Water Resource Management Commons^™

Water For New Mexico Rivers, Beth Bardwell, Adrian Oglesby

Water Matters!

The Rio Grande, the Pecos, the Gila, the San Juan, the Canadian—New Mexico’s rivers are synonymous with the state’s culture and natural heritage. New Mexicans overwhelmingly care about the health of the state’s rivers and that includes flows to support fish and river dependent wildlife. Rivers, wetlands, and riparian areas comprise a very small part of our landscape—a mere 1 percent. This 1 percent plays an essential role in renewing the state’s water supply for its two million residents; for sustaining the state’s second largest industry—tourism; for producing food and fiber; and for sustaining New Mexico’s web of life. Eighty …

Inter-Basin Water Transfers, Anne Minard

Water Matters!

Inter-basin water transfers move water from one watershed to another. As droughts constrict the availability of water, and cities grow larger and thirstier, such transfers are increasingly being eyed as a solution. Although inter-basin transfers usually do not increase the overall availability of water in a state, they can move water to where it is needed most. Some of the main proponents of inter-basin transfers are pro-growth city and state governments as the re-allocation of water across watersheds allows for flexibility in planning for future growth.

Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project, Jerold Widdison, Pat Page

Water Matters!

In March of 2009, the Congress passed and President Obama signed into law the“Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009". The Project is a major endeavor for northwestern New Mexico. In one sense,authorization of the project culminates years of work. In another sense, it means the beginning of many additional years of effort. There is much to be done to construct and carry the project forward to reality, including work for the federal government,the State of New Mexico, the Navajo Nation, and the city of Gallup. In view of the Project’s magnitude, this article reviews only its major aspects

The Nambé, Pojoaque, San Ildefonso, And Tesuque Pueblos Settlement, Paul Bossert, Sarah Armstrong

Water Matters!

The “Aamodt case” is a complex, long-running adjudication of water rights in the Pojoaque River watershed northwest of Santa Fe. In 1966,it was filed in federal court as State of New Mexico, ex rel. State Engineer,et al. v. Aamodt, et al. The parties include the State, through the State Engineer, about 5,600 non-Indian claimants, the Pueblos of Nambé, Pojoaque,San Ildefonso, and Tesuque, and governmental entities such as the county of Santa Fe, many acequias, the Pojoaque Valley Irrigation District, and several federal and state agencies.

Taos Pueblo Water Rights Settlement, Paul Bossert, Darcy S. Bushnell

Water Matters!

In November of 2010, the Congress passed the Claims Resolution Act and on December 8, President Obama signed it into law. Title V of the Claims Act, the Taos Pueblo Indian Water Rights Settlement Act, settles the Pueblo portion of the Abeyta case and approves an agreement signed in 2006 by officials from Taos Pueblo, the State of New Mexico, and other interested water rights owners in the Taos area. The settlement act also helps resolve the non-Indian portion of Abeyta. The measure quantifies Taos Pueblo’s water rights and protects the interests of local acequias, the Town of Taos, and …

Salt Basin, Jerold Widdison, Stephanie Tsosie

Water Matters!

The Salt Basin of south-central New Mexico presents several problems of resource utilization. The basin is a large but little-known area—dry, inhospitable—but it has a sought-after supply of groundwater and perhaps a supply of natural gas and oil. In addition, the basin features vast stretches of grassland in an essentially intact natural environment. The“hows” and the “whethers” of using and conserving these resources have been vigorously argued for several years.

Water Trust Board, Joanne Hilton, Darcy S. Bushnell

Water Matters!

In 2001, the New Mexico legislature passed the Water Project Finance Act. The stated purpose of the Water Project Finance Act is to provide a financing mechanism to promote water use efficiency, water resource conservation and protection, and fair distribution and allocation of water to all users. The Water Trust Board was created in the Act. Its purpose is to: 1) oversee and administer the Water Trust Fund and Water Project Fund; 2) review and recommend funding for qualifying water projects to the legislature; and 3)pursue additional funding opportunities.

Strategic Water Reserve, Brigette Buynak, Stephanie Tsosie

Water Matters!

The Strategic Water Reserve (Reserve) established in 2005 transforms New Mexico’s policies regarding river management. The Reserve is a pool of publicly held water rights dedicated to keeping New Mexico’s rivers flowing to meet the needs of river-dependent endangered species and to fulfill our water delivery obligations to other states. It is a tool for New Mexico to achieve sensible and sustainable water policies by balancing water use between cities, industry, agriculture, and the rivers of the state.

Design And Development Of Scalable Solar Powered Water Purification Systems For Developing Nations, Shavin Pinto

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

This thesis presents the design and development of solar powered water purification systems. The systems were designed to meet specific customer requirements that were established from the experiences gained after the installation of five water purification systems in various Haitian communities. The systems are scalable and are able to supply 10,000-20,000 gallons of clean drinking water per day. The design consists of a three-stage filtration system with a disc-type sediment filter, a 0.1 micron ultrafiltration membrane, and an ultraviolet light for disinfection. The backwash cycle extends the life of the ultrafiltration membrane to 4-7 years before a new filter is …

Muddied Waters: Exploring Iowa's Water Policy And Practices, Jorgen D. Rose

Honors Program Theses

Clean, usable fresh water is a precious and valuable resource, but it is one that we often mistreat and misuse. Surface water in particular is extremely vulnerable to human actions and influences; nowhere is this more apparent than in agricultural states like Iowa, where nonpoint-source pollution (runoff) has a dramatic effect on our rivers, lakes, and streams. However, despite this continuing decline in the quality of Iowa’s water, there exists very little public policy aimed at dealing with the problems of nutrient contamination and other forms of nonpoint-source pollution. Furthermore, what policy does exist is either ineffective or insufficient. The …

"Mining" For A Reference Condition In Southern West Virginia Streams, Matthew Rouch

Theses and Dissertations

Quarterly samples were used to estimate assemblage-level (all species combined) fish production within three minimally-impacted, southern West Virginia streams. The total annual fish production estimate was highest in Slaunch Fork (37.52 kg∙ha^-1∙y^-1), a tributary of the Tug Fork River, and lowest in Cabin Creek (10.59 kg∙ha^-1∙y^-1), a Guyandotte River tributary. Creek Chub Semotilus atromaculatus, Mottled Sculpin Cottus bairdii and Blacknose Dace Rhinicthys atratulus were the most abundant species among sites, accounting for >90% of all sampled individuals. Reference condition criteria were also selected and metrics calculated for each of the three …

Addressing Public Health Risks Of Persistent Pollutants Through Nutritional Modulation And Biomimetic Nanocomposite Remediation Platforms, Bradley J. Newsome

Theses and Dissertations--Chemistry

Due to their relative chemical stability and ubiquity in the environment, chlorinated organic contaminants such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) pose significant health risks and enduring remediation challenges. Engineered nanoparticles (NPs) provide a novel platform for sensing/remediation of these toxicants, in addition to the growing use of NPs in many industrial and biomedical applications, but there remains concern for their potential long-term health effects. Research highlighted herein also represents a transdisciplinary approach to address human health challenges associated with exposure to PCBs and NPs. The objectives of this dissertation research are two-fold, 1) to develop effective methods for capture/sensing and remediation …

A Dynamic, Distributed Hydrologic Model For The Blue Earth River Watershed, Minnesota With Implications Regarding Land Use And Water Quality, Michael L. Merlini

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

The Blue Earth River (BER) watershed covers approximately one million acres of south-central Minnesota and northern Iowa. Modern farming practices have led to the loss of over 90 percent of the watershed's original wetlands. Corresponding changes in runoff and stream flow have led to dramatically reduced water quality in the BER's main stem following most precipitation events. The purpose of this research is to examine the relationships among precipitation, infiltration, base flow, and runoff in the Blue Earth River watershed basin.

This study developed a calibrated numerical hydrologic model for BER watershed using the distributed flow model, Vflo™. The model …

Simulation Of Heat And Mass Transfer In Suns River Solar Distillation, Houman Azari

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Many regions around the world have limited fresh water resources, and we need to desalinate brackish water resources for drinking and irrigation purposes. Most of the world is also facing energy challenges which encourages engineers and scientists to use renewable energy resources instead of hydrocarbon fuels. Arid regions such as the Middle East, many African countries, and the southwestern United States typically have abundant solar irradiance and brackish or saline water supplies. Solar-thermal desalination could be an important supply of fresh water in these regions.

The classic solar still is not efficient for providing large amounts of clean water for …

Water Recovery From Silica Saturated Ro Concentrate By The Concentrate Enhanced Reverse Osmosis Process, Gautam Patwardhan

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Membrane fouling due to silica precipitation during reverse osmosis (RO) continues to be documented as the most common challenge in attaining stable continuous operation of RO systems across water treatment plants (1). Silica scale precipitation is time dependent and involves multiple steps leading to aqueous polymerization, condensation of polymers to form colloids, and deposition onto a solid surface (2). Exceeding the solubility of silica, widely considered to be in the range of 100-140 ppm, under a pH of 8 at 25 °C by various researchers, results in the precipitation of silica on the membranes, thereby limiting water recovery. Once the …

Osmb Final Report: Task 6. Tenmile Lake Boat Wash Effectiveness Monitoring, Samuel Cimino, Angela L. Strecker

Center for Lakes and Reservoirs Publications and Presentations

Public awareness of aquatic invasive species and proper boat cleaning procedures may prove to be beneficial in reducing the transport and establishment of aquatic invasive species like New Zealand mud snails and zebra and quagga mussels as well as hydrilla and Eurasian watermilfoil. The primary objectives of this research project were to observe the use and determine the efficacy of a public boat wash station as well as increase the public’s awareness of proper boat cleaning procedures and aquatic invasive species. The Tenmile Lakes Basin Partnership, Oregon State Marine Board, and the United States Forest Service (USFS) have undertaken an …

Coupled Sediment Yield And Sediment Transport Model To Support Navigation Planning In Northeast Brazil, Calvin Trebor Creech

Wayne State University Dissertations

Deposition of sediment (shoaling) in commercial waterways is a major obstacle to maintaining sustainable riverine transportation of bulk goods (primarily agricultural and mining commodities). The rate of aggradation of sediment in a waterway is directly related to both the rate of sediment erosion from upland and river bank sources (sediment yield) and the energy in the river to effectively transport the sediment through the waterway system (sediment transport). Historically, methods used for waterway development have included trial and error or rules of thumb associated with river training structures and chute cut-off canals or engineering of navigation locks and dams. More …

Application Of Ce-Qual-W2 On Tigris River In Iraq, Muhanned Al-Murib

Civil and Environmental Engineering Master's Project Reports

The Tigris River is the eastern member of the two great rivers in Iraq. Two big rivers pass through Iraq, Mesopotamia. Tigris and Euphrates Rivers with their tributaries form a major river system in the Middle East. Four riparian countries, Turkey, Syria, Iran, and Iraq, share the Tigris River basin area and Iraq has the majority of this basin area. The total length of the Tigris is 1850 km from which 1418 km is within Iraq. A study area of 880 km from Mosul dam to Kut barrage is modeled using a water quality CE-QUAL-W2 model. CE-QUAL-W2 is a two-dimensional …

Osmb Final Report: Task 3. Containment Strategies For Eurasian Watermilfoil Infested Central Or Lakes, Vanessa Morgan, Mark Sytsma

Center for Lakes and Reservoirs Publications and Presentations

In recent years, public awareness of aquatic invasive species (AIS) has increased considerably in Oregon and elsewhere in the western U.S.. News articles, boat inspection stations and AIS permit programs have drawn attention to the threat of aquatic invasive species, especially animals like zebra mussels (Dreissena polymorpha), quagga mussels (Dreissena bugensis), and New Zealand mudsnails (Potamopyrgus antipodarum). However, invasive aquatic plants are also capable of causing severe impacts and may similarly be transferred between waterbodies on boats, trailers or other equipment. Heavy infestations can hinder recreational use by motorized and non-motorized boats, snag fishing lines, threaten the safety of swimmers …