Adaptive Groundwater Governance and the Challenges of Policy Implementation in Idaho’s Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer Region

Globally, groundwater overdraft poses significant challenges to agricultural production. As a result, it is likely that new water management policies and governance arrangements will be needed to stop groundwater depletion and maintain agricultural viability. Drawing on interviews with state and non-state water managers and other water actors, this paper provides a study of a recent resource management agreement between surface water and groundwater irrigators in the Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer region of Idaho. Using adaptive governance as our descriptive framework, we examine how groundwater governance arrangements emerge and are applied to mitigate the impacts of groundwater overdraft. Our findings suggest that adaptive governance, while not a stated goal of the agreement, may enable flexible and sustainable social and ecological outcomes. Our findings also indicate that this new governance arrangement creates a vacuum in enforcement authority that may prove challenging as the management agreement is implemented. These findings extend our understanding of the conditions necessary for effective adaptive governance of groundwater resources, and highlight the challenge of creating capacity for local resource managers as governance shifts from more bureaucratic to adaptive and decentralised arrangements

Study on Temperature Control and Crack Prevention of Mass Concrete for Large Powerhouse Constructed in Cold Area

Due to complex structure, large scale, and cold climate, the temperature field and stress field during construction of BoYi Station is different with ordinary mass concrete. Therefore the corresponding crack prevention method must be explored. In order to simulate the complicated construction course, cold climate, multiple materials and unusual structure, a finite element program is adopted. In 5 numerical simulation cases, different temperature control methods are tried to decrease the tensile stress of mass concrete. Based on the simulation analysis and combined with the engineering experience, the scheme and indexes of temperature control and crack prevention are recommended. The mainly measures are controlling pouring temperature, insulation of concrete surface, pipe cooling, block partition and extra steel bar reinforcement. The values of temperature indexes are sharply lower than that of ordinary hydropower station mass concrete. The suggested measures and indexes in this paper, which are various with season, structure position and material, may provide some reference to similar large hydropower station workshop in cold area

Study on Temperature Control and Crack Prevention of Mass Concrete for Large Powerhouse Constructed in Cold Area

Due to complex structure, large scale, and cold climate, the temperature field and stress field during construction of BoYi Station is different with ordinary mass concrete. Therefore the corresponding crack prevention method must be explored. In order to simulate the complicated construction course, cold climate, multiple materials and unusual structure, a finite element program is adopted. In 5 numerical simulation cases, different temperature control methods are tried to decrease the tensile stress of mass concrete. Based on the simulation analysis and combined with the engineering experience, the scheme and indexes of temperature control and crack prevention are recommended. The mainly measures are controlling pouring temperature, insulation of concrete surface, pipe cooling, block partition and extra steel bar reinforcement. The values of temperature indexes are sharply lower than that of ordinary hydropower station mass concrete. The suggested measures and indexes in this paper, which are various with season, structure position and material, may provide some reference to similar large hydropower station workshop in cold area

Economic Impact of Agricultural Water Restrictions in Southeastern Idaho

Across the arid West, climate change poses threats to agricultural water availability; in southeastern Idaho, stakeholders have attempted to preemptively address these and other water issues. In 2015, farmers and other stakeholders signed the Managed Aquifer Recharge Settlement Agreement (MARSA). While this agreement has provided safe harbor from water calls until 2020, farmers face significant water cut requirements, which may negatively affect their ability to remain profitable. As part of MARSA, groundwater users agreed to an average cut back of 12.9% of water previously used for irrigation. Understanding the economic impact of these cuts is essential to facilitating and supporting the adaptations needed for farm operations to remain economically viable. By analyzing interview data, this research aims to provide an initial understanding of the impacts of the water cuts on crop yield production and household income. Additionally, we identify factors that shape the level of impact experienced by individual farmers. We anticipate that factors such acreage owned and crop rotation will influence the level of impact that the agreement had on farmers, and that farmers will describe these intersections in interviews

Farmer adaptation to reduced groundwater availability

The sustainability of agriculture in the American West depends on the capacity of farmers to adapt to water resource constraints. Most US studies of agricultural adaptations measure farmers’ willingness to adopt various water use reduction strategies, meaning we have little empirical data on which strategies farmers implement and how these decisions impact their farms. We use survey data from 265 farmers in southeastern Idaho who, beginning in 2016, were required to cut annual groundwater withdrawals by 4%–20% to identify (1) the adaptation practices farmers implemented; (2) how reported crop yields and farm income were impacted; and (3) how adaptation practices varied by farm and farmer characteristics. We found the most commonly used adaptations were reduced spending, installation of more efficient irrigation systems or less frequent watering, and changing crop rotations. Farmers reported losing on average 7.6% of their yield and 8.4% of their income over the first two years of the water cuts. We found no systematic variation based on specific farm or farmer characteristics. Drawing on these results and prior research, we present a typology of adaptation categories intended to inform future research, allow comparisons to adaptation strategies elsewhere, and assist policymakers in designing effective policy interventions