Updates: National Water Use Inventory [Records Request]

Appeal Filed

The Data Liberation Project — Thu, 23 May 2024 08:00:00 -0400

On May 23, 2024, the Data Liberation Project submitted an appeal of USGS’s withholding of site identifiers (names, IDs, locations) 📄, arguing that the cited exemptions do not apply. The appeal has been assigned tracking number 2024-120.

Records Published

The Data Liberation Project — Mon, 08 Apr 2024 22:00:00 -0400

On April 8, 2024, the Data Liberation Project published the responsive records, documentation describing what it has learned about the data, as well as a GitHub repository combining and assessing the records.

Records Provided

The Data Liberation Project — Wed, 06 Mar 2024 16:15:00 -0500

On March 6, 2024, USGS provided a final response letter 📄, accompanied by responsive records, which the Data Liberation Project began reviewing.

Acknowledgement of Clarified Request

The Data Liberation Project — Wed, 29 Mar 2023 17:50:00 -0400

On March 29, 2023, following a March 27 conference call regarding this request, USGS emailed a “Acknowledgement of Clarified Request” letter. The letter reflects the clarifications we made on the call — chiefly that we’re seeking “[a]ll high-resolution water use data which contributed to the aggregated water use inventory,” rather than the aggregated statistics already available online. The letter also notes that USGS has not yet made a determination on our request for a fee waiver," that “your request falls into the Extraordinary processing track, and that “[t]here are 40 requests pending ahead of yours in our overall processing queue.”

Request Resubmitted

The Data Liberation Project — Mon, 13 Mar 2023 15:30:00 -0400

On March 13, 2023, following the suggestion in letter referenced in the prior update, we resubmitted the FOIA request 📄, with minor changes, this time sending it to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

"No Responsive Records," Resubmission Suggested

The Data Liberation Project — Wed, 01 Mar 2023 09:23:00 -0500

On March 1, 2023, DOI’s Office of the Secretary emailed a final disposition letter 📄 indicating that, “After a thorough search of our files, it has been determined that the Office of the Secretary has no records responsive to your request.” The letter, however, also suggested that, “To the extent responsive records exist, the records you have requested may be maintained by the United States Geological Survey (USGS). As such, you may wish to submit your request(s) to that agency’s FOIA office[.]”

Request Acknowledged, Assigned to "Complex" Track

The Data Liberation Project — Fri, 17 Feb 2023 09:40:00 -0500

On February 17, 2023, DOI emailed a letter acknowledging our request 📄 and noting the request has been assigned to the “Complex processing track.”