EPA's Water Quality Framework
Next Steps Toward Improved Accountability
What is EPA's Water Quality
Framework?
The Water Quality Framework is a new way of
integrating EPA's data and information
systems to more fully support water quality
managers. The Framework will streamline
water quality assessment and reporting while
providing a more complete picture of the
nation's water quality.
Benefits of this approach
Integrating data systems through the imple-
mentation of the Water Quality Framework:
• Reduces state burden by streamlining the
This graphic represents how the Framework will integrate assess-
ment information on EPA's public web site. This user could start at
the national scale, interacting with data and summary information
from EPA's National Aquatic Resource Surveys. From there, the
user will be able to navigate to a state-scale survey to see
conditions and progress across the state, and then zoom into state
priority areas and track site-specific assessments and restoration
activities.
•	Provides more transparency in water quality
decision making;
•	Allows for tools that can be used to identify
relevant monitoring data for water quality
assessments;
•	Supports state development of tools to auto-
mate the screening of monitoring data against
water quality standards; and
•	Connects data, decisions, and actions
geo-spatially.
Clean Water Act assessment and
reporting process;
•	Provides the means to tell the 'whole' story from
monitoring to assessment to restoration;
•	Provides better measurement and reporting
of water quality improvement;
Step K.6. Final Catchments associated with the selected
Event (AssessmefflUnit).
More information is available at the Framework SharePoint site: https://
usepa,sharepoint.com/sites/OW Work/WQF/
National Surveys
Interactive Viewer
Site Specific Assessments
Summaries by Region
Access to Underlying Data
Individual TMDL
State-Scale Surveys
Access to Underlying Data
Show Priority Areas
Watershed Area Summary
Access Monitoring Data
Tracking of Progress
KEBBSEEEB
By linking state assessment
units to the NHDP/us catch-
ments, the Framework pro-
vides a nationally
consistent geo-fabric for
tracking progress and
evaluating relationships
among various water
quality programs.
!
- — Event Selected A.U
l~~I Selected Catcftmerts
I I Catchments

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i
r —
Monitoring
Assessment

Actions
Restoration
Plans
L*	JA
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Implementing the Framework
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
Initiate ATTAINS Redesign Workgroups
Implement new geoprocessing approaches
Workgroup report-outs
Research options for sensor data
Redesign ATTAINS based on partner input
Conduct 'experiment' for sensor data
Use new approaches for new 303(d) pro-
gram measures
Release ATTAINS for 2016 Integrated Report
Initiate open-source community for
tools to automate portions of the state
assess-ment process
Initiate support to partners to
transition to the new Framework
Update public website to give a more
holistic view of water quality
Test new approaches for water
quality restoration measures
Conduct study of 'lessons learned' from
2016 Integrated Report cycle
Make revisions based on lessons learned
Final release of ATTAINS for 2018 Inte-
grated Report
Begin Phase II of the Framework to incor-
porate 'Actions' (Non-point source grants,
permits, etc.)
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Framework Components
STORET/WQX: Making Water Quality Monitoring
Data Easily Accessible and Available to the Public
1
Under the Framework, STORET/WQX will continue to pro-
vide easy access to monitoring data via the Water Quality
Portal. Additional Framework activities include:
•	Developing approaches for sharing continuous data
•	Further streamlining the discovery of monitoring data
and working with partners to develop tools to
automatically screen monitoring data against water
quality criteria
rAssessment TMDL Tracking and Implementation
System (ATTAINS): Providing public access to CWA
assessment conclusions and restoration plans, and
communicating progress towards restoring water
quality
ATTAINS will be redesigned as part of the Framework. A
new interface will be developed to provide easy submittal
of state 303(d)/305(b) Integrated Reporting and Total
Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) information, as well as a
single location for EPA review of state impaired water
lists and TMDLs. Some other key activities include:
•	Streamline reporting of water quality measures
•	Providing linkages between water quality assessments
and monitoring data
Provide more transparent and timely access to
state assessment and TMDL data
NHDPIus: Providing a nationally consistent geo-fabric
for tracking progress and evaluating relationships
between various water quality programs
The NHDPlus is a key component of the Framework, it will
provide the backbone for a number of EPA's water quality
measures. EPA will:
• Use the NHDPIus catchments to provide a consistent
and streamlined way to demonstrate the progress that
states are making in restoring and protecting water
quality
V
Use automated approaches for mapping state data to
the NHD Plus
J

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