Water Resource Management Commons^™

Water Productivity Benchmarks: The Case Of Maize And Soybean In Nebraska, Mesfin Mekonnen, Arjen Y. Hoekstra, Christopher Michael Usher Neale, Chittaranjan Ray, Haishun Yang

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Water productivity benchmarks for irrigated and rainfed agriculture will provide relevant information to manage scarce water resources and control groundwater level decline. We analyze the temporal and spatial variation of the water productivity (WP) of maize and soybean in Nebraska, with WP defined as harvested crop weight per total evapotranspiration. The results show that WP of both maize and soybean increase from west to east within Nebraska and have increased over the last 25 years, mainly due to the increase in crop yields (land productivity). We derive WP benchmarks for each crop per climate zone. Increasing actual WPs in the …

Potential Of Using Spectral Vegetation Indices For Corn Green Biomass Estimation Based On Their Relationship With The Photosynthetic Vegetation Sub-Pixel Fraction, Luan Peroni Venancio, Everardo Chartuni Mantovani, Cibele Hummel Do Amaral, Christopher M.U. Neale, Ivo Zution Gonçalves, Roberto Filgueiras, Fernando Coelho Eugenio

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Crop biomass (Bio) is one of the most important parameters of a crop, and knowledge of it before harvest is essential to help farmers in their decision making. Both green and dry Bio can be estimated from vegetation spectral indices (VIs) because they have a close relationship with accumulated absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (APAR), which is proportional to total Bio. The aims of this study were to analyze the potential capacity of spectral vegetation indices in estimating corn green biomass based on their relationship with the photosynthetic vegetation sub-pixel fraction derived from spectral mixture analysis and to analyze the best …

Ferrihydrite Reduction Increases Arsenic And Uranium Bioavailability In Unsaturated Soil, Arindam Malakar, Michael Kaiser, Daniel D. Snow, Harkamal Walia, Banajarani Panda, Chittaranjan Ray

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Redox driven mobilization and plant uptake of contaminants under transiently saturated soil conditions need to be clarified to ensure food and water quality across different irrigation systems. We postulate that solid-phase iron reduction in anoxic microsites present in the rhizosphere of unsaturated soil is a key driver for mobilization and bioavailability of contaminants under nonflooded irrigation. To clarify this, two major crops, corn and soybean differing in iron uptake strategies, were grown in irrigated synthetic soil under semiarid conditions with gravimetric moisture content ∼12.5 ± 2.4%. 2-line ferrihydrite, which was coprecipitated with uranium and arsenic, served as the only iron …

Use Of Multiple Environment Variety Trials Data To Simulate Maize Yields In The Ogallala Aquifer Region: A Two Model Approach, Vaishali Sharda, Mesfin Mekonnen, Chittaranjan Ray, Prasanna H. Gowda

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

With a long-term goal to optimize use of groundwater in the Ogallala Aquifer Region (OAR) to sustain food production systems, this study was conducted to calibrate Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT) and AquaCrop crop modeling platforms to simulate maize production at a regional scale using historic datasets. Calibration of the models with local crop growth data and crop management practices is important, but usually this in-season crop growth information is not available. This study determined the possibility of using maize variety trial data for the evaluation of the CSM-Crop Estimation through Resources and Environmental Synthesis-Maize and AquaCrop models …

Stormwater Management Model Analysis On The Effectiveness Of Low Impact Development Controls For Suburban Lid Designs In Brookings, South Dakota, Anne M. Salazar

Civil and Environmental Engineering Graduate Students Plan B Capstone Projects

Urbanization’s influence the features of a watershed’s subcatchments. The soil’s low permeability causes a decrease in infiltration and storage and an increase in runoff. The management of peak runoff and stormwater quality must follow SCMs. LID controls provide natural practices for handling stormwater management. This study used the LID controls of traditional drainage, vegetative swales, and bioretention cells to handle the runoff quantity and quality resulting from a 5-year storm event and a 100-year storm event. The SWMM modelled and analyzed the effectiveness of each model to remove the most of three pollutant loads: TSS, lead, and nitrate. When compared …

Measuring The Occurrence Of Antibiotics In Surface Water Adjacent To Cattle Grazing Areas Using Passive Samplers, Nasrin Naderi Beni, Daniel D. Snow, Elaine D. Berry, Aaron R. Mittelstet, Tiffany Messer, Shannon L. Bartelt-Hunt

Nebraska Water Center: Faculty Publications

A wide variety of antibiotics and other pharmaceuticals are used in livestock production systems and residues passed to the environment, often unmetabolized, after use and excretion. Antibiotic residuesmay be transported frommanure-treated soils via runoff and are also capable of reaching surface and groundwater systems through a variety of pathways. The occurrence and persistence of antibiotics in the environment is a concern due to the potential for ecological effects and proliferation of environmental antibiotic resistance in pathogenic organisms. In the present study, the occurrence and seasonal variation of 24 commonly-used veterinary antibiotics was evaluated in surface water adjacent to several livestock …

Lake Volume Data Analyses: A Deep Look Into The Shrinking And Expansion Patterns Of Lakes Azuei And Enriquillo, Hispaniola, Mahrokh Moknatian, Michael Piasecki

Publications and Research

This paper presents the development of an evenly spaced volume time series for Lakes Azuei and Enriquillo both located on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola. The time series is derived from an unevenly spaced Landsat imagery data set which is then exposed to several imputation methods to construct the gap filled uniformly‐spaced time series so it can be subjected to statistical analyses methods. The volume time series features both gradual and sudden changes the latter of which is attributed to North Atlantic cyclone activity. Relevant cyclone activity is defined as an event passing within 80 km and having regional monthly …

Ultraviolet Irradiation Combined With Chlorine Dioxide Pre-Oxidation For Disinfection By-Product Control, Paula Campesino

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

The use of ultraviolet (UV) light and chlorine dioxide (ClO2) as an advanced oxidation process (AOP) has been investigated at the bench-scale to understand the effects of their use on disinfection by-product (DBP) formation potential (FP) in chlorinated groundwater (GW) and surface water (SW) supplies. Two GWs and two SWs of varying qualities were subject to a series of AOP treatment sequences at the bench scale: sodium hypochlorite, to serve as a baseline; ClO2-Cl2, UV-Cl2, and UV-ClO2-Cl2. In these treatment sequences, Cl2 is used as a primary and secondary disinfectant. Several water quality parameters were measured throughout the experiments, including …

Monitoring Methods And Performance Assessment For Implementation Of Low Impact Development Practices In South Dakota, Farhana Akhter

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Urbanization increases impervious surface area, which changes the hydrology of a watershed. Impervious surfaces prevent the infiltration of stormwater water into the ground surface which results in a higher volume of stormwater runoff and higher peak flow. Low Impact Development (LID) practices help to restore pre-development hydrology by increasing infiltration, evaporation, and transpiration. While the hydrologic performance of LID practices has been studied extensively and continues to be an area of active research, there has been very limited monitoring or demonstration of LID practices in South Dakota. In addition, municipalities in South Dakota and elsewhere that implement new LID practices …

Applied Injected Air Into Subsurface Drip Irrigation: Plant Uptake Of Pharmaceuticals And Soil Microbial Communities, Matteo D'Alessio, Lisa M. Durso, Clinton Williams, Christopher A. Olson, Chittaranjan Ray, Ellen Paparozzi

Nebraska Water Center: Faculty Publications

The growing global food security crisis is complicated by the need for increased crop production with less arable land and limited water resources. Reuse of treated wastewater for agricultural irrigation is becoming more common, often paired with other conservation measures such as subsurface drip irrigation (SDI). Passively injecting air into SDI systems increases crop yields and overcomes root zone wetting issues. However, when used with treated irrigation water, contaminants in the water might be taken up by the crops. This paper investigates the impact of air-injected water containing caffeine, carbamazepine, and gemfibrozil on plant uptake and soil microbial communities in …

A Modeling Approach To Understanding Glyphosate Transport In The Belize River Watershed, Barbara Anmei Astmann

Theses and Dissertations--Civil Engineering

Glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide worldwide and is often transported from application areas to surface water when solubilized in runoff or sorbed to eroded sediment. There is evidence that suggests both glyphosate and its main metabolite aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) may pose a risk to human health, as well as cause adverse effects in the environment. However, consistent monitoring data is still limited, especially in developing countries. Belize is a developing nation with agriculture being a major sector of its economy and is heavily reliant on glyphosate. The widespread use of glyphosate in Belize may be resulting in glyphosate …

Quantifying Nitrogen Fate In Karst Agroecosystem Streams Of Central Kentucky: Development And Application Of Numerical Modeling And Insight From High-Resolution Sensors, Nolan Lewis Bunnell

Theses and Dissertations--Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering

In-stream fate of nutrients in karst agroecosystems remains poorly understood, despite the known impact of karst on water resources at local to global scales. In the Inner-Bluegrass region of central Kentucky, heterogeneity of karst maturity, flow pathways, and nutrient sources adds to the complexity of quantifying nutrient dynamics, thus requiring novel monitoring and modeling approaches. The significance of these streams is recognized given spring/surface water confluences have been identified as hotspots for biogeochemical transformations. In slow-moving streams high in dissolved inorganic nutrients (particularly dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) and dissolved reactive phosphorus (DRP)), benthic and floating aquatic macrophytes are recognized to …

Internet Of Things In Agricultural Innovation And Security, Abdul Salam

Faculty Publications

The agricultural Internet of Things (Ag-IoT) paradigm has tremendous potential in transparent integration of underground soil sensing, farm machinery, and sensor-guided irrigation systems with the complex social network of growers, agronomists, crop consultants, and advisors. The aim of the IoT in agricultural innovation and security chapter is to present agricultural IoT research and paradigm to promote sustainable production of safe, healthy, and profitable crop and animal agricultural products. This chapter covers the IoT platform to test optimized management strategies, engage farmer and industry groups, and investigate new and traditional technology drivers that will enhance resilience of the farmers to the …

Internet Of Things For Water Sustainability, Abdul Salam

Faculty Publications

The water is a finite resource. The issue of sustainable withdrawal of freshwater is a vital concern being faced by the community. There is a strong connection between the energy, food, and water which is referred to as water-food-energy nexus. The agriculture industry and municipalities are struggling to meet the demand of water supply. This situation is particularly exacerbated in the developing countries. The projected increase in world population requires more fresh water resources. New technologies are being developed to reduce water usage in the field of agriculture (e.g., sensor guided autonomous irrigation management systems). Agricultural water withdrawal is also …

Internet Of Things In Water Management And Treatment, Abdul Salam

Faculty Publications

The goal of the water security IoT chapter is to present a comprehensive and integrated IoT based approach to environmental quality and monitoring by generating new knowledge and innovative approaches that focus on sustainable resource management. Mainly, this chapter focuses on IoT applications in wastewater and stormwater, and the human and environmental consequences of water contaminants and their treatment. The IoT applications using sensors for sewer and stormwater monitoring across networked landscapes, water quality assessment, treatment, and sustainable management are introduced. The studies of rate limitations in biophysical and geochemical processes that support the ecosystem services related to water quality …

Modeling Hydrologic Impacts Of Tribal Water Rights Quantification And Settlement On The Flathead Indian Irrigation Project, Jordan Andrew Jimmie

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) of the Flathead Reservation are a federally-recognized group of tribes (Kootenai, Salish, and Pend d’Oreille) located in western Montana. On the reservation lies the expansive Flathead Indian Irrigation Project (FIIP), which supplies irrigation water to approximately 127,000 acres of tribal and non-tribal agricultural land. The 1904 Flathead Allotment Act opened “surplus” land to non-native homesteaders without tribal consent, initiating the land ownership fragmentation observed on the reservation today. This legacy, combined with historically unquantified tribal reserved water rights and the antiquated state of the FIIP infrastructure, including water losses from unlined earthen canals, …

Modeling Flow And Nitrate Transport In Karst Groundwater Basins, Yuan Gao

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Understanding the groundwater flow in karst aquifers and the effect of best management practices (BMPs) on nitrate decrease in spring discharge is critical for effective management and protection of karst water resources. However, the control on the conduit network's impacts on spring discharge and nitrate concentration is not fully understood, and the cumulative effects of BMP on reducing nitrate in karst groundwater systems have not been evaluated at the basin scale. In this dissertation, a coupled Conduit Flow Process (CFPv2) and Conduit Mass Three-Dimensional (CMT3D) model was applied to evaluate the biosorption-activated media (BAM)-based BMP on nitrate removal in Silver …

Storm Tide Amplification And Habitat Changes Due To Urbanization Of A Lagoonal Estuary, Philip Orton, Eric W. Sanderson, Stefan Talke, Mario Giampieri, Kytt Macmanus

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

In recent centuries, human activities have greatly modified the geomorphology of coastal regions. However, studies of historical and possible future changes in coastal flood extremes typically ignore the influence of geomorphic change. Here, we quantify the influence of 20th-century man-made changes to Jamaica Bay, New York City, on present-day storm tides. We develop and validate a hydrodynamic model for the 1870s based on detailed maps of bathymetry, seabed characteristics, topography, and tide observations for use alongside a present-day model. Predominantly through dredging, landfill, and inlet stabilization, the average water depth of the bay increased from 1.7 to 4.5 m, tidal …

Minimizing The Detrimental Effects Of Hydro-Peaking On Riverbank Instability: The Lower Osage River Case, Wesam Sameer Mohammed-Ali

Doctoral Dissertations

"The fluctuation of water level downstream from dams due to hydropower flow releases negatively affects the riverbank stability. Therefore, this research aims to examine the feasibility of using an optimization technique to mitigate the riverbank instability resulting from the outflow variation of hydropower plants. The effects of the water releases from the Bagnell Dam were investigated by computing a series of safety factors for 78 cross sections along the 81-mile stretch of the lower Osage River in relation to outflow events by using the integrated BSTEM model incorporated into the HEC-RAS model. The 1-D sediment transport and unsteady flow in …

Tracing Sources Of Natural Organic Matter, Trihalomethanes And Metals In Groundwater From A Karst Region, Connie O'Driscoll, Eoin Mcgillicuddy, Peter Croot, Pamela Bartley, John Mcmyler, Jerome Sheahan, Liam Morrison

Articles

Groundwater offers an important source for drinking water around the world; however, groundwater quality is under increasing pressure and is particularly vulnerable in karst areas. Total organic carbon (TOC) is significantly related to groundwater quality and when not removed by water treatment processes can give rise to the formation of disinfection by-products trihalomethanes (THMs) above the level of compliance. This study investigated the source of organic matter giving rise to the THM exceedances in a groundwater supply in a karst area. Results highlighted that source water for this groundwater supply was prone to surface water infiltration linked to rainfall events; …

Development Of Tools For Water Management In The Hatra Watershed (Northwestern Iraq) Using Satellite Technologies, Majid S. Mohamod

Doctoral Dissertations

“All around the world the demand for water is increasing, especially in arid and semi-arid regions, including Iraq which subject to continuous desertification that is worsening, more importantly the Jezira region in northwestern Iraq. Thus, it’s crucial to have a better strategy for water management. One of these strategies is to promote groundwater recharge for restoring the aquifer depletion. The successful groundwater recharge is limited by some potential data such as the annual water budge and precipitation measurements. The atomospheric and hydrological observations are limited by sparse population which tends to be less in arid and semi-arid regions. Therefore, an …

Evaluation Of The Mechanisms And Effectiveness Of Nano-Hydroxides, Wood And Dairy Manure-Derived Biochars To Remove Fluoride And Heavy Metals From Water, Anna Rose Wallace, Wenjie Sun Dr, Chunming Su Dr

Civil and Environmental Engineering Theses and Dissertations

The development of effective treatment processes for the removal contaminants, such as fluoride and heavy metals, from polluted water have been urgently needed due to serious environmental health and safety concerns. In this dissertation, a variety of materials including various (hydro)oxide nanomaterials, biochars and surface modified biochar were studied to evaluate their effectiveness and mechanism on removing fluoride or mixed heavy metals from water.

In the Chapter 2, this study investigated the adsorptive removal of fluoride from water using various (hydro)oxide nanomaterials, focusing on ferrihydrite, hydroxyapatite (HAP) and brucite, which have the potential to be used as sorbents for surface …

Flood Dynamics In The Portland Metropolitan Area, Past, Present, And Future, Lumas Terence Helaire

Dissertations and Theses

The Portland area has an extensive flood history since it was founded in 1845. In the late 19th century, the Portland area was prone to flooding from snowmelt freshets (3-6 months duration) and brief winter rain or rain-on-snow events. Since that time the magnitude of spring freshets has been curtailed by 45% due to climate change, flow diversions, and reservoir management. Along with changes in hydrology, the bathymetry of the Lower Columbia River has been altered by the dredging of the navigation channel, diking, and land reclamation. To understand how these changes in hydrology and bathymetry have affected tidal and …

Carbon Management And Volatile Fatty Acid Production In Primary Clarifiers At A Wastewater Treatment Plant, Brittany Nicole Radke

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

An increasing number of treatment plants are required to remove nutrients from domestic wastewater to lessen the impact of nutrient loading to water bodies. Enhanced Biological Phosphorus Removal (EBPR) is one of the processes commonly used to remove phosphorus from domestic wastewater. The presence of an adequate quantity of volatile fatty acids (VFA) in the wastewater influent to EBPR is important for process efficiency and stability. The objective of this research was to investigate the production of VFAs through fermentation of sludge in primary clarifiers as it related to improving nutrient removal, primarily targeting phosphorus.

The research tested, in full-scale, …

Application Of Data-Driven And Process-Based Modeling Approaches For Water Quality Simulation In Lakes And Freshwater Reservoirs, Ali Saber Sichani

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Lakes and freshwater reservoirs often serve as the primary drinking and irrigation water sources for surrounding communities. They provide recreational and tourism opportunities, thereby promoting the prosperity of neighboring communities. Reliable estimates of water quality in lakes and reservoirs can improve management practices to protect water resources.

Seasonal water temperature and solar shortwave radiation variations, and their subsequent interactions with water column aquatic life, combined with seasonal variations of mixing intensity throughout the water column, result in variations of water quality constituents with depth during the annual cycle. The complexity of these variations entails the use of advanced water quality …

Small Ruminant Health Intervention Calendar In Ethiopia, Mesfin Mekonnen, Ayalew Assefa, Tesfalem Nane, Firdawok Ayele, Asrat Arke, Belay Elias, Barbara Wieland

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Contents

1 Background................................................................................................... 3
2 Developing the health intervention calendar............................................................ 4
The treatment calendar ......................................................... 4 Applying the calendar..................................................................... 5 4 References................................................................... 8

Surface Modification Of Pvdf Membranes For Treating Produced Waters By Direct Contact Membrane Distillation, Zahra Anari

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Direct contact membrane distillation is a promising unit operation for treating hydraulic fracturing flow back and produced water. However, while a hydrophobic membrane is essential to prevent the passage of water from the feed to the permeate side, fouling by dissolved organic species can compromise membrane performance and result in wetting of the membrane pores. Here four monomers, hydroxyethylmethacrylate, acrylic acid, 1-vinyl-3-allylimidazolium bromide, and 1-vinyl-3-hexylimidazolium bromide have been grafted from the surface of a PVDF membrane. The modified and base membranes were tested in a direct contact membrane distillation system. All membranes were challenged with real produced water. In addition, …

Nematode Populations As Affected By Residue And Water Management In A Long-Term Wheat-Soybean Double Crop In Eastern Arkansas, Lucia Emperatriz Escalante Ortiz

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Soybeans (Glycine max) are one of the major row crops in the United States, particularly in Arkansas. Soybean cyst nematode (SCN, Heterodera glycines) and southern root-knot nematode (RKN, Meloidogyne incognita) are two of the most damaging pests that cause major economic losses in soybeans. Little is known concerning the effects of common and alternative agronomic practices on nematodes in fields with nematode population densities below threshold levels. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of the combination of tillage (conventional tillage and no-tillage), irrigation (irrigated and non-irrigated), wheat (Triticum aestivum) residue burning (burned and no burned), …

Energy And Exergy Analysis Of A Novel Multiple-Effect Vapor Chamber Distillation System For High-Salinity Wastewater Treatment, Hamidreza Shabgard, Ramkumar Parthasarathy, Ben Xu

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

A novel modular thermally-driven multiple-effect vapor chamber distillation (MVCD) system is presented for compact and portable desalination applications. The MVCD system consists of several vapor chambers connected in series with the condenser section of the upstream vapor chambers serving as the evaporator section of the following effect. A heat transfer model accounting for the major thermal resistances was developed to predict the heat transfer and distilled water production rates. A mass transfer analysis was performed to evaluate the effect of the accumulation of the non-condensable gasses within the chambers. An exergy analysis was also conducted to quantify the efficiency of …

Defining Boat Wake Impacts On Shoreline Stability Toward Management And Policy Solutions, Donna Marie Bilkovic, Molly M. Mitchell, Jennifer Davis, Julie Herman, Elizabeth Andrews, Angela King, Pamela Mason, Navid Tahvildari, Jana Davis, Rachel L. Dixon

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Coastal economies are often supported by activities that rely on commercial or recreational vessels to move people or goods, such as shipping, transportation, cruising, and fishing. Unintentionally, frequent or intense vessel traffic can contribute to erosion of coastlines; this can be particularly evident in sheltered systems where shoreline erosion should be minimal in the absence of boat waves. We reviewed the state of the science of known effects of boat waves on shoreline stability, examined data on erosion, turbidity, and shoreline armoring patterns for evidence of a response to boat waves in Chesapeake Bay, and reviewed existing management and policy …