A calibrated multi-layer MODFLOW model of the Taos groundwater system was developed by a team of hydrologists as part of the local water right adjudication settlement.  Federal resources financed the drilling of several deep piezometer nests that quantified large vertical hydrologic gradients, as well as providing extensive aquifer test data.  The resulting groundwater model accurately simulates the observed vertical gradients, and adequately simulates other water level and groundwater discharge data.   

The model was used to test adjudication settlement proposals.  Settlement proposals involved making use of the deep aquifer instead of the shallow aquifer, or using water from the deep aquifer to augment surface water supplies on the high plateau, so the correct simulation of the degree of connection between the deep and shallow aquifer was of vital importance.  Because we have observational data quantifying the hydrologic gradient between the shallow and deep aquifer, we can simulate the hydrologic connection with some degree of confidence. 

The model will also form the basis for administration of groundwater in the Taos area, and will be used to calculate the impacts of groundwater pumping on the Rio Grande, and on the tributaries which supply irrigation water to the high plateau.