Water Resource Management Commons^™

The Founding Of The Robert B. Daugherty Water For Food Institute At The University Of Nebraska

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Administrative Materials

University of Nebraska President J.B. Milliken drove to Omaha in to meet Robert Daugherty at his home. In the living room, the elder Daugherty was surrounded by Mogens Bay, his three sons and a covey of lawyers. Now 88 years old, the businessman had a reputation for being tough-minded and smart, a man who could intimidate, but also surprise with his ready sense of humor. In his long career, Daugherty had transformed agriculture and the rural landscape into the now familiar polka dot pattern, the signature of the center pivot irrigators Daugherty had popularized in the 1970s. He had started …

U.S. Drought Monitor, October 27, 2015, Brad Rippey

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for October 27, 2015 (10/27/15) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

Characteristics Of Sediment Transport At Selected Sites Along The Missouri River, 2011–12, David L. Rus, Joel M. Galloway, Jason S. Alexander

United States Geological Survey: Water Reports and Publications

Extreme flooding in the Missouri River in 2011, followed by a year of more typical streamflows in 2012, allowed the sediment-transport regime to be compared between the unprecedented conditions of 2011 and the year immediately following the flooding. As part of a cooperative effort between the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and the United States Army Corps of Engineers, this report follows up USGS Scientific Investigations Report 2013–5006 by comparing sediment transport between years and among sampling sites spanning the Garrison Segment in North Dakota, the Gavins Point Segment downstream from Lewis and Clark Lake, and a part of the …

U.S. Drought Monitor, October 20, 2015, Brad Rippey

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for October 20, 2015 (10/20/15) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

Evaluation Of First Order Error Induced By Conservative-Tracer Temperature Approximation For Mixing In Karstic Flow, Philippe Machetel, David A. Yuen

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Fluid dynamics in karst systems is complex due to the heterogeneity of hydraulic networks that combine the Porous Fractured Matrix (PFM) and the interconnected drains (CS). These complex dynamic systems often need to be treated as “black boxes” in which only input and output properties are known. In this work, we propose to assess the first-order error induced by considering the temperature as a conservative tracer for flows mixing in karst (fluvio-karst). The fluvio-karstic system is treated as an open thermodynamic system (OTS), which exchanges water and heat with its surrounding. We propose to use a cylindrical PFM drained by …

Accounting For Anomalous Hydraulic Responses During Constant-Rate Pumping Tests In The Prairie Du Chien-Jordan Aquifer System – Towards A More Accurate Assessment Of Leakage, Justin Blum

Sinkhole Conference 2015

The Prairie du Chien-Jordan Aquifer system is an important source of drinking water for residents of southeastern Minnesota. Assessment of the hydraulic properties of this aquifer continues to be of interest for wellhead protection and resource evaluation efforts. When performing constant-rate pumping tests on wells constructed in the karsted Prairie du Chien Aquifer, anomalous hydraulic responses resulting from cavernous flow are frequently observed. Hydraulic response in the adjacent Jordan Sandstone Aquifer is also commonly distorted because of bedding-plane fractures and well development techniques such as blasting and bailing. Resolution of these anomalous responses is important for accurate estimates of leakage …

Legacy Data In The Minnesota Spring Inventory, Greg Brick

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Past spring inventories have covered certain parts of Minnesota reasonably well, notably, the springs of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area and the southeastern Minnesota karst. But hitherto, there has not been a systematic effort to create a uniform statewide inventory. The first step, before hunting down new springs, was to compile existing data and the most fruitful source of hydrological legacy data for the Minnesota spring inventory was the DNR Fisheries files. Once entered into a GIS-capable database, these spring locations can help “seed the ground” so that when crews finally do take to the field to map more springs, …

Creation Of A Map Of Paleozoic Bedrock Springsheds In Southeast Minnesota, Jeffrey A. Green, E. Calvin Alexander Jr.

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Springs are groundwater discharge points that serve as vital coldwater sources for streams in southeast Minnesota. The springs generally emanate from Paleozoic carbonate and siliciclastic bedrock aquifers. Use of systematic dye tracing began in the 1970s and continues through the present as a standard method for investigating karst hydrology and to map springsheds,. The work was accelerated in 2007 because of increased funding from the State of Minnesota’s Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund. A compilation springshed map of dye traces conducted over the last several decades has been assembled for the region. In southeast Minnesota, the springs are the …

Using Electrical Resistivity Imaging To Characterize Karst Hazards In Southeastern Minnesota Agricultural Settings, Toby Dogwiler, Blake Lea

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Much of the Driftless Area of southeastern Minnesota is underlain by karstified carbonate bedrock. Land use in this karst terrain is dominated by agriculture, including row crop and dairy operations. The karst in this region is often mantled with up to 15 m of soil and unconsolidated sediments. As a result, underlying karst hazards such as incipient sinkholes are often hidden until they are suddenly revealed by the collapse of subsurface voids. Regionally, the economics of the dairy industry is causing a trend toward the consolidation and expansion of existing operations. As concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFO) or feedlots expand, …

Evaluation Of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals And Iodine For Use As A Groundwater Tracer In Hydrologic Investigation Of Contamination Related To Dairy Cattle Operations, Larry Boot Pierce, Honglin Shi

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Standard groundwater tracers such as Rhodamine WT, Fluorescein, Eosin and Tinopal CBX effectively provide a snapshot of hydrological conditions over a brief period of time and in a tightly controlled setting. However, in complex environmental situations with multiple potential sources, groundwater hydrologists are often seeking groundwater tracers that have extended longevity in the natural environment and the ability to directly pinpoint source locations. After reviewing operations of the nearby dairy it was determined that emerging contaminants, specifically two bovine veterinary pharmaceuticals (antibiotics), cephapirin sodium (CEPNa) and cephapirin benzathine (CEPB), and a sanitation agent, elemental Iodine (I) may have potential as …

Using Nitrate, Chloride, Sodium, And Sulfate To Calculate Groundwater Age, Kimm Crawford, Terry Lee

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Regression analysis is used to identify monotonic trends to assign water age using ion data from two large well water databases from southeast Minnesota (SE MN). Nitrate (NO3-N), chloride (Cl), sodium (Na), and sulfate (SO4) ions in the commonly used aquifers in SE MN can be used as groundwater tracers since they are either entirely or partly anthropogenic in their sources, their loading occurs on a regional scale, and they are almost entirely conserved. Ion concentrations over time are used to establish six trend patterns. Two patterns are unchanging (background and stable above background), and four are changing (linear up, …

Conduit Flow In The Cambrian Lone Rock Formation, Southeast Minnesota, U.S.A., John D. Barry, Jeffrey A. Green, Julia R. Steenberg

Sinkhole Conference 2015

The karst lands of southeast Minnesota contain more than one hundred trout streams that receive perennial discharge from Paleozoic bedrock springs. Several of the Paleozoic bedrock units that provide discharge are karst aquifers. Field investigations into the flow characteristics of these formations have been conducted using fluorescent dyes to map groundwater springsheds and characterize groundwater flow velocities for use in water resource protection. Recent field work has focused on the Cambrian Lone Rock Formation, a siliciclastic unit consisting of very fine-grained sandstone and siltstone with minor beds of shale and dolostone. The formation is mapped within tributary valleys of the …

Human Impacts On Water Quality In Coldwater Spring, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Sophie M. Kasahara, E. Calvin Alexander Jr., Scott C. Alexander

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Coldwater Spring in Minneapolis, Minnesota was the water supply for Fort Snelling from the 1840s to 1920. The spring site has been declared a sacred site by some federally recognized Native American tribes. The site is managed by the National Park Service. This project has monitored the water chemistry of Coldwater Spring to document human impacts on the spring’s water quality. Temperature, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, pH and anions were monitored weekly and cations and alkalinity monitored monthly at Coldwater Spring and the adjacent Wetland A from 15 February 2013 through 18 January 2015. Coldwater Spring’s water flows through fractures in …

Hydrogeological Dynamic Variability In The Lomme Karst System (Belgium) As Evidenced By Tracer Tests Results (Karag Project), Amaël Poulain, Gaëtan Rochez, Vincent Hallet

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Paleozoic carbonate aquifers represent major groundwater resources in Belgium. Karstification processes affect most of them and Belgium counts many hydrologically active karst networks. Given the intrinsic vulnerability of such geological objects, comprehensive studies are required in order to improve their protection and management. The KARAG project (Karst Aquifer ReseArch by Geophysic, 2013-2017) aims to identify the specific dynamic of karst aquifers by using geophysical and hydrogeological tools. This research is funded by the Belgium National Fund for Scientific Research (FNRS) and conducted by the University of Namur, University of Mons and the Royal Observatory of Belgium. The LKS – Lomme …

Management Options For Water-Repellent Soils In Australian Dryland Agriculture, M. M. Roper, S. L. Davies, P. S. Blackwell, D. J. M. Hall, D. Bakker, R. Jongepier, P. R. Ward

Natural Resources Research Articles

Water-repellent (‘non-wetting’) soils are a major constraint to agricultural production in southern and south-west Australia, affecting >10 Mha of arable sandy soils. The major symptom is dry patches of surface soil, even after substantial rainfall, directly affecting agricultural production through uneven crop and pasture germination, and reduced nutrient availability. In addition, staggered weed germination impedes effective weed control, and delayed crop and pasture germination increases the risk of wind erosion. Water repellency is caused by waxy organic compounds derived from the breakdown of organic matter mostly of plant origin. It is more prevalent in soils with a sandy surface texture; …

U.S. Drought Monitor, October 13, 2015, David Miskus

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for October 13, 2015 (10/13/15) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

Mitigating The Risk Of Extreme Water Scarcity And Dependency: The Case Of Jordan, Joep F. Schyns, Arwa Hamaideh, Arjen Y. Hoekstra, Mesfin Mekonnen, Marlou Schyns

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Jordan faces great internal water scarcity and pollution, conflict over trans-boundary waters, and strong dependency on external water resources through trade. This paper analyzes these issues and subsequently reviews options to reduce the risk of extreme water scarcity and dependency. Based on estimates of water footprint, water availability, and virtual water trade, we find that groundwater consumption is nearly double the groundwater availability, water pollution aggravates blue water scarcity, and Jordan’s external virtual water import dependency is 86%. The review of response options yields 10 ingredients for a strategy for Jordan to mitigate the risks of extreme water scarcity and …

Linking Seasonal Predictions To Decision-Making And Disaster Management In The Greater Horn Of Africa, Tsegaye Tadesse, Tonya Haigh, Nicole Wall, Andualem Shiferaw, Ben Zaitchik, Shimelis Beyene, Getachew Berhan, Jacob Petr

National Drought Mitigation Center: Faculty Publications

Seventy-six participants, including experts from seven countries from the Greater Horn of Africa (GHA) and project coinvestigators from the United States, met to discuss experimental seasonal prediction models and products for the GHA, to engage decision-makers and users in the assessment of hydroclimatic information requirements, and to use feedback to build a framework to support decision-making and disaster management. In pre- and postworkshop surveys, workshop participants were asked how the utility of forecasts to decision-makers might be improved. Their recommendations are presented

U.S. Drought Monitor, October 6, 2015, David Miskus

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for October 6, 2015 (10/6/15) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

Droughtscape, Fall 2015, Kelly Smith

DroughtScape: Quarterly Newsletter of the National Drought Mitigation Center (2007–2023)

Contents

Director’s column.

NDMC 20th anniversary 2

Employment opportunity

Third quarter 2015 climate summary

Third quarter 2015 impacts summary

Workshop in Ethiopia

San Antonio multi-hazard tournament

Healthy soil is drought buffer

U2U Award

Cost-benefit analysis for utilities managing drought

NDMC helps with rural poll questions on climate

Introducing our post-docs

South Korean visitors

Water Quality In The Río Pastaza Watershed A Comparative Study Of Ríos Topo, Zuñag, And Pastaza And The Impact Of The Topo Hydroelectric Project Using Macroinvertebrates As Bioindicators, Jesse Vega-Perkins

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Ríos Zuñag, Pastaza, and Topo flow through one of the rainiest and water-rich places in Ecuador. Río Zuñag is a relatively small, pristine montane river and Río Pastaza is a relatively large, contaminated river that receives the untreated wastewater of many communities. Río Topo’s unique watershed and gradient allow it to be home to many plants that have adapted to its unique environment, including the hyperendemic liverwort Myriocolea irrorata. However, in recent years, all of the water of Río Topo has been sold by the state of Ecuador to be developed for hydroelectric projects (HEP). The first of these …

U.S. Drought Monitor, September 29, 2015, Eric Luebehusen

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for September 29, 2015 (9/29/15) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

Crowdsourcing Global Wastewater Data, Don Mosteller, Sam Cohen, Cory Nestor, Angel Hsu, Omar Malik

Yale Day of Data

No time to waste: Crowdsourcing global wastewater treatment data

Worldwide, over 80 percent of wastewater is discharged into water bodies without undergoing treatment, severely impairing human well-being and ecosystem vitality along the way. National performance on wastewater treatment is difficult to quantify and is poorly understood due to a lack of common definitions, poor data collection standards, and limited historical data. To address this, the Yale Environmental Performance Index (EPI), a research group that produces a biennial ranking of country-level environmental performance, developed a first-of-its kind national wastewater treatment indicator.[1]

The indicator assesses wastewater treatment performance for 183 countries, …

U.S. Drought Monitor, September 22, 2015, Eric Luebehusen

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for September 22, 2015 (9/22/15) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

U.S. Drought Monitor, September 15, 2015, Chris Fenimore

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for September 15, 2015 (9/15/15) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

U.S. Drought Monitor, September 8, 2015, Richard Tinker

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for September 8, 2015 (9/8/15) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

Groundwater Chemistry Of The Weaber Plain (Goomig Farmlands): Baseline Results 2010–13, Adam Lillicrap, Richard J. George Dr, Arjen Ryder, D L. Bennett

Resource management technical reports

The Ord River Irrigation Area (ORIA) is located in the north-east of the Kimberley region of Western Australia, near the town of Kununurra. The irrigation area was established in 1963 and over time developed to the current extent of 14 000 hectares (ha). The Weaber Plain (Goomig Farmlands) area is located north-north-east of the existing irrigation area, 30km from Kununurra, and has been identified as being suitable for irrigated agriculture for many decades. However, it was not until 2009, with state government support, that the 7400ha project commenced, with construction starting in 2010. State and Australian government environmental approvals required …

U.S. Drought Monitor, September 1, 2015, Anthony Artusa

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for September 1, 2015 (9/1/15) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

Umphlett Qci Sept 2015, Natalie Umphlett

High Plains Regional Climate Center: Staff Publications

Highlights for the Basin

Temperature and Precipitation Anomalie

Streamflow

Heavy Rains Continued

Positive and Negative Impacts to Agriculture

Persistent Smoke from Wildfires

3-Month Precipitation and Temperature Outlooks

U.S. Drought Monitor, August 25, 2015, Anthony Artusa

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for August 25, 2015 (8/25/15) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.