2025 WA GIS Conference

Washington State Hydrography Dataset (WASHD) program in the Department of Ecology is leading a project to remap the hydrography of Washington State to support the new 3D Hydrography Program led by USGS. This dataset will replace the old National Hydrography Dataset with a more accurate and modern alternative for hydrography analysis and cartography. This presentation will provide an update on the status of this remapping and regions that WASHD hopes to map in the next year. We will also review how we plan to manage changes in the hydrography data structure to meet the needs of Washington state hydrography Stakeholders. While mapping hydrography appeared to be a simple straightforward process, the project quickly became complicated. We will demonstrate our Project Management framework, tools and practices that have helped WASHD define objectives and goals, documenting important decisions and issues, and managed schedules. By leveraging project management, we enhanced communication both within our team and with our numerous stakeholders, leadership, and GIS subject matter experts. We will leave time to answer questions both about the hydrography mapping and project management.