Reader-Friendly Publications Reach Wide Audience

Central to the screen-or-sheet controversy is whether information is better provided via a website or a paper publication such as this or other newsletters. Because of the abundance of available information, for distribution to a wide-ranging and diverse audience, it need not be an either-or situation. There is enough information to go around for websites and newsletters. Both have their advantages.

Some government agencies in Arizona are going the publication route, producing noteworthy, newsletter-type publications that are not your typical government report. An effort is being made to communicate information to a broad audience, beyond just water professionals to include interested citizens. The U.S .Geological Survey issues various fact sheets on water-related topics; the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality publishes an ambient groundwater quality series; and the Arizona Geological Survey publishes a quarterly newsletter, “Arizona Geology.”

Each of these publications is attractively formatted, printed in color with various graphics, including maps and photographs. The text is written to be understandable to the non-specialist but is not so basic as to be off putting to the water professional.

USGS Fact Sheets

Steve Longsworth of the USGS Arizona District describes the rationale of the fact sheets: “We recognized the need for providing information about our programs to the public in a timely manner using an effective format and nontechnical language.”

The fact sheet series attracted sufficient interest that, in good government fashion, official guidelines were issued to define the types of information to be released through them. Three broad categories were established and seven informal categories.

The most recent USGS fact sheet reports on a study looking at the errors in measuring discharge along the Lower Colorado River. Previous fact sheets include information about monitoring surface water quality in the state; the geology and hydrology of the Monollon Highlands; and Southwest desert basins.

USGS fact sheets are listed on its website and can be downloaded. (http://az.water.usgs.gov/)

Free copies of many of the issues also are available from the USGS Arizona district offices in Tucson.

DEQ’s Ambient Groundwater Quality Series

DEQ’s ambient groundwater quality series is a publication of the agency’s ambient groundwater monitoring program. DEQ hydrologist Douglas Towne says, “What we typically published in the past were pretty lengthy open-file reports, from 50 to 100 pages oriented to hydrologists. These provided a lot of good background data, but we found that because of the length and other facets these were not getting much use.”

Towne says they examined the USGS fact sheets and found a possible option to DEQ’s open-file reports. He says, “USGS had popularized fact sheets as a method of publication, and we thought it might get the word out for us too.”

Towne says the resulting groundwater quality series “...is still oriented toward hydrologists but we use enough common language so that the individual well owner, the public water system operator and the local government official would get some use out of them.”

Open-file reports are done first, with the more significant groundwater quality information then summarized into a four-page newsletter. Those seeking additional information have access to the lengthier, more detailed reports.

The series summarizes DEQ groundwater quality studies of the state’s groundwater basins. Four-page fact sheets are available on the following basins: Prescott Active Management Area; Douglas Basin; Sierra Vista Basin; Sacramento Valley Groundwater Basin; Virgin River Basin; Yuma Basin and the Wilcox Basin. A report on the Lower San Pedro is in draft form. The reports are available at http://www.adeq.state.az.us/environ/water/assess/ambient.html For information about the series contact Douglas Towne, phone: 602-207-4412; email: towne.doug@ev.state.az.us

AGS’s “Arizona Geology”

The Arizona Geological Survey publishes a quarterly newsletter, “Arizona Geology.” The AGS areas of interest include not just water but also the land, mineral and energy resources of the state, and its newsletter deals with these interests. (The spring 2002 edition of “Arizona Geology” is titled. “Arizona Has Salt.”)

AGS Director Larry Fellows says, “The agency newsletter was once called “Field Notes”and was for a technical audience, for people who might read ‘Scientific American.’ It later evolved into ‘Arizona Geology,’ directed to non-technical readers.”

Fellows says that “Arizona Geology” was originally 16 pages but budget cuts reduced it to a six-page format.. Check the AGS website (www.azgs.az.gov) for the current and previous editions of “Arizona Geology”or to sign up to receive the newsletter.

The above publishing ventures are interesting exercises in public outreach. There are various programs, organizations and agencies throughout the state involved in water affairs, and many confront the question: What information should be made available and to whom? Just as it takes a specialized effort to collect and analyze water-related facts and information it also takes a special knack to communicate the results of that work. These publications are good models to examine when answering the above question.

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