Protecting and Restoring America's Watersheds: Status, Trends, and Initiatives in Watershed Management

We call the earth the water planet because water covers 70 percent of its surface. In the United States, rivers, lakes, estuaries, and wetlands are among the Nation’s most precious resources.

Americans depend on clean water to drink, to irrigate their crops, and to run their industries. Water resources provide opportunities for recreation such as fishing and swimming, and wetlands even provide protection from floods. Rivers, lakes, estuaries, and wetlands also provide critical habitat for both aquatic and land-based wildlife.

For example, estuaries serve as birthplace and nursery for most saltwater fish and shellfish. The nation’s water resources have immeasurable value. However, in monetary terms, clean water plays a staggering role in the nation’s economy. Each year, nearly $200 billion of food and fiber, $60 billion of manufactured products, and over $40 billion of tourism depend on clean water and healthy watersheds. The nation has improved the quality of its water resources in recent decades, but it has not sufficiently protected and restored all waters. Today, approximately 40 percent of the nation’s major watersheds have water quality and habitat-related problems. The sources of these problems are widespread and complex.