Open-File Report 2009-1126
AbstractThis report describes and documents a decision support system for the Gunnison River in Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. It is a macro-embedded EXCEL program that calculates and displays indicators representing valued characteristics or processes in the Black Canyon based on daily flows of the Gunnison River. The program is designed to easily accept input from downloaded stream gage records or output from the RIVERWARE reservoir operations model being used for the upstream Aspinall Unit. The decision support system is structured to compare as many as eight alternative flow regimes, where each alternative is represented by a daily sequence of at least 20 calendar years of streamflow. Indicators include selected flow statistics, riparian plant community distribution, clearing of box elder by inundation and scour, several measures of sediment mobilization, trout fry habitat, and federal reserved water rights. Calculation of variables representing National Park Service federal reserved water rights requires additional secondary input files pertaining to forecast and actual basin inflows and storage levels in Blue Mesa reservoir. Example input files representing a range of situations including historical, reconstructed natural, and simulated alternative reservoir operations are provided with the software. |
First posted July 13, 2009
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Auble, G.T., Wondzell, M., and Talbert, C., 2009, Decision support system for evaluation of Gunnison River flow regimes with respect to resources of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2009–1126, 24 p.
Introduction
Purpose
Study Area
Structure of Decision Support System
Basic Use
Input
Daily Hydrologic Input
Secondary Input
Execution and Output
Indicator Variables
Box Elder Clearing
Plant Communities
Trout Fry Habitat
Sediment Mobilization
National Park Service Water Right
Overview
Minimum Flow
May–June Peak Flow
Shoulder Flow
Hydrologic Indicators
Annual Minimum Daily Discharge
Annual Mean Daily Discharge
Annual Maximum Daily Discharge
Annual 14-Day Maximum Daily Discharge
Ramp Rate
Flow Constancy
Coefficient of Variation of Monthly Discharge within Years
References Cited