Virginia Water Resources Research Center

A new M.S. degree program in Water Resources at Virginia Tech has been officially approved! Proposed by Drs. Stephen Schoenholtz and Kevin McGuire of the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, the program was approved on March 17 and is slated to begin in Fall 2026. The degree is designed to provide advanced training in water resources by integrating environmental and social science perspectiv…

March 30, 2026 Update — You may be wondering what’s the latest about the sewage spill in the Potomac River. More information is available on the websites for the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) and Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). The summary information provided below was obtained from these websites. Summary — On January 19, 2026, a sewer line in Maryland collapsed, resul…

On March 26, 2026, Dr. Kevin McGuire, Director of the Virginia Water Resources Research Center at Virginia Tech, testified before the House Natural Resources Committee on the authorization of the Water Resources Research Act (WRRA) program. The Advancing Water Research and Collaboration (AWRC) Act (H.R. 7889)—sponsored by Congressman Rob Wittman (VA‑01) and Congresswoman Julia Brownley (CA‑26)—wo…

In late February, Tali Altimari and Max Painchaud took their Water Center internship to Washington, D.C.! Joined by Water Center Director Kevin McGuire and Associate Director Daniel McLaughlin, they participated in the annual National Institutes for Water Resources (NIWR) Meeting and a series of congressional visits. During the trip, they met with staff from Morgan Griffith, Jen Kiggans, Mark War…

U.S. Reps. Rob Wittman (VA-01) and Julia Brownley (CA-26) and U.S. Senators John Boozman (R-AR) and Mark Kelly (D-AZ) have introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at boosting water research and collaboration across the country! The Advancing Water Research and Collaboration (AWRC) Act would strength the U.S. Geological Survey partnership with state water research institutes to address water issue…

You may have heard about or been impacted by recent spills in the Potomac and James rivers. More information about these spills and the response to the spills is available on the websites for the Virginia Department of Health (VDH; Potomac: https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/) and Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ; Potomac and James: https://www.deq.virginia.gov/). The summary informati…

Welcome to Tali Altimari, our new undergraduate water intern! Tali is a senior studying Environmental Economics: Management and Policy with a minor in Strategic Communications. Her interests focus on environmental policy, specifically on how government and environmental systems interact, and on making complex sustainability issues accessible to everyone. In the future, Tali will seek a job opport…

The Virginia Water Resources Research Center would like to welcome Max Painchaud as a new undergraduate water intern! Max is a sophomore getting a dual degree in public health and technical and scientific communication. Her interests focus on the environmental impacts after natural disasters and bettering science communication through accessible, educational resources. After graduation, Max plans…

Jesse Gutierrez, the current Schoenholtz Water Undergraduate Research Fellow, has kicked off his fellowship project at McDonald Hollow, just a short distance from Virginia Tech’s campus. A student in the water: resources, policy, and management program, Jesse is co-mentored by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center and Associate Professor J.P. Gannon from Forest Resources and Environmental …

The link below provides access to the News Grouper’s monthly water-status report on precipitation, stream flow, flooding, and drought, as of the end of August 2025. Read the August 2025 report. Previous monthly water reports are available online. This will be the last scheduled post of the monthly Virginia Water Status Report.

The fiscal year 2025 Water Resources Research Act program request for applications have been released.  It includes three grant programs: Water Resources Research Act program grants are administered in cooperation between the US Geological Survey and the Water Resources Research Institutes and Centers.  The Virginia Water Resources Research Center (VWRRC)... Continue reading

The link below provides access to the News Grouper’s monthly water-status report on precipitation, stream flow, flooding, and drought, as of the end of July 2025. Read the July 2025 report. Previous monthly water reports are available online. Continue reading

The link below provides access to the News Grouper’s monthly water-status report on precipitation, stream flow, flooding, and drought, as of the end of June 2025. Read the June 2025 report. Previous montly water reports are available online. Continue reading

2025 Virginia Water Monitoring Council (VWMC) Conference September 30, 2025  The Water Center is supporting the 2025 VWMC Conference. The conference will be held at the Virginia Public Safety Training Facility (Knox Hall) in Hanover, Va.  The conference runs from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on September 30, 2025. The... Continue reading

We’re thrilled to announce that Holly Young has been selected as the 2025–2026 recipient of the William R. Walker Graduate Research Fellow Award, presented by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center! Holly holds a BA in Geological Sciences from the University of Kentucky and a MS in Geography from Virginia... Continue reading

The link below provides access to the News Grouper’s monthly water-status report on precipitation, stream flow, flooding, and drought, as of the end of May 2025. Read the May 2025 report.  Previous monthly water reports are available online. Continue reading

by Adeline Muras, VWRRC Undergraduate Intern Harmful algal blooms (HABs) occur when negative impacts to the environment or human health occur because of cyanobacteria producing toxins. Cyanobacteria (also known as “blue-green algae”) are a type of photosynthetic bacteria that, like algae, derive their energy from photosynthesis. Some cyanobacteria have been... Continue reading

Virginia Water Status Report as of the End of April 2025, Plus a Look at Flooding and Drought Nationally The link below provides access to the News Grouper’s monthly water-status report on precipitation, stream flow, flooding, and drought, as of the end of April 2025. Read the April 2025 report.  Previous montly water... Continue reading

Written by Adeline Muras, VWRRC Intern In 2024, the Virginia General Assembly included funding for a research study assessing algal blooms in Smith Mountain Lake, Virginia. The Virginia Water Resources Research Center (Water Center) at Virginia Tech is working in conjunction with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), the Virginia Department... Continue reading

In February 2025, undergraduate interns Ella Lewis and Adeline Muras accompanied VWRRC Director Kevin McGuire and Associate Director Daniel McLaughlin to Washington, DC for the 2025 National Institutes for Water Resources (NIWR) Annual Meeting. The meeting provided valuable opportunities for networking with colleagues from other water centers, sharing updates on... Continue reading