HUC12 Watershed Boundaries for U.S. National Park Areas of Analysis (2018)

United States 12-digit hydrologic unit (HUC12) watershed boundaries that intersect standard park Areas of Analysis (AOAs). The dataset is derived from the national Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) and was last updated in March 2026. It is provided by the Department of the Interior.

Use Cases

• Delineate watersheds for hydrological modeling based on the 12-digit HUC boundaries.
• Analyze landscape dynamics and water flow modifications based on polygon and line attributes.
• Assess non-contributing drainage areas within park landscapes based on the dataset's attribute fields.
• Integrate park-specific boundary data with national hydrologic frameworks for conservation planning.

Strengths

• Data meets National Map Accuracy Standards (NMAS) at scales ranging from 1:24,000 to 1:63,360.
• Polygon attributes include hydrologic unit codes (HUC), size in acres and square kilometers, name, and downstream codes.
• Boundaries are determined solely upon science-based hydrologic principles, not administrative boundaries.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• The dataset is a subset of the national WBD, with HUCs outside park AOAs disregarded, limiting broader hydrological analysis.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

Department of the Interior

Collection Method

Extracted and reprojected from the national Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD).

Time Range

2018

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-04 01:16:47.277589; freshness should be verified.

Geography

United States, specifically areas intersecting national park Areas of Analysis (AOAs).