Toward improved simulation of river operations through integration with a hydrologic model

Morway, Eric D.; Niswonger, Richard G.; Triana, Enrique

doi:10.1016/j.envsoft.2016.04.018

Cited by 32 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 42 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…However, most studies do not simulate feedbacks between natural hydrologic processes and competition for water within the over‐arching water laws and operations that dictate the use and distribution of water by humans. The distributed hydrologic model MODFLOW‐NWT [ Niswonger et al ., ] was recently integrated with the linked‐network optimization and operations/planning model MODSIM [ Labadie , ] to provide a simulator capable of representing basin hydrogeology coupled with reservoir and river operations [ Morway et al ., ]. MODFLOW‐NWT simulates three‐dimensional (3‐D) groundwater flow, surface water and groundwater interactions, and unsaturated flow using optional add‐on capabilities [ Harbaugh , ; Niswonger and Prudic , ; Merrit and Konikow , 2000; Niswonger and Prudic , ; Niswonger et al ., ; Morway et al ., ].…”

Section: Approachmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The test model used herein is a representation of Carson Valley, California and Nevada, and is adopted from Morway et al . []. Carson Valley is a semiarid agricultural basin with characteristics of the basin and range province of the western United States.…”

Section: Test Model For Ag‐marmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Morway et al . [] provide further details regarding simulation of agricultural consumptive use and return flows. Groundwater ET (GWET) for both crops and natural vegetation is set equal to the residual ETo (ETo‐UZET) for water table depths less than the extinction depth.…”

Section: Test Model For Ag‐marmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Morway et al . [] document a MODSIM model representing the river, tributary, and water delivery canal network shown in Figure . In this model, river water is allocated to four agricultural areas (Command Areas CA1‐CA4) during the growing season.…”

Section: Test Model For Ag‐marmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Managed aquifer recharge through off‐season irrigation in agricultural regions

Niswonger

Morway

Triana

et al. 2017

Water Resources Research

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Options for increasing reservoir storage in developed regions are limited and prohibitively expensive. Projected increases in demand call for new long‐term water storage to help sustain agriculture, municipalities, industry, and ecological services. Managed aquifer recharge (MAR) is becoming an integral component of water resources around the world. However, MAR faces challenges, including infrastructure costs, difficulty in enhancing recharge, water quality issues, and lack of available water supplies. Here we examine, through simulation modeling of a hypothetical agricultural subbasin in the western U.S., the potential of agricultural managed aquifer recharge (Ag‐MAR) via canal seepage and off‐season field irrigation. Weather phenomenon in many regions around the world exhibit decadal and other multiyear cycles of extreme precipitation. An ongoing challenge is to develop approaches to store greater amounts of water during these events. Simulations presented herein incorporate Ag‐MAR programs and demonstrate that there is potential to enhance regional recharge by 7–13%, increase crop consumptive use by 9–12%, and increase natural vegetation consumption by 20–30%, where larger relative increases occur for lower aquifer hydraulic conductivity and higher specific yield values. Annual increases in groundwater levels were 7 m, and sustained levels following several years of drought were greater than 2 m. Results demonstrate that Ag‐MAR has great potential to enhance long‐term sustainability of water resources in agricultural basins.

show abstract

Section: Approachmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Test Model For Ag‐marmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Test Model For Ag‐marmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Test Model For Ag‐marmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Managed aquifer recharge through off‐season irrigation in agricultural regions

Niswonger

Morway

Triana

et al. 2017

Water Resources Research

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…To date, these adaptation measures focus on alternative water management strategies to enhance supply and include: reoperating federally managed Truckee River reservoirs to enhance surface water storage under earlier snowmelt regimes [96], constructing a reservoir in the Carson River headwaters to store snowmelt for downstream agricultural irrigation [97], and exploring managed aquifer recharge in the Carson Valley through off-season/winter irrigation in agricultural areas [98].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adapting to Variable Water Supply in the Truckee-Carson River System, Western USA

Sterle

Singletary

2017

Water

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract:In snow-fed inland river systems in the western United States, water supply depends upon timing, form, and amount of precipitation. In recent years, this region has experienced unprecedented drought conditions due to decreased snowpack, exacerbated by exceptionally warmer winter temperatures averaging 3-4 • C above normal. In the snow-fed Truckee-Carson River System, two sets of interviews were conducted as part of a larger collaborative modeling case study with local water managers to examine local adaptation to current drought conditions. A comparative analysis of these primary qualitative data, collected during the fourth and fifth consecutive years of continued warmer drought conditions, identifies shifts in adaptation strategies and emergent adaptation barriers. That is, under continuous exposure to climate stressors, managers shifted their adaptation focus from short-term efforts to manage water demand toward long-term efforts to enhance water supply. Managers described the need to: improve forecasts and scientific assessments of snowmelt timing, groundwater levels, and soil moisture content; increase flexibility of prior appropriation water allocation rules based on historical snowpack and streamflow timing; and foster collaboration and communication among water managers across the river system. While water scarcity and insufficient water delivery infrastructure remain significant impediments in this arid region, climate uncertainty emerged as a barrier surrounding adaptation to variable water supply. Existing prior appropriation based water institutions were also described as an adaptation barrier, meriting objective evaluation to assess how to best modify these historical institutions to support dynamic adaptation to climate-induced water supply variability. This study contributes to a growing body of research that assesses drought adaptation in snow-fed inland river systems, and contributes a unique report concerning how adaptation strategies and barriers encountered by local water managers change over time under continuous exposure to climate stressors. These locally identified adaptation strategies forward a larger collaborative modeling case study by informing alternative water management scenarios simulated through a suite of hydrologic and operations models tailored to this river system.

show abstract