The Virginia Water Withdrawal Reporting Regulation requires the registration and annual reporting of surface water and groundwater withdrawals. Withdrawal reports for the previous calendar year must be provided to DEQ by Jan. 31 of each year. Data received through withdrawal reporting allows DEQ to better understand how water use throughout the state impacts surface water and groundwater resources, evaluate whether current water sources can meet future needs, and protect other beneficial uses. Information collected is summarized and included in the Annual Water Resources Report and in the Virginia State Water Resources Plan. 

Reporting Requirements

Pursuant to the Water Withdrawal Reporting Regulation (9VAC25-200), users withdrawing groundwater or surface water in Virginia may be required to report annual water withdrawals if either of the below thresholds are met:

  • Withdrawals exceed 1 million gallons in a single month for crop irrigation purposes (including, but not limited to, nurseries and sod farms).
  • Average daily withdrawals exceed 10,000 gallons per day (300,000 gallons per month) for all other purposes (including, but not limited to, livestock production, mining operations, public water supplies, manufacturing, power production, and golf courses).

If the threshold for reporting is met on a single day during the year, monthly withdrawals for the entire year must be reported. Users that fall below these thresholds or are otherwise exempted from the regulation are encouraged to report their water withdrawals voluntarily. The regulation requires the use of a methodology to estimate withdrawals or the installation and operation of a gaging or metering device at or near the withdrawal source to measure the volume of water withdrawn. 

Reporting withdrawals for a farm?

Please visit the Agricultural Water Use Resource Center to explore resources created for agricultural users to support water withdrawal reporting and water withdrawal permitting processes.  

Reporting online through myDEQ Portal

Effective April 1, 2024, the previous VAHydro database was replaced by the myDEQ database. All VAHydro data has migrated to myDEQ. The myDEQ database can be used for any data submissions related to Annual Water Withdrawal Reporting. 

Users will need to access or create an account in the myDEQ Portal in order to access facility data previously reported to VAHydro, or to submit new data. DEQ has provided resources to assist you in the creation of these accounts. 

Please navigate to the myDEQ Portal and access your account using the following credentials: 

Username – Your email address 

Password – Please use the reset password option to create your password 

For more information regarding how to create and/or access an account, please view the Account Access Video (Account Access Video PDF version). For more information regarding how to submit reporting data, please view the Annual Water Withdrawal Reporting Video (Annual Water Withdrawal Reporting Video PDF version). 

After logging in, you will be able to view and request reporting access for any Annual Water Withdrawal facilities associated with your account. 

If you have questions regarding this notification or account setup, please contact Brendan Brogan at brendan.brogan@deq.virginia.gov, or 804-584-6344.

Questions?

Questions related to Annual Water Withdrawal Reporting should be directed to the appropriate staff for your locality based on the staff contact map located in the Contacts box on the right-hand side of this webpage.