Laserfiche WebLink
<br /> <br />~IK <br /> <br />March 5,2001 <br /> <br />Integrated Decision Support (IDS) Group <br />Colorado State University Water Center <br />Fort Collins, Colorado 80523 <br />htlp ://ids.colostate.edu <br />(970) 491-7620 <br /> <br />Dear Reader: <br /> <br />Water managers in the South Platte are facing competing water demands. These <br />demands include sustaining irrigated food production, providing high quality water to <br />growing populations, and establishing flow conditions in the South Platte River to protect <br />habitats for threatened and endangered species. To address these demands, managers <br />require the use of computer-based technology to support decision making in the hope that <br />water demands can be met in the best possible manner. This is especially true in the lower <br />portion of the basin (from Denver to the state border) where the South Platte is underlaid <br />by a shallow alluvial aquifer and the highest water demand is from irrigated agriculture. <br /> <br />In conjunction with an advisory committee comprised of representatives of water user <br />organizations in the Lower South Platte Basin, modeling and analysis tools have been <br />developed by the Integrated Decision Support (IDS) Group to address the informational <br />needs of water user groups. These tools are expressly designed for the combination of <br />ground and surface water supplies found in the Lower South Platte Basin. Water user <br />organizations are applying these tools in water resources planning and using them to <br />determine augmentation requirements and recharge benefits to flows in the South Platte <br />River. Tools include the development of a spatial database with analysis tools, a <br />consumptive use model for the South Platte, and a stream depletion factor interface to <br />determine the impacts of groundwater withdrawals and recharges on river flows. This <br />report will detail the software developed and provide a description of how these tools are <br />being used to meet the needs of water providers in the Lower South Platte Basin. <br /> <br />This collaborative effort of water user groups and IDS Group is an excellent example <br />of decision support system development and utilization. IDS with continual direction and <br />feedback from water users has developed the tools, and the water users are applying these <br />tools for water management decision making. This decision support system is not a static <br />snap shot or the result of "one modeling scenario" but a dynamic tool where water users <br />can test various parameters to determine the best decisions now and in the future. <br /> <br /> <br />~lte~~ <br /> <br />~ar <br /> <br />Jack Odor, GASP <br />