Georgia Water Resources Conference

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Georgia Water Resources Conference

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https://hdl.handle.net/1853/70886

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Georgia Water Resources Institute

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Source water protection strategies for metro Atlanta watersheds

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2003-04) Horton, Betsy ; Daniel, Cindy ; Warren, Linda ; Baughman, Doug

Source water is a finite resource that needs to be protected for the long-term benefit of human health. The current approach for protection of source water is two-fold: assessment of existing vulnerability of a source water watershed to contamination and development of a protection plan. The US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and Georgia Department of Natural Resources Environmental Protection Division (GAEPD) have provided extensive guidance on how to conduct a source water assessment; however, relatively little guidance exists on how to prepare and implement a protection plan. Source Water Assessment Plans (SWAPs) for twenty-eight Metro-Atlanta water supply intakes were completed in 2001 by the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) . These Assessments indicate that some intakes have a potentially high susceptibility to pollution due to the density of contaminant point sources and high amounts of impervious surface (indicator of nonpoint source impacts). The source water protection strategies described herein outline a framework for local protection plans and provides a number of strategies that are appropriate for source water watersheds of different sizes and levels of impact. The recommendations in this document include programmatic recommendations that would be applied in each of the jurisdictions as well as pollution source specific strategies. Programmatic strategies include implementation of the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District Model Stormwater Management Ordinances adopted in October 2002 to address nonpoint source loadings, implementation of the G AEPD Environmental Planning Criteria to require set backs from streams in source water watersheds, better enforcement of existing regulations, and acquisition and preservation of land within source water watersheds. A number of unique challenges exist in the development of source water protection strategies, some of which overlap with recommendations from Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) implementation strategies being developed simultaneously. Implementation of effective nonpoint source/stormwater control measures will address many of the primary sources of pollution contributing to both water quality impairments associated with TMDL listings and potential source water contamination. In order to minimize costs, source water protection strategies should be combined, to the extent possible, with watershed protection and management programs.
Geographic information systems in support of index of biotic integrity monitoring in Georgia streams

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2003-04) Litts, Thomas L. Jr

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Stream Survey Team (GDNR-SST) assesses fish assemblages in wadeable streams throughout Georgia and has sampled more than 600 stream sites in the Piedmont, Southeastern Plains, and Ridge and Valley ecoregions since 1998. The GDNR-SST, in cooperation with The University of Georgia Center for Remote Sensing and Mapping Science (UGA-CRMS), has developed a custom Geographic Information Systems (GIS) that is interfaced with an external relational database management system. This system enables the GDNR-SST to develop and maintain a comprehensive database representing this sampling effort and to automate many of the tasks associated with the process including; data entry, database management, IBI scoring, watershed delineation, and report generation. The GIS has been developed using Environmental Systems Research Institute’s (ESRI) ArcView, the Avenue Scripting Language, Microsoft Access, and Visual Basic for Applications (VBA).
Why should I conserve water when others get to use so much? A water conservation panel discussion

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2003-04) Hull, Andy ; Mays, Kirk ; McDowell, Rob ; Sims, Paul ; Stephens, Frank

The purpose of this paper is to show that, regarding water conservation in Georgia, all water use sectors are involved. This panel has representatives from the green industry, state government – institutional, state government – agriculture, private industry, and municipal government. Each panel representative will give an example of water conservation from their perspective and experience. Coordination of all of these efforts is needed, which is the main objective of the newly formed Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Water Conservation Program.
Low-Level Tritium Measurements in Groundwater near The Savannah River Site

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2003-04) Garcia, Ramon ; Rosson, Robert ; Kahn, Bernd ; Shapiro, Earl A.

The results of tritium analyses of ground water collected in 2001 and 2002 by the Georgia DNR in Burke and Screven counties near the Savannah River are reported. In some samples, the tritium concentration was below 10 pCi/L while in others it was between 1,010 and 13 pCi/L. With two exceptions, samples with detectable tritium concentrations were from the nearsurface aquifer, while the other samples were from deeper-lying aquifers. The values are compared with results presented by others during the past 10 years. Inferences by others concerning these findings are reported.
Cultural Models of Water Issues on the Georgia Coast

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2003-04) Blount, Ben G. ; Gezorr, Lisa

The reports issued by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) in 1996-1997 about salt water intrusion into the Upper Floridan Aquifer and about requirements for water management plans led to a series of numerous research and planning activities. Among those was research carried out in 1997-1998 in Glynn and McIntosh counties on public perception and knowledge about current water issues. The research consisted of intensive interviews with selected individuals and a mail questionnaire to randomly selected coastal residents. The results of the research, originally reported solely in terms of raw scores and percentages, are re-presented here as information to construct cultural models, which allow for differentiation of survey results in relation to socioeconomic categories. Communities that are the least developed economically are more concerned about development than water conservation. The reverse is also the case.
Potential Improvements in the Water Quality of the Savannah River Downstream of the J. Strom Thurmond Dam

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2003-04) Parrott, D. L.

Over the years since the Corps of Engineers hydropower plants on the Savannah River have been in operation, successive and recurring failures in the generators and transformers presented a need to look at the overall rehabilitation requirements in order to achieve safe and reliable power production. However, the Corps of Engineers went beyond just the restoration of reliable power production, and has used this opportunity to incorporate both hydropower improvements and environmental restoration as a part of the Major Rehab project. In order to help offset the low dissolved oxygen (DO) level in the tailrace during the late summer and early fall, the new turbines will employ the new Auto-Venting Technology, as developed by TVA and Voith-Seimens. This technology will provide at least a 2 parts per million (ppm) increase in the DO levels in the tailrace whenever the ambient DO is 3 ppm or less. With the first of seven units installed, DO testing was initiated in the fall of 2002 to assess the capability of the new turbines to improve the DO levels over a variety of conditions. Initial tests for the first of seven turbines indicate that the DO improvements exceed expectations. Further tests will be conducted over the next 3 years to determine the total impact of the DO levels on the ecosystem downstream of the J. Strom Thurmond Dam.
Water Use Estimation for Some Major Crops in Georgia Using Geospatial Modeling

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2003-04) Boken, Vijendra K. ; Hoogenboom, Gerrit ; Guerra, Larry C. ; Hook, James E. ; Thomas, Daniel L. ; Harrison, Kerry A.

Agricultural water use estimation can contribute to finding a satisfactory solution of the water dispute among the states of Alabama, Florida, and Georgia. In this paper, the depths of irrigation for cotton, peanut, corn, and soybean are estimated for the Flint, Central, and Coastal water zones of Georgia for 2000, 2001, and 2002. In addition, the volume of irrigation for these crops are estimated for 2000 and 2001. The estimation was based on the spatial interpolation of the data collected under the Agricultural Water Pumping project. The interpolation techniques included the inverse distance weighting, local polynomial, global polynomial, radial basis function, ordinary kriging, and universal kriging. The total volume of irrigation was highest for the Flint zone (578.4 Mm3 ), followed by the Central zone (296.3 Mm3 ) and the Coastal zone (103.0 Mm3 ) for 2000. For 2001, the irrigation volume declined by 41% for the Flint zone, 31% for the Central zone, and 20% for the Coastal zone.
Mussel Conservation in the Chickasawhatchee and Elmodel Wildlife Management Areas: Methods for a Relocation Study

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2003-04) Battle, Juliann ; Golladay, Stephen W. ; Bambarger, A. Raynie

Southwest Georgia has among the richest mussel assemblages in the world. The Chickasawhatchee Wildlife Management Area (WMA), location of the second largest swamp in Georgia, and the Elmodel WMA have recently been placed into permanent conservation status (+15,000 acres) providing an opportunity for the management of mussels. In 2001, 16 locations within the WMAs were surveyed for mussels using visual and tactile methods. Nine species were found with one being very rare (Alasmidonta triangulata) and another federally endangered (Lampsilis subangulata). Mussel densities were much lower than those found in nearby streams, which may be due to prior land use and historical droughts. During the spring of 2003, we plan to relocate three mussel species (Elliptio complanata, E. crassidens, Villosa vibex) that serve as surrogates for endangered species. Their survivorship will be observed for two years; in addition, water quality and hydrology will be monitored. We hope that with the development of relocation methods and identification of suitable habitat, populations of endangered species can eventually be established within the WMAs.
North Georgia environmental database compilation for cumulative impact assessments of reservoirs

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2003-04) Bernstein, Carol ; Dial, R. Steve ; O’Connor, Maggie

In the course of processing numerous permit application packages for Section 404 and Section 10 permits, the US Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District, Regulatory Branch must prepare case documents to analyze the affects of issuing these permits. Due to the increasing number of large and complex projects, a larger area of effect must be considered in determining whether cumulative impacts are significant. Access to available data is important in completing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process, and in processing applications uniformly and with scientific basis. To increase our ability to assess cumulative impacts, we have initiated a data collection effort that will allow us to assess the effects of project proposals, along with past, present and reasonably foreseeable future actions, as defined by the Council on Environmental Quality. Savannah District coordinated with key state and federal agencies, and non-governmental organizations to develop a list of parameters that each agency feels is requisite in determining cumulative impacts. This presentation will address our efforts to gather data layers for assessing cumulative impacts of reservoir projects in the State of Georgia.
Parallel Development of MODFLOW and SUTRA Models in Coastal Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida: An Approach to Study Regional Ground-Water Flow and Local Saltwater Intrusion

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2003-04) Payne, Dorothy F. ; Provost, A. M. ; Voss, C. I.

To characterize regional ground-water flow and localized saltwater intrusion, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Environmental Protection Division (GaEPD) is developing regional-scale ground-water flow models and variable-density flow and solute-transport models for coastal Georgia, and adjacent parts of South Carolina and Florida. The objectives of these models are to predict the effects of future changes in pumping on (1) the regional ground-water-flow system and (2) saltwater intrusion in localized areas where ithas been observed or has the potential to occur. Two regional-scale models are being developed concurrently—one will use MODFLOW (Harbaugh and others, 2000; Hill and others, 2000) to simulate flow, and the other will use SUTRA (Voss and Provost, in press) to simulate flow and variable-density solute transport. The regional models encompass a 37,300-square-mile (96,600 square kilometers) area in Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida (Fig. 1). The MODFLOW model is discretized into 3,803 active cells, each 9.7 square miles (25 square kilometers) (Abu Rumman and Payne, 2003); the SUTRA model is discretized into 4,422 active elements, each roughly 8.5 square miles (22 square kilometers). The concurrent development of the regional-scale models is facilitated by the use of a common GIS-based interface and is designed to take advantage of the strengths of the two simulation codes used. MODFLOW is a constant-density flow simulator that is widely used and offers integrated parameter-estimation and sensitivity-analysis tools that facilitate model calibration. SUTRA is capable of explicitly simulating the effects of variable fluid density on the position and movement of the saltwater-freshwater interface. Accordingly, model calibration is performed primarily using the MODFLOW model; the SUTRA model is used to assess the effects of variable-density flow on the boundary conditions used in the MODFLOW model, particularly the condition used to represent the predevelopment, offshore saltwater-freshwater interface.