CivicMapper worked as a subcontracting partner to The Sanborn Map Company to develop USGS Watershed Boundary Datasets (WBD) for the Delta River, Nunivak and St. Matthew Islands, Lisburne Peninsula, Kokolik, and Kukpowruk project areas of Alaska and perform quality control of delineated 1:24,000 scale hydrography data and 5-m IFSAR-derived DTM data. During these projects, the CivicMapper team met regularly with Sanborn and USGS staff to review progress, discuss process improvements, and plan ongoing work. Hydrography data underwent quality control assessments according to the USGS standards, and recommendations were made for improvement based on published data validation and error reporting tools. Metadata files were prepared and accompanied the delivery of the final preliminary WBD geodatabases.

WBD data are used for managing and analyzing water resources, serving as a national framework for defining surface water drainage areas known as hydrologic units. Key applications include water-quality initiatives, flood management, aquatic species conservation, resource assessments, and water data analysis. The WBD provides detailed, hierarchical boundaries that enable local, regional, and national organizations to manage data, conduct scientific research, and implement water resource planning. These data also serve as a companion dataset to the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and a component of the NHDPlus High Resolution (NHDPlus HR). See a full description here!

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