Data Stories
Nicole Geri @ Unsplash
Valuing Data
Without clear value propositions demonstrating how water data improves outcomes, investment in water data will remain minimal. Learn why data are hard to value and how to assess value.
Share a Data Story
Share your own example of how water data led to better outcomes within your organization.
U.S. Geological Survey stream gage data are used by organizations to better manage floods through reservoir operations and design, flood forecasting, and floodplain management. The estimated benefits of stream gage data for flood-related decisions were assessed using direct surveys and the Business Model Maturity Index method. The value of data varied dramatically depending on whether the data were considered responsible for the full benefit of flood management decisions or a relative contribution to the decision.
The California Irrigation Management Information System (CIMIS) provides raw weather data, as well as information on evaporation rates and crop water usage, to inform irrigation decisions. A series of surveys demonstrated CIMIS was used to save water and increase crop productivity. The benefit-to-cost ratio of CIMIS to irrigation users was between $56 and $76 for every $1 spent.