Dam and Reservoir Influences on the Dynamics of the

Boise River BasinEvan Norman, Sara Kaster, Wyatt Medley

Boise State UniversityGeos 498

Boise River Dams

NEGATIVE IMPACTS◈ Riparian species

◈ Aquatic life

◈ Wildlife

POSITIVE IMPACTS◈ Hydropower

◈ Water resources and storage

◈ Flood control

Can storage and structure yield a healthy environment while sustaining water needs?

Upper Dams

Anderson Ranch Photo by Wyatt Medley

Arrowrock Lucky Peak Diversion http://aptaperture.com/2010/10/14/wyoming-utah-and-idaho/Photo by Evan Norman Photo by Evan Norman

PourpointLocation

Watershed Area (km2)

Diversion 22.55

Lucky Peak 1213.55

Arrowrock 3212.64

Anderson Ranch 2527.03

StorageGraf, W. (1999) - reservoir storage provides a relative measure of changes in flow regimes and downstream effects.- ratio of storage capacity to annual runoff in a watershed highlight areas with greatest change in discharge (GP, RM, SW).

Eastern U.S. Western U.S.

Total Capacity (af) 162,327,587 217,694,485

Average Capacity (af) 2,135,889 4,535,302Dept. of the Interior,Bureau of Reclamation

Local Reservoir Capacities (acre-feet)◈ Anderson Ranch = 413,100◈ Arrowrock = 272,000◈ Lucky Peak = 264,400

Spatial Distribution and Size of Reservoirs in the U.S.

*East and West was determined by the 98th meridian and corresponding annual precipitation. (West<20 in/yr, East>20 in/yr)*Dataset includes the largest reservoirs in the U.S. (storage capacity greater than or equal to 1,000,000 acre-feet)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_reservoirs_in_the_United_States

Storage Key Points◈ The ratio of storage capacity to annual runoff and reservoir size are the

most significant contributors to downstream impacts (Graf, 1999).◈ Climate impact on storage - determines the capacity of reservoirs.

Impacts◈ Sedimentation◈ Agriculture◈ Riparian Species◈ Water Quality

(Syvitski, Vorosmarty, Kettner, & Green, 2005).

Sediment Flux

Sedimentation Surveys of Boise River Reservoirs

Anderson Ranch Arrowrock Lucky Peak

Construction Completed 1950 1915 1955

Sediment Survey (Agency) 1998 (BOR) 1997 (BOR) 2005 (USACE)

Storage Capacity (acre-feet) 413,100 272,000 264,000

Volume Lost (acre-feet) 18,236 19,376 N/A

Annual Capacity Lost (acre-feet/year) 346.7 235.4 N/A

Percent Lost 3.7 6.6 N/Ahttp://www.usbr.gov/pmts/sediment/projects/ReservoirSurveys/

Local Water Availability ◈ Demand- use, consumption, need, economics (Merrett, 2009)

◈ Annual SRP water diversions change from demand to supply driven (Hoekema and Sridhar., 2011)

◈ Seasonal melting (Marks et al., 2010)

◈ 2080 peak streamflow will change from April to late February (Vano et al., 2010)

Changes in Minimum and Maximum Temperatures at Low to High Elevations in the RCEW

(Nayak et al. 2010)

Watershed elevation range of the upper Boise dams: 847-3197 m

High Elevation Site2093m

Mid elevation Site:1652 m

Low Elevation Site:1200m

Year (1962- 2007)

Tmin

(C)

Tmax (C

)Tm

in (C

)Tm

in (C

)Tm

ax (C)

Tmax (C

)

Agriculture◈ Storage depicts farming practices (Hoekema and Sridhar., 2011)

◈ New York Canal irrigation recharge (Hoekema, 2011)

◈ Upstream users vs. downstream users (Hoekema, 2011)

◈ Chances junior water rights holders will have unavailable water increases from 27% in 2020 to 33% in 2040 and 68% in 2080 (Vano et al., 2010)

Boise River Seasonal Water Diversions

(Hansen et al. 2014)

Flows Impact on Water QualityLiu et al (2014)

◈ Speed & Volume

◈ Temperature

◈ Sediment transport

◈ Nutrient loadings

http://www.destination360.com/north-america/us/idaho/snake-river-canyon

Water Quality in Streams

http://www.vtwaterquality.org/wqd_mgtplan/swms_appC.htm

Riparian Species and Aquatic Life

◈ 19 species of concern

(Chinook, Steelhead, Sockeye)

◈ Levels of dissolved oxygen

◈ Temperature changes

http://www.oceanlight.com/log/adams-river-sockeye-salmon-swimming-upstream.html

Boise River’s Sharp Drop

http://boisestatepublicradio.org/post/power-outage-may-have-caused-boise-rivers-sharp-drop-overnight

Why We Care?

http://boiseriverwildtrout.blogspot.com/

http://boiseguardian.com/2013/08/30/theres-gold-in-the-boise-river/

Recreation FishingAgriculture

http://www.panoramio.com/photo/29331494

Positive Impacts Negative ImpactsStorage Storage

Flood control Channel morphology

Agriculture Fish and riparian species

Recreation Water quality

Hydropower Sediment transport

Electricity revenue Maintenance costs

Who has priority?

ReferencesWebsites: Idaho Rivers United

Gordon, E., Meentemeyer K. (2006) Effects of dam operation and land use on stream morphology and riparian vegetation. Geomorphology v 82, p. 412-429

Graf, W. (1999) Dam nation: A geographic census of American dams and their large-scale hydrologic impacts. Water Resources Research v. 35 p. 1305-1311

Hansen, Z., Lowe, S., Xu, W. (2014) Long-term impacts of major water storage facilities on agriculture and the natural environment: Evidence from Idaho (U.s) Ecological Economics v.100, p. 106-118

Hoekema, D., Sridhar, V., (2011) Relating climatic attributes and water resources allocation: A study using surface water supply and soil moisture indices in the Snake River basin, Idaho. Water Resources Research v. 47 DOI: 10.1029/2010WR0096970

Liu, Y., Yang W., Yu Z., Lung, I., Yarotski, J., Elliott, J., and Tiessen, K. (2014) Assessing the Effects of Small Dams on Stream Flow and Water Quality in Agricultural Watershed. Journal of Hydrologic Engineering v 19, p. 1237-1240

Merrett,S. (2004) The Demand for Water: Four Interpretations, Water International, v. 29:1, p. 27-29, DOI: 10.1080/02508060408691745

Nayak A, Marks D, Chandler DG, Seyfried M. (2010) Long-term snow, climate, and streamflow trends at the Reynolds Creek Experimental Watershed, Owyhee Mountains, Idaho, United States. Water Resources Research v. 46: W06519. DOI: 10.1029/2008WR007525

Syvitski, J., Vorosmarty, C., Kettner, A., Green, P. (2005) Impact of humans on the flux of terrestrial sediment to the global coastal ocean. Science. v. 308, p. 376-380

Vano, J., Scott, M., Voisin, N., Stockle, C., Hamlet, A., Mickelson, K., Elsner, M., & Lettenmaier, D. (2010) Climate change impacts on water management and irrigated agriculture in the Yakima River Basin, Washington, USA. Climatic Change. v. 102, p 287 – 317.