Climatological and Anthropogenic Impacts on Contributions to Urban Groundwater in Los Angeles, California
Presented on Monday, May 5, 2014
Tristan Acob1, Bryant Reyes1, Kimberly F. Manago1, Terri S. Hogue, PhD1 and Reed M. Maxwell, Ph.D.2, (1)Civil and Environmental Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO, (2)Geology and Geologic Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO
The urban environment greatly alters the paths through which water travels to and from the groundwater system, including increases in imperviousness, groundwater pumping, artificial recharge, leaking infrastructure, and urban irrigation. Many of these pathways are poorly understood, especially in the context of the urban semi-arid environment. Moreover, seasonality, climatic phenomena, and climate change may have notable effects on the characteristics of these urban groundwater fluxes. To analyze the interplay between climate signals and anthropogenic effects, four major groundwater basins in the city of Los Angeles (Central, San Fernando Valley, West Coast, and Santa Monica Basins) are used as a case study. We create a spatially and temporally discretized dataset of the groundwater budget for the years 1990 through 2010 at a monthly time step utilizing observed groundwater level data from wells maintained by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works (LADPW), precipitation measurements from PRISM, runoff from USGS and LADPW stream gauges in Ballona Creek and the Los Angeles River, evapotranspiration estimates using the Penman Monteith method, and artificial recharge values obtained for the relevant spreading grounds. The effects of various drought restrictions, El Niño/La Niña Southern Oscillation phenomena, and seasonality on the groundwater budget are assessed using correlation coefficients, a principal component analysis, and the Mann-Kendall trend test. Further, projections of the state of the urban semi-arid groundwater system are made with respect to future climate and urban water management scenarios. This study will create a more complete understanding of anthropogenic fluxes and climatic signal effects on urban groundwater and create an important dataset for future work.
Tristan Acob
Civil and Environmental Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO
TBA
Bryant Reyes
Civil and Environmental Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO
Bryant Reyes, B.S. Civil Engineering, Northeastern University, 2011; M.S. Civil Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, 2012; Ph.D. Civil Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, 2012-present.
Kimberly F. Manago
Civil and Environmental Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO
Kimberly Manago, B.S. Civil Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, 2010; M.S. Civil Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, 2011; Ph.D. Civil Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, 2013-present
Terri S. Hogue, PhD
Civil and Environmental Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO
Terri Hogue, B.S. Geology, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, 1995; M.S. Hydrology and Water Resources, University of Arizona, 1998; Ph.D. Hydrology and Water Resources, University of Arizona, 2003; Assistant Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, 2003-2009; Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, 2009-2012; Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, 2012-present.
Reed M. Maxwell, Ph.D.
Geology and Geologic Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO
Reed Maxwell is a faculty member in the Geology and Geologic Engineering Department at Colorado School of Mines. His research focuses on hydrology, including connections within the hydrologic cycle and their influence on water quantity and quality. He teaches classes on integrated hydrology, fluid mechanics, and modeling terrestrial flows. He leads a research group of two postdocs and three graduate students in the International Groundwater Modeling Center. Maxwell holds a Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. Before joining Colorado School of Mines, he worked in the Hydrologic Sciences group at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
