The National River Flow Archive (NRFA) has introduced a new feature that makes it easier than ever to access catchment boundary data for UK gauging stations.
Users can now download a complete dataset containing catchment boundaries for all available NRFA stations directly from the website. This provides a simple and efficient way to access catchment boundaries across the NRFA network, supporting hydrological analysis, mapping applications, environmental research and water management activities.
Previously, users who required catchment boundaries had two options: downloading individual boundaries from station pages one at a time or contacting the NRFA team to request a bulk dataset. While these routes remain available, the new download service provides immediate access to the complete collection of catchment boundaries, removing the need for additional requests or multiple downloads.
The enhancement follows feedback from users who regularly work with multiple stations and require catchment boundaries for regional or national-scale analyses. By making the complete dataset openly available, the NRFA aims to improve accessibility and reduce the time required to obtain and prepare data for hydrological, environmental and operational applications.
The catchment boundary dataset, available in ESRI Shapefile format (.shp), can be accessed from the Search pages (below the search results table) or via direct download. The dataset will be updated annually alongside the archive as part of the annual data release arrangements.
We hope this new feature will make accessing and using NRFA spatial data easier and more efficient for our users.
More information about catchment boundaries can be found here.
The NRFA welcomes feedback on this and other website enhancements. If you have suggestions for additional data products or functionality, please get in touch with the NRFA team.
The National River Flow Archive (NRFA) is funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) through the National Capability UK (NC-UK) programme [NE/Y006208/1] and NERC National Capability funding.