A National Stream Internet
Project Summary
Title: A National Stream Internet to Facilitate Accurate, High-Resolution Status and Trend
Assessments for Water Quality Parameters and Aquatic Biotas
Geographic Location: All streams and rivers in coterminous U.S.
Theme addressed: Assessment and planning for aquatic resource conservation at landscape scales.
Need: Accurate, high-resolution, spatially consistent water resource information for rivers and streams is needed
nationally to improve strategic coordination among agencies and the effectiveness of management and
conservation efforts.
Goal: Fundamentally improve the quality of information about aquatic resources to facilitate better stewardship
of these resources within individual landscapes, regionally, and nationally. Create a system for developing this
information from existing digital stream infrastructure elements and field measurements that provides significant
value to resource stakeholders.
Objectives: 1) Refine key digital stream products for compatibility so that a larger, integrated, and consistent
system of databases and stream analyses is possible nationally; 2) engage the leadership of national aquatic
programs so that the potential applications of this system to generate massive amounts of new information from
existing stream databases is understood.
Project activities: 1) Adapt the NHDPlus national hydrography layer for compatibility with spatial statistical
stream models; 2) Update STARS ArcGIS custom toolset to be compatible with ArcMap 10 and higher; 3)
Develop websites that disseminate STARS toolset and adapted hydrologic layer; 4) Conduct a workshop with
leaders from national aquatics programs to demonstrate how spatial stream-network models enhance traditional
analyses and provide better information about aquatic resources.
Beneficiaries: Those working for better conservation and management of stream and river resources.
Project outcomes: A consistent, powerful analytical infrastructure that can be applied to many types of stream
data commonly collected across the U.S. This infrastructure will facilitate development of new information from
existing databases at low cost and will enable accurate predictions at ungaged/unmonitored sites throughout the
100,000s of stream kilometers in the country. Digital toolsets and websites for disseminating information about
this infrastructure will be developed and designed to complement existing digital resources. Leaders of national
aquatics programs from multiple agencies will be engaged to discuss the potential applications of these new tools
and to develop a high-level user base. The corollary outcome is that better information about aquatic resource
status and trends will enable better conservation and management.
LCC Coordination: The genesis of this project began with funding from the Great Northern LCC to develop a
comprehensive interagency stream temperature database and model (NorWeST) for the Northwestern U.S. The
value of NorWeST has facilitated its continued growth and it now encompasses significant portions of the North
Pacific LCC and the Great Basin LCC. The current Stream Internet proposal has many similarities with the earlier
temperature project, including ongoing and strong endorsements from several LCCs, but it will extend the
geographic boundaries of the digital stream infrastructure needed for sophisticated statistical analyses to a national
scale to provide a foundation for information development about multiple aquatic attributes. Outputs for stream
temperature scenarios developed in NorWeST are distributed widely through a project website and often provide
the foundational datasets used in interagency, regional climate planning workshops sponsored by the LCCs
(newsletter description here: http://greatnorthernlcc.org/features/streamtemp-database). Similar synergies between
the LCCs and information developed from the Stream Internet could occur nationally or within individual LCCs.
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A National Stream Internet
Project Narrative
Project Title: A National Stream Internet to Facilitate Accurate, High-Resolution Status and
Trend Assessments for Water Quality Parameters and Aquatic Biotas
Principle Investigators: Daniel J. Isaak (disaak@fs.fed.us), Erin E. Peterson (Erin.Peterson@csiro.au)1, David
Nagel (dnagel@fs.fed.us), Jay Ver Hoef (Jay.Verhoef@noaa.gov)2, and Jeff Kershner (jkershner@usgs.gov)3
U.S. Forest Service, Boise Aquatic Sciences Laboratory, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Boise, ID.
1
CSIRO Division of Computational Informatics, Dutton Park, Queensland, Australia.
2
NOAA National Marine Mammal Laboratory, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK.
3
U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, Bozeman, MT.
Statement of Need: Accurate, geographically consistent, high resolution information is lacking for the status and
trends of water quality and biological attributes throughout the 100,000s of kilometers in the nation’s river and
stream networks. Without this information, prioritization of limited conservation resources proceeds, by necessity,
in an ad hoc and sometimes redundant manner among resource agencies (Fausch et al. 2002). This proposal is
predicated on the simple proposition that high-quality spatial information about aquatic resources will ultimately
facilitate better strategic coordination and stewardship of these resources within individual landscapes, regionally,
and nationally. A foundation for developing this information is a nationally consistent, flexible analytical
infrastructure and databases designed specifically for stream and river networks. This infrastructure also should be
applicable to the 10,000s of measurements on water quality and biological attributes that currently reside within
state, federal, private, and tribal databases across the U.S. to develop new information at low cost (Figure 1).
Key elements of a national stream infrastructure have become available recently with the development of the
national NHDPlus stream hydrologic layer (Cooter et al. 2010; McKay et al. 2012) and consistent sets of stream
reach descriptors that are compatible with NHDPlus (e.g., Wang et al. 2011). A third key element is the
development of spatial statistical models for stream networks that account for network topology (e.g., branching,
flow direction and volume; Ver Hoef et al. 2006; Peterson and Ver Hoef 2010; Peterson and Ver Hoef, in press;
Ver Hoef et al., in press; SSN/STARS website:
http://www.fs.fed.us/rm/boise/AWAE/projects/SpatialStreamNetworks.shtml). These models offer significant
advantages over the non-spatial analytical techniques traditionally applied to stream data because they account for
clustering among sample locations and provide high predictive accuracy when data are spatially correlated. These
attributes of spatial stream-network models make them excellent tools for developing information from
aggregated databases. Moreover, spatial model predictions at ungaged/unmonitored sites can be used to develop
high-resolution maps (e.g., 100s – 1000s meters) that show the status of stream attributes throughout full river
networks (Figure 2; see NorWeST website for an application with stream temperature:
www.fs.fed.us/rm/boise/AWAE/projects/NorWeST.html). These maps may also be designed to show the spatial
heterogeneity in model prediction precision, which is key information for designing efficient monitoring
strategies that complement existing databases.
The capacity to develop status maps for a variety of water quality and biological attributes across the country
is needed and is possible by developing compatibility among key elements of the existing national digital stream
infrastructure. With this compatibility, a system would be in place that bears many similarities to the Internet. A
Stream Internet would run on a consistent set of database protocols and digital stream infrastructures to enable
routine application of sophisticated spatial statistical analyses that provided massive information gains about
stream attributes (Figure 3; Climate-Aquatics Blog #28). This information could be summarized consistently at a
variety of scales (e.g., individual streams, river networks, regional or national drainages) and across time periods
(e.g., weekly, annually, decadally) for routine reporting and analytical purposes. Like the real Internet, a Stream
Internet requires a user base, so the second main objective of this proposal is to engage high-level users such as
the leaders of national aquatic programs in various federal agencies (e.g., USGS, USFS, BLM, EPA) in a
discussion about the potential applications of this system to common types of stream data housed in national
databases (e.g., USFS AqS/NRM, BLM NAMC, USGS NAWQA/NWIS, EPA STORET/WATERS). This high2
A National Stream Internet
lever user base would complement the rapidly growing number of grassroots users of the spatial statistical streamnetwork models (8,654 site visits to the SSN/STARS website in the last 10 months) and provide a strategic
perspective and possibly resources for future development and applications.
The principle investigators on this proposal have spent much of the last decade developing the analytical and
geospatial techniques and expertise that provide a foundation for a national Stream Internet (Peterson and Ver
Hoef, In press; Peterson et al. 2010; Theobald et al. 2006; Ver Hoef et al., In Press). A robust body of statistical
theory underpins the spatial statistical stream models (Peterson et al. 2007; Peterson and Ver Hoef 2010; Peterson
et al. 2013; Ver Hoef et al. 2006; Ver Hoef and Peterson 2010) and a diverse range of studies applying these
models has developed (Gardner and McGlynn 2009; Garreta et al. 2010; Isaak et al. 2010; Isaak et al. 2013; Isaak
et al., In Preparation; Money et al. 2009a; Money et al. 2009b; Peterson and Urquhart 2006; Peterson et al. 2006;
Ruesch et al. 2012). Equally important, developing compatibility protocols for key digital stream elements has
already been done as part of the regional NorWeST project (Isaak et al. 2011), so technical issues for nationalscale implementation have already been resolved.
Coordination with LCCs: The genesis of this project began with funding from the Great Northern LCC to
develop a comprehensive interagency stream temperature database and model (NorWeST) for the Northwestern
U.S. The value of NorWeST has facilitated its continued growth and its project area now encompasses significant
portions of the North Pacific LCC and the Great Basin LCC. The Stream Internet proposal has many similarities
with the earlier temperature project, including ongoing and strong endorsements from multiple LCCs (letters of
support from LCCs and other agencies are appended to this application). Key LCC staff with whom coordination
efforts are ongoing include: 1) Great Northern LCC: Tom Oliff (406.994.7920, tom_olliff@nps.gov), Yvette
Converse (406.994.7486, Yvette_converse@fws.gov), Sean Finn (208.426.2697, sean_finn@fws.gov); 2) North
Pacific LCC: Mary Mahaffy (360.753.7763, mary_mahaffy@fws.gov), John Mankowski (360.534.9330,
john_mankowski@fws.gov); 3) Southern Rockies LCC: Kevin Johnson (303.236.4404,
kevin_m_johnson@fws.gov).
As an example of ongoing coordination with the LCCs, geospatial data representing stream temperature
climate scenarios developed in NorWeST are distributed through a dedicated project website and often provide
the foundational datasets used in interagency, regional climate planning workshops sponsored by the LCCs
(newsletter description here: http://greatnorthernlcc.org/features/streamtemp-database). Similar synergies between
the LCCs and information developed for a variety of stream attributes using the Stream Internet could occur
nationally or within any individual LCC.
Goal: Fundamentally improve the quality of information about aquatic resources to facilitate better stewardship
of these resources within individual landscapes, regionally, and nationally. Create a system for developing this
information from existing digital stream infrastructure elements and field measurements that provides significant
value to resource stakeholders.
Objectives: 1) Refine key digital stream products for compatibility so that a larger, integrated, and consistent
system of databases and stream analyses is possible nationally; 2) engage the leadership of national aquatic
programs so that the potential applications of this system to generate massive amounts of new information from
existing stream databases is understood.
Outcomes: The ability to develop high-quality maps of aquatic resources would facilitate better integration with
terrestrial management concerns and would address many of the critical information needs identified by NFHP
and the National Fish, Wildlife and Plants Climate Change Adaptation Strategy. In one simple example, highresolution stream temperature maps developed in NorWeST clearly show where coldwater refuge areas for
climate sensitive species will occur across a river network in central Idaho (Figure 2). The accuracy of the
temperature map to those familiar with the landscape has translated to its rapid adoption and use in decision
making. Moreover, the capacity of the spatial statistical stream network models to derive valid information from a
clustered, non-random set of measurements allowed the temperature map to be developed from an aggregated
database contributed by dozens of agencies. The contributing agencies, therefore, were all invested in the project
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A National Stream Internet
and in using the stream temperature scenario maps for planning. As an additional benefit, the interagency database
is also used by resource managers within the river basin to coordinate new data collection and monitoring efforts
more efficiently. A similar suite of outcomes would be enabled by the Stream Internet in river basins across the
country for water quality and biological attributes as data collection, aggregation, and modeling efforts proceed.
Project Activities, Methods and Timetable
Activity 1. Adapt the NHDPlus, Version 2 national hydrography layer for compatibility with spatial statistical
stream-network models. As part of this process, the blueline network topology is checked for errors that sometime
occur at tributary confluences or the flow directionality that is assigned to stream reaches. Reconditioning will be
done by a GIS specialist supervised by one of the principle investigators (D. Nagel), and following established
protocols (Peterson and Ver Hoef, In press; Peterson 2013). These protocols were applied previously in the
NorWeST stream temperature project (Isaak et al. 2011) to recondition the NHDPlus layer for the Northwest U.S.
A website hosting these reconditioned hydrography layers was developed to facilitate use with the stream models
(http://www.fs.fed.us/rm/boise/AWAE/projects/SSN_STARS/GIS_reconditioned_NHDstreams.shtml).
Activity 2. Update STARS ArcGIS custom toolset for spatial analysis of stream data. Some of the processing
steps for fitting the spatial statistical stream-network models are currently done using two ArcGIS custom
toolsets: FLoWS (Theobald et al. 2006) and STARS (Peterson and Ver Hoef in press; Peterson 2013). These
toolsets are compatible only with ArcMap 9.3, which became outdated with the release of ArcMap 10 in 2011.
Most institutions have updated their software to ArcMap 10.1, so the lack of compatible toolset versions is an
impediment to broad application of the spatial stream-network models. The toolset updates for ArcMap 10.1 will
be done to maximize their compatibility with subsequent versions of ArcMap. The principle investigator (E.
Peterson) that developed STARS will supervise a software developer in updating toolset scripts. A detailed user
guide with tutorials and example datasets will be developed.
Activity 3. Design and implement websites to disseminate STARS toolset and reconditioned NHDPlus.
Versions of these websites have been developed for previous applications and will be modified to accomplish this
activity. One of the principle investigators (D. Nagel) will supervise a web-designer in these revisions.
Activity 4. Conduct a workshop with leaders from national aquatics programs to demonstrate how the spatial
stream models may be applied to develop accurate, high-resolution information about water quality parameters
and aquatic biotas from existing national databases (e.g., USFS AqS/NRM, BLM NAMC, USGS
NAWQA/NWIS, EPA STORET/WATERS). Principle investigators have developed and hosted a variety of
similar workshops in previous years. The Boise Aquatic Sciences Laboratory is housed in a modern facility with
state-of-the-art classrooms and meeting facilities with professional support staff available to handle the logistics
associated with executing technical workshops.
Timetable: Full project completion will require 1.5 years but deliverables will be developed and posted to project
websites as they are completed for specific activities or areas of the country.
Mid End
Early
Task
2014 2014
2015
1. Adapt NHDPlus for compatibility with spatial models
X
X
2. Update STARS toolset
X
3. Design and implement websites, disseminate deliverables from tasks #1 and #2
X
X
4. Conduct workshop
X
Anticipated Products/Outputs: Specific products are described in association with each activity above and
consist of: 1) adapted NHDPlus hydrography layer, 2) updated STARS toolset, 3) websites for disseminating #1
and #2, and 4) a workshop for national aquatic program leaders. These products, in combination with pre-existing
elements such as stream reach covariate descriptors (Wang et al. 2011; McKay et al. 2012) and databases of water
quality and biological measurements (Isaak et al. 2011; NAWQA; NAMC; Wenger et al. 2011; STORET; Olson
and Hawkins 2012), compose the infrastructure of the Stream Internet (Figure 3). The Stream Internet would
provide the capacity to develop better information about stream attributes and lays the foundation for doing
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A National Stream Internet
projects like NorWeST with a variety of stream attributes (water chemistry, insects, fish) anywhere within the
LCC system. Moreover, because the spatial statistical stream-network models are adept at developing new
information from aggregated databases, they provide a strong incentive to develop comprehensive interagency
databases. In the NorWeST project, for example, a $300,000 investment by the GNLCC and NPLCC resulted in a
database worth $10,000,000 that was contributed by 60+ resource agencies (Climate-Aquatics Blog #25; Isaak et
al. 2011). The value of raw data, however, is ultimately small compared to the value of information from data and
its utility for decision making and prioritizing future investments. In addition, the process of developing
interagency databases, modeling the stream attributes, and creating accurate status maps is a powerful means of
formalizing and strengthening the communities of practice that are collecting data on specific attributes. We
believe that over time, strong communities, empowered with good information, will manage and conserve aquatic
resources more effectively.
Project Monitoring and Evaluation: Project evaluation will occur through several avenues. Traffic to the
websites developed for this project will be monitored to determine the number of times that the STARS toolset
and reconditioned NHDPlus products are downloaded and the geographic areas where downloads occur.
Attendance at the national workshop and the interest level of the participants will also be another key early metric
to assess the utility of this project.
Long-term project success, however, is most usefully judged by the amount of new information that the
national aquatics community develops using the Stream Internet and whether this information effects better
decision making and resource stewardship. These factors are difficult to measure directly, but proxy
measurements would occur in the form of peer-reviewed publications, compilation of new databases,
local/national status assessments for various aquatic attributes, and local/national workshops and forums in which
this information is used in decision making and policy development. In the NorWeST example, workshops are
being held and planned that use the stream temperature climate scenarios to refine management of sensitive
aquatic species, climate scenarios are being incorporated directly to forest plan revisions and other land-use
planning documents, and consistent, interagency temperature monitoring networks are developing across the
Northwest U.S. It required two years of database development and stream temperature modeling to reach that
point but the long-term impacts of the NorWeST project are now likely to be significant. If the information
developed for various attributes using the Stream Internet elsewhere is sufficiently informative, a similar dynamic
is likely to occur within user communities across the LCC system.
Description of Organizations/Individuals Undertaking the Project (see attached curricula vitae):
Dan Isaak is a fisheries scientist (Project Manager; scientist website:
http://www.fs.fed.us/rm/boise/AWAE/scientists/profiles/AWAIsaak.shtml) and Dave Nagel is supervisor of the
geospatial stream analysis group at the U.S. Forest Service’s Boise Aquatics Sciences Lab in Boise, Idaho. The
Boise lab hosts an interdisciplinary cadre of aquatic scientists focused on understanding spatiotemporal dynamics
in stream ecosystems and their linkages to terrestrial environments across the western U.S. The Boise Lab has
excellent professional support staff and in-house expertise on webdesign and geospatial stream technologies (Lab
website: http://www.fs.fed.us/rm/boise/index.shtml).
Erin Peterson (scientist website: http://www.csiro.au/Organisation-Structure/Divisions/MathematicsInformatics-and-Statistics/ErinPeterson.aspx) is a research scientist employed by the CSIRO Division of
Computational Informatics, Environmental and Agricultural Informatics Program in Dutton Park, Queensland,
Australia. The Program hosts a diverse staff of environmental and statistical scientists who develop and
implement innovative statistical methods to provide better information about issues such as climate change,
sustainable fisheries, land-use change & carbon accounting, and management of environmental flows (Program
website: http://www.csiro.au/en/Outcomes/Environment/Australian-Landscapes/environmental-informatics.aspx).
Jay Ver Hoef (scientist website:
http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/nmml/personnel/nmmlprofile.php?name=Jay.Verhoef) is a biometrician employed by
NOAA at their National Marine Mammal Laboratory and Alaska Fisheries Science Center in Fairbanks, Alaska.
The laboratory conducts research on marine mammals and houses scientists with broad expertise on population
dynamics in Arctic regions (Science Center website: http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/nmml/).
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A National Stream Internet
Jeff Kershner (scientist website: http://www.nrmsc.usgs.gov/staff/jkershner) is a fisheries scientist employed
by the U.S. Geological Survey and is director of the Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center is located in
Bozeman, Montana. The science center hosts an interdisciplinary group of scientists engaged in a diverse array of
terrestrial and aquatic studies across the Northern Rocky Mountains. The NRMSC has excellent professional
support staff, geospatial capabilities, and access to high-performance computing (Science Center website:
http://www.nrmsc.usgs.gov/).
Sustainability: There is no guarantee of the long-term sustainability of this project as the continued support and
use of the Stream Internet ultimately depends on the value it provides to users. In a worst case scenario, the digital
products developed in this project will continue to be available for many years on websites (SSN/STARS
http://www.fs.fed.us/rm/boise/AWAE/projects/SpatialStreamNetworks.shtml; NorWeST
http://www.fs.fed.us/rm/boise/AWAE/projects/NorWeST.html; NCEAS stream group
http://www.nceas.ucsb.edu/projects/12637) to provide grassroots level users at universities and research
organizations global access to a suite of sophisticated spatial analysis for stream data. Even those small-scale
efforts could prove instrumental over time, as the genesis of this project ultimately began with research to develop
appropriate statistical theory for streams (Peterson et al. 2007; Ver Hoef et al. 2006) and the application of this
theory to the analysis of a temperature dataset for one small river network (Isaak et al. 2010). In a best case
scenario, the potential utility that the Stream Internet provides will also be recognized by leadership in national
aquatics programs and a collaborative nexus formed that involves formal institutional commitments which extend
beyond this current grant opportunity. Ongoing commitments could enable regular, high-resolution status and
trend assessments for the nation’s aquatic resources that are fundamental to stewardship of these resources. The
experience of the principle investigators has been that application of the Stream Internet technologies within the
regional NorWeST project can achieve these status and trend assessments and may be transformative for
developing and solidifying the social networks and interagency collaborations that are needed for the most
effective stewardship.
Fig. 1 Example stream databases with spatially clustered measurements that could be accurately modeled using
spatial statistical stream-network models. Stream temperature measurements (a; from the NorEaST database),
stream discharge measurements (b; from the NWIS database), c) fish sampling locations (c; from Wenger et al.
2011), and d) water chemistry measurements (d; from Olson and Hawkins 2012).
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A National Stream Internet
Fig. 2 Example of a 1-kilometer resolution stream temperature scenario map developed by applying the spatial
statistical stream-network models to an interagency temperature database (a; n = 4,401) compiled for a 21,000
kilometer river network in central Idaho (b). Predictors in the temperature model used to develop the map were
derived from existing national geospatial products for streams. The temperature model is more accurate than
traditional analytical techniques for streams (r2 = 0.90; RMSE = 1.0˚C) and provides high-resolution information
to assist in strategic assessments for local management, restoration, and monitoring activities. The coldest streams
depicted in blue are likely climate refuges for sensitive fish species like salmon and trout which occur in the river
basin. Similar stream temperature models and climate scenario maps are now being developed routinely with
large datasets in the Northwest U.S. as part of the LCC funded NorWeST project (Isaak et al. 2011).
Fig. 3 Elements composing a stream internet that would enable integration of existing measurement databases
(e.g., fish, macroinvertebrates, water chemistry, and temperature), facilitate development of new information from
these databases at low cost, and provide a nationally consistent means of scaling information from local to
regional to national domains. Work completed as part of this proposal is highlighted by the shaded boxes.
Realizing the potential of a stream internet requires developing a national user base, so a key element of this
proposal is a workshop to bring together leaders from national aquatic programs to discuss potential applications.
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A National Stream Internet
Map of Project Area. Map showing approximate Stream Internet project area. All stream segments digitally
represented in the NHDPlus hydrography layer for the coterminous U.S. (~1,500,000 stream kilometers) are
included in this project.
Key Literature, Digital Resources, and Databases Relevant to this Proposal:
AqS (Aquatic Surveys Module) in NRM (Natural Resources Monitor). U.S. Forest Service. Website:
http://www.fs.fed.us/nrm/index.shtml/water/.
Cooter, W., J. Rineer, and B. Bergenroth. 2010. A nationally consistent NHDPlus framework for identifying
interstate waters: Implications for integrated assessments and interjurisdictional TMDLs. Environmental
Management 46:510-524.
Fausch, K.D., C.E. Torgersen, C.V. Baxter, and H.W. Li. 2002. Landscapes to riverscapes: Bridging the gap
between research and conservation of stream fishes: A continuous view of the river is needed to understand
how processes interacting among scales set the context for stream fishes and their habitat. BioScience 52: 483498.
Gardner K, and B. McGlynn. 2009. Seasonality in spatial variability and influence of land use/land cover and
watershed characteristics on stream water nitrate concentrations in a developing watershed in the Rocky
Mountain West. Water Resources Research 45, DOI: 10.1029/2008WR007029.
Garreta, V., P. Monestiez, and J.M. Ver Hoef. 2010. Spatial modeling and prediction on river networks: up model,
down model or hybrid? Environmetrics 21:439-456.
Isaak, D.J., C. Luce, B. Rieman, D. Nagel, E. Peterson, D. Horan, S. Parkes, and G. Chandler. 2010. Effects of
climate change and recent wildfires on stream temperature and thermal habitat for two salmonids in a
mountain river network. Ecological Applications 20:1350-1371.
Isaak, D.J., E.E. Peterson, J. Ver Hoef, J.A. Falke, S. Wenger, C. Torgerson, K. McNyset, C. Jordan, M.J. Fortin,
and E Steel. In Preparation. Spatial autocorrelation and statistical analysis on stream networks: overview and
applications. Freshwater Biology.
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Isaak, D.J., E. Peterson, J. Ver Hoef, D. Nagel, D. Horan, S. Parkes, G. Chandler, and S. Wollrab. 2013. Building
a stream internet for enhanced conservation and management of aquatic resources. U.S. Forest Service
National Aquatic Leadership Team Meeting, Boise, ID, April 15.
Isaak, D.J., J.M. Ver Hoef, and E.E. Peterson. 2013. A new class of spatial statistical models for data on stream
networks: Overview and applications. Snake River Chapter of the American Statistical Association. Meridian,
ID, June 7.
Isaak, D., S. Wenger, E. Peterson, J. M. Ver Hoef, S. Hostetler, C. Luce, J. Dunham, J. Kershner, B. Roper, D.
Nagel, D. Horan, G. Chandler, S. Parkes, and S. Wollrab. 2011. NorWeST: An interagency stream
temperature database and model for the Northwest United States. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Great
Northern LCC Grant. Website: www.fs.fed.us/rm/boise/AWAE/projects/NorWeST.html
Money, E., G.P. Carter, and M.L. Serre. 2009a. Using river distances in the space/time estimation of dissolved
oxygen along two impaired river networks in New Jersey. Water research 43:1948-1958.
Money, E., G.P. Carter, and M.L. Serre. 2009b. Modern space/time geostatistics using river distances: Data
integration of turbidity and E. coli measurements to assess fecal contamination along the Raritan River in
New Jersey. Environmental science & technology 43:3736-3742.
McKay, L., T. Bondelid, T. Dewald, A. Rea, C. Johnston, and R. Moore. 2012. National Hydrography Dataset,
Version 2 (NHDPlus, V.2): User guide. EPA Contract #CM130105CT0027. Webpage: http://www.horizonsystems.com/nhdplus/
NAMC (National Aquatic Monitoring Center). U.S. Bureau of Land Management/Utah State University.
Webpage: http://www.usu.edu/buglab/.
NAWQA (National Water-Quality Assessment Program). U.S. Geological Survey. Webpage:
http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/.
NorEaST (Northeast Stream Temperatures). North Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative. Webpage:
http://www.northatlanticlcc.org/projects/stream-temperature-inventory-and-mapper.
NWIS (National Water Information System). U.S. Geological Survey. Webpage: http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/.
Olson, J.R., and C.P. Hawkins. 2012. Predicting natural base-flow stream water chemistry in the western United
States. Water Resources Research 48, W02504, doi:10.1029/2011WR011088.
Peterson, E.E. 2013. STARS: Spatial Tools for the Analysis of River Systems – A tutorial. CSIRO Technical
Report EP111313, 42 p.
Peterson, E., A. Merton, D. Theobald, and N. Urquhart. 2006. Patterns of spatial autocorrelation in stream water
chemistry. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 121:569–594.
Peterson, E., and N. Urquhart. 2006. Predicting water quality impaired stream segments using landscape-scale
data and a regional geostatistical model: a case study in Maryland. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment
121:615–638.
Peterson, E.E., and J.M. Ver Hoef. In Press. STARS: An ArcGIS toolset used to calculate the spatial data needed
to fit spatial statistical models to stream network data. Journal of Statistical Software x:xxx-xxx.
Peterson, E.E., D.M. Theobald, and J. M. Ver Hoef. 2007. Geostatistical modelling on stream networks:
developing valid covariance matrices based on hydrologic distance and stream flow. Freshwater Biology 52:
267-279.
Peterson, E.E., J. Ver Hoef, D.J. Isaak, J. A. Falke, M.J. Fortin, C. Jordan, K. McNyset, P. Monestiez, A.S.
Ruesch, A. Sengupta, N. Som, A. Steel, D.M. Theobald, C.T. Torgersen, and S.J. Wenger. 2013. Modeling
dendritic ecological networks in space: an integrated network perspective. Ecology Letters 16:707-719.
Peterson, E.E., and J. M. Ver Hoef. 2010. A mixed-model moving-average approach to geostatistical modeling in
stream networks. Ecology 91: 644-651.
Peterson, E.E., J.M. Ver Hoef, and D.J. Isaak. 2010. Spatial statistical models for stream networks: synthesis and
new directions. National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis Project 12637. Website:
http://www.nceas.ucsb.edu/projects/12637.
Ruesch AS, Torgersen CE, Lawler JJ, Olden JD, Peterson EE, Volk CJ, and Lawrence DJ. 2012. Projected
climate-induced habitat loss for salmonids based on a network model of stream temperature. Conservation
Biology. 26:873-882.
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A National Stream Internet
SSN/STARS: Tools for Spatial Statistical Modeling on Stream Networks. Webpage:
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