The Maryland Water Resources Research Center (MWRRC) is established as part of the Federal Water Resources Research Act, reauthorized in 2006. The objective of the Act is to support water resources research, education, and information dissemination.

MWRRC is a member of the National Institutes for Water Resources (NIWR).

MWRRC was established in 1965 to develop new technology and more efficient methods for resolving local, state and national water resources problems. In addition to supporting research, its mission includes training water scientists and engineers and disseminating information to the public. Comparable centers exist in every state, usually at the principal Land Grant University.

Dr. Kaye Brubaker, of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Maryland, College Park, serves as the Center Director. She is a hydrologist whose research interests are broadly in the areas of hydroclimatology and mechanistic modeling of watershed hydrology and in-stream water quality processes.

The MWRRC issues two Requests For Proposals (RFPs) annually. In the spring, an RFP is announced for the 104(G) National Competitive Grants Program, which has been funded at $1 million/year in the past. These are usually large group or regional projects. In the fall, proposals are requested for funds granted to the Center from 104(B) monies administered by the U.S. Geological Survey. About $70,000 are available to fund one or two research or teaching programs. Proposals for both programs are solicited from faculty from all institutes of higher education in Maryland. Most of the proposals focus on the Chesapeake Bay, Maryland’s largest economic enterprise. For more information on this proposal competition, see the Funding page or contact the Center Director at kbru “at-symbol” umd.edu.