Showing papers in "Journal of Contemporary Water Research & Education in 2014"

A Vision for Future Observations for Western U.S. Extreme Precipitation and Flooding

Abstract: Recent and historical events illustrate the vulnerabilities of the U.S. west to extremes in precipitation that result from a range of meteorological phenomena. This vision provides an approach to mitigating impacts of such weather and water extremes that is tailored to the unique meteorological conditions and user needs of the Western U.S. in the 21st Century. It includes observations for tracking, predicting, and managing the occurrence and impacts of major storms and is informed by a range of user-requirements, workshops, scientific advances, and technological demonstrations. The vision recommends innovations and enhancements to existing monitoring networks for rain, snow, snowmelt, flood, and their hydrometeorological precursor conditions, including radars to monitor winds aloft and precipitation, soil moisture sensors, stream gages, and SNOTEL enhancements, as well as entirely new observational tools. Key limitations include monitoring the fuel for heavy precipitation, storms over the eastern Pacific, precipitation distributions, and snow and soil moisture conditions. This article presents motivation and context, and describes key components, an implementation strategy, and expected benefits. This document supports a Resolution of the Western States Water Council for addressing extreme events.

Past, Present, and Future of Water Data Delivery from the U.S. Geological Survey

Abstract: We present an overview of national water databases managed by the U.S. Geological Survey, including surface-water, groundwater, water-quality, and water-use data. These are readily accessible to users through web interfaces and data services. Multiple perspectives of data are provided, including search and retrieval of real-time data and historical data, on-demand current conditions and alert services, data compilations, spatial representations, analytical products, and availability of data across multiple agencies.

Water Data Systems: Science, Practice, and Policy

Abstract: Water agencies, governmental organizations, and non-governmental organizations accountable for water use, development, and conservation are dealing with ways to address changes in water data collection, maintenance, storage, visualization, and communication. As demand for water resources and variability of water availability increases, water data are essential to monitoring changes and finding solutions. Coupled with other data efforts to enhance “big data” and serve critical environmental issues, water data reveal the complex data-scape that demands streamlined data standards across scientific communities where data processing systems are fragmented due to multiple sources and methodologies, limited data sharing, and incomplete data coverage. With a better understanding of some of the discrepancies in the science, practice, and policy of water data systems, we need to consider and implement innovative ways to foster stronger water data sharing arrangements. This special issue on Water Data explores the science, practice, and policy of water data systems, provides examples in which data integration has been successful or ineffective, and explores the technological frontier of water data systems.

Determining the Dynamics of Agricultural Water Use: Cases from Asia and Africa

Abstract: Across Africa and Asia water resources are being affected by a complex mixture of social, economic, and environmental factors. These include climate change and population growth, food prices, oil prices, financial disruptions, and political fluctuations. The need to produce more food will have one of the largest impacts on water and will continue to re-shape the patterns of agricultural water use in major food-growing regions. With this increasing demand on water for agriculture, from large-scale irrigation to intensification of rainfed systems, it is becoming increasingly important to ensure that water resources decision-making has access to information that captures the spectrum of water uses, across seasons, and over time. Furthermore, the major sectors that place demands on water and otherwise affect the resource need water-related information to inform their decisions. In this paper we consider two cases where the range of agricultural water management uses have been examined. We examine the methodologies and approaches used, the utility of this information to decision-making in the water and agricultural sectors, and the limitations of the information gathered.

A Social‐Ecological Framework to Integrate Multiple Objectives for Environmental Flows Management

Abstract: “Environmental flows” is a research discipline that emphasizes freshwater allocation in rivers to sustain desired ecological conditions and human well-being. The basis for environmental flow requirements has traditionally relied on hydrological and ecological data. Contemporary methods focus on detailed hydro-ecological relationships within river ecosystems; however, there is currently no structured approach to systematically incorporate socially relevant data into the environmental flows discipline. To address this limitation we developed a flexible framework that applies a social-ecological systems approach to account for multiple flow-related objectives that reflect both biophysical sustainability and societal preferences. First, we conceptualize the freshwater social-ecological system as a hierarchy of human and environmental domains. Then, we recommend stepwise procedures to assess flow-related vulnerabilities of important system attributes, address their feedbacks, and translate these assessments to a common classification for comparative analyses that guide holistic flow management decisions.

WaDE: An Interoperable Data Exchange Network for Sharing Water Planning and Use Data

Abstract: The Water Data Exchange (WaDE) is a project initiated by the member states of the Western States Water Council (WSWC), in cooperation with the Western Governors’ Association (WGA), to assist state water agencies when answering local, regional, and national water availability questions. WaDE provides requested information more easily, sustainably, and cost-effectively, by streamlining the publication of water planning, use, and allocation data for access by planners, policy makers, and the public. This paper presents the background of the WaDE project, how it was envisioned to function, the types of data it will provide, and why access to the information is important for water managers. The goals of WaDE include the establishment of a governance structure, documentation of the current state agency capabilities and methodologies, and the design of a common data format that targets water data products and/or water-quantity information. Many of these foundational products have been developed, such as governance workgroups, databases, web services code, and a prototype mapping application for centralized access. A major milestone, still underway, is the distribution and deployment of the databases and web services code within member states’ information technology environments. Lastly, WaDE seeks to encourage the publication of other agency datasets using web services and standardized data formats.

Challenges and Opportunities for Collecting and Sharing Data on Water Governance Institutions

Abstract: This article explores the usability and availability of data needed for investigating the interplay between institutional arrangements (i.e. rules, regulations, policy, compacts, laws) and water resource outcomes. It examines a sample of 33 water governance and water research organizations’ websites for publicly available datasets containing linked information on institutions and water resource conditions or outcomes. While scholars and decision-makers alike have identified institutional arrangements as an important aspect of improving water governance, their calls for enhancing publicly available institutional data remain unanswered. Within our sample of websites, few datasets link institutions and water resource conditions or outcomes and those that do limit the institutional data to jurisdictional boundaries. More in-depth and diverse institutional data are required to understand which governance tools and structures do and do not work in varying contexts. This will require funding of strategically located, place-based data collection efforts, more transparent and replicable data collection instruments, and coding and storage of institutional data for enhanced data integration.

Landsat Thermal Infrared Imagery and Western Water Management

Abstract: The Western States Water Council strongly supported the use of thermal infrared sensor (TIRS) data from Landsat 8 (Western States Water Council 2010). TIRS is increasingly important in monitoring consumptive water uses, particularly agricultural uses. Landsat is the only operational satellite system with a spatial resolution (30m) fine enough to map water use field-by-field. TIRS data applications include: Administering state water rights Planning for present and future water needs Implementing interstate compacts, court decrees, and negotiated tribal settlements Mapping evapotranspiration and consumptive surface and groundwater use Protecting endangered species and estimating water use by invasive species Monitoring food supply security Forecasting commodity market fluctuations TIRS is essential to quantify beneficial consumptive use, evaluate water rights transfer requests, monitor interstate water compacts, negotiate tribal water right settlements and interstate agreements, and review water right “calls.” The Landsat data archive tracks temporal changes in water uses over decades. A permanent operational land observation program with TIRS is essential.

Social Observation for Sustainability Science about Water

Abstract: I advance the following argument: (1) Coupled observation of humans and nature at large scale is important to many fundamental questions of sustainability. (2) Current programs observing natural and social systems are inadequate to address fundamental questions of sustainability at coarse scale. (3) Water is an attractive medium around which to design an observation program, and water researchers agree on many characteristics of water-related data needed to advance sustainability science. (4) A program of coupled observation around water will need to be (a) realistic about attainable scope, (b) design data collection scientifically to be representative at useful scale(s) and of both humans and the hydrosphere, (c) leverage existing data collection programs, (d) explore new ways of protecting privacy while enhancing spatial resolution of data and (e) include data on social institutions as well as individuals.