Engineering Commons^™

Ute Self-Determination In Setting Tribal Resource Development Policy, Herbert H. Fullerton, Mac Mckee, Roger D. Hansen

Reports

The Ute Indian Tribe of northeastern Utah has large land holdings rich in water and energy resources. Revenues from these sources have created capital that can potentially be used by the Tribe to further develop its resources and expand its agricultural and business enterprises. Realities, however, complicate this simple scenario in that the Tribal goals are broader than pure economic gain and that increased incomes may mean sacrifices in terms of these other goals. The Tribe faces the problem of how best to develop its water resources in a way that best meets its multiplicity of needs.

The research team …

Evaluation Of Particular Mulches As Plant Growth Media And Erosion Inhibitors, C. Earl Israelson, William F. Campbell, Eugene K. Israelsen, Ronald V. Canfield, David Ianson

Reports

Introduction: Increasing public awareness of the desireability of protecting the environment from soil erosion caused by wind and water has centered attention on large construction projects such as highways and housing subdivisions, as well as on individual building sites and parking lots. If unattended, sediment produced from these areas pollutes surface water, restricts drainage, fills reservoirs, damages adjacent land, and upsets the natual ecology of lakes and streams. The search continues for products and practices that will prevent or lessen the amount of sediment leaving construction sites. Products currently in use include chemical as well as organic materials, and they …

Use Of Saline Water In Energy Development, C. Earl Israelsen, V. Dean Adams, J. Clair Batty, Dennis B. George

Reports

Maps were made of the Upper Colorado River Basin showing locations of coal deposits, oil and gas, oil shale, uranium, and tar sand, in relationship to cities and towns in the area. Superimposed on these are locations of wells showing four ranges of water quality; 1,000-3,000 mg/l, 3,000-10,000 mg/l, 10,000-35,000 mg/l, and over 35,000 mg/l. Information was assembled relative to future energy-related projects in the upper basin, and estimates were made of their anticipated water needs. Using computer models, various options were tested for using saline water for coal-fired power plant cooling. Both cooling towers and brine evaporation ponds were …

Municipal Water Resources Analysis For Area Potentially Impacted By Mx Missile Complex In Utah, Trevor C. Hughes, V. A. Narasimhan, William J. Grenney, L. Douglas James

Reports

Scope of Report: This report analyzes the impact of the proposed MX Missile complex upon existing municipal water supply and waste treatment systems serving selected communitites either near the perimeter or within the Utah portion of the proposed MX complex boundary. As can be seen from the location map in Figure 1, possible sites for elements within the total MX missile complex have been identified in 14 Utah desert valleys in the five counties, from north to south, of Tooele, Juab, Millard, Beaver, and Iron. The 60,000 people, who live in these counties according to the 1975 census, are largely …

Management Of The Hydrologic System In Areas Subject To Coal Mining Activities, Rollin H. Hotchkiss, Eugene K. Israelsen, J. Paul Riley

Reports

Publicity given to the detrimental effects of mining activities on the environment has tended to overshadow somewhat the hydrologic opportunities and benfits that could be associated with these activities. For example, many areas disturbed by surface mining have proved to be excellent recharge areas for groundwater aquifers. The degree to which mine sites can be exploited to improve management of the hydrologic system depends on both the local geology and the mining techniques used. The report examines the effects of present mining activities on the associated hydrology system, and identifies specific mining procedures and management techniques which not only minimize …

Research On Increased Winter Orographic Precipitation By Cloud Seeding (Fy 1980), Geoffrey E. Hill

Reports

This research continues the development of new instrumentation relevant to the advancement of cloud seeding technology and the analysis of data collected to better understand cloud seeding potential in winter orographic clouds. Instrumentation development included the state of construction of a NOAA type dual frequency radiometer for the continuous measurement of supercooled liquid water and the completion of an expendable balloon-borne system for measuring vertical profiles of supercooled liquid water. The analysis of data collected on the project was directed primarily at the interpretation of the vertical profiles of supercooled liquid water and vertical motion. Results indicate that sharp vertical …

Preliminary Study Of The Northern Utah Hail Suppression Project, Geoffrey E. Hill

Reports

This study represents an examination of the possibilities for evaluating the northern Utah summertime rain-enhancement hail-suppression project. This study is

User Manual For The Probabilistic Stream Simulation And Assessment Model (Pssam), Brad A. Finney, David S. Bowles, Michael P. Windham

Reports

No abstract provided.

Groundwater Heat Pump Equipment Selection Procedures For Architects, Designers, And Contractors, Calvin G. Clyde, Edward W. Vendell, Kirk D. Hagen

Reports

Engineers at the Utah Water Research Laboratory and the Mechanical Engineering Department at Utah State University have investigated the use of groundwater heat pumps for residential space heating and cooling in the Utah climate. They have found that this type of system conserves energy and may cost less for Utah home owners to operate than many conventional heating and cooling systems. Since the use of groundwater heat pumps will probably become more widespread in the near future, building and heating contractors should become more informed about what a groundwater heat pump is and how it works. The purpse of this …

Design Of A Cost Effective Solar Powered Water Pump, Duane G. Chadwick

Reports

The design and performance of a vacuum lift, solar powered water pump is discussed. The basic design consists of an expanding gaseous piston confined inside a chamber which is located in series with, and between an inlet and an outlet check value. The gas is generated by volatilizing cyclopentane or hexane. Four variations of this basic design concept were built and evaluated. The various features of each are discussed. Considerations in the choice of a cost-effective solar collector are also reviewed. Several of the more promising types of solar collectors were built and evaluated for use on the pump. A …

Feasibility Study Of Establishing A Water Rights Banking/Brokering Service In Utah, Jay M. Bagley, Kirk R. Kimball, Lee Kapaloski

Reports

Changes in water use patterns are an inevitable consequence of relentless social transformations taking place. Especially where waters have been fully appropriated, the needs of a dynamic society must be met through transfers in water ownership. Yet, there are a variety of factors that may operate as impediments to the shifting of water according to social preferences as expressed through water markets. As a mechanism for facilitating water transfers, exchagnes, or rentals, the concept of "water banking" and "water brokering" may be fruitful. This repot appraises the potential for initiating and operating such a service within the legal, institutional, and …

Weather Modification By Cloud Seeding, Arnett S. Dennis

Reports

It is an understatement to say that people are confused about cloud seeding. While it has been called "the crime of the century" and outlawed in Pennsylvania, the governments of the dry, western part of the United States continue to spend tax revenues on cloud seeding to increase water supplies. During the past five years, I have talked with officials responsible for decisions regarding cloud seeding programs in about 15 states of the U.S.A., in a dozen other countries, and in the World Meteorological Organization. Some of the officials involved are experts in atmospheric physics, but most are not. Members …

Water Demand At Recreation Developments, Simon Lam, Trevor C. Hughes

Reports

Design criteria for drinking water systems at recreation developments, particularly summer home type, cause frequent confrontations with regulatory agencies. Developers claim extremely low water use rates due to low occupancy rates, but regulatory agencies are concerned about changes over time from essentially weekend use to more permanent residency and also about occasional peak day water demands similar to those of municipal systems. Little empirical data have been available to resolve such questions. This study included the gathering and analysis of both historic water use measurements and additional daily and instantaneous measurements during peak seasons at 11 Utah and one Wyoming …

Evaluation Of Livestock Runoff As A Source Of Water Pollution In Northern Utah, Stephen T. Wieneke, Dennis B. George, Daniel S. Filip, Brad Finney

Reports

A mathematical model was developed to predict the impact of dairy and beef cattle feedlot runoff on receiving streams. The mathematical expressions used in the model describing runoff quantity and quality were not only a function of single rain or snow precipitation events but also consecutive events prior to the runoff occurrence. The runoff quantity and quality were also a function of feedlot surface. Computer simualtions indicate that pollutants from feedlot runoff may have a significant impact on receiving streams during winter months. Runoff from feedlots located within the study area, however, had little impact on water quality in the …

Model Of Drawdown In Well Fields Influenced By Boundaries: Technical Description And User's Manual, Najwan T. Shareef, David S. Bowles

Reports

This model is designed to calculate the drawdown of a piezometric surface or water table at a given point of interest in a well field. Many different well and aquifer hydraulic conditions can be considered. The effect of field boundaries is solved by the image well theory. Many points of interest, well (recharge or injection), boundaries (barrier or recharge), and time increments as well as constant and variable pumping rate case have been included in the model. The drawdown at a point of interest can be decomposed into the following compenents for each real well due to the effect of: …

Principles Of Lake Quality Management, D. B. Porcella

Reports

No abstract provided.

Influence Of Unsaturated Hydraulic Properties On Infiltration From Circular Surface Areas, Abdolhossien Nassehzadeh-Tabrizi, Roland W. Jeppson

Reports

The effects and interactive effects on infiltration of parameters in the Brooks-Corey equation for defining the hydraulic properties of unsaturated soils are investigated by analyzing the results of numerical solutions of the unsaturated flow characteristics resulting from water applied on a circular surface area. The soil parameters are allowed to vary continuously as a function of depth. The parameters that have been allowed to vary separately and in pairs are: (1) The pore size distribution exponent, (2) Pb- The bubbling pressure, (3) Sr- The residual saturation, (4) n- The soil porosity and (5) Ko- The saturated hydraulic conductivity. The conclusions …

Development Of Procedures To Evaluate Salinity Management Strategies In Irrigation Return Flows, V. A. Narasimhan, A. Leon Huber, J. Paul Riley, J. J. Jurinak

Reports

The salinity added irrigation return flows is a major problem in rivers draining agricultural lands throughout the arid regions of the world, and many irrigation water management alternatives have been proposed for reducing downstream salinity problems. The merits of these alternatives, however, can only be judged from reliable information on their actual effects on the salinity in rivers receiving the drainage water and the water withdrawn from the river by downstream users. Hydrosalinity models are widely used to estimate these effects to guide the selection of a policy on management of irrigation return flows. The purpose of this research was …

A Preliminary Study On Expanding And Financing State Water Development, Daniel H. Hoggan, Kirk R. Kimball, Jay M. Bagley

Reports

The effects of recent energy price increases, domestic inflation rates, financial market fluctuations, and changing public attitudes toward federally sponsored water resource development and management have brought economic and financial consideratiosn to the forefront of Western water management issues. Recently enacted federal policies place increased responsibility on the states and localities for the development and management of their water resources. A response common to many of the western states has been to stengthen traditional, and often small, water financing and development programs. In creating and sustaining such a posture, however, state governments must address the important questions pertaining to the …

Alteration Of Microbial Populations In Surface Mine Revegetation And Their Effects On Nitrogen Cycling, Margaret Mary Mccarthy

Reports

Surface mining in the arid west results in soil disruption by alterning structure, water-holding capacity and nutrient availability. Intensive revegetation efforts may end in marginal rehabilitation due to adverse chamical and physical properties of the distrubed soil. Monitoring microbial activitiy and soil chemistry of revegetated and undisturbed areas of a surface mine in Southeastern Montana enabled delineation of major factors participating in soil fertility were determined. In the undisturbed site, the upper few centimeters of the soil profile contained most of the nutrients and the microbial populations. In the revegetated sites, due to mixing of various soil horizons, the concentration …

Flood Damage Mitigation In Utah, L. Douglas James, Dean T. Larson, Daniel H. Hoggan, Terrence L. Glover

Reports

Utah is subjected to flash flooding in mountain canyons, mudflows and shallow water flooding on lowlands at the canyon outlets, storm water flooding after thunderstorms in urban areas, and prolonged periods of inundation in certain lowland areas during snowmelt periods. In response to these problems, individuals are making private land use and flood proofing decisions, larger communities have storm water collection programs, three federal agencies are involved in structural flood control, and the Federal Emergency management Agency is managing a National Flood Insurance Program designed to promote community floodplain management efforts. A framework was deceloped of the dynamically interactive feedback …

Vulnerability Of Water Supply Systems To Droughts, David S. Bowles, Trevor C. Hughes, W. Robert James, Donald T. Jensen, Frank W. Haws

Reports

This summary completion report describes the project work completed in three areas: 1) the development and preliminary testing of drought severity and vulnerability indices, 2) the impacts of Utah's 1977 drought, and 3) an operation comparison of stochastic streamflow models. The drought indices were evaluated for three municipal and three irrigation water supply systems in Utah. It was concluded that a continuous loss function to define the effects of water shortage would be more appropriate than the existing assumption that drought-related lossed occur suddenly at a certain degree of water shortage. Information on the impacts of Utah's 1977 drought was …

Utah Surface Impoundment Assessment Report, Mary L. Cleave, V. Dean Adams, Donald B. Porcella

Reports

Executive Summary: The Surface Impoundment Assessment process presented an organized consistent systme for evaluating potential threats to groundwater resources from surface impoundments of wastes. This assessment established a data base which locates wastes surface impoundments in Utah and assesses the majority of these impoundments with this prescribed system (Appendix F). This data base may be used to identify surface impoundments in Utah which may create problems with regard to groundwater contamination. Data Summary: The potential hazards of the surface impoundments assessed to groundwater is based on two values established during the assessment procedure. These values are identified as the pollution …

Use Of Extreme Value Theory In Estimating Flood Peaks From Mixed Populations, Ronand V. Canfield, D. R. Olsen, R. H. Hawkins, T. L. Chen

Reports

The flood magnitude for a given frequency or return period is estimated by fitting a probability distribution to the historical annual flood series. The log-Pearson type III distribution has been selected by the Water Resources Council for general use by the federal government, but practitioners should examine an annual flood series and use alternative distributions where they will produce better estimates. Empirical goodness of fit is one criterion for choosing a distribution, but the reasonableness of the assumptions theoretically associated with the form of the distribution should also be considered. In theory, extreme-value distributions are particularly applicable to flow series …

Evaluation Of Legibility Of Reflectorized License Plates, C. Earl Israelsen, Ronald V. Canfield

Reports

The rainfall simulator at the Utah Water Research Laboratory, Utah State University, Logan, Utah, was utilized in evaluating various types of license plates. This unique facility enables the production of controlled uniform rainfall inside the laboratory. For this experiment, rainfall rates of 0" (dry), 1/2" and 2" per hour were used to compare reflective performance of reflective sheeting (RS), beads-on-paint (BOP), and new paint (NP) license plates under dark nighttime conditions. Both new and used license plates were evaluted. The three types of new plates were made and embossed at the Idaho State Prison using stanard state manufacturing procedures. The …

A Framework For Risk Analysis Of Earth Dams, Jon C. Howell, Loren R. Anderson, David S. Bowles, Ronald V. Canfield

Reports

This purpose of this thesis is to present in a logical and straightforward manner, the types of probabilistic, deterministic and judgment methods which should be part f a risk analysis process for earth dam planning, design, construction and operation. In doing this, an attempt was made to include all of the elements (components of the risk analysis procedure defined herein) which were considered to be important. Descriptions of these elements as well as how they are used to estimate probabilities for the occurrence of each of three failure conditions (i.e. no failure, partial failure, complete failure) are also presented. Explanations …

Evaluation Of Mutagenicity Testing Of Extracts From Processed Oil Shale, Judith G. Dickson, V. Dean Adams

Reports

The Ames/

Management Of Rural Domestic Water Systems In Utah, Trevor C. Hughes

Reports

Introduction: There are now more than 400 community type public drinking water systems in Utah. Considerable state and federal assistance is available for construction or renovation of such systems, but once the system is constructed and the consulting engineer leaves, the managers of the smaller systems find themselves quite isolated from sources of professional assistance. The larger systems have a revenue base which can provide ongoing services of a consultant or salaried engineer and well trained operators. The smaller systems, particularly low density rural systems where the length of pipeline per user is very high, usually find themselves barely able …