Iowa's Municipal Water-Supply Inventory (MWSI)
Seventy-three percent of Iowa's population is served by municipal water supplies and an additional percentage by rural water systems. The primary purpose of MWSI is to consolidate information about Iowa's municipal water supplies, particularly, the geohydrologic sources of water; location, depth, construction of wells; and yields and water quality. The information utilized to develop an electronic database is contained in paper files at the Geological Survey Bureau. Database evolution has been continual since 1981; presently an electronic database for primarily active wells is available on the Iowa Department of General Services' computer in Des Moines. The Geological Survey Bureau is developing a more comprehensive database which will integrate data from active and abandoned municipal wells with well-specific, water-quality analyses. Municipal well locations have been digitized for a Geographic Information System coverage. For detailed information about individual municipal water supplies, contact Paul VanDorpe (Paul.VanDorpe@dnr.iowa.gov) at (319)335-1580.