SPDSS_NewsletterIssue1_5-03

• Title: SPDSS Newsletter 1
• Description: Issue 1, May 2003. Periodic newsletters providing updates on on-going Decision Support Systems activities.
• Decision Support - Doc Type: Publication
• Date: 5/1/2003
• DSS: South Platte
• Basin: South Platte
• Prepared By: CWCB, DWR

SPDSS Newsletter
Colorado Water Conservation Board, Colorado Division of Water Resources
May 2003 Issue i
Development of a New Decision Support System: SPDSS
State agencies, water providers and water users are
constantly evaluating management of water resources in
response to increases in population and demand, droughts,
endangered species issues and reductions in Federal water
program funding. A comprehensive decision support
system (DSS) is being developed under the direction of
the CWCB and DWR for each of the major river basins in
Colorado. These will provide State of Colorado agencies,
water users and managers a better means for organizing,
accessing and evaluating a wide range of information and
alternative strategies for managing their water resources.
The South Platte Decision Support System
(SPDSS), which is the third DSS to be developed by the
State, will encompass the entire South Platte and North
Platte River basins. The SPDSS will consist of data that
characterize the hydrologic and hydrogeologic features of
these basins and tools that provide enhanced water
administration and water resource planning capabilities.
The emphasis in developing the SPDSS will be on data
collection and making these data readily available to
water users, water managers and State officials. The
overall purpose of the SPDSS is to assist water users and
State officials in developing, managing and preserving the
water resources of the North Platte and South Platte River
basins for the people of Colorado.
In October of 2001, the SPDSS Feasibility Study
was completed, which recommended data collection,
model and tool development activities. SPDSS
development is expected to occur through 2008, at a cost
of approximately $15 million, funded through the CWCB
Construction fund. The first two years of development
(FY2003 through 2004) will be dedicated to data
collection. Four contractors have been hired by the State
for SPDSS development. The contractors and their
components are as follows:
• Project Management Assistance — Brown and
Caldwell
• Consumptive Use, Water Budget and Surface Water
Data Collection — Leonard Rice Consulting Water
Engineers
• GIS and System Integration — Riverside Technology
• Ground Water — CDM
In order for the SPDSS to be a valuable tool to State
agencies, water users and managers, public participation
is critical during the development phase. Various
advisory and technical committees are currently being
formed in order to provide a forum for the public to
provide input regarding data collection and tool
development. In addition, the SPDSS newsletter will be
published throughout the development phase to keep the
public informed about current development activities,
upcoming public meetings, and web- reference
information regarding the SPDSS and other CDSS
products. For more information regarding the SPDSS
Feasibility Study, previously developed CDSS products,
or upcoming activities, visit the CDSS website at
http: / /cdss. state.co.us/
Consumptive Use, Water Budget and Surface Water Data Collection Update
Efforts are underway for collection of data to be
included in the surface water, consumptive use and water
budget modeling tools. These efforts include the
following:
Study Period Documentation. The study period
recommended in the SPDSS Feasibility study (1950 —
2003) has been verified and documented to assure that
data required for the development of DSS components is
available and reliable throughout the study period,
includes wet, dry, and average periods plus represent the
long -term average hydrology of the basin, allows for cost -
effective modeling efforts with regards to data collection,
digitizing and filling, and includes the study period
include the study period used in other modeling efforts.
Key Diversion Structure Selection. The process of
selecting key diversion structures has focused on the
following to date:
• Structures that account for approximately 85
percent of net absolute decree water rights
• Structures with historic annual diversions
greater than 2,000 acre -feet
• Review of available straight -line diagrams
Agricultural Statistics Review. County
Agricultural Statistics have been collected and
summarized. Crops grown in each county during the
recommended study period were provided to the GIS
and Systems Integration Contractor (Riverside
Technology, Inc). Categories of combined crops have
For more information on SPDSS and other CDSS Products, visit http: / /cdss.state.co.us/