互联网为水资源专业人士提供了广泛的传播和获取水质数据的机会。作为美国环境保护署（Environmental Protection Agency）试点项目的一部分，得梅因（Iowa）水厂正在万维网上实时发布其成品水质数据。一些公用事业公司还建立了网站；其他人仍在确定在互联网上发布信息的类型和范围。本文提醒水务专业人士注意与网络空间数据相关的陷阱——尤其是不准确和不可访问性——并简要介绍了提供水质信息的主要网站。

The Internet offers water professionals widespread opportunitites to disseminate and obtain water quality data. As part of a US Environmental Protection Agency pilot project, the Des Moines (Iowa) Water Works is posting its finished water quality data in real time on the World Wide Web. Some utilities have also instituted Web sites; others are still in the process of determining the type and extent of information to post on the Internet. This article cautions water professionals about the pitfalls associated with cyberspace data - notably inaccuracy and inaccessibility - and briefly describes the major sites providing water quality information.