Water Resource Management Commons^™

Water-Level Changes And Change In Water In Storage In The High Plains Aquifer, Predevelopment To 2013 And 2011-13, Virginia L. Mcguire

United States Geological Survey: Water Reports and Publications

The High Plains aquifer underlies 111.8 million acres (about 175,000 square miles) in parts of eight States—Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming. Water-level declines began in parts of the High Plains aquifer soon after the beginning of substantial irrigation with groundwater in the aquifer area (about 1950). This report presents water-level changes in the High Plains aquifer from predevelopment (generally before 1950) to 2013 and from 2011 to 2013. The report also presents change in water in storage in the High Plains aquifer from predevelopment to 2013 and from 2011 to 2013.

The methods to …

Combating Eutrophication: An Ecosystem Scale Analysis Of Aluminum Sulfate (Alum) Effectiveness Among Lakes, With Comparison To Alum And Biomanipulation Dual Treatment, Christa M. Webber

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Eutrophic conditions in lakes and reservoirs in agricultural regions often drive summer blooms of toxic cyanobacteria. Aluminum sulfate (alum) applications are commonly used to control cyanobacteria blooms and restore water quality in eutrophic lakes. However, studies of alum treatments often lack true replication, comparison to reference lakes, or comparison to other restoration techniques, such as an alum and biomanipulation combined or “dual” treatments. Without these comparisons, the variation of treatment response between replicate lakes and restoration techniques remains uncertain. Therefore, I sought to assess how water quality is affected by multiple restoration techniques among geographically proximate (1.4 km²) …

U.S. Drought Monitor, December 2, 2014, Anthony Artusa

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for December 2, 2014 (12/2/14) 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.

Determination Of Seasonal Crop Coefficients For The Cal Poly Campus Vineyard Using The “Paso Panel”, Daniel L. Vyenielo

Wine and Viticulture

Seasonal Crop Coefficients were determined using the "Paso Panel" during the summer of 2014 at the Cal Poly Trestle Vineyard in the Pinot and Syrah blocks.

Pecci Code (Python Estimation For Carbon Concentration And Isotopes) For Calculating The Concentration And Stable Carbon Isotopic Composition Of Dissolved Inorganic Carbon (Dic) In Precipitation For Northwestern Arkansas, Katherine J. Knierim, Phillip D. Hays

Arkansas Water Resources Center Technical Reports

In karst settings, hydrograph separations using isotopic tracers are commonly and effectively used to quantify the proportions of rain rapidly delivered to springs along fractures and conduits during storm events. Dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) is an effective, non‐conservative tracer for use in hydrograph separations of karst waters because of the ubiquitous nature of carbon in the sources of waters to caves and springs and unique concentrations and isotopic compositions of carbon inputs. DIC concentration and isotopic composition (δ¹³C‐DIC) in rain are typically calculated based on atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) using equilibrium carbonate reactions and stable carbon isotope fractionation values. As …

Relation Of Chlorine Demand To The Water Quality Of Beaver Lake, Erin E. Scott, Jaime M. Gile, Brian E. Haggard

Arkansas Water Resources Center Technical Reports

No abstract provided.

Umphlett Qci Dec 2014, Natalie A. Umphlett

High Plains Regional Climate Center: Staff Publications

Highlights for the Basin

Temperature and Precipitation Anomalies

Drought Conditions

Agriculture

Horticulture

Recreation and Tourism

3-Month Precipitation and Temperature Outlooks

Soil Moisture Conditions

River Health In Puyo, Ecuador The Use Of Macroinvertebrates As Bioindicators Of Water Quality And Alternatives To Chlorine For Whitening Clothes In The Puyo River Watershed, Allison Rowe

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Fresh water is an important resource in Puyo, Ecuador, a city named after the Kichwa word for ‘cloudy’ in reference to its overcast weather. However, the Puyo River watershed is the most contaminated in all of Pastaza Province. The objective of this investigation was first to evaluate the health of the Puyo River using macroinvertebrate analyses and measurements of chlorine concentrations, temperature, pH, turbidity, velocity, and flow rate. The second objective was to learn about practices used to whiten clothes in Puyo and perceptions of water quality in order to understand the magnitude of bleach pollution and the population’s awareness …

A Remote Sensing Based Early Warning System For Algal Blooms In Kuwait Bay And Coastal Waters, Cameron Manche

Masters Theses

The Kuwait Bay and its coastal waters are being threatened by a perpetual hazard, the proliferation of harmful algal blooms (HABS). The frequency of HAB occurrences is a growing problem that is only reported subsequent to the onset of a HAB event. Little effort has been invested in investigating the spatial and temporal distribution of these events in Kuwait Bay and even less is known about their controlling factors. All previous studies within the Kuwait Bay have focused either on measuring nutrient availability and the biodiversity of algal species.

The overall study objective is four-fold: (1) to monitor the spatial …

The Effects Of Silicon Applications On Wear And Drought Stress Of Cool Season Turfgrass, Mike J. Badzmierowski, W. Michael Sullivan

Senior Honors Projects

The ability of turfgrass to maintain quality and functionality during use and drought stress are fundamental to almost all turfgrass environments. A possible mechanism to increase wear and drought tolerance is through the use of supplemental silicon (Si) application. Until recently, Si has received little attention for its role in crop physiology or performance.

While it is recoverable within the plant it is not recognized as an “essential” plant growth component. Si is the second most abundant element in the Earth’s crust; however the majority of soil-Si is bio-geochemically inert. Plants absorb Si exclusively as monosillicic acid, H₂SiO …

Marshfield Harbor, Rivers, And Waterways Management Plan, Urban Harbors Institute, University Of Massachusetts Boston, Marshfield Waterways Committee

Urban Harbors Institute Publications

This Waterways, Rivers and Harbors Plan is an initiative of the Marshfield Waterways Committee (the Waterways Committee) whose mission is to “recommend procedures, policies and regulations to the Board of Selectmen of the Town of Marshfield on matters affecting the safety, navigation, recreational activities, fishing interests, natural resources and the planning and management of Marshfield's waterways.”

This plan provides recommendations to address safe navigation, natural resource protection, improvements to public access, safe recreational boating, protection of working waterfronts and related infrastructure, improvements to water quality, preparation for impacts from changes in sea level and climate, opportunities for collaboration, and clarification …

Increased Effluent Dosage Effects On Septic System Absorption-Field Products Of Differing Architecture Types, Andrew Richard Gibbons

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Nationwide, approximately 20% of all homes use an on-site septic system as a form of household wastewater treatment. Since karst features are prevalent throughout the Ozark Highlands region of Northwest Arkansas, surface and groundwater resources are susceptible to contamination. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to evaluate the effects of soil condition (i.e., wet and dry) and absorption-field-product architecture type [i.e., chamber, gravel-less-pipe (GLP), polystyrene-aggregate (PSA), and pipe-and-aggregate (PA)] on in-product solution storage and biomat thickness in a profile-limited soil, and to identify the long-term acceptance rate (LTAR) of each product. During Phase I of this study (i.e., March …

Are Concentration-Discharge Relations Influenced By Water Sample Collection Methods?, William M. Welch

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Two primary methods of stream water sampling, the U.S. Geologic Survey (USGS) equal-width increment (EWI) and point samples (PS) from vertical centroid of flow (VCF) were compared at three river sites, the White River near Fayetteville, Richland Creek at Goshen, and War Eagle Creek near Hindsville. A little over three years of concentration data, which was paired with corresponding instantaneous discharge values (http://ar.water.usgs.gov/), was gathered separately at each site by the Arkansas Water Resource Center (AWRC) and the United States Geological Survey (USGS). The purpose of this study was to evaluate how concentration is related to discharge when water samples …

Decision Support Tools To Address Climate Change: Climate Model–Land Surface Models, Zea Mays L. (Corn) Phenology And Evapotranspiration–Yield Sensitivity Models For Nebraska, Usa, Jane A. Okalebo

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Nebraska's climate is highly variable and is expected to change in the future with anthropogenic global warming (AGW), resulting in warmer spring and summer temperatures coupled with more erratic rainfall events. This has strong implications for agriculture in the region, yet it is not clear that current modeling and decision-support tools are adequate to address these looming changes and provide planning, mitigation and adaptation strategies. To address climate change and its implications to agriculture in Nebraska, a set of robust decision support tools are very crucial. This study herein are divided into three chapters, with each chapter addressing a specific …

Changing Lead Into Gold: Examining Agency Attempts To Use The Clean Water Act To Solve Ecosystem Degradation Issues, N. Lindsay Simmons

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Navigating Through The Confusion Left In The Wake Of Rapanos: Why A Rule Clarifying And Broadening Jurisdiction Under The Clean Water Act Is Necessary, Kristen Clark

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Estimating Aquifer Characteristics And Identification Of A Sub-Basin For Artificial Storage And Recovery, Northeastern Ivanpah Valley, Nevada, Nikolas James Taranik

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The identification of a structurally controlled sub-basin with impediments to groundwater flow within Southern Nevada could provide a favorable area for artificial recharge and storage of native or imported water, extending the water supply of Southern Nevada. For this purpose, the area of northeastern Ivanpah Valley was investigated to determine the ability of the aquifer to accept and recover stored water, if acceptable water quality existed in the potential sub-basin storage area, and if structural controls impeded and isolated groundwater flow. The results found evidence the proposed sub-basin is structurally isolated by the McCullough, Roach, and Stateline Faults, which was …

2014 Aquatic Weed Surveys In Timothy Lake, Lake Harriet, North Fork Reservoir, Faraday Lake, And Estacada Lake, Rich Miller, Mark D. Sytsma, Jeffrey Thomas Brittain

Center for Lakes and Reservoirs Publications and Presentations

The Clackamas River Hydroelectric Project No. 2195 (Project) is located on the Oak Grove Fork of the Clackamas River and the mainstem of the Clackamas River in Clackamas County, Oregon. Reservoirs included in the Project include Timothy Lake, Lake Harriet, North Fork Reservoir, Faraday Lake, and Estacada Lake. The operator of the Project, Portland General Electric (PGE), was issued a license on December 21, 2010 by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for continued operations and maintenance. The Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the license noted that regular surveys for invasive aquatic weed species would be conducted as part …

Groundwater Trend Analysis And Salinity Risk Assessment For The South-West Agricultural Region Of Western Australia, 2007–12, G Paul Raper, Russell Speed, John Andrew Simons, A L. Killen, Andrew Blake, A T. Ryder, Rosemary H. Smith, Grantley Stainer, L Bourke

Resource management technical reports

Dryland salinity is a hydrologically driven land degradation hazard in the south-west agricultural region of Western Australia (WA). Shallow-rooted annual crops and pastures transpire significantly less water than the native vegetation they replaced, leading to an increase in recharge, rising groundwater levels and the development of shallow watertables in areas where often none existed previously. Rising groundwater levels mobilise soluble salts, naturally stored at high concentrations in the regolith. These salts can be concentrated in the root zone of vegetation by evapotranspiration.

Methane Production By A Packed-Bed Anaerobic Digester Fed Dairy Barn Flush Water, Sean Richard Thomson

Master's Theses

Packed-bed digesters are an alternative to covered lagoon digesters for methane production and anaerobic treatment of dilute wastewaters such as dairy barn flush water. The physical media of packed-beds retain biofilms, often allowing increased treatment rates. Previous studies have evaluated several types of media for digestion of dilute wastewaters, but cost and media fouling have setback commercial development. A major operational cost has been effluent recirculation pumping.

In the present effort, a novel approach to anaerobic digestion of flush dairy water was developed at pilot-scale: broken walnut shells were used as a low-cost packed-bed medium and effluent recirculation was replaced …

U.S. Drought Monitor, November 25, 2014, Eric Luebehusen

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for November 25, 2014 (11/25/14) 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.

Upward Flow Constructed Wetland For Treatment Of Water Contaminated With Chlorinated Aliphatics, Michael Shelley, Abinash Agrawal, Ke Qin, Garrett Struckhoff, Carl Enfield, James Waldron, Christina Powell

AFIT Patents

An improved upward flow constructed wetland cell for treatment of water contaminated with chlorinated aliphatics is disclosed. The improvements include adding ammonia-oxidizing microorganisms to the methane-oxidizing microorganisms already present in an oxygenated root zone and adding improved pore-water sample chambers for measuring the performance of the constructed wetland cell.

U.S. Drought Monitor, November 18, 2014, Eric Luebehusen

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for November 18, 2014 (11/18/14) 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.

Water Scarcity In The Jordan River Basin, Matthew Cook

Scholarly Horizons: University of Minnesota, Morris Undergraduate Journal

The watershed of the Jordan River stretches over four countries – Jordan, Syria, Israel, and Lebanon – and includes the region of Palestine. With the land and its resources hotly contested by all parties involved, the dwindling supply of drinking and irrigation water from viable sources has led to scrambling exploitation, leaving the river and its connected lakes in an ever-worsening state of deterioration. Increased suspended solids, presence of toxin-producing cyanobacteria, and accelerated evapotranspiration have led to a slower, shallower, murkier, and lower health quality trickle taking the place of the once-revered River Jordan (Comair et al., “Watershed Delineation” …

Agricultural Advisors As Climate Information Intermediaries: Exploring Differences In Capacity To Communicate Climate, Tonya Haigh, Lois Wright Morton, Maria Carmen Lemos, Cody Knutson, Linda Stalker Prokopy, Yun Jia Lo, Jim Angel

National Drought Mitigation Center: Faculty Publications

Although agricultural production faces chronic stress associated with extreme precipitation events, high temperatures, drought, and shifts in climate conditions, adoption of climate information into agricultural decision making has been relatively limited. Agricultural advisors have been shown to play important roles as information intermediaries between scientists and farmers, brokering, translating, and adding value to agronomic and economic information of use in agricultural management decision making. Yet little is known about the readiness of different types of agricultural advisors to use weather and climate information to help their clients manage risk under increasing climate uncertainty. More than 1700 agricultural advisors in four …

U.S. Drought Monitor, November 11, 2014, Matthew Rosencrans

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for November 11, 2014 (11/11/14) 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, November 4, 2014, Matthew Rosencrans

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for November 4, 2014 (11/4/14) 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.

Goomig Farmlands Development Baseline Water Quality In The Lower Keep River, D L. Bennett, Richard J. George Dr

Resource management technical reports

In 2008 the Ord Irrigation Expansion Project was approved by the Western Australian Government to develop irrigated agriculture on the Weaber Plain. By mid-2014 construction of almost all of the water supply, drainage, access, monitoring and other infrastructure for the 7400ha Goomig Farmlands development had substantially been completed. An important concern is the effect the Goomig Farmlands development may have on the water quality of the downstream lower Keep River aquatic environment, particularly as it relates to threatened species that inhabit or may inhabit the area. Possible increases in salinity, nutrients, suspended sediment, heavy metals and farm chemicals delivered in …

Non-Structural Program To Limit E. Coli Within Antelope Creek Lincoln, Nebraska, Jeffrey Polkowski

Community and Regional Planning Program: Professional Projects

Beginning in 2008, The City of Lincoln, Nebraska set forth efforts to reduce pollutant loads within Antelope Creek below U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) criteria with the goal of eventually having segments of the stream removed from the Clean Water Act 303(d) list of impaired waters. Early efforts focus on channel improvements made as part of the Antelope Valley Project to increase the flood carrying capacity of the Creek. However, additional funding is being provided through an intergovernmental agreement between the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality and the City of Lincoln (Grant Number: 56-1283) to allow the City of Lincoln’s …

Efficacy Of Plastic Mesh Tubes In Reducing Herbivory Damage By The Invasive Nutria (Myocastor Coypus) In An Urban Restoration Site, Trevor R. Sheffels, Mark D. Sytsma, Jacoby Carter, Jimmy D. Taylor

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

The restoration of stream corridors is becoming an increasingly important component of urban landscape planning, and the high cost of these projects necessitates the need to understand and address potential ecological obstacles to project success. The nutria (Myocastor coypus) is an invasive, semi-aquatic rodent native to South America that causes detrimental ecological impacts in riparian and wetland habitats throughout its introduced range, and techniques are needed to reduce nutria herbivory damage to urban stream restoration projects. We assessed the efficacy of standard Vexar® plastic mesh tubes in reducing nutria herbivory damage to newly established woody plants. The study was conducted …