PLANNING LEVEL ESTIMATES OF THE VALUE OF RESERVOIRS FOR WATER SUPPLY AND FLOW AUGMENTATION IN NEW HAMPSHIRE1

: In general, the choice among reservoirs for water supply or flow augmentation is a multiobjective problem. Choices are based in part on the yield available from water supply reservoirs or, in the case of flow augmentation reservoirs, on the increase in low flows at downstream locations. Detailed estimates of these effects may be too costly for basin planning purposes. Thus this paper presents methods for rapid estimation of those quantities for New Hampshire. For water supply reservoirs, a composite empirical relation between Y95 (the draft available 95 percent of the time) and storage ratio, S*, is developed from previous studies in the region. For flow augmentation reservoirs, empirical relations between S* and degree of regulation, R*, are applied to each upstream regulating reservoir. Values of regulation arc then summed and divided by the mean flow at the downstream reach of interest. This parameter, (ΓR)*, is then related to increase in flow available 95 percent of the time by an empirical relation.     

OBJECTIVES AND CONSTRAINTS IN FEDERAL WATER RESOURCES PLANNING1

ABSTRACT: The Water Resources Council's Principles and Standards stipulate that plans should be formulated to meet national, regional, state, and local needs or problems. It is not clear, however, how appropriate consideration can be given to both national objectives (NED and EQ) and local needs and problems. Two methods of incorporating national objectives and local problem solving into water resources planning are examined. They are plan formulation primarily in pursuit of national objectives, and plan formulation to solve local problems, but constrained by national objectives. The first of these methods is the approach which is becoming increasingly explicit in the development and elaboration of the Water Resources Council's Principles and Standards. The analysis indicates that the Water Resources Council's approach is neither the most practical nor the most desirable of the two methods examined. It creates unnecessary difficulties and fails to achieve its purpose. Plan formulation to solve local problems, but constrained by national objectives not only describes what field planners actually do, but is also more practial and more desirable.     

THE MILWAUKEE POLLUTION CASE - IMPLICATIONS FOR WATER RESOURCES PLANNING1

ABSTRACT: The Illinois v. Milwaukee Federal District Court decision is the most far reaching application yet of the federal common law of nuisance to interstate water pollution conflicts. Although a Federal Appelate Court recently rescinded part of the district court decision, Milwaukee must still upgrade its metropolitan sewage system to a level beyond that required by federal and state regulations. The improvements must be completed with or without federal aid. The case points out the apparent inability of the Clean Water Act, the most comprehensive federal legislation affecting the nation's water quality, to deal with certain interstate water quality conflicts. The Milwaukee decision could set a precedent for similar settlements elsewhere which may in turn affect the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's water quality clean up program. A more integrated, ecosystem conscious approach to management of shared water resources (e.g., the Great Lakes) would help reduce the need for court decisions like Illinois v. Milwaukee.     

SOCIAL WELL-BEING AND WATER RESOURCES PLANNING1

ABSTRACT: For many years, Federal water resources projects have been subjected to benefit-cost analysis to establish their economic feasibility. Several years ago social well-being was added as a consideration. This paper discusses the state-of-the-art in analyzing and evaluating aspects of social well-being. It stresses current short-falls and advocates a direction for further efforts.     

DECISION-MAKING IN THE DEVLOPMENT OF URBAN WATERFRONTS FOR PARK/BUSINESS USE1

Abstract: Opportunities for the development of an amalgam of park and leisure-oriented commercial establishments in urban-core waterfont settings exist in many U.S. cities. Public awareness of the need to enhance the environmental quality of these waterfont areas has resulted in a demand for planning and implementation action. However, the lack of understanding of urban political systems has been an inhibiting factor in the development of this park/ business concept. The major factors that influence the decision-making process leading to the development of urban-core waterfronts for park/business use are identified inthis paper. Understanding this decision-making process can aid project implementation and avoid waste of planning effort in time, dollars, and productivity.     

WATER QUALITY SIMULATION AND PUBLIC LAW 92–500 Case Study: Southwestern Illinois1

ABSTRACT: Section 208 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 has provided the Southwestern Illinois Metropolitan and Regional Planning Commission (SIMAPC) with a unique opportunity for comprehensive planning of the region's water quality. SIMAPC initiated the 208 study by researching available technology for the analysis of point and nonpoint sources of pollution and establishing criteria by which to judge the various technniques. This led to SIMAPC'S choice of continuous simulation of stream and reservoir water quality as the most appropriate analytical tool for their needs. A continuous simulation model was calibrated and verified on three basins in the SIMPAC region. It was then used to produce load source analysis, pollution event frequency analysis, and pollution event duration analysis for ten pollutants under existing stream conditions and then under alternative future conditions. These results enabled the weighting of pollutant sources, analysis of the effectiveness of control measures, and quantitative analysis of the marginal benefit of each alternative.     

ANALYZING THE IMPACT OF LAND USE ON SEWER SERVICE AREA PLANNING1

ABSTRACT: The density and distribution of land uses has important consequences for the planning of sewerage systems and for the costs of these systems. This paper examines these consequences using a simplified service area model. The model determines the area to be served by a central waste treatment plant, where alternative on-lot disposal systems are also available. The model is applied to various urban area configurations, which are summarized by their total populations and by their population density distributions. Both minimum regional cost and minimum local cost service area configurations are determined. In addition, the sensitivity of the model to the parameters of the cost and population density functions is assessed. It is found that the model is most sensitive to the parameters of the collection cost function.     

Satellites viewing our world: The NASA landsat and the NOAA SMS/GOES

Thousands of individuals throughout the world are now users of satellite data. Hundreds of satellites have been launched—military, navigation, communications, educational, weather, and earth resources. One of the weather satellites (the SMS/GOES) and the NASA earth resources mapping satellite (Landsat) are the subjects of this article. Data from these systems have been highly cost beneficial, not only in the United States, but in developed and developing nations all over the globe as well. There is an increasing demand both for data and for training in data use.Data samples are shown and applications are discussed. Strong reference is made to the value of the digital computer in natural and man-made features mapping and monitoring. Procedures for acquiring NASA data are explained so that the reader may order data for his home region, or for other regions throughout the world which are of interest for their agriculture, forestry, hydrology, marine resources, geology, or land use. The cost of data is incredibly low; some products cost as little as three dollars.Also discussed are the remotely based data-collection platforms that acquire ground or water data daily and relay results to the NASA Landsat or to the NOAA SMS/GOES.     

THE CIRCUIT RIDING ORDINANCE ADMINISTRATOR: A SOLUTION TO SMALL COMMUNITY TECHNICAL INADEQUACIES1

ABSTRACT: Small, rural communities (less than 2500 population) in general do not have governmental staffs with the breadth required to satisfactorily implement and enforce a drainage ordinance. This fact has serious implications in rural Planning. Within a six-country rural area of Southwest Virginia, the circuit riding town manager program has been successfully conducted. The circuit riding town manager is a planning staff member who acts in the capacity of a town manager (assistant to the mayor) for five small towns, any one of which alone could not afford to support the services of such a professional. This note recommends that a circuit riding technical ordiance administrator program could be developed along the same lines. In this manner, the technical ordinance program for serveral small communities could be successfully implemented.     

CHICAGO METROPOLITAN FLOODWATER MANAGEMENT PLAN1

ABSTRACT: The Chicago Metropolitan Floodwater Management Plan is a cooperative planning program under Public Law 566 of the 83rd Congress (The Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act). The planning effort was jointly sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service, and the Metropolitan Sanitary District of Greater Chicago. The project is unique in that it studies a 1260 square mile (3266 sq. kilometer) watershed, which is approximately 35 percent urbanized and contains approximately 7.5 million people. At present, approximately 4.4 percent or 330,600 people live in a floodplain. It is presently estimated that 80,000 acres (32,000 ha.) of the study area are subject to flooding with a current average annual damage estimated at approximately $10 million. The Plan which has been developed to reduce or eliminate these damages is divided into six separate watershed plans, and has been developed through extensive use of local citizen watershed steering committees. The paper discusses the planning process, public participation and implementation both at an overall river basin level and watershed case study level.