data api · Global

WaterNet Global Waterways

This is a new global dataset that predicts the locations of waterways around the world. This data was created by the Better Planet Laboratory in partnership with Fika using a novel AI model called WaterNet that predicts the location of key waterways (rivers and streams), many of which were previously unmapped. The data produced by this model triples the extent of mapped waterways on a global scale.

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What's in it

Data offered docs-verified: global waterway (river and stream) location predictions · raster waterway probability outputs at 20 m (0 = low, 255 = high probability) · vector stream segments with Strahler stream order, length_m, TDX-Hydro link and HydroLakes lake-intersection flag
Coverage docs-verified: Global
Resolution docs-verified: 20 m
Formats docs-verified: GeoTIFF (COG) · GeoParquet · PMTiles · GeoJSON (overview bounding boxes)
Access docs-verified: Free and open: public visibility, anonymous HTTPS/S3 access via data.source.coop. Licence CC BY 4.0 (cite the WaterNet paper and Fika).

Useful for

Use cases llm-inferred: FRA baseline: screen for unmapped ephemeral watercourses in catchments where national mapping is thin · Drainage strategy: derive stream order and catchment connectivity from vector streams for outfall and culvert scoping · BNG habitat baseline: map watercourse extent as an input to riparian habitat assessment
Audience llm-inferred: flood consultants · drainage engineers · hydrologists · GIS analysts · ecologists

Limitations

Constraints docs-verified: Lower accuracy over swampy areas and deserts · Higher noise where cloud-free composites are hard to make (coastal areas, near the equator) · Missing-cell artifact over Greenland, likely needing back-fill · Large water bodies can vectorise into multiple geometries; largely addressed by post-processing, but check intersects_lake · Global inference code not released; only outputs and training/vectorisation code are linked · STAC catalog not yet available ('coming soon') · Bulk file download (GeoTIFF, GeoParquet, PMTiles); DOCS describe no query API · No UK-specific accuracy statement in DOCS; validate locally before use in FRA or drainage design

Licence: see product README
Authentication: Public; anonymous HTTPS/S3 access via data.source.coop
GitHub stars: Unknown
Last commit: Unknown
Last successful page check: 14/10/2026
Page health: page reachable
Package: Not recorded
Verification: Not independently verified

Provenance & evidence

Verified via Source Cooperative API /api/v1/products/fika (public product, updated 2026-09-30).

Metadata observed 14/10/2026 · research sweep: manual-2026-10-15 (source.coop)