Drought Management and Its Impact on Public Water Systems Report on a Colloquium Sponsored by the Water Science and Technology Board (1986) / Chapter Skim
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1. Dimensions of Drought Management for Public Water Supplies, colloquium keynote address
1. Dimensions of Drought Management for Public Water Supplies, colloquium keynote address
Pages 11-23
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From page 11... ...
White Institute of Behavioral Science, University of Colorado, Boulder Among the several hazards to which public water supply management is subject, drought imposes a few distinctive problems as well as shares in others common to most natural resources use. It comes on very slowly, its losses are particularly amenable to short-term mitigation by individual consumers, and it has a unique spatial pattern of appropriate remedial or preventive measures.
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From page 12... ...
The term "drought" is used in this context to mean a period of time during which, as a result of abnormally low precipitation, the supply of surface water and water in shallow aquifers is reduced below that safe yield expected in most years, the recurrence interval being set by hydrologic analysis or the vulnerability of water supply systems. It does not have the precision of agricultural definitions of drought, such as the Palmer index, in which deficiencies of precipitation are determined by relations to evapotranspiration, soil moisture, and crop needs.
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From page 13... ...
consequences of sudden disruptions of water systems, it can be seen that managers faced with allocations of meager funds for improvement may be inclined to rate the drought as less important. For example, a waterworks TABLE 1-1 Characteristics of Selected Hazards to Public Water Supplies Characteristics Hazard Onset Duration Frequency (days)
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From page 14... ...
The Eastern Seaboard drought of the 1960s inspired a series of more detailed appraisals of water supply adequacy in the event of persistently low precipitation. These included the Corps of Engineers Northeastern United States Water Supply Study (U.S Corps of Engineers, 1975)
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From page 15... ...
and To Decrease Withdrawals To Increase Supply Restrictions Domestic 87 Industrial 59 New sources Reservoirs 13 Ground water 49 Price 15 Improve existing Reservoir 26 Meter 8 Ground water 16 Leak repair 8 Emergency supplies 26 23 18 Surface Ground Purchase Weather modification 2 SOURCE: Russell et al.
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From page 16... ...
These are population size, rates of growth or decline, ground-water availability, and agricultural use of water. Records of past drought episodes suggest that, with notable exceptions, it is the smaller municipalities and those with poor planning and meager surface water supplies that have higher probabilities of suffering shortage.
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From page 17... ...
Those with access to good quality ground water often find ways of improvising in times of shortage or of providing in advance for reserves to be available. Thus, cities located in the glaciated Central Plains may be more likely to provide reserve or emergency supplies when surface sources attenuate than those in the unglaciated Central Plains (Heath, 1984~.
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From page 18... ...
Largely at the initiative of environmental advocacy groups, pioneering efforts have been launched to promote water conservation measures in the Imperial Valley and to manage demand as a substitute for structural measures in the Denver metropolitan area. Less conspicuous but possibly as significant is the evolution of regional or district institutional machinery to plan and operate water and waste disposal systems encompassing several cities.
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From page 19... ...
All sorts of emergency measures are being or may be taken, including rationing, temporary supplemental sources, intermittent service, and hauling water. In Colorado during the 1970s drought, the most ineffective municipalities resorted to such measures and were rewarded by receiving state and federal emergency financial assistance.
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From page 20... ...
The provision of suitable data and technical assistance to municipal governments lacking the competence or willingness to anticipate drought currently is far from effective, and there is question as to how it might be enhanced. The innovation and testing of new legal and administrative devices to permit municipalities to join in water management, to operate a market for water rights, and to share experience in planning and gaining public acceptance for water conservation measures deserve vigorous support beyond what is already under way.
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From page 21... ...
1982. The Effects of Water Conservation on New Water Supply for Urban Colorado Utilities.
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From page 22... ...
1983. Effects of a carbon dioxide-induced climate change on water supplies in the western United States, in Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate, National Research Council, Changing Climate: Report of the Carbon Dioxide Assessment Committee.
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From page 23... ...
1935. Shortage of public water supplies in the United States during 1934.
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