The Associate Director for Water Resources leads the Water Resources Mission Area at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in the Department of the Interior. The position reports to the USGS Director. The office is responsible for providing executive leadership to ensure the quality and scientific integrity of the USGS investigations of the occurrence, quantity, quality, distribution, uses, and movement of surface and ground waters including the development and dissemination of scientific knowledge and understanding of the Nation's water resources.

The incumbent carries out the following specific responsibilities:

1. Oversees the broad program of natural science investigations and research to provide for a fully integrated, real-time data collection network supplemented by remote sensing, analyses, and models based on long-term records, improved water use and demand information, and predictions of future (annual to decadal) water resources availability.
2. Provides executive direction and oversight to establish priorities and ensure effective and efficient program planning, management, and execution of the Bureau's nationwide water resources programs, including the development of methods and tools, research, and quality assurance.
3. Directs the planning and development of long-term national and international programs to accomplish the bureau's mission pertaining to the delineation, evaluation, and mitigation of water resources changes and their impacts on environmental health.
4. Strategizes the development and advancement of long-term national and international water resources programs that are executed by approximately 400 Water Resources Mission Area personnel, 28 regionally managed Water Science Centers, and other science centers across the USGS in addition to a wide range of state, university, and private sector partners.
5. Serves a member of the USGS Executive Leadership Team and shares in the planning, direction, and management of the integrated science programs of the USGS including oversight and evaluation of broad natural science programs to ensure the human and fiscal resources, interdisciplinary direction, and bureau-wide coordination.
6. Provides executive-level representation for the USGS with Federal, State, and local governments, the scientific community in the private sector and academic institutions, and to customers and constituent groups.