CWES

Center for Watersheds and Environmental Sustainability

Projects: Lake Tahoe Projects · Walker Lake Watershed Projects · Other Watershed Projects

Projects: CWES International and other Western Watershed Projects

Ghana and Mali, West Africa

In Ghana and Mali in West Africa, watershed studies to evaluate the sustainability of water resources are being conducted. The Sahel region of West Africa is undergoing desertification and this combined with increasing water demands in rural parts of these countries makes knowing the sustainable available water resources of this area critical. The current studies indicate that although it is difficult to drill productive wells, well production primarily for domestic use and livestock watering, will be sustainable in the near future (link to report pdfs). However, as groundwater use for agriculture during the dry season increases this water resource will have limits.

Egypt

A new project evaluating water resources in three watersheds in northeastern Egypt is underway with a visiting scientist from Egypt. This project is investigating the availability and sources of water in three wadis that originate in the arid mountains and drain to the Red Sea. Sustainable water resources in these watersheds are critical to development of tourist resorts in this area and the local economy.

Carson River Basin

CWES worked with the BLM in developing a project for watershed-scale planning studies of the Carson River basin above Lahontan Reservoir. This request is one of the first projects funded under the Western Water Initiative, Water 2025 project, to help avoid and mitigate conflicts over water use in the western United States. Additional DRI research in the Carson River basin includes identifying sources of phosphorus within the basin and monitoring Tahoe effluent use in Carson Valley. A soon to be started project will involve evaluating available water resources in the Carson River watershed.

Colorado River

Current projects in the lower Colorado under eco-engineering at DRI include:

Quagga Mussel Invasion In Lake Mead: Ecological Impact and Containment
Lake Mead is the largest reservoir in the US and one of the most important water resources in the West. In January of 2007, Quagga mussels (Dreissena bugensis) were discovered in Lake Mead, for the first time west of the 100th meridian. This invasive species and the related Zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) have disrupted ecosystems in a number of waterways elsewhere in the US and have cost billions of dollars in control efforts. Given the seriousness of the recent Quagga mussel invasion for the ecology and economy of the broader region, and for the overall management of the important water resources of the region, the primary goal of the proposed research is to study the ecology and biology of Quagga mussels and their impact on aquatic biodiversity and water quality in Lake Mead. The research will also focus on the potential of Quagga mussels to bioaccumulate metalloids under local conditions and ways and means for population containment in the Lower Colorado River. This study will use and contribute to the collection of data on Quagga mussels already under way by local, state, and federal agencies. The proposed study will also contribute to the development of local expertise, necessary to address this serious ecological and economic problem.

PIs: Kumud Acharya and Lambis Papelis
Funding agency: USGS-Water Research Institute

Hydrodynamic Modeling of Lake Mead
Lake Mead is one of the most important water bodies in the United States; providing recreational opportunities, fish and wildlife habitat, and drinking, irrigation, and industrial water for approximately 25 million people. Consequently, it is crucial that the quality of this water be maintained to provide a reliable and safe source of water for its many uses. Rapid urban development in Southern Nevada, combined with modified upstream land use and extended drought, has gradually degraded Lake Mead water quality while water levels have dropped to approximately 50% of total storage volume. Degradation of water quality was demonstrated by an intense algal bloom throughout Boulder Basin in the spring of 2001. The goal of DRI’s research is to develop an hydrodynamic model of Lake Mead to investigate changes in circulation and eutrophication of the lake under dropping water surface levels. The model will integrate previous water monitoring efforts, improve understanding of lake circulation, and provide the framework for a robust adaptive management tool for Lake Mead.

PI: Mark Stone
Funding agency: USGS-Water Research Institute

Comparative Studies Between Native (Western China) and Invasive Tamarisk (Lower Colorado Basin)
Tamarisks have been aggressively recruited in parts of China (Taklimakan Desert, in the south-west of China’s Xingiang Uygur Autonomous Region) to fight desertification. Tamarisk is a unique species, native to Western China and central Asia, that lives up to 100 years in both waterlogged and saline soils, making it an ideal species to reverse environmental degradation. Tamarisks also provide a sustainable resource for firewood production at a rate of about 5 tons per hectare. Tamarisk species have also helped rehabilitate the land for a more viable agricultural production. However, tamarisk is an invasive species in North America, first propagated on the continent in the mid nineteenth century. Since that time it has spread rapidly, especially in the western part of the country, including the Lower Colorado Basin. Due to its long life span, rapid reproduction, a fast growth rate of up to 4 centimeters per day, high water consumption, and an ability to grow and thrive in a variety of environmental conditions, tamarisk have out-competed many of the native species in the region such as Cottonwood, Mesquite and Willows; particularly in riparian zones.

The contrast between the beneficial use of tamarisk in its native environment (Western China) versus its nuisance growth in an invasive environment (Colorado River Basin), provides a unique opportunity for scientific study. Improved understanding of the life history and nutrient cycling characteristics of this species will allow scientists to better propagate this species in desired environments and eliminate it in undesirable conditions. This research is being conducted in collaboration with researchers at the Arid Lands Research Center at Tottori University in Japan.

PIs: Kumud Acharya and Mark Stone
Funding agency: Global Center of Excellence for Dry Land Science, Tottori University, Japan

Evapotranspiration Monitoring Methods Within an Irrigated Mixed Vegetation Environment
The Colorado River is one of the most heavily used river systems in the world and as such accurate water accounting methods are vital. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) is charged with accounting for the Colorado River’s water use. One tool Reclamation uses to accomplish this is the Lower Colorado River Accounting System (LCRAS). This system uses a combination of remote sensing (RS) a crop coefficient method to calculate agriculture and phreatophyte evapotranspiration (ET), a crucial component to any water budget. ET was measured within a complex irrigated phreatophyte field using the Bowen-Ratio energy balance (BREB) method. In the same field, ET estimates were calculated using LCRAS methodology and three RS Vegetation Index (VI) techniques were tested using different regression analyses. The accuracy of ET estimates was determined by comparison with measured ET. LCRAS ET estimates results ranged from a root mean error (RME) of 0.156 to 0.072 mm per day. RS ET estimates results ranged from a RME of 0.042 to 0.018 mm per day. RS VI methods seem to be more adequate for estimating ET within complex phreatophyte communities than LCRAS estimated ET.

PIs: Mark Stone (DRI) and Jeremy Dodds (USBOR)
Funding agency: U.S. Bureau of Reclamation

Available Report(s)

Characterization of Turbidity and Total Suspended Solids in the Upper Carson River, Nevada (PDF)

Slideshow images above from Colorado river research projects showing field views