2. Chapter 14 Water: A Limited Resource

3. Overview of Chapter 14 Importance of Water
Hydrologic Cycle
Water Use and Resource Problems
Too Much Water
Too Little Water
Water Problems in US and Canada
Global Water Problems
Sharing Water Resources
Water Management
Providing Sustainable Water Supply
Water Conservation

4. Importance of Water Cooking Washing Use large amounts for:
Agriculture
Manufacturing
Mining
Energy production
Waste disposal
Use of freshwater is increasing

5. Properties of Water Composed of 2 Hydrogen and 1 oxygen
Exists as solid, liquid or gas
High heat capacity
Polar
One end has (+) charge, one end has (-) charge
Forms Hydrogen bond between 2 water molecules
H-bonds define water’s physical properties

6. Properties of Water Water is never completely pure in nature
Content of seawater (left)
Many substances water dissolves cause water pollution

7. Hydrologic Cycle

8. Distribution of Water Only 2.5% of water on earth is freshwater
2% is in the form of ice!
Only ~0.5% of water on earth is available freshwater

9. Freshwater Terminology
Surface water
Precipitation that remains on the surface and does not seep into soil
Runoff
Movement of surface water to lakes, rivers, etc.
Watershed (drainage basin)
Land area that delivers water into a stream or river system
Groundwater
Freshwater under the earth’s surface stored in aquifers
Aquifer
Underground caverns and porous layers of sand, gravel and rock in which groundwater is stored

10. Freshwater Aquifer

11. Water Use and Resource Problems
Fall into Three Categories
Too much water
Too little water
Poor quality/contamination (discussed in Chapter 22)

12. Too Much Water Flooding
Both natural and human-induced
Modern floods are highly destructive because humans:
Remove water-absorbing plant cover from soil
Construct buildings on floodplains
Floodplain
Area bordering a river channel that has the potential to flood

13. Urban vs. Pre-Urban Floodplains

14. Floodplain Government restrictions on building
Levees can fail
Rather than rebuild levees adjacent to rivers, experts suggest allowing some flooding of floodplains during floods
(next slide)

15. Left: Traditional levees adjacent to river
Right: Suggested levee style, set back from river

16. Case-In-Point Floods of 1993

17. Too Little Water Typically found in arid land Problems Drought
Overdrawing water
for irrigation
purposes
Aquifer depletion
Subsidence
Sinkholes

18. Too Little Water
Problems (continued)
Saltwater Intrusion

19. Water Problems In US and Canada
US has a plentiful supply of freshwater
Many areas have a severe shortages
Geographical variations
Seasonal variations

20. Water Problems in US and Canada
Water shortages in West and Southwest
Water is diverted and transported via aqueducts

21. Water Problems in US and Canada- Surface Water
Mono Lake (Eastern CA)
Rivers and streams that once fed this lake are diverted to Los Angeles (275mi away)
Becoming highly saline
Court ordered water diversion reduction
Colorado River Basin
Provides water for 27-million people
Numerous dams for Hydropower
Colorado River no longer reaches ocean

22. Colorado River bed in Mexico

23. Water Problems in US and Canada- Groundwater
Aquifer Depletion
Ogallala Aquifer

24. Global Water Problems
Amount of freshwater on planet CAN meet human needs
BUT, it is unevenly distributed and some places lack stable runoff
Problems:
Climate Change
Drinking Water
Population Growth
Sharing Water Resources Among Countries

25. Global Water Problems Water and Climate Change
Climate change affects the type and distribution of precipitation
Potential issues:
Reduced snowfall will impact water resources downstream
Sea level rise will cause saltwater intrusion into drinking water supplies

26. Global Water Problems Drinking Water Problems Population Growth
Many developing countries have insufficient water to meet drinking and household needs
Population Growth
Increase in population means an increase in freshwater requirements
Limits drinking water available
Limits water available for agriculture (food)

27. Global Water Problems Sharing Water Resources Among Countries
Rhine River Basin (right)
Countries upstream discharged pollutants into river
Countries downstream had to pay to clean the water before they could drink it
Aral Sea (next slide)
Water diversion for irrigation has caused sea to become too saline

28. Aral Sea
1967
1997

29. Global Water Problems
Potentially Volatile International Water Situations
Jordan River
Nile River

30. Water Management
Main Goal: Provide sustainable supply of high-quality water
Requires humans to use resource carefully
Dams and Reservoirs
Water Diversion Projects
Desalinization

31. Dams and Reservoirs Benefits: Disadvantages
Ensure year-round supply of water with regulated flow
Generate electricity
Provide recreational activities
Disadvantages
Alter the ecosystem
Reduce sediment load

32. Dams and Reservoirs Glen Canyon Dam To rectify situation
Regulated flow has changed ecosystem
To rectify situation
Canyon has been flooded several times
Small floods compared to natural floods
Still helps rebuild habitat

33. Dams and Reservoirs
Salmon Population in Columbia R. very low due to dams that impede migration
Fish ladders help, but are not effective enough

34. Water Diversion Projects
Requires diverting water to areas that are deficient by pumping through a system of aqueducts
Much of CA’s receives its water supply from diverted water from Northern CA
Controversial and expensive

35. Desalinization Removal of salt from ocean or brackish water
Two methods:
Distillation- salt water is evaporated, and water vapor is condensed into freshwater (salt left behind)
Reverse Osmosis- involves forcing salt water through a membrane permeable to water, but not salt
Very expensive

36. Water Conservation Reducing Agricultural Water Waste
Agriculture is very inefficient with water
Microirrigation- irrigation that conserves waster by piping to
crops through sealed
systems
Also called drip or
trickle irrigation

37. Water Conservation Reducing Industrial Water Waste
Stricter laws provide incentive to conserve water
Recycling water within the plant
Water scarcity (in addition to stricter pollution control requirements) will encourage further industrial recycling
Potential to conserve water is huge!

38. Water Conservation Reducing Municipal Water Waste Gray Water
Can be used to flush toilets, wash car or water lawn
Water saving household fixtures
Government incentives

39. Conserving at Home Install water-saving shower heads and faucets
Install low-flush toilets
Fix leaky fixtures
Purchase high efficiency appliances
Modify personal habits
Use the dishwasher instead of washing by hand

40. NRCS Water Resource Information Systems
Claudia C. Hoeft, P.E.
National Hydraulic Engineer
National Program Manager – Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting Program
Natural Resources Conservation Service
Washington, DC

41. Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting Program
Mission
Program History
Data collection
Water supply forecasts
Climate services
New products
Future directions
Just run through the bullets

42. Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting Program
Mission
“…to lead a national cooperative program that provides snow, water and climate information. Our products and services help people use, conserve, improve, and sustain our natural resources and environment.”
More boilerplate

43. NRCS Strategic Goals High Quality Productive Soils
Clean and Abundant Water
Healthy Plant and Animal Communities
Clean Air
Adequate Energy Supplies
Working with Farm and Ranch Lands
These goals are part of the NRCS Strategic Plan
Please note that clean and abundant water are a strategic goal.

44. Population Increases (1990-2000)
Population increases from in %
Annual electricity consumption growth rates from 1988 to 1998 (%)
Source: California Energy Commission, Electricity Analysis Office
Population growth will be one of the major issues of the next 50 years.
The West grew rapidly between
Greatest growth in the driest states! NV, AZ
There is only so much water available.

45. Population Projections
( )
Greatest increases expected in the driest states.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
NEEDS: FRESH WATER!
Western populations expected to grow.
Major reservoir construction unlikely.
Continued increases in power likely.
Need to manage what we have better.
Track climate (SNOTEL) and make informed decisions before it is too late!

46. Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting Program
12 western states including Alaska
60 FTE (36 Field, 24 NWCC)
25.5M acres of irrigated agriculture
$51.1B in annual market value (Ag. Census, 2002)
Run thru the bullets

47. A Century Of Progress
Initial snow studies by Dr. Church Lake Tahoe
Snow survey sampler perfected
First water supply forecast issued
1930s – Cooperative Snow Survey Program Established (CFR Title 7, part 612) within USDA
Bullets

48. Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting Program
Customers
Sovereign Nations
Canada, Mexico, Native American Nations
Technology exchange with China, Mongolia, Antarctica, Europe
Federal Departments & Agencies
Agriculture, Interior, Commerce, Defense, Energy, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Environmental Protection Agency, Bonneville Power Administration, Federal Water Masters
State and Local Agencies
State and Interstate Organizations involved in: Drought Planning, Water Resources, Emergency Preparedness, Planning & Zoning, Forestry, Lands, Recreation and Tourism.
Just whip thru these…

49. Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting Program
Customers
Non-Governmental Entities
Soil and Water Conservation Districts, University Researchers, Natural Resource Management Businesses, Private Citizens, Agricultural and Forestry Industry Cooperators
Water Utilities, Irrigation Districts, Limited Resource Farmers, Construction Contractors, Consulting Meteorologists, Hydrologists and Engineers
Educators and Schools, Energy and Power Generation Companies, Landscape Architects, Media, Recreational Interests and Transportation Companies.
Just whip thru these.

50. NRCS SNOTEL Network 12 western states 730+ sites
16 million observations (2005)
16.1 million downloads
920 manual snow courses
Includes Alaska
SNOTEL are red, snow courses blue
Started in the middle 1970s, this is the largest permanent high elevation climate network in the U.S.
SNOTEL provides at least daily data.
A very busy website, well over a million hits/month.
6.4 million downloads since October 1, 2006
Snow courses read once/month, Jan-May

51. Meteor-burst Technology
SNOTEL uses meteor-burst communications technology to collect and communicate data in near-real-time.
VHF radio signals are reflected at a steep angle off the ever present band of ionized meteorites existing from about 50 to 75 miles above the earth.
Satellites are not involved; NRCS operates and controls the entire system.
The system can pick up signals from the most remote locations.

52. SNOTEL Site Augmented Data Array
Snow water content
Precipitation
Temperature
Snow depth
Relative humidity
Wind speed/direction
Solar radiation
Soil moisture / temperature
SNOTEL sites can transmit data hourly, or as frequently as necessary.
These augmented parameters are very important for simulation models and can be used to verify remote observations from satellites.

53. NWCC Webpage www.wcc.nrcs.usda.gov
NWCC homepage
Water Supply
SNOTEL
Snow Course Data
Climate
GIS Products - new

54. NWCC Webpage Map-based interface to datasets
Special reports available for specific sensors

55. NWCC Webpage
Rapid access to data organized by data time and frequency of observation real-time hourly - historical
Site picture where available
Sensor history
Tables, tab-delimited, year or period of record
Graphs

56. Mt. Rose SNOTEL Data
Users can immediately see current year compared to last year.
Plots for all years available.

57. Daily State Map - Colorado
Daily maps of
SWE, PRCP, TEMP, Snow Depth for all SNOTEL sites.

58. Soil Climate Analysis Network
SCAN (Soil Climate Analysis Network)
118 sites in 39 states
Soil-climate monitoring
956K downloads in 2006
Critical for drought monitoring
Started in the early 1990s, this network has a Midwest and East focus.
One of the very few real-time soil moisture and soil temperature networks in the U.S.
The High Plains Regional Climate Center operates one, but only at the 4” depth.
NRCS has worked with manufacturers to perfect the technology. Vitel sensors are installed on the network one sensor measures moisture and temperature.
For a limited area, provides ground truth for validation of soil moisture models or remote sensing values.

59. Johnson Farm, Nebraska SCAN Site
Typical Midwest installation.
Small footprint.
Solar powered.
Soil moisture/temperature – 2, 4, 8, 20, 40 inch depths
Precipitation
Temperature
Wind speed/direction
Relative humidity
Solar radiation
Snow water equivalent and depth in appropriate regions.

60. SCAN Data Plot

61. Water Supply Forecasts
Water Year 2006
740 locations forecast Jan-Jun with NWS
Over 11,534 forecasts issued by states to users
Over 1.9M visits to WSF pages
We do this every Jan-Jun in cooperation with the National Weather Service.
Each month about 60,000 unique customers download forecasts.

62. New Products - Viewers
Google Earth
SNOTEL
Water Supply Forecasts
SNOTEL and WSF
Each location is color coded to indicate % of average.
Rapid navigation to each point, click and site specific information is displayed.

63. New Products - WSF
Significant rain or snow events can happen anytime.
Since we only issue official WSF once a month users want to know the effects of a prolonged dry period or heavy rain/snow event are having on WSF between official issue dates.
Here we see a significant precipitation/snow event for Wesner Spring, NM the end of December.
Rapid changes in snowpack affect water supply forecasts

64. New Products - WSF Daily water supply forecasts use daily SNOTEL data
NWCC has developed a daily WSF process that uses daily precipitation and snowpack information from SNOTEL sites to calibrate a statistical model for every day of the year.
The model is run every day and provides trend analysis between the official forecast dates.
This image illustrates the impact of the recent event on expected March-July streamflow volumes for the Pecos River at Anton Chico, NM.
Exceedance probabilities are shown for 10, 30, 50, 70, 90%
Daily water supply forecasts use daily SNOTEL data

65. New Products – Climate Maps
Maps of snowpack, precipitation, temperature
Long-term partnership with Oregon State University
Mapping of normals and monthly
Precipitation
Temperature
Dewpoint
Growing season length
Plant Hardiness map
These are the benchmark climate maps for the U.S.
Oregon State University

66. Future Directions
Further automating of manual snow courses to SNOTEL sites where real-time information is needed to provide water supply forecasts.
Expansion of SCAN to provide governments, water managers, agricultural producers, businesses and researchers improved information about soil moisture conditions and potential droughts.
Improving models and computational capacity to provide more frequent and accurate water supply forecasts and assessments of soil moisture.
These goals will all help the research community.

67. Thank You!
Questions?