TUSCALOOSA, Alabama. — Today, the U.S. Geological Survey officially opened the USGS Hydrologic Instrumentation Facility on the University of Alabama campus near the NOAA National Water Center, creating three opportunities to advance water science and technology.
“Water information is fundamental to national and local economic well-being, the protection of life and property, the health and diversity of ecosystems, and the effective management of the nation’s water resources,” said USGS Director David Applegate. “The new facility will strengthen our partnership with the University of Alabama and is a major investment in the future, ensuring that USGS water science and data will meet the needs of all Americans for decades to come.”
A new chapter
The new 8.8-acre building begins a new chapter for the USGS facility, which was established in 1970 and previously housed at the Stennis Space Center in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. A team of about 50 USGS employees will work with the university’s students and staff, strengthening existing partnerships and creating new ones as the HIF continues its tradition as a national center for water monitoring technologies.
“UA and USGS share a common mission: to conduct meaningful research to meet society’s greatest needs. Thanks to Senator Shelby spearheading this important initiative, we can unite with this institution and accomplish that mission together now and in the future,” said Dr. Stuart R. Bell, UA President. “Thanks to tremendous support from the University of Alabama System leadership and Board of Trustees, UA has been able to solidify its position at the forefront of water research that positively impacts society.”
Expand collaboration
In addition to a world-class hydraulics laboratory, the space will also include a network operations center that will expand the USGS’s coordination capacity with federal partners in responding to water hazards such as floods and storm surges across the U.S. and allow the facility to track the status of the USGS’s water monitoring networks. The facility will play a key role in advancing the USGS Next Generation Water Observing System Program, known as NGWOS. HIF’s services include equipment sales, rentals and maintenance for USGS Water Science Centers and federal partners, evaluation and development of new technologies, and verification and certification of hydrologic equipment currently in the field.
“This partnership between the U.S. Geological Survey and the University of Alabama, a national leader in water research and science, will result in important, groundbreaking discoveries as demand for innovative water research increases across the country and beyond,” said Senator Richard Shelby. “The University’s decision to emphasize water – a national security issue – as a focus of its research and academic emphasis will enrich lives in the great state of Alabama and across the country.”
Construction work has been underway since March 2022. The 8,400 square meter building includes:
- A 32,000 square foot hydraulic laboratory with a 350 foot towing tank, a 230 foot tipping chute with a capacity of 50 cubic feet per second, a 100 by 24 foot test basin and groundwater demonstration wells
- Three training rooms, including wet chemistry and electronics configurations
- Laboratories and workshops for testing, developing and repairing hydrological instruments
- An 11,000 square meter warehouse
- An auditorium for 150 people
- Network Operations Center
The facility will also house the staff and operations of the USGS Lower Mississippi Gulf Tuscaloosa Field Office.
Unprecedented opportunity
“The combined academic and government water research enterprise at the University of Alabama is unmatched and is quickly becoming the premier center for water-related research,” said Matthew Womble, executive director of the Alabama Water Institute.
The USGS and the University of Alabama have already benefited from partnerships with NOAA. In 2022 and 2023, the USGS participated in the first and second annual science meetings of the new Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology, where USGS and NOAA shared their water research needs with academic partners. The university partners also had the opportunity to highlight their successes with the two federal agencies. In spring 2024, the USGS and the Alabama Water Institute co-hosted the first Water Observing Technology Forum to showcase the latest research on innovative technologies and methods for measuring water quantity, quality and availability.
