AquaWatch

The mission of GEO AquaWatch is to enhance the coordination, delivery, and utilization of water quality information for the benefit of society. This is achieved through a global water quality community of practice that includes individuals across the entire value chain—from data providers to end-users, including the public—and NGOs, governments, industry, academia, and nonprofit scientific research laboratories.

Water quality is essential for the health and well-being of individuals and societies. It is inextricably linked to food, sanitation, energy, transportation, flood control systems, and aesthetic and recreational benefits. Degraded water quality, pollutants, waterborne diseases, and the proliferation of harmful algal blooms are indisputably associated with human-induced climate change.

Many entities (local, state/national, regional, and global), including within the framework of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), have an implicit or implied legal mandate for monitoring and assessing water quality, underscoring the need for GEO AquaWatch to remain in the GEO Work Programme. Additionally, GEO AquaWatch connects to other SDG-related convener proposals.

GEO AquaWatch has already positively impacted global Earth observations of water quality monitoring and assessment and seeks to continue this through its Convener status within GEO. Its domains include water quality Earth observations of inland freshwaters, marine waters, coastal zones, and open oceans. GEO AquaWatch aims to improve understanding of climate change impacts and support the implementation of mitigation or adaptation strategies. Moreover, it seeks to influence local-to-global water quality and Earth observation policies.

The goal of GEO AquaWatch is to enhance global capacity and the utility of Earth Observation-derived water quality data, products, and information to support effective monitoring, management, and decision-making. To achieve this, GEO AquaWatch encourages activities to engage, and be led by, early-career scientists worldwide, ensuring continuity with the next generation of world leaders in aquatic remote sensing.

There are ample instances for alignment between GEO AquaWatch’s planned activities and the work of the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) Working Groups and Virtual Constellations, as well as training opportunities with the Earth Observation Training, Education, and Capacity Development Network (EOTEC DevNet). These opportunities can be further explored over the next five years.