WSP05034

• File Number: 8273.100
• Description: Colorado River Basin Salinity Control - Federal Agencies - Bureau of Reclamation
• Basin: Colorado Mainstem
• Water Division: 5
• Date: 7/1/1987
• Author: BOR
• Title: Monitoring and Evaluation of Salinity Control Projects - Interim Guide for the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Program
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

8960

Use of Monitoring Data
In Basinwide Analyses
Data provided by project investigators is consolidated by
the Colorado' River Water Quality Office and used to
evaluate the entire salinity control program. The process
involves comparing program accomp~en!s and es~
timated project impacts with program obJectIves. This
analysis includes three steps:

1, Predict future salinity conditions and determine
program objectives using the CRSS (Colorado River
Simulation System),

2. Establish a program implementation schedule using
the least-cost investment mode~ and '

3. Confmn the validity of the implementation schedule
using the CRSS model.
/
The results of the program analysis are published annually,
Project investigators should be familiar with this analysis,
including the information in the basic data tables, to en-
sure that the data they are providing are adequate Jor use
ill updating the analysis,

Development of
Monitoring and Evaluation Plans
The SCS has responsibility for monitoring and evaluation
activities for agricultural source units in accordance with
the provisions of Public Law 98,569. The Bureau of
Reclamation will coordinate their monitoring and
evaluation activities in agricultural source areas with the
SCS and provide technical assistance in meeting the
program goals and reporting annual progress, Since, as a
general rule the SCS will continue working in a project
area after Reclamation facilities construction is complete,
this arrangement will provide continnity for the salinity
control monitoring and evaluation effort throughout the
implementation period.

It is useful to distinguish between monitoring and inven-
tory, Inventories provide a broad quanitification,
characterization, or classification of resource conditions,
While in some cases inventory data may be useful in estab-
Iishing baseline conditions for monitoring, in most cases
the sampling designs associated with broad inventories will
be inadequate to quantify the effects management
strategies have on specific salt load reduction goals.
Properly acquired monitoring data quantifies the e,ffects
implementation strategies have on salt load r~uclion,
provides information for planning and analysu;, and
validates or calibrates simulation models.

The Bureau of Reclamation will develop separate monitor-
ing and evaluation plans for point and diffuse source units
and will continue to carry out the basinwide monitoring
program described in the previous section of this report.

The salinity control program is being conducted in direct
response to the implementation schedule included in the
1986 Evaluation Report which identifies needs for salt load
reduction, whether onfarm or off, farm. An M&E
(Monitoring and Evaluation) plan should be developed as
a part of project planning and implementation, A monitor-
ing section should be included as a part of the planning
report, As a minimum the monitoring section should docu-
ment monitoring activities, from design of a data collection
program through reporting and interpretation of results,
and should containthe.following items:

1. Statement of the problem
2. Monitoring objectives
3, Methods used
4, Data acquisition design (frequency, intensity)
5, Data analysis
6. Data interpretation
7. Implementation

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