USGS, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (U.S. Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources Conservation Service, 2012). A hydrologic unit is a drainage area delineated to nest in a multi-level, hierarchical drainage system. Its boundaries are defined by hydrographic and topographic criteria that delineate an area of land upstream from a specific point on a river, stream or similar surface waters. The United States is divided and sub-divided into successively smaller hydrologic units identified by a unique hydrologic unit code (HUC) consisting of two to 12 digits based on the six levels of classification in the hydrologic unit system: regions, sub-regions, accounting units, cataloging units, watersheds, and sub-watersheds. NWQN watershed boundaries were delineated by selecting all sub-watershed polygons that flow into the most downstream WBD-12 polygon in which the NWQN site is located. The WBD-12 attribute table contains 8-digit, 10-digit, and 12-digit HUCs which were used to identify which sub-watersheds flow into the watershed pour point at the NWQN site location. When the NWQN site was located above the pour point of the most downstream sub-watershed, the sub-watershed was edited to make the NWQN site the pour point of that sub-watershed. To aid editing, USGS 1:24,000 digital topographic maps were used to determine the hydrologic divide from the sub-watershed boundary to the NWQN pour point. The number of sub-watersheds which are contained within the NWQN watersheds ranged from less than one to nearly 32,000 internal sub-watersheds. Internal sub-watershed boundaries were dissolved so that a single watershed boundary was generated for each NWQN watershed. Data from this release are presented at the USGS Tracking Water Quality page: http://cida.usgs.gov/quality/rivers/home (Deacon and others, 2015). Watershed boundaries delineated for this release do not take into account non-contributing area, diversions out of the watershed, or return flows into the watershed. Delineations are based solely on contributing WBD-12 polygons with modifications done only to the watershed boundary at the NWQN site location pour point. For this reason calculated drainage areas for these delineated watersheds may not match National Water Information System (MWIS) published drainage areas (http://dx.doi.org/10.5066/F7P55KJN). Deacon, J.R., Lee, C.J., Toccalino, P.L., Warren, M.P., Baker, N.T., Crawford, C.G., Gilliom, R.G., and Woodside, M.D., 2015, Tracking water-quality of the Nation’s rivers and streams, U.S. Geological Survey Web page: http://cida.usgs.gov/quality/rivers, https://dx.doi.org/doi:10.5066/F70G3H51. U.S. Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources Conservation Service, 2012, Watershed Boundary Dataset-12-digit hydrologic units: NRCS National Cartography and Geospatial Center, Fort Worth, Tex., WBDHU12_10May2012_9.3 version, accessed June 2012 at http://datagateway.nrcs.usda.gov.

The Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) from The National Map (TNM) defines the perimeter of drainage areas formed by the terrain and other landscape characteristics. The drainage areas are nested within each other so that a large drainage area, such as the Upper Mississippi River, is composed of multiple smaller drainage areas, such as the Wisconsin River. Each of these smaller areas can further be subdivided into smaller and smaller drainage areas. The WBD uses six different levels in this hierarchy, with the smallest averaging about 30,000 acres. The WBD is made up of polygons nested into six levels of data respectively defined by Regions, Subregions, Basins, Subbasins, Watersheds, and Subwatersheds. For additional information on the WBD, go to https://nhd.usgs.gov/wbd.html. The USGS National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) service is a companion dataset to the WBD. The NHD is a comprehensive set of digital spatial data that encodes information about naturally occurring and constructed bodies of surface water (lakes, ponds, and reservoirs), paths through which water flows (canals, ditches, streams, and rivers), and related entities such as point features (springs, wells, stream gages, and dams). The information encoded about these features includes classification and other characteristics, delineation, geographic name, position and related measures, a "reach code" through which other information can be related to the NHD, and the direction of water flow. The network of reach codes delineating water and transported material flow allows users to trace movement in upstream and downstream directions. In addition to this geographic information, the dataset contains metadata that supports the exchange of future updates and improvements to the data. The NHD is available nationwide in two seamless datasets, one based on 1:24,000-scale maps and referred to as high resolution NHD, and the other based on 1:100,000-scale maps and referred to as medium resolution NHD. Additional selected areas in the United States are available based on larger scales, such as 1:5,000-scale or greater, and referred to as local resolution NHD. For more information on the NHD, go to https://nhd.usgs.gov/index.html. Hydrography data from The National Map supports many applications, such as making maps, geocoding observations, flow modeling, data maintenance, and stewardship. Hydrography data is commonly combined with other data themes, such as boundaries, elevation, structures, and transportation, to produce general reference base maps. The National Map viewer allows free downloads of public domain WBD and NHD data in either Esri File or Personal Geodatabase, or Shapefile formats. The Watershed Boundary Dataset is being developed under the leadership of the Subcommittee on Spatial Water Data, which is part of the Advisory Committee on Water Information (ACWI) and the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC). The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), along with many other federal agencies and national associations, have representatives on the Subcommittee on Spatial Water Data. As watershed boundary geographic information systems (GIS) coverages are completed, statewide and national data layers will be made available via the Geospatial Data Gateway to everyone, including federal, state, local government agencies, researchers, private companies, utilities, environmental groups, and concerned citizens. The database will assist in planning and describing water use and related land use activities. Resources in this dataset:Resource Title: Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD). File Name: Web Page, url: https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/national/water/watersheds/dataset/?cid=nrcs143_021630 Web site for the Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD), including links to:

Review Data Availability (Status Maps) Obtain Data by State, County, or Other Area Obtain Seamless National Data offsite link image
Geospatial Data Tools National Technical and State Coordinators Information about WBD dataset

The Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) is a comprehensive aggregated collection of hydrologic unit data consistent with the national criteria for delineation and resolution. It defines the areal extent of surface water drainage to a point except in coastal or lake front areas where there could be multiple outlets as stated by the "Federal Standards and Procedures for the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD)" “Standard†(http://pubs.usgs.gov/tm/11/a3/). Watershed boundaries are determined solely upon science-based hydrologic principles, not favoring any administrative boundaries or special projects, nor particular program or agency. This dataset represents the hydrologic unit boundaries to the 12-digit (6th level) for the entire United States. Some areas may also include additional subdivisions representing the 14- and 16-digit hydrologic unit (HU). At a minimum, the HUs are delineated at 1:24,000-scale in the conterminous United States, 1:25,000-scale in Hawaii, Pacific basin and the Caribbean, and 1:63,360-scale in Alaska, meeting the National Map Accuracy Standards (NMAS). Higher resolution boundaries are being developed where partners and data exist and will be incorporated back into the WBD. WBD data are delivered as a dataset of polygons and corresponding lines that define the boundary of the polygon. WBD polygon attributes include hydrologic unit codes (HUC), size (in the form of acres and square kilometers), name, downstream hydrologic unit code, type of watershed, non-contributing areas, and flow modifications. The HUC describes where the unit is in the country and the level of the unit. WBD line attributes contain the highest level of hydrologic unit for each boundary, line source information and flow modifications.

The Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) from The National Map (TNM) defines the perimeter of drainage areas formed by the terrain and other landscape characteristics. The drainage areas are nested within each other so that a large drainage area, such as the Sacramento River, will be composed of multiple smaller drainage areas, such as the Feather River. Each of these smaller areas can further be subdivided into smaller and smaller drainage areas. The WBD uses six different levels in this hierarchy, with the smallest averaging about 30,000 acres. The WBD is made up of polygons nested into six levels of data respectively defined by Regions, Subregions, Basins, Subbasins, Watersheds, and Subwatersheds. For additional information on the WBD, go to https://www.usgs.gov/core-science-systems/ngp/national-hydrography/watershed-boundary-dataset. DWR is the steward for NHD and WBD in California. We work with other organizations to edit and improve NHD and WBD, using the business rules for California. California's WBD improvements are sent to USGS for certification and incorporation to the national geodatabase. The certified WBD is included within the National Hydrography Dataset downloadable file geodatabase, and is also available in shapefile format and as web map services accessible from the USGS website. (https://www.usgs.gov/core-science-systems/ngp/national-hydrography/access-national-hydrography-products)

The "Map Image Layer - Watershed Boundaries" is the Map Image Layer of Watershed Boundaries. It has been designed specifically for use in ArcGIS Online (and will not directly work in ArcMap or ArcPro). This data has been modified from the original source data to serve a specific business purpose. This data is for cartographic purposes only.The Watershed Boundaries Data Group contains the following layers: DNR Catchments (MnDNR)HUC 12 Boundaries (USGS)HUC 12 IWM Group Boundaries (MPCA)HUC 10 Boundaries (USGS)HUC 8 Boundaries (USGS): HUC 8s represent part or all of a surface drainage basin, a combination of drainage basins, or a distinct hydrologic feature. There are 80 HUC 2s in Minnesota. (i.e. Zumbro (07040004))HUC 6 Boundaries (USGS): HUC 6s are areas which divide the subregions into more than 350 hydrologic accounting units. Minnesota has 17 of the nations hydrologic accounting units: Northwestern Lake Superior (040101), St. Louis (040102), Southwestern Lake Superior (040103), Mississippi Headwaters (070101), Upper Mississippi-Crow-Rum (070102), Minnesota (070200), St. Croix (070300), Upper Mississippi-Black-Root (070400), Upper Mississippi-Maquoketa-Plum (070600), Upper Mississippi-Skunk-Wapsipinicon (070801), Iowa (070802), Des Moines (071000), Upper Red (090201), Lower Red (090203), Rainy (090300), Big Sioux (101702), Missouri-Little Sioux (102300).HUC 4 Boundaries (USGS): HUC 4s are geographic subregions which are drained by a river system, a reach of river and its tributaries in that reach, a closed basin, or a group of streams forming a coastal drainage areas. Minnesota has 12 of the nations 222 subregions: Western Lake Superior (0401), Mississippi Headwaters (0701), Minnesota (0702), St. Croix (0703), Upper Mississippi-Black-Root (0704), Upper Mississippi-Maquoketa-Plum (0706), Upper Mississippi-Iowa-Skunk-Wapsipinicon (0708), Des Moines (0710), Red (0902), Rainy (0903), Missouri-Big Sioux (1017), Missouri-Little Sioux (1023).HUC 2 Boundaries (USGS): HUC 2s are geographic regions which contain the drainage of a major river or a series of rivers. Minnesota has 4 of the nations 21 regions: Great Lakes (R04), Upper Mississippi (R07), Souris-Red-Rainy (R09), and Missouri (R10).These datasets have not been optimized for fast display (but rather they maintain their original shape/precision), therefore it is recommend that filtering is used to show only the features of interest. For more information about using filters please see "Work with map layers: Apply Filters": https://doc.arcgis.com/en/arcgis-online/create-maps/apply-filters.htmFor additional information about the Watershed Boundary Dataset please see:United States Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper 2294: https://pubs.usgs.gov/wsp/wsp2294/Hydrologic Units, The National Atlas of the United State of America: https://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/hydrologic_units/pdf/hydrologic_units.pdfNational Hydrography Dataset, Watershed Boundary Dataset: https://www.usgs.gov/core-science-systems/ngp/national-hydrography/watershed-boundary-dataset

The Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) is a comprehensive aggregated collection of hydrologic unit data consistent with the national criteria for delineation and resolution. It defines the areal extent of surface water drainage to a point except in coastal or lake front areas where there could be multiple outlets as stated by the "Federal Standards and Procedures for the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD)" “Standard” (http://pubs.usgs.gov/tm/11/a3/). Watershed boundaries are determined solely upon science-based hydrologic principles, not favoring any administrative boundaries or special projects, nor particular program or agency. This dataset represents the hydrologic unit boundaries to the 12-digit (6th level) for the entire United States. Some areas may also include additional subdivisions representing the 14- and 16-digit hydrologic unit (HU). At a minimum, the HUs are delineated at 1:24,000-scale in the conterminous United States, 1:25,000-scale in Hawaii, Pacific basin and the Caribbean, and 1:63,360-scale in Alaska, meeting the National Map Accuracy Standards (NMAS). Higher resolution boundaries are being developed where partners and data exist and will be incorporated back into the WBD. WBD data are delivered as a dataset of polygons and corresponding lines that define the boundary of the polygon. WBD polygon attributes include hydrologic unit codes (HUC), size (in the form of acres and square kilometers), name, downstream hydrologic unit code, type of watershed, non-contributing areas, and flow modifications. The HUC describes where the unit is in the country and the level of the unit. WBD line attributes contain the highest level of hydrologic unit for each boundary, line source information and flow modifications.

This map depicts major watersheds and sub-watersheds as represented in the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Watershed Boundary Dataset (2016). Major watersheds are defined as 10-digit hydrologic unit codes and sub-watersheds are defined as 12-digit hydrologic unit codes.

This child item provides a snapshot of the watershed boundary dataset which consists of a shapefile with 87,020 12-digit hydrologic unit codes (HUC12) for the conterminous United States retrieved 10/26/2020. The National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) is a comprehensive set of digital spatial data that represents the surface drainages areas of the United States. Although versions of the WBD are published as part of U.S. Geological Survey National Hydrography Products, the version used to produce the water-use reanalysis was not archived and is provided here. This dataset is part of a larger data release using machine learning to predict public supply water use for 12-digit hydrologic units from 2000-2020. Public-supply water use estimates for the HUC12s included in this shapefile are provided on the data release main landing page and on the public supply water use machine learning model child item. This page includes the following file: WBD_HUC12_CONUS_pulled10262020.zip - a zi ...

description: This is statewide digital watershed data. This file depicts the State with 138 separate watersheds each with an 8-digit numeric code. This file was created primarily for State and Federal agency use. The creation of this file goes back many years and involved several State and Federal agencies. This file was derived from a more detailed watershed file (Maryland's Third-Order Watershed). The U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) redefined the third order watersheds creating the HUA14 file. The process used to create this file is consistent with the elevation contour information found on the US Geological Survey's 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle maps and the Maryland Department of the Environment's watershed location and naming conventions. This file is similar, but not identical, to the US Natural Resources Conservation Service's (NRCS) Hydrologic Unit Code (HUC11) watershed file. The watersheds define Strahler (Strahler 1952 p.1120) third order stream drainage by contours on U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) 7.5 minute quadrangle map sheets. Some watershed drainage areas were defined for streams less than third order and some large area Watersheds were split to maintain a maximum size of 15,000 acres. This watershed data is used by many state and local government agencies to accurately locate and report many landscape activities by watershed in Maryland.; abstract: This is statewide digital watershed data. This file depicts the State with 138 separate watersheds each with an 8-digit numeric code. This file was created primarily for State and Federal agency use. The creation of this file goes back many years and involved several State and Federal agencies. This file was derived from a more detailed watershed file (Maryland's Third-Order Watershed). The U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) redefined the third order watersheds creating the HUA14 file. The process used to create this file is consistent with the elevation contour information found on the US Geological Survey's 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle maps and the Maryland Department of the Environment's watershed location and naming conventions. This file is similar, but not identical, to the US Natural Resources Conservation Service's (NRCS) Hydrologic Unit Code (HUC11) watershed file. The watersheds define Strahler (Strahler 1952 p.1120) third order stream drainage by contours on U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) 7.5 minute quadrangle map sheets. Some watershed drainage areas were defined for streams less than third order and some large area Watersheds were split to maintain a maximum size of 15,000 acres. This watershed data is used by many state and local government agencies to accurately locate and report many landscape activities by watershed in Maryland.

This resource contains a shapefile of HUC-8 (eight digit Hydrologic Unit Codes) for the Continental United States (CONUS).

The Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) is a comprehensive aggregated collection of hydrologic unit data consistent with the national criteria for delineation and resolution. It defines the areal extent of surface water drainage to a point except in coastal or lake front areas where there could be multiple outlets as stated by the "Federal Standards and Procedures for the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD)" “Standard” (http://pubs.usgs.gov/tm/11/a3/). Watershed boundaries are determined solely upon science-based hydrologic principles, not favoring any administrative boundaries or special projects, nor particular program or agency. This dataset represents the hydrologic unit boundaries to the 12-digit (6th level) for the entire United States. Some areas may also include additional subdivisions representing the 14- and 16-digit hydrologic unit (HU). At a minimum, the HUs are delineated at 1:24,000-scale in the conterminous United States, 1:25,000-scale in Hawaii, Pacific basin and the Caribbean, and 1:63,360-scale in Alaska, meeting the National Map Accuracy Standards (NMAS). Higher resolution boundaries are being developed where partners and data exist and will be incorporated back into the WBD. WBD data are delivered as a dataset of polygons and corresponding lines that define the boundary of the polygon. WBD polygon attributes include hydrologic unit codes (HUC), size (in the form of acres and square kilometers), name, downstream hydrologic unit code, type of watershed, non-contributing areas, and flow modifications. The HUC describes where the unit is in the country and the level of the unit. WBD line attributes contain the highest level of hydrologic unit for each boundary, line source information and flow modifications.

The United States is divided and sub-divided into successively smaller hydrologic units which are classified into four levels: regions, subregions, accounting units, and cataloging units. The hydrologic units are arranged or nested within each other, from the largest geographic area (regions) to the smallest geographic area (cataloging units). Each hydrologic unit is identified by a unique hydrologic unit code (HUC) consisting of two to eight digits based on the four levels of classification in the hydrologic unit system. The intent of defining Hydrologic Units (HU) within the Watershed Boundary Dataset is to establish a base-line drainage boundary framework, accounting for all land and surface areas. Hydrologic units are intended to be used as a tool for water-resource management and planning activities particularly for site-specific and localized studies requiring a level of detail provided by large-scale map information. The WBD complements the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and supports numerous programmatic missions and activities including: watershed management, rehabilitation and enhancement, aquatic species conservation strategies, flood plain management and flood prevention, water-quality initiatives and programs, dam safety programs, fire assessment and management, resource inventory and assessment, water data analysis and water census. The Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) is a comprehensive aggregated collection of hydrologic unit data consistent with the national criteria for delineation and resolution. It defines the areal extent of surface water drainage to a point except in coastal or lake front areas where there could be multiple outlets as stated by the "Federal Standards and Procedures for the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD)" "Standard" (http://pubs.usgs.gov/tm/11/a3/). Watershed boundaries are determined solely upon science-based hydrologic principles, not favoring any administrative boundaries or special projects, nor particular program or agency. This dataset represents the hydrologic unit boundaries to the 12-digit (6th level) for the entire United States. Some areas may also include additional subdivisions representing the 14- and 16-digit hydrologic unit (HU). At a minimum, the HUs are delineated at 1:24,000-scale in the conterminous United States, 1:25,000-scale in Hawaii, Pacific basin and the Caribbean, and 1:63,360-scale in Alaska, meeting the National Map Accuracy Standards (NMAS). Higher resolution boundaries are being developed where partners and data exist and will be incorporated back into the WBD. WBD data are delivered as a dataset of polygons and corresponding lines that define the boundary of the polygon. WBD polygon attributes include hydrologic unit codes (HUC), size (in the form of acres and square kilometers), name, downstream hydrologic unit code, type of watershed, non-contributing areas, and flow modifications. The HUC describes where the unit is in the country and the level of the unit. WBD line attributes contain the highest level of hydrologic unit for each boundary, line source information and flow modifications.View Dataset on the Gateway

Clipped to the area encompassing the Salmon-Challis National Forest.

The Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) is a comprehensive aggregated collection of hydrologic unit data consistent with the national criteria for delineation and resolution. It defines the areal extent of surface water drainage to a point except in coastal or lake front areas where there could be multiple outlets as stated by the "Federal Standards and Procedures for the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD)" "Standard" (http://pubs.usgs.gov/tm/11/a3/). Watershed boundaries are determined solely upon science-based hydrologic principles, not favoring any administrative boundaries or special projects, nor particular program or agency. This dataset represents the hydrologic unit boundaries to the 12-digit (6th level) for the entire United States. Some areas may also include additional subdivisions representing the 14- and 16-digit hydrologic unit (HU). At a minimum, the HUs are delineated at 1:24,000-scale in the conterminous United States, 1:25,000-scale in Hawaii, Pacific basin and the Caribbean, and 1:63,360-scale in Alaska, meeting the National Map Accuracy Standards (NMAS). Higher resolution boundaries are being developed where partners and data exist and will be incorporated back into the WBD. WBD data are delivered as a dataset of polygons and corresponding lines that define the boundary of the polygon. WBD polygon attributes include hydrologic unit codes (HUC), size (in the form of acres and square kilometers), name, downstream hydrologic unit code, type of watershed, non-contributing areas, and flow modifications. The HUC describes where the unit is in the country and the level of the unit. WBD line attributes contain the highest level of hydrologic unit for each boundary, line source information and flow modifications. The intent of defining Hydrologic Units (HU) within the Watershed Boundary Dataset is to establish a base-line drainage boundary framework, accounting for all land and surface areas. Hydrologic units are intended to be used as a tool for water-resource management and planning activities particularly for site-specific and localized studies requiring a level of detail provided by large-scale map information. The WBD complements the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and supports numerous programmatic missions and activities including: watershed management, rehabilitation and enhancement, aquatic species conservation strategies, flood plain management and flood prevention, water-quality initiatives and programs, dam safety programs, fire assessment and management, resource inventory and assessment, water data analysis and water census.The WBD was produced and is maintained through a cooperative process involving state, federal and local partners. Process information for a specific state or region can be found within the state specific metadata located at http://nhd.usgs.gov/wbd_metdata.html. This metadata file has information for WBD features contained in the WBD feature dataset. This includes information about the 2-, 4-, 6-, 8-, 10-, 12-, 14-, 16-digit polygons and WBD_Line dataset. Users accessing the WBD via shapefile will need to search for the attribution related to that specific dataset.

Abstract: This file contains Hydrologic Unit (HU) polygon boundaries for the United States, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The data is a seamless National representation of HU boundaries from 2 to 14 digits compiled from U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) sources. Purpose: This data is intended primarily for geographic display and analysis of regional and national data, and can also be used for illustration purposes at intermediate or small scales (1:250,000 to 1:2,000,000). See https://apps.nationalmap.gov/help/ for assistance with The National Map viewer, download client, services, or metadata.

The United States is divided and sub-divided into successively smaller hydrologic units which are classified into four levels: regions, subregions, accounting units, and cataloging units. The hydrologic units are arranged or nested within each other, from the largest geographic area (regions) to the smallest geographic area (cataloging units). Each hydrologic unit is identified by a unique hydrologic unit code (HUC) consisting of two to eight digits based on the four levels of classification in the hydrologic unit system. The intent of defining Hydrologic Units (HU) within the Watershed Boundary Dataset is to establish a base-line drainage boundary framework, accounting for all land and surface areas. Hydrologic units are intended to be used as a tool for water-resource management and planning activities particularly for site-specific and localized studies requiring a level of detail provided by large-scale map information. The WBD complements the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and supports numerous programmatic missions and activities including: watershed management, rehabilitation and enhancement, aquatic species conservation strategies, flood plain management and flood prevention, water-quality initiatives and programs, dam safety programs, fire assessment and management, resource inventory and assessment, water data analysis and water census. The Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) is a comprehensive aggregated collection of hydrologic unit data consistent with the national criteria for delineation and resolution. It defines the areal extent of surface water drainage to a point except in coastal or lake front areas where there could be multiple outlets as stated by the "Federal Standards and Procedures for the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD)" "Standard" (http://pubs.usgs.gov/tm/11/a3/). Watershed boundaries are determined solely upon science-based hydrologic principles, not favoring any administrative boundaries or special projects, nor particular program or agency. This dataset represents the hydrologic unit boundaries to the 12-digit (6th level) for the entire United States. Some areas may also include additional subdivisions representing the 14- and 16-digit hydrologic unit (HU). At a minimum, the HUs are delineated at 1:24,000-scale in the conterminous United States, 1:25,000-scale in Hawaii, Pacific basin and the Caribbean, and 1:63,360-scale in Alaska, meeting the National Map Accuracy Standards (NMAS). Higher resolution boundaries are being developed where partners and data exist and will be incorporated back into the WBD. WBD data are delivered as a dataset of polygons and corresponding lines that define the boundary of the polygon. WBD polygon attributes include hydrologic unit codes (HUC), size (in the form of acres and square kilometers), name, downstream hydrologic unit code, type of watershed, non-contributing areas, and flow modifications. The HUC describes where the unit is in the country and the level of the unit. WBD line attributes contain the highest level of hydrologic unit for each boundary, line source information and flow modifications.View Dataset on the Gateway

The Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) from The National Map (TNM) defines the perimeter of drainage areas formed by the terrain and other landscape characteristics. The drainage areas are nested within each other so that a large drainage area, such as the Upper Mississippi River, will be composed of multiple smaller drainage areas, such as the Wisconsin River. Each of these smaller areas can further be subdivided into smaller and smaller drainage areas. The WBD uses six different levels in this hierarchy, with the smallest averaging about 30,000 acres. The WBD is made up of polygons nested into six levels of data respectively defined by Regions, Subregions, Basins, Subbasins, Watersheds, and Subwatersheds. For additional information on the WBD, go to https://nhd.usgs.gov/wbd.html. The USGS National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) service is a companion dataset to the WBD. The NHD is a comprehensive set of digital spatial data that encodes information about naturally occurring and constructed bodies of surface water (lakes, ponds, and reservoirs), paths through which water flows (canals, ditches, streams, and rivers), and related entities such as point features (springs, wells, stream gages, and dams). The information encoded about these features includes classification and other characteristics, delineation, geographic name, position and related measures, a "reach code" through which other information can be related to the NHD, and the direction of water flow. The network of reach codes delineating water and transported material flow allows users to trace movement in upstream and downstream directions. In addition to this geographic information, the dataset contains metadata that supports the exchange of future updates and improvements to the data. The NHD is available nationwide in two seamless datasets, one based on 1:24,000-scale maps and referred to as high resolution NHD, and the other based on 1:100,000-scale maps and referred to as medium resolution NHD. Additional selected areas in the United States are available based on larger scales, such as 1:5,000-scale or greater, and referred to as local resolution NHD. For more information on the NHD, go to https://nhd.usgs.gov/index.html. Hydrography data from The National Map supports many applications, such as making maps, geocoding observations, flow modeling, data maintenance, and stewardship. Hydrography data is commonly combined with other data themes, such as boundaries, elevation, structures, and transportation, to produce general reference base maps. The National Map viewer allows free downloads of public domain WBD and NHD data in either Esri File or Personal Geodatabase, or Shapefile formats.

The Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) in Texas was developed as a collaborative product by TWDB, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and USGS. The WBD is a seamless and consistent national Geographic Information System (GIS) database at a scale of 1:24,000, which has been extensively reviewed and matches to a minimum the USGS topographical 7.5 minute quadrangle map series. The traditional 8-digit hydrologic units (HUCs) have been further divided into smaller units called watersheds (10-digit HUCs) and sub-watersheds (12-digit HUCs). The watershed level is typically 40,000 to 250,000 acres, and the sub-watershed level is typically 10,000 to 40,000 acres with some as small as 3,000 acres. Federal Certification of the WBD for Texas was completed jointly by the NRCS and USGS in January 2009.This dataset, which has been developed to national standards (USGS and USDA/NRCS 2009), is intended to be managed in concert with the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) as part of the Stewardship Program, supported by the U.S. Geological Survey with partner Federal, State and Local entities. Continuing development of the WBD in Texas will be completion of the 10 and 12-digit delineations of coastal watersheds. Some of the low lying coastal HUCs were not completed due to a lack of ultra high resolution elevation data necessary to determine the watershed boundaries.