Building and Using a Groundwater Database

Book excerpt: Building and Using a Groundwater Database is an introductory book that focuses on the fundamentals of groundwater database use. It is an excellent guide for people who collect and use groundwater quality data, hydrogeological data, and general geological data, as well as people who are required to prepare information about groundwater resources for others to use. The book also serves as a textbook for computer-based hydrogeology courses. Many university courses now make use of computerized groundwater data, yet no textbook exists to guide students in database use. Building and Using a Groundwater Database provides detailed information regarding the steps and perspectives required to create a database and use it for groundwater management, land use practices, planning, cleanups, site investigations, and general hydrogeologic reporting. The book is structured to take the reader from the foundations of database development through maintenance and everyday use of the database. Actual examples from selected case studies are used to illustrate database principles. This book is unique in that it deals with the management and structuring of groundwater data, as opposed to the collection and interpretation of data. It illustrates how database software managers can be integrated with groundwater software tools. Building and Using a Groundwater Database provides consultants, engineers, public officials, university instructors, local and municipal water utilities, and banking and loan institutions with a clear, concise guide to using groundwater databases.